It's amazing what a little rain can do...

So here we are in our posh living area in what would equate to the Beverly Hills Hilton if compared to everyone else's living conditions over here. Yesterday we were living large, metal sidewalks to keep the dirt out of our CHU's, a nice office building with six separate offices and an open area to use as our tactical operations center (TOC), Armed Forces Network Television and internet service. What more could you ask for? All these amenities did not come easy. Every one of those sidewalk sections weigh in excess of 80 lbs. and DC (Sergeant First Class Colon) and I had to carry them 50 to 100 yards to put them in place. We had to fight to get the CHU's for housing, and had to accept the generous offering of our previous parent unit for the "slightly used" CHUs we received. We've moved the darn things at least three times, twice across the countryside and once across the compound. Lot's of sweat, scrapes, bruises, tired bodies, etc., went into building our little oasis in the desert.

So I'll bet you're probably wondering "What exactly is a CHU?" To borrow from globalsecurity.org:

CHU stands for: Containerized Housing Unit (pronounced “choo”) - Aluminum boxes slightly larger [22’x8’] than a commercial shipping container, with linoleum floors and cots or beds inside. This insulated CONEX shipping container has a door, window, top vent, power cabling, and an air conditioner. One version houses four people, while another is split into two, two-person rooms. The version with a shower and toilet shared between two rooms is called a "WET CHU", which provides less crowded latrine and shower conditions than tents. The CHU gives soldiers a lot more living space than tents.

So back to my story of how a little rain can turn things upside down. Yesterday we received the weather report that there was 100% chance of rain today and early tomorrow. That, coupled with expected wind, sent us scrambling to ensure satellite dish receivers and transmitters were securely weighted down, antennas were properly moored, the back window in our Nissan SUV, which we lovingly call our FOB Runner, was covered with a trash bag, since it was destroyed about two years ago by a mortar round, etc. And then the rains came!


I told Ray that mopping up the water was probably futile.

We’re not talking about a torrential rain storm here, nothing as severe as I have seen in Michigan or especially Texas. It was just a nice steady rain with a little lightning and thunder thrown in to add ambience. Now I know why God chose to have the flood begin here! Within five minutes of starting, the flood waters started rising! Did you know that an 80-pound, flat slab of metal floats? I sure didn’t. The sidewalks started to rise and float away as the water got higher. The water started entering the CHUs through the ceilings, openings for the wall-mount air conditioner, holes cut into the walls to allow Air Conditioner Cables, you name it. It even came down through screw holes in the galvanized roofing. So much for American standards of construction. Thank God the CHUs are on legs too high for the water to reach the bottom or they might have floated away as well. I added the pics above looking out my CHU so you can get a small feel of the devastation less than one inch of rain caused.

I do not want to imagine what would happen if this place experienced one of the gulf's hurricanes or just a typical Texas thunder storm. Anyway, we have our CHUs and the office cleaned back out. It only took a couple hours. I am no worse for the wear, except for the cold I am trying to beat before I head home on R & R (rest and relaxation). And if they haven’t done so before my return from R & R, I will go to work raising the sidewalk to above the flood level. Take care y’all.

You know you're kind of busy when.....

You know you're kind of busy when.....

There are several reasons I haven't been keeping up with my blog:

1. After conducting an 8-hour mounted combat patrol (MCP) and coming back to write reports for two hours, it just doesn't seem that high on my list of things to do
2. Our internet access has not been that reliable, as some of you can attest after receiving some of my garbled phone calls.
3. I get lazy sometimes.
4. We just moved to our new location and all of my stuff is still in duffle bags.
5. Etc.

At this point I imagine you are all thinking of Charlie Brown's teacher (Wah, wah wah wah waaaah. All I can do is say "I'm sorry."

Anyhow - - - now to the news portion of the blog. As some of you may know I came out on the list of people who will be promoted this year. Well the day has come. As of Monday 1 December 2008, I am now Major Aaron Wentworth. Scary huh.

PLEASE NOTE THE NEW ADDRESS:

MAJ AARON WENTWORTH
MiTT 55/17, COP MEADE
TF 4-27 FA
APO AE 09322

Also we recently relocated to COP Meade (COP and for Combat Out-Post). I must say we have the best living conditions of anyone on this little base. We were equipped to self sustain when we were setting up our patrol base. But when we received orders to cease operations and move here, we brought everything with us. So, we have enough room to house probably 30 to 35 Soldiers, but only 15 are living here. I know it doesn’t seem fair for other Soldiers to live in lesser conditions than others, but we have to remain mobile.

In other words, if we received the word to move out next week, we would be able to pick up our living quarters, called CHU’s, and headquarters building, which is basically a double-wide trailer that would never pass code in the US, and move, lock, stock and barrell, to our new base. Nevertheless, things are pretty nice. I have my own room, a bed with a mattress that leaves the spring’s markings on my arms when I get up in the morning, bought a local satellite receiver and dish so I can bring in some TV. (Of the 439 TV channels in found there are only about 30 that are English speaking.) Yes, compared to the living conditions I had in Bosnia or during Desert Storm, I am living in Saddam’s Palace.

Today is Thanksgiving, and I want to thank you all for the support and love you give me. I appreciate everything you are doing. I am also thankful for the fact that sometime next week I get to go on R & R to see my loving wife and children. It’s a long trip back to Hawaii but worth every mile. I am not going be there for Christmas but at least we will be able to spend some time together. God willing, I will be able to stay long enough to see Holly, who flies in from college around the 19th of December. Tonight I will add a bunch of pictures from the past couple of months to my picture site. Internet is getting ready to be turned off so I have to cut this short. I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving.

Love to All

Aaron.