What to say...?

Well, hello all. I hope everyone that is keeping up with us is doing GREAT! God has blessed me with yet another wonderful day here in the desert. And I say that smiling...if you could only see it. Today wasn't too bad...we have had a couple busy days and I've been pretty worn out so I have only checked the site and went to bed. Today wasn't too bad. On the request for an address and list of goodies that I'd like....well....I'm honestly not sure what kind of goodies I would like...I think the element of surprise is great. I got my camera so I won't be needing another one of those.... hmmmmm I don't really know. But what ever you decide will reach me at this address:

Strader, Jeremy
407th Medical Company (GA)
FOB Diamondback
APO, AE 09334

I'm in a mood, but i don't know what I want to say.....I wish I could wiggle my nose and be home for day. That would be nice. Yeah, that would be nice...... Don't you hate it when you have something on your mind and just can't get it out? Hmmmmm......Iraq can be boring sometimes. Oh so boring. I know mom and dad are happy I'm bored. John prob gets some relief from it too. I prob won't have cool stories of going "out of the wire" or riding along and an IED blows up next to me.....what makes one story better than the other? Stories of going on 57 missions back and forth to the same place...knowing that the whole time you were on those missions the whole goal was just to stay awake? Never getting the chance to fire your weapon or treat someone. Maybe you can tell of a story of an IED going off 200 meters ahead or behind you...that's cool. And you can tell about how bad you had to go to the bathroom so you "went in a bottle"....that's kinda cool...I guess. I mean 6 hours straight in a hwmmv....I'd prob have to go too. Maybe you can tell others about how you were standing outside one night and you looked up and saw a shooting star...but it wasn't a shooting star, it was a mortar...nice and close, right over your head, and bright.....or maybe you tell about this one night when you were standing on the flightline watching a special C-130 getting some very precious cargo...and as you stood there, a shooting star really did jet across the sky. That's a good story. Or maybe you can tell about one night when you were walking to the latrine a fairly big explosion went off...IED, VBIED, SVIED? Does it matter? I guess at that point you can make it whatever you want to. It probably happens so much that you really could make what you want to. Do you tell about when you used to sit on the roof and watch a city burn in the distance with helicopters flying around like mosquitos protecting those on the ground? Or how about those nice evenings on the roof with helicopters buzzing overhead....and it makes you think about when you were a kid watching those war movies or MASH and wondered.."do helicopters really do that? Do they really fly that close over a base? COOL!" Yeah, it's about as cool as I thought it would be when I was kid. What other stories make yours better than the other guys' stories? Stories of poker nights with the guys? Fighting mosquitos off in your office all day, worring about getting malaria? Do you tell about how you got to ride in a blackhawk for morning warmups and safety checks? Or do you really show your cards and tell them about how close you were to stepping on a rocket that was only half blown up? Do you tell people that the rocket, not 5 min before, exploded 10 feet away and that other half was the part that didn't explode? Do you try to explain what it's like picking up the phone and being given a two minute warning to a helicopter landing with 4 urgent patients? Or even better....there's 5 casualties coming in...one in a tank, and 4 in hwmmv's. What do you think when you ask someone..."what did you do over there?" Sensitive right? Maybe....or not. Maybe I don't want to have to explain how the convoy just wouldn't stop so I could pee...so I respond "I'd rather not talk about it." Pretty cool huh. I've never quite understood the whole secrecy thing behind that question. I didn't understand why that couldn't be answered with something...something. I'm beginning to understand. I think if someone wants you to know what happened over here....they'll prob tell you. Now at this point I can't tell you either so don't ask. I have a wild imagination so I'll leave it you to decide what is fiction and what is only half true..... maybe the convoy did stop?

Well.....I felt like rambling....and I think I got it all out. Like I said, got my camera so I'll be putting some pics up on here soon....I've got one that I'm excited to put on here, I just have to take it first.....you'll know when I do. Oh, and bro...since I have my camera now...GAME ON! The next funny pic will be up soon....so you better be thinking of how to beat me.

Well enough for now....I do want to say thank you all for your support and I hope that each and everyone of you continue to check us out. Thank you for your support!! And Ms Lewis, if it wasn't for you, I would probably still be fighting to finance my house, so don't short-change yourself or your abilities. THANK YOU!

Well tah tah......if anyone sees a flyin squirrel, say hello...more rambling....



Somewhere in Iraq
Out here,
SGT Wormy


1963