Blogs from Kuwait, Middle East - page 4

I'm back. I'm still a bit dizzy from the trip. A arrived friday and now I'm already back at Kuwait - not so happy, very tired and a bit depressed. To make it worse its ramaddan, to make it better its only for 4 days. I think the trip has put somethings in perspective. It is really difficult to be satisfied whith everything that life offers you (at least for me). And the one thing I found out is that what is able to do it for you is people. As much as I am kind of a loner and like to be alone more than most, the only trully peacefull moments come when I'm surrounded by good people. This is much more important than the place where you're at. (of course a good paradisiac beach ... read more

I had training all day today. It is mostly classified so I cannot share what I learned about. I did learn that the Army has created a task force called Combined Explosive Exploitation Cell (CEXE). The acronym is pronounced SEXY. I don't know who they put in charge naming that - probably a bunch of undersexed soldiers. CEXE is the CSI of IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices or Roadside Bombs). They will go to a bomb scene after soldiers have been attacked and do forensic research to look for clues as to the bombs origination. They are collecting great evidence and are able to find the bomb maker occasionally. The bomb makers are revered in Iraq. If we get to the maker instead of the emplacer we really help the troops on the ground. Get em' boys. ... read more

Laundry day. I took my clothes to the laundry trailer today. The laundry is run by the Indians too. They first weigh your laundry in kilograms then ask you to dump it out. They thouroughly check your pockets for cash and ammunition; then inventory it. They list the size and type of every item and write it up as if you were at a real dry cleaner. It will be ready in three days - better than the turn around at my home dry cleaner. Hopefully it will smell better. This evening we went to an outdoor concert at the Camp stage. The Redding Brother's from Nashville, Tennessee played. They are a rock band who played some original music and covers. They were not great but the best band in Kuwait right now anyway. The singer ... read more

Today we woke up at 1:30 AM to go to the firing range. We had to test fire our weapons to ensure that they work. We drove about an hour into the middle of the desert to get away from any civilization. I say bedowins with 2 herds of sheep. I also saw my first camels. There were two of them several hundred yards off in the distance. I fired my weapon as did 400 of my closest friends. It sounded like a huge fire fight. We arrived back at camp in enough time for breakfast. I decided to take a short nap. I woke up at 1530 realizing that I had slept half of the day away. Mark and I went to the gym. Who knows what tomorrow will hold.... read more

Today we had our first classes. We learned about Force Protection and IEDs. Our first trainer was from the Navy. He was a knowledgeable guy but a little rough around the edges. The second trainer was a British Engineer. What a riot. He taught us about fratracide. He showed us a video clip that had a guy getting his in the testicles with a golf ball. He said, "No matter what culture you are from or how civilized we become seeing someone getting hit in the testicles is funny." He class was witty but informative. His parting discussion was to list all of the various coalition forces in theater. He listed the Americans, Brits, Aussies, Pols, etc. The smallest contingent is the Moldovan Army with 4 troops. He said, "that is 4 more than the French." ... read more