Next stop: Hawaii!

Friends and family,
I have made it one step further. I am at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait now. I got here two days ago and have had a really relaxing time since. I got here a few days early because my travel wasn't delayed for dust storms (I had built in five days worth of "dust days" just in case I had as hard a time leaving Iraq as I had when I left for R&R). Since I have been here I have been working on my tan, my fitness, and am halfway through a book I started yesterday.

There is a pool here at Arifjan and for the last two days I have gone there to lay out (trying to get rid of the farmer's and sock tan) and swim. So far I have racked up 2000m, and this afternoon I plan to make it 3000. I also have been going to the gym quite a bit. Two-a-days aren't so bad, really. I have put in 12 miles thus far with my morning visits, but I wrap up my days with some heavy lift workouts in the evenings. I even had to go by some more mix for my twice daily protein shakes. I have never been a bulky guy with the chiseled physique, but I am doing what I can before I get home to Jenna. Gotta impress her, you know! When I came home from my last submarine deployment I had lost a lot of weight... but not the healthy way. I sacrificed many meal times in order to catch 30 extra minutes of sleep. Getting rest was a commodity that I will never take for granted again. Anyway, when she met me on the pier and hugged me she said that she could fit her arms around me. What a compliment! I didn't think I was that big really, but I did manage to put all the weight back on plus some before our wedding three months later.

Today I weighed in below 200lbs on the scales at the gym. That is the first time since 2002 that I haven't had to use the 200 notch on the scales! As crummy and long as a deployment to Iraq is, it sure wasn't lacking in its opportunity for one to get in shape. Going to the gym back at Speicher became my favorite past time... and here in Kuwait the gym is so much bigger and nicer that it is hard not to enjoy! The real jewel, though, is the pool. I love it!

Well, enough about me and my new daily routine. I am here in Kuwait getting ready to out-process from the Middle Eastern theatre with the Navy's Warrior Transition Program. (To be perfectly honest, the whole process is a little bit ridiculous for an intelligent individual with a sound body and mind, but it is designed for the least common denominator... and I understand why the Navy requires it.) In a few days I will begin the process by turning in my weapons and all my gear. Then, I will begin the Post-Deployment Health Assessment. Next, will be the mandatory sit-down talks with the Navy psychologists and counselors to make sure we haven't been traumatized by our experiences here. Finally, after five days, though, I will be able to get on a plane and begin the trip home. So until then I will do my best to start saying "aye aye" instead of "roger" and will have to start calling myself "lieutenant" instead of "captain." (Well, I only really did that for the Iraqis... it seemed like it would have been a waste of time to explain to them that I was in the Navy and not the Army and that I was a lieutenant and not a captain... all through the use of a mediocre translator.)

Well, that is all I have for now. Thank you so much for all your prayers and letters and packages! They really kept me connected with home. I hope you all are doing well and healthy. I really hope I don't come through all of this over here just to get home and catch the swine flu!

God bless,
Jonathan

Big dust devil!

On really hot days, it is not uncommon to see dozens of these all over the desert around us here on COB Speicher.

Speaking of which... the MIA Navy pilot whose remains were identified earlier this week were those of CAPT Michael Scott Speicher. He is the MIA service member that the Consolidated Operating Base I live on is named for. I am sure his family is appreciative for the closure.

I have a special request for those of you that follow my blog. Please keep the family of Captain Matt Freeman, USMC in your prayers. He was my classmate from the Naval Academy and perished in a plane crash in Afghanistan. He was engaged to be married, so please keep his parents and fiance in your prayers. Thank you!

God bless,
Jonathan

Last days in Iraq...

Pictures on the banks of the Tigris are my favorite. This was probably my last opportunity to do it, so I jumped up on the bank and had one of my soldiers take the picture. "Aloha, Iraq!"

I had this picture on my facebook page with the caption, "This is NOT the engineroom of a submarine!" One of my Army counterparts left the comment, "What tipped you off? Is it the sunlight blazing in through the windows or the fact that you can't hear the Village People playing in the background?" I told him it was the latter. "In the Navy... you can sail the Seven Seas!!"

This is the balcony from which Saddam would review the parades that would march thru his palace in Tikrit on his birthday. You might remember seeing photos of him on a balcony shooting a rifle. Well, this is that spot. I just had to take the picture.

I am holding the "1st Navy Jack" in this photo. It is the smaller flag that is flown on the bow of a U.S. Navy ship when the ship is moored in-port alongside the pier. Before 9/11 the Navy Jack was just the blue star field from the American flag. This flag, however, dates back to the American Revolution and hearkens back to the wartime Navy. I think that is why the Secretary of the Navy changed it. Anyway, I thought it wouldn't hurt to show a little Navy pride. Over here I so often think to myself, "What a unique experience I am having as a Naval Officer."

So I had to get in some pictures of me wearing the Auburn hat my brother sent me. When there aren't any senior officers around, I will wear it with my uniform. In this picture, I am standing on the roof of Saddam Hussein's birthday palace with my back to the outskirts of Tikrit and the Western (Al Jazeera) Desert.

The 3rd Battalion-7th Field Artillery Regiment had an awards ceremony on August 7th. Since I am leaving soon, the battalion commander went ahead and presented my end of tour award at the ceremony. He spoke to the whole battalion assembled about everything I had done to help 3-7FA complete their mission here in Iraq. It was quite a moment... a very humbling experience. In contrast, my end of tour award onboard the USS HONOLULU was presented at a ceremony on the mess decks with only 1/3 of the crew there (the on-watch duty section). Shortly before that ceremony started, the Engineering Officer of the Watch called away an engineering casualty that required half the group to run back to the engineroom to respond. That left about 15 sailors there in the audience. It was such an anti-climactic end to my three years onboard the HONO. On Friday, though, there were nearly 400 soldiers assembled for this. Again, it was a very moving experience and poignant end to an amazing tour.

"TASK FORCE STEEL"
3rd Battalion-7th Field Artillery Regiment,
3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division