Shuttle bus, Thursdays, Snow, and the NFL

It’s Sunday, which means it’s time for an update from Paradise. As you may have guessed from the title, this is just a collection of random observations from the week. No particular order, rhyme, or reason…much like myself, at times!

If you read the article I posted the other night you’ll realize that BAF is a huge base. That said, we have two main office hubs – Country Support Office (CSO) and Life Support Area (LSA). I’m currently on the LSA side, but am told that a new office is being built on the CSO side for Finance. Fluor has a shuttle bus service that runs every 30 minutes between the two locations. (Keep in mind, the short route is a 15 minute drive and the long way is 30 minutes.) We have several Pilipino drivers who operate the shuttles. I must say they are some of the happiest people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting here. A few minutes before leaving, they go around to all the office tents and say, “shuttle bus leaving” in quite a unique accent, which one coworker has mimicked all too well. We told him he better not piss off the drivers because they might fire back, “no shuttle bus for you!” Those familiar with Seinfeld can appreciate the Soup Nazi reference. Pretty sure that was one of those situations where you had to be there to fully appreciate the humor.

Thursdays around here are, well, interesting to say the least. Somewhere along the way, the Muslim faith established a notion that Allah “turns his back” on Thursdays. Consequently, the day has become known as Man Love Thursday. The saying, “women are for childbearing, men are for fun” has also been coined. I couldn’t care less what the Afghani men do on their own time. In all seriousness, there’s no real difference around here on Thursdays; other than the onslaught of related jokes. I think it’s just the thought of such a practice that is unsettling to us Westerners…and rightfully so, in my opinion.

Some of you asked if anything special happened for Halloween. Unless you consider fake spiders and webs around the door of the DFAC a special treat, that would be a negative! However, just about everyone in my office received a care package from home, which amounted to enough candy and junk food to last us the winter – our dentists thank you!

Fox sent over the NFL Pregame crew for an unprecedented live broadcast from Afghanistan on 08-Nov-09. They got here a couple days early and have been seen around the base. A friend of mine even got to have breakfast with Johnson and Bradshaw. What a unique opportunity! They came over to show their appreciation for all the troops over here, being that Veteran’s Day is just around the corner. I applaud them for the gesture. I cannot even say what an honor it is to be here and interact with the soldiers on a daily basis. Hats off to all the service men and women who put their lives at risk each and every day for us and our country!!!

Last night was the first time it’s rained since my arrival. This morning was absolutely beautiful. I couldn’t believe the difference. Perhaps someone transported our tent overnight to a new, dust-free location? Could it be? The mountains were capped with snow and visibility had increased a hundred fold. I understand the winters here are very scenic and look forward to getting even better pictures then. The forecast for the next several nights is around -5 C (20 F). My initial thought is, awesome! I’ll finally be able to sleep in a nice cool tent. I wonder if the thermostat battles will escalate now…please, no!!!

I’m scheduled to do some Forward Operating Base (FOB) traveling, starting next Tuesday. This is known as FOB-hopping around here. I will likely be gone 5-7 days, based on the plane/helo schedules. I’m looking forward to going because the common consensus is that accommodations are better and time goes by much faster. I’m going to do cash advances, audits, and meetings. I’ll be on a regular ring-route starting January, where I’ll be visiting many of the FOBs on a regular basis. Should be a great way to travel, take some great pictures, and work away the time before R&R!!

For those of you who know her, Misty just got back from her travels and has livened up the office…always good to see familiar faces around here!!

I’m calling it a night. Next Sunday may not work for the next post, depending on when I get back. I’ll post something just as soon as I can though. Hopefully some pictures…I know, I keep saying that, but the network here is so slow I usually don’t have the patience to deal with it. Good night all!