What is your schedule like?
I work 7 days a week and 12 hours a day. I work from 7:30AM to 7:30PM. I only get a half day off on Tuesday. I generally get up around 6:00AM - 6:30AM. I usually end up getting to bed around 10:00PM - 11:00PM, depending if I go see a movie or not, then it's usually around 12:00PM.
Who do you hang out with?
I don't really hang out with anyone. There are usually people that I know at the theater when I got see a movie. There is one guy that I hung out with for a short time that I play D&D with but that's about it. For the most part, I really don't have a lot of time to hang out. If I want 8 hours of sleep, I only have 2.5 hours to do anything after work.
What are their stories?
The guy that I hung out with is going to be here for 6 months to a year, I think he's here for a year. He's married and has three children back home.
Do you ever go to town?
No. I will never go to town. It's dangerous and not worth the risk, plus you need a reason to go into town. If you don't have one, they won't let you go. There are camps around the airport that we go to sometimes when necessary. Otherwise we generally stay where we are.
How do people respond to seeing the US there?
It's split. There are a number of people that do not want us here and there are a number that do. I believe that the majority of people here believe things will get a lot worse if we leave without ensuring that the Iraqi government can handle securing it's own country.
Do you enjoy the work you are doing?
Not really. It's work. It's boring and monotonous. If I didn't have access to the internet and if they weren't leniant towards people using the itnernet, I would probably go crazy. I'm joking but it is really dry work but work that needs to get done, so we do it, and try to break up the day as best we can.
Do you eat intresting food?
The food isn't bad but its the same everyweek. It never changes. It gets bland after awhile eating the same thing all the time. It's all american-style food. I believe they important all the ingrediants.
How are the natives attitudes?
I honestly don't know since I never talk to the locals. I imagine some don't like us and others do want us here.
How are the soliders attitudes?
Good. We try to be as positive as we can. It gets better the longer we are here. The toughest time is when you first arrive and are getting settled. After that you tend to get into a routine. We all are doing the best with can to get through the time we have here. We all are looking forward to going home. Everyone looks forward to getting packages, emails and making phone calls.
How many people you share a room with?
The trailors are pretty long, I believe 6 rooms with 3 different entrances. The three entrances go into two rooms that are seperated only by metal closests/cabinets that seperate the three sections. Each section has two rooms with only one divider seperating the two rooms. There are flourescent light bulbs that are in each room. Each room has two cabinets and one set of bunk beds. There is a heater/AC unit in each room as well as a window. The only furniture that is provided is a small two draw cabinet. If your roommate in the other room works a different shift and turns on the light, it will reflect into your room. I had this problem and had to buy a blanket to act as a curtain around my bed. Technically there could be two people per room but they generally try to keep it to one person per room per section. I hope that wasn't too complicated. I basically have one roommate. I believe the rooms are about 10 ft by 15 ft. Not very big once you have a bunk bed and two metal cabinets in there. I wish they would give us desks. That would be really nice.
Who are your buddies?
I don't really have any buddies at this point. I'm sure that will change as time goes by.
Are there women there working?
Yes. The ratio of women to men is low (1:3) but we do work with women everyday. There are a number of contractors here too. Mostly from either the US or Austratlia. It really depends on the camp you are in, there are some other nationalities here too.
What do you do for fun?
At the moment I either go to the theater, play my PSP, play D&D, read, or work out. The MWR (a department that handles the military recreation stuff) has a building that they offer kareoke, pool tables, salsa dance lessons, salsa night, jazz night, bingo, and other events during the week, throughout the month. There is also a pool that is open as certain times of the year. I haven't seen it, so I can't tell you much more about it. There is also a internet and phone center at the gym.
Do you have a gym?
Yes, they have a pretty nice gym with cardio equipment, free weights and machines.
How do people respond or feel about what they are doing?
There are a few that want to be here but most that don't. I'd say there are a lot that did volunteer to come over but don't want to stay once their time is up. Most people want to go home and never come back. It's not fun here regardless of all the niceties that they arrange for us (MWR, theater, laundry service, etc.). It's really depressing and without those niceties, it would be a lot harder to get through the day. I'd say most people, at least here, not including those in the field (that's an entirely different situation, one of which I'm not qualified to comment on and hope I never am) really enjoy the use of the internet and emails. Without emails, life would be really hard here.
I work 7 days a week and 12 hours a day. I work from 7:30AM to 7:30PM. I only get a half day off on Tuesday. I generally get up around 6:00AM - 6:30AM. I usually end up getting to bed around 10:00PM - 11:00PM, depending if I go see a movie or not, then it's usually around 12:00PM.
Who do you hang out with?
I don't really hang out with anyone. There are usually people that I know at the theater when I got see a movie. There is one guy that I hung out with for a short time that I play D&D with but that's about it. For the most part, I really don't have a lot of time to hang out. If I want 8 hours of sleep, I only have 2.5 hours to do anything after work.
What are their stories?
The guy that I hung out with is going to be here for 6 months to a year, I think he's here for a year. He's married and has three children back home.
Do you ever go to town?
No. I will never go to town. It's dangerous and not worth the risk, plus you need a reason to go into town. If you don't have one, they won't let you go. There are camps around the airport that we go to sometimes when necessary. Otherwise we generally stay where we are.
How do people respond to seeing the US there?
It's split. There are a number of people that do not want us here and there are a number that do. I believe that the majority of people here believe things will get a lot worse if we leave without ensuring that the Iraqi government can handle securing it's own country.
Do you enjoy the work you are doing?
Not really. It's work. It's boring and monotonous. If I didn't have access to the internet and if they weren't leniant towards people using the itnernet, I would probably go crazy. I'm joking but it is really dry work but work that needs to get done, so we do it, and try to break up the day as best we can.
Do you eat intresting food?
The food isn't bad but its the same everyweek. It never changes. It gets bland after awhile eating the same thing all the time. It's all american-style food. I believe they important all the ingrediants.
How are the natives attitudes?
I honestly don't know since I never talk to the locals. I imagine some don't like us and others do want us here.
How are the soliders attitudes?
Good. We try to be as positive as we can. It gets better the longer we are here. The toughest time is when you first arrive and are getting settled. After that you tend to get into a routine. We all are doing the best with can to get through the time we have here. We all are looking forward to going home. Everyone looks forward to getting packages, emails and making phone calls.
How many people you share a room with?
The trailors are pretty long, I believe 6 rooms with 3 different entrances. The three entrances go into two rooms that are seperated only by metal closests/cabinets that seperate the three sections. Each section has two rooms with only one divider seperating the two rooms. There are flourescent light bulbs that are in each room. Each room has two cabinets and one set of bunk beds. There is a heater/AC unit in each room as well as a window. The only furniture that is provided is a small two draw cabinet. If your roommate in the other room works a different shift and turns on the light, it will reflect into your room. I had this problem and had to buy a blanket to act as a curtain around my bed. Technically there could be two people per room but they generally try to keep it to one person per room per section. I hope that wasn't too complicated. I basically have one roommate. I believe the rooms are about 10 ft by 15 ft. Not very big once you have a bunk bed and two metal cabinets in there. I wish they would give us desks. That would be really nice.
Who are your buddies?
I don't really have any buddies at this point. I'm sure that will change as time goes by.
Are there women there working?
Yes. The ratio of women to men is low (1:3) but we do work with women everyday. There are a number of contractors here too. Mostly from either the US or Austratlia. It really depends on the camp you are in, there are some other nationalities here too.
What do you do for fun?
At the moment I either go to the theater, play my PSP, play D&D, read, or work out. The MWR (a department that handles the military recreation stuff) has a building that they offer kareoke, pool tables, salsa dance lessons, salsa night, jazz night, bingo, and other events during the week, throughout the month. There is also a pool that is open as certain times of the year. I haven't seen it, so I can't tell you much more about it. There is also a internet and phone center at the gym.
Do you have a gym?
Yes, they have a pretty nice gym with cardio equipment, free weights and machines.
How do people respond or feel about what they are doing?
There are a few that want to be here but most that don't. I'd say there are a lot that did volunteer to come over but don't want to stay once their time is up. Most people want to go home and never come back. It's not fun here regardless of all the niceties that they arrange for us (MWR, theater, laundry service, etc.). It's really depressing and without those niceties, it would be a lot harder to get through the day. I'd say most people, at least here, not including those in the field (that's an entirely different situation, one of which I'm not qualified to comment on and hope I never am) really enjoy the use of the internet and emails. Without emails, life would be really hard here.
