8/29/2004 07:57:00 AM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|About 2 days ago I saw my first Camel spider/Wind scorpion. I did some research and found out that they aren't actually spiders nor are they scorpions, they are in a class of their own. They can run 10 mph according to one webpage I went to but only 1 mph according to National Geographic. So I was in our little restroom/shower/laundry room finishing up taking one of my every other day showers and about to shave when I noticed this sucker up in the corner of the door way. Well, that made up my mind about shaving, wasn't going to happen, not when I would have to turn my back on that thing!!! So without taking my eyes off of him, I gathered my things and quickly left the bathroom and reported the sighting. It wasn't a huge one but about a 2 inch body on him, not including the legs. Of course everyone needed to see it and one of my coworkers decided to spray the sucker with some permetherin, an army issue bug spray for our uniforms and rooms, which is probably not legal in the civilian market due to carcinogens and god knows what else. Well, that didn't kill him just made him run across the wall. One of our females took hold of a large scrub brush and aproached with intent to kill. I felt sure I was about to see this sucker jump onto her face and start munching away, at which point I probably would have screamed and ran into the other room, but she was quick enough on her assault that she hit him right in the middle and made him basically explode. To tell you the truth I would rather face an Iraqi with an RPG than a camel spider. Washing my clothes that is an experience also. We have this washer/spinner that we fill with water that is yellow, that is also our shower water, and then stick the clothes in, this isn't new for anyone i'm sure, but what is different is the way it spins the clothes for washing, it uses some rollers on the side and the water jets on the side, it really ties your clothes in some crazy knots and stretches everything to it's limit, you then empty the water and refill it to do a rinse cycle, once your done with that stick it in the spinner to get most of the water out of it then hang dry it. It took me about an hour and a half to wash and spin my clothes. Well, they are clean at least. I am going to go to another FOB for some training so I probably won't get to post anything for a couple days but will continue as soon as I come back. I am getting everyones comments and emails and read them daily. I apologize that I don't have more time to write individual emails back but we only have one computer to access email on and there are multiple people that want to use it not to mention I am actually on shift when I can use the computer so I can't stay on too long. (Dzuy(Chuck) I can't access your webpage it is blocked by our administrators-sorry-I will check it out as soon as I can get on a non military connection) Well folks that's about it for now, things are not too exciting but will keep you informed of what does go on. BCJ |W|P|109375445035790643|W|P|My first Camel Spider|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/29/2004 05:40:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hi, mein Lieber.

Was für eine irre "Skorpion"-Begegnung... ;) Ich bin neulich erst vor einer fetten Kakerlake derart erschrocken, dass ich nicht einmal schreien konnte, denn ich hatte den Karton schon in der Hand und das "Monster" saß in einer Ecke. Brrrr. Igitt. Auf dem Flur habe ich sie ausgeschüttet und plattgetreten. Ich weiß, nicht sehr tierlieb, aber ich konnte einfach nicht anders.

Na dann, ich freue mich auf deine nächsten Erlebnisse. Ich selbst bin vom 31.8. bis 9.9. in Österreich und kann mich in der Zeit leider nicht melden.

Ganz lieben Gruß,
deine Ulrike8/30/2004 06:31:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hi Son,
Just wishing you a safe trip to and from the other FOB. I look forward to your communications when you return.
All my love,
Mom8/31/2004 08:15:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad,

I hope you're doing okay and aren't being terrorized too much by the spiders. I wanted to write you a quick note on here letting you know that I love you and miss you VERY much. I can't wait until I get to talk to you or hear from you again. The family asks about you all the time and they're always wondering how you're doing. Maya still occasionally cries because you never come over to visit her :) If you need anything or want anything in your new place, let me know and I'll do my best to get a package out to you as soon as possible. I hope whoever is in charge doesn't waste much time figuring out when you're able to take leave. I can't wait to see you! I'll write another email soon! I love you with all my heart!

Elizabeth9/06/2004 08:32:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hello Brad,

Well I finally figured this blogging thing out....was puzzled for a while....my bookmark was taking me back to the same daily entry (the "Wow" one) every time so I didn't know there were other posts.....your Mom clued me in yesterday...and this morning I read the three new entries since then.

Sounds like you're getting used to your new location OK..camelspiders and mice excepted....guess there needs to be some special army issue mouseproof computer wiring...to keep things safe. Like to see some photos when you can.....Question...can we send photos too...??

Rose sends love and blessings to you...she and her boyfriend are doing a lot of kayaking on the coast and I've been "wrenching" on my VW van...putting a new tranny in ...getting ready for a vacation camping trip the last two weeks of Sept.

We try watch the news every day to keep up whats going on in Iraq but the news is only about pretty terrible events.

I'm curious what you guys over there think about the elections here at home and the Bush vs. Kerry choice. Are the soldiers supportive of Bush policy...or ????

Keep telling us as much as possible about your life and events....we like reading your posts.

Let us know when you're R&R will be....will you be spending any of it in Houston....I plan on going there in October...so will try to be there at the same time if you're going there.

We're thinking of you every day and wishing you well and safe.

Cheers,
Uncle Warren, Lois, and Rose8/26/2004 03:31:00 AM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|Well the past 24 hours haven't really been very kind. I didn't get much sleep and so I feel pretty crappy today. I got off of work and went to sleep not 2 hours later our command group had come down today for some training and someone came and woke me up to sign my leave paper work(Urlaub papiere). The two hours I did sleep were riddled with some of the strangest dreams I have ever had. I am pretty sure it has something to do with the Malaria pills we have to take. I forgot to take mine for a week or two and started up again on monday. It's a once a week pill but man the effects last at least a week. After I was woken up I couldn't go back to sleep. I was up from noon till about 8 in the evening. Oh, right before I went to bed a played a computer game for a little while and was using some headphones that I bought. 50 dollar headphones. I love these things. They are some of the best I have ever used for that price range. Well after I signed the papers I was going to play on the computer for a little while longer only to find out that a mouse somehow got up on my field desk which is about 3 feet high and chewed up one of the wires and earpieces. There must have been 20 holes in that thing. They are trash now!! Then I looked at my Ramen noodles, yep they got some of them too!!! Friggin mice!! So I have a new worry. That mice are going to destroy everything I own. I ended up watching "Bad Santa" with one of my coworkers, I thought it was pretty funny but if you don't like vulgar words it is definately not for you. I went back to bed around eight and overslept. I ended up getting to work about 45 minutes late. Noone really cares too much as long as I don't make a habit of it, which I won't, but they did give me a lot of grief about it. Ok now what did I say about not getting your hopes up about my leave dates? That's right!! It has already been changed. My leave is almost definitely pushed back to October. I can't even begin to estimate what part of october it is going to be and I probably won't find out until a week or so before October first. Gotta love the army, someone in our personnel shop(S-1) can't count and screwed things up. I am not the only one affected. Cassie and I are both not getting to go this month like we thought. So ist das Leben. I am trying to get some pictures up for you all to see but am having a problem with the program and the computer. I'm working on it but it may take another couple days. That's all for now. BCJ |W|P|109347761227311526|W|P|The past 24 hours|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/26/2004 03:48:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Damn malaria pills! I remember those mean little buggers from my stay in Cambodia. They gave me some baaad nightmares as well ;)

Sorry to hear that your R&R has been moved. Let me just tell you: Ich werde morgen auf dem Stadtfest ein Bier auf Dich trinken.

Sepu8/26/2004 04:54:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Well son,
You have certainly learned to be flexible and roll with the punches right ? no matter how many or how unfair they are. Your leave is coming, and a date to very much look forward to. If it is indeed in October, then you will have even less time there once you return. (they aren't going to renig on your Feb date to return to Germany too are they?) A box is going out tomorrow - I can include mouse traps and cheese ! (they should like it even if it is moldy) we'll fix em.
Love the postings - can't wait to see some pics. take care and think of home.
ove you and miss u terribly,
Mom8/26/2004 09:23:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hi Brad.

Also, wie werdet ihr in der Armee bloß behandelt? Seid ihr Sklaven oder was? Aber wie du schon sagst: So ist das Leben. Kein Grund, sich graue Haare wachsen zu lassen. Ich wünsche dir trotzdem, dass du bald in Urlaub fahren kannst. Danach geht es dir sicherlich besser.

Was meinst du, wie froh ich bin, wieder in Berlin zu sein. Hier kann ich tun und lassen, was ich will. Ich kann schlafen bis in die Puppen und Fernsehen und Ausgehen und... Aber ich will dir hier mal nicht zu viel von den Freiheiten eines armeefreien Lebens vorschwärmen. Das ist gemein. Du wirst es aber sicherlich in vollen Zügen genießen. Hoffentlich war es den Einsatz am Ende auch wert.

Die Malariatabletten sind bestimmt "Lariam". Da bekommst du schon Angst, wenn du die Packungsbeilage liest. Meine Freundin hat die schlimmsten Halluzinationen davon bekommen und konnte aufgrund von Panikatacken nicht mehr schlafen... Ich habe mich deshalb bei meinem zweiten Afrikaaufenthalte dieses Jahr für Malarone entschieden. Die Tabletten nimmt man jeden Tag und ich hatte GAR KEINE Nebenwirkungen.

Allerdings ist das Zeug etwa doppelt so teuer wie Lariam. Von Lariam habe ich jedoch Schwindelanfälle bekommen, so dass ich für ein paar Tage nicht ohne Hilfe geradeaus gehen konnte. Die Leute mussten mich echt für eine ganz schlimme Säufering gehalten haben, aber ich habe mich nur gefühlt, wie auf einem Schiff bei Windstärke 10!!! Ich musste die Tabletten absetzen.

Viel wirkungsvoller sind so oder so andere Maßnahmen: helle, flatternde Kleidung (Mücken lieben Schwarz und Dunkelblau), Repellents (hoch konzentriertes Insektenmittel zum Einreiben) und das obligatorische Mückennetz.

Also, du armes Versuchskarnickel. Hoffen wir mal, dass du trotz Tabletten noch klar denken kannst und bald nach Hause kommst.
Kopf hoch und noch einmal ein Lob für deine Blogger-Seite,

deine Ulrike8/26/2004 09:52:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hey Brad,

I can't even imagine having to go through what you and thousands of other people are living through over there. I'm sure if I had to, I'd adjust. But wow. Anyway, it's been interesting reading your journal and what you do on a daily/weekly basis.

As you stated, I'm not surprised that the Army changed your R&R date. I heard just a little of what a couple of my other friends have gone through being in the Army. One of them has finished his duty, the other signed another contract extention but only to be in the reserves. Anyway, I hope they don't completely screw you out of a nice relaxing leave. I know how important that will be especially considering all that you must bear.

Micah8/24/2004 02:57:00 AM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|Ok, first let me explain R&R for my german family and friends. R&R bedeutet Rest & Relaxation. So, das bedeutet dass ich ferien/urlaub haben werde. Ich kann nicht warten bis ich weg von diese Wueste bin. Ich werde zwei wochen urlaub bekommen. Ich darf entweder nach Deutschland oder nach Die Staaten gehen. Ich habe entschieden nach Baltimore zu gehen um meine Freundin zu besuchen und ich moechte auch versuchen ein Job zu bekommen. So, I got word today that I should be heading out on the 25th of September. So I will be getting R&R next month but not real soon. Good thing about that is that when I return I will have even less time here in Iraq. I am actually glad I didn't go on R&R earlier. I would have hated if I had gone in the first couple months of the deployment only to return with 9 months left in country. Now of course my date for R&R could always change if an emergency arises so I won't really get my hopes up until about a week before I leave. I slept pretty hard yesterday and I know this because I was woken up only twice and both times I nearly jumped out of my bed. Let me explain a little more in detail where I am living. The tent that me and some of my coworkers live in is actually a tent for transients, temporary quarters for people passing through. So for the past 3 days there have been at least four different people move in out. I don't mind too much only problem is the fear that someone might steal something of ours. There is usually at least one of our guys in the tent at all times so that helps. We have set up a small corner with a TV, XBOX, and DVD player which helps pass the time. Soon I'm going to start going to the gym with the guy on shift with me. That should be interesting. I'll let you know how that goes and how long it lasts. Well, I hope everyone is doing well and will be posting some pics soon. BCJ |W|P|109330405468945824|W|P|Finally an R&R date|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/24/2004 04:04:00 AM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hey, you are coming out this way ya? It would be cool to see you at least for an hour or so. I know you will be busy. Well, whatever happens know I'm thinking about you buddy. Glad to hear you got some sleep all smiles and giggles heh? Take care talk to you later.jess8/24/2004 04:41:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hi Son,
Glad you are getting some rest - and hopefully some chow. So many questions about your new place. Maybe we will talk soon. Just glad you are safe and "cool". Good news about your R&R - and yes, when you return to Iraq, you will really be able to count down the days. Hang in there son. I love you and am very proud of you.
Miss you much,
Mom8/24/2004 06:45:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad,
I am so happy you finally got your leave date. Of course I'll try not to get too excited until right before you leave, but I don't know if I'll be able to help it much. At least now you have something solid to look forward to so hopefully that will help you deal with whatever adverse situations you might encounter at your new place. I love you with all my heart and you know I'll be counting the days until I get to see you. I miss you A LOT!

XOXOXOXOXOXO,
Elizabeth8/25/2004 10:10:00 AM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hey Brad.

Das klingt wirklich alles sehr gut. Deine Freunde halten zu dir! Ich drück dir die Daumen, dass du dich bald zu Hause ausruhen und entspannen kannst! Danke für die Übersetzung des Textes ;)

Könntest du nicht einmal ein Wüstenbild veröffentlichen?! Wenn es dort so viel Wüste gibt, kannst du ja ruhig mal ein Bild von deinem "Arbeitsplatz" schicken.

Ganz lieben Gruss und DURCHHALTEN!!! :)

Deine Ulrike8/22/2004 02:13:00 AM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|Ok, this place really isn't great, all I can really say is "WOW", but at the same time it could be much worse. I have moved into my tent, which is airconditioned and inside of an open hanger. I will provide pictures soon. I didn't think I was going to be working tonight as I have had very little sleep over the past few days but alas, here I sit. My biggest mistake today was trying to catch 2-3 hours of sleep before coming in to work. BIG mistake. I was so groggy when I finally got here I could barely walk straight. I know for a fact that I will sleep like a rock when I get off shift. There is a chow hall here of sorts and a very small PX with the minimum of items, mainly snack stuff, but so far I can't complain much about it. Yeah it's no resort but Iraq as a whole is by far no resort. My only real drive right now is that I will be coming home on R&R next month, I hope I hope I hope. For all of you who have been checking the website and posting comments I thank you. It means a lot. Well, I'm going to get back to work and hopefully tomorrow or the day after I will post some pictures for you guys. BCJ |W|P|109312692101074442|W|P|I'm here. "WOW"|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/22/2004 09:18:00 AM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad,

Great to hear you arrived and things are a bit better then you had expected.....they certainly sound better than I had imagined.

Spoke with your Mom late this evening and read her your blog....she was relieved also. She's been with Amber all day getting her set up at UTSA...sounds like she's in good shape to start classes this coming week.

Will you still be able to heat things up on your hot plate? We'll try to send you some food to supplement your local chow...or things you can munch on your shifts.

Its good to hear you've got some R&R coming up....I know you can use it.

Hope you can find some positive things to focus your attention on.....Let me know by p-mail if there's anything we could send that would help. Can you use any magazines or books.

We're all cheering for you and wishing you well.

Uncle Warren, Lois and Rose8/22/2004 01:33:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hi Brad, mein Süsser,
das klingt ja fast wie meine besten Erlebnisse in Kenia. Ich habe dort zwar nicht im Zelt geschlafen, aber wir haben ein SET (=Scouts Emergency Toilette) benutzt. War ganz nett, da der Raum nicht ganz dicht war und die Luft nicht zu sehr gestunken hat, aber ich bin trotzdem froh, wenn ich in einem normalen Haus wohnen kann.
Immer, wenn ich mein „Fielwork“ machen musste, dann hatten wir Glück und konnten in einem Hotel oder bei Bekannten schlafen. Ich zelte wirklich nicht so gerne, vor allem dann nicht, wenn ich nachts aufpassen muss, dass ich auf dem Weg zur Toilette nicht von einem Löwen gefressen werde. (Voller Ernst!) Gibt es bei dir eigentlich ausser Skorpionen noch andere wilde Tiere? Oder lebt ihr mehr oder weniger in der Wüste?
Ach ja, ich stelle mir das Leben etwas eintönig vor. Ich weiss zwar nicht genau, was R&R ist, aber es klingt wie „Landurlaub“ bei einer Schiffsmannschaft. Also, dann wünsche ich dir eine schöne Pause von dem Alltagsstress.
Ich bin demnächst in Berlin im Urlaub und fahre mit meinen Eltern zunächst zum Geburtstag meiner Oma und dann nach Österreich, aber ich werde dir wieder den Rundbrief per Email schicken. Wer weiss, vielleicht hast du ja Papier, um ihn auszudrucken und dann Zeit, ihn bei Gelegenheit zu lesen.
So, jetzt will ich den Platz hier mal nicht überstrapazieren und wünsche dir einfach einen schönen Tag und eine angenehme Nacht (wenn du denn in der Nacht schlafen darfst.)
Deine Ulrike8/22/2004 10:55:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Moin moin !!

Menschenskinnaes, ich würd ja gern mal wissen, in
was für ein Zeug Du Dich reingeritten hattest...
hoffe, daß Du keine weiteren Probleme davon bekommst!
Drück Dir dafür die Daumen. Aber hey, wer könnte es
besser nachvollziehen, als ich, wenn man mit seinen lieben Rankhöheren Streß hat ... :)
Ich hoffe, Du kannst Die Zeit so gut wie möglich überstehen und möchte Dir sagen, daß die ganze Familie oft an Dich denkt!! Alles Gute, und ne dicke Umarmung.
Basti8/23/2004 08:05:00 AM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad,
Just caught up on your postings, thank goodness you at least have a/c, looking forward to seeing the pictures. Was happy to know that you will get mail that had already been sent to you, you do have a package coming. Let me know when you finally get it. Take care and look forward to your next posting. Caryn8/23/2004 04:40:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hi son,

So glad to talk to Warren Sat evening and hear that you had posted a message already, meaning you had arrived safely. (and that you have air conditioning). Everything went well in SA and your sister is on cloud 9. Classes start Wed. I will miss her but not as much as I will miss talking to you daily on IM. I hope you have had some much needed rest since your posting - I know there is much to do and learn when you change bases. You are one of the best at what you do and your new CO will be thrilled to have you I know. Looking forward to the pictures.
Take care son, and be safe.
All my love,
Mom8/23/2004 11:44:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hey Hey Hey
Tell evereone there I said hello. A tent huh? Just like old times in Kosovo what are you worried about. I hope you have gotten some sleep by the time you receive this. Nothing going on here but Elizabeth and me scouted out the D.C. area and found out where some good pubs are. Anyway take care and chill man, you will be home before you know it enjoying a cold one...jess9/21/2004 09:45:00 AM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Dear Brad,
Everyone I have talked to has been enjoying the stories about the Camel Back Spider and I did too. So glad you have been able to keep your sense of humor about this ordeal. I wondered what you had done to keep the mice out of you computer. I know someone has probably already asked but what kind of daytime temperatures are you having there, and is there really any place for you to cool down? I have wondered if you have any time to read and what you have been doing on you time off. I’m so glad you are going to get some time off to come to Baltimore and see Elizabeth.
I had hoped to be more supportive of you while you were there but it seems as in the past I have had more too do than I have time. I don’t know if I told you, but I have been working at the home games for the Astros, taking pictures in the Minute Maid Park Suites of the Customers that are invited to the games. It makes for a long day as I don’t get home till after 9:30 some night and then have to spend another hour or two downloading files of the pictures. Damon has been very understanding about me using his computer, as the other one is so slow and would take me twice as long. I only hope you understand how much I think of you and how proud I am of what you are doing there. I know it must be tough at times, but I know how you have always been able to overcome adversity. I had talked to one of the Secret Service guys when they came in and he said to have you give them a call when you were out.
I had heard there had been some fighting at one of the check points in your area and wondered what if any do you hear about the local fighting there. It is hard to believe you have already been there for almost 9 months. You take care and we’re all keeping you in our prayers.

Love, Dad8/20/2004 03:49:00 PM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|

In Tikrit before moving to Baqubah|W|P|109300259177428175|W|P||W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/21/2004 12:53:00 AM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad,

I like the photo.....post some more if you can sometime.

Cheers and be well.

We'll be thinking of you every day.

Uncle Warren8/21/2004 07:41:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad,

I hope you got my email before you left. If not, hopefully you'll have time to check your email soon. I know your situation really sucks, but look at all the people who love you and miss you. If that doesn't cheer you up at least for a minute, I don't know what will. Jeez, you even got a note from Nathan...that's like a miracle all by itself. Hopefully the weather will start to get cooler in the next month or so, then living in the tent won't be so bad. I'll write you another email soon and I'll try to write you a letter too. Hopefully it won't take so long to get to you. I love you with all my heart and I miss you more than ever.

dein Aschenputtel

P.S. Maya says, "I love you"8/20/2004 03:29:00 PM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|Oh my gosh!! As if moving isn't enough, I have had more to do today than I could have imagined. I get on shift last night and find out that I have to counsel a soldier before I leave, write a briefing for a Colonel on some software that I nor anyone else knows anything about for my new Commander, coordinate meeting up with someone on another FOB as our convoy passes through, not to mention I still have to finish packing. I had a mandatory briefing to attend after my shift and have yet to load any of the miriad of things I have onto a trailer for the trip, and train up my replacement on three different systems which I partially learned from putting them together and working on them for 3 months and he hasn't ever even touched them. My new Commander is really anxious to learn about our operations so I took about an hour or so extra to teach her some stuff. Whew, I've been up for over 18 hours now. I'm beat! But, I am still trying really hard to be optimistic about this move. I know I will make the best of it but, I still can't help but feel a little aprehensive about joining another Platoon. Those of you in the military and some others will understand why. It is kind of like a family, a platoon. We live together work together, and if need be fight together. We know more about each other than you could imagine. Now I'm moving into another family, for a while I'll be the odd man out. Tip toeing around to make sure I don't make anyone mad or cross someone the wrong way. It isn't the first time I've moved platoons but the first time under these circumstances. I'm sure things will be fine and all of us will get along. As I've said before I already know a couple of the guys pretty well. This will probably be my last posting from Baqubah and I look forward to telling you how Samarra is. BCJ. P.S. Found out today they don't have a bunk for me, so I'm back to a cot. I don't think my matress will fit on it. We'll see. |W|P|109300222208962697|W|P|Almost ready to move|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/20/2004 03:58:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad,
mach dir mal keine Sorgen, wenn ich daran denke unter welchen Umständen ich damals in Amerika meine Gastfamilie gewechselt habe, dann kann ich nur sagen: Wenn es Probleme in der ersten Familie gibt, dann wird es nach dem Wechsel nur besser.
Also, toi, toi, toi und alles Gute,
deine Ulrike8/21/2004 12:50:00 AM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Hello Brad,

I like this blogging thing....its nice to be able to get fresh news from you and ...at least for...a while...know more about what you're doing.

Sorry you're having to go through such difficulties...

We're all hoping that your move goes quickly and uneventfully and that you get established quickly in your new post....

I'm sure you'lll make new friends quickly but I know that it takes a while to form those "bonds" that make you fell like a team. But you're great....and I'm sure your new platoon mates will see that quickly.

We're all thinking about you and wishing you well and safe. Keep posting as much as you can.

Love,

Uncle Warren, Lois, and Rose8/21/2004 03:44:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Brad honey,

This wont be that bad. Think of it as an adventure :)

Okay, well, maybe it will. You need not worry about your new platoon. How could they do anything but love you?

Please let me know if you need ANYTHING. I'll do my little part as a domestic goddess to help.

A cot... how fun and rustic. LOL

Thoughts are witrh you. Much love my friend.
Nathan Fogg8/19/2004 09:01:00 AM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|

Well, I have started packing and let me tell you I still hate it. I don’t think I will ever enjoy packing, I doubt I will even enjoy packing to come home. I also realize I have way too much stuff. I don’t mind that though, I like living as comfortable as I can. My “New” address is actually my old one. We don’t receive mail directly at the new installation I am going to which I don’t like but, there is again nothing I can do about it.

SGT Bradley Jones

D co 101 MI BN (FWD)

1^st Inf. Div.

FOB Danger

OIF2

APO AE 09392

So the only change is which FOB it is going to. Hopefully this won’t slow things up too much. If you have already sent something to me at the Warhorse address I will still get it eventually. It just might take a little while. I am really trying to be optimistic about this move but every time I talk to a buddy of mine that is there, I lose all hope of it being better at all. Well, I’ve got a few things to do before going to sleep I’ll write more tomorrow. BCJ

|W|P|109289170328160393|W|P|Packing and my new Address|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/20/2004 12:51:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Dein Onkel und deine Tante haben Recht! Look at the bright side of life. Auch wenn dein Leben im Moment vielleicht nicht so "bright" ist, da gibt es einen deutschen Spruch: Wende dich der Sonne zu und du lässte die Schatten hinter dir!
Also, Kopf hoch und mach das beste aus deiner neuen Situation.
Die Seite ist übrigens klasse. Ich sehe auch öfter mal rein. Gute Idee!
Lieben Gruss,
deine Ulrike8/20/2004 03:42:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Wow ein Blog! :)
This is an excellent idea and I will definitely check your site frequently to stay informed on what you are up to. I sure hope that everything will turn out alright for you eventually and feel really sorry that things aren't looking so bright for you atm. Just hang in there and I am sure better times are lurking right around the corner.
In case you are wondering what I am up to, I am in the middle of my exams and ready to finish Uni. I have turned in my Magisterarbeit which was a lot of work. I had been working on my 100+ pages for six months and now I am preparing for my oral exams which should be sometime in Octobre or Novembre. Next weekend we have the famous Stadtfest in Basche and you will be missed dearly.
Hang in there and keep your head low!

Sepu8/19/2004 08:47:00 AM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|Well, I have started packing and let me tell you I still hate it. I don’t think I will ever enjoy packing, I doubt I will even enjoy packing to come home. I also realize I have way too much stuff. I don’t mind that though, I like living as comfortable as I can. My “New” address is actually my old one. We don’t receive mail directly at the new installation I am going to which I don’t like but, there is again nothing I can do about it. SGT Bradley Jones D co 101 MI BN (FWD) 1st Inf. Div. FOB Danger OIF2 APO AE 09392 So the only change is which FOB it is going to. Hopefully this won’t slow things up too much. If you have already sent something to me at the Warhorse address I will still get it eventually. It just might take a little while. I am really trying to be optimistic about this move but every time I talk to a buddy of mine that is there, I lose all hope of it being better at all. Well, I’ve got a few things to do before going to sleep I’ll write more tomorrow. BCJ |W|P|109289093005606640|W|P|Packing and my "New" address|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com8/19/2004 05:54:00 PM|W|P|

Anonymous|W|P|Nice page. It is good to keep track of your progression toward your ultimate and final goal of returning to North America. Well take care buddy and come visit me someday in Arizona.

C.Nieds8/18/2004 08:00:00 AM|W|P|Bradley Jones|W|P|Well If you are reading this it is because you have gotten my email about this page. The reason for this Blog is to keep all of you informed about what is going on with me here in Iraq. First, I am moving to Samarra. When i get a chance I will post a map with the location of Samarra on it. Secondly, I have lost the internet connection that I had. So I won't have much time to write emails. I know I know, I didn't write that many while I had it. Sorry, But I am hoping that this method will encourage me to write something almost daily in it. I will also try and post pictures and things for you guys to see. Well, That's about all I have for the moment. Oh, you will be able to post messages in response to my entries on this thing or just email me whichever you want. BCJ. |W|P|109276202004351913|W|P|My first Posting|W|P|calvin3ztt@gmail.com