Life on the Vine

Happy Thanksgiving from Iraq! Well, operation eat till you drop has been a success. I have enjoyed two Turkey Day meals :) The dining facilities (DFAC) always put out a lot of effort into making the holidays nice during a deployment. During my first deployment to Iraq in 2004-05 I experienced Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. I'll enjoy the same holidays this deployment. For lunch, members of our command group, including our commanding general and command sergeant major, served the meal. I thought I'd load some pictures of the decorations. We're normally not allowed to take pictures inside the dining facilities. Holidays are really the only time it is okay. The top photo shows the whole middle row of the DFAC taken up with the decorations. I loved the fact that scripture was incorporated into the decorations at the DFAC closest to my office. I have many things to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. Not the least of which is all of you

As promised...here are some pictures of me at yesterday's photo shoot at the Hands of Victory monument. There is a really talented photographer in the Division's G1. He took the group photo and these next three pictures. Behind me is one of the hands modeled after Saddam's. I don't know if you'll be able to tell in the picture below but in the center just over our heads is the second set of swords at the other end of the parade field. There is a viewing stand behind us to the right. I was told that each seat had a personal A/C unit so folks could sit comfortably while watching lengthy military parades. Apparently in April 1998 Iraq's "volunteer army" paraded for six hours between the swords, the area is known as the "Grand Festivities Square." Below is a photo of some of the Iranian helmets. A co-worker took this picture, showing me at the base of the monument. You can see the viewing stand

As promised I'm attaching the photo of me piling my plate high with my first Iraqi meal since arriving. The gentleman on my right is a co-worker in the Public Affairs Office. Both of our tummies were very happy after this delicious meal. Today I had a few firsts. I made my first visit to the crossed swords -- the Hands of Victory monument in central Baghdad, built to celebrate Iraq's "victory" in the Iraq-Iran war. If I recall correctly both sides had terrible losses and eventually came to a draw after pounding each other mercilessly for almost a decade. Until today I didn't realize there are two sets of crossed swords, one on each side of a very long parade field. The monument is 140 feet high and the swords are made from the guns of dead Iraqi soldiers that were melted and recast as the 24-ton blades of the swords. About 5,000 Iranian helmets taken from the battlefield are at the base of the arms. The fists that hold the swords are repli

Tom encouraged me to post again tonight so I thought I'd tell you a bit about daily life and try something new...a video! It's night time here so you'll have to settle for a video of my digs. One of these days soon, when it is daylight, I will take a video of the outside of my living accommodations. The area I'm in is referred to as Motel 6, once you see the outside set up you'll understand why. The standard work week in Iraq for Army Corps of Engineers employees is 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday - Thursday. On Friday's (the Middle East's version of Sundays) is half day. Which means, I get to sleep in tomorrow and don't have to go into work until 1 p.m. Folks obviously work longer hours when the mission requires it. With my half day off tomorrow I plan to spend the morning unpacking my trunk and getting settled a bit more in my room. You'll see in the video things are still a bit messy, but if you ask Tom he'll probably tell you I tend t

Hello! Welcome to my blog "Pilgrim in the Cradle." This will be my first foray into the blog sphere. I have just embarked on my second voluntary deployment to Iraq as part of my work for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a Public Affairs Specialist. Ask any PA and they will tell you they have one of the best jobs in the world. We get to learn about all the cool stuff our organizations do and the great people that make up those organizations and then tell others about them. Working in Public Affairs also requires you to gain an understanding of the programs and inner workings of an organization. Sometimes if you work in one area (such as the left-threaded wing nut department) that may be all an individual knows about -- their particular specialty. Well, my job is about getting to know a little bit about a lot of stuff. Not necessarily being the subject matter expert but able to paint an accurate picture and get folks (mainly media) talking to the experts. So, wha