I just wanted to let you know that Steve Johnson (ibuzzard) is leaving his '59 F250 with Charlie Burns and I to install a new engine so he can have a good reliable ride when He gets back from Iraq in a year.  That's right He is going to the "Hot" place to work for a full year. He will be leaving tomorrow (Feb 1st) and I know He is a little nervous, so let's keep him in our prayers. I know He plans on keeping in touch with us through this site, so I will be posting the progress we make on his truck from time to time.

Steve, Good luck and God Bless!

Hi,all.I've finally found the internet cafe open again,so a quick note.We work 13 hours per day,from 6 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.All my meals are eaten on the clock,but are usually taken to go and eaten on the run.We try to take extra food for our TCN's(third country nationals) whose wages,conditions,food are far below us.We live in luxury by comparison.For example last night they served,among other things,steak and lobster.This morn,steak and eggs for breakfast.Today,the crew,in honor of my birthday,is letting me buy THEM,pizza from the Pizza Hut.We do have some U.S. vendors,like Taco Bell,Pizza Hut,Green Beans Coffee Shop,Popeye's Fried Chicken ,etc..
Some days,it's crystal clear,with blue skies,other days dust/sand hangs in the air like fog.Some people get ill from it,since it contains strains of bacteria that the non natives aren't immune to.The following are temp averages:Feb-70's:March-80's:May-90's: June-100's :July-110's.Doesn't drop back into the 90's again till November.At least the humidity is low!It will sometimes approach 130 in the hottest part of the year.The Nigerians here,some of whom I am currently sharing a tent ,like to keep the tent heat at 76 degrees since they sleep without sheets or blankets.We Caucasians roast ,so there are constant thermostat wars at night.As an electrician,I know where the circuit breaker to the heater/AC is,so I'll win that battle every time...Well,lunch hour is about up,gotta get back to work..See you all sometime,Steve/Alan

Stay safe . You are  in our prayers ,along with all the other Brothers ,& Sisters  from around the world doing their duty .

Lon

One of the challenges here is the language(s) barrier.People from many different countries live on a military base,armed forces and civilians alike.A sort of "pigeon English",along with vocabularies of other languages is commonly used to make things work.I've learned a few words

Term Language Meaning


"Jeldy,Jeldy!" Hindi "Faster,Faster!"


"Too much
giddy-giddy" ? "Too much jabbering!"

"Go chop-chop" Hindi "Go eat" or "Let's go eat"


"No Ali Babba!" ? "No Stealing"


"You Ali Babba,
I keel you!" ? self explanatory


"Dilly-dilly! Hindi "Quick,,quick!"


I do work with Indian subcontract workers daily,I supervise them carefully .Many are almost child,with very short attention spans.They can also be very loyal.Frankly,their lives here are not too good.Usually of the lower castes,they work for one contractor from United Arab Emirates,and are treated poorly:No telephone contact with families,no computers,no TV or movies,etc.Their diet is the same at all meals:curry chicken and rice.We have the power to improve their situations,simply by bringing them food.For two meals per day,when I go to the dining facility(DFAC)the first thing I do,before eating myself,is stuff as much food as I can into two styrofoam boxes,for my crew,Some are vegetarian,some not,but they all love sodas,milk,juices,and I load them up.They really appreciate it,and some even want to work for me,because they know I'll take care of them.Officially,this is against rules,but most tradesmen bring their guys something.Although many of the
guys feel they should be happy with whatever their given,I ask them what they like/dislike.
We have to be escorted when working in any CHU, or containerized housing unit.The security here is provided by Ugandan forces,among the best trained in Africa.I know some of them on a more informal basis.A few days ago,I met Felix,27,a dairy farmer with about 60 of his own cows that he keeps on his parents' farm of 200 acres.He has 10 hired hands who hand -milk his cows.The market for his milk is Kampala,Uganda's capitol,but with so much competition,the income pays his workers wages,and only a little more,so he provides for his wife and three children by serving in Iraq,nearly two years now.
One of my guys,known to me by his last name of Patel,becuase I can't pronounce his first name,is 40,a father of two-and was married at age 10.He recently celebrated his 30th wedding anniversary here in Iraq,unable to contact his wife.
Everyone here has a story,many quite interesting,and I love finding out what brought people here.

It still amazes me what people can indure and how little most of the US population understands of the 3rd world.  Many who have been to Cabo, Cancun, or other resorts around the world think they know what is going on.  It is in the ineterior that the real world exists.  They should go to Monclova, Coahuila, Mexico a manufacturing and steel  producing city of 300,000 just 2.5 hours from the US border.  See how the middle class there lives and the air polution.  I know my exposure to the interior of the Phillippine Islands, Japan, Hong Kong, Kowloon etc was an eye opener and conversations with ship mates who had been to the Eastern Med were much more realistic after visiting those countries.  I have supported oil and gas operations in Ecuador, Gabon and Angola as well as service tasks for mines in Mauratania, India and China.  Discussions with the boots on the ground in those activities further reinforced my understanding of the resiliance of human kind as well as his cruelty. 

People are the same, they want better for their family.  It is capitalism that elevated the West and will be the tool of change for all of the world.  I will get off my soap box now.

Salute!

TC

Steve.....Thanks for the job you're doing.Isn't it strange how much places and people in the world differ from what we are fed by the media.Same deal as S.E.Asia in '65.

Mike

Frank, you may be hearing from Steve or his wife soon. He wants one of your aluminum timing covers on this engine. 

The Iraqi Crud

That's the common name for the local respiratory ailment most everyone gets from time to time here.It's caused by the dust that's almost always hanging in the air,and makes the sky almost constantly brown.There have been few days when I can see blue skies,but when I do,my day is great.
I live in a tent,a big one,with maybe 12 guys.Most, I think, are night workers,or maybe their little sheet rooms are actually empty.I've only ever seen about four other guys.The floors are plywood,my little 8x8 pod has a bed,a locker,and a few cheap plastic drawers I bought.It's not as bad as it sounds,because I'm there only about eight hours per day,for sleeping only.This tent has got lights,heat and cold AC.It's enough.
The one constant is the dust.It's everywhere,coating you,your belongings,your membranes.Though I change my bedding about every four days-I was issued two sets of sheets and two pillow cases-each night,when I lift the covers to get into bed,a small cloud emanates from them.I taste it,I feel it,and,like being on a camping trip,you get used to it.Though I shower each night,if I take a towel to the outer edges of my ears in the morning,there is evidence of dust.
The Iraqi Crud has finally got me.I thought I was one of the few who seem unaffected by it,but I woke up a few days ago feeling like I'd maybe taken a tablespoon or two of sand at bedtime.At least I don't have the watery eyes, headache,or stomach ache that some people do.It's early days though,I've been told this amount of dust in the air is nothing.
Surprisingly,the long hours are now routine for me.I worked 94 hours last week,maybe a few less this week.I always know the date,but never really know what day of the week it is.It hardly matters.I'm up early,get a two hour block of time to myself,and start work by 6 a.m.Work is over by 7:30-8:00,I'm in bed by 8:30-9:00.My energy level is high,though I've cut my caffeine habit in half.Maybe it's because of the newness of everything.I sleep well.

Steven Alan Johnson

BFOOTER03 (3/17/2009)

---

Tim, Those pictures look similiar to my engine.   I'm sure he will be very happy to return and fire up the Y.  . 

Here's one that shows both yours and his. 

Yours is the one up front of course. 

A few days ago,myself and another electrician made a trip to another nearby base too obtain some materials.My friend,Steve Jackson had ,till recently,been at that particular camp.All the elite armed forces are there,and they essentially get whatever they want.On base there,are Navy Seals,Special Ops,,really the cream -of the -crop.Also present are many of the top intelligence agencies,even the FBI,CIA,top military planners,you name it.No speed limits there,while on other bases,we adhere,or are at least supposed to adhere to 10 kph.Those boys,shall I say,are a little high strung.They consider the run of the mill enlistees as "dorks".They look different,are tall, strong,and cut in a V shape.They're special and they know it.
We went to get some better electrical distribution gear that my friend knew was there.I just figured that everything here was of the lowest quality the mid-east had to offer,making that conclusion after only 6 weeks in-country,and having never left my own camp.I was mistaken.We requisitioned it,and the next day,though we got past the guards,the head of security for our contractor on that base gave us a heads-up that the
Site Manager,was,after that day,restricting Steve's access to the camp.Permanently.Seems he didn't like us requisitioning the"good stuff" he wanted to reserve for the VIP's.Security One would be able to turn his head for the time it would take us to load up and leave.
But Steve had other plans.First off,he suggested we take our lunch at their DEFAC,where we couldn't go ten feet without him being surrounded by friends who appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, to shake his hand,hug him,tell him how much they missed him.It was like accompanying a well loved celebrity.Indian subcontractors,among the lowest paid here and the real foot-soldiers ran to him.The Ugandan Security Forces,who,if you approach their check-points without being motioned forward,are authorized to use deadly force,also immediately lost their stern,sober visages,and broke into smiles when they recognized him in the vehicle with me.He was well acquainted with kitchen workers and department heads,soldiers and officers who,to a man,would cross a street,or a crowded cafeteria,to welcome him,and ask when he was coming back.
Also,unlike my camp,it's quiet.No 24 hour-a-day generators,no helicopter and airplane landings,no transport trucks,fuel trucks,military vehicles,nor chattering voices from around the world.Like being in a quiet suburb.I felt relaxed.
After eating,and before picking up our material,I got Steve's quick tour of the camp.That Dining Facility was in the Falcon Palace,which Sadaam Hussein had built for his mother,very close to his favorite palace,-I think one of eighteen he had built for himself.Steve sneeked me upstairs ,to explore a few different levels.I stood in the grand ballroom,under one of the worlds largest chandeliers.It's supposed to be turned into a basket ball court for our troops use.I stood in Mamma Hussein's bedroom,and looked out over a portion of the outskirts of Baghdad.Also,I walked the gutted remains of her personal bathroom,the solid gold plumbing fixtures,according to Steve,plundered by American soldiers.Now being remodeled,this palaces' glory is buried under the ever-present sand/dust that is constantly being deposited from above.In it's heyday,everything was spotless,marble floors,hand-carved wooden doors-no two alike-,and base relief plasterwork,kept spotless
by an army of servants. Lastly,we climbed three more flights of marble stairs to exit onto the palace roof.It's a large open patio,from where you can see everything for miles around,including Sadaam's nearby palace on a hill,farmers working their fields,and all the surrounding wetlands,man-made ,I think,by diverting water from the nearby Euphrates River.He had this done to create a vast hunting reserve on the palace grounds,and there are many stone hunting lodges for his and his guests' use.Many ducks,and coots,and other birds were visible through the reeds.
But that's not all that's there.Leaving,we drove by Saddam's palace,where I saw the buildings that housed his personal Elite Guard.,the lodgings of his top generals and advisers-mostly underground,and finally,Saddam's "Pleasure Houses" that he kept stocked with young virgins ,to use and dispose of as he and his sons saw fit.I saw from the truck,the room where he had his son-in-law brutally murdered.Maybe you remember the story.His daughter and her husband sort of fled the country,I believe in fear of her father for some reason.He convinced them to return,he loved and missed them,whereby when they did,he immediately had the son-in-law murdered in front of his own wife,beheaded I think.We didn't have time to see the cages that housed the lions which he fed some of his personal enemies to,all for entertainment purposes.From Saddam's palace,there is a tunnel,over two miles long and large enough to drive a car in,that leads to Baghdad International
Airport.
This was my first real taste of what is outside the camp walls behind which I live.Sometimes I'm driving my ATV/work vehicle down the road,and,behind the 20 foot tall razor-wire topped walls,and only a few feet away, is another world.

The FE in the back will be for my F350 project. 

Today,I called in sick,so to speak,a sort-of "Steven Beuhler's Day Off".I slept late,ate a leisurely breakfast,something I never get to do,dropped off my laundry,and headed over to Camp Victory,a mere 20 minute bus-ride away on the other side of Baghdad International Airport,and the place where I did my training when I first arrived.One of the U.K.electricians that I went through the training course is now an instructor,and I popped in talked shop with him for over an hour,and am now in a good coffee shop,doing what I took for granted just a few months ago-absolutely nothing.These days,I.never have the time to do nothing.
Mark Cunliffe,my class mate,who also,bunked next to me in our tent,is a master electrician,who after retiring from the British army five or so years ago,had been working as a superintendent for a firm near London.He was offered a job with KBR,and after asking his employer if he could come close to matching the offer,came returned to the middle-east,where he'd spent considerable time while in the military.During our training,the other U.K. electricians referred to him as "Buzz Lightyear",for his gung-ho military demeanor.Some meant it in in jest,others to mock,but there's no doubt he is right where he should be, teaching.He was originally slated to be at a remote prison for captured Iraqis in the southern part of the country,but the powers-that-be,thankfully, rescued him, and are putting his talents to better use.That would have been the equivalent of being exiled to Siberia.Between our grueling three-hour classes during training,he could "school" us
Yanks, in about ten minutes,on what we had just spent the previous session trying to grasp.
There have been,as many of you probably are aware of,some high-profile electrocutions, to both soldiers and civilians,here in theater.Some are possibly my employers' fault,some are not,but regardless,I'm here trying to make a difference,attempting,along with many others,to raise the bar in quality of installation and maintenance of the facilities on this base.Even if you don't agree with the mission,the people here need the support of all the folks at home,and the last thing they need is to worry about is whether or not it's safe to take a shower.
The installations that occurred early in this conflict were done haphazardly,with a "Get it done with what you have on hand" attitude,and that ,in a war zone.What they had on hand was plenty of cheap,untrained labor.Stuff was made to function,quickly,but the "temporary" became permanent,and much of it remains as originally installed - ,unsafe,not grounded,or at least not grounded properly.People have been killed or injured as a result.As originally installed,the work was SUPPOSED to have been installed to one of two Code standards,our National Electrical Code,and the British Standard.In fact,most was installed to a Third Code standard,the infamous Iraqi Code,a.k.a. No Code Standard Whatsoever.They apparently had no understanding of grounding/bonding,it's purpose, (To make the circuit-breaker trip quickly during a short circuit and save your hide),and,at any rate,"It is what it is ".What it is,is a mess.
Today,after reconnecting with Mark,he invited me to continue my training,and since I'm so close,I really want to do it.It would be a sort of continuing education class where I am trained to train others,on a monthly basis,as to theater-approved installation/repair methods,as well as the proper use of the specialized test equipment we utilize.He invited me to be in a "Train the Trainer"class.I'll be given a refresher course as well as some more advanced training,plus I'll be critiqued on how I teach others.I want to challenge myself,and go for it.Imagine,me a teacher!If it happens,I'll be the first to toss a spitball at myself.
I am so grateful to all who think of me,or pray for me and my family.In the tough economic times our country and our world are experiencing,I'm thankful God has given me a way to provide for my family.As I've said to some of you,what an emotional,joyous reunion when I get to see my family and friends again.I've crammed so much into this day,having getting up at 3:30,having a quick jog,and, after coffee in bed,went to the medic to get my medical slip to turn in.A sort of visit to the school nurse.I've been prescribed one day of bed rest,Yaa,right!It's still just mid-afternoon.There are a few books awaiting mt attention,and of course I need to taunt those unfortunate co-workers still on the job.Though I can't respond quickly to all your personal emails due to my poor keyboard skills,I rush to my computer three times per day to hopefully read yours.Keep 'em coming.


Steve

        Keep your chin up, and I'll work on your aluminum stuff.

                                  Frank

Just in case you are getting homesick for your pickup I thought you might enjoy a picture of it.

By the way, Jack is still a happy camper....

Hope you get back to your family soon...........

I keep getting packages addressed to you dropped at my house, it seems like Christmas but it's all for you.

Also did Dutchys PCV mod.

It's heating up here now,100 plus degrees for the last week,one day reaching 43 Celsius,or 109.4 Fahrenheit.I'm taking my lunch-a nice cold salad-in the cool of my tent.I just came from the Necessary Room.You know those usually repulsive plastic buildings we try to avoid.But not here.As I was taking care of business,a large diesel truck loudly plowed through the gravel to within feet of where I sat,and after a tug at the locked door of my little hiding spot,immediately proceeded to suck dry the adjacent unit,sanitize it from top to bottom,refill the paper holders,and waited patiently for me to finish up.And they repeat the procedure throughout the camp hundreds of times each day.There are very few real bathrooms,but Porta-Potties dot the landscape,usually in close proximity to the huge pallets of bottled water we all drink here.But these are so clean not even the most squeamish could protest,as each one is cleaned in a like manner at least a dozen times
per day.They really are cleaner than most peoples home bathrooms at any given time,and normally still wet from the most recent cleaning,and normally having full rolls of paper.I know some ladies may beg to differ,but that's my story and I'm sticking with it.Not literally.
Water is your Buddy.We're supposed to be drinking about 6 of the 1 liter bottle per day at this heat level,and by the hottest part of the year when the temperatures are in the 115-120 degree range every day,we're supposed to be drinking 10 to 12 bottles.Every third or fourth bottle needs to have a packet of Gatorade added.This water is too pure,having absolutely no mineral content,thanks to reverse osmosis,thus the need for adding electrolytes.It's made at a plant nearby,costs a lot to produce,strips your body of minerals at the quantity we're supposed to be drinking it,thus can cause kidney problems -stones I think.It goes right through you.
It's been about ten days since I began composing this update,Ive been very busy replacing failed circuit breakers,burnt air conditioner outlets,etc.,with our first warm spell.We hit a stretch of more than a week where temperatures exceeded 115 degrees,once hitting 121.Still,it's a dry heat,and it is cooling down at night,and if you get enough sleep and eat right,this is bearable.When July/August rolls around,it will be 120 every day,and won't cool down much at night.They say your skin feels on fire just walking out into it.Oh Joy!
Tammy recently sent me some great Pete's coffee,which is much better than what I can get here.Some of you are no doubt familiar with my, shall I say,extreme enjoyment(addiction) to good coffee.It all began during eighth grade,in the winter-time,walking to school through the cold and snow.Five miles,up-hill,each way,I swear it.I would arrive half frozen,and sneak into the teachers lounge,and get a cup of that delicious brew from an automatic vending machine for 10 cents.Now it's twelve dollar a pound Petes,or I roast my own beans.Tammy declined my offer of showing her how to roast so she could mail fresh beans to me weekly.And rightfully so...
What I can't get here,and would love to have,is real cream for my coffee,or at least real half and half.Please don't try to mail it to me. Worst case scenario,I use the powdered creamer.Who really knows what that stuff is.Only slightly better is what is known as long-life milk,which I get at the Defac,or Dining Facility.It tastes strange and unsatisfying on it's own.It's slightly less so when you mix an ounce of it in a fourteen ounce mug of coffee.Three times per morning.Any less than this and I can't shake my morning coma.Long life milk,the beverage that will out-live the cow that gave it.I think the label lists a half-life comparable to spent nuclear fuel.I'm going to work now...Steve,in Baghdad.

Goober says hey!