Open House Sunday

LOCATION CHANGE --- LOCATION CHANGE --- LOCATION CHANGE

Open house is still Sunday, October 4th, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Place has been changed to 3635 Gundry, Long Beach 90807 (2 blocks from my place). You are welcome to bring food or drink (although you don't have to) and it does NOT need to be vegetarian.

If you are reading this, then you are invited. Hope to see you then.

Eat Your Heart Out Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr.**

Leaving on a jet plane this evening. Will be in Long Beach September 29-October 9th. Open house at my place, Sunday, October 4th, 10:00 a.m.- 3:00 p.m.; 3719 Brayton Avenue (upstairs); Long Beach 90807. Anyone reading this is invited. If you want to bring snacks (you certainly don't have to) -- vegetarian please.
US cell (if it works): 562/587-8281 KWI cell (if it works): 6649 0861
See ya then! Oh yeah!!!

**aka John Denver

April Showers

I ran into April early this morning. She was on her way to sleep after working all night at the USO. I told her I’d been up late working on my blog. She said, “I didn’t know you had a blog. I’ll have to check it out.” I told her she might even be mentioned in one of the articles. I’m not sure if I previously wrote about April or not, but in all fairness she should have a page wholly to herself.

April (aka “The Army Chick”) has been assisting at our USO since June. She is one of our best volunteers, coming consistently at least once or twice a week and actually working while she’s here. When she comes she usually stays for eight, sometimes ten to twelve hours. She learned the check-in desk very quickly and may be more competent than some of our paid staff. She keeps everything and everyone organized and current. When April shows up it feels like a holiday; we all say a prayer of thanks and breathe a huge sigh of relief.

About 1,206 times per shift we need to stop what we’re doing and check the roster: “But I've been waiting forever.” “Did you call my name?” “Where am I on the list?” (What the soldiers actually want to know is if they have enough time before their name is called to go outside for a cigarette.) April says, “Have you been here for an hour? Come back and ask me after you’ve waited for an hour. Then I’ll check your name.” She says this with the most delightful Minnesota accent. April has complete confidence and the troops adore her.

Our shifts have been challenging lately: Consider that we have huge troop surges, that our USO is woefully (albeit temporarily) understaffed and at least two people at a time are on PTO. In some places that would be a recipe for chaos. Add volunteers like April to the situation and everyone comes out ahead.

Update: I published this post this morning. This evening April found out that she is being transferred to Camp Buehring immediately (today)! GOSHDAMNIT!!!!

-o0o-

The other picture is QRF (Quick Reaction Force) having lunch at McDonalds.

Angels (2 legs on earth; 4 legs in heaven)

Following is part of an e-mail I received from a friend. He is (understandably) very proud of the eldest of his four daughters.

b: Here's a little story from the summer I know you will get a kick out of.
Our pup of 11 years, the indestructible Hudson, died over the summer. It was very sad for the family, my girls have never known a day of their life without him, but it was a great life lesson for us all. When we found out Hudson had cancer, Maggie, my 8 year old, decided that she wanted to raise money for canine cancer research. She just came home from school one day and started writing a letter to her principal asking if she could get permission to sell friendship bracelets after school for a $1. She went in and explained it all to the principal and he said it sounded like a great idea, but he needed to get permission from the district. Well, all the red tape and blah, blah, blah, it was taking too long, so Maggie started selling to friends and family. My wife set her up with a table just outside the school grounds in our neighborhood. She also brought her bracelet making gear to the firm meeting and just sat with her quiet determination making bracelets until someone asked her what she was doing. She sold a bunch that weekend. She was getting checks for bracelets from people she didn't even know. Maggie (and her mom) worked her little tail off. She even was contacted by the Dean of UC Davis Veterinary School who thanked her for her hard work and invited her to tour the campus. (We'll be doing that this fall.)

In any event, when all was said and done, she raised about $1,600 for animal cancer research, and has decided that she wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up. I was and am simply amazed by this little girl and her commitment and ingenuity. It is amazing to me that at 8 years old, she knows that she can do anything she puts her mind to. Even more important, she knows that she can make a difference. Now all I have to do as her parent is to help preserve and foster her volunteerism and confidence.
Keep well, my friend,
d

This is not a request for money, but . . . if you can't help but support Maggie's cause, checks payable to UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine may be sent to:
DDP
c/o Keesal, Young & Logan
P.O. Box 1730
Long Beach, California 90801-1730

Thank you!

Link added 17 April 2010:
http://www.ocregister.com/news/hudson-243652-piper-maggie.html?pic=0

Stars and Stripes --- I'm Not Old

The other day when I went to Command Cell I saw that the American flag was not flying. Turns out the lanyard had broken so they had to take it down.* ^^ Two soldiers were folding the flag when I walked in, but it was taking them a really long time. They told me there’s a special way the flag needs to be folded. “I know that!” I responded. “I learned how to fold the flag when I was in Brownies. However, when I learned to fold the flag,” (this is the absolute truth) “it had only 48 stars.”

*A few minutes later they raised a new flag on a different pole.
^^ Flags flying are American, Kuwaiti and Wyoming. Base Command is from Wyoming.

Hey, Good Lookin'

Chemetre doesn’t understand why his picture is not on my blog. Since he is one of my favorite co-workers and one of the best-looking men on base, I am seeking to immediately remedy the situation. Sorry ladies, Chemetre is married with children.

Lost and Found . . . and Loss

It’s pretty dark (homey) inside our USO. Many of the soldiers come in during daylight and leave at night. Consequently we have approximately five pairs of sunglasses per day turned in to our Lost ‘n Found. There’s an Oakley store on base. Funny: A lot of people lose Oakleys, but almost no one ever finds Oakleys. Get it?

-o0o-

The transient troops must carry their weapons with them at all times. About once a week someone sees a weapon at the USO without a soldier attached. The soldier has left it behind after talking on the phone, using the Internet, playing a video game or watching a movie in the cinema. We must immediately stop everything and everyone and call for a “weapons check.” If the soldier has left the USO, someone in his unit will figure out who the owner is and go find the soldier. After a few minutes of panic, the offending party will come up to the counter, usually close to tears, and claim the errant weapon. Lost or misplaced weapons are very, very, very, very bad for the soldiers.

-o0o-

I’m writing in WORD but don’t know when I’ll be able to publish. We have a complete information (telephone and Internet) blackout, which is always the precursor to extremely bad news. Will keep you posted.

Updated: A truck hit a truck, seriously injuring two soldiers. No one was killed. Thank heavens for that.

More UTR

I know I’ve written about the USO’s United Through Reading (“UTR”) program before, but it’s such a constant and continuous morale booster for the troops and for the USO staff that I’m adding more.

If you remember, this is the program where we video soldiers reading books to their children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, etc. and then send the DVD and the book(s) home. When I first started at the USO we were sending home 30-50 books per month. In August we sent home 767 books! Almost every day Steve shows me a “Please Tell us What You Think” card and says (very sincerely), “I love my job.” I grabbed a few off of the top of the pile. Here are some of the comments which are taken, verbatim, from the cards:

This is a wonderful program! Thanks for all you guys at the USO do for us. God Bless each of you! This service . . . is a great way of connecting to our kids.

My daughter really enjoys the program very much. She replayed over and over again when I was deployed.

This is an excellent program. The staff here is the best and very helpful. The USO is a great place for soldiers to come relax and be able to just get back to reality. Thanks.

This is the greatest program around. The staff here at Camp Virginia is so helpful and kind. Thanks for letting me connect with my children.

It feels so good to be able to communicate with my grandkids. Almost like reading to them at home. Thanks lots.

This program is absolutely fantastic. I'm sure my son will adore this.

Almost made [me] cry reading the book. But I know he’ll always remember it. Thank you so much.

My son will be so happy. Thank you so much. I’ll be back.

This is the greatest thing I’ve seen for service members with children left behind! Thank you so much from me and my boys.

I feel as if I could really interact and let my child see me as what I am.

Excellent program!! It’s a great way to stay in touch with your kids.

Very awesome program for adults and their family’s children!! Will be back again very soon.

Thank you all so much. You do more than you know.

I always recommend to all of my soldiers, whether fathers, uncles, or older brothers. We all have deep, sincere gratitude for USO.

My grandkids love getting books and being able to have their Papaw read to them.

It took me a couple of minutes to get ready so that I would not start crying as I read the book. This is such a wonderful way to stay in touch with small children and grandchildren while away so long. Thank you!

A great program I would recommend to every soldier.

My wife told me about my kids watching the videos every day non-stop. They laugh and when I ask them what something is, they answer me. This program has made everyone happier. Thank you for doing this for me and my family.

[Yeah, I’m sobbing too.]

One of our troops wrote the following poem after doing a UTR for his son:

Sitting in a room alone,
A soldier stares at a camera.
With a book in his lap,
He takes a deep breath and pushes record.
Seeing his son in the image of himself,
The camera in front of him shows.
Words flow out of his mouth with ease,
No thought, just his inner feelings.
Shortly after starting the book of choice,
The story ends as the book now closed.
The soldier somehow relieved,
Knowing his son will feel closer to him,
Until the day he is finally home.

Spc. Dale Waller

Not So Much Cash

My top drawer contains:
American Dollars
Pogs*
Kuwaiti Dinars
Turkish Lira
Euro Dollars

If I put everything together, I can almost buy lunch.

*The concessions do not use American coins on base. Too heavy to ship from the states.

Camp Virginia County Fair

7 September 2009. I just got back from the first Labor Day Camp Virginia County Fair sponsored by USO, MWR and AFFES. We started setting up and decorating yesterday, and then the event was held this evening. It was similar to the carnival held on 4th of July except that this time I was able to attend. Local Joes, a band comprised of three soldiers, played great live music. We had a “circle the bat” relay, tug of war, watermelon eating contest, dart board, hula hoop toss and frozen T-shirt competition. Although Christine ran into the barbeque forehead first, the volunteers had no problem grilling hotdogs and hamburgers. AFFES donated Hawaiian Ices and fruit smoothies. The Human Foosball game we rented was the hit of the event.

After everything was cleaned up the planners topped off the night with an uproarious Foosball game of guys vs. gals. Unfortunately the guys won and Lt. L’s voice is now three octaves higher (soccer ball to the netherparts), but it was still the riotious highlight of my evening.

There are a lot of troops on base, many of them on the way home after 13 months in Iraq. The ones with whom I’ve interacted are patient and considerate, but I can tell that they are also exhausted, frazzled and anxious. It was great to see them relaxing, goofing off and having a good time.

The Worst Night Ever

Last night started off like most Saturday nights at the USO. We were moderately busy with troops enjoying the video games, cinema, phones and Internet. About 30 people were gathered around TV2 watching football on AFN. Every few minutes the noise level would soar and then subside with the plays of the game. Our volunteer, Sgt. Smith*, was covering the front desk, so Christine and I went into the office to work on September events. Steve, our Center Director, was scheduled to work from 23:00 until 07:00 to cover Joe's night off.

Steve arrived at 23:00 and everything was running smoothly until 23:45 when he came into the back and asked us to help Sgt. Smith because there were a lot of people in line and we were starting to get backed up. Steve does not have a lot of experience at the front desk so I took over on the computer and Christine went to stock water and gather the trash for our shift end.

Then the masses started coming, and coming, and coming. One NCO told me that eight busses had just pulled in. The new arrivals were told about USO services in their orientation. Everything was exactly as it should be; it's just that the busses don't usually arrive in the middle of the night when the Center Director is working by himself. I decided to stay until the rush was over.

We opened up the phone behind the desk and made all three phones in the USO office accessible for troops. Even with 15 phones available and the talk time cut from 30 minutes to 20 minutes, we still had over an hour wait time with 50 people on the telephone list.

The computers were equally as popular. I directed one officer on computer No. 1 (right next to me) before I realized he was E9 (Master Sargent, just lower than the king) and most likely in charge of all of the troops in Southwest Asia. We chatted while I worked and I was not at all intimidated. No, really, I wasn't; I'm sure of it.

Two young Navy enlisted (Frick and Frack, the Idiot Twins**) next took over computers 1 and 2, acting like 12 year old girls at the mall. They were giggling and flirting with everyone; changing our rules and making up new policies for the USO and rudely interrupting me with asinine questions every two minutes. I'm skeptical that they passed through any kind of military training, and also thankful that USO Duty Managers aren't issued weapons.

After three non-stop, fun-filled hours, at about 03:15, we had almost everyone accounted for and I left Steve to fend for himself.

It was an amusing and challenging evening and the time just flew by. I was doing excactly what I came here to do. In no way was it horrible, except for the following:

WARNING: If you have a weak stomach, stop reading now. Seriously. It's not worth it to continue.

While I was working with Sgt. Smith* I picked up my drink to finish it before I tossed the bottle in the recycle bin. Turns out it wasn't my drink, it was Sgt. Smith's dip tobacco spit bottle. Although I coughed it up immediately, Sgt. Smith spent the next half hour laughing hysterically and I spent the next half hour gagging. It's almost too much to think about, even now.

I warned you.

*Not his real name
**Not their real names

A Long Story

A couple of weeks ago Christine and I went to Camp Buehring . About half way back Christine exclaimed, “Oh no. We’re really low on gas.” Knowing there was nothing along the road except bombed-out car shells, dead camels and sand, we did the only things we could: we cussed, pedaled and prayed. A few minutes later we saw a Chevy Tahoe in front of us with four people. “That looks like Americans,” I said. “We should stay close behind them. If we run out of gas we can honk our horn and they will stop and help us.”

We made it back to camp and held our breath while we idled in the Secure to Secure pass lane. We limped to the fuel point where amid prayers of gratitude we filled the tank. Christine dropped me off at the DFac and she went back to work.

As I started in to dinner I saw the four guys who had been in the Tahoe. I told them the whole story. They told me that they did not know we were behind them and even if we had honked they would have been too frightened to stop to help us. They invited me to eat dinner with them.

Sam, Dan, Ray and Tony explained that they are contractors working near the Iraq border training troops on the range. Three are retired Army; one is former Army.

Dan, Ray and Tony come to Camp Virginia DFac for steak night almost every Wednesday. Now they stop in to the USO to see us and sometimes play Madden09 on the PS3. Before I went on vacation Tony decided that we should all go to his favorite Chinese restaurant together. We made plans for when I returned from R&R and before Christine leaves for her R&R.

-o0o-

Last Friday Dan, Ray, Tony, Bettie, Christine and I went into town for Chinese food. We met just outside the Camp Virginia gate where two of us switched cars; Dan rode with Bettie and Christine; I rode with Tony and Ray, who, according to his own publicity, is really good in the lead car.

Kuwait City at 10:00 p.m. during Ramadan is comparable going to out to dinner at 10:00 p.m. on New Year’s Eve. Bettie was able to follow us until we made a left around a traffic circle and then did a drift across four lanes of traffic (with or without the blinker?) to make a right turn. “Did they follow us?” asked Ray. “Yes.” said Tony, “But they just missed that turn. I see them going straight. “ “So then, they didn’t make it?” said Ray.

The bickering escalated from there, with Ray playing the part of the obstinate husband and Tony as the nagging wife. The calls went back and forth between the cars. We found them, they lost us; they followed, we didn’t. We stopped so Ray could stand in the middle of the street with his cell phone and look for them. Finally we retrieved them from the side of the road and they made a right to follow us to the restaurant.

We were forging a path in our Tahoe for their 8” wider Yukon while Ray cussed at all of the people parked and driving in the opposite direction on both sides of the street. Turns out it was a one-way street; guess who was going the wrong way. We finally went over some curbs to get out (after all, we are driving SUVs) and made it to the restaurant.

The six of us ordered almost everything on the menu, including but not limited to, plain rice, fried rice, noodles, spring rolls, calamari, soup, and numerous dishes of chicken, shrimp, fish and beef. After dinner we went to Starbuck's-like coffee shop to get more to eat and drink.

Luckily everyone was in a good mood. We ladies were glad to be off base doing something “normal” and the guys were happy to be with companions who smelled good. It was a riotous, fun and laugh-filled evening. A good time was had by all.

Bazaars, Both Spice and Grand (Istanbul)

Music of the Night

I kept my Kuwait-based Wataniya cell phone on during the entire cruise since it was my clock and calender. Every night during the middle of the night we were greeted by two or three text messages: VonageWorld -- your cell phone choice in Turkey; Movistar is here for you in Spain; Hello. Vodafone invites you to take advantage of our service in Italy; Ramadan Special -- get free minutes; Greetings from Orange. You're in France!

Back Into the Sand

Our return to “real life” went smoothly. We took a cab from our hotel to the Metro. Bo got off at Arc d’Triumph so that he could take the bus to the Girona airport. Leorit and I got off at Placa de Catalunya (the next stop) so we could catch the bus to Barcelona Airport, Terminal 2. After saying good-bye to Leorit I then got on the bus to Terminal 1. While going through emigration I was in line behind John & Lisa, Mary, Gail and Jeff, the friends from Sacramento that we had met on the Rome excursion. I got to hang with them for a few minutes since they were leaving at exactly the same time I was from the very next gate.

It’s Ramadan and Muslims are not allowed to eat or drink during daylight. I was going into a Muslim country (Turkey) and then flying on Turkish Airlines to another Muslim country (Kuwait), so I was very worried that they would not serve any food or drinks on the plane. Fortunately meals on the plane were just like they were when I started my trip (before Ramadan). I did see a lot of men wearing white (looked like towels). I assume they were coming back from their pilgrimage to Mecca.

Christine and Mike* fetched me from KWI at 0200 (thank you!) and deposited me and my very heavy suitcase at my doorstep. I had done my laundry and cleaning before I left and was very much looking forward to returning to my clean sheets and sparkling CHU. Of course the floor, my cabinets and everything in my room was covered in dust/sand. The spiders were so happy with my return that they had a welcome home party in my bed. Now I have bites and I’m itching everywhere.

*We are not allowed to leave base alone. Anytime we go off base two people must be in the car. Really a pain when we are so short staffed and the flights (like mine) are arriving in the middle of the night.

A Long Shot

While waiting in the Istanbul airport I bought People. In the magazine is the story of a driver who, when going the wrong way on the highway, caused an accident that killed four children and four adults. I wrote a letter to editor but it keeps bouncing back because their e-mail box is full. I'm copying it here because I just want to get the idea out:

Subject: Diane Schuler - August 24, 2009
Regarding yet another horrific accident killing numerous people because a car was going the wrong way on the freeway: is there a good reason why we cannot put barriers with one-way spikes at the top (closest to freeway) side of the off-ramp -- just like in a parking lot exit -- so that cars going onto the freeway from the wrong way have the tires blown out? If emergency vehicles need to enter at the exit of the freeway they can have a remote control to roll the spikes into the ground. Inexpensive, simple and only slightly disruptive way to save many lives.

I also sent the letter to CalTrans. Thank you for indulging me.

City in Ruins

Wednesday, August 26th. Bo had been in Europe for three weeks before we arrived and he was very eager to show me Pompeii. We took the excursion bus with our tour guide Bruno (he looks different in the movie) through Naples, Sorrento and into Pompeii.

In Sorrento we stopped at a store where they made exquisite wood-inlay furniture then shopped the local stores for a while. Lunch was at a farm where we met with live cows and pigs, picked huge lemons off of trees, saw how they made olive oil and watched a woman make cheese.

Pompeii is remarkable. The erruption of Vesuvius stopped life in process. We saw the roads and shops, markets and homes, skeletons (canine and human), urns and cookware, temples and offices. We toured the brothel with instructional illustrations on the walls. As we browsed the souvenir kiosk near the exit, the cute Italian girl came over to us and said to Bo, “I remember you. You were here about two weeks ago with two girls. You’re Jewish and from the States.” Bo was highly embarrassed, although I don’t know why. He thinks it's because he was wearing exactly the same clothes as when he had previously visited Pompeii, although the girl didn’t mention that she remembered his outfit.

On the way back to port we stopped at a shop where we saw a young woman making cameos.

And yes, I did wear that skort every day of my vacation. It was comfortable and it has six pockets.