One thing left to say....

Suprisingly my time here in the 'Stan has gone by quite quickly.... 15 months, and honestly it feels a bit as if I had just arrived yesterday.


All in all I've learned a few things while I've been here. Kandahar will always be dusty and will smell from the waste-water plant the ingenious Corp of Engineers put UPWIND of the base... Kabul is actually a very nice city at certain parts of the year and doesn't look half as depressing covered in snow... and real men can wear Superman PJ's, or at least our local Afghani guards can. I think everyone would have laughed if I could have gotten a picture of that one.


I can't say I'll really miss this place, though I would like to visit in say, 15 years once the reconstruction is done.... but I will say that I'll miss some of the people. I followed a couple of great friends whom I've worked with for 5+ years here... and gained new ones along the way.

It is said that all things must come to and end.... And I have one thing left to say:

21/Twenty One/XXI

It's not often we really take a look at numbers in general, but I want to share with you a special number. 21. So, why 21? Well let my list tell you the ways..

• Blackjack (aka 21) - The point of the game is to get or get close to 21 without going over and beat the dealer
• 21 Gun Salute - ceremonial military honor performed when 21 rounds are fired from a battery of artillery pieces
• 21 - the number of spots on a standard cubical die (1+2+3+4+5+6)
• Port 21 - Standard TCP/IP port for FTP connection
• Pier 21 - (not to be confused w/ the Port) the "Gateway to Canada" for immigration
• 21....Jump Street. Good ol' Johnny Depp.
• 21 - NASCAR driver Bill Elliot
• 21 - The atomic number of Scandium (rare earth mineral)
• 21st President - Chester A Arthur
• 21st Amendment - repealed the 18th Amednment (prohibition)
• 21 - Age to legally drink in the US
• 21 - Age to legally gamble in the US
• 21 - a drinking game.... a fun one at that.
• Twentyone - a TV quiz show in the 50's.... got busted for being rigged. heh.
• 21, the movie - "They proved the Vegas Blackjack System was beatable...by beating the hell out of it."
• Centry 21 Exposition - another name for the Seattle World's Fair on April 21, 1962

But, most importantly

• 21 days until I'm back home.....

Bleh

Well.

I'm back here in the 'Stan again. You wouldn't believe how difficult it was for me to get on the plane to head back this way. Leaving Sarah, the puppies, the house, the new bike...... high speed internet..... Gah it's a lot to give up. This time I think we both handled it a bit better, knowing that it was the last time we have to do this.... Next time Sarah sees me, it'll be me being home for good. Speaking of which, we've got right at 3 months before I'm out of this place and starting to work my way home. It's not too bad, it's the shortest of our spans of being apart which also makes it a bit easier to deal with.

The reason for the "Bleh" title is well, I'm feeling quite bleh. I called in today because I just wasn't feeling well at all. I took a couple of Nyquil and that knocked me out pretty good. Head's still stuffy but hopefully I should be good for work tomorrow.

Had a bit of a tough time with the license people in Huntsville... They sent a letter to the house stating that they had to have the bike down there to inspect it... Well, that's a bit difficult to do as I'm out here, Sarah doesn't have a license, and well, it's up on stands at the moment waiting for me to come home. So I called the license bureau, started describing my issue, then was put on hold for 25 minutes. I could hear the people joking and cutting up in the background... Needless to say that didn't make me a happy camper. So after 25 minutes of paying for the call on my own dime, being put on hold, and listening to the banter in the background, I called back. I did my best to be nice, but I made it clear that I was not to be put on hold a second time. A lady named Janice tried to help, and said that she made some notes on the file that the motorcycle would not be needed, all that would be needed is some documentation for Sarah to bring down (including the Power of Attorney) so that she could sign for me.

Sarah sent me some pictures of the pups! God they're getting so big... I can't wait to see them again. Apollo's weighing in at 14 pounds and Venus at 17. Sarah took them to the vet this past Friday for their follow-up puppy shots. They'll both be right at 5 1/2 months old when I get to see them next... Hope they remember me!

If you haven't read Sarah's blog, we've changed the venue of the wedding from Nashville to the Bellagio. This is going to make it much easier for us to deal with since everything is included in the package there... we don't worry about floral, photography, music... nothing. We show up and they take care of it all. It's a big stress relief. We've mentioned it to several folks and the responses we've got from our friends are all positive. "Great idea." "Oh, that makes it so easy!" "That's the right way to do it." Guess it's a good idea, what do you think? :)

Anyways, that's it for now.

Followed me home....

Yesterday was a pretty event-filled day, for a Saturday. It started off with picking up a few things around the house, taking the puppies out and having left over pizza for breakfast. Sarah and I had been talking about getting her fitted for a helmet for the past few days and decided to make a trip to KC Powersports (great showroom, sales personnel and atmosphere btw).
So we go out and about yesterday afternoon and make our way to KC's... We start off in the showroom and she immediately asks for me to show her a Hayabusa.... they don't have any in stock.... But I do show her a nice Katana 600 and she seems quite impressed by it and started to imagine herself on such a bike.... Before we get carried away we head into the accessories section and start looking for lids..... She spies a few, thinks the modular ones are cool, and starts trying a few on (while I hold her purse in as man-ly a way possible). I think that's when the bug bit....
After we tried on a few more helmets for her to get an idea of the size she was and which lids fit her best, we walked back into the showroom and stood beside the Katanas again.... One of the sales reps came over, we talked price, MSF, and other random stuff... but ended up walking out the door (quickly to turn around as I had left my sunglasses on one of the helmet racks :yikes: )
So on our way to the shop and from we've seen bikes left and right, it was a beautiful sunny day out and everyone was enjoying the weather..... I asked what she thought of the helmets, the bikes, and the experience... She said she enjoyed it......... a few minutes later....

"Why don't we just go get that bike?" Which one?"The one you were looking at..."....Don't tempt me....."No....seriously.".....Woman you better not be playing.... Cause I know they have the one I want in a crate in the back...."No.... let's do it."

And it started.... I made a quick call to the shop in Fayetteville, yes, they still had it in stock... no penalty for early payoff of financing.... and then I said those words.... " Get her ready for me...... I'll be there in about an hour."

We dropped by the house, grabbed my helmet and let the puppies out in the yard for a few, and I was already getting butterflies...... I was about to finally have the bike I've been dreaming about since I first started riding..... With the necessary prep done (and puppies put away!) we started the trip to Fayetteville.
We showed up just before 4PM and they were working like mad to get her built out from the crate. The battery was on the charger and the bike still had foam on the exhaust, plastic on the seat when I first saw her..... and I got felt a tingle roll down my spine. There she was..... and I got a remark of approval from Sarah (and one of the dealership reps who hadn't seen the black/grey in person).
While we were there waiting on the bike to finish up and paperwork be drawn up and prepped, Sarah tried on a few more helmets and found one similar to that she was liking at KC's..... So we grabbed that and a tank protector.... I looked at the mesh jackets they had, but of course, nothing in size "HUGE!" for me..... luckily I did have my leather jacket in the car!

After a few more minutes of talking with the staff... asking about break in, PM cycle, and a few other basics.... it was time to get down to the paperwork..... Surprisingly there was less paperwork than I expected.... I signed for a lot more when I bought my truck! Frank (my sales rep) came in while I was finishing up and actually handed me the keys and informed me that it was ready and out front for me.
The butterflies immediately returned. Was this a dream? Was I just given the keys to my own dream machine? If it was, I definately didn't want to wake up. Sarah watched, listened, and waited while I finished the documentation.... then asked to see the keys...which she quickly turned and placed in her purse... she said I had been fidgiting with them too much... okay, fair enough... I was nervous.
Finally... it all came down to one last dotted line.... DONE! and DONE! The bike was now mine..... A walk out to the car to get my lid and jacket, then a walk over to the bike where Frank and the guy who built her out were there watching... a quick warning on how slick the tires are, a handshake, and a "Goodluck and come back to see us again!" and that was it.... Sarah was in her car leading and got ready to pull out of hte parking lot while I got the feel for the clutch, throttle, and breaks....and then we were off....

I was a bit nervous, it'd been a bit since I'd riden, but it all came back to me quickly. I took her very gently onto the pavement and then accellerated... .My GOD it felt good..... and I was shocked at how quickly the power came..... every bit I ever wanted, right there when ever I wanted it.... I got settled into position and just started crusing, Sarah in front of me. I had so missed being on two wheels...... but within about a mile I knew there was trouble. The sun was setting and guess who didn't have any gloves.... yeah... yours truely.
What was a beautiful day began to turn cold quickly..... But I was still fine, it wasn't TOO cold, yet. We made our way back home from Fayetteville, cruising along and when I felt a bit bolder (ie-no vehicles/LEO's around) I would sprint her up a bit.... I hit 90 without thinking about it.... Yes. she's that quick.
The trip home was mostly uneventful, other than the cold.... but we made it in decent time. When we pulled into the drive, Sarah got out of the car and came to me, just about as giddy as I was..... we talked about how the bike was acting, how she was surprised how quickly I had passed her (then I told her I was pushing 90), and let her feel how cold my hands were (and that's why you wear gear folks!). So with that done, I began backing the Hayabusa into the garage where she is sitting now.... 31 miles from the dealership home (32 on the bike!). All in all, I only have one complaint so far about the Hayabusa....

The speedometer is a bit difficult to read sometimes.... course I guess you'd expect that when they have to fit so many numbers in such a small space.

Almost There....

Well it's been a little bit since I last updated.

Sarah's moved into the house. We bought a HUGE TV, bedroom set, coffee table and end tables.... We're waiting on the couch and love seat till I get in....

Speaking of which. I'll be home in only a couple more days! I can't wait... it's been a long 6+ months and I can't wait to be home and see Sarah. Flying from here down to Dubai, meeting up with a co-worker who will be there at the same time with his girlfriend from the Philippines and probably having dinner with them before calling an early night. Waking up probably around 3:30 AM to then head to the airport to catch my flight home! It'll take me thru Amsterdam, then to Houston, then finally my last little jump, I'm considering the last a small jump considering the rest are intercontinental flights, to Huntsville, Alabama.

I've settled on Papa Johns pizza as my first meal back... followed the next day (after my optometrist appointment) on having Sonic. I've sure missed Sonic and their burgers, tatter-tots and fantastic drinks.... Can't wait. After that, Sarah and I have our first "date" together again on Saturday night. We're thinking Italian food (new restaurant she knows) and then a movie... I'm really looking forward to being able to spend time with her again.

We've been talking about the prospects of getting a puppy! We're pretty sure we want a yellow lab (okay, she wants a poodle, aint happening) and now we're just working on names..... that in and of itself is TOUGH! But we'll figure it out.

Sarah's been having a great time and been enjoying the new house, broadband internet (god I can't wait!) and digital HD TV. I'm really looking forward to being home and seeing our new home!!! I just don't know.... can I carry her over the threshold now or do I gotta wait till November???

It's Ours!

It's ours.... it's finally ours... Just got confirmation that the closing is finalized. She has keys... and a garage door opener!

Wow. It's a nice feeling.... We've got our own HOME!

Merry Christmas to everyone.... I just got my present... Granted it was a couple days late and Santa didn't hand-deliver it, but that's okay.

It's official....

#1 - It's officially winter here in Afghanistan, and yes, I've already hit someone with a snowball





#2 - Sarah and I are officially gonna be home owners! We got a house!

As you can tell Sarah and myself are quite excited! Here's a little info on our new home. Built in 2003, 1812 sqft, 4br 2ba, brick w/ a slab foundation. As you can see in the picture itself, there's plenty of trees on the property (one of my definite wants!). It's located to the North West of Huntsville and is about 15-20 mins from downtown, depending on how heavy your foot is. It's a nice new community, so even if I posted the address, unfortunately you still couldn't locate it... I'll post more pictures when I get home on R&R! I can't wait to step into our new home....

Otherwise nothing new has really been going on. Just work, sleep, snow, and home buying (wow I've learned a lot). It's kinda been stressful for Sarah since I haven't been in town to assist with the purchase, documentation, inspection and what not but we're working thru it. Now that we've got the house picked out, now we've gotta fill it! We've already settled on a nice sleigh bed bedroom set, couches (ish... still looking into it) and entertainment center stuff.

Work... well it's work. I'm scheduled to work on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Years. I guess that's a good thing seeing as how there's not much to do out in the 'Stan (as I call it) and it keeps me out of trouble (as Sarah would like it). Speaking of Sarah, I got a care/goodie package in recently including about 8 bags of random chocolate stuff.... Tons of different flavored chocolate Kisses and 3 Musketeers, and mint patties galore. I also received two Pom-Pom's (the guys here at work loved ribbing me about being a cheerleader), a shirt and a fleece jacket as Alabama swag... oh, and a nifty keyring and glowing snow globe too. I received another package the next day (which was quite light in weight and comments were made that it was my cheerleader costume to match my Pom-Poms)... but much to my surprise it's these lil' stuffed animals Sarah sent that make grunts er whatever when you squeeze them... So now I have a funny looking Penguin and Frog adorning my wall-locker in my room. Thanks babe. :)

But I must get back to work....

Thanksgiving

Well today is Thanksgiving. I got a call early this morning from Sarah, singing "Happy Thanksgiving to You" to the tune of Happy Birthday. It was quite cute and put a smile on my face. We finally got a chance to talk for a few minutes today before she sat down for dinner... It's been pretty tough lately for her and I being so far apart with the holidays coming up. Lots of emotions flowing... But at least she has the promise that I'll actually be there next year. 9 1/2 months to go till I'm back state-side.

Everyone's finished getting moved into their rooms so I'm now able to finally sleep thru the day w/o being disturbed with the noise of folks moving about. Most everyone seems to be happy with the renovations, however there are some folks you just can't please.....

The conference in Qatar went off a lot better than it was seeming as it would. Several people had issues w/ visas and other entry requirements, so many had to cancel. But overall there was much healthy discussion and information dissemination. Plus it helps I got a chance to catch up with Danny and Mike from Kandahar... it really was nice to see them again.

I learned how to break down an AK-47 the other day. Always a useful bit of knowledge. A few days ago I was sitting at the safe house and one of the guards was doing PM's on the weapons so I went out and watched him disassemble, clean, then reassemble the weapons... I watched, but didn't get to touch (touching a weapon = possible/probable termination). The AK-47 is a pretty simple weapon, much like the SKS, with a very simple design. The parts (well depending on the country it's from) tend to be decent quality and easy to manufacture which goes to show one of the reasons that the AK-47 is one of the most widely used guns in the world.

But anyways....

Happy Thanksgiving to all....
-David

Frosty....

Hello All....

Well it's getting quite nippy here in Afghanistan. We just had our first frost a couple of nights ago... Odd because the Weather Channel site said we only hit 41°F... So yes, you can definately feel winter coming on here in Kabul.

Good news. I'm moved(more like, moving) back into Moon House after several weeks of being displaced due to renovations. I've got a private room now with a locking door, quite nice. The major construction was finished two days ago, but there's small projects still left. They just finished hanging the curtains in some rooms and put in one of the water heaters. There's still a bit more to be done, but it's almost complete.

Even better news.... Sarah picked up her wedding dress today! I don't know exactly what it looks like, but supposedly it's somewhat sparkly and shows off her shoulders/arms so I'm figuring strapless/sleaveless... And well I think it's going to be white.... Though Sarah has threatned pink with purple polka-dots.

It's coming up on 1 yr to go for the wedding. I'm getting excited. I'm also getting excited about leave coming up... Can't wait to see Sarah again and hopefully this leave will be a little more relaxed than the last two... Not as much running around flying between different cities and states, however we (Sarah and I) will be quiet busy takign care of wedding stuff and working on buying a house.

Anyways, I'm off to Qatar for a conference this week... Hopefully I'll be able to update my blog a bit more frequently now that I'll be back in Moon House and will have internet connectivity once again....

Take care...
-David

Howdy

Update Time, Baby!

I do apologise for the delay in updating... Let's just say things have been busy... So, what's been so busy, let's go over a few of the key events that have happened in my life since my last post on June 14th

• Discovered Black PepperJack Doritos
• Visited Qatar for the first time (Qatar Airways is nice)
• Visited Germany for the first time (Lufthansia beats Delta, hands down)
• Visited my family
• Visited my beautiful Sarah
• Played a Nintendo Wii
• Visited a cathedral in Nashville TN
• Whitnessed someone jump out of an airplane
• I realised my love of small furry animals isn't always reciprocated by said small furry animals
• Spent a total of approxmately 61 hours in an airplane seat, and slightly less time in Airport Terminals
  

And most importantly...

• I asked Sarah to marry me (we have video!)
  

Quite a list, yes, i know, I do lead such an exciting life.... Let me tell you something, Black PepperJack Dorito's are addictive.... Think of it as crack in bag, yes, it's that good.

But anyways, I went on leave from Afghanistan in July for a quick two weeks in the states. Sarah flew in from kwajalein and we met in Houston, landing within about 7 hours of one another. God it was good to see her again. There was a long moetn of hugging and kissing, it felt great to have her in my arms again.

Once we got to the car, we started the 2 1/2 hour drive home. Dad was waiting on me with fresh yellowfin tuna coming off the grill. Now, I'm not a fish kinda guy, but you just can't pass up fresh yellowfin. It was great to see my family again. Chris flew in from Las Vegas, Scott and Beth drove down from Tulsa, and the parents flew in from Kwajalein a few days before Sarah. Even after flying for over 20 hours, and actually being awake for a lot longer than that..... we spent hours that evening catching up. It had been about 8 years since we had all been together as a family. The next morning I woke early, then went and woke my brother Chris up..... We took a quick trip to Hearne (god I missed driving my truck) and picked up donuts for the family. It was another great day spent with the family just catching up, sharing meals and sharin' some time on Scott's Nintendo Wii. We played Wii Sports mainly.... Baseball, Bowling, Tennis, and Boxing. It really was a great time.

After spending time in Texas with my family, Sarah and I went to Huntsville to see her family and friends. We had dinner with her best friend Donna, friend, and her parents at a place called the Jazz Factory. Sarah looked amazing that night. We had a short trip to Nashville to see her grandparents, and ended up seeing a church with this beautiful stained glass, it was quite breath taking. I got a chance to meet up with Greg and Jill Reese in their beautiful new home... and of course Sarah got a chance to goto her favorite day spa... To this day I'm still not sure if she was more looking forward to going to the day spa or seeing me on my return from Afghanistan- jury is still out on that one. ;)

After our trips to spend time with our respective families, we took some time to ourselves and flew up to Seattle. The Shearton took care of us, but all in all, the trip to Seattle had a lot of hiccups. The reservations we made for whale watching and the hot air balloon ride ended up "lost" so we had to juggle around our other plans to compensate for our misplaced reservations. The weather in Seattle turned out quite nice while we were there... We hit the zoo, where the small furry animals didn't want to pose for too many pictures. Our "whale watching" turned into a harbor cruise that started off an hour late, and the hot air ballon ride wound up being cancelled due to weather.... But I did get a few pictures of the skydivers that were out and about landing on a couple of dropzones nearby. Finally July 15th came.... Our 1 Year Anniverary. I had made reservations months before for dinner at the Space Needle (the moment I found out i had issues with reservations I called the Space Needle to make sure our reservations were confirmed, thank god they were!). We started off the day with room service, then the whale watching trip (which, turned out to just be a harbor cruise), then a quick run to Pike's Market where I bought Sarah a lovely boquet of flowers. Sarah then went to one of the salons nearby the hotel and had her hair styled. It seemed to be a rushed day, but slowed down that evening. We caught a taxi to the Space Needle and waited for our table to open up at the restraunt..... It was right then that disaster struck. The digital camera I just bought Sarah was no longer located in my pocket (the pockets in my suit's trousers were quite large and it slipped out without notice). I made a quick call to the cab company, and luckly the camera was returned (and I gave the cabbie a $20 tip for his honesty). So with the evening back on track, we went to the elevator and took it up to the restraunt. They took us to our table where a dozen roses were waiting for Sarah (she later hit me because she saw how expensive they were, but hey it's worth it because she liked them). Dinner continued on and went quite well as we rotated around the Space Needle. And so, the moment finally came after dessert... God. I was nervous... I had the waiter take a couple of pictures of us, then I asked him to take a quick video... Sarah seemed confused an said "Oh we don't need video!" And that's when i stood up, walked over and got on a knee. Yeah, sounds cheesey but ya know, I'm getting butterflies just thinking about that moment right now as I type these words. So I presented her with the ring that I had bought a few months before, and of course she said yes. I just embarassed her, but I didn't care. :) Turns out that the couple that was sitting across the asile from us were actually celebrating their 20th (or was it 30th?) anniversary. Sarah just looked so beautiful, so happy.... And, I got stuck carrying the roses the rest of the night. :) We went to the observation deck and i handed her my cell phone so she could call her family and my family to tell them the news. All I can do is sit here and smile as i remember that night.

So the next day we returned to Texas. We Spent an evening with my parents and the following day in New Braunfels at Schlitterbahn. My cousin Lyndon and his wife Amber met us at the park. We had a blast being shot uphill on the watercoasters. The weather turned cloudy and there was a slight drizzle, but that helped to keep the hot July temperature down. I stubbed my toe quite badly, but picking up two huge 64oz mugs made up for it. Afterwards, we follow Lyn and Amber back to their place and stayed the night in their guestroom. I think Sarah absolutely loves their house (as do i!). We woke the next morning early and drove back to Calvert to take care of some laundry. Once done with that, we headed off to Houston for our last night before Sarah had to leave (i hate it when we have to leave each other). I took her to the Galleria where I think she absolutely fell in love with the mall... There are two Gallerias in Texas, one in Dallas and the other in Houson. The Dallas Galleria is four stories tall, where the Houston Galleria is only three, but has a much larger footprint. Some of her favorite "expensive" stores were there, but luckily we only bought something at Coach (a nice hand bag / purse for her). We did hit up the Apple store and got to play with an iPhone for a few minutes. We then had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory where Sarah got them to bring me out a dessert for my birthday (which, i forgot i was having a birthday soon [yeah wierd, i know]).

So then we went to the airport and I sent her on her way, and I made the drive back to Calvert with a quick stopover at Walmart to pick up my last bit of supplies before my return trip..... So I packed, got ready to go and had a short night's sleep. The next morning Dad drove me to Houston. A quick goodbye and "Take care of yourself" and I was on my way back to the Mid-East. I spent the night at Rudy's place, and then caught a flight back to Afghanistan... but my surprises for Sarah weren't quite over yet... FunMom did me a favor and put in a request to the AFN Roller on kwajalein to announce our engagement. Sarah was embarassed yet again, but got hundreds of compliments, well wishes, and comments on the ring (evidently I did well in my choice). I think I made her happy, which is great because she makes me happy.

So that was my trip. I came back a (soon to be!) spoken for man. Then I had my 25th birthday and supposedly my car insurance rates went down... We settled on a wedding date (after much debate) of November 15, 2008. It's been interesting so far... developing a guest list, finding catering and developing our budget. We're already looking at my next trip to see her, and it's looking like I'm relocating in Afghanistan up to Kabul. That about sums up what's been going on since my last post.... Have a great day.