Still in Al Udeid

It is early Friday and staying up to try and get back on a normal day night cycle since I am wide awake right now in spite of only getting about a total of 8 hours of sleep since last Saturday night. Since this will be my last night in Al Udeid I worked more on my blog; this is when I put in most of the pictures of Montana and family. It actually feels sort of pleasant compared to the 115 during the day. Our PT gear has built in reflective material so it made a nice nice shot.

Here as well as multiple places there are memorials to individual. This is for the individual that this camp is named after; right next to it is one for the MIA's.

By early dawn it was still cool enough so that I took a run/walk around the camp perimeter.

Although not active, the multiple guard towers are a reminder of activities during the past active part of the current Iraqi War (excuse me...Overseas Contigentcy Operation)

Certainly makes it hard to run off in the wrong direction.

About 4:30 and sunrise.

Already getting warm and another hot, damn hot day.

Why our sanitation facilities are called Cadillacs, no one could tell me, but they are nice!

Big and clean and lots of them but not too busy at 5AM.

SEE!

Now after jogging, having breakfast, working out, lifting weights it is only 9 AM and getting board so started taking pictures of the ground. Basically the ground it the very top of a limestone slab several thousand feet thick so everything is limestone dust and ruble.

If not big pieces, then it is crushed limestone, everywhere.

The only place that is not either concrete or crushed limestone was on the volley ball court which was no doubt imported sand. What a stark contrast and very abstract in a photo. In the desert and no actual sand.

OK, time to adjust, adapt and improvise. Not enough room on the flight for all our "chalk" A "chalk" is a group of individual that are to go to the same place at the same time. I think that the term "chalk" may have referred to a list on a chalk board. Although we all came on the really big bus (DC-10) only 30 of us are destined to go to Balad and the "4:10 to Yuma" only had room for 15. So my half of the "chalk" gets to fly out on the 4:10 AM to Yuma. As it turned out we had to check out of our "hotels" at 0030, and muster at the PAX terminal at 0200 and go through custums to get out. The "bus" (a C-130) did not actually leave until 0600 with a stop en route at Al Asad. So much for sleep but at least finally on the way to Balad.