Rough times, and how to insert foot in mouth.

First Mad Jack breaks his hand. Then Delta Phil breaks his too. He's already gone down to Qatar to get the orthoscopic surgery, and from there to heal on ConLeave. So we are slightly sucking on people. Not to worry, the Loose Cannanons always pull through. But somehow for the time being we don't see whole. It seems almost as if we are missing some vital component. Add to this the stand down, and you have a platoon that hasn't done too much in almost 2 weeks. a sad state of affairs if ever i saw them.

And Then there's Lisa. Cassy was telling the truth. I just didn't want to belive her. it took the gentle words of my mother to tell me that she'd moved on. what i had begun to accept became painfully clear, and in a way liberating. It's sad she has no foresight, but then few people do. If I manage to survive Iraq, it's clear i am going on to do great things. so screw her. But women will be women

I also got that not so rare foot in mouth disease. A few things said to the wrong people at the wrong time and voila. The Pa heard me, tired, and exasperated tell a pt he had to wait for the doc to get up. oh well. i got a little reaming but hey that's life.

I'm still driving on the most dangerous roads in Iraq. I'm still having a hell of a time, and despite the heat i'm still having fun. So yea life is good. i doubt being single (again!!!) is going to cause me too much heartache. Rose Palms never left me and i Doubt i'll be single for long. but hey what do i know. I lost one of my two readers haha

Blackout Blues

It is really annoying to spend days out at the COP (this last one was a dusey at one point all OPs were firing and the Apachees joined in on the fun) only to combe back and find out that you are on commo blackout. Even more troublesome when you have no idea why. Now the stated purpose for commo blackout is sound, you don't want people calling home before the barevement team shows up. But sadly this purpose does not always work. There are . . . other methods of calling home, and, well commo blackout doesn't affect any of them.

The really sad part is if you are waiting for something important, say a girlfriend to write back, or, to see on webcam your baby being born (personally SCREW that, i've seen one birth and that is MORE than enough for one lifetime.) For me it is a chance to talk to the people i can only really keep in contact with throught the internet. Lisa for one, though even online her messages are somewhat slack. What i'm left with is previous suspicions heart ache and loss. but that's the norm for me right now.

Now being able to tell everyone about our adventures, and they are something of a tale, is something that helps me unwind. In fact having nothing but time on my hands in the FOB really works against me and all the issues i can forget about (because i'm so damm busy, or miserable from other things like the heat) come bubling back to the surface. Lisa first and formost. Am I still with her, doeas she love me, is she really cheating on me, how do i tell her how i feel in ways she can understand. Then there's the Grandparents. their slow deteriation si something i both want to be a part of and want nothing to do with, then my Borther and the stranger that he is to me, my parents and their endless woes, and genrally life itself.

Perhaps it is selfish. But it is what i long for. If you try to be sorry for every poor Joe that eats an EFP, you'll be sucking emotionally. The simple truth is you insulate yourself. i don't want to know about the other platoons, i don't want to know about their woes other than when they do something stupid and we can laugh at them. I don't want to rember and endless list of names, of people we left behind. So i bitch about Commo Blackout, knowing full well what it is for and why it is there. Sue me.

Remember and look foward.

D-Day happened some 63 years ago. My regament granered it's nickname, and one of the most truly climactic battles of the 20th century began. It is important to remember days such as these. but is is also important to know what it means. simply looking sad and being like "oh that sucked" won't do it. to truly honor those that died you must bare true faith and allegance to the same principles they fought and died for. freedom. Not just the bill of rights freedoms, but ALL freedoms, even freedom of thought (see Nazi brainwashing). It is also important to note that the "war" that america is embroiled in now is nowhere near the intensity of WWII and thus not as climactic.

Here i sit in Baghdad no fog, not even a drop of rain, and really nothing similar to that fateful June day except for one thing. 16th Infantry Regament is still fighting and dying for the freedoms of others. the talk is different, the pinups are different, and even the tactics and weapons are different, but if we took soldiers off the boats as they headed into Normandy, doubtless they would be remarkably similar to the soldiers to todays soldiers.