April 16-22, 2007
Our weather has been in the mid to upper 80s this whole week. With the exception of one or two days, it has been sunny and bright. The sun seems to be hovering a scant three inches above my scalp and also seems to be following me around. I’m not sure if this is due to our altitude or that the sun is just closer and hotter to the Earth in Asia. In any case, my diminishing forest of lush thick hair is allowing these molten solar rays to bake the top of my head. I have taken to wearing a hat now even if it means a 30-second jaunt to the porta-potty and back. I now know why guys wear hats a lot as they get older and or get hair pieces. I’m opting for the former, however, if I lose any more hair the piece may seem like a good idea.
Ed and I were finally able to brew a batch of beer this week and will hopefully have it bottled soon. This is certainly not the simple process of filling up six gallons of water in a brew kettle, boiling, and transferring to a carboy. No, this entails opening 46 of the ½ liter bottles of water and dumping them into the fermentation bucket. About 1/3 of the water had to be boiled and the magical ingredients had to be added at just the right time and temperature. All of this is much easier to control with an adjustable heating source and running water like we have at home. Fumbling around with bottled water, converting volumes to U.S. standard from metric, and performing this feat at 1300 meters in elevation is exasperating! What I can tell you is that the Bagram Brewery is now under way and the first batch, a Bitter, is in the works. This stuff will ferment for the next four to six days before being bottled. The beer better be worth it or I’ll only attempt to brew three more batches! I’ll obviously keep you informed of the progress.
I received a package from Kristine that included the video game Command & Conquer 3. With the game box was a letter from Cole who picked out the game, researched it online, and provided me with warnings and hints that he had written in the letter. He’s 7! How does my seven-year-old son know how to do all this stuff?! What’s even more amazing is that he is right! Of all the video games out there, this is the one that I wanted and Cole knew that without me telling him. He even coerced his mother into buying it for me. I know Cole is a talented kid, but I am duly impressed. Now if I could only get him to use that motivation to mow the lawn.
It’s only taken me six months, but I finally have a run and workout routine. I have been trying to find the best times of day and or night to do both and on some kind of schedule. As all you all know, I’m kind of a social guy and like to do these kinds of things with someone else. That’s where Ed comes in. I wouldn’t say I twisted his arm to get him to do this with me, it was more like breaking the right arm and threatening to do the same with the left (Ed is left-handed). The good news is that we run every other morning and workout on the mornings we are not running. 0615 every morning is the perfect time. The weather is great, road traffic is low, and the gym has only a few people working out at that time. It affords us the opportunity to shower and e-chat with our significant others a bit before heading off to the grind of work.
The other night after finishing a grueling day at work, Ed and I decided to get up on our roof and sip a little Coca-Cola while taking in the stars, sights, and sounds of an American Air Force Base half-way around the world from you fine folks. It was a beautiful night complete with a light breeze and 70 degree air. Watching and hearing an F-18E take off in the night from a distance of 500 meters away is awesome! It’s even that much more awe-inspiring when a second one leaves terra-firma seconds after the first. Mr. Amateur Astronomer Ed was pointing out constellations, planets, galaxies, and even the orbiting international space station. It’s surprising how close we seemed to the heavens (maybe that’s why the sun keeps baking me). We reflected on how we came to be here now and the events that lead up to this. We talked about how we would never forget these experiences and about the things we would do upon our return home. We decided that ‘guys only events’ were off-limits for the first month after our return. So Doug, no Vegas trips until 30 days after we get back to wonderful Washington; plan it for day 31!
Work is the thing that keeps me going. Ed has mentioned on a couple of occasions about a day off. He’s only been here 33 days and he wants a day off?! He had a couple of days off between leaving Iraq and arriving here. I’m not interested in taking days off. They’re boring. What is there to do other than drive the 7.5 mile oval around Bagram and clean something? Sure, I could spend more time writing these and getting them out a little more efficiently, but I would otherwise be bored. I’m not into boredom. I’m into excitement, sizzling with opportunity that includes thrill, suspense, and maybe (only maybe) a hint of danger! My work here provides a lot of that; just ask my left thumb.
Speaking of my thumb, it is healing nicely. My mother provided me with Vitamin E oil and other supplements for good health. The wounds are nearly healed and I believe with future copious amounts of E oil slathered on my thumb daily, the scars will be almost undetectable. Although it will be great to have a normal thumb again (it certainly makes typing easier), there is something cool with having the scars and being able to tell my grandchildren about the time my thumb was nearly bitten off by the Yeti I had to wrestle to death when I was in Afghanistan climbing the Hindu Kush. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to elaborate about the benefits of modern science and skin replacement technology.
As you know from Week 23, my Giant Voice speaker is repaired. I initially looked into putting a contract out on the dude who fixed it, but once I found out the J6 Shop (Signal and Communications) was responsible for the fix I decided against it. The J6 folks have been good to us and allow us to use their systems whenever we need, however none of those guys live in this hut with a speaker that close. I have put my two-week Dari Headstart Language Program to good use and have bribed a local to cut a wire or turn the speaker. He agreed to do it for $4 American large, although the date in which this job will be completed is yet unknown. I am hoping for SOON as I am growing weary of the announcements about the aerial gunnery range, planned demolitions, and the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader visits at all hours of the day and night. I have grown accustomed to the jets and cargo planes taking off and landing as I rarely hear them anymore regardless of the thrust shaking my room like a 3.3 earthquake; it’s the announcements that are really bothering me.
Our grilling prowess is becoming legendary! Our SF guys have been inviting girls over to partake in Ed’s and my expertise at producing food products with taste and texture similar to back home. I guess it is their new pick-up line: “Hey Olympia, would you like to come over to my place for dinner? I have two grill chefs that are putting out a culinary masterpiece for your eating enjoyment! Interested?” It seems to be working for them. They also had a couple of Polish soldiers over the other night that now seem to think U.S. SF teams are deployed to combat zones with their own chefs. Who woulda thunk it?
The Engineers showed up this week to move our C Huts into place. Earlier we coordinated for the Navy Seabees (yes, our Navy; more on that later) to level out the ground where we wanted the C Huts placed. The C Huts are 20’ x 10’ metal shipping containers that have been converted into individual living rooms. They have their own Chigo that provide thermostatically controlled air comfort, insulated interior complete with faux wood paneling, and an armoire. They even have a sliding window with real tempered glass right next to the door. This means the finished interior room is 8.5’ wide by 18’ long for a total square footage of 153 square feet. That beats my current 72 square feet by a large margin and I will not have neighbors in and out of the hut at all hours of the day and night (kind of a recurring theme here) as Ed and I will be the only inhabitants at this location. Nope, our two C Huts are located 37 paces from our shop and 70 meters from the shower. It will be bliss. Next up: electricians to hook up the power so I can continue writing these weeklies. Obviously, I requested 110 power as opposed to the 220 they are wired for. I’m pretty sure I’ll be successful on that request.
Our United States Navy has a significant presence here in Afghanistan. I guess they are tired of the boat and submarine duty and wanted to find out what dry land is all about. Actually, I think it is all about glory. The Navy was jealous with the Army and Marines getting 90% of the attention while the Air Force was picking up 8%. The Navy had to share the remaining 2% with the Coast Guard and didn’t seem too excited about it, hence their land assignments here. They are here for four month stints that include things like shopping at the PX, making their fat sailors do exercise, and emulating the Egyptians. The Seabees on the other hand are actually working. Their focus is on structural improvements, and after chatting a couple of them up about our desires, they are excited about helping us out. I am thankful for their efforts.
The PX was selling some Budweiser NA the other day and I bought a six-pack of the stuff to give it a whirl. Terrible is all I can say. I didn’t know that alcohol is what made it taste like beer. How is it you can remove an essentially taste-less item from a drink and make the drink bad? Surely the brewing process is different, but if Snapple can combine Mango, Peach, and Strawberry into something palatable, certainly the World’s largest producer of beer could make a non-alcoholic version of their beer taste like the original! Where are the artificial ingredients and the taste additives?! Could somebody at Anheuser-Busch please look into this for me? That’s the last Bud NA I’ll ever attempt to consume. I’ll use the remnants of the six-pack to hurl at the Taliban. It reminded me of Three Horses Beer, Joe. Remember that experience?
All good things must come to an end and that is where I am at with Weekly number 24. The picture I’m attaching this week is one I should have sent last week. Anyway, it’s Ed and me just before the beginning of the GWOT Trot in front of our hut. As you can clearly see, we have our race ‘bib’ numbers on our shirts and appear to be in racing shape. Isn’t it amazing how good I look before the run?
Next week’s Weekly will be filled with tales of awe and adventure while bottling beer, refusing to pay $60 a liter for Kyrgy Vodka, and imbibing you with the taste of dust from a freak windstorm that blew buildings over. Stay tuned.
Craig
Our weather has been in the mid to upper 80s this whole week. With the exception of one or two days, it has been sunny and bright. The sun seems to be hovering a scant three inches above my scalp and also seems to be following me around. I’m not sure if this is due to our altitude or that the sun is just closer and hotter to the Earth in Asia. In any case, my diminishing forest of lush thick hair is allowing these molten solar rays to bake the top of my head. I have taken to wearing a hat now even if it means a 30-second jaunt to the porta-potty and back. I now know why guys wear hats a lot as they get older and or get hair pieces. I’m opting for the former, however, if I lose any more hair the piece may seem like a good idea.
Ed and I were finally able to brew a batch of beer this week and will hopefully have it bottled soon. This is certainly not the simple process of filling up six gallons of water in a brew kettle, boiling, and transferring to a carboy. No, this entails opening 46 of the ½ liter bottles of water and dumping them into the fermentation bucket. About 1/3 of the water had to be boiled and the magical ingredients had to be added at just the right time and temperature. All of this is much easier to control with an adjustable heating source and running water like we have at home. Fumbling around with bottled water, converting volumes to U.S. standard from metric, and performing this feat at 1300 meters in elevation is exasperating! What I can tell you is that the Bagram Brewery is now under way and the first batch, a Bitter, is in the works. This stuff will ferment for the next four to six days before being bottled. The beer better be worth it or I’ll only attempt to brew three more batches! I’ll obviously keep you informed of the progress.
I received a package from Kristine that included the video game Command & Conquer 3. With the game box was a letter from Cole who picked out the game, researched it online, and provided me with warnings and hints that he had written in the letter. He’s 7! How does my seven-year-old son know how to do all this stuff?! What’s even more amazing is that he is right! Of all the video games out there, this is the one that I wanted and Cole knew that without me telling him. He even coerced his mother into buying it for me. I know Cole is a talented kid, but I am duly impressed. Now if I could only get him to use that motivation to mow the lawn.
It’s only taken me six months, but I finally have a run and workout routine. I have been trying to find the best times of day and or night to do both and on some kind of schedule. As all you all know, I’m kind of a social guy and like to do these kinds of things with someone else. That’s where Ed comes in. I wouldn’t say I twisted his arm to get him to do this with me, it was more like breaking the right arm and threatening to do the same with the left (Ed is left-handed). The good news is that we run every other morning and workout on the mornings we are not running. 0615 every morning is the perfect time. The weather is great, road traffic is low, and the gym has only a few people working out at that time. It affords us the opportunity to shower and e-chat with our significant others a bit before heading off to the grind of work.
The other night after finishing a grueling day at work, Ed and I decided to get up on our roof and sip a little Coca-Cola while taking in the stars, sights, and sounds of an American Air Force Base half-way around the world from you fine folks. It was a beautiful night complete with a light breeze and 70 degree air. Watching and hearing an F-18E take off in the night from a distance of 500 meters away is awesome! It’s even that much more awe-inspiring when a second one leaves terra-firma seconds after the first. Mr. Amateur Astronomer Ed was pointing out constellations, planets, galaxies, and even the orbiting international space station. It’s surprising how close we seemed to the heavens (maybe that’s why the sun keeps baking me). We reflected on how we came to be here now and the events that lead up to this. We talked about how we would never forget these experiences and about the things we would do upon our return home. We decided that ‘guys only events’ were off-limits for the first month after our return. So Doug, no Vegas trips until 30 days after we get back to wonderful Washington; plan it for day 31!
Work is the thing that keeps me going. Ed has mentioned on a couple of occasions about a day off. He’s only been here 33 days and he wants a day off?! He had a couple of days off between leaving Iraq and arriving here. I’m not interested in taking days off. They’re boring. What is there to do other than drive the 7.5 mile oval around Bagram and clean something? Sure, I could spend more time writing these and getting them out a little more efficiently, but I would otherwise be bored. I’m not into boredom. I’m into excitement, sizzling with opportunity that includes thrill, suspense, and maybe (only maybe) a hint of danger! My work here provides a lot of that; just ask my left thumb.
Speaking of my thumb, it is healing nicely. My mother provided me with Vitamin E oil and other supplements for good health. The wounds are nearly healed and I believe with future copious amounts of E oil slathered on my thumb daily, the scars will be almost undetectable. Although it will be great to have a normal thumb again (it certainly makes typing easier), there is something cool with having the scars and being able to tell my grandchildren about the time my thumb was nearly bitten off by the Yeti I had to wrestle to death when I was in Afghanistan climbing the Hindu Kush. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to elaborate about the benefits of modern science and skin replacement technology.
As you know from Week 23, my Giant Voice speaker is repaired. I initially looked into putting a contract out on the dude who fixed it, but once I found out the J6 Shop (Signal and Communications) was responsible for the fix I decided against it. The J6 folks have been good to us and allow us to use their systems whenever we need, however none of those guys live in this hut with a speaker that close. I have put my two-week Dari Headstart Language Program to good use and have bribed a local to cut a wire or turn the speaker. He agreed to do it for $4 American large, although the date in which this job will be completed is yet unknown. I am hoping for SOON as I am growing weary of the announcements about the aerial gunnery range, planned demolitions, and the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader visits at all hours of the day and night. I have grown accustomed to the jets and cargo planes taking off and landing as I rarely hear them anymore regardless of the thrust shaking my room like a 3.3 earthquake; it’s the announcements that are really bothering me.
Our grilling prowess is becoming legendary! Our SF guys have been inviting girls over to partake in Ed’s and my expertise at producing food products with taste and texture similar to back home. I guess it is their new pick-up line: “Hey Olympia, would you like to come over to my place for dinner? I have two grill chefs that are putting out a culinary masterpiece for your eating enjoyment! Interested?” It seems to be working for them. They also had a couple of Polish soldiers over the other night that now seem to think U.S. SF teams are deployed to combat zones with their own chefs. Who woulda thunk it?
The Engineers showed up this week to move our C Huts into place. Earlier we coordinated for the Navy Seabees (yes, our Navy; more on that later) to level out the ground where we wanted the C Huts placed. The C Huts are 20’ x 10’ metal shipping containers that have been converted into individual living rooms. They have their own Chigo that provide thermostatically controlled air comfort, insulated interior complete with faux wood paneling, and an armoire. They even have a sliding window with real tempered glass right next to the door. This means the finished interior room is 8.5’ wide by 18’ long for a total square footage of 153 square feet. That beats my current 72 square feet by a large margin and I will not have neighbors in and out of the hut at all hours of the day and night (kind of a recurring theme here) as Ed and I will be the only inhabitants at this location. Nope, our two C Huts are located 37 paces from our shop and 70 meters from the shower. It will be bliss. Next up: electricians to hook up the power so I can continue writing these weeklies. Obviously, I requested 110 power as opposed to the 220 they are wired for. I’m pretty sure I’ll be successful on that request.
Our United States Navy has a significant presence here in Afghanistan. I guess they are tired of the boat and submarine duty and wanted to find out what dry land is all about. Actually, I think it is all about glory. The Navy was jealous with the Army and Marines getting 90% of the attention while the Air Force was picking up 8%. The Navy had to share the remaining 2% with the Coast Guard and didn’t seem too excited about it, hence their land assignments here. They are here for four month stints that include things like shopping at the PX, making their fat sailors do exercise, and emulating the Egyptians. The Seabees on the other hand are actually working. Their focus is on structural improvements, and after chatting a couple of them up about our desires, they are excited about helping us out. I am thankful for their efforts.
The PX was selling some Budweiser NA the other day and I bought a six-pack of the stuff to give it a whirl. Terrible is all I can say. I didn’t know that alcohol is what made it taste like beer. How is it you can remove an essentially taste-less item from a drink and make the drink bad? Surely the brewing process is different, but if Snapple can combine Mango, Peach, and Strawberry into something palatable, certainly the World’s largest producer of beer could make a non-alcoholic version of their beer taste like the original! Where are the artificial ingredients and the taste additives?! Could somebody at Anheuser-Busch please look into this for me? That’s the last Bud NA I’ll ever attempt to consume. I’ll use the remnants of the six-pack to hurl at the Taliban. It reminded me of Three Horses Beer, Joe. Remember that experience?
All good things must come to an end and that is where I am at with Weekly number 24. The picture I’m attaching this week is one I should have sent last week. Anyway, it’s Ed and me just before the beginning of the GWOT Trot in front of our hut. As you can clearly see, we have our race ‘bib’ numbers on our shirts and appear to be in racing shape. Isn’t it amazing how good I look before the run?
Next week’s Weekly will be filled with tales of awe and adventure while bottling beer, refusing to pay $60 a liter for Kyrgy Vodka, and imbibing you with the taste of dust from a freak windstorm that blew buildings over. Stay tuned.
Craig
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