Toby's Ironman-In-Training Blog

All of our company is now back in Kuwait at Camp Doha. It was a bit of a hassle, since our first plane had engine troubles and we had to load and unload the second one twice, but we finally made it!

We’re chugging right along, cleaning our equipment and packing up for the flight home. Won’t be much longer now!

Our replacements have now arrived, which means we’re that much closer to cleaning up, packing, and coming home! Won’t be too much longer now…

I have been collecting lots more photos from some of the other guys in my platoon with digital cameras. Hopefully I’ll be adding them to the Photo Gallery sometime in the near future.

I posted a few days ago about Microsoft sending us some Xboxes and games to replace the ones we burned out when we first got here. Well, when they said “a selection of games”, they were understating a little — along with the four Xboxes, we got 4 copies each of 11 different games!

One of the included games was Voodoo Vince, which is the funniest video game I’ve ever played (although I hear a new Sam and Max is in the works, so that distinction might be short-lived). I won’t spoil anything for those who haven’t played it, but I was laughing out loud through most of its levels. The visual gags are just incredible.

Despite a few programming quirks, and the inability to download extra levels, this game is great. And don’t let the cartoony look fool you; it’s not for kids — some of the puzzles would be too hard for them, and some of the humor is slightly dark or off-color.

Okay, I lied earlier; heres a partial spoiler: in one level of the game, you are required to properly set up the various conveyer belts and machines in a meat factory to make sausage which you later use to persuade a Cajun cook to help you along. And as for the meat, there are a number of cute forest animals scurrying about on the floor, which you must guide onto the conveyors. They wave at you, giggle, and say things like “wee, this is fun!” and “you’re my best friend!” in a highly cutesy voice… until they reach the grinder. Definitely not PETA-approved!

I’m starting to get several emails from a few of you soldiers who will be heading to Camp Kalsu before long. Most are questions about what to bring, living conditions, etc., so I’ll try to answer some of those here (due to OPSEC reasons, I won’t get too specific; I’ll try to answer any other questions you might have over email, especially if you have a .mil return address).

It probably isn’t as bad here as you may have been hearing. All tents now have wooden floors and 220-volt electricity (which is pretty reliable), with lots of tents having 110-volt converters as well (although if you have your own converter, definitely bring it). So bring any sort of electrical appliance you want; I’d only caution against having too many space heaters (we’ve melted several adapters by trying to use too many, although it will be getting warmer soon). For when it does get warmer, most tents also have A/C.

I would recommend bringing building materials/tools if possible, since you’ll probably want to make changes or repairs to what’s here, or build tables and other furniture.

You will have to walk through mud and/or gravel to get to the showers, so get a good pair of shower shoes. The showers are heated, but require pretty frequent attention. However, there should be a new shower unit up and running soon.

A piece of scrap carpet is good to have for your area, as well as one of those cloth folding chairs you can get at Wal-Mart or the PX for seven bucks or so. You’ll also want as large a cooler as possible to keep drinks cold.

Lastly, I would bring a decent amount of cash, smaller bills if possible, to buy stuff like sodas, cigarettes/cigars, food, DVDs, etc. from the locals.

Hope this helps, and I’ll be seeing you soon!

Well, I’ve now been on active duty orders for over a year, with the end now in sight. Last year has been a pretty rough one, of course, and I’m glad it’s now behind me!

New Year’s was pretty uneventful for us. The company XO tried to made a giant ball out of chem-lights to drop at midnight from one of the towers, but that had mixed results. I’ll try to get some pictures up sometime (I’m getting quite a backlog!)