Week Three

The hero finally makes it to his destination. Lovely Ramadi, home of the character Saheed from 'Lost'. Now my new home for the next year. The journey here has been pleasant. I got to fly out to Fallujah and hang out with Marines for a couple days. That was a big change from being in Baghdad. It was so much more laid back. In Baghdad the two bosses desks were situated in such a way that the could watch every thing you did. You were still able to get things done, but you felt constrained and preasured while you worked. Fallujah was a world different. They didn't have Salsa night, but I was still able to get my Chai.

After playing with the Marines for a couple days I flew to Ramadi. I was lucky enough to be able to catch all my flights in one day. Travel arrangements here are less that reliable. Upon arrival in Ramadi they kicked me off the chopper and there was no one there to tell me where to go. So, I headed to the closest lit building. Luckily it is where I needed to go. I finally made it to my 'hooch' around 3am where I was able to sleep very comfortably on my, could you geuss it, bunkbed.

The set up in Ramadi is very nice. A lot nicer than I expected. We are pretty much secluded from everyone else but close enough where they can come get us if we are needed. Our shop/living area is just the right size to be able to do our work comfortably and have enough room to live. The base is pretty ugly. It has the appearance of a dusty old western town plopped in the middle of world war II europe. Lots of sandbags strewn around old concrete buildings surounded by dirt packed roads. I hear that when it rains here the mud comes up to your ankles if not higher. Fun in the sun baby.

I look forward to establishing myself in this new location. One of the first people I ran into upon arriving was a marine I served with twice in Afghanistan. He is a really good guy and I look forward to working with him. I knew I would run into someone I knew eventually. It is an incredibly small world. The only thing I have to worry about now is not turning into a hermit. I have to stretch my introverted self a little bit and make some friends. This has been an interesting adventure so far and I look forward to what may come.