At last in Iraq...

[.pulchritudinous.]

So, as I promised about a month ago, I would keep you updated with my little adventure to Iraq. Let me first off tell you that I had no intention of going, and it was brought on quite suddenly (less than a week's notice) to get myself prepared.

Friday, July 11, we met up at the hanger (the area we work at) around noon. The weather was warm, but luckily we got to have our sleeves rolled up. My sister and boyfriend had went with me earlier to eat the last of my McDonalds (or so I thought) so I was pretty much set to go. I unpacked my EXTREMELY heavy bags and dragged them from my car to the area where everyone else piled their bags up. Now we just waited. We left and got our rifles around 2:00 pm. Then it was over to the APOG. I'm not really sure what APOG stands for but all I know was we sat there and waited until 7:00 that night for our flight. Since we work on the flightline, the commercial flight got to go right on the flightline. We loaded up, and when it came to count, there was 257 marines, and only 3 female marines. I was the only one with my group and it would stay that way for quite a bit.

The flight was long, and I was cramped in the very back (being such low rank). We stopped halfway through in Germany for a short half hour refueling session. We were taken to a building that smelled like stale cigarettes but at least they had some decent coffee! I watched "Definitely Maybe" and slept for the rest of trip. We landed in Kuwait at about 7 o'clock Saturday night. We were called up to the front for a working party and OH MY GOSH the heat. It was unbelievable. I've never felt such heat in my entire life. It dried out your mouth in an instant and it seemed as every ounce of moisture in your body just evaporated. The working party had to remove the entire flight's gear out of the cargo area and onto an 18-wheeler to go to our tents for the night. When I say tents, I mean, they are these HUGE metal tin cans. They have doors on each end, no windows.

We slept on cots, and that was our days. We spent 3 nights and 3 long days. We don't do anything in this time, except sleep. We could read and that's pretty much what I did. We lost power the last day we were there which was excrutiating. It reached up to 104 degrees F in the tents during the day, meaning it was about 115 degrees F outside. I didn't eat during sunlight, it was way too much to walk the half mile to the chow hall just to get there and not be hungry because I was too exhausted. I waited until the sun went down and then who would have guessed, but McDonalds was open! So, a cheeseburger and a kitkat mcflurry and I'd head back to the tents to either do more reading or sleep. The day the power went out, all the females got together into the shower can. Not much room to move around, but definitely some air! Even the slightest breeze was all we needed. By the third day, we left to get on a C130 and fly to Iraq. C130 rides are not all that grand, if you've ever seen/been one one. The are shakey and a lot of people eventually end up motion sick, but thankfully no one on our flight did. I slept through the entire ride, since I lost my earplugs.

We landed in Iraq about 6 in the morning. Most of us were exhausted though I'm not sure why since we had all that sleep, but we had the day off anyway. The weather was SIGNIFICANTLY better. I had imagined if I was going to have to stay in that heat that was Kuwait, I would have never made it. We all went to sleep and for the next two weeks after that had meetings at noon and then once again at 8 pm. The rest of the day was pretty much sleep and read, go to the gym if you had motivation until the rest of our group got here. We're all here now, and we're in our first week of actual work. It's not too bad. I work 12 hours a day from noon to midnight, and during those times if I'm bored, I just watch a couple movies. I tend to work only until 8 pm, and then turn on the AFN channels to the movies. The last two hours of work go by quick and then it's to bed and wake up for another 12 hour shift. I don't get weekends off and we don't get holidays off. I'll be here through Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and Valentines Day. I've planned my birthday (in June) to go to NYC with my mother, and shortly after that I'll be back out here. I'll post maybe once a week about certain things. Feel free to ask any questions!

[lofter1]

Welcome back, .pulchritudinous., and thanks for the post.

Glad your travels were safe -- but it sounds like it wasn't my idea of a nice trip :cool:

Anything you can share about the daily grind is of interest to me. And your sense of where things now stand in Iraq as opposed to when you were last there.

Not sure how much freedom you have, given your location / circumstances, in conveying info. I'm curious about anything you can tell about us that, too.

Stay safe ... http://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/images/icons/icon14.gif

[The Benniest]

Thanks for sharing this. I look forward to hearing more about your work in Iraq.

Stay safe!!

[.pulchritudinous.]

The trip was not that bad, to be completely honest. I've had to go through a lot worse. We were in a rather large commericial flight, and because the flight was so long, we had numerous meals on the flight. The only bit that was a bit uncomfortable, was the fact that we had working parties prior, so a lot of the junior Marines were sweaty, and then we had to squeeze into economy. The leg room wasn't very much, but then again, we had our rifles at our feet, some of our carry-on's, and we had to stay like that for about 13 hours. We had to file into the aircraft by rank structure so the lowest rank got economy and the officers had first class. First class was beautiful! They had their own fans/AC/heat, they had foot rests and their seats inclined completely backwards giving them the luxury of sleeping without a kink in the neck when waking up.

My daily basis routine is a bit boring, but that's how it is here. Boring. To inform you a little more about my daily activities, I should probably let you know my job. I'm an IMRL Manager, which basically means I keep track of hundreds sometimes thousands of pieces of gear (just by myself) which is used to work on their aircraft so that they can carry out their missions. It's not as bad as it seems though, since in the airwing there is numerous divisions. The divisions are accountable for the gear since they are the ones that actually use it to work on the aircraft. I have to do quarterly inventories to make sure they still have the gear I issued out to them, and I have to make sure that the calibration on each piece of gear is up to date. I also hand out basic every day tools, which is pretty much my "secondary" job.

So anyway, to start my day. I wake up at about 10:30 am each morning and get ready for work. This basically requires hygene, pulling my hair back into a sock-bun and getting dressed into my uniform. Depending on how my hair cooperates I can possibly make it to the laundry room to drop off a bag of laundry. Laundry takes 2 1/2 days to come back - washed and folded. Or I try to go to the 7-day which is a tiny "mini-mart". They stock the 7-day every few days and since there are hundreds of us here, the candy/drinks are almost always gone. About 11:10, I head over to the chowhall (cafeteria). This can take me anywhere from a 5-10 minute walk, depending which way the wind is blowing and if my feet are that sore from the day before (ha-ha). Work starts at 12 o'clock pm, and unless people are dropping a pod on the aircraft, I don't do much of anything all day except read magazines. It can become pretty monotonous. When the squadron is dropping a pod on one of the aircraft, then they are constantly checking out tools, so I keep myself occupied. We get to go to chow once again anywhere between 5-8 pm, and after that, it's the most boring 4 hours of work ever. (Currently 9 pm here) We leave at 12 am, after our reliefs get here (those that work midnight until noon) and head out to do whatever for the night. I tend to get a quick shower (we have to get navy showers where you turn the water on to get wet and turn it off. Do everything you have to do and then turn the water back on to rinse off and then you're done). Then normally we sit out in the smoke pit, which is like a gazebo used for smoking and hanging out. They normally have music playing on someone's IPOD and it tends to make time speed up while we just chat with one another. For the past couple of nights, we've been so amused with each other's conversations that we've stayed up until nearly 5:30 am. Last night (or shall I say this morning) when I went to bed, the sun had already risen. Those are my days, every single day for 7 months. Nothing changes, since we work the same schedule, do the same thing and eat the same stuff every single day while we are out here.

As to the question of how it was before, I have never been to Iraq before, but some of the 2nd timers have mentioned quite a few things. I suppose there is the bad and then there is the good. In general, the military gets a bit anal about things, which makes some absolutely hate their choice of career. There are many more rules that have come about, especially since this place is becoming more and more like the states every day. (When I say that, I mean the bases stateside to how this base use to be). We have rules that you are not allowed to walk outside at night without a flashlight or a reflective belt. Me being a female, I'm not allowed to walk by myself at night at all -which means no running for me on my time off. We must always carry our weapons and have one hand on the pistol grip at all times. This becomes an annoyance because it constantly bangs off your leg, leaving bruises up and down your thigh. We no longer have to wear flaks and kevlars (our protective gear) while walking to and from work since it's not as dangerous as it had been a while ago. There are certain things you can't say on the phone or they will disconnect you (this pretty much covers exact location and exact date you're going to be traveling). We're confined here inside of the gates, so there is no leaving base for us. It's pointless to anyway, it's not like there's any buildings outside of base, haha. One of the great things now that we have is running water. There is no more babywipe showers or showers with water bottles like they had a few years ago. The water does go out when power goes out, which is frequently so they can refuel the generators. This can last anywhere for 10 minutes to an hour.

This place is pretty much as safe as you're going to get in a combat zone. I have no threats except for the fact that I can't walk anywhere without a guy I personally know or another female walking with me. Apparently not having sex for 7 months is the worst thing to ever happen to a man and they can't control themselves. There are few females througout the entire area I'm in, maybe estimated 16 and hundreds and hundreds of males. (I'd say about 700 males) Rumors fly like it was back in high school and if a female and a male are talking they are automatically sleeping together (even if they are married and were visible throughout the entire time they were talking) It's a great place filled with drama and .... boredom and .... yeah, boredom pretty much explains it all.

[.pulchritudinous.]

So, after about a month and a half going on two months, I should say I'm fairly certain that this place is beyond boring.

We're almost through with August and on the first I will be promoted, which is good news for me in the money world (if you consider making 5.15 an hour to 5.25 and hour good money).

My days are pretty much the same as always, I wake up, try to get some things done before I head to afternoon chow (if I wake up on time) and then head to work. I have pretty much 12 hours of doing nothing until I get my college classes started, and I really have no motivation to do them at all. All of this nothing-ness has worn me out, literally. I started PTing though, just to stay in shape, obviously. We have new weight requirements out, and I'm pretty sure by the end of this deployment everyone should make weight. I'm 5'5" (or I am when I stretch it out) and I've got a maximum weight of a 150. I'm 133 now and I'm still losing weight by not even working out. We do have to run a PFT (physical fitness test) so I'm preparing myself for that, running three miles every other night and on my off-run nights I head to the gym to lift some weights. I've never really been a weight lifter, for the pure fact that I bulk up pretty quickly, and being a girly-girl, it's not always the best look for me. I've started lifting 10 pound weights though and doing a bit of ab workouts. My goal is to do an ab workout that I saw in this health magazine. It looks impossible, but hopefully by the time I'm done I can master the "windshield wiper".

Some good news, though. We recently found out today that there will be a 3 week deployment when we come back to Vegas. It'll be from the end of May until June 13. My birthday is the 6th, so I imagine my 21st birthday being somewhat of a blast! (Let's just pray that they need me to go or else I'm stuck in Havenot, NC - real name Havelock, but the lack of activity has altered the name to something more fitting)

The unlucky side of things, 6 months after we get back we'll be out here again. I was planning on actually getting an apartment, but an apartment for 6 months doesn't seem worth it. My sister just married into the Marine Corps, so I'm thinking I may try to crash with her for the time being.

We're desperatly waiting for late September/early October to come around and pray silently that the temperature during the day will stay below 115. It gets pretty disgusting coming to work, sweating, and then sitting in that sweat all day until you leave. I'm sure when the temperature hits 90 we'll all be running for a winter coats *laughs*


On the further note, having all this time has allowed me to get some much enjoyed reading in. The latest book I read "A Million Little Pieces", a mostly fictional memoir, by James Frey, about a guy recovering from a 10 year addiction to alcohol and drugs, was quite an addicting book, despite the fact that much of what was written was fabricated. While I was reading, I didn't even take heart to the fact it was suppose to be written about his experience, it was just alltogether good. There's a sequal out that I am eager to read and I'm hoping the layout, which is quite unique, resembles the first book.

Anyway, that's about it for now, I'll have to keep you guys more updated. Please, ask any questions you are curious about, and I will try my best to answer.

[.pulchritudinous.]

One word to describe this place: monotony

We're almost halfway through our deployment and it feels as though there is no seperation between the days. The same thing occurs each and every day and we're beginning to feel a bit useless out here. We normally fly 6 hour missions and the missions have been cut back to 1-3 hours. This explains the high demand of military over here in Iraq doesn't it? The first holiday is coming up and I'm sure the majority of us will forget that it's even a holiday until we go to eat lunch and the chow hall is decorated in the same style it is for every special occassion. The Marine Corps ball may be the only thing that we look foward to out here and it's less than two weeks away. Just a day of sports, conversation and the 2 beers we are so lucky to receive.

College classes started up again and I was quite thankful for that. It occupies our time instead of us sitting there waiting for a task to come about. I've read too many magazines and books out here to count, I've watched more television in the past few months than I have in my entire life, and yet there only seems to be more time. I've tried writing a book, but there is nothing to write about. I want to write about the military, but the uneventful days that seem to creep by won't fill the pages and I'm left with this blankness in my mind.

Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (aka MCMAP) is another crazy event that the majority of us are now required to do. I understand the circumstances and the fact that the Marine Corps, that which use to be known for it's physically fit members, now resembles the rest of the military branches with overweight people who struggle to get into the uniform size that they came out here with. I do like this program, though, as opposed to the other mandatory events that have somehow snuck into our curriculum. I disliked the moves and put no intensity towards my opponent until we did the famous ground fighting. The adrenaline rush you receive when you're in pain and trying to free yourself only to put your enemy into the same amount of pain is amazing. I now thoroughly enjoy MCMAP.

I've been doing a massive amount of research, looking into what I may enjoy doing when I finally get out of this mess. I was looking into Culinary Arts, and I think that may be something I would like greatly. Can anyone tell me about "ICE" in New York City?

[scumonkey]

Can't help you with ice but you should also look into this:

http://www.jwu.edu/college.aspx?id=19888&linkidentifier=id&itemid=19888

[lofter1]

ICE (Institute of Culinary Education (http://www.iceculinary.com/)) is on West 23rd Street in Manhattan (near Madison Square Park).

I don't personally know anything about ICE, but their website has lots of info, including an overview on the training offered (http://www.iceculinary.com/career/index.shtml).

And here's a direct LINK (https://web.iceculinary.com/cers/webforms/forms/career/applycareer.html) to an applicaton for additional information on training.

You also might want to check into this:

The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institutes (http://www.artinstitutes.edu/AreasofStudy/TheInternationalCulinarySchool.aspx?ID=8), which has 40 locations (http://www.artinstitutes.edu/CampusLocations/Default.aspx) all across the country.

Curious how you all go about voting over there. Is it all absentee / mail in ballots? Or do they set up polling areas on base?

Glad to hear that you're enjoying kicking butt in MCMAP :cool:

[Mohamed]

War is bad for all sides

[.pulchritudinous.]

I don't know too much about the ICE program except for what the show on the internet, but I think I may stop by there when I get home, to check it out. Basically, I have two options in my mind for now, but they are always changing, so we'll see how it all turns out. Thank you for helping out as much as you could.

We used the absentee ballot for voting over here. If we didn't receive the ballot in time, there was a website that we could log onto and vote that way, though they preferred us using the absentee ballots. I know a lot of people didn't even bother voting which somewhat upsets me, because they will be the ones complaining about pay cuts or the fact that we will be pulling out of Iraq in the near future. I'm excited to see the outcome of having the democrats back in office, though I know a lot of military members are not, because republicans are more about giving money to the military. (as if we don't already get enough - i just hope the GI bill doesn't get cut)

So - we started the holidays, and the Marine Corps birthday was our biggest event. This was on November 10. The day started out with some pictures of our entire squadron. Then we went and had a cake cutting ceremony. We talk about the POW/MIA military members that could not celebrate with us, receive messages from the commandant and our commanding officer, and then we cut the cake. The first piece goes to the oldest and the second piece goes to the youngest. After that, everyone waited in line for their 2 beers and food. Even after 4 months of not drinking you think you may feel the slightest of something with two beers, but that's untrue. When the majority of the squadron was done eating, the set up a hookah table and had a band (made up of members from our squadron) play a little "concert" for us. I would have to say that I had a great time, just being able to hang out with everyone, except for the fact I had the worst headache from that hookah. I ended up going back to my room and falling to sleep as soon as I sat down on my bed until around 1 in the morning. None the less, a great time.

Update on MCMAP: I received my grey belt, and was so awesome at kicking the guys' asses that they asked me to go for my green belt, so now I'm in the process of taking those classes.

About 2 and a half months and we are homeee. =)

[.pulchritudinous.]

Oh, and another thing...

I never knew guys could be so chocolate deprived.

We don't get chocolate out here, mainly because it would melt in the hot weather, so they don't sell it in any stores. Well, apparently someone had their aunt send them some homemade bonbons, and the SNCO's (staff non-commissioned officers) found out. They keep sneaking in here and stealing the candy. What started out to be around 40 pieces of chocolate, is now down to about 5. I have a feeling the guy who had them sent to him is going to be pretty upset when he shows up for work and all his chocolates are gone.

:p

[lofter1]

... We talk about the POW/MIA military members that could not celebrate with us ...

There isn't much word stateside of either POWs or MIAs in Iraq.

Any number of either would be too many, but any word on how many folks are classified as POW / MIA in Iraq?



... When the majority of the squadron was done eating, the set up a hookah table ... I had the worst headache from that hookah.

I assume you smoke some sort of tobacco mixture in the hookah, yes?

I was talking with a friend who just got back from Dubai, where apparently lots of folks drink like crazy (something it seems that most Middle Easterners aren't used to, and don't seem to deal with too well). He mentioned that they smoke like crazy, too -- but I was surprised to hear that they don't smoke hash or pot or anything like that because the punishment for getting busted for any kind of drugs is so severe that almost everyone is scared to death of even trying it or risking getting caught with weed of any sort.

And: Congrats on the grey belt.

[.pulchritudinous.]

I don't know exactly how many POW/MIA's there are currently, but it would be between Afghanistan and Iraq, since we're currently occupying both regions.

Hookah's are actually a great/horrible invention. It's very addicting, but I couldn't imagine it being too healthy for you. It leaves you in this calm state, though. You can smoke marijuana or tobacco from a hookah. Since I'm in the military, we smoke tobacco from it, but they have plenty of flavor varieties to choose from. We were smoking strawberry and apple on Monday. I prefer the sent of Strawberry, but you can hardly taste it but the Apple tasted excellent. We also had shipments of cigars out here, so plenty of people were smoking those as well.

As for the alcohol, most Middle Eastern countries are dry countries. Iraq is one of the dry countries, which is why we are unable to drink out here. (Not to mention we carry a weapon around with us 24/7 and have rounds.) We were able to get 2 beers per person on the holiday because traditionally the Marine Corps was founded in a bar, so if you don't drink on the Marine Corps birthday, you're not really celebrating it correctly. That will be the only holiday we get to drink and that was only our squadron. (Our chain-of-command likes celebrations, so he works really hard on trying to get his squadron the good stuff) The majority of the other Marines just went to work like any other day out here, our squadron was the only one with a real celebration.

And thank you. The officers are going around the squadron telling everyone not to mess with me or I'll hurt them. It makes people lighten even if they do think the officers are joking... ;)

[.pulchritudinous.]

I know I haven't been on this website very long, and I'm sure this seems pretty abrupt, but I was curious to see if anyone would like to support my squadron with care packages? Basically, we're out here for the holidays and I've been trying to get some things from back at home sent out here, but it's a bit difficult.

If anyone is up for supporting the squadron, I'll post the address, if not, that's fine. I understand with the way things are back at home that some may not have the money to donate things, and that's okay. I've always been really big on the holidays, and so I'm trying to get enough stuff gathered up to maybe have a Christmas party.


Some ideas of things though:
- Christmas cookies
- Microwavable meals (soups/easy mac/etc)
- Coffee, creamer, sugar, tea
- Trail mixes (or any type of nuts)
...to be honest, I think any type of food from the states would satisfy, since it's going on 4 months of not having any of it...
- Magazines
- Lotions (I think foot lotion is a big one on that)
- Hygene products