Entry #41: May 1, 2006

Camp Buehring, Kuwait (Somewhere near the Iraq border)

I have a new nickname. They call me Lobster Boy. No, it’s not the name of a Marvel Comic superhero, just the new moniker Shawn gave me. Yesterday, Shawn organized a trip to Camp Arifjan, a permanent Army base near the Persian Gulf, because Camp Arifjan has a pool, a large PX (basically a Wal-Mart), and many other modern amenities lacking at our home station. Of course, we hit the pool. Of course, it hit 100 degrees and, of course, I got a little red. Hence the name, Lobster Boy. But it will darken and tan in about 5 days. It always does.

Shawn organized this trip mainly because life at Camp Buehring was becoming dull and dreary. Some of my guys are employed on occasion in places other than Camp Buehring and so boredom is not always the biggest concern, but a trip to a civilized place is always welcome. We saw people in jeans, shorts, and t-shirts in colors other than brown or tan. We almost felt normal again.

We hit the six month mark on May 16th. My countdown will begin then. I can’t wait to regain a sense of normality and wear real clothes again. I will feel lighter as I won’t have to carry my pistol everywhere I go. I even have to carry it to the bathroom, just in case Camp Buehring gets invaded while I’m on the john. Even then, I don’t carry ammo for my pistol while I’m on post, so all I can really do is chuck it at them. For more ridiculous stuff such as this, refer to my Stuff page for how to train for a deployment.

I’m giving a class this Saturday to my company on Laws of Armed Conflict, Rules of Engagement, and Escalation of Force. This will be the third time this deployment I’ve done this, and some obscure regulation determines the frequency in which I have to bore my men even though the information never changes. But here in Kuwait, the Escalation of Force is different. Up north, it’s shout, fire a warning shot, fire a kill shot, but in Kuwait, it’s shout, shout louder and wave arms, and the last is to moon them (this usually occurs on the interstate where Kuwaitis generally disregard any lines and speed limits). I teach the Iraq rules as I would get in trouble for demonstrating the Kuwaiti version.

Last but not least, I’m sure many of you out there have many questions, so if you want answers feel free to leave me a message on the site under the Guestbook section or you can directly e-mail me at newcastleutd20@hotmail.com. I’ll answer anything everything I can. And so the Soldier’s life continues…