"The Extracurriculars"

Little Luxuries at JBB

Surprisingly enough, I’ve been spending some of my leisure time playing tennis and working out at the pool. (Yes, they really do both exist here, but generally speaking JBB has more comforts than a typical deployment site.)

One night a week there is a tennis hit at one of the gyms. We use the gym floor, so the surface is a little slick. It is a small group, usually no more than six of us. Every time I go home for a visit I always play tennis with my dad. And he always wins. (Dad…stop gloating if you’re reading this.) Perhaps I’ll come back from the desert with a little more tennis savvy. 

And for the pool. It’s cold. The first night I showed up to swim, there was an alert and everyone had to get out and lie on the cold tile. I shiver just thinking about it, and was glad I hadn’t shown up five minutes earlier. Despite the chill, it has become embedded in my weekly routine. 

Proper Exit

I had the pleasure of being a fly on the wall for an event this week involving Wounded Warriors. Named Operation Proper Exit, this is a program of the Troops First Foundation, to bring soldiers, airman, marines and sailors back to theater sites where they were injured to help bring them closure from the incidents that occurred in theater. 

Each of them had the opportunity to describe what had happened, what care they received, and what they were doing now that they were retired from the military. One thing that I was happy to hear was that all of them spoke well of the care they received, the attention they were given by their unit, and the overwhelming support of people and organizations in the community.  Many also mentioned how much forward progress has been made in Iraq; and by returning to witness it, they knew their efforts were not in vain. 

Rain

I was overcome by an eerie feeling earlier this week, and realized it was due to lack of sunshine. For the first time since I arrived in November. The clouds overtook the sky and the wind stirred. After being spoiled by nearly perfect weather for the last month, the weather was ruining my mood!

And a new discovery I have made. Add rain to a desert environment and what do you get? MUD. And the rank smells of wet dust. Suddenly, we are finding cardboard boxes a very useful makeshift doormat.