Festive Times

So I figured Id finally get around to doing a new post. The internet at Warrior is atrocious and so its a pain too do this, but now I'm in Qatar on R&R pass to get some rest. The good news is that the internet here is actually really fast. So, here I am after waiting in Bagram for 10 days on a ride over here, the day finally came. As far as I know, this place is built for R&R and R&R only. Its a pretty big area and so far it looks really nice. There are several tours and such that are available, so I plan on going on a Water Sports Venue. Basically they take you into Doha, the capitol of Qatar and they have jet skis and other water sports available, all of which takes place in the Persian Gulf :) Should be a lot of fun, i don't think too many people I know have been in or near the Persian Gulf. And it should also be mentioned that I have managed to scrounge up a very nice attire for the aforementioned occasion, that occasion being the R&R itself. I dont have any pictures but Ill try my best to describe this glorious clothing selection. I'll be wearing my running shoes, some North Face shorts, a Womens History Month t-shirt, and to top it all off, the cherry if you will... a black blazer that fits perfect, almost as if it was hand tailored to my exact measurements. So there you have it, soak it in, as I don't recommend taking it all in at once, it might be harmful to you and those around you.

Now for the more serious matters. I have been insanely busy with patrols and such in the past few months, which is part of the reason why I haven't updated this thing in so long. Nothing big to report, just a lot of long miserable walks and days in the sun. Cant say too much here so Ill keep it relatively short. I hope all is well with everyone at home, and I cant wait to come back and see everyone again. Stay safe and take care.

-Allen-

Home Never Seemed So Far

For the last five days or so I have been trying to make my way to Bagram Air force Base, and finally yesterday I made it. It was a short two hour ride in a Chinook which could not have been more uncomfortable. But, I am glad to be here because this base is like a small city. It has a DQ Burger King, a bunch of nice stuff I haven't seen in a long long time. I haven't even tried the BK Lounge yet in fear that my intestines will explode in a fit of unparalleled joy, which would be bad. So now I just sit and wait until I can find a bird that will take me to Kuwait so I can fly on home to Cali and enjoy my short period of beautiful freedom. I am extremely tired, I'll have to admit, so i better go find my bunk and get some rest. Hope all is well and take care.

-Allen-

Satanic Vehicle

I have come to the conclusion that the devil himself made the US Army vehicles. A few days ago we left to go on a pretty big, and as far as i know, important mission. So of course, seeing how I'm a driver I had to PMCS (Preventive Maintenance Checks and Services) the HMMWV (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle) to make sure it was in tip-top shape for the beating ahead, so I go down to the Motor Pool to get some help from the mechanics. Come to find out, there are all sorts of leaks and broken... things all over the place. I go back and tell my leaders about the HMMWV and they tell me to get it fixed as good as possible because we need all the vehicles we have. Considering the fact that I had about three hours before we got going, I didn't get a whole lot done. A few hours later we were rolling out the gate and onto Highway one, the only highway in Afghanistan, which wasn't bad on the truck at all, untill we had to get off the road that is. After about one hour of driving on the oh-so-charming dirt roads, the vehicle started acting up. It barely had any power, so going up a 3% incline was like climbing a rock wall, almost impossible. Reverse on the other hand didn't even need an incline to crap out on me. I could be sitting parked somewhere and the second I shifted to reverse the vehicle simply died on me, couldnt be more annoying. Let's just say maneuvering around the bumpy terrain got pretty difficult without much power and no reverse... At one point I was being towed and the "A-frame" (No idea what it is) broke completely and scraped along the ground. It was a HUGE piece of metal, I was pretty intrigued at the crappyness of it all. We ended up sitting in an open area for nine hours waiting for someone to come pick up the truck. All I can say is, luck must have been on our side since we didn't get attacked once the whole time, and we were pretty much sitting ducks.

Anyways, there's even more to be told, but I will hold off because I'm not too sure what all I am allowed to say on here, so keep your eyes open. Hope all is well with every one, and take care!

-Allen

Update

Just a quick hello to let you know I'm still alive. Way, way, way to tired to write anything too detailed so I'll leave it at this. Keep you updated as much as possible.

-Allen-

Taliban Needs A Bedtime!

I'm starting to get really sick and tired of these Taliban guys. Apparently they don't appreciate sleep like I do. Last week we were on QRF (Quick Reaction Force) for three days. Basically what that means is that, if anything happens around our base, we get called out to take care of whatever problem there is. It only lasts for three days, but those three days feel pretty long when you get called out 3 times during the night! Thankfully nothing too serious happened and we are all still in one piece. I still feel like someone needs to get a grip on these guys though, because I don't see any need in attacking anything at 2300, thats just far too late and they should know that we are trying to get some sleep down here! Anyways, I just wanted to express myself on the matter, because I'm loosing enough sleep as it is and those guys aren't helping in the least. Hope all is well with everyone and please take care.

-Allen-

The Guitar, The Meteor and The Wardrobe

Lately things have been going kinda slow around here, so I decided to make good time and learn a new skill, so I walked outside and saw a few of my buddies playing guitar and i thought, "Hey, I could do that." And so I did... or I'm working on it at least. I'm glad to report though, that I am picking up on it rather quickly and should be able to play at least some basic stuff when I go home on leave. Very exciting. I started learning about 3 days ago, and last night when I was sitting outside the tent with my two mentors Lee and Rathjen, the sky suddenly lit up as if a flare was just fired, so naturally we all kinda tensed up and waited for something to happen when all of a sudden out of the corner of my eye I see a big light, so obviously i turn to investigate and, bam, there was a meteor the size of Chicago, then again I've never been there but I'm just guessing. It was by far the biggest comet I have ever seen and quite possibly the coolest thing I have seen in a while. Other then that, like I said, things have been quite uneventful. Hope everyone is in good health and enjoying life. Take care and stay safe.

-Allen-

That was not fun! I just got back from a 5 day mission in the middle of the Afghanistan desert. It was neither fun nor was it pleasant. We got dropped off by a huge convoy, then we had to walk 15 kilometers to our first staging point, and since we started the mission 2 hours late we ended up doing a lot of the walking during the day. Now, I'm not sure if you are familiar with the Afghanistan area... it's VERY hot! Needless to say, we were all very very tired towards the end of our little walk. By the way, we were carrying rucksacks that weighed 40+ pounds during this whole thing. So there we were, baking out in the sun for 5 days of straight walking and laying in the sand. I'll have to admit, the third day we were there was the first time I have been really worried about what would happen. We were told that there were 32 or more Taliban in the surrounding area that knew of our presence and were setting up ambushes all along our route and they also said that they had mined the area, which, I don't know about you, but I myself am not too excited about getting blown up. The fact that we were the lead element through the route is the thing that tightened the knot in my stomach to a full on choke hold. Obviously though I am fine, so don't worry too much. Very good things came from what we did that night. and so we did quite a bit of great things , so it feels pretty good now that it is over. That's all for now and take care everyone.
-Allen-