I remember thinking "what have I gotten myself into"?
I remember walking through the airport in Bangor, Maine as we were heading
for Germany. It was amazing how the people lined up and thanked us for our service wished us luck. They were truely
patriotic in every sense of the word.
I remember how hot it was when we got off the plane in Kuwait. It
was like walking in front of a blast furnace.
I remember horsing around at the airport in Germany with Bill Juneau and
a bunch of other guys. Bill's no longer with us, he was KIA in Iraq.
I remember getting close to Baghdad on the C-130 and the pilot beginning
his combat landing. What an experience that was. It was absolutely pitch black inside that airplane.
Those of you who have experienced a combat landing no what I mean.
I remember spending the next three weeks living in a tent with 30 other guys.
I remember being told to remain flexible at leas 10,000 times.
I remember using the Porta Potty when it was 125 degrees outside. That's quite an experience.
I remember getting transferred from Baghdad to Tikrit and moving into the tents where it was at least 120 degrees inside
the tents.
I remember being disappointed when I found out I wasn't getting stationed in Fallujah. I later found out that I
probably wouldn't have adjusted well there. God works in strange ways.
I remember getting moved to a CHU (Containerized Housing Unit) with Tommy , Billy and James. 4 of us in a 1 man
CHU. But it was a heck of a lot cooler than the tents.
I remember thinking to myself that I was now, literally, in the "Cradle of Civilization." I was no in Sadaam Hussein's
hometown.
I remember moving into my own CHU. It was basically an apartment. I had my own shower, bed, nothing to complain
about.
I remember the Regional Commander asking for volunteers to go to Baghdad with the "Surge."
I remember making it through the first cut. I was going to stay in Tikrit.
I remember Dave Hyman, the Regional Commander, telling me I was being transferred to Baghdad. Back to the tents...
I remember being told I was being sent to the the "dreaded" Forward Operating Base Rustamiyah in southeast Baghdad.
I remember being pissed off because it took them 3 weeks to move us 5 miles down the road to "Rusty."
I remember getting to FOB Rustamiyah at 2:00am and not having a clue where to go after being kicked out of the Chinooks.
I remember the 1/2 mile walk to the barracks. Thankfully, Paige knew where to go.
I remember thinking how big a wuss I was. It was tough carrying that gear for a 1/2 mile. How do you think
the soldiers feel? I was a wuss.
I remember the mortars and rockets coming in the first night we arrived. And nearly every night after that for
the next 11 months.
I remember being scared to death the first couple of nights but then I got hooked on the adrenalin. Plain and simple,
I was an adrenalin junkie.
I remember the "thump" of the mortars launching. Within a few moments the "whoosh" of the mortar or rocket
flying over our building.
