Moving Right Along

This morning we started off by having a vehicle inspection. Our 1^st

Sergeant wanted to go through our Humvees to make sure they were in appropriate condition to turn over to the next unit that will relieve us. Unfortunately, I had to clean the windows again because it had rained a little last night. It’s been raining almost nightly now for the past couple of nights. But there hasn’t been a significant amount of rain. The only other thing the rain did to my Humvee was leave dirt spots all over it just after I washed it. Someone had remarked that it had to rain because we washed our Humvees. Of course.

This afternoon we had to go to the medical clinic to start our out-process. We had to complete this questionnaire on these PDAs that they handed out to each and every one of us. There were questions such as what was our job here, where we served, if we’ve had any illnesses, and what types of agents and working conditions we were exposed to. I felt like a regular health assessment to find those at risk for any health or mental problems. I doubt I’ve acquired any diseases or medical problems while over here. The only thing I’m worried about is the amount of dust that may have accumulated into my lungs.

Tonight The Big Man and me ran into a 1^st that got on our ass. He came up to us tonight while we were selling some more of our stuff on another pad. Most of the stuff was the Big Man’s. He was selling his TV, microwave, fridge, and some other small stuff. The reason he got on us was because we had parked in an unauthorized area when we were selling our stuff. He came by and asked who’s truck it was and we said it was ours. He said that we couldn’t have it there. So I told him ok and that we would move it. I didn’t know his rank at the time because he was wearing a PT uniform. At that time The Big Man was in the middle of a sale. That’s when I told him we’d just move over to the parking area and do a deal over there. It’s wasn’t even a minute before the 1^st Sergeant got on us again about moving it. The Big Man was ending the conversation and getting into the Humvee. I was going to ground guide him out of there. That’s when the 1^st Sergeant got on our case again. He said, “I told you to move this vehicle.” I replied, “Roger, we’re moving it right now.” Then I walked over to The Big Man and told him, “Hey, we have to get out of here right now. This 1^st Sergeant is getting on us.” I was pissed because he didn’t allow us the time to get in, start the Humvee, and drive off. I think he would’ve rather us fly out of there. I don’t understand what his problem was but that’s the way they are sometimes. I would completely understand if we had blown him off and didn’t start moving out but we were. He had told us that we weren’t allowed to park there but there were no signs anywhere in sight that said there wasn’t any parking allowed. I was just pissed off at the 1^st Sergeant’s behavior, attitude, and lack of understanding. I had apologized to him for parking there when I didn’t know we could park there, and had motioned to move the Humvee the minute he told us to move it.

The pics above are from the living conditions in Ramadi. They live like pigs. I'm glad I'm not there and if I were I'd probably have them clean up a little bit.