DAY 118: 23 MAY 08

Well another interesting day in Afghanistan. Let me start from the beginning. I went into work and helped write the script for the newscast. I then anchored as seen below and produced a little radio news piece for the weekend shows. After that instead of doing my mid day show I went and got a haircut because I thought I had a lunch with the General. Well I went to the dining facility and was told it was canceled. I later found out it was moved to 2:30 but either way I did not end up meeting this General. To be honest I was not that upset. Most Generals in my experience are nice guys (I have met 1 female General) but only talk to you about petty stuff. I would be tempted to get into hardcore politics but that would not be a good idea so I play the good little airman role. Anyway the interview I had with the 4 star in Kabul was awesome as he treated me nice while I asked pertinent questions concerning this war. I guess if I ever could interview anyone aside from Jesus it would be Hitler. I would ask him why he brought war instead of peace to the world after gaining so much power. Maybe no one is strong enough to have that much power. Maybe God wants us to share life while the Devil led him to destruction. Anyway……… I then went on the air at 2:30 at which point I felt the need to call my Mom. I expected her to be going to work or already at but I guess she has to help Gram and Bob today. Anyway we had a long chat mainly about Robin. My mother is a great person in my eyes. I also have a ton of respect for my father. Unfortunately they both like to use me as their rug beater when it comes to how they feel about each other. I have put my foot down and will not tolerate negative commentary about the opposing person any longer. Robin is definitely the common tie here. Anyway after I hung up with her I finish the first 4 hours of radio which Mom got to hear some of while I put the phone down and talked. At 6:30 I then switched to my sports talk show with an Army buddy of mine. His name is Zizzo so we got Jozwiak and Zizzo. A ton of Zs for one sports show. By 8pm I was mentally exhausted and really not hosting very well so I mentioned on air that I have been on since 2:30 and that I am sorry that I sound so bad. Well its just my luck that the one guy I had issues with at the beginning of the deployment was driving back to work and heard me. He comes storming in (he did bring me food which we agreed upon) and says we need to talk. At this point the soldier I do the show with is pissed because if we said something wrong we want to know now. Not to mention in this line of work you do not interrupt someone while on air. It takes a great deal of concentration and effort to do a good radio show let along 2 in a row. So anyway long story short is that he was out of line and we really did not say anything that bad. I handled the situation with composure and he ended up apologizing. I really have learned a ton about working issues and being reserved and thinking. Dad you would be proud. Anyway it gets better. So then I come back and am ready to watch the season finale of my favorite show The Office (I downloaded them from the moral drive; we have someone downloads them each week and puts them there). I check my email real quick and see my Mom told me to call Robin. So I do not want to miss this opportunity, so I get dressed again and go back to work. It’s only a 3 minute walk but you know what it’s like when you come home. You want to relax. Anyway I finally get a hold of Robin! We have a great chat, although I am not totally thrilled to hear her situation, but I set some ground rules and we shall see. I need to order her contacts as she is almost out and has no insurance. Her teeth are another ball game but I do not feel the need to intervene there yet. I can spring for some contacts and see how she progresses and then reevaluate my effort. As she shows effort so will I, and I told her that. So I hear Emma in the background and almost want to cry. I cannot imagine the weight and burden parents feel. The one guy who I have gotten into it with has a pregnant wife who may deliver before he gets back. Another guy here knows his wife will give birth while he is gone. I think of my niece and almost cry, I cannot imagine if it were my own child! Hell I miss my dog and of course Michelle. Anyway the tolls this takes on family is immeasurable. Back to Robin. So we agree to try to talk again this weekend and then hang up as Emma was crying she needed changed. Wait until I get a hold of that little firecracker! I cannot wait to play with her and take her out when I get home. So the whole time I am on the phone the Marine who initially rubbed me the wrong way is playing guitar hero on the Nintendo Wii in the background. Now here is another issue. All these guys up there like privacy when they are on the phone. Mean while I talk to whomever, whenever, and never say a word. While I am loud sometimes I am also easy to live around, especially under these conditions. So as I am ending my convo with Robin the marine leaves. I then go to try find the doctors number on the internet for Robin’s eye doctor because of course she does not know her prescription. Anyway as I am finally leaving for the night the marine comes out and asks if I am ok. We start talking and find we have similar situations. Then the other guy who busts my buts comes out and all 3 of us chat. Now mind you at 6 feet and 165 ponds I am not the smallest in the group but not the biggest either. The marine is one rank above me , 1 inch taller than me, and at least 10 pounds heavier than me. He other air force guy who is my friend but can be challenging at times is one rank above me as well, 3 inches taller than me, and at least 50 pounds heavier than me. Both are 1 year younger than me. Now both of these guys know I do not play games and call it the way it is. I go into work, work hard, listen to my bosses, and go home. They are both talented but have egos that can clout their judgment. Long story short is that they both know I respect them and try my best to treat them good. I realized tonight, against their hard personality exteriors, that they respect me too. The day ends with me finally watching The Office season finale and laughing my butt off. Great show!

Now onto one last thing. I have 2 buddies who have been called up on inactive reserve for the Army. I found the ones blog and will give you the link here at the end. Basically these guys get out of the Army and have now been called back as they are still under their inactive reserve part of the contract. I have this too but the Air Force has too many people so the chance of me being called back if I decide to get out would probably include a domestic attack by China at which point everyone is on the table for duty. So…… I am so glad I joined the Air Force as the Army will screw you when you are in and bend you over when you are out. Sorry for the crewed analogy but wait until you read his blog. He just reported to an Army base to get ready to go to Iraq. He is with about 10 other people just like him. His blog crushes mine in both writing and content as he is smarter than me, more educated, and a real sharp cat. Anyway this guy has a fellowship to UNC Chapel Hill for a masters in journalism and now has to go to Iraq after being out of the Army for 1 year. The guy has a great attitude and I am proud to call he and his wife my friends. Michelle really liked them as they were very much on our level both relationship wise and educationally speaking as well. Anyway I am beat and need to get some sleep. Here is his link:

http://www.chrishigginbotham.com/blog/

PLEASE READ HIS BLOG and comment as you feel needed. My 6 months here isn’t nothing compared to what he is dealing with. Ok good night and Chris if you read this: I am praying and pulling for you man. I want to drink a beer together someday from now and talk about the good old military days that we no longer have to worry about. Maybe you are with the NY Times and me NBC!



PS: I decided to change the background a little to make it look mors crispt. Let me know what you think of the change!