| Keyboard Confessional |
[Dec. 31st, 2037|11:35 pm] |
Go ahead, get it off your chest. Just say it and purge it.
Post anything that you want, and post it anonymously. Anything. Seriously...
A story, a secret, a confession, a fear, a love - anything. Be sure to post anonymously and post honestly.
Post twice if you'd like. Then, put this in your LJ to see what your friends (and perhaps others who you don't even realize read your LJ) have to say.
So post away!
I'll try to reply to all the posts (unless you don't want me to, then tell me ^_^) But yes, please do post! I'm curious to what people have to say; think of this as a present to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) qweltor, and a present to yourself. ^_^
Originally posted by me: May 10, 2005, 23:39. Originally posted by vociferouspanda on April 6, 2004, 14:39.
Oh, and give me a hug. Then give yourself a hug.
*HUGS* TOTAL!
give qweltor more *HUGS*
Get hugs of your own
Rollcall. |
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| (no subject) |
[May. 30th, 2009|01:39 am] |
Your Mind is Green
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Of all the mind types, yours has the most balance.
You are able to see all sides to most problems and are a good problem solver.
You need time to work out your thoughts, but you don't get stuck in bad thinking patterns.
You tend to spend a lot of time thinking about the future, philosophy, and relationships (both personal and intellectual).
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Huh? That was outta left field.
Still waiting a the pax terminal. :-\ |
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| 2009.05.29 -- A brief pause, stuck in Germany |
[May. 29th, 2009|06:50 pm] |
I'm still waiting for an airplane seat with my name on it.
I've got the seat; that ain't the problem. The problem is that the seat is on a either: a) a broken airplane; b) a now-fixed airplane with a crew that has exceeded/not fulfilled FAA-mandated crew-rest requirements.
So, we wait. We watch TV, we sleep. They feed us, we sleep. We play ping-pong, we sleep. And we wait.
( Read more... )
At least it's on company time.
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| 2009.05.28 -- A brief pause, staged in Kuwait |
[May. 28th, 2009|02:06 am] |
I'm waiting for an airplane seat with my name on it.
That comes tomorrow night. And after a long plane ride, a return to Fort Hood.
A couple hundred of my unit have preceded me. A couple hundred will soon follow after me. Soon, we shall all return to Fort Hood.
Blessings!
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| All in favor of self-determination, say "Aye!" |
[Apr. 14th, 2009|08:13 am] |
Entrepreneurs who seize opportunities will be a significant part of the coming economic recovery.
Marine director: No reason to arm cargo ships
http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=62011
The marine director of a shipping group predicted Monday that contrary to some people’s fears, the dramatic rescue of the U.S. captain of a ship hijacked off the coast of Somalia won’t increase violence by pirates. Violence is not what motivates pirates, who need to ensure the well-being of their hostages in order to demand ransom, according to Peter Hinchliffe, of the London-based International Chamber of Shipping.
Hinchliffe said options such as hiring private security teams or training and arming crews are not viable. He said his organization is "absolutely adamant that crews should not be armed." They are not trained for such work, he said, adding that ports bar ships from entering if weapons are onboard.
"The issue is a red herring. The issue is not about arming crews," Hinchliffe said. "They are innocent merchant ships transiting the high seas and have a legitimate right to their business."
It would be criminal for selfish merchantmen to use force to deny the pirate's right to their businesses. To Mr Hinchliffe, the issue is free transit of the seas, and if heaven forbid, merchants are set upon by pirates, the merchants should take the moral high ground and allow themselves to be violated by thugs with guns. But then, I guess Mr. Hinchliffe isn't one of the merchantmen subject to kidnapping and ransom.
BTW, I wonder if piracy is against the law yet. If not, it oughta be; I'm sure that'll stop it! Or maybe we'll run out of merchant ships first.
Good to know that piracy is against the law (several of them in fact!). We just need to Liberally sprinkle "Pirate-Free Zone" signs throughout the high seas and from every ship, and then those criminals would know to obey the law! Wait, that's what makes them criminal. :::sigh:::
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| 2009.01.17 -- The cost of higher education |
[Jan. 17th, 2009|06:38 am] |
22-Year-Old Sells Virginity Online -- and Feds Can't Do a Thing to Stop Her
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,480037,00.html
A 22-year-old woman is selling her virginity online -- offering her body to bidders nationwide in an auction that reportedly has netted a $3.7 million offer -- and the law isn't doing a thing to stop her.
That's because Natalie Dylan, a made-up name for a real 22-year-old California college grad, is marketing her maidenhead in Nevada, where prostitution is legal.
"Natalie is a virgin and would like to sell this priceless and rare comodity in a very exclusive and private setting," says the Bunny Ranch Web site. Dylan says she is trying to finance graduate studies for her sister and herself.
:::snicker:::
Mostly at the expectation that implied in the headline that "the Feds" should stop her. I wonder how long it will be before "Nevada values" becomes the epithet uttered on the evening news synonymous with immorality. Oh, wait. :0|
I wonder how many have contacted Dylan thus far threatening public proclamations (possibly false) about previously taking her maidenhead (a la, after senior prom, that drunken knight freshman year, etc.)
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| 2009.01.01 -- 'When you're deployed, a holiday is just like any other day' |
[Jan. 1st, 2009|05:58 pm] |
So remarked one of the NCOs in my shop this morning.
Happy New Years to the rest of the world. Today, you face Bowl games and
recovery from holiday debachery. For those with a four-day weekend, the
bowl games and debachery extend through the weekend.
For me, today is not so different from yesterday, nor from tomorrow. Guards
still stand their watch, patrols still go outside the wire from the FOB, and
the normal daily routine progresses onward.
In other news, all are alive and uninjured. :)
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| 2008-12-31 -- Power lines |
[Dec. 31st, 2008|02:26 am] |
Power lines conneced to a generator in a neighborhood in Falluja, Iraq
A photo from a recent NYT article, this is something very similar to what I see when I go out on patrol to a town or village in my area.
A picture is worth a thousand words. The power lines hang low (you could jump and touch them); during some hours of the day, there's even electricity flowing through them. Brick buildings, some with finished walls, some without. The street gets really muddy after a rain.
And for most of the folks in the street, normal Iraqis walking around, they just want to go about there lives and make things better for their kids. (Or at least, that's what they always try to tell me when I ask them).
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| 2008.10.29 -- "The rainy season has begun" |
[Oct. 29th, 2008|01:37 pm] |
Or at least it has it in the Maysan province.
I was having a bad dream this morning; I heard the pitter-patter of
raindrops on the roof [the plywood that makes up the ceiling of the
room also doubles as the roof :-/].
When I woke up, I realized that I wasn't dreaming. A healthy storm
had blown in, and brought a couple of inches of rain. Muddy roads and
more stuck trucks are a certainty in the future.
In the meantime, here are some pictures of some cute Iraqi kids.
( Read more... )
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| 2008.10.18 -- Anything special? |
[Oct. 17th, 2008|09:05 pm] |
A reader asks (and shared for the benefit of the other half of my
readership):"What is the best way to
do that? Individually wrapped? The kind in the
pop-up box or can? Any special goodies?"
Special goodies?
"Special" is the stuff that I can't get here at the FOB (Forward
Operating Base), and the only way that stuff comes in is by care
package.
USPS Priority flat rate boxes make care packages easy to assemble and
ship (plus the boxes are free). Whatever you can pack in the box gets
shipped for one flat easy rate (no thanks, I don't need any bricks).
Right now, the only item in particular desire is an eyeglass repair
kit. A tiny screwdriver and a couple of screws is only a
buck-ninety-nine at the drug store, but priceless for us
glasses-wearing morons when far away from the nearest drug store. :-/
Chewing gum. The chewing gum in the MRE disintegrates after about
five minutes of chewing. My gum preference is Dentyne Ice (Artic
Chill or Wintermint, the black or blue packages), though this beggar
isn't so choosy.
Snacks make great fillers. Pringles or Lays in a can pack and ship
well. Mother's Animal Crackers are great for sharing, as are Oreos
and Nutter Butters (resealable containers a plus; if not I'll put it
in a ziploc storage bag).
Clothes pins. Bucket and clothesline are the current form of laundry.
I've snagged a couple of clothes pins, but not enough for an entire
load of laundry at a time. Clothes pins are a great help to prevent
the wind from blowing the wet clothes from the line to the ground.
Moderately current magazines are fun. Maxim, FHM, Men's Health are
good to skim and pass around. My preference is to Asimov or Analog
(found in the sci-fi or literary part of the magazine rack. Depending
on what's referenced on the cover, I might pick up Fast Company,
Psychology Today, Popular Mechanics, or Guns & Ammo. Or perhaps you
know of something that may broaden my horizons (book or magazine).
Useful stuff includes AA batteries, ziploc freezer bags (quart, gallon
and two-gallon size).
Honestly, any contents of a package received are appreciated. :-) |
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| Re: Baby wipes |
[Oct. 9th, 2008|06:37 pm] |
A concerned reader writes (which may be of interest to the other
person in my readership); "What is the
best way to do that? Individually wrapped? The kind in the pop-up
box or can? Any special goodies?"
Who'da thunk there'd be so many choices about baby wipes? They come
wrapped in very many ways. The individual wrapped Wet Ones are an
easy way to just bring a few in your backpack, for those just in case
moments, and keeps the wipes damp and fresh. There are bags (with
resealable flaps) of 12-20, easy to toss in the diaper bag for the day
trip. Then for those who buy (and use) in bulk, the 80-wipe plastic
box with the pop-up pull-through opening (and accompanying 80-wipe
refill packs). Plus there is the canister with the pull-through
dispenser hole, which is an easy (if bulky) way to keep wipes handy.
All work. Some situations are better for one type of wrapping, some
situations for another. If you're one the move, the 80-wipe plastic
box isn't the best for surviving trips slamming around in duffel bag
(which, thankfully, I'm done with for the moment). Individually
wrapped ones require excess handling and create excess litter
(especially for multiple wipe tasks). The ones in between are
something in between, neither the worst, nor the best. All really,
all would work. |
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| 2008.09.20 -- a quick one before I go |
[Sep. 20th, 2008|04:42 am] |
Thanks for the quick response to the previous post.
To all, give as able, if at all. All sent is greatly appreciated. All excess (to me) is freely distributed (to those in need).
Including letter-writing material makes for an easy reply; crayons & color pencils (w/ sharpener) moreso. Ideas are ideas. Do to your heart's content.
And my patrol leaves very, very soon. :-/
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| 2008.09.19 -- the mailing address |
[Sep. 19th, 2008|06:32 am] |
Of course, the mailing address constantly changes. The current incarnation:1LT MyLastName, MyFirstName
B Btry, 1-9 Cav (Bulldog), 4BCT 1CD
COB Adder
APO AE 09331
Instructions here, I'll respond soon.
Best
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| 2008.09.19 -- To the new FOB and back |
[Sep. 18th, 2008|08:28 pm] |
We were told we'd be to the new FOB (Forward Operating Base) for
five days, then back to Tallil Air Base to refit, then another
rotation to the new FOB.
I should have packed extra underwear. The platoon was out there for
significantly longer than five days. Conditions at the new FOB are
rough. Think of going out camping, at a commercial public campground.
You sleep in a tent, and have a common bathroom/shower building, a
common laundry facility, etc. I live in a fourteen soldier tent with
they guys in my platoon (is used to be a sixteen-soldier tent, but we
sent them to another tent). A bathroom trailer and a shower trailer
are about fifty feet from the tent. The laundry is a couple of
hundred feet. The cafeteria is about a five minute walk. Phones and
e-mail are about a ten-minute walk away. That would be about the
conditions at Tallil.
The new FOB is brand new, being built from the ground up, and there
are promises of better things (gym, phone facilities, internet,
Starbucks & Taco Bell, no more crap-burning detail), but those
promises are definitely in the future.
On the new FOB, instead of a fourteen-soldier tent, I live in an
aircraft hangar with about eighty other people. The aircraft hanger
has a hole in the roof (free renovation, courtesy of a previous war)
and is open at both ends (to let the airplane and the airplane exhaust
out). Of course, this also lets in the evening breeze, the sandstorm
and the sand fleas. The laundry facility is a self-serve affair, two
water buckets. There two bucket-type showers are set up for the three
hundred people on the FOB; the alternative consists of a water bottle. I've
already alluded to the bathrooms.
Until they are, the best things for care packages are baby wipes
(for the same reason they are used on babies), snacks (if it doesn't
come out of an MRE, it's fantastic), and a handwritten word. Oh yes, and bug repellent (DEET does bad things to your skin, but also keeps the bugs away; spray pump bottles ship well, aerosol cans not so well) and batteries (just don't tell the postal service, they like to call those HazMat). I'm sure that a quick Google search will bring up other nifty suggestions.
Until regular internet is set-up (or unless I snag a couple of e-mail
moments on the boss' computer), the next time I'll post will be
mid-tour leave.
Today I've got a chance to do laundry, buy more baby wipes, and enjoy
a hot cafeteria meal. Tomorrow I move permanently to the new FOB (a
move I shouldn't complain too much about, half the unit has already
permanently moved there).
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| 2008.08.25 --- A Blackhawk ride and some training |
[Aug. 25th, 2008|04:25 am] |
Took a helicopter ride today to a forward base. The last time
I've ridden in a Blackhawk helicopter was 1996. I got to see a bunch
of the Iraqi green countryside. It's a misconception to think of Iraq
as all desert. Most of the area I overflew was green farmfields.
There are canals coming off of the rivers, which branched to smaller
canals, and ended at multiple irrigated fields. The fields are
gorgeous to look at from the air (but sucky to slog through on the
ground (see 2008.07.11 entry).
After about three hours in and out of the air, I got an overflight of
the new base I'm headed for. It's literally under construction right
now. Right now, it consists of a berm (dirt wall around the complex),
and some cots in an aircraft hangar. Soon (hopefully) there will be a
cafeteria; MREs (Meals-Ready-to-Eat) and water get old quick. Showers
and flush toilets would be nice too. And maybe a phone center.
I'll enjoy the internet and phones and toilets and laundry facilities
while I can. All I can say is that I'll move out to the new base
eventually soon (think OPSEC!!). If I don't post here, that's probably
why. Mail sent to me at the previous address will reach me eventually
(after it gets forwarded a couple of times). If I've you're address,
something will come by.
:0)
[wanders off to suck up some nice kewl A/C] |
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| 2008.08.19 -- Many don't know what they don't know |
[Aug. 18th, 2008|04:06 pm] |
From today's Stars & Stripes (or at least the most recent issue on the base):
Iraqi Radio show tries to dissuade potential
female suicide bombers
By Sean Kimmons, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Saturday, August 16, 2008
http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=64006&archive=true
DIYALA PROVINCE, Iraq — From a heavily guarded radio station in a
violent region, Donia Abid Latief relays a message of hope and peace
to women.
In Diyala province, where the station is located, more than 20 women
have become suicide bombers in the past three months, killing dozens.
Latief tries to end the deadly trend via the radio waves with her
weekly show called "Doves of Peace."
"I want women to have a role and accomplish security in our province,"
Latief said through a translator following a recent show.
...A recent show revolved around Baghdad's first female taxi driver,
considered a big deal since it is customary for women not to drive in
many parts of the country. Latief said the woman's husband had been
killed and she needed to support her children through something
besides begging. Latief then took some dozen on-air callers to discuss
the controversial issue.
Many of the callers, mainly women, agreed with knocking down the
cultural barrier.
...Last year, Latief quit law school at Diyala University out of
fear of being killed by al-Qaida insurgents. Other students and
professors were already being murdered around her, she said.
At the time, she was the voice of a different show that concentrated
on the terrorist group's atrocities.
"She was afraid to continue studying there." Samir Khamees, a
30-year-old Sunni who produces the radio show, said.
..."I want to change the image of women in Diyala," she said.
Perspective and the UI (Unconscious Incompetent). Fortunately, at Cal, one
thing I didn't have to worry about was living to survive the next day
(no matter what rumors may circulate about crime in Berkeley, it
wasn't that bad). |
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