The Military Mis-Adventures of Mr. Mortimer

This post is just for Noah

2009-04-09T21:23:00.000-07:00

My time is winding down here. Our reliefs get here this weekend, so the activities have shifted from the day-to-day grind to that more of tying up loose ends and packaging our work for turnover to the new guys. The things I've looked forward to most are those notes from home, care packages, and emails just checking in to see how things are going.

Noah has lately taken an interest in emailing and leaving messages for me. He left these over the last week on my blog:
****Dear Dad,Is it possible for the weather to make it green,orange and red? because it's not normal for that to happen where we are.I mean it gets orange or pink in the sky sometimes but not green. How hot does it get over there? Have you made lots of friends yet? I have.I could name tons of things we could do together like go to the movies,play at the park,ride our bikes. Stuff like that.I'm getting ready to go to my friend Mario's house.He's really nice too. I love you so much.And wecan't wait till you get back Love, Noah ****

****Dear Dad,What are those things? Are they hyenas or are they wolves? I miss you. It's almost 6:00 where you are.Thank you for the glow sticks. I got them today. Tomorrow, I am going to sleep over at my friend Mario's house.I might be going to a dairy farm tomorrow.I can't wait till I get to see you in three and a half weeks. I got a hair cut today and went to Subway. And I ate half of it and saved the other half for dinner and when i came into eat it half of it was gone. And of course,nana ate it. So i had 1/4 of a sandwich,pretzels and noodles.Mom is telling me to get off now so I love you and i say that you will be safe in Iraq in our prayers.And we missed you the second you left and i still do. Love, Your son Noah. xoxoxoxoxoxo ****

TO NOAH,

Son, I've missed you tremendously. Thank you for taking care of your mama and being a good big brother while I've been gone. I see that you guys have made all kinds of friends in Atlanta, and have found all the good eating spots. I can't wait for you to show me around to all your favorites. You will be able to put away "flat daddy" and you can take "fat daddy" to school for lunch and Rita's for Italian Ice. We can ride bikes and go fishing. I'll be home soon and we'll get a house where you can have your own room, and it looks like you need a bigger bike these days. You can see in this photo of my room, I keep it clean and make my bed every day, and I have the pictures you guys have sent me all over my room. Keep your room clean too, and be good to your sisters and mom. And yes, you saw from the other pictures I posted how the sky gets green, orange, or red during a dust or sand storm here. It's pretty cool - but not as cool as being with my pumpkin head! I love you and will see you soon. Love, Dad XOXOXOXOX (my hugs and kisses are bigger than yours!!!)

Sasebo No Mo

2009-04-08T12:31:00.000-07:00

I got an email from my detailer the other day notifying me that my upcoming PCS to Sasebo, Japan, would be delayed until October because of a lack of funding for Permanent Change of Station moves. I called him back to explore some options, and pretty much let him know I'm flexible, willing to play along with whatever the Navy decides, and to let him know of my family situation so he would know where to "stash" me until the move. I explained that being stashed in Norfolk would be a minor inconvenience for the family since they're in Atlanta, and asked if I could hang out in Atlanta, maybe working for the Air Station in Marietta, or whatever. I also jokingly mentioned that I'd be willing to just stay in ATL and go to grad school at Georgia Tech if he'd let me. He needed to work out some details and he got back with me 15 minutes later with some news... We're not going to Sasebo. We're going somewhere else...

More to follow on Meredith's blog on the what and when and how?

Desert Puppies

2009-03-23T11:53:00.000-07:00

I was out jogging yesterday and thought I saw what looked like a huge dog running really fast along the airfield fenceline. They're generally called Wadi Dogs here, but it might have been a hyeena or something similar. It turns out that the base "vector control" folks caught this yeasterday on base...

Pretty gruesome. I've seen a couple of these smashed on the road on the outskirts of the base near the dump, but never one this large! Looks like he's got some fresh kill on him too...nasty!

Recon Butts Drive Me Nuts!

2009-03-12T09:49:00.000-07:00

I hear the most ridiculous requests for services all the time. As the construction guy for the base, everyone thinks I can do just about anything! Maybe it's because they see all the stuff my office does all over the base, or because they know that I really can get just about anything done. I've posted a couple photos of some ridiculousness from the past couple weeks or so.
You can barely see it here, but on that helicopter is some graffiti that says "Recon Butts Drive Me Nuts." This helo is sitting in a pile of junked aircraft and is just some debris lying by the side of the road. I received this photo, nicely labeled telling me the location of the aircraft, with a request to have someone go paint over it because it offended some VIP, or has the potential to offend a VIP. Oh brother!

Here's one of my latest "oops." I was relocating the "North Point Mall," a collection of gift shop trailers and the Burger King, Pizza Hut, and food court type vendors to a new compound. The job involved completely moving all the trailers and setting up the electrical distribution, plumbing, security blast walls, graveling the area, and all that. The job was nearly complete until the crew had to dig up a sewer line to fix a leak. They dug the trench immediately next to the t-wall and the ground gave way beneath, and the walls came tumbling down.

The Burger King trailer was no match for the several 14,000 pound t-walls that fell onto it. This delayed the opening for a couple weeks. It's all been fixed to date, but I still hear about this little "uh oh." I had a whopper for dinner tonight. Delicious!

It's a Little Dusty Out Today

2009-02-27T08:52:00.001-08:00

We had another dust storm today, about our third in the last ten days or so. The dust storms are pretty common lately and I'm starting to hate the scratchy eyes, nose barnacles, and morning ritual of hacking up clods of dirt. These pictures will show you the evolution of today's storm. This is probably the worst we've had yet.

It starts out with a little breeze and a yellow haze.

It turned a little green and weird out...

then it turned orange outside. It gets worse though...

This was at 2pm today. It looks like we are on Mars.

Qatar R&R part 2

2009-02-21T04:31:00.000-08:00

We are in our third Dust Storm this week, so there's not a lot to do on base right now, so I figured I'd finish up the Qatar trip blogging.

...............................................

'Twas nice to spend the time in Qatar, but the layout of the base made it necessary to ride the bus a lot.I spent a lot of time sitting at bus stops...wondering if the next bus was the right one to get on. Of course I always picked the wrong bus, going the long way to where we wanted.

Day 2 - Brad and I took an off-base water sports trip. It was a day trip in a Dhow in the Persian Gulf where we went to a remote spot to swim, jet ski, and tube. It included a great lunch and was a fun time. This is a picture of the marina area and the Dhow boats.

The water was a little cold, but was worth the effort to say I'd swam in the Persian Gulf. There were others that got in the water too, but not many.

We had a couple jet skis...a lot of fun. I need one of these!!! I also enjoyed being dragged behind a jet boat at high speed in an inner tube until I took a nasty spill and ripped my shorts to shreds.

Lunch was the typical Arabic/ Indian grill assortment. Grilled kabobs, fresh fruits, LOTS of rice, pita bread, hummus and all that. I could eat like this all the time...it was delicious.
The Islamic Cultural Center in Doha, Qatar on our way back into the marina.

Doha skyline...and me, trying to have at least one picture of me smiling.

More Doha.This is one of the buildings in downtown Doha...interesting architecture. We all speculated that Michael Jackson lives inside the round thing, especially with as venerated he is in this part of the world. We joked that he's the commanding General of the Qatari Army...you ever notice how he wears some sort of military rank?? And Qatar (or Bahrain) is his second home. Just something to make you go "hmmm". Notice all the unfinished construction. That's a problem for this area. Qatar, Bahrain, and Dubai (UAE) have all spent billions on construction, trying to make their countries a destination for international trade and travel. This area has been hit just as hard by the economic slump and have put the brakes on construction. They have a glut of excess office and retail space with no demand. And with the cost of oil falling hard, they are having a hard time making ends meet around here. They have a very lavish and opulent lifestyle (the Qataris)...this is unsustainable under the current (realistic) conditions.

Nice panoramic from out on the gulf where we swam and such. You can click on it and see more detail if you like.

Me getting into an "Amnesty Box." It's a place to put any contraband you may have acquired while out in town.

R&R in Qatar ~ part 1

2009-02-18T09:16:00.000-08:00

I had the opportunity to take a 4-day pass to Qatar for R&R. The trip was fun, but not without it's drama. The time in Qatar was way better than being in Iraq, but the travel arrangements almost made it not worth the efforts! Brad was my "Battle Buddy" for R&R, the two of us going together. We work together and decided to go on the trip together - and not talk about work at all! It was very nice.

We were supposed to leave on a Sunday evening. We showed up at the passenger terminal and waited 2 hours and then were told the flight was cancelled and to check back in 24 hours. We awkwardly went to work the next day, explaining to everyone that our flight was cancelled...we were supposed to be gone - nobody wanted us at work, not even us. We went back to the terminal on Monday evening - no flights. Tuesday evening at 8pm, we were booked for the 10pm flight...got pushed to midnight...then 2am. We were in a dust storm and figured the air field would be closed all night, so we decided to take our chances and go back to our rooms, get some sleep, and try again in the morning. Luckily, we had a duty person keep an eye on the flight for us and we were notified at 1:15am that the plane was on the runway loading and we better hurry if we were going to make it. So we jumped out of bed and drove as fast as we could to the terminal again and made it to the ramp just in time.
Here's us in the night vision lighting on the C130. Not a lot of luxury on these but we were happy to be getting out of Al Asad!!! We arrived at Qatar and were informed that we couldn't take any pictures of anything on or near the base while there...so no pix of the Qatar Air Base. But I can tell you it looked like every other base around here...light brown/tan buildings and sand everywhere, with fences and concrete barricade walls around everything.

We got into the R&R Base, Camp As Saleyiah, around 9am and were herded around like cattle for the in-processing. We then got to our room and caught a quick nap until noon. We spent the first day trying to relax and get our bearings of the area, got a quick massage at the spa and ate some fine chow. We hung out in the USO area and Brad was having some beers (3 per day limit), and we wanted some nachos and salsa...it turned out to be Doritos and salsa. We couldn't get over how some cultures interpret our food!!! And these Doritos had a weird cheesy-paprika flavor or something.
The second day (actually our first day of R&R , day 1), we took a shopping tour of Doha City, visiting all the important markets. First stop was the camel market. Very sad, and funny at the same time. These camels are raised and sold for meat and leather. Not racing, milk, or spit or anything - just meat and leather.

We then went to the City Center Mall. It's a huge western style mall with 350 stores, movie theater, ice skating rink, and all that.

Here you can see Brad in front of a Starbucks...they're EVERYWHERE!!! But more ridiculous are the little Sheiks that walked all over the place. We'll see plenty more of them, but the Qatari people are all sheiks and they don't have any occupations. The country is 25% Qatari - and 75% others (Filipino, Indian, Sri Lankan, etc) to do all the work running shops and services. The Qatari citizens are entirely supported by the state selling oil and they do nothing to contribute to society other than shopping and consuming things. You'll see more of them in "R&R part 2".

We stopped by the "big clam" in the middle of town. Doha is known for it's pearl trade.

We went to the "Old Souqs", meaning "Old Shops." It was an ancient market area with all kinds of trade...nuts, spices, tools, jewelry, bootleg DVDs, etc. We stopped into this Falconry shop where they sell all the latest in falcon gear and fashions. There was a nice lunch counter we stopped by to see what was on the menu...We read the first line and kept walking! Fortunately, the tour came with an excellent lunch at the best Indian Buffet we've ever had. I'll post more soon.

That's What She Said

2009-02-06T20:45:00.000-08:00

There are a few among us who are always waiting to pounce with a "That's what she said" joke. We were walking through a camp and saw this sign over a row of dumpsters (indicating don't put wood in the dumpsters), and everyone rang out with a "that's what she said" in unison. It was hilarious. Almost as funny as when we walked over to the sign and someone had already written that at the bottom.
So this is Billy "Woody" Woodward. I gave him the nickname "Big Wood"...he really likes the name... but nobody else gets it! I'm going to miss these guys one day!

Here's a cake they had on display on Inauguration Day at the DFAC. We didn't get to eat it, but it looked nice.

Another Cake.

Me getting into an altercation with one of my contractors. I wear the white Cowboy Hard Hat on job sites now...the Iraqi's love it!
The altercation is over his wiring on the back side of the building...he says "I do a good job for you LT." I get a lot of head nodding and smiles when I try to hold people to the contracts, but things are often different where the rubber hits the road. I've had Iraqi's try to use junk they found on the side of the road in their buildings, and then invoice it for thousands of dollars.

Japan construction will be at the other end of the spectrum...I'm going to be so spoiled there with the highly professional Japanese construction firms. I can't wait!!

Well, I'm going to try to take some R&R in Qatar this week. I get a 4 day pass but haven't been able to get off the base yet...I'll post as soon as I get there.

Groundhog Day

2009-01-31T21:19:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I last blogged. I've been extremely busy, but the reason is mostly because nothing new or interesting has been going on lately. Actually, it has been just like the Bill Murray movie, "Groundhog Day." I wake up at the same time every morning (6:50am) without an alarm clock. My body just gets up. I hop out of bed, grab clean clothes and my shower bag, and head over to the shower trailer. I use the same shower stall each morning, take a shower for maybe 5 minutes, then I use the same sink each morning to shave. The same people are in there at the same times each morning, and we usually say the same things to each other every morning. The conversation is usually something along the lines of "how's it going?" and "Today's the fourth Monday this week (Thursday)."

That's about it.

I'm staying busy with work, and I have plenty of time to run...getting in about 30 miles per week right now. I get a lot more sleep than I would back home too, but I miss Meredith and the kids a lot. Aside from work, I am keeping busy planning for our PCS move to Japan in June. I think we're all looking forward to the adventure of Sasebo. I just need to finish this "adventure" first!

I promise to load some pictures of some of my favorite runs around here, and different things we're doing to maintain sanity in the long days and constant work pace. Thanks for reading about me, I'd love to know who's checking in. My email is travismortimer@gmail.com

And by the way, you should check out Meredith's new blog layout. It looks like a scrapbook page and is really nice. Not to mention the pictures of the kids she manages to get are absolutely adorable. I love you all.

Outside the Wire

2009-01-08T02:53:00.000-08:00

I went on a little trip o n Monday "Outside the Wire," meaning off the base or outside the protective wire. I had to go to Haditha Dam for an inspection of a fence project for the Iraqi Ministry of Irrigation, Ministry of Electricity, and the Iraqi Army. The project was for an Iraqi company to install a 6 mile long security fence around the Haditha Dam area.
I have included a few photos of the trip to show some of the highlights. This is my view from the back seat. We had a private security firm provide transportation to/from the job sites. We ride in heavily armored Toyota Land cruisers. It's not quite as safe as a tactical vehicle, but we are also a much smaller target and less annoying presence to the Iraqi folks in these vehicles, and they're alot more comfortable than a tactical vehicle.

From the back seat, you can see my partner, Bob. he's an Engineer with the Army Corps of Engineers. You can see the view from inside is limited. The black circle is the little armored port hole for us to shoot out of if needed. The ballistic glass is several inches thick.

This is the view going into the Iraqi Camp Haditha. US forces recently turned over all responsibilities to the Iraqi Army and they now run this camp entirely. We waited 45 minutes to meet with the ranking officer of the camp, an Iraqi Major, because he was still sleeping when we got there at 10am. We conducted our inspection while he "gathered himself".

The whole area had a lot of men just standing around watching traffic drive by. Unemployment is very high in this region of Iraq (Al Anbar Province). Unfortunately, all this lingering around makes everyone look suspicious to us.

This was a really neat monument we passed near the Haditha area. The region is proud of their power generation at the Dam. It is nice to see civic pride every now and then, even if it is Saddam propaganda.
A view of the Haditha Dam as we approach. Nothing special here. It's a HUGE dam of about 5 miles long and about 40 meters high, but the water depth on the other side is only a few meters. Most of the pictures are taken from inside the vehicle because the security team was hyper sensative to the threat. I didn't feel threatened, but we had to stay inside the armor unless necessary to get out. It's just precaution...I know my wife appreciates it, but I didn't feel the need to stay so hunkered down. We only received a couple rounds of small arms fire the whole trip...just kidding about that last one!
Driving through the face of the dam on ground level, downstream side.
The view from afar. Even with a big shallow lake of water, it's still the desert out here.

We inspected the fence and found plenty of problems, and we met with the Major at the camp. The whole thing was not a big deal, but fun to get off the base for a while. I didn't get any pictures of the meeting only because it would be inappropriate to shoot photos while negotiating things, and also because appearing in photos with Americans can make Iraqis more of a target.
Here's a nice shot of the drive back to the base. Some one's front porch where they're skinning and butchering a cow. There were lots of houses like this where people were out front killing goats or sheep.

We stopped to check on a construction site of a school house in Baghdadi, the little town outside the base here (not to be confused with Baghdad).

A typical small roadside mosque in Baghdadi.

Houses along the road.
Sheep herding along the route. It was pretty common to see flocks of sheep running around with a little goat herder/ shepherd type of person. It was always obvious that the shepherds were very concerned about their sheep getting run over by the trucks! You could see the worry in their eyes every time we drove by a flock.

The trip ended without incident, and I will get more pictures of interesting stuff next time I go out. I'm hoping to go to the hospital project, or another school project, where I can mingle with local folks. There's a lot of good work going on here. I'm glad to be a part of it.

No Photographs Allowed

2009-01-01T10:51:00.000-08:00

Today is New Year's Day. For the most part it was quiet because we were on somewhat of a "holiday routine." I started my day off by sleeping in until 7am, and stayed in bed until 8. It was NICE!!! I got 10 hours of sleep...who says deployment is rough?

So I took my time getting around, went for a run to start the year off right, and a cold wind started blowing in. The wind kept coming, and by noon the temperature dropped 20 degrees and we had a dust storm on us. It wasn't a full blown storm, but extremely dusty with less than 1/4 mile visibility. It was an "orange out" kind of day. I didn't get any pictures today but figured I'd show you some of the things I'm probably not supposed to show you.

A photo of an area on base.

This is the kind of day we had once the dust cloud came in. Just another day at the south side dump. I'm almost finished with a project building two trash incinerators that will mitigate this open pit burning. Not popular, probably shouldn't have shown you that.

Here we have a photo of an abandoned MIG. They are everywhere, littering the base as a reminder of the base's former occupants.

An Iraqi toilet. Pretty nasty only because there's no pee-trap to keep the sewer gases from coming out of the sewer. It's just an old-timey squat hole. The hose is an advance on the traditional alternatives. There are some buildings that still have the old toilets. All my projects include updating to "western style" toilets. By "western" we mean they come with a 10 gallon hat and bottle of BBQ sauce!

I really miss everyone, and I enjoy hearing from you all. Feel free to drop me an email at travismortimer@gmail.com if you get the chance. I'll have more photos coming soon. Happy New Year, and I can't wait to come home.

Christmas As Usual Around Here

2008-12-20T05:11:00.000-08:00

Christmas day has come and gone here at Al Asad, and I have to say that I'm glad to be working on towards January already. Time is dragging right now so we're trying to keep busy with things that distract.

For the Holidays, Mike and I decorated a little tree we received in the mail (pictured below). It is a humble tree, but festive enough for us.

The day was nice, the air crisp and clear. On Christmas day, I was able to go for a nice 5 mile run, catch some sleep, watch "It's a Wonderful Life" TWICE, attend a "Christmas Pageant" at the Chapel,and then I ate at Burger King for dinner!

Work didn't stop at a few of my job sites. A K-Span being built by Iraqis...their first structure of this type for us. Their actually doing better than expected.

We had a great sunset, nice and crisp. This is my front door on the far right. Exciting, huh??

Recurring JO Appointment -15:00 Everyday

2008-12-16T10:40:00.000-08:00

A few of us Junior Officers (JO's) have a recurring "meeting," an appointment every day where the "Wadi Dawgs" play Iraqi Hacky Sack. It's been a lot of fun each of us honing our trademark moves. It's usually about 4 to 6 of us in the little courtyard area in our building. Pictured from left to right, Me in mid-strike, Mike in the back, then Dave in the rear, and Toy's back. Dave has an awesome "jester" - from the old Nintendo game called "California Games." Toy has the ability to kick it several time before passing it on...in fact, he usually makes a point of hogging it a while before passing it on. I guess we should call his move "puff puff give."

My skills are non-existent. My signature move is called "super retard strength." I usually will just kick it really hard in any direction and hurt someone.

In this picture, Brad is on the far left (you see his arm). His move is "the crane" - mostly because he's tall and slender. He moves almost in slow motion, but with a lot of skill, popping it up and down several times before passing it on - and he never drops the hacky.

I look forward to the 15:00 "meetings," even though we're not really getting any better at Hacky Sack - it is probably these times where the memories and friendships of this deployment will really be made.

Checking In ~ & the Last Moustache Chronicle

2008-12-16T09:30:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since I last blogged. The Internet has been a nightmare here lately. It takes many attempts and several hours to eventually upload a couple photos. For $70/month, my roommate and I share the Internet connection...so the time is limited. I was able to upload some shots of the happenings of late. First, my moustache had to go. I was grouped in with grody staches like Greg here (who still flaunts his). Greg is proud of his manilicious face fur. I give it an 8 on the nasty scale.

Or Woody's here. We call him Lieutenant Dangle-stache. The name is from the show "Reno 911" where there's a gross cop with the same name. Both are as gross! His is a 9 on the nasty scale.

So here's the last shot of my old stache. Probably won't grow one again until the next dare. It's not my style to have one. I am shown here inside one of my projects, a new $4.5M Regional Detention Facility. It will be finished next month but likely will not house any detainees because of the new Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with Iraq where the US won't hold Iraqi prisoners for longer than 24 hours. This new prison is really nice, with monolithic concrete walls, and loud "clangy" sounding doors. The facility is very imposing and substantial. There are no water boarding tables or torture cells here, I promise!

So I'll close with a photo of my job security. Check out the wiring system on this building behind me. There is going to be PLENTY of work here for Engineers as long as this "expeditionary wiring" exists. It is amazing that more people haven't died, but there are regular fires, black outs, shocks, and the occasional electrocution. BTW, those spools on the ground have energy running through them too...this is no way to do business!

This 'Stache Has Got To GO!!!

2008-12-03T10:16:00.000-08:00

Why am I still growing this thing on my lip? ! ? Some say they like the full caterpillar look.I prefer the "bandito" like Jim had in this episode of "The Office." I am limited by uniform regulations on the size, fluff, and overhang of my facial hairs. So working with what I CAN do, I am going to have a little fun with this ugly thing.

The next phase of my disturbing little experiment is to see how long it takes for me to receive a direct order to shave!!! I will try every nasty variation until I am compelled to clean it off! My first attempt is the "almost pencil thin."

I went in for a haircut and was inspired by the poster in the barber shop. This stunning young man is literally a poster child for "the military cut." I am every bit the poster child now - minus the "finger wave" hair stylings.

OK, so on a scale of 1 - 10, with 10 being "gag me," how bad is this style? Remember I'm going for nasty...but everyone seems to really like it! I don't get these people here!!!! I can't even take my self seriously with this thing on my face, I don't know how others can deal with me and not be distracted.

Any Given Saturday

2008-11-29T10:59:00.000-08:00

We started today off with a cool breeze rolling in to the base. The breeze turned up a lot of dust, to the point where we thought it could turn into a dust storm. It didn't though. The breeze persisted and the temperature dropped all day and a light rain set in by the evening.

Here's a picture from the front of my junker truck (we call her "Hotness") at the threat of a dust storm rolling in. It was nice to get out of the office today and do some site visits and check out a few construction projects.

Al Asad was Saddam's premier air base and he spent Billions of dollars on its construction. Just about every structure is hardened, buried, or appears to be fortified. This is the exposed part of a fortified bunker that the US dropped a bunker buster on during Gulf War I. I've got jobs at locations that look bomb-proof, but were no match for our bunker busters.

Dinner:

I have been working with two companies that I thought could help each other, one a very good Turkish company called "Lara Group" and the other an Iraqi company called "Al Folatheya." Al Folatheya means "like steel." I've been trying to introduce the two companies so they can partner on some projects, maybe the Turkish company could mentor the Iraqi company through some successful projects. The end state goal is to give the Iraqi company enough training and guidance to get better with their project management and construction technique, eventually making them a leader in the construction business when we all leave. In my "match making" endeavor, the Iraqi company invited me to bring the Turkish company to dinner, so we all came and met and then ate dinner together.
From left to right: Me, Azhar (Iraqi interpreter), Ali (owner of Al Folatheya - and our host for the dinner), Rabia (owner of Lara Group), and Tenet (Engineer at Lara Group - and husband to Rabia). Not shown are my two guards/escorts (not that I need them for security), AM1 Cotto and EN1 Harlow.

Pictured is a typical Iraqi meal of fresh fruits, flat bread, grilled lamb, chicken, and vegetables, and a pickled side veg. It is typical for all the food to be on one plate where everyone eats from it with their hands. Here, eating from the same plate makes you family. I appreciate the sentiment but am glad they give us a plate of our own to use! This is my third Iraqi meal so far, and ALWAYS delicious. The people here are more than gracious hosts...they often go overboard putting out their best for us!! They're great people and really appreciate us.

The negotiations:

It's difficult to work between Turkish to English to Iraqi translations. The talks were about an hour with plenty of misunderstandings, and edgy at times. I felt I had the role of intermediary, and had to ensure diplomacy because the Iraqi company has loyalties to their family companies, and he also doesn't want to appear to need the Turks. The Turks know they're the best company on base, and recognize they don't really need the Iraqi company, but they do want to help build the Iraqi capability. The Iraqi's need to save face and be seen as "partners" rather than enter a business relationship where they are treated like a little brother.

This is Ali, the owner of Al Folatheya, and he is a good man. He tries really hard and has had many challenges to running a successful Iraqi construction company. His heart is in the business, but he needs a lot of work to fulfill his potential. I think the measure of our success here in Iraq will be determined by our ability to help them recognize their potential and reach it.

Mucho Mustachimos! Chronicles Day 7

2008-11-29T06:28:00.000-08:00

This is Greg...just wait until his business grows in ...he's going to look like Kip from "Napoleon Dynamite"

Day 7 of the cheesy 'stache "contest" This is Toy, that's his name, Toy. Day 7 of the flesh colored fuzz. He's tryin' real hard!

It's not cool to make fun of the Chaplains, but this 'stache has been growing for 20 years!!! I couldn't help but ask if I could take his picture and asked if he was in on the gag...he didn't know what I was talking about.

Again, hate to pick on Chaplains, but it's too easy!!! Chaplain Plummer at his one week mark!

Mine at Day 7...nice consistency, a little itchy, waiting for it to "fill in." I can't stand to look at myself with this atrocity!!! I'm already looking forward to shaving it off.
Here's Brian's "Old Man 'Stache." A little lop-sided but he definitely is showing the younger crowd how it's done.

Stay tuned for the next installment of the Mustache Chronicles...

Wynnona wants her FMF Qualification

2008-11-22T06:47:00.000-08:00

I guess I might as well tell you a little about two big issues here that I'm going through. The first is Wynnona, the Base Command Group's mascot, a big brown beaver - groundhog - chipmunk...whatever you want her to be. She's the mascot for our group and she came all the way from Ft. Dix, NJ just to be with us here. That's another story for another time. So here you can her atop the AC unit in my office. She's a 4 foot tall fiberglass beauty and attracts attention everywhere she goes. I wonder why, but everyone seems to want to touch her, take their picture with her, or wants to carry her.
So the other major event going on around here is all the Navy Officers going after their FMF (Fleet Marine Force) Qualification. It's a pin, similar to a warfare qualification, that demonstrates a broad and in-depth knowledge of the US Marine Corps' strategic and tactical missions and capabilities. It's only available within a narrow window of eligibility and we happen to fall within it here now. Honestly, everyone EXCEPT me seems to be going after this pin. It requires the applicant to attend several classes (weapons safety or defensive strategy for example), demonstrate different skills (set up a base camp or field strip your weapon), and observe several different USMC functions (like an amphibious landing or operations inside a Tactical command center). I'm not afraid of a challenge, it's just that I am so busy that I don't have time to go run off and attend a class on communications or take a "field trip" to watch Marines jump out of a helicopter. I wish I did though!

So here's where Wynnona and FMF come together...I figured I don't care so much about the pin, but why not let Wynnona get it?? So I decided to help her get the pin and will take her to EVERY required event, even the oral board at the end. So I already started! It will require her to go on a 6 mile hike in full "battle rattle" and complete a USMC PT test, including pull ups. I know she can do it!!

Here's a picture of the Command Chaplain spotting one of the JAG officers in beefing up for the big qual!! He has a long way to go... Wynnona has already started motivating folks to reach past their comfort zone!

Yesterday was Wynnona's first class. A quick tour of the CH53 Helicopter and it's capabilities, landing zone requirements, and basic uses, procedures, blah blah blah. The best part was that Wynnona was there...Everyone had fun!

Make sure to check back regularly to witness the triumphs of Wynnona's FMF Adventure. We have a little something for everyone here...Mustache Chronicles, Wynnona's FMF Adventure, and you still haven't seen where I live, work, eat, go to church, or my day-to-day stuff. There's going to be lots to write about! Please stay in touch.

The Mustache Mis-Adventure Chronicles ~ Day 1

2008-11-17T09:10:00.000-08:00

It's mustache month here among my Department, and many of us are stepping up to the challenge. There is a challenge among the JO's to see how nasty the "trash stash," "nose bug," or "mobile tea strainers" can get. I'm going for the top prize! I will open it up to the forum to name my 'stach ...I think I like the name "Selleck" or "Escobar." I'll make sure to log the Mis-Adventures of the Mustache challenge right here. Stay tuned!

Just for the record

2008-11-17T09:03:00.000-08:00

Iraq Exit Strategy

2008-11-15T08:52:00.000-08:00

I don't mind talking politics....

I think this guy has the right idea for our exit strategy.

The military has made some tremendous advances in camouflage pattern technology...

There is a "no alcohol" policy for the entire theater. People around here will go to great lengths to get a drink.

Marine Corps Marathon (forward)

2008-11-04T11:11:00.000-08:00

The Marine Corps Marathon is one of the premier running events in the US. Usually limited to those who applied months in advance and are then selected by lottery, running "the people's marathon" is a tremendous experience. Since Operation Iraqi Freedom began, many race clubs have sponsored their events in the forward deployed area to run simultaneously with their main event. This year, the Marine Corps Marathon ran a "forward" version of the race, offering a certified course, official t-shirts, bibs, and race packets to anyone who wanted to run the race on base. I love this stuff---so of course I signed up...and the best part was it was FREE! This race usually costs $80-$100, and many races easily exceed that amount for entry.

Well, it turns out that the "rainy season" started the same morning as the Marathon! This turned into the USMC MUD RUN!! We had two inches of rain in the couple of hours before the race and it was a flash flood almost instantly. Many decided to stay home, but not I!
Good Stuff!!

An aid station at mile 4 or so. This area got hit the hardest because all the water started like a tidal wave at them here! I originally signed up to "work" the aid station but was later talked into running it. I would have been at this station if I worked instead of recreated that day.

My roommate offering to help these runners through the aid station!

The flash flood was not as bad as everyone made it out to be, only minor destruction, power loss, flooding of only a couple LSA's (Life Support Areas), a car being washed away, and a couple aid stations wiped out! I was truly disappointed when the race was cancelled. It was the perfect day to run...once the rain stopped. And the water would have eventually receded. It makes no difference once you're already wet.

So here I am finishing the cancelled race. They caught everyone at a turnaround point and directed us into the finish area. I was able to get just short of 10 miles that day, and I was feeling GREAT! That guy next to me was pooped out a mile earlier and I told him to 'go get it' and was yelling at him to run harder for the camera. These Marines love that crap!!

Daily Life at AAAB

2008-11-01T12:53:00.000-07:00

There's not any one thing that shows my typical day here. I am the Facilities Engineering Division Officer...but should more accurately be called the Construction Management Division. I manage all the Construction on the base, mostly by contract. I contract with "Troop Labor" (Red Horse and Seabee Battalions), Construction Companies from Iraq, Turkey, Norway, India, and the US, and a program called LOGCAP with KBR. There's a real initiative to go with "Iraqi First" in contracting, giving Iraqi companies the contracts in order to develop their economy, build their management and construction skills, and to establish an industrial base.
These contracts usually require A LOT of oversight, direction, and re-work! It's labor intensive to build even the most simple construction because they are not learned on US National Electrical Code (NEC), Fire and Safety Standards, Concrete Strength Requirements, etc etc. I have my work cut out for me!!

Sunset in the desert. Actually taken in the Udari Range in Kuwait. I love my M9 pistol. I'm thinking of buying one when I get home. I've already gotten rid of the "boonie hat" though...not my style, dude.

The two busiest guys on this base! Dave runs the Power Grid and Water Distribution System. I run construction. We easily touch every person on base with our services, and there are dozens here just to support our operations. It's nice to be needed, but it's already proving to be a lot of work. We're up to the challenge!

Here's me at my first "building acceptance" inspection and turn-over. This is "Boz" - his real name is Adnak- Herzgbra-something or another...he's from Bosnia, so we call him Boz! He works for KBR and is a real professional. KBR executes a lot of work here for us. It costs a good bit more for them to do it over a contractor, but they generally do it right and I don't have to worry about the details so much with them. This was "job complete" on an old Iraqi Army headquarters building that KBR performed a complete rehab on, bringing it into the 21st century.

My walk to work each morning. Maybe a 1/4 mile if I take the scenic route. I live right across the street from work pretty much.

Aerial view of only a small part of the airfield. The main part of the base is the dark area at the top of the picture. Running around the entire fence line is 27 miles...I plan to do it while here!

Some rescued art from an Iraqi Wall Mural. There's alot of history here...not all is good, but interesting nonetheless.

One point of friction here on the base is the waste management "program". They just burn everything! The base is constantly smothered in smoke smelling of burning plastic...air quality is awful. I have a couple projects to bring some incinerators with scrubbers online and to build a landfill on the base. This seems to be a problem that has a lot of visibility at all levels because I read about it in "Navy Times" too.

It's hard to enjoy running here when the air chokes. The garbage smoke, mixed with all the generators' exhaust and vehicle exhausts makes for a toxic mix.

There are old MIGs all over the base. Remember during Gulf War I & II when Saddam was trying to hide his jets under other planes, inside caves, and way out in the middle of nowhere? That was here. I found a MIG way up on top of a mountain in a quarry...we wonder how it got there. These litter the landscape here. They're "off limits" because some still have active ejection seats or ordnance. Plenty of people have been injured (even killed) messing around with them.

The old Iraqi flag on the tail of a MIG. The Iraqi flag has had many variations. The one seen here has the Arabic writing on it...the official flag had the writing in Saddam's own hand. The words are "Allah Akbar," meaning God is Great.

Here's a picture of my "courtyard" in my can city. My can is right behind the person in the picture. We have a palm tree and a couple other niceties. We are extremely fortunate...the bathroom is only about 20 yards away from our can.

Just a random picture of a site on the base. There's lots of sand, and lots of sun here!

Until next time, I miss you all and hope you are doing well. I'm fine here and plenty safe. I will make sure to blog my church experience here, my living quarters, the food, some crazy construction projects, and all the things to see eventually. I have to pace myself, I still have nearly 6 months here still. Meredith's keeping a count on her page. This place is ideal for the older couple without grown kids...both could work for a contractor and make lots of money and have no expenses. Otherwise it's pretty lonely.

Welcome to Al Asad Air Base, Iraq

2008-10-24T10:21:00.000-07:00

I arrived last Friday morning...at least I think it was Friday, maybe Saturday, but I know it was morning! We had to fly out of Kuwait around 0500, so that meant loading a bus at 2300 the night before, driving to the other air base, and then waiting for all the necessary briefings and loading time. My unit flew in two waves. I was on the second wave...so in true Army fashion, the 2nd wave flight left first.

We are here to provide an Oasis for the Warrior!

Main Street Al Asad, right outside my housing area.

We were greeted by the normal heat, wind, and dust of the desert. Not the worst they've had here, but here's a small dust storm rolling in.

The dust just rolls in and falls. Leaving a coating on everything. Everything tasted and smelt like dust for the first few days...I can't notice it anymore. We have gotten good at taping up all the openings to our living spaces after seeing stuff like this!

This is my "Can City," Normandy. Cans are the trailers they use, or also called CHU's - Containerized Housing Units. My can city is the oldest on the base but I think it's the nicest. Very close to work, spacious bathroom trailers (called ablution units), and right in the middle of downtown.

The next picture is a vintage shot of the main entry control point (ECP) gate with it's "wings." It doesn't look like that any more since a truck hit one of the wings coming through the gate on convoy, so someone decided to demolish the wing part of the structure. It's a shame because I think the original architecture gives real character to the place. The base was built in the late 60s and 70s by Afghans with Soviet/Eastern-Block era ideas and architecture. It's kinda neat!

Sunset behind the mosque right next to my can city. Beautiful building but not in use...and "off limits" to military folks...I have to go in there!!! It's a great landmark for finding my way around base because you can see it from all over.

Plenty more photos to come....and I'll show you what I'm actually doing here, CONSTRUCTION!

I miss you all and look forward to hearing from anyone who wants to write. My mailing address is:

Travis Mortimer

Base Command Group

Al Asad AB Iraq

FPO, AE 09333

Camp Virginia, Kuwait

2008-10-17T04:56:00.001-07:00

As part of our transition into theater, we stopped in Kuwait for a week of final training and acclimation. It was hotter than blue-blazes there...around 110 in the middle of the day, and dry doesn't start to describe it! Believe it or not, the base we stayed at, Camp Virginia, was really nice, with a Taco Bell, McDonald's, Panda Chinese, Donut Shop, and lots of other junk! It is called the "Gateway to the Theater" because everyone comes through here in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Here's my tent "pad." There were easily over 1000 tents in this camp!! All of them the same.

A bus ride at night, probably somewhere between the Kuwait airport to Camp Virginia. By this time, we had been up for two days straight - plus the 7 hour time change. It's me on the right, then LT Brad Baer and Chief Couey in the back. He wasn't posing for this one...that's just the way he looks.

Yes, McDonald's has infiltrated even the sandiest cranny of this earth!

Here's inside my tent. General berthing...we got lucky with only 7 people in here - and ICE COLD air conditioning! It was great.
Can't get away from the sand.

More sand to walk across as we travel to/from the Galley, phone center, or where ever. It seemed like there was never a cloud in the sky. Always a smokey dusty fog though.

More sand. The kind that is like talcum powder.

We Train Like We Fight

2008-10-09T10:52:00.000-07:00

A video clip of some Humm-Vee training. We spent days driving around looking for bombs, practicing MedEvac procedures, and calling in EOD support. We even went through the HEAT Trainer, a simulator for a HummVee roll-over. There have been so many deaths in theater to rollovers and people being trapped or crushed that they incorporated this training into our pipeline. The LINK is to a video clip is not my exact training event, but shows what we did that day. It was more fun than anything. Butts and elbows all over the place but mostly it gave me an appreciation for keeping all four wheels on the ground because it's really hard to egress from this vehicle right side up, let alone upside down or in a ditch!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gENgmhDmIAE

Here's a ride along with Greg Burkette on a Medical Evacuation (MedEvac) we did at Ft Dix.

The Happenings

2008-10-05T16:46:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted any pictures of what we ARE doing...only posted about all the sitting around. So here's a taste of the training we have done. My preferred method of transportation...marching the troops. While nobody else seems to like it, I LOVE IT! It builds moral, unity, coordination, and reduces our carbon footprint. With only 50 pounds of body armor, it makes for a good workout as well!

Riding in an up-armored Hum-vee. It's heavy, powerful, and gets 2 miles to the gallon!
My view from the back seat. Usually, back seat riders are called "window lickers."
Just enjoying the view from our place in the convoy.

CBRN Training. Gas Mask fitting, MOPP (Mission Oriented Protective Posture) training, and Chem/Bio/Nuke decontamination.

The after-effects of the CBRN decontamination kit. There was no added value in this training except for the enjoyment of the staff watching us get nasty covered in charcoal dust. We still have black boogers a week later from this exercise. This is the entrance to the city of "Balad" where we walk the streets winning the hearts and minds while carrying weapons. Around every corner was a booby trap, sniper, or an IED in every trash pile. The point was to be vigilant but plenty of "non-combatants" were killed that day in training by my crew.

Just a little hands-on training on how to search and seize a person...either an EPW (Enemy Prisoner of War) or a civilian who passes through a checkpoint and triggers our "spidey senses" as out of the ordinary.

You had "Jerry" for the enemy in WWI and WWII, "Charlie" during Vietnam, and here is one of our Chiefs playing the role of "Jimmy Jihad." He's about to be searched and seized, and an inspection method called the "credit card swipe"...not fun to perform or to receive!

We're in a war for intellegence...

2008-10-04T17:20:00.000-07:00

General Petraeus has his own 200 page doctrine for this war. We call it the COIN strategy (COunter INsurgency). Some of the tenants of this doctrine are that we (as America's fighting force) are to go to Iraq and bring peace and stability to Iraq by "winning the hearts and minds of the people." The only way to do this is to work to legitimize the Iraqi government, and to provide the simple municipal functions of security, water, electricity, trash/ sanitation, education, and jobs. The only way we will beat the Insurgency is to have more intel than the enemy...so by his own words, we are in a war for intelligence!

MOST of our days here at Ft Dix have been filled with idle "white space" in our "schedules," with a training module sprinkled in here and there. Sometimes we go to a class and it is something different than we thought it would be, or we get dropped off a mile from the correct location and we have to hump down there with 50 pounds of gear on our backs with 7 minutes to go. More often than not, a class requirement pops up at the last minute and we are jerked into some training with no preparation or warning. The one thing that is guaranteed is that the training is inappropriate for what we'll be doing in theater. My son said it best when I was talking to him yesterday on the phone, telling him how I trained all day walking down the roads looking for roadside bombs or kicking in doors and clearing houses and being attacked. He said "why are you practicing that if you won't do it in Iraq?" That's been our frustration exactly.

So we're in a war for intelligence here at Ft Dix, trying to figure out why we are receiving training in doing foot patrols, searching cars at checkpoints, and chasing down the enemy when we are not going to be leaving the confines of the base. We recognize the need for basic combat skills and a proficiency in weapons handling, defense, and operating in a combat zone...but we have yet to get that. This training is just to remove liability from the Army if any of us turn into another Jessica Lynch.

So, in light of that venting, here are some pictures of what we've been doing... some training and some fun just hanging out waiting for training.
Elmo has made several appearances here at Ft Dix. He is watching the CBRN training (Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear).

Hanging out with our broke down Humm-vee...steam coming off the engine. Me and two of my room mates. From left to right: me, my "battle buddy" Brad, and Mike.

If we're not training, we're eating. Here just sitting in the galley (the Army calls it a DFAC - Dining Facility). Nothing special, but they always serve baked chicken and baked fish.

My favorite place in the Humm-vee is back right seat. Here I am behind my other roommate, Greg.
Just sitting around. This is us waiting for a class that didn't happen. First we got dropped off at the wrong location and then the class was cancelled. No biggie, we had nothing else to do.

Some of the guys walking around the FOB. Dirty, dusty, damp...just the way we like it!
Sunrise at an IED discovery range. IED = Improvised Explosive Device (roadside bomb). We had plenty of mornings where we've been up and out in the middle of nowhere to see the sun come up.

Another morning, waiting for the buses to come take us somewhere.

Now here's a video made of my squad leader doing his own style of Land Navigation and patrol movement.

I've got PLENTY more of where this stuff has come from. I'll post some good pictures as soon as I can get them from my camera and uploaded to the Internet. Stay tuned for more. Drop me a line if you have nothing better to do: travismortimer@gmail.com

Another Day at Fort Ding-a-Ling

2008-09-22T13:03:00.000-07:00

Yes, I have to wear an Army uniform for this assignment. It says US NAVY on it, but is an Army Combat Uniform. Comfortable but we're not allowed to put our Seabee on it, our warfare devices, or our Staff Corps insignia.

En route to the FOB (Forward Operating Base) for church services. The services were cancelled for some reason but there were three of us still interested in going. We're inside an old HMMWV (Hum-V) riding out before dawn. That's Brother Brown (CAPT) next to me (on right), photo was taken by Brother Gonzalez (1Sgt). The other people were riding out for other services.

Sunrise in the FOB next to our chariot, and a kind Chaplain's assistant to drive us around!

This training pipeline makes no recognition of the Sabbath. We sat idle on Thursday and Friday waiting for something to do, but then had 8 hours of training on Sunday to conduct.
So we spent 8 hours learning how to treat for combat first aid. It focused on the 3 most preventable causes of death...bleeding out, compromised airway, and tension pneumothorax. It's where the space around your lungs fill up with air, usually caused by a sucking chest wound or an opening into the chest cavity. The treatment is to decompress the space by punching a small hole into your intercostal space...as seen on ER many times. It's scary to think that every Army guy is now running around with a 14 gauge needle just waiting to pop it into my lung!!! This training was useful but made everyone just knowledgeable enough to be dangerous.

Training goes on...

Today we had an hour long class called Leadership Decision Making Skills...I decided not to go! Sorry no pictures!

Here's a link to the Public Info about AL ASAD, or at least the general area. It is a sanitized, public affairs page, so it will be all the good stuff we're doing. I'll try to keep you posted on the things that are interesting.

http://www.mnfwest.usmc.mil/MNF/mnfw_public.nsf/unitSites/3dmawfwd

Ft. Dix Training continues

2008-09-17T11:07:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Ft Dix, NJ last Saturday afternoon. I spent the week in Norfolk with 38 people from all over the Navy, processing through the administrative stuff. We then all loaded on a charter bus and made our way to Ft. Dix, NJ, arriving here on Saturday afternoon.

We moved into our barracks. Most have about 12-16 men to a room, I'm lucky to bunk only 4 in a room. My roommates are pretty cool, and all really good guys. Noah sent me his Spongebob Squarepants sheets to make my bunk feel a little more like home. I love them!! Thanks Noah!

In front of the Ft Dix Federal Prison, on base and right down the street.

We all had smallpox vaccinations before we got here. This is a "normal" reaction to the vaccine...green to white puss popping out of a red swollen knot on my arm at the site.

Typical field lunch. These are not MRE's (Meals Ready to Eat) but are instead a kinder/gentler lunch box with all commercial off-the-shelf items. Only 1400 calories in the whole box!!! The food is actually pretty good but loaded with preservatives, High Fructose Corn Syrup, and fat. I stick the the main entree, the raisins, and crackers/bread sticks. One of my room mates, Greg "bucket" Burkett...he's a pilot. I have to run since Internet speed is crawling here. I will upload more pictures as soon as training sked allows. I miss you all. Thanks for looking! Email me if you want to catch up or see anything different on here... travismortimer@gmail.com

You're in the Army now!

2008-09-08T09:37:00.001-07:00

Because all USCENTCOM (Central Command) activities fall under the Army's operational responsibility, I am being subjected to all forms of Army exposure, hence the reason I have to go to Ft Dix for training. It is already a culture shock just with the decreased level of accommodation provided, the lack of custom and privileges afforded officers, and not to mention the unnecessary acronyms! Hoo ah! I'm so glad to have chosen the right branch of the military! This photo explains it all.

There's Strong...then there's Army Strong!

A journey of a thousand mile starts with one step

2008-09-07T14:38:00.000-07:00

It all pretty much starts today. I reported to the Expeditionary Combat Readiness Center (ECRC) today in Norfolk, VA. Even though this is the start of an adventure, just getting here has been a journey!!
Maybe I'll blog later about my thoughts and feelings on US occupation of Iraq, but for now I'll let you know that I'll be there to manage several construction contracts, hopefully with the revenue going to Iraqis rather than KBR or General Dynamics type US firms! We're there to help them, not to enrich US shareholders and provide CEO retirement packages~ anyway, later on that.
I finally got the family set up in the Atlanta area while I deploy. We did a DITY move (Do-IT-Yourself) and took everything in a 26' moving truck with Meredith and all the kids following behind. It took 3 days of driving and we tried to squeeze in some enjoyment along the way. We stopped over for a day in NYC to see some sights, show the kids the "big city" and eat at the world famous Carnegie Deli. Of course, no trip could be called complete without the van being towed by the NYPD, and being accosted by over zealous panhandlers. We got the whole experience of the city.
Everyone is settled in now, and I needed to make an administrative stop in Norfolk before starting my combat training familiarization at Ft Dix, NJ. So I'll be in Norfolk for a week taking care of medical and dental stuff, paperwork, wills, life insurance, etc. I will go to Ft Dix next Saturday and will be on lock-down as we go through a rigorous 3 week training regime. My itinerary allows for 10 days of travel from NJ to Iraq, with stops in Bahrain and Kuwait. I will have "boots on the ground" in Iraq by 13 October. My current orders have me in Iraq for only 6 months. We'll see how that goes!
I'm excited about going to the desert, but I really really miss my family. Noah is at the age where he notices I'm gone, and his behavior has already started to show somethings different. We keep in touch with a webcam and video calling right now. I hope to have enough bandwidth in Iraq to keep doing that.
I'll be blogging more soon. Thanks for checking on me!