Wish You Were Here

We had our first rainstorm about 2 weeks ago and I LOVED it! Someone told me that rain was forecast and I looked forward to it. That Saturday night, I was preparing to go to the chapel to practice and I heard some strange noises on the roof. The "drops" were so big that I thought it might be some sort of hail. I started to open the door to look out, and it was the worst sand storm to date. I shut the door and looked out of the peephole. Things were flying about and hitting the trailer. The storm came out of nowhere. I was disappointed, thinking the rain had come early. Once it calmed down, I headed to the chapel. I got back just in time to find some lightening in the sky (I was hoping it was lightning!) and sure enough, there was thunder. I was indoors when the rain started. I wish I could have gotten a picture of it. On Sunday morning, I wore boots that I wouldn't mind getting muddy. I expected there to be mud but there wasn't any! Everything had been washed clean and the morning was so refreshing. There were some sizeable trees and branches blown down however.

A few funny observations:

Why won't people throw away the inner cardboard from an expended roll of toilet paper? They will even go so far as to put in on top of the trashcan lid, and not put it in there! And there are often those last few sheets left on the roll….

The largest bathroom stall I've ever been in.There are 3 of these stalls in one ladies restroom in Al Faw Palace. Such tall ceilings, so much space. Hopefully the one with the lock that works is available (!) Enjoy!

Where I am now, there are "Unisex" latrines. Everyone can go into the trailer to use the sinks and stalls. There are four stalls that say "Female" on them. Again, locks are important!

I have a new friend I've named "Herman" - don't know why "Herman" but that was the only name that came to mind. He's a little Iraqi gecko-like lizard. She/he peeks out from my porch when I come in after dinner. I try to be sure it doesn't join me inside the trailer, but so far, it's only been outside. A photo hasn't been possible- it's much quicker than I am!

Not counting October because of R&R and a conference at the end of the month, there are only Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, and March remaining. The holidays will be different. I'm glad I'll get to play Christmas music while I'm here.

Here's one donation of music that I received. The granddaughter of a late organist in Springfield, Missouri, donated this music to her church in Huntsville, and their organist in Huntsville sent it to me! It's an honor to use these precious pages here. Talk about comforting!

Speaking of playing, the opening hymn for the Catholic service didn't go very well the first Sunday I played for them. Remember the "infynite" for "infinite" as sung by the Brits? Well, there wasn't much singing. When prior to the Sunday service, we determined the key was too high for the Priest to sing comfortably. I assured him I would use the transposition button on the keyboard to bring the hymn down two notches for ease of singing. We tried it out and it worked just fine.

So when it came time to make the quick switch between the prelude and the first hymn, I transposed alright, but in the wrong direction. Eeeeeek. I was singing along, but it felt like the opening of the movie "The African Queen" where Katharine Hepburn is playing a little pump organ in her brother's church in East Africa and the natives are singing without pronouncing the words of the hymn. Then Humphrey Bogart enters.

Great movie.

Anyway, the Priest was very gracious, thanking me for playing, but I was embarrassed needless to say.

So last Sunday, I was careful to move it down and not up. Wow. You should have heard them singing! It was wonderful. Very full sound of mostly male voices. They only sing two verses of "Holy God We Praise Thy Name." It's the only hymn they sing every Sunday at the opening of the service. I wish they would sing more verses!

More funny observations:

One of my favorite signs on this post is "Do Not Enter, Hazardous Bladder Area." It strikes me funny. I don't know what we would do without these huge inflatable containers for gallons and gallons of liquids that support the FOB (Forward Operating Base).

Here's a typical Iraqi chair. It looks more comfortable than it is. When you sit in it, it's hard as a rock. I called it the "Flintstone" chair.

I always meant to send this photo from Victory Base. I love this lamp. I never saw it at night, so I don't know if it works. Such a nice change.

In the dining facility one day, a very round and short little Army Captain brushed by me at the salad bar saying, "I'm JUST SO BORED WITH ALL THE FOOD HERE!" Her weight program would have benefitted from staying at the salad bar and making something interesting!

Comforting sights and sounds:

On the way to the shower this morning, I saw a friendly site. Some of the soldiers were waiting to take off in their early morning convoy and one threw a nice football pass to another. They could have been in anyone's back yard or school football field. Just relaxed and passing the time. Nice.

I was in a vehicle yesterday, driving to get my vehicle from the monthly maintenance appointment. The driver turned on a blinker. That right turn signal was such a nice, familiar sound. Funny how that is.

On one of my site visits, the Camp had roads named after football teams. When I saw this one, I had my picture taken with it for my Mom (who is an avid Ravens fan) and my Baltimore family of friends.

Great photo of my Mom laughing – it's one of my favorite photos of her. Thanks to my Aunt for catching her.

Here is John and his Mother on her 89th birthday weekend!

Here is my mother again and her step-mother – who is 95. Wow.

Here's John and the "guys" - my silly little collection of gnomes in the yard are always so cheery. John gathered them up and took a "self timed" photo. I love this photo!

The Senior Chaplain and his Chaplain Assistant work in a Chapel situated on a small lake. As the weather is cooling, they've organized water activities for troop relaxation. I'd never seen remotely controlled boats like this. Note the name of the yellow boat "High Speed" Pun intended?

This is our set of Jingle Bells on the back of my door. They provide a friendly sound when I come in or out. Note the card I put up to remind me to take my weapon. It makes people here laugh. I've gotten all the way to the dining facility without it – not even missing it…. Until I get there. The sign helps me make fewer trips back to start over. Even with the sign, I still forget sometimes…

..( Early Alzheimer's?)!

This was one of the first photos that John sent me after I arrived here. He attended a Volunteer Luncheon at Redstone Arsenal and ran into a friend of ours. Look how they happened to dress alike. Neither knew the other would be there. Paul, who was instrumental in convincing me to get a website for my part-time business, Wish You Were Here, Inc. is now The Honorable Mayor Paul Finley of Madison, Alabama, next door to Huntsville.

Sunset mid-Sep 09 – words cannot describe this.

Next issue – all about our River Cruise!

Warmest regards,

Cheryl

Deployment Update