Adaptations
I think this makes almost six weeks since I left home and traveled to Ireland, Budapest, Kuwait, and now Iraq -Camp Korean Village in fact, or just KV for short. What kind of place is it? Well it's the kind of place inhabited by all sorts of riff-raff and rubish of society that's trying to make more of their lives than what they started with. Or even better are those who come from affluent of society who simply couldn't live up to the standards their predecessors had set for them, and so decided to take a few years to hide out here until they felt it safe to come out. There are seasoned vets that have seen multiple tours in both Iraq, and Afghanistan, Officer and Enlisted. And there are junior Marines, Enlisted and Officer, who have barely begun to serve and have already found themselves out here at the edge of the empire learning early lessons about life as a service member as a part of the occupying forces of Iraq. But those hasty generalizations aim wide and miss so much of the complexity of what's really out here. I didn't really know anything about Camp Korean Village before our arrival, and frankly I wouldn't have cared to know anything about this place.
Today I took the opportunity to talk to a migrant worker from Napal who has been in this county for 18 months now because the money he gets for doing my laundry is better than what he could earn at home. Another guy from India who was probably in his late 40's to early 50's is here doing the same thing and he claims to have been in country for 39 months. 39 months readers! That's longer than some of these soldiers serving on this camp will serve in the armed forces for. Long time to be away from the wife I said. He tacitly agreed. When I gave the universal sign for cash, he nodded slightly and then I gave him a solid thumbs up. I don't know if that's really the universal symbol for "right on!" like it is where I come from. As far as I know that could mean "jamb your thumb up your ass and twirl you faggot!". I asked the Napaleze (perhaps it's "Napalian"?) worker how to say good-bye in his language and I was surprised to hear him say "Namastey". I pressed my palms together in front of my chest and said "Buddha?" to which he exclaimed "oh yeah, you know!" That was cool.
I just finished having lunch and while I was eating I couldn't help but notice this Army girl kept turning around in her chair to have a look at me. A few moments later, her buddy started calling me "Sir!, hey Sir!". After she silenced him, I figured that she either told him that she plans to shoot me later on, or that she finds me rather good looking. I figured that it would be the latter. Nice. Given that I don't really have a life right now it's nice to be noticed in a positive way even when it doesn't amount to anything but indirect flirtation while I play the professional and politely ignore what's going on around me just so I can eat and get back to work.
I ran 4.2 miles today at 1215 in the afternoon. It isn't realy hot today, and since I'm weather I'll give you the current temperature -it's 80F and it's 20min until max heating. Not very hot at all. Still, it wasn't really the heat that got to me today, but the sheer amount of DUST. I can hardly take a deep breath without coughing about it right now because of all that Iraq that I inhaled earlier. So now that I've
1. Completed my morning brief to the Lt.Col
2.Sent my Forecast
3.Ran the base perimeter x3
4.Had lunch
5.Picked up my laundry
I'm back here with High pressure (good weather) with time on my hands and an internet connection that 's cooperating.
I'm listening to Mercyful Fate. If you don't know who they are -and you probably don't, then you're not alone. Still, if you went out and got their "Don't Break the Oath" album, you might be happy! Just think Anton LaVey with a metal band from the early eighties. It's not to say that I haven't outgrown what the COS had to say, but the lyrics are so tastefully blasphemous at times that you may just get a kick out of it. Do you know what the word "melisma" means? I learned it in music history when I was 20. You don't do you! Well so what, now you can look it up and then know what King Diamond is doing when he sings the way he does on that album.
I've got another 2 1/2 hours until relief time and I've got just two more tasks to do before I'm done for the day and then I'm going to call home, and then read, and then go to sleep and then do the same things I did today tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day...
Today I took the opportunity to talk to a migrant worker from Napal who has been in this county for 18 months now because the money he gets for doing my laundry is better than what he could earn at home. Another guy from India who was probably in his late 40's to early 50's is here doing the same thing and he claims to have been in country for 39 months. 39 months readers! That's longer than some of these soldiers serving on this camp will serve in the armed forces for. Long time to be away from the wife I said. He tacitly agreed. When I gave the universal sign for cash, he nodded slightly and then I gave him a solid thumbs up. I don't know if that's really the universal symbol for "right on!" like it is where I come from. As far as I know that could mean "jamb your thumb up your ass and twirl you faggot!". I asked the Napaleze (perhaps it's "Napalian"?) worker how to say good-bye in his language and I was surprised to hear him say "Namastey". I pressed my palms together in front of my chest and said "Buddha?" to which he exclaimed "oh yeah, you know!" That was cool.
I just finished having lunch and while I was eating I couldn't help but notice this Army girl kept turning around in her chair to have a look at me. A few moments later, her buddy started calling me "Sir!, hey Sir!". After she silenced him, I figured that she either told him that she plans to shoot me later on, or that she finds me rather good looking. I figured that it would be the latter. Nice. Given that I don't really have a life right now it's nice to be noticed in a positive way even when it doesn't amount to anything but indirect flirtation while I play the professional and politely ignore what's going on around me just so I can eat and get back to work.
I ran 4.2 miles today at 1215 in the afternoon. It isn't realy hot today, and since I'm weather I'll give you the current temperature -it's 80F and it's 20min until max heating. Not very hot at all. Still, it wasn't really the heat that got to me today, but the sheer amount of DUST. I can hardly take a deep breath without coughing about it right now because of all that Iraq that I inhaled earlier. So now that I've
1. Completed my morning brief to the Lt.Col
2.Sent my Forecast
3.Ran the base perimeter x3
4.Had lunch
5.Picked up my laundry
I'm back here with High pressure (good weather) with time on my hands and an internet connection that 's cooperating.
I'm listening to Mercyful Fate. If you don't know who they are -and you probably don't, then you're not alone. Still, if you went out and got their "Don't Break the Oath" album, you might be happy! Just think Anton LaVey with a metal band from the early eighties. It's not to say that I haven't outgrown what the COS had to say, but the lyrics are so tastefully blasphemous at times that you may just get a kick out of it. Do you know what the word "melisma" means? I learned it in music history when I was 20. You don't do you! Well so what, now you can look it up and then know what King Diamond is doing when he sings the way he does on that album.
I've got another 2 1/2 hours until relief time and I've got just two more tasks to do before I'm done for the day and then I'm going to call home, and then read, and then go to sleep and then do the same things I did today tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day...