BootheNet.com

Yup, its me….. Not a lot going on this week…. A lot of work… Weather has been pretty much cooperating with us… Still warm days and cool nights and hardly any rain, so it is nice and dusty instead of slick and muddy. Took a bunch of pictures at the “couples” dinner at the DFAC on Valentines Day, but wont bore you all with them. Came out pretty nice though..

Jim Garner and I went across the road to the range the other day to test fire a tank….. Well, he went to test fire and I went to take a picture of it….. Missed the actuall shot by a millisecond or two ( camera was too slow at 3 frames per second, should have had my other one at home it shoots 5 per second and the odds would have been better)

Anyway here are the pictures….

First Frank Morales Jim Garner and Joe Neilko at the Motor Pool before we went to the range.

Pretty day isnt it?

Now to the firing line, since they were remote firing (no one inside the tank for safety) I had a guy give me a countdown, when he got to 1 I pushed the shutter and the camera started shooting at 3 fps. Here is a few of the 8 pictures.

Do you like how all the dust gets shaken off the tank? I was using a wide angle lens so was very close to the tank (maybe 50 feet) Amazing amount of noise and shaking!

O well, short, sweet and to the point, besides they just called to say our generator is being shut down for servicing, so the network will be off in about 5 minutes……

Here is the sunset shot from Feb 15th….

Hope everyone is doing alright……

Later

written by Tom \\ tags: Iraq, Pictures, Tanks

Hope everyone is doing good, just wanted to drop a quick line to let you know we are all fine over here. The weather has been fantastic, cool nights and warm (80′s) days…. Kinda makes ya want to by a piece of land and build a hooch!

Been a fairly busy week, lots of broke stuff to be worked on,,,, and have been getting stuff fixed lately, not the “slump” I was in a couple of weeks ago.

Did not realize it had been so long since I posted,,,, that how busy its been…

Got a few pictures, Jim Garner took a couple of me working with the guys on a ROWPU (Reverse Osmosis Water Purification Unit, for those that dont want to google it). These things provide the fresh water we use for everything from showers to brushing the teeth, the unit needed a couple operational to ship to another location,,,, so yours truely gets the call….. We got three of the four working, had to sacrifice one for parts…

This one is me and SGT Z working on the valves and the next one is venting the system

Hey machines need to “vent” just like humans do!

Think it gets muddy around ROWPU’s? especially when they are being repaired and are leaking all over the place?

Here is one that the guys were trying to move,,,, no luck in this greasy mud the truck was going nowhere!

Well, gotta go eat, just wished Jo a “Happy Valentine’s Day” so now I will wish one to all you too….. Especially Chelsea, Sarah and Olivia (My Trio of Little Valentines)

Here is a nice sunset from the other day, one of the best lately!

Later

written by Tom \\ tags: Iraq, Mom, Pictures

Howdy all, well got the 24th Anniversary of my 29th Birthday out of the way today…… One of these days I may even turn 30….. but NOT YET!!!

Was a pretty busy day and week, lots of broke stuff requiring my special “pixie dust”… Although I may need some new dust cause I ain’t fixed CRAP lately…. Keep plugging away though….

Anyway back to the point of this post…… what was the point??????? O yea the B’day thing….

Well I was trying to keep this kinda hushhush…. but made the mistake of mentioning it at a motor pool about a week ago,,, thought I was “among friends” there,,, but NO… Next thing I know I am walking in the chow hall,,,, and SGT Davis says “hey I hear your birthday is coming up” Well me being kinda sly like that I think to myself “self maybe you can throw her off the scent if you play along”

So I say,, “why yes I do (just as SWEET as I can say it) but it sure is a good thing y’all dont know WHAT day it is!

Know what she does???? Looks on a piece of paper at her headcount station and says ” 30th of January”…….

Well, I figure if the “cat is out of the bag” I might as well play along…. So that brings us to tonight….. Go to chow and see the cake

GOOD NEWS! I am not the only VICTIM tonight! CPT Ewa Garner too….. You all may not remember CPT Garner, she was in one of the “Mothers Day” pictures on the other blog site in the spring….. Nice lady, one of the Brigades Doctors…. So I find Ewa and wish her a “Happy Birthday” the get my dinner…… As far as the get my dinner part…. I had told Chief Magras that since I was roped into this birthday stuff,,,,, I wanted to be served by the Queen! Believe she would have done it too,,, but she had traveled out to the forward bases today and didn’t get back til I was already eating…… She did run and get me some ice for my tea though…. Of course as she was returning with the previously mentioned cup of ice I kept a real tight hold of my collar…… Not saying she would have poured that cup’o'ice down the back of my shirt……. But “better safe that sorry” (and cold and wet!)

So anyway,,, the call comes out on the bullhorn “Mr Boothe and CPT Garner come to the front please!” So doing this right I go to Ewa’s table and escort her to our shared doom! There we are introduced.

And everybody does the Happy Birthday song

Then someone yells out “How old?” Nosy, nosy……. She is much too old to tell anyone that!

Of course you all see I was telling them I was THREE….. I think, since this is a “family site” that I am real glad her hand was BLURRED at that moment!

Anyway then we had to cut the cake,,,,

What did I get for my birthday,,, well a card and some peach tea (what Magras was getting the ice for) and O a can of SPAM!

Eat your heart out JIM!

Couple of shots end the post, first Ewa and I with CW4 Magras, “DFAC Manager Extraordanaire”

And finally me basking in the “glow” of the undisputed Queen of FOB Hammer…

So you can see a full evening of merrymaking….. Now time for some sleep!

Later

written by Tom \\ tags: Birthday, Iraq, Pictures

Yep, got a full night of rain on Tuesday so we have been slogging around in mud that is approaching knee deep in spots……. You folks getting snow… that is our comeback….. I would rather walk in snow anytime than this

Notice the boards and the obvious footprints of everyone (including ME) that slipped off them suckers!

Been driving the truck in 4 wheel drive all over the place,,, trucks have been getting stuck on the streets (or at least what go for streets) We stopped in one of the worst areas to give you all some perpsective as to the quality of the slime….

Finally here is a view down the “main drag” the mud here is very watery as there was a lot of standing water mixed in along with plenty of traffic to keep it “souped up”

O Hell…. it is not as bad as I am making out…. kinda fun actually…. the “mud ball” fights are a hoot….. And I hear there is going to be a mud man building contest……. may be a rumor, but if there is one I will be sure to give you a full report…

Later

written by Tom \\ tags: Iraq, Pictures

Just wanted to let everyone know that I am doing fine…… Been chilly, but getting a little warmer in the days….. and a bit boring…..

Not that boring is a bad thing, just doesn’t make for good posts… The only picture I have taken lately is of the sunset the other night…. pretty nice will post it here

If it don’t work Chris will fix it…. (Ed: He fixed it)

Most of my “buds” in the brigade have returned from R&R…. Christmas time was a big season for visits home…. So most of the folks I wrote about last spring are here now….. Makes for a bit more pleasant conversation around the table at chow…. And I have been spending my evenings looking at “kid pictures”…. The champion pictures were taken by Chief Magras,,,,, but she had an unfair advantage….. Since she spent her R&R at home in St Croix…… hard for Columbus to compete with the Virgin Islands for views!

Anyway she brought me a 2008 Virgin Islands calender,,, so I have ocean views everytime I look at the date,,,,

Need to get back there sometime,, Jo and I visited St Thomas on our cruise in 2002…. pretty place for sure..

Well, like I said, not much to report…..

Later

written by Tom \\ tags: Iraq, Pictures, Vacation