FINALLY A NEW POST!!!!

Right, so when they told me I'd be going "outside the wire" they really meant. "OUTSIDE the wire"

(That means I have been off the American base, and living out in small areas outside the fortified areas with soldiers)

Internet and the like have been VERY limited, so blogging has been a little tricky. So I'll do my best to catch everybody up.

After leaving Camp Prosperity, the members of Blood Platoon told me that I'd be teaming up with a different group for the rest of the week. So they gave me a ride to their group CP (command post) to meet their CO (commanding officer) and set it all up. We went to JSS Adl first, which at one time was a four story Iraqi shopping mall. THIS was amazing to see! Both the inside and outside are riddled with bullet holes, and the soldiers have used what seems to be the entire lumber section of a Home Depot to create living spaces, offices, and meeting rooms in what used to be stores. The center of the building is open all the way to the roof. Like most malls there is a fountain in the middle with escalators going up to each level. So you can see down to whats left of the fountain from every room. The escalators are still there, and still work, though they are rarely turned on for power reasons, as well as several remnants of individual stores. (signs, shelves, posters, etc)

It's very surreal, and almost post apocalyptic to see what was once a center of local commerce, completely transformed into a military base. We then went to Camp Liberty for our meeting, where I was able to get some "pougie bait" That's soldier talk for souvenirs. I grabbed some stickers for my file cabinet :)

I spent the next few hours hanging out at JSS Washash. Washash is a very small place. It was once some Iraqi dudes house. Depending on which soldier you ask, it was either a Sheik, Sadaams cousin, a local busniess owner, etc. Very little room and no privacy whatso ever. No shower, and only green torpedos (outhouses) for bathrooms. It's surrounded by nine foot concrete walls, but other than that it is right in the middle of Baghdad. So close you can hear the cars drive by on the other side. The building itself has all the windows blocked out by sand bags, and "sniper netting" on the roof, one soldeir was putting a kevlar plate in one of the windows last week, and had it shot right out of his hand by nearby sniper. As they tell me, "someone is ALWAYS watching"

you hear alot about the dogs in Iraq. They are litterally EVERYWHERE. Sine the army does not allow mascots, or pets, the boys at Washash have their "Security Dog", Scout. A cute little puppy that only likes guys in ACU's. Anyone else comes around he FREAKS out.

The soldeirs do all they can to make Washash feel more like home. Including adding a patio to the side, While helping unload supplies, I saw a big guy named PFC Updike slam his finger with a hammer. He barely made a sound, even though blood was gushing from the wound. The medic gave him a few stitches, and he went right back to work... These guys are the real deal.

I wandered around the house noticing little things. the wall sconces, holes from picture frames, etc. I never in my life thought I'd be sleeping in some Iraqi dudes house in the middle of a war. It's been an amazing experience. I did some call in's with Bushman, talked to two guys from Southern Utah, and waited for my ride. I was sad to leave, I had already made some good friends in the group, and now I would have to start ALL over again.

Food has to be trucked out to the JSS, and that only happens every three days. You can imagine how creative they have to get for the meals on that third day. Turns out the food escort was my ride to my next JSS.

This time I got to ride through Baghdad in an MRAP. A VERY large vehicle meant to replace the Humvee. I like the Humvee better. I could not see much from the back of an MRAP.

Next stop! JSS Khadra!

More on that in a minute.

***side note. My laptop did not survive the journey. So I'm recapping my trip from hand written notes, using shared computers on base. So I wont have pictures posted until I get home, and am recapping the blog best I can.. It's sucks I know. but oh well.***