Week #33 - Back to Base-ics

It's back to camp life in Kuwait. Expeditionary camp, though we have it pretty good. No more free wi-fi, but otherwise pretty good. Flushing toilets, hot water (at least in my building!), hot meals, TV, internet, and even foo-foo coffee as I like to call it.

Everyone asks me if I'm glad to be back. Each time I have to think and ask myself if I am. I tell them I enjoyed the OPLATs, and it was a great way to break up the deployment, the services were great, and it was an incredible Navy experience. I tell them I could have stayed out there longer to stay away from the "hassle castle" we call the JOC. But in the end, I'm glad to be back at my own command. It was a little bit of cabin fever on KAAOT anyways. Same people, every day. Here we have over 500 people, mainly us and the Hawaiian Army National Guard. Those guys are funny, maybe I'll make them the subject of a special post.

The funniest thing around here is the weekends and evenings, when everyone insists on wearing civilian clothes. Like they are going out in town (I can assure you, with rare exception, they aren't). On KAAOT you wore your uniform all the time, except for PT. Maybe during movie night you relaxed it a little bit. But there really wasn't any reason to wear anything else. So it's just plain weird to see so many people running around in civilian clothes. I guess its a nod to making people feel like they have some freedom, and keeping our sanity.

Along with the civilian clothes, I've had to get used to carrying my wallet with me, and actually spending money. I think I spent two months on KAAOT where I didn't spend a single cent, not even on my credit card. Partly because I didn't HAVE a credit card to use, not even the number so I could buy things on the internet. But there was no reason to spend anything. Food, or at least snacks and drinks, was available 24/7. Here, on KNB, you have to pay for sodas between meals, you have to pay for wireless, there's the Green Bean for coffee, there's a PX, and people are selling coins and tee-shirts.

"POCs" or paper coins, used on the bases here

Speaking of coins, my CTU 56.5.2 MESF NAG coins arrived today. They came out well, every bit as good as I hoped. My only dilemma is I don't have enough for all the MESF personnel who were in the NAG. I have just enough for the guys that were there with me, but there were boat crews before and after my time that will have to go without. So I asked the other officers, especially my predecessor and my relief, to consider ordering another batch. They were kinda expensive, otherwise I would do it myself.

They stuck me back on the watchbill on Wednesday. That's in the JOC. Back to monitoring all the ship movements and running checklists. The last few days have been very sloooowww. That won't last, though. The traffic and associated operations will pick up again. In the meantime, I'm keeping myself busy completing some quals. I technically still have to qualify in the JOC, which I find hilarious and depressing at the same time. Far more fun is my pursuit of the Tactical Boat Coxswain qualification. There are four watch stations on the boat, and I finished the first one on Friday. Next up is engineer. I have most of the knowledge, just need to get "signed off" and have a board. I just walk down to the Boat House here on KNB to go over stuff. Today they were doing 'bumper drills' -- practicing mooring the boat to the pier. So I can plenty of practice.

Also keeping me busy is catching up on all the Navy and military requirements that I missed while I was gone. Amazing how no one bothered to tell me about all the stuff I was missing. Though I don't mind playing catch up with required annual training (computer based, easy to knock out on watch), it really pissed me off that no one bothered to tell me when the deadline for end of tour awards came and went. Basically no one was looking out for me and my career while I was out on the 'tip of the spear' defending the critical infrastructure funding Iraq's rebuilding. You're welcome!! I can only imagine who's going to champion my hard work and accomplishments when it comes to my departing fitness report.

That's it for my life on KNB. Last week was Katie's birthday, and tomorrow is our anniversary. Without free wireless (and Skype is blocked on the MWR computers) we will just have to make due with good old-fashioned telephone. And our usual time is clobbered by my watch. But we'll connect, one way or another.

And here's my deployment "belated birthday disclaimer": For everyone who had a birthday or holiday while I'm gone that I missed, I apologize. You know how old you are anyways (sometimes I forget!).

Almost May, and then its just June and then back to San Diego. Plans are to take a couple weeks of leave so I can join Katie in St. Louis for the All-Star Game. Just gotta get through the next nine or ten weeks!