Made the move up North last night. It was an interesting trip. Right now I'm chilling on a camp thats part of the huge base complex around Baghdad International Airport (BIAP). In about 29 hours I get on a helicopter that will take me to another base north of the city for my final phase of counterinsurgency training, which will last about a week.

A reminder, you can read about the trip and my recent firefighting exploits at:

http://stavag.blogspot.com

For those of you who have been asking, I got confirmation that I'll be staying where I thought I would be, at least for the time being. My mailing address is:

CPT Brendan Meara
43/11 MiTT
FOB Loyalty
APO AE 09313

I really don't need anything. We've been in this country for almost 6 years now, so I can pretty much get just about anything I could want. You can't walk 5 feet around here without tripping over free gatorade, soda and snacks. Toiletries, lotions, sunscreen, etc. are all in ready supply. That being said, home-baked things are always welcome. Anything with love and care in it, or anything that can take me back home for a minute is greatly appreciated. I got one of those random care packages that are made for noone in particular, and one thing I really liked in it was a card that a kid had made in crayon, and a little hanging-paper thingy some little girl had made that had a pretty picture on the front and a prayer verse on the back. That shit is cute. I read like a mofo and can't keep enough interesting reading material around, even if its mindless magazines and the like. Keep in mind that any package recieved is instantly shared with the other members of the team.

Also keep in mind I wont be there for another 10 days or so.

I also just want to put this out here now: I'm not looking for anything or trying to solicit thanks and sympathies (but maybe cookies) out of anyone. I'm just trying to stay connected to my family that is VS. So all the "thanks for what you do's" and "stay safes" and "good bless our troops" are all well and good and appreciated, but I got it. Thank you. The number one thing you guys can do for me is keep doing what you do and make this guild great. VS is a place I can go and live vicariously through you guys and get away from where I am for a little while.

Oh, and last thing- the internet here is pretty fast. When I finally get settled on my FOB, if its as good as it is here, I *might* just be able to pop into the game once in a while. We'll see...

Sweet!

Hope to see you online soon Bren!

Thanks for checking in, Bren!! /hug

I'm not... trying to solicit... anyone...

Lies!
He tried to get me to shave his balls... it was in vent... it happened...

The he hid in my house wearing this outfit!

What outfit? I just see a wall and a plug.


Is he in the vent?

What outfit? I just see a wall and a plug.


Is he in the vent?


Exactly!

That being said, home-baked things are always welcome.

You just pick something out of this and I'll make it for you and ship it right away. Let me know how many servings you want. I cater so I have a lot of experience.

:)

http://www.lulu.com/content/4956212

Wow, you sure you will be able to produce enough to feed an entire battalion? That is a lot of work. Do you have a partner for your business?

Just checking in- I'm still alive, depsite the massive amount of patrolling we've been doing downtown. The Iraqi provincial elections are this weekend, so its been a little a hairy, but after that we should be able to take a breath. I've barely had any time to myself to post online, but I got a good solid chunk in tonight and uploaded a backlog of journal entries and a lot of good pics.

The internet here where I've settled in is quite fast, but my computer took a dump and I'll have to find time to fix it before i can try WoW, but there is hope.

Did you drop it on one of your road trips?

Great to hear from you Bren!

Bren, I am currently formulating a list of items that I shall be sending you in a care package very soon. Are you all settled into your final location? i.e. can I send you stuff to the address above?

That being said, home-baked things are always welcome. Anything with love and care in it, or anything that can take me back home for a minute is greatly appreciated.



So what you're saying is, you want me to knit you one of these.

He better be in a place to get stuff, I sent him a shitload of cookies!

Yes you can send things to the above address. Please no semen-bakery. Transit time for mail from america is usually no more than 10 days to get to FOB Loyalty. I go there twice a week at least and they drop mail to us once a week.

So what you're saying is, you want me to knit you one of these.


"Adult Content Notice
The content that you are about to view could contain adult concepts which may not be suitable for minors. To continue, you must confirm that you are at least 14 years of age. "


14? Really?

14? Really?

I thought this was really funny also!

Hey guys... I found a cool website with some tips on shipping packages.

http://www.troopcarepackage.com/shipping.html

I also found another site that lists restrictions on what you can send.

http://www.oconus.com/Common/zip.asp?09313

And apparently I read somewhere that they spot check packages that are sent to ensure they are in compliance. But I don't know how many they check. I'm crossing my fingers they don't pick mine to open!!

I told you not to send me the pork chops!

Francis would like me to ship you a few hairballs our Roomba sucked out of the carpet but I told him that you would not appreciate it. Cats are so full of themselves.

Here is a good example of what I have to deal with on a daily basis.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=0a3_1233765334

This example is a little extreme, and most of us have the good sense NOT to say all this, but we are sure thinking it.

Here is a good example of what I have to deal with on a daily basis.


I think that shit needs to be said. Great vid, thanks Brendar. Be safe over there!

Be safe over there!

I second this. I'm really looking forward to you coming back in one piece and hanging out again.

It was so nice to talk to you last night, Bren!! Hopefully we'll see you a bit more online. :)

Washington Post article today that so far has created quite a stink. We were executing a raid as part of a pretty large operation today and the commander had to hold off for about half an hour to answer to his brigade commander about this story. Was some amusing traffic on the tactical net.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2009/02/27/ST2009022703164.html?sid=ST2009022703164

The troops featured are from B/5-73 CAV, which is the unit I'm attached to (and my good friend Andy Rohrer commands). The article is generally positive, but license was taken in the interpretation of what the troopers were doing there. I assure you that we don't go there simply to have a good time. It should also be noted that the reporter did not interview any of the American soldiers about what they were doing there.

You should also take note that while Abu Nawas street is generally pretty safe, I spent most of last night and all day today a mere 500m north of there in the Al Fadhil district in a decidedly more 'kinetic' (as the Army likes to term it) operation.