The **Ongoing** Navy (Reserve) tales

That's better than the combat boots I ordered. They took 6 weeks. But the new ones I got are so awesome! They were worth the $100 they cost, but it was an investment I tell you.


Thanks for taking the time to send it this way, I really appreciate it.

 

Bill i am glad you got it!!

Hope that Irish music is up your alley. my friend deborah is an irish music expert.

 

I found a very cool website with some videos from the war. http://www.vampirebat.com/

please note that these are not necessarily PG rated, and caution should be taken!!!

Some are not for the faint of heart.

 

Yeah, not that package, nnay

 

OK, good --I was afraid I missed something. //whew//


Aren't you supposed to be sleeping right now, ZOO? Isn't it like almost 3AM???

 

I'm now in the nation of Qatar on 4 days of R&R. It's been fun hitting the pool, enjoying some drinks and not doing anything else. Kinda nice.

I hear you all are having some snow and yucky weather. It's about 102 today and humid. But my tan is coming along nicely and I'm not getting shot at. Life is good.

 

I made it back to Kuwait tonight.


Is it a bad thing when you watch the Air Force crew pour every spare ounce of hydraulic fluid onboard into the tank to allow them to lower the port side landing gear?



They didn't have enough hydraulic pressure after landing to allow them to open the back ramp of the C-130. It was a very interesting series of misadventures.

 

Here is a repost of my most recent mass update:

Hi everyone,

Since returning to Kuwait from Emergency Leave, I've been busy, but not nearly as busy as I was before. We've dropped from nonstop 12-18 hour work days to 3 days on, 1 off, 8+ hour days.

It has also given us a few opportunities to get out and see Kuwait, and even go on R&R to the nation of Qatar. Unfortunately, we went from one locked down base to another, and we were only able to get off base once on a "Desert Safari" 4x4 trip. But the trip was great and we had a good time.

I updated my photo album with pics from Qatar and our Cinco de Mayo cookout last night. They can all be found here: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/obey_wann_ff/my_photos

I'll take you through the pics a bit:

We started off waiting for our C-130 to take us from Ali Al Saleem AB to Qatar. Everything went too smoothly, and we should have known better. We got on the bus to the flight line and were quickly turned around because "the plane had a flat tire". No explaination why this wasn't caught earlier --say before we got on the bus???

So we went back to the holding area and took some pictures in front of war damaged bunkers from Gulf War 1 in the 90's, then headed back in for more fun and games.

We were told it would take 2-3 hours to fix the tire, so we ate an MRE (yummy --sorta, NOT) and then took a nap. Then we woke up and were told that they "found too much play in a prop". Again, it raises the question -- why wasn't this caught earlier, like on the LAST preflight??? So we were told it would be another several hours before we were ready to go. So we ate another MRE, then slept some more, then went to the base pizza place and brought back food for everyone in the terminal. After another hour or so, it was time to finally go.

Flying on a C-130 is an interesting experience. For those of you who have never had the (cough) pleasure of a military space available flight, I can just say that this is definitely not first class. More like steerage on the Titanic. Heh, I'll tell you more about that analogy later....

...First, you need to wear earplugs, as this is definitely not a quiet ride. We walked up the back ramp and settled into the jump seats. Not exaclty comfortable, but not too bad, either. No stewardess service, either. And if you need to relieve yourself, feel free to use the "honey bucket" or the little "comfort station" at the rear. Just don't expect much privacy. At all.

We finally arrived in Qatar about 10PM and then had to wait for food, customs and our ride to the base. By the time we got there, we were tired, hungry and ready for a drink. The Army, in their infinte wisdom, has decreed that all troops on R&R at their base will be restricted to 3 drinks maximum per day. You pay for your drink ticket and technically can't give them to other people (a rule not too widely enforced ).

We quickly had our 3 drinks and then settled into our "wonderful" accomidations. Again, we were able to see just how well the Army takes care of their people. We lived in tents installed inside a large warehouse and were able to sleep on bunk beds. At least we had wall lockers, I guess? But why erect tents inside a building???

Most of our time on the 4 day pass was spent at the pool, and eating at Chilis, which was right next to the pool. Good food, good friends and lots of good fun. The 4 guys I went with were totally awesome and we all had a fantastic time together. We definitely let all other services know that the Navy was in town. We were loud, obnoxious and had a great time, whether we had been drinking or not. We were almost always heard before seen. But other people must've liked it, because we always were talking to other people, joking with them and in general, having a good time. We almost developed a "following".

Most nights... make that, every night, was spent at one of the two clubs, enjoying our drinks and each other's company, and we spent many, many hours at the foos ball table. We performed many fe

 

I'm not normally into horroscopes, but I saw this on myYahoo today and it was SO fitting, that I need to post it here:

It will be all too easy for you to fall headfirst into work and forget about anything that even remotely resembles fun, recreation or leisure, but don't. It's true what they say about all work and no play, and besides, you have your reputation to think of. You're supposed to be the most fun-loving, lighthearted and downright chipper sign in the zodiac. Give yourself at least a couple of hours off to keep your sense of humor and joie de vivre intact.

The thing is, I was falling into an all-work, no fun mode again. I guess it's time to take a day off and relax and work on my "reputation."

 

It is currently 117 degrees, and we can sure feel it. Yuck.


I say they can keep it --I'd rather be a Mile High (or two) thank you very much.

 

Not long after I posted that, a storm came through with wind, rain and cooler temps. It might "only" be 100 now.

 

I just received a great article about our group:
http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=18402

Navy Customs Inspectors in Kuwait Serve 100,000

By Journalist Seaman Joseph Ebalo, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central
Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Public Affairs

CAMP DOHA, Kuwait (NNS) -- U.S. Navy customs agents assigned to Navy
Expeditionary Logistics Support Forward Oscar (NAVELSF FWD OSCAR), Bravo
Company, tripled the volume of inspections by previous commands by
inspecting their 100,000th service member at Camp Doha, Kuwait, May 15.

Members of NAVELSF FWD OSCAR, a command made up of about 400 Navy
Reservists, volunteered to support the Navy and the U.S. Customs Department
by conducting inspections of equipment, supplies, and Department of
Defense personnel serving in Iraq and Kuwait.

"The mission of NAVELSF FWD OSCAR is to protect our homeland from
foreign contaminants like bugs, soil and plants, and illegal materials like
weapons and contraband," said Senior Chief Storekeeper Sharon Leslie,
passenger processing center supervisor. "Our job is very important,
because we want to prevent any diseases or bacteria in the Middle East from
spreading to the U.S."

Marine Cpl. Rudolph Roberson Jr., supply noncommissioned
officer-in-charge, Charlie Company, 103rd Engineering Battalion, was the 100,000th
customer served by Bravo Company.

Roberson, a former Navy quartermaster, received a backpack from NAVELSF
FWD OSCAR Bravo Company senior enlisted personnel filled with command
coins, gift certificates, candy and other goodies.

"I was really surprised to receive this honor," said Roberson. "I feel
like, on top of being able to go home to Philadelphia to see my wife
Ja-net and my daughter Jazmin, I won a great prize," he said.

According to Leslie, in one four month period, U.S. Navy Customs agents
accounted for nearly six times the overall inspections conducted on
service members preparing to re-deploy.

Bravo company has more than 180 Sailors certified as customs boarder
clearance agents (CBCA) to conduct searches of personnel traveling home
on leave, re-deploying to a different region, or transferring stateside.

"We have to go through every piece of luggage to make sure our job is
being done right," said Quartermaster 1st Class Robert Travis, CBCA,
NAVELSF Forward Oscar, Bravo company. "That means using a computer to
check out all unmarked or suspicious compact discs, searching shampoo and
toothpaste containers for hidden contraband, and emptying out all
pockets of every clothing item, including uniforms," said Travis.

In addition to Camp Doha, NAVELSF FWD OSCAR Sailors are forward
deployed to Bellad, Iraq; Kuwait Naval Base; Camp Arifjan, Kuwait; and Ali Al
Salem Air Base, Kuwait.

NAVELSF Bravo Company Sailors say they stay focused on their mission of
helping service members and protecting their homeland.

"We have a great job, because we get to see troops happy and on their
way home to their families," said Fire Controlman 2nd Class Jeffrey
Oberts, CBCA, NAVELSF Bravo Company. "There is a huge sense of pride in
being part of the process that gets our people home."

For related news, visit the Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central
Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Navy NewsStand page at
www.news.navy.mil/local/cusnc/.

 

I finally get to see ROTS today, and on the big screen at that! Well, as big of a screen as we have here.

I am so looking forward to tonight!!!

 

It will be a day long remembered. It has seen the end of the sage, and will soon see the end of the deployment.



I saw EP3 tonight, and also found out some very good news. I will be coming home soon, along with a portion of my group. Our workload has drawn down enough that some of us will be fortunate enough to come home again, sooner than expected. I will be a human being again.

No dates are firm yet, but I am hoping to be home by the 4th of July. It's a good date to shoot for.

I'll post more when I have it, within the confines of Operational Security and whatnot.

 

YOUUSSAAA GOING HOME!!!!!




kill me for that. please.


YAY for getting to come home!

 

It looks like I could be home in about 3 weeks. We started outprocessing, and I'm now off the watchbill from my normal jobs here. So now our main focus is getting everything done to make our escape easier.

woohooo!!!

Yes, meesa goin home!!!!!


I even e-mailed work today to let them know my approximate return time. I'm really looking forward to coming home.

 

AWESOME!!! Thats great, man. I hope it all goes well.

 

I now have confirmed flight departure times. We don't know when we are getting back to Colorado, but at least I know when I'll be in Virginia.

Excellent day!!!

 

I now have my orders and my eval in my hand. The end is SO in sight!!!

Not much longer and I will be back in the good olde US of A!!!

 

Here's my most recent email update to the world:

Hi Everyone,



Sorry it has been so long since I posted an update. I guess it's tough to write about nothing really happening. In a nutshell, life has pretty much been plugging away here at lovely Camp Doha. They are still shutting down the base around us, while our new home still isn?t ready.



That might have something to do with the lake of raw sewage that keeps growing next to it. (The locals dump out the porta-john vacuum trucks down the hill next to our new home site.) But on a plus side, I hear it?s very green there. This is obviously a big deal, and is coming down to big bucks (that start with a capital ?M? in dollars), and is as much political as it is anything else. This is all well above my pay grade to worry about, so I just enjoy watching the Powers That Be scurry around as they try to figure things out. On another plus side, we did get a decent write up in the local news magazine: Page 10 at this link: http://www.dvidshub.net/publications/desert_voice/issues/DV_Jun08.pdf I think it?ll be a nice place to live, if we ever get to see it. If not, our replacements will.



Next, I?ll probably direct you to my photo album and let some pictures do the talking. http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/obey_wann_ff/my_photos I added a new album called ?Dusty Kuwait?. Those photos have not been enhanced in any way. The sky really did look like that. This is not the place to be if you have any kind of respiratory illnesses. I do carry a dust mask with me, but haven?t really needed it too much.



The temperatures have been between 110 and 117 in the daytime with our ?lows? in the high 80?s and low 90?s. The best way to describe what it feels like outside in the daytime is to turn on your oven to about 400 degrees. Open the door and look into the preheated oven while using a blow dryer to blow dust in your face. While sitting in the sauna at your local gym. Don?t forget that you?re wearing a full set of DCU?s. (Desert Camouflage Uniforms). Luckily, we don?t need to wear body armor too often here, but you can imagine how that adds to your discomfort. It?s just a little warm here, and it?s not even as hot as it will get here. Isn?t that comforting?



Next, I added an album called ?May Gun Shoot?. Several of us were able to scrounge out a day at the M-16 range to work on qualifications. We also did a little posing for the camera, and had a good time. Pictures 4-7 show you what we look like in ?full battle rattle?. And yes, I did have a little bit of dirt on my upper lip, but I was finally able to wash it off. It just stuck around since R&R, and took a bit of effort to finally get cleaned off.



I can also put in a big plug here for Wiley-X brand sun/dust goggles. Thanks to some very generous pre-deployment contributions from friends and family, I was able to get prescription lenses for these glasses. They are lifesavers. With the heat, the dust and the wind, they do a great job of protecting the eyes. In fact, the Army is finally proposing getting rid of the old ?BCG?s? (Birth Control Glasses) ?the old, nasty brown framed glasses that are about 30-40 years out of style. You can imagine how they get their name. They are replacing them with new, high-speed protective glasses. Everyone in the Army will be getting issued protective eyewear, and those that need corrective lenses will have inserts that go behind the same pair of glasses that everyone else will wear in the field. I spoke with a guy who was rotating home today who said he had been hit by IED?s 4 times, and the eye protection he?d been issued definitely saved his eyesight. He plucked a piece of shrapnel out of the glasses right in front of his eye. They?re worth every penny. I wear them every time I am driving off base, just in case, and today?s stories solidified my faith in them.



The next album is ?June Pics?. The first 4 are from an ?RAA? mission I did, checking all of the bags and equipment of a batch of troops heading home.

 

I'm so short now I need a ladder to get over the curb.

 

Hopefully you get home soon, but man it must be like hell over there.

Donovan

 

I'll be the first to admit we don't have it as bad as the guys up North do. However, I'm still thrilled to be going home. 7+ months is plenty long enough away from one's family, and my BS detector has pegged high so many times that it has broken. I'll be glad to get back into a real life, hug on my kidses and be a daddy and husband again.

It'll be 118 degrees here on Thurs and Fri. It's already 108 degrees now at 2PM. I'm ready to be back in the cool, thin, dry air of Colorado.

 

Hey, everyone! I am now back in Colorado!!! I got back in on Friday afternoon, and have spent the last three days getting re-acquainted with my family. It was very busy and hectic going through the demob process, but they got me home in time for Father's Day!!! And I was even able to see ROTS last night on the big screen.

So now I'm back. We're heading to Pagosa Springs tomorrow and will be gone the rest of the week, then I'll head into work next Monday, more likely.

So what have I missed in the last week?

 

Welcome home, you missed the meeting on Saturday Wouldn't have expected you to be there anyway.