9 July 2010
09July2010
2152
I am mainly writing this because I haven't written anything in a while. I haven't written anything public in even longer. We have had some things happen that I wrote about and kept private, as it was, because of OPSEC. Once the events are well past, I will make them available for everyone to read.
In summary, we have been busy. I sat on an observation post (OP) on top of a mountain for four days. Considering the lack of shade, it was hot during the daytime. The view was worth it, though. We could see for 20 kilometers in one direction. The other directions had mountains that were closer than that. We could actually see five different bases in different directions, ranging from 5 kilometers to 18 kilometers. There are blind spots because of terrain, but it makes it harder for the Taliban to do anything unobserved.
We have been attacked both on and off the COP. It's rare that an element leaves the wire and doesn't come across an IED (usually the hard way) or get shot at. They haven't been focusing on the COP itself as much lately. For a while, we were taking machine gun and RPG fire about every day. They tried to attack their way on two times within a few days of each other at the end of May. The first time wasn't well planned. We assume that some of our actions prompted them to kick it off earlier than they wanted (at night). The second time, it was a better effort. A lot of mortar rounds went out. A good bit of white phosphorous was used.
A lot of trucks have been blown up in the area. No one has really been hurt too badly; the trucks have done their jobs and absorbed the damage.
The rest of our platoon is here. They brought them in from Baraki Barak after Coleman went back to the States. It goes a long way towards distributing the op-tempo and guard rosters. Everyone got used to each other again fairly quickly. There has been some friction, but that will be documented in a private entry.
We have been packing the past two days. It's about time to start sending some of our stuff back by sea. It feels really good to put a lock on a duffel bag and know that I won't see the stuff inside until it catches up to me in Germany. This was the first tangible sign of redeployment.
Of all the things to get nervous about, I am stressing about my photography. I don't think that I'm good enough to take portraits, but that is where the money is. I have been told that my stuff is good, but I think I am just getting lucky. I enjoy taking pictures of the soldiers in my platoon. I have gotten some really good ones. The best ones I have are the ones that they didn’t know I took. I've always hated posed pictures. I've hated them since I was growing up and had to be in them. It's not simply that "gotcha shots" are more natural, they look better. I’ve also found the look I like. The camera I’m using here is a little point-and-shoot. I got it because it’s ruggedised. It lacks controls for f-stop and exposure time. This greatly frustrates me. I end up doing a lot of changes in Photoshop (nothing more than levels and exposure). I started making some of them black and white, and some of them grainier. I’ve decided I like the distorted and old-looking ones. It works well for military pictures. I just know that this won’t apply well to portraits. I don’t think I would like them as much anyway. I’m too worried that they won’t come out well. I think I can handle the boudoir shots because they are somewhat “loose,” if that makes any sense. They lack control and structure. Distorting them might look good.
I’m ready to come home. This deployment is strange. The hours of the day fly by, as do the days of the week. I find myself shocked that it’s already the __th of the month. The thing is, I am also shocked that it is only ::insert month here::. It’s a mind-game.
I miss my family. I love talking to Alaina, but I can’t understand her on the phone. It frustrates her and it make me feel horrible. Logan seems to like hearing my voice on the phone. I just don’t know if he even knows it’s me. He might just be fascinated by the phone as a whole. The best part is calling Tabatha. That has gotten harder, though. The Taliban have arranged for the cell towers to be turned off at night. We’re not real sure why, but we think it has something to do with their desire to keep people from calling and snitching on them at night. This relegates me to talking to her during the day. The daytime is when I’m busy. For that matter, she’s busy too. The phones cut off every day at 1845. That is 1615 her time. I normally get free around 1700. That’s when I go eat. By the time I’m done eating (with enough time to call), she’s out of the house to pick Alaina up and run errands. This makes her distracted. It also means that I’m talking to her on her cell phone, which costs a lot more per minute. I had just found a way to call the house for cheap. Not being able to hear her voice before I go to sleep is killing me. I am really ready to go home and. . . hold.
2152
I am mainly writing this because I haven't written anything in a while. I haven't written anything public in even longer. We have had some things happen that I wrote about and kept private, as it was, because of OPSEC. Once the events are well past, I will make them available for everyone to read.
In summary, we have been busy. I sat on an observation post (OP) on top of a mountain for four days. Considering the lack of shade, it was hot during the daytime. The view was worth it, though. We could see for 20 kilometers in one direction. The other directions had mountains that were closer than that. We could actually see five different bases in different directions, ranging from 5 kilometers to 18 kilometers. There are blind spots because of terrain, but it makes it harder for the Taliban to do anything unobserved.
We have been attacked both on and off the COP. It's rare that an element leaves the wire and doesn't come across an IED (usually the hard way) or get shot at. They haven't been focusing on the COP itself as much lately. For a while, we were taking machine gun and RPG fire about every day. They tried to attack their way on two times within a few days of each other at the end of May. The first time wasn't well planned. We assume that some of our actions prompted them to kick it off earlier than they wanted (at night). The second time, it was a better effort. A lot of mortar rounds went out. A good bit of white phosphorous was used.
A lot of trucks have been blown up in the area. No one has really been hurt too badly; the trucks have done their jobs and absorbed the damage.
The rest of our platoon is here. They brought them in from Baraki Barak after Coleman went back to the States. It goes a long way towards distributing the op-tempo and guard rosters. Everyone got used to each other again fairly quickly. There has been some friction, but that will be documented in a private entry.
We have been packing the past two days. It's about time to start sending some of our stuff back by sea. It feels really good to put a lock on a duffel bag and know that I won't see the stuff inside until it catches up to me in Germany. This was the first tangible sign of redeployment.
Of all the things to get nervous about, I am stressing about my photography. I don't think that I'm good enough to take portraits, but that is where the money is. I have been told that my stuff is good, but I think I am just getting lucky. I enjoy taking pictures of the soldiers in my platoon. I have gotten some really good ones. The best ones I have are the ones that they didn’t know I took. I've always hated posed pictures. I've hated them since I was growing up and had to be in them. It's not simply that "gotcha shots" are more natural, they look better. I’ve also found the look I like. The camera I’m using here is a little point-and-shoot. I got it because it’s ruggedised. It lacks controls for f-stop and exposure time. This greatly frustrates me. I end up doing a lot of changes in Photoshop (nothing more than levels and exposure). I started making some of them black and white, and some of them grainier. I’ve decided I like the distorted and old-looking ones. It works well for military pictures. I just know that this won’t apply well to portraits. I don’t think I would like them as much anyway. I’m too worried that they won’t come out well. I think I can handle the boudoir shots because they are somewhat “loose,” if that makes any sense. They lack control and structure. Distorting them might look good.
I’m ready to come home. This deployment is strange. The hours of the day fly by, as do the days of the week. I find myself shocked that it’s already the __th of the month. The thing is, I am also shocked that it is only ::insert month here::. It’s a mind-game.
I miss my family. I love talking to Alaina, but I can’t understand her on the phone. It frustrates her and it make me feel horrible. Logan seems to like hearing my voice on the phone. I just don’t know if he even knows it’s me. He might just be fascinated by the phone as a whole. The best part is calling Tabatha. That has gotten harder, though. The Taliban have arranged for the cell towers to be turned off at night. We’re not real sure why, but we think it has something to do with their desire to keep people from calling and snitching on them at night. This relegates me to talking to her during the day. The daytime is when I’m busy. For that matter, she’s busy too. The phones cut off every day at 1845. That is 1615 her time. I normally get free around 1700. That’s when I go eat. By the time I’m done eating (with enough time to call), she’s out of the house to pick Alaina up and run errands. This makes her distracted. It also means that I’m talking to her on her cell phone, which costs a lot more per minute. I had just found a way to call the house for cheap. Not being able to hear her voice before I go to sleep is killing me. I am really ready to go home and. . . hold.