Blogs from West, Iraq, Middle East - page 3

Today we gained a new addition to the hospital - a mascot of sorts. Even though we are not allowed mascots under General Order 1 (the same order that prohibits Alcohol, Sex, Fun, etc.) we adopted a bat for the afternoon. A small fuzzy bat perched himself on the windows in the main hallway. He hung from the aluminum frame of a large window. At first I thought it was a huge bug but, it was a little bat instead. It was really small and cute. Everyone was really interested in it. Since there is not much to do here everyone came to see it; even after being instructed not to get near it. The preventative med officer called vector control on the base to have it removed. By the time the vector control arrived the ... read more

Today the weather cleared. The concert is on. Puddle of Mudd a rock band from Seattle came to Al Asad tonight. Everybody is glad to see anything other than work and sand. Mark and I went early to get a good seat. The concert was held at the old stadium build by Saddam. We secured seats in the stands - and what a good thing. The sand picked up a little and the band was delayed getting in. They arrived about two hours late so we had a long time to sit. Everyone on the base must have come. The band had really nice things to say. They have been on an Iraq tour twice and were really patriotic. I really enjoyed songs off their new album “Famous.” The song that they played last was called ... read more

Today was a very exciting day. One of the Doctors, Dr. W, works in the hospital. He is an Iraqi civilian. Dr. W was born and raised in Iraq, his family left when Saddam took power in the 1970s. He moved to Montreal, Canada to escape the oppressive government. He lived in Canada until 2003 when Saddam was removed from power. Dr. W returned to Iraq to work with the new government and help his people. He has been assigned to work in the hospital as a liaison between the Iraqi people and the Americans. We treat more Iraqi civilians, Iraqi police, and Iraqi Army than we treat our own soldiers. Dr. W is really trying to make a difference and is dedicated to taking over so American Soldiers can return home. To welcome our unit ... read more

Cheerleaders, Cheerleaders, Cheerleaders. Today the Philadelphia Eagles Cheerleaders came to Al Asad for a visit. Everyone was quite excited to see their name on the bill - even if you aren't from Philadelphia. The Eagles are doing a 12 day tour of Iraq playing shows at several bases. They spent the first few minutes doing a cheerleading routine. We of course enjoyed that. Next they spent some time introducing themselves - two cheerleaders were notable. One was born is Norway so she gave her introduction in her native language, and the other was a ROTC Candidate that knew our lingo. She is going to Airborne School this summer which made everyone go nuts. Next they had a NFL trivia contest and a physical fitness test. The fitness test was a push up competition that pitted one ... read more

The unit that is leaving is counting days until they leave. My unit members are counting days already - a little early and depressing if you ask me. My company commander is counting Cigars. He smokes on cigar a week on Fridays so he says, "39 cigars till we go home." I like that. I have been busy at my new job but am coming along nicely. I have a great staff and hope to help them get even better. They will really help me do my job better than I could do alone. Our counterparts that we are replacing had a barbeque for my staff this evening. They bought steaks and potatoes. We grilled and talked for a few hours. It was a nice gesture and I really appeciated the thoughtfulness. For a brief moment ... read more