Sunset in Iraq, November 28, 2005

Field Marines and Garrison Residents

A FOB from the air - November, 2005

I've been asked to provide a description of our living conditions. To give you an idea of the varied living conditions throughout the AO (area of operations), I'll break down the areas into three primary locations - bases, FOB's and battle positions.

Battle positions, or BP’s, are where you'll find grunts from the Infantry Battalions and Combat Service Support units. They are found in locations where the Command needs a combat ready presence - in rural areas or desolate locations; at border checkpoints or within city perimeters. Regardless of their location, a BP is a location where one will find the basic Marine Corps rifleman planning his next patrol, getting some shut-eye, and awaiting his marching orders. BP’s are very basic - dirt berms and hesco barriers surround the location. Entrenched vehicle positions have been dug into the soil to provide protection from small arms fire and indirect fire (IDF). You may find some tents, lots of cammie netting and maybe a plywood building or two reinforced with plenty of sandbags. Observations posts surround the BP's since the insurgency still retains a foothold in the many of the areas we occupy. Marines sleep on the ground in sleeping bags or wherever they can find a comfortable patch of ground. They still eat MRE's and fill their camelbacks from water jugs or plastic water bottles that seemingly appear everywhere. Depending on the length of time spent at the BP, the grunts rarely enjoy a hot (or cold) shower. As they return from the field, their uniforms appear stained with days or weeks worth of perspiration, dirt and oil from vehicles and weapons. Stiff with salt, they can literally stand on their own in a corner. Basic sanitation at a BP includes wet wipes and canteen cups, while the john is initially an MRE box turned on its side and a shovel to cover your mess. Eventually, the unit Corpsman will establish a “cathole” or trenchline near the outskirts of the BP in lieu of the MRE box toilets. Established BP’s eventually receive a much needed visit from a combat engineer unit who will add more permanent Jersey and Texas barriers and build outhouses from plywood and scrap lumber. BP's contain units as small as squads to as large as reinforced Companies. When outside the wire, the troops hunker down for the night in an abandoned home or unoccupied building and "go firm", with active sentries manning rooftops or other areas of vantage.

The next higher standard of living are the FOB's (Forward Operating Bases), usually situated in an area with pre-existing buildings or structures of some sort. An abandoned railroad depot, a deserted community center, or a seized governors complex may often serve as a FOB. The area is fortified with barriers and hescos, surrounded by concertina wire and has some sense of permanence. FOB’s may contain hundreds of Marines and soldiers, and often have hardstand buildings containing offices for staff members conducting tactical planning. The buildings often serve as sleeping quarters for troops. It’s not uncommon to find a room with over 100 Marines sleeping inside, gear and weapons littering the floor. The hardstand buildings provide protection from the weather and elements and are a welcome commodity at the FOB’s. Other empty rooms are divided by crude plywood walls to form multiple work spaces for the Battalion staff, LNO’s (liaison Officers), Company staff, and clerks. FOB’s also house a small cadre of KBR contractors to serve chow and conduct various contracting services for the Marines and other units assigned to the FOB. There is usually a small but permanent chowhall serving hot meals, as well as a basic utility infrastructure which ensures the ability to run the tactical computer systems and lights aboard the FOB. Often there is enough power to light the permanent sleeping areas and outposts. You'll find a mixture of hardstand buildings, wooden SWA huts and GP tents used aboard the FOB’s for every purpose imaginable. Port-o-Johns are scattered around the area and shower trailers are towed into strategic locations, usually with strict hours of usage to conserve water. Some but not all areas have enough generators to power heating and air conditioning units in the workspaces. The troops still use their sleeping bags and field gear though, and rotate in and out of the FOB’s to smaller BP’s about the area, sharing the duties of patrolling the towns and combatting the insurgency. Generally speaking, the FOB's are pretty comfortable, though no vacation. They are the "middle class" of living conditions.

Finally, bases like Camp Fallujah, the BIAP (Baghdad International Airport), and Al Asad are all located on former Iraqi Army or Air Force bases. Camp Fallujah is jokingly referred to as Camp Falluj-eune, a mocking reference to Camp Lejeune, NC. Despite their run-down appearance, the bases are much larger in size and may house thousands of troops and dozens of units. Though all of the bases contain remnants of bombed out buildings and bunkers (many from Desert Storm or OIF 1), the military engineers and sea-bee units (Naval Construction Battalion) have made incredible strides in shoring up these sagging structures. Units have replaced or repaired damaged fencing and plumbing, emplaced barrier systems and watch towers and have repaired damaged roads. Lighting is prevalent throughout the evenings and generators hum softly, providing 24 hours of power to buildings for computers, lights and air conditioning. Port-o-johns are everywhere, as are specially designed trailers containing showers and toilets. Some of the bases have repaired their internal plumbing systems and have the limited use of permanent toilets and sinks. Civilians run amock around the bases – many from Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) or a host of other contractors. There are areas for visiting dignitaries and separate buildings set aside to permanently house Marines, sailors and soldiers. Other buildings are utilized as chowhalls, armories, motor transport maintenance bays, medical facilities and laundry stations. MWR (Morale Welfare and Recreation) facilties can be found at these bases, running small gyms and internet cafes and hosting poker nights and weight lifting contests. The largest bases, like Camp Anaconda, Camp Victory, and Al Asad Air Base have set up telephone trailers, Burger King and Subway stands, and Haji marts, or locally run shops. These bases have a crude, yet similar, infrastructure of permanent bases in the United States - you'll find offices in old hangars, sump buildings, literally anywhere that you can shove some people and a desk. Although everything looks dirty and appears to be falling apart, it's regal living compared to the BP’s and FOB's.

The bulk of troops, airmen and soldiers deployed to OIF live aboard these large bases and and rarely experience the harsh realities of living in a BP or FOB. Some units regularly convoy to the field or conduct security duties outside the bases, yet few actually engage in direct offensive action with the insurgency. The bases have become a garrison environment, awash with many comforts of home and overflowing with care packages labeled "any Soldier, any Marine." Most garrison residents are well-fed and rested, relatively safe within the perimeter of these large camps. Their lives become regulated more by the hours of the chowhall than the sounds of gunfire. Certainly, the ever-present possibility of indirect fire remains omnipresent, but becomes increasingly less common as the insurgency is destroyed or pushed out of Iraq. One easily discerns garrison troops from their field counterparts by the look of their uniforms - crisp and clean compared to salty and faded. The field troops look permanently weary; sleepless nights and endless days. Although all deployed servicemembers suffer the pain and anxiety of separation from loved ones, the garrison residents return home with an entirely different experience than their brothers in the field.

Nobody wants to be a garrison Marine, soldier or sailor. Everyone deployed wants to make a difference in this conflict - they want to be viewed as equals among their peers. Without question, Marines deployed in a garrison environment feel trapped within the confines of the base. Nearly every Marine, from Supply clerk to Staff Officer, yearns to travel outside the wire. Rare is the Lance Corporal who hasn't begged his Gunny to join the next convoy off of the base. They want to be out there among the grunts, lugging the ammo and squeezing the trigger. They ponder the possibility of baptism under fire; the fright of combat and the realities of conflict. They want to be in the fight yet resign themselves to their lot in life, stuck aboard the base for various reasons. It's a fate they cannot change. The phrase "Every Marine a Rifleman" rings hollow in their hearts.

Feeling my age

A light armored vehicle (LAV) heading out on patrol from 1st LAR.

Much like a gypsy wagon of yesteryear, everything they own is

strapped to the sides of the vehicle. One crewman jokingly told me it

was extra protection against shrapnel, that "any bit helps." 11/22/05

I left Al Qa'im yesterday flying "space available" status. About 75 Marines and soldiers were retrograding out of Al Qa'im at the same time, while the CH-46's and 53's kept rolling in to take them away. Loading up and taking off in clouds of dust, everything and everyone quickly resembled sugar cookies, only covered in sand instead of sugar. Fresh off the lines from Operation STEEL CURTAIN, these guys are headed back to various bases and camps spread throughout Iraq. Many are going home minus close friends and fireteam members.

Wearing full battle gear – helmet, flak and SAPI plates, sidearm, M-16A2, full pack, loaded pistol and rifle mags – man, it’s something I’ve not done for years at any length and had forgotten just how difficult it can be on the body. Hell, as a boot 2nd Lt., it was difficult. Yet as a wiser, but much older LtCol, it seems worse than I remember. I don't recall the gear being that unwieldy when I was younger. I envy the youth and energy of the young Marines around me. Mentally, I feel I’m still at my peak, but the discomfort of regularly wearing it makes me feel old and out of shape.

I awoke this morning completely unaware that today is Thanksgiving. Heading into the Camp Fallujah DFAC (dining facility), I was oblivious to the decorations posted in the chowhall. It wasn’t until I saw the serving line manned by various unit Chaplains serving turkey and stuffing that I realized today was a holiday at home. Even in Iraq, the folks are feeling the holiday spirit.

Leaving chow, I overheard some young Lance Corporals talking about their meal. I love Marines – they are the funniest people on earth. And the most vulgar. One looks over to the other and says of his meal…”man, that sh__ was fu____n’ good as f___.” Whether a noun, adjective or adverb, Marines turn cusswords into an art form. I’ve said some things close to that and only have my VMI and Marine Corps background to blame for my crude lingual habits.

Gunny Fay, the combat artist who deployed with me, also returned from Al Qaim this morning. He was out with Fox Company, 2/1 during the same time I was with the Regiment, and was proud to show me his shrapnel wound received on the 15th during the fight in Ubaydi. For those of you who haven't read my entire blog, Gunny Mike Fay is the Marine Corp's only resident combat artist, and regularly embeds with units on the front line, taking up a rifle during the fight, and occasionally snapping some photos or sketching some artwork during lulls in the action. He brought home some outstanding sketches from his travels, posted below. He's a heck of an artist, and I'm proud to announce he'll be promoted to Warrant Officer on December 1st.

An end of innocence

Insurgent weaponry - Operation STEEL CURTAIN

Seized by 3/6 and elements of RCT-2

11/19/05

The innocent victims - a child wounded by gunfire

at the Al Qaim Surgical Unit

(Forward Resuscitative Surgical System or FRSS) 11/20/05

I've spent the last week at Al Qaim, home of the Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment (3/6) and the HQ element of Regimental Combat Team 2 (RCT-2). Close to the Syrian border, the base is certainly one of the driest and dustiest (is that a word?) locations I've visited. The sand here is unlike any sand I've ever seen - it's as fine as talcum powder and one easily sinks ankle-deep into its micro fine grains. Watching the powder squirt through the lugsole treads on the sides of your boots as you walk is captivating. I liken it to the way water is displaced from the tread of a car tire on a slow-motion bridgestone commercial.

RCT-2 has taken some serious losses over the past couple days. On Wednesday morning, a report came into the TACC indicating 2/1 had suffered heavy casualties in urban fighting near Ubaydi. Marines from 2/1 had entered a courtyard and were ambushed by insurgents who attacked with IED's, gunfire and hand grenades. Before the fight was over, 3 Marines were dead, 2 were not expected to live, and another dozen or more were critically injured. One lucky Marine was shot twice in the head, only to be saved by his Kevlar helmet. The wounded Marines suffered horrible trauma; multiple gunshot wounds, fragment wounds, broken bones, leg and extremity injuries. The 2 most critically injured Marines passed away during surgery. Their passing is a loss for all of us.

The heroes of the day were the soldiers from the 571st Medical Company - Air Ambulance, aka: the "Witch Doctors." They are the flight crews who fly into harms way to rescue the wounded. They are dedicated soldiers who see the ugly side human nature every time they fly. These guys fly enter the line of fire to pull our Marines and soldiers out of harms way. They too have suffered loss, with 2 of their aircraft and crews lost over the last year.

I was inside the "FRISS" (Forward Resuscitative Surgical System) this afternoon when the "Witchdoctors" received a medevac call. The corresponding radio traffic indicated a child had received an unknown wound and needed urgent medical care. Generally, wounded civilians are not afforded treatment unless the wounds are caused by direct military action. After several minutes of "on again - off again" indecision, it was determined the child's wounds were a direct result of the ongoing actions and the bird was enroute. Minutes later, the helo touched down on the LZ, bringing in the latest victim of war. Unlike the Marines of 2/1, however, this lucky child will live to see another day.

Getting out of Dodge

Today is Sunday, although every day here blends together and there really isn’t any noticeable change of pace from day to day around the camp. I’ve had a lazy day – no interviews, just taking it easy. I slept late, went to the gym for a half-assed workout and spent the better half of the afternoon packing my gear, checking it twice.....no sense in going west without packing everything I need to live for a couple of weeks. The luxuries at Camp Fallujah are not to be found in Al Qaim.

Showtime at the LZ/AAG-DAG tonight is close to midnight, with an early (zero-dark thirty early) morning departure. I am quite relieved to be going back to the field. Sitting around Camp Fallujah without a standard duty schedule tends will wear on you and make you wish you were anywhere but here. I feel sorry for the Marines stuck inside the wire at Camp Fallujah for 6 months to a year. What a drag. I'm excited to get out of here and link up with the Division for a spell.

RCT-2 is conducting OPERATION STEEL TRAP out west near the towns of Husaybah, Al Qaim, Rawah and other locations in and around the western edge of Iraq. LtCol Chris Starling, VMI Class of ’88, is the Operations Officer and is expecting us. I e-mailed Chris to ensure that the RCT was fully aware that a couple of spare LtCol’s would be wandering around the AO. By the time I return to Fallujah, I’d like to have about 50 interviews captured from Marines who are currently in the fight. I hope to embed with a company level unit at some point and follow the young Marines who are making history. We Officers just take the credit.

I’m already planning my return flight back to the Mississippi Rifles in early December. They will be departing soon, and I don’t want to miss them before they leave. Another 25 interviews or so with the “Dixie Thunder” should suffice. I will most likely spend several days at their forward operating base (FOB) and another couple with thier subordinate task force units scattered south of Baghdad.

I conducted some interesting interviews in Camp yesterday to help pass the time and add to my collection – I interviewed LCDR Seth Phillips, one of only 7 Jewish Rabbi’s in the U.S. Navy. Rabbi (LCDR) Phillips only had 45 minutes to spend with me, so we zipped through a quick interview at the Camp Fallujah Chapel. The Rabbi grew up in Richmond, VA where he currently lives in the west end. As a Virginian who has spent quite a bit of time in Richmond, we immediately shared a common interest. A unique and informative interview….Rabbi Phillips is the acting Battalion Chaplain for 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines (3/6). Regardless of denomination, his most important task is to provide counseling, comfort, and guidance to those deployed. I asked him to urge his fellow Chaplains to volunteer for interviews over the next few months.

I also interviewed Corporal Mark James McKenna, a reserve Marine who was activated for OIF. A Squad Leader for the MEF Headquarters Group (MHG), Motor Transport Section, II MEF (Fwd), Cpl. McKenna is leaving Iraq today, heading home after spending a full tour of duty with MHG “Motor T.”

The “Motor T” Platoon is primarily responsible for security convoys and escorts throughout the AO. Cpl. McKenna participated in a total of 81 security convoys during his deployment, sometimes as a vehicle gunner and other times as the vehicle commander. Usually riding in “Gun 1,” MHG’s call sign for the first HMMWV of the security convoy, Cpl. McKenna has seen his share of the Iraqi countryside. Escorting “green gear” (Marine equipment) as well as civilian trucks and tractor-trailers, the MT Platoon has yet to experience a single catastrophic loss in their Platoon since deploying. The convoys vary from short trips of an hour or less, to a 640 mile round-trip convoy to Trebil, located on the Jordanian border.

The convoys have intercepted dozens of improvised explosive devices (IED’s), taken routine small arms fire from insurgents and witnessed the devastating effects of vehicular suicide bombers, referred to as SVBIED’s. Many young Marines in these convoys experienced their first taste of combat during these excursions, including Cpl. McKenna. Interestingly, he kept a hand-written, personal journal detailing his experiences, emotions, and after-thoughts of each convoy. When asked if he would allow his family to read the journal, he hesitated and finally said no, at least for some time to come. He wasn’t sure his entries would be understood, or accepted, by someone who had not themselves experienced the harsh reality of combat.

This will be my last post for the next week or two. Til then...

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers

On November 11, 2005, 10 Marines gathered at the Camp Fallujah Rotunda to celebrate the founding of the Virginia Military Institute, located in Lexington, Virginia. A short history of VMI can be found on their webpage at http://www.vmi.edu to include the following:

Before the formation of the Institute in 1839, its site was occupied by a military post of the State of Virginia, the storage point of arms for the western part of the Commonwealth for more than 20 years. It was shortly after the War of 1812 that an arsenal was established on the town’s outskirts.

The arsenal guard of some 20 soldiers, although living a strict military life while on duty, was lacking in self-discipline, and their leisure-time activities upset the decorum of Lexington. Plans for a change in the arsenal’s administration were discussed, and in 1834 it was proposed among Lexington’s leading citizens that the arsenal be transformed into a military college, wherein the students while protecting arms could also pursue educational courses.

Championed by a young Lexington attorney, John Thomas Lewis Preston, the plan led to legislation by the General Assembly establishing the Virginia Military Institute. It was Preston, generally credited for conceiving the idea of VMI, and later one of the original members of the faculty, who gave the new institution its name: “Virginia—a State institution, neither sectional nor denominational. Military—its characteristic feature. Institute—something different from either college or university. The three elements thus indicated are the basis of a triangular pyramid, of which the sides will preserve their mutual relation to whatever height the structure may rise.”

Though many come to VMI, not all graduate. Some depart to pursue their degree at other colleges and universities while others leave under less than honorable conditions. During World War II, many alumni took sabbaticals to fight the war, graduating years after their classmates. Our graduates pursue a variety of careers, and include many notable individuals such as as Senator Harry F. Byrd; General George C. Marshal; USAF Chief of Staff General John Jumper; Comedian and Actor Dabney Coleman; Marine legend General “Chesty” Puller; General George S. Patton (rat year) and famed sculptor and artist Moses Ezekiel. It has graduated 265 General and flag ranked officers, 6 congressional medal of honor winners, and is the only college in America to send its students into battle, resulting in the loss of 10 cadets at the battle of New Market in 1864.

We ranged from 2nd Lieutenant to Colonel, with graduation dates between 1980 and 2004. Despite the 24-year span between us, we all share a unique background unlike that experienced by any other college student in the United States, with the possible exception of the Citadel. The bonds of VMI are strong, and the term “brother rat” applies to all who have graduated or departed in good standing. We swapped stories of our cadetships at mother “I” and reminisced about our days as young cadets, the girls we dated, the road trips we made, and the fun we had during an age of innocence. It was a good night, and for a brief moment, the war in Iraq was forgotten.

Happy 230th Birthday

ON NOVEMBER 10TH, 1775, THE SECOND CONTINENTAL CONGRESS RESOLVED TO RAISE TWO BATTALIONS OF CONTINENTAL MARINES MARKING THE BIRTH OF OUR UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS. AS MAJOR GENERAL LEJEUNE'S MESSAGE REMINDS US, THE ENSUING GENERATIONS OF MARINES WOULD COME TO SIGNIFY ALL THAT IS HIGHEST IN WARFIGHTING EXCELLENCE AND MILITARY VIRTUE.

EACH NOVEMBER AS MARINES THE WORLD OVER CELEBRATE THE BIRTH OF OUR CORPS, WE PAY TRIBUTE TO THAT LONG LINE OF "SOLDIERS OF THE SEA" AND THE ILLUSTRIOUS LEGACY THEY HAVE HANDED DOWN TO US.

THIS PAST YEAR HAS BEEN ONE OF CONTINUOUS COMBAT OPERATIONS OVERSEAS AND DISTINGUISHED SERVICE HERE AT HOME - A YEAR OF CHALLENGES THAT HAVE BROUGHT OUT THE VERY BEST IN OUR CORPS. IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN, MARINE COURAGE AND MASTERY OF COMPLEX AND CHAOTIC ENVIRONMENTS HAVE TRULY MADE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF MILLIONS. MARINE COMPASSION AND FLEXIBILITY PROVIDED HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO THOUSANDS IN THE WAKE OF THE SOUTH EAST ASIAN TSUNAMI, AND HERE AT HOME, MARINES WITH AAVS, HELICOPTERS, AND SOMETIMES WITH THEIR BARE HANDS SAVED HUNDREDS OF OUR OWN FELLOW AMERICANS IN THE WAKE OF HURRICANES KATRINA AND RITA. ACROSS THE FULL SPECTRUM OF OPERATIONS, YOU HAVE SHOWCASED THAT MARINES CREATE STABILITY IN AN UNSTABLE WORLD, AND HAVE REINFORCED OUR CORPS' REPUTATION FOR SETTING THE STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE.

THE SENSE OF HONOR, COURAGE, AND PATRIOTISM THAT EPITOMIZED THOSE WHO ANSWERED THAT FIRST CALL TO ARMS 230 YEARS AGO IS STILL INDELIBLY IMPRINTED ON OUR RANKS TODAY. IN COMMEMORATING OUR ANNIVERSARY, LET US STRENGTHEN OUR TIES TO THE PAST BY PAYING HOMAGE TO THOSE WHO HAVE GONE BEFORE US. AS WE HONOR THE SACRIFICES OF OUR WOUNDED AND FALLEN COMRADES, OUR COMMITMENT TO ONE ANOTHER REMAINS UNSHAKABLE. WE TAKE SPECIAL PRIDE IN THE ACTIONS OF THE MARINES NOW SERVING IN HARM'S WAY, AND REDEDICATE OURSELVES TO THE SERVICE OF OUR NATION AND OUR CORPS.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARINES, SEMPER FIDELIS, AND KEEP ATTACKING!

M.W. HAGEE, GENERAL, U.S. MARINE CORPS, COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS

The Oasis

Chaplain Dale C. White at the Oasis, Camp Workhorse

on 11/09/05

While waiting impatiently for my helo ride out west, I have conducted several interviews at Camp Fallujah, primarily folks from the II MEF Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection cell (AT/FP). One of my interviews today was with the Regimental Chaplain at Camp Workhorse, home of Regimental Combat Team 8 (RCT-8). Chaplain Dale C. White, a United States Navy Commander (0-5) provided the first of several Chaplain interviews I hope to conduct. A personable guy, Chaplain White is a Methodist Minister who provides religious services to numerous units within the RCT, to include 1^st and 3^rd Recon Bn; 2^nd AAV’s, Tanks and TOW’s; 2^nd CEB; B 1/11; 5^th CAG and HET, to name a few.

Military Chaplains are the most overworked individuals in theater. Working 7 days a week, 365 days a year, they focus all of their efforts on the Marines and sailors who’ve experienced horrendous wounds or have seen their friends killed in battle. They spend countless hours providing grief counseling and marriage counseling; listening to the problems of our young men and women who are so far away from home. They conduct religious services on base and in the field, and offer last rites to the dead and dying.

When he’s not in the field with his Marines, Chaplain White can be found at the “Oasis,” a small office building on the outskirts of Camp Workhorse where Marines and Sailors come to get away from their troubles and find a bit of solitude as well as a friendly ear to bend. The “Oasis” has shelves stocked with health and comfort items, coffee, and snacks sent by various church groups and civic organizations that forward donations to the Chaplain. During the evenings, the Chaplain often sits on his rustic front porch of scrap wood and chomps a cigar, a habit he picked up since arriving in Iraq. Content to “hang out” with a few members of the RCT who seek a peaceful moment of rest, the Chaplain indicated his evening sit-downs draw a dozen or more Marines who aren’t otherwise out in the field fighting the insurgency. A couple months back, during just such an evening, a mortar round landed close to the “Oasis,” exploding in a nearby berm of dirt and sandbags. As Marines excitedly came running out of their spaces to see what the commotion was all about, Chaplain White remained on his porch, smoking his cigar and quietly asking the Marines to come join him for a smoke and a enjoy a moment of relaxation.

A calming factor to those who serve – isn’t that what the Chaplain Corps is
all about?

Photos that speak for themselves...

Coutesy of my PAO friends at FOB Kalsu

Back in Iraq

I've returned to Iraq from emergency leave, though I have not yet arrived at Camp Fallujah. My leave went as well as could be expected although inevitable delays caused me to miss my step-fathers viewing and funeral. Unfortunately, Marine Air is not a guaranteed form of delivery in or out of theater. When a passenger travels "Space A" (space available), he competes for a seat with other Marines, sailors and soldiers, as well as cargo, equipment and other goods. Despite the fact that emergency leave recipients are supposed to have priority, my fellow emergency leave recipients (3 Marines and 1 Sailor) were bumped off of several flights for one reason or another and did not arrive home until 5 days after we started out travel.

Our trip home took us through a series of airfields and landing zones, all traveled in the hours of darkness. One of the legs of travel took us into Baghdad, the only excitement of our journey. As we approached the city, we were greeted by small arms fire, punctuated by the glow of tracer rounds. The pilots reacted suddenly, catching us off-guard and pitching the helicopter into a sharp bank downward and starboard. The door gunners remained unfazed by the incident and didn't even attempt to return fire. As soon as it started, it was over.

The return trip to Iraq has been quite similar - having been bumped off of several flights, I am in a holding pattern at Al Asad Air base, northwest of the city of Hit. Fortunately, LtCol. Tim Crowley is keeping me entertained and has graciously allowed me to use his computer to check email and write this post. I hope to catch a flight out of here tonight for Camp Fallujah, although I will not hold my breath. I've been bumped 2 nights in a row and a 3rd may be forthcoming.

I am residing in the transient tent located yards from the Al Asad airstrip. Also living in the tent are Marines and soldiers from various units, all awaiting transportation out of theater or to other FOBs or bases in Iraq. The tent is large and fairly comfortable, with wooden pallets for flooring and portable heaters located inside the tent. Since my departure 2 weeks ago, the weather has changed and I have returned to a more seasonal climate with balmy days and chilly evenings. Were it not for the fact that I "appropriated" a blanket and pillow from my Northwest Airlines flight, I'd be shivering uncomfortably at night. Far from a field environment, it is still somewhat less than ideal. Being located so close to the airstrip, the roar of the engines of C-5's, C-17's, F-18's, E-8 Prowlers and various helicopters throughout the night keeps the evening air alive with noise. There's nothing quite like the sound of the afterburners from a Marine fighter launching skyward at 3 a.m. It is the sound of freedom, however, and I shouldn't complain.

I've got a few loose ends to wrap up at Camp Fallujah before heading westward with 2nd Marine Division. Tim and I will attempt to "blitz" the Division in a quick 2-week effort of collections. Stay posted.