The Answer is: Mud....mud....and more mud.

What is the question?

What you get when you have dirt everywhere you look, and it rains?

That is correct!

We are entering the rainy season here. It wouldn't be so bad if there was grass.....but no, just dirt! I can't say yet that I'll never complain about mowing the lawn again, but I do have a whole new appreciation for grass!

I'm still looking for more permanant internet. Nothing yet. Also, my supervisor is driving me nuts! Such is life, I suppose. As long as I have things to regain my sanity at the end of the night, I think I'll be ok.

Thank you for anyone who has sent packages! BTW, if you send me a phone card, I'll use the minutes to call you back! The rate is about 1/5 of a minute. (ie, a 500 min card is good for about 100 min call home.) Please use AT&T cards because that's the phone service available here.

Well, I'm running out of time so I gotta close this out.

JP Out!

P.S. I will be home for leave soon. Please check with my parents for the dates.

Hey, Mail!

For convienence, I thought I'd type up a short list of things I would like to receive in the mail.

Cookies.

Thanks!

j/k

Actually, what I really need, and is hard to get, is canned air, (for cleaning dust and sand out of things). I don't know if this can be mailed or not. I will also accept cookies! :)

I'll post more as I think of em.

JP out!

I'm Back!

It's been a really hectic few days. As the army is famous for, "Hurry up and wait!" There were many days where we waited around a few hours, then had 8hrs worth of stuff to do in the remaining 5 hrs. It's wonderful........



We've finally made it into real beds. The first time since leaving IL, I've slept in a bed in a room that had proper heat and air. I've been able to unpack for the long haul. I'll get back with pictures once I've established a regular internet connection.



So far, the worst living conditions I've experienced on this whole deployment is the FOB at Fort Dix, NJ. Even the overflow housing is better than the junk we were living in there! The food is better, the shopping is better, it really did suck back in NJ.

So anywho, I gotta go. Time is short and the days are long. (Is that a famous saying? It sounds like it should be.....hmmm)

Oh, I almost forgot, my address was changed one last time. I gave it to my parents about 2 days ago. I was given an incorrect address. So, send away! BTW, the deadline for packages to reach me before my birthday (hint, 19th) is basically today. However, I will be home for leave in early April! Ya, you read me right. So if you want to hold on to em and give em to me in person, that would be fine too. :)

Well, laters!

The Com-bat Show-er

First things first. I'm going to be extremely busy over the next week or so. I may not have time to blog or anything. Just be patient.....be patient....don't be in such a hurry! (sing with me)

Anywho, The Combat Shower. Imagine if you will, a number of shower stalls installed into a single wide trailer with a 500 gallon water tank attached to it and two little water heaters on the inside. When you work out the numbers, there is about 15 gallons per person, per day. That's not a lot of water for a shower. The official instructions are, get in, get wet, turn off the water. Lather up, rinse off, turn off water. This would be bad enough if the water were warm.

However, the previous 20 people decided they were sick of combat showers and drained the little water heaters 5 minutes before you stepped in. When the shower's made of stainless steel and stays a constant 37 degrees, and you're already naked, the ice cold water just makes it even worse! After several days of this, I wondered if the army just leaves the heaters off so that you'll conserve water. Rinsing off is even worse, cause now you're dripping wet on the 37 degree floor. You almost wanna skip the rinsing off phase, it's so cold!

So next time you're in the shower, shut off the hot water first and think of me! :)

JP out

Quick Note On My Address

I was given incomplete information!!! My address has changed in the last 24 hrs due to more info.

I gave out a three line address in the form of:

Rank, Last, First name
Unit
APO #

The correct address is in the form of:

Rank, Last, First name
Unit
Location
APO #

Considering it's 3am back home right now, I haven't had a chance to correct it with my parents. In a few hours, they'll have the correct address. I apologize for any inconvinence this may have caused.

JP out.

I Have An Address!!!!

They finally gave me a shipping address! This means that the buckets of cookie dough you have saved up in your freezer can now be baked, packaged and sent! Don't worry, I'll share......maybe.

If you would like my address, please contact my family or my church. I ask that you do not post it online anywhere, including e-mail. (See my post on Operational Security)

In other news, I found out that bad habits have an effective range of over 10,000 miles! I thought that by removing myself from my environment, I'd have a better handle over my bad habits, but one of them reared it's ugly head. I stayed up too late, which resulted in me being late to work. On the civilian side of things, it's bad enough, but on the army side, that's a big deal. The margin for error is a lot smaller. I need prayer to conquer this. I can't be screwing myself out of sleep or showing up late. Any suggestions are welcome.

Thanks!

JP Out

Viewing the Sunset from the Balcony...

...of Sadaam's Palace

So, what did you do today?

Out.