Field Trip

So I took a little trip this week with the Sergeant Major and another Captain. The picture to the left was my view of sunrise from the plane on the way there. We spent two days at a FOB (Forward Operating Base) which will triple in size over the next year due to the 'surge'. Our task was to coordinate with the Engineers there, incidentally a Reserve unit from Minnesota (including a guy from Fargo!)  This was likely my last duty as the 'Brigade Facilities Manager'.

The Sergeant Major and I make a pretty dynamic duo. He's the bull-dog that gets things done behind the scenes; I'm the friendly facilitator, planner, coordinator and briefer. He spent the majority of his career in Special Forces Aviation which explains why his motto is 'smarter, not harder'.  This is likely his last hurrah before retirement, when he plans to work part-time at a Harley dealership. He owns 3 Harleys; I have 3 mountain bikes. Despite all of our apparent differences we do share something important in common: our love for our wives. This weekend he told me their story, which was kind of odd to hear from such a gruff man who rarely shows emotion. Both of us met our wives days prior to our last deployment and, remarkably, both women waited for us to return (and sent cookies in the meantime!). As we tried to sleep on hard Army cots in a cold room he summed up exactly what I was thinking: "What I wouldn't give to be next to my wife in bed right now". Well said, Sergeant Major. May that day come soon enough.

Zum Geburtstag viel Glück!

To hear Jocelyn sing this yesterday, to the tune of Happy Birthday, was the highlight of my special day. I turned 29 this New Years Eve (called Silvester Nacht in German), even though most people think I still look 21; I'll take that as a compliment.

Is it boasting to say I have the best wife in the world? Many of you conspired to surprise me with a Birthday book full of memories and wisdom which I will always treasure. She spent weeks consolidating and scrapbooking all of this so that I would have a tangible reminder of your support and prayers through scripture and pictures. Thank you for those who contributed and especially to Mein Lieblings for the thoughtfulness and effort behind this project.

Of course I would rather be home with her, but we're making the best of things here. My Sergeant Major and Deputy Commander tricked me into a trip across the street to 'Green Beans' - the militarized Starbucks only in overseas countries - to buy a Birthday coffee. Then some of the folks in my office acquired a cake from the DFAC which we ate together after dinner. I really, truly enjoy the Soldiers I work with and will miss them immensely. Which leads to my other Birthday surprise. I found out last night that I will be changing positions/jobs. On the same base but in another unit with a different role and responsibilities. More about this later once I can fully comprehend the significance of this transition.

My one and only resolution for 2010? The same as Jocelyn's: Lord-willing I make it home safe, sound, and on time. 
Frohes Neues Jahr!

Christmas Mission

As promised, a quick recap of the special mission. First the pictures, then an explanation:

What you see above is the 6 hour process of loading a helicopter simulator into a C-5 Galaxy. Or, from a Soldier's perspective, 'like watching a python swallow a rabbit'. More specifically, we were tasked to help some civilian contractors move a Longbow Crew Trainer (for Apache Pilots) from here back to Texas. Because of its importance and price tag ($27M) it cannot travel through normal means. Because of its size, roughly two semi-trailers, it is only transportable by the largest plane in the Air Force Inventory. The trailers require a special forklift to build a special ramp so that a special truck can drive directly on the front of the C5. Even so, the setup affords only about 3 inches of clearance at most with zero tolerance for error. Fun, eh?

Somehow I became responsible for the whole operation, from requesting the aircraft 3 weeks ago to coordinating all the times, tools, and personnel required to load this ridiculous contraption. Unfortunately the first C5 arrived over a week ago but was unable to 'squat' down due to a mechanical issue so could not take the load; That's what happens with a nearly 40-year old aircraft. (I've actually flown Blackhawks even older than myself). When the big day came everything was ready and, though it wasn't pretty, we accomplished the mission. Again, not as exciting as an Air Assault but interesting learning something new and working with a diverse group of people towards a common goal. That's what the military is all about.

We worked through lunch but were done well before Christmas Dinner. Nope, no lefse or lutefisk but there was a watered-down version of Egg Nog and all the usual fixings. All in all, a Christmas to remember.

It was not a silent night...

Today after my 1600 meeting someone reminded us it was Christmas Eve so we should take a 'few hours' off. Tomorrow, Christmas morning, I will be on the flight line at 0530 for at least 5 hours for a special mission--more to follow later. But tonight, at least for a couple hours at the candlelight service it truly felt like Christmas.  I've never heard Christmas songs sung so strong and loud, definitely un-Lutheran like, yet necessary to overcome the constant noise from the aircraft on the runway. This short service may be the only source of hope for some and a lonely reminder of home for others. The Soldiers sang. The jets roared. It was glorious indeed. Reminded me of the first line from this Andrew Peterson song on his classic Christmas album:

It was not a silent night

There was blood on the ground

You could hear a woman cry

In the alleyways that night

On the streets of David's town

And the stable was not clean

And the cobblestones were cold

And little Mary full of grace

With the tears upon her face

Had no mother's hand to hold

It was a labor of pain

It was a cold sky above

But for the girl on the ground in the dark

With every beat of her beautiful heart

It was a labor of love

Jocelyn flew with Bella to spend a week with her parents in Texas, where they are enjoying the snow today! This will be my second Christmas overseas, and coincidentally my second without any of the white fluffy stuff (I can see it on the mountaintops however!) We will try to open presents together via Skype if the connection works, so at least we are able to see each other.

Back home the Hermans and Leopolds are undoubtedly cooking up a storm and celebrating together today. Our family has a few unique traditions which I would like to share with you.
Lefse: the magical Norwegian homemade potato flatbred and sugar/butter treat that both Grandmothers make to perfection.
Oyster Soup: Only the older generations actually eat the Oysters. The rest of us just drink the broth or smell out of curiosity.
Snow on the Mountain: A 13-layer Asian fusion combination that has become a tradition on the Herman side. The layers have a particular order and the dish is topped off with coconut. Simply wunderbar.
Walk through the Broomstick: Difficult to explain, but suffice to say I win the contest every year I'm there. I can usually do it in under 4 seconds. Kristin: 4.1 seconds. Dad? 3-5 minutes!
Talent Show: The children/grandchildren must sing/dance/play piano before opening gifts. 
Grandpa reading the Christmas story from Matthew: Priceless, a powerful reminder of why we celebrate Christ's birth.

Merry Christmas,
Mark

SITREP

This week, with the Holidays here, I want to give a quick SITuation REPort via a few articles I read recently:

1. Count this as my first victory. The barracks featured at the top of this article were finally finished last week, 6 months behind schedule, and our Soldiers are moving in to their temporary home. Yes, it is still crowded with six Soldiers per room but they have the luxury of indoor bathrooms (as opposed to the outhouses almost everyone else has to use.) The article itself also highlights many of the current projects I am involved in around the base. Unfortunately the future soccer field is not going to happen :-(
   
2. This article gave me a guilt trip. As Aviators we demand the best and usually get it. After all, do you want your pilots or maintainers sleeping in a hole in the ground? Then again maybe the Marines like it that way, though I highly doubt their Commandant lives like that. Most of these and other surge forces will go to southern Afghanistan. If it is estimated to cost $1 Million/year for every Soldier in Afghanistan you would think that figure would include some sort of tent or basic shelter. 
3. Now, on to the big stuff. An Air Force Colonel explains how their service has largely failed to support the fight in Afghanistan. Maybe they thought the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter were the answer? Impressive aircraft, but the Taliban could care less how fast a fighter flies or if it is stealth.
   
4. Lastly, this is a long one, how and why helicopters are the most important strategic air asset throughout the last three decades of conflicts and even more so today in a modernized counterinsurgency. 
   

Next time I'll write more about what Christmas is like so far from home. Hope all is well with you and yours.

Go Army, Sink Navy!

This is my annual, obligatory moment of enthusiasm for my Alma Mater's football team.  IF we win Army will be bowl-eligible for the first time since 1996. The chances of West Point winning are about the same as the ISAF to be out of Afghanistan by July 2011. That is not a political statement, merely reality. During my four years there the team won a total of 6 games, only once over Navy. Yet this is the only game that matters. 

The picture above is from the spirit video my roommate and I made in Iraq for our unit. We spent probably 2 hours on our backs chalking the 'GO ARMY' & 'BEAT NAVY' on the bottom of the Blackhawks. He roped me into the top gun pose with my Battalion Commander as he operated the camera. After that we ran to the helos and flew 30 minutes to the only major body of water in Iraq, lake Tar-Tar with two OH-58D Kiowa Warriors to stage the sinking of a (toy) Navy ship.  In the end it was all for naught as the video was submitted after the deadline so never made it to the big screen and, alas, my Hollywood dreams were over.

Copied here is my all-time favorite spirit video, made by some of my classmates and Rugby teammates. Unfortunately, this one was not approved by the Superintendent to play at halftime. Apparently he thought the Navy would be offended by our masculinity. Note: I do not endorse the family-friendliness of this you-tube.

If you want to watch (the first half until the game gets out of hand) it's on CBS at 2:30pm (ET). BEAT NAVY! 
p.s. Yes, Jocelyn is in the Navy, but will be the first to tell you who she roots for: GO ARMY!

Workin' on a Building...

So what is my purpose thus far? On the surface my duty title is the Deputy Brigade S4. In short, Logistics: Supply & Services, Transportation, Property, Accountability, Food Service, Budget, Ground Maintenance. I oversee 15 Soldiers to ensure that our units have the beans and bullets they need to fight this war. Believe it or not, every dollar is vetted through multiple levels of authority and every single piece of Army property that is lost or damaged demands a full investigation (which can result in losing a month's paycheck!) To give you an idea of what I deal with on a daily basis here are a couple quotes/comments recently overheard in our section. 
-From a First Sergeant: "Sir, my company needs ice cream and cupcakes to fly our missions." Really? I didn't know the Chinook came standard with a freezer and mini-bar.
-From our Colonel: "I want a life-size statue of Rocky" (the bulldog, our 3rd Infantry Division mascot designed by Walt Disney.) 'Sir, perhaps they have that on Amazon.com' is not the correct response. 

The above all occurs within the confines of a cushy chair. However, it is my goal to spend at least 1/2 of every day outside of the office, and my 2nd job allows me the flexibility and authority to do just that. I've also been tasked as the 'Facilities Manager' in charge of coordinating a massive movement of our operations to the other side of the base. Bagram is an Air Force base, thus the Army is normally treated like a 2nd class citizen even though we outnumber them and, arguably, our helicopters have a much greater combat impact than their jets and cargo planes. My job is to coordinate all these projects with the Air Force powers that be, Architects, US Army Corps of Engineers, and the Army itself. This involves almost daily meetings to discuss floor plans, electrical requirements, land approval, and safety requirements. In the past month I've learned the following:

• that hiring 15 local nationals for a week to dig a 3' trench is cheaper, if not faster, than renting a backhoe.
• the suitability of pre-cast concrete for construction in a seismic environment (two 5.0+ earthquakes so far)
• the noise produced by an F-15C at 95% after-burner on takeoff from 200m away (149dB)
• how to respectfully tell a room full of senior Air Force officers that it is idiotic to build a housing area for Army Aviators right next to the runway. (see stat above. Key words were "why don't you or your jet pilots live there?") I won that argument.
• that the HESCO barriers meant to protect us may in fact be full of mines and need to be moved (oops)
• if a building requires 4 months to build in America, take 2.5x that for a realistic estimate. 
• I've forgotten most of my West Point Systems Engineering knowledge but finally use it to my advantage.

So, this is my 'special' job in a nutshell. The command either trusts me or thinks I will do more good in this role than in a Blackhawk! Certainly not as exciting but fulfilling in a different way, especially if I can manage to get some of these projects completed in my tenure here. Praise God for keeping me occupied and safe so far.

That's all for now.