There is snow on the mountains

There is snow on the mountains. I spent part of the afternoon on my daily ride about (that is part of my job) taking some pictures of the mountains. They are beautiful. There is snow on the peaks and when the sun hits them just right it is amazing. I wish everyone could see them. Too bad they are not in a public place where tourists could visit. If you tried, I think we know how that would turn out. The temperature is starting to turn cooler, finally. In the mornings it is in the upper forties and lower fifties. Although it is still getting up to the mid eighties and low nineties, it feels a lot better. Maybe I am just getting used to the heat. I will take it anyway.

Over the last few weeks, I, along with a couple of others, have been learning to operate a waste water treatment plant. We will run the plant for a couple of months until the Army can put in place a contract to run it for good. Yesterday We trained on how to operate a water treatment plant. That will be a part of the operation as well. Both plants are new so we get to help start them and get the going. We get to treat water on both ends of the spectrum, if you know what I mean. There have been many jokes about running the "Poo Plant". We have laughed and laughed about taking water out of the ground, using it, treating it and sending back to the ground. I am sure we will laugh some more. We are now "poo engineers".

The forest has been growing slow lately. I have only added a couple of creatures. I have been occupied with other things it seems. I have taken a bunch of pictures that I can't wait to show everyone. There are some amazing things to photograph over here. There are a lot of things that I cannot photograph. All I know is that the Motto "LIVE FREE OR DIE," as once voiced by General John Stark, one of the most distinguished heroes of the Revolutionary War, is something I will never take for granted anymore. There are men and women over here that risk their lives every day fighting to preserve our freedom and we do not appreciate what they do for us nearly enough.

Live Free or Die. That is my new motto. I think we should all think about that every day and thank GOD that we live where we do.

I am out of the sandbox and off my soapbox and proud to be an AMERICAN!

Jeff

My birthdayi in the sandbox

Well I'm Back. It has been several days since I last was with you and I have grown a year older and a year wiser. Now I was really dreading my birthday in the sandbox alone. It is great to have family and friends around on birthdays and I was not looking forward to this one. But it was here and no family. Well it was Sunday and my day off. So I messed around the b-hut for a while and decided to go to the office to see if I could find someone to go to lunch with. Well that is when the fun began. I got to the office about 11:45 to find they were having a feast in my honor. (It was really not in my honor but that is my story and I am sticking to it) Anyway, some local Afghans had recently won a big contract with the Army guys across the hall from my office, so they brought food in to celebrate and show their appreciation. So naturally I decided why not it is my birthday. We had a big lunch of traditional Afghan food. We had lamb and goat kabobs, rice with carrots and raisins and nuts and fruit and all of the fixings. It was a great way to celebrate my birthday. Then came mail time. They deliver the mail at 1:00 on Sundays. I received two big boxes from my family. They were full of presents and pictures and fun stuff. It was great. My birthday was turning out to be really great. But, it was not over. I had to go and do a little work, (go figure), So I got a car and off I went. One of my co-workers said that she wanted to go with me. I said fine and we took off. I went and did my work and Michelle, my co-worker, said that she needed to go by the north dining facility on our way back. So we did. She told me to pull around back she had to pick something up. I let her off at the back of the DFAC and when she came out she had a very big Birthday cake. I could not believe it. She had bribed and called in favors and the like to have the dining facility make me a birthday cake. It said "Happy Birthday Jeff Go War Eagle". It was such a surprise. Now you have to realize that this kind of thing just doesn't happen. The dining facility doesn't make cakes for birthdays. They just don't. It is great to have such great family and friends. They are amazing. All this together made my birthday a great day. I am so blessed. Thank you to all who had a part in it.

On to other things. I have a new hut mate. I know you are thinking that my hut is too small for two people. Well it is not if one of them is a 3" gecko. I woke the other morning to find my new friend hanging on the wall above my head. He was a cute little thing. I decided to let him be and not get rid of him. I knew that he might keep the spiders and ants under control. I have had a time with ants. It is no fun to wake up in the middle of the night with ants crawling on you. It kinda kills the urge to sleep. I have those pesky little things under control now with the help of my friend. I also want to keep him around to act as food for any snakes that might find their way into my hut. There was a 6" cobra snake found in a b-hut the other day and another 3' cobra found on the base as well. I don't want to have any part of that.

I am up to seventeen creatures in the forest now. I will post pictures of them and of my new friend on my Facebook page soon. I will try and learn how to post pics in this blog at some point.

Well I have to go and do a little more work now. It is Sunday again (my day off). I will write more soon about my new skills that I am learning.

That is all from the sandbox for now. War Eagle!

The forest is growing in the sandbox

Well it's time for another update from the Sandbox. All is well here, just hot. The temp at one point was 106 yesterday. No complaints though. I am getting used to the temps. I guess that is good.

A couple of things before we get to the title of the post. I was walking back to my b-hut on Friday evening and walked by the Chapel. I heard a choir singing so I stopped to listen. They were practicing I guess for this weekend but the music was beautiful. There was a soloist and man could she sing. I just stood there and listened. It made me sad for home. I would love to sit in church on Sunday morning and listen to the choir. I guess I will have to wait till Christmas when I come home.

I woke up this morning to the sound of airplanes flying over. I think they were about five feet above my hut. They were loud this morning. Sometimes they seem to be right outside. Today is cleaning day in the hut. You have to dust and put things in their place every once in a while or the walls start to close in on you. These rooms in the b-hut are pretty tiny. I put a new Auburn flag in my room. The sad part is I do not have any walls big enough to hang a flag so I had to put it on my ceiling. It is a great way to wake up every morning looking at the BIG AU above my bed.

Now on to the title of the post. I have decided to name the creatures wood names, thus the "Forest". There will be Boxwood, Sapwood, Basswood, Tiger Wood, etc., and of course Burl. I have to decide which one is which. There are 13 of the little creatures now. Check out my Facebook page to see pictures. I posted a new photo album showing all of them. I now have to build some shelves to display them all on. I think that will be a project for this afternoon. I haven't built anything in a while and I am about to have withdrawals. If I were at home I know that my better half would have me building something. Maybe just fixing something. But it would be building in my mind.

Well I am being called to go to lunch by some of my friends. And, yes I have friends over here. So I will go for now.

Till next time from the Sandbox. War Eagle!

What I do in the sandbox in my free time

Hello from the sandbox. I know it has been a while, but I haven't been in the mood to type and I have been busy. That is a good thing. There are several people leaving and going on R & R so that makes me even more busy. I don't mind it makes the days fly by.

Speaking of flying, I will be flying home in December. I can't wait. I will be home for Christmas. It will be good to see the family and friends. You don't realize how much you miss the people you are around all the time until you are away from the for a while.

The sandbox is still hot. Most days it gets into the upper 90s to 100+. I guess I am getting used to it. It doesn't seem to bother me as much now. My sunscreen and a hat every day and I am set.

As you can see from the new profile picture, I have taken up whittling again (something I have done over the last 35 or so years). It is giving me something to do. My wife thinks I should name them the Sandbox Studs. I don't think that fits me very well. I hope someone will help me with a name for them. I have carved seven of them now and counting. I brought wood and my knifes thinking I might whittle a little now and then. Well I do it all the time. I keep a piece of wood with me all the time so any time I have free I can whittle. I will get tired of at some point, but for now I can't put it down. I will post a picture of all of the "Sandbox _______" (y'all help me with the name) on my Facebook page.

I was driving around the end of the airport runway today and saw two F-15 jets take off. I just love to see that. They are amazing. It is even better at night. I am going to have to make friends with one of the pilots and talk them into a ride on one those things. I think most of my friends here would be so jealous. It probably won't happen. I can dream though. I know that most of the time they are going out on patrol or whatever. They come and go many times during the day and night.

Well my football team won again last Saturday. Go Tigers! I was able to listen to the game on an internet radio. Most of the games that are on the American Forces Radio are on in the middle of the night and they only show highlights. It's OK though, I enjoy listening to the games just about as much.

I had a bunch of things to say today but I have forgotten most of them. I hope the next blog post won't take so long.

That being said, I will step out of the sandbox for now. I will type to you soon. War Eagle!

Off day in the sandbox

Well it's Sunday in the sandbox. It is quiet at work, most of the folks I work with have Sunday off. I went in and checked email and the like. Nothing going on.

It sprinkled a little this afternoon. That was strange. We don't get much rain in the sandbox. They say that it is about 6 - 10 inches per year, and most of that in just a few days. I know that drainage is a real problem around the sandbox because it is so flat. We have several projects to address that issue. It is windy today too. That also means that it is not very hot. In the 80's temp wise. Not bad over here.

I slept though breakfast this morning so I had to go to the "Green Beans" coffee shop to get my morning "joe". That was the first time I had been to the coffee shop. It wasn't bad for being in the sandbox. All in all it has been a very relaxing day. I will probable watch a movie later this evening. You can buy movies in the local bazaar for $3. They have every title you can imagine. Of course they are not legal copies and they will not let you bring them home. Everyone buys a few and we share them.

I am still trying to find tools to use to modify my b-hut. I have lumber, I just need tools to cut and attach. I have several people working on it for me. I should have them soon. I moved into a new office this past week. I have a private office so to speak. It is more like a cubical. No door and no ceiling. It is cool though. Most are in an open office setting.

I picked up my laundry today. I think they try and see how many wrinkles they can put in your shirts and pants. The rest of it is folded. It is strange. I think I am going to buy an iron and try and look decent. I know that makes my wife happy.

I had fried catfish for lunch. It's not Greenbrier catfish but it is not bad. I guess I have to do a little extra walking to make up for all those calories. I will have to have a salad for dinner.

Well I will step out of the sandbox for now. Type to you soon.

Its hot in the Sandbox

Well, its Monday and its HOT. It was about 104 in the shade. Everyone said that it might be hot, but is very dry and it won't be bad. I am here to tell you 104 in the shade is hot I don't care how little humidity there is. You have to drink lots of fluids. I drink water, Gatorade, tea, juice, coffee, water and more water. There is water everywhere. They have places all over the base they store water for anyone to get and drink. I go through a 12 pack every other day. I keep in my spacious B-Hut, at the office and everywhere I go. I got me a giant coffee cup so I wouldn't run out of the important stuff in the morning.

I went to a meeting this afternoon with the Corp of Engineers. I am going to start working with them in a limited capacity on base. That should interesting. They act as a different entity on base from what my office dose. This is a new thing for our group. Hopefully that will be good for the company.

As I am writing this, I just heard two jets take off. That still is so cool to me. The power those things have is amazing. They always take off in pairs too. One goes and the the other. They are so loud. You can hear them all over the base. There have been a lot of helicopters in the last couple of days also. I guess they are training or something. They are fun to watch. There are so many cool vehicles all over this place. I wish I could get in one of the M-Raps and take it for a spin. I think that would be so fun.

The phone and internet service is the pits on the base. It is always going out and it takes for ever to download something. I wish that was better. I have only been here a week or so and I can't tell you how many times I have been cut off a phone call or the internet. They say they are working on it, but I think they are just saying that to get us off their backs. I never see them working.

Did I mention that it was hot. I won't go into what the heat does to the restrooms. They are awful. At least our office has a decent restroom. Most do not.

I guess I will get out of the sandbox for now. I will type later.

J

Playing in the sandbox continued

Well its Thursday.  Today is a big day here at the sandbox.  We all got our computers up and running.  We are now able to communicate with the rest of the base.  There has been way too much sitting around and trying to play at work.  When you can't email and talk on the phone, its hard to work.

We had a big staff meeting this afternoon and met all the people we will be working with and for.  They seem look a great group of people.  Even the Big boss ( I won't mention names.  I don't think they would like that. )

I really can't wait to really get started working.  It has been so long since I have worked, it is like so cool to work.  There is so much to do here, I can't wait to get started.

I was outside tonight enjoying the night air, it s about 90 degrees but there was a nice wind blowing and it felt like it was about 70 degrees.  I was watching the planes take off and land.  It is so cool to see the fighter jets  take off and see the flames coming out of the tail and then they just disappear.  They are so fast, it is amazing. All of the planes take off without lights at night.  You hear them but don't see them, and there are a lot of them.  I thought I would be bothered by them at night, but I haven't missed a beat sleeping.

The food is already starting to get old.  I miss my wife's cooking.  I would love to have some of her meatloaf or pot roast (boiled meat for Brenda) or something like that.  That will happen soon enough.  It gives me something to look forward to.

I am back in the b-hut for the night.  Home sweet home.  6' x 6' ain't much, but is home.  I thing I will try and download a movie and watch it tonight.

Well I will step out of the box for now.  type to you soon.

PLAYING IN THE SANDBOX

Well, I'm here.  The sandbox is full of sand.  Lots of sand .  The sand is everywhere.  You can't get away from it.  It is the air.  The sky looks like fog all the time.  Everywhere you go there is sand.  It is not like the sand at the beach, it is very fine, like powder.  It is everywhere.  So you get used to it.

I have been here for three days now and I am starting to learn my way around.  You walk everywhere.  I will be getting lots of exercise.  Maybe I will be able to loose some of that extra weight that I have put on.   My wife says that I cannot come until I loose 20 lbs.  I don't think that is going to be a problem.  The food is OK but it will get old fast.  I have already started eating lots of salad.  Breakfast is the best meal of the day.  They have lots of fruit in many varieties.  I am enjoying that.  You can get good deserts at every meal too.  Ice Cream, cake cookies and pie.  I will have to be careful.

I have started modifying my room.  I have a desk and shelves built in and I have installed a rod to hang clothes on.  I need an Auburn Flag.  That and some pictures.  I plan on getting carpet this week.  I have a source for that now.  Its all about who you know.

We are surrounded by mountains, and they are beautiful.  I will take some pictures and post them soon.  I can only take pictures from some locations.  Can't show anything on the base with respect to the flight line (runway).

Work is going slow.  Trying to get computers and phones hooked up.  It doesn't help that the office moved into a new location the day before I got here.  I worked a late night concrete pour lase night, didn't get into the "hut" until 11:30 PM.  Makes for a long day.  I am just now getting used to the new hours.  I was dubbed the "inspector General" by the plant manager of one of the three concrete plants on base.  I was introduced by one of the other construction inspectors as their boss and he said "You must be the inspector general".  He is from Pakistan.  His name was Fazel.

I am getting along with the new coworkers well, so that is good.  Over all this job is going to be OK.

Well, I will step out of the sandbox and try to get some rest.  Type to you soon.

J

IN THE SAND SPILLED SAND AROUND THE EDGES:

I just left the sand spilled around the edge of the sandbox.  I just left Dubai.  I am in route to Bagram Airbase (AKA the Sandbox).  This last week has been a lot of waiting and I am ready to begin this journey.  I miss my wife and kids so much already.  It finally hit me last night at the hotel in Dubai.  This is really happening. Boy Scout camp is about to start. 

I have about a two and a half hour flight to Bagram.  The flight is not very crowded so I can spread out, unlike the flight from Atlanta.  There were only three available seats on the entire plane. 

As I said, it hit me last night at the hotel.  I was in my room and could not sleep, so I went for a walk.  It was about 1am local time and nothing was open to get something to eat or drink and there were only a few people around.  I was thinking about what Kelley and Conor said to me before I left.  “Thank you for doing this for our family.  That kind of hit home.  I thought they would be just the opposite.  “Why are you doing this to our family?”  It gave me a little peace that maybe this was the right thing to do for our family, and that GOD had a hand in this.  Small things come out in very profound ways.  It reminds me how much Kelley and the kids mean to me.

I have to tell you about one thing that happened on the flight from Atlanta to Dubai.  We had been flying for several hours and it was dark on the plane when a very large man that was sitting a few rows behind me got up to go to the restroom.  He got to my row and stopped and started to weave and rock back and fourth and then he fell into my lap and then onto the floor.  He had passed out on my lap.  Did I say he was a very large man?  I didn’t know what to think.  I reached over and grabbed his knee, the first thing I could reach.  I shook him and he woke up.  He sat there for a minute and then got up and sat in another guy’s seat.  It scared that guy and he went and got a flight attendant to get him out of his seat.  All this while most people were asleep.  It helped break up the flight. 

I met a man on the flight from Panama City to Atlanta who was very interesting.  He was unemployed for eleven months.  He just recently started working.  It was interesting talking about our lives being similar and what he did while unemployed being similar to what I did.  He has been married 26 years just like me and is a Baptist just like me.  Funny how GOD puts people in your life when you need them.  It was good to talk to someone that has gone through what I have and survived.  I am giving him my blog address. I hope he follows me.

I know one thing, I already miss my wife’s cooking.  The food in transit stinks.  I hope it gets better.  I just had a croissant with bitter orange preserves on it.  Awful!

Well I guess I will go for now.  I already have a number of stories to share with you in the coming blog posts, so keep up. 

By now!

The sandbox is getting closer.

It is Wednesday afternoon and I am finished my first day of training at Tyndall Air Force Base.  It was a day of waiting in line and getting CAC cards, Chemical suits and gas masks and canteens.  A lot of waiting and not much doing.  I was warned that this was the way it would be.    Tomorrow should be about the same.  The one good thing is that as of Tuesday, I am gainfully employed with Trinetics International.  This is a really BIG deal.  I haven't worked in about 7 months.

I have talked with the family this afternoon and they seem to be doing well.  I worry about them the most.  as many of you know, Kelley and I talk many times during the day and this is going to be a HUGE adjustment for the both of us.  I also talk with the kids at least every day and That will take some getting used to as well.  I know that we will all adjust, but it will be tough at first.

I keep getting bits and pieces of information about what exactly I will be doing, where I will live, sleep, shower, etc.  That will be an adjustment as well.  Back to Jake's statement "going to Boy Scout camp for a year".  I just said the Boy Scout pledge in my head.

I have now met the three other people that are going over with me.  Two men and one woman.  All seem nice and easy to get along with.  It will make it better to have others to talk with.

As the title of this post says, I am getting closer to the sandbox.  I am ready for this part to get here.  All this waiting around is for the birds.

I guess I will step out of the sandbox for now.  I am thinking of all of you.  WAR EAGLE!

Getting ready to go to the sandbox.

It is Saturday night, three days till I leave. I started packing my bags today and I realized very quickly that I cannot take everything I want to. I am allowed two bags weighing 50 lbs. each. I don't think I will be able to get everything I will need for a year in two bags. Jake keeps saying I am going to Boy Scout camp for a year.

I have been told that I will have a 7' x 7' room and that it is about 150 yards from the showers and bathrooms. I can't wait. My room has a bed in it and that is all. I guess I will have to commandeer some building materials and build some furniture.

There are so many unknowns at this time. I can't wait to see this place. In case I have not said I will be at Bagram Airbase in Afghanistan.

I know I am rambling, but that is what I will be dong alot.

I am getting out of the sandbox for now (even though I am really not in it yet). I will be back soon.