home...

1) Made it home Sunday afternoon...!

2) Final BULL WHIP anything...the video I mentioned previously...

Kuwait

I made it to Ali Al Salem Air Base here in Kuwait yesterday. My flight to Atlanta is scheduled to leave this evening. If all goes as planned, I should make it home early afternoon on Sunday.

View of Western Afghanistan from the window of the C-17.

Inside the C-17. Very comfortable flight. Glad it wasn't a C-130!

Going through briefings upon arrival at Ali Al Salem.

Signs and benches mark the outside waiting areas. Kuwait is the gateway for both Iraq and Afghanistan.

I thought this was interesting. The signs here signify the major bases in both theatres. Baghdad, Bagram, Kandahar, Balad, Al Asad...and Sharana?! Sharana is the base that my platoon established in 2004!

On another note...I was able to visit Sharana a couple of weeks ago. I will post pictures and the story later on...perhaps after my R&R leave.

The tents where I'm staying right now. Not too bad of living, except for the heat...115 degrees at sea level is quite a difference from Bagram (5,400 ft and 60-85 degrees).

**UPDATED** almost outta here...

As is the Army way, I am now in hurry up and wait mode. I'm manifested to get out of here, and could be gone in the next few hours. However, I'm ready to wait up to a day or two if need be...not that I have much of choice if that's the case.

I've missed quite a few 'holidays' lately, and figured I'd recognize them real quick. Happy Birthday Brynna (April 22nd), Mom (May 8th) and Grant (May 10th). Happy Mothers Day (May 8th) to all the Moms. Happy "nurses week" (last week) to Mom, Happy "Month of the Military Child" (April) to Grant and Brynna. And last but not least...Happy 8th Wedding Anniversary (today/May 12th) to Jessica. Sorry I missed yet another anniversary!

UPDATE: Jessica reminded me that Military Spouse's Appreciation Day was May 6th. So...Happy belated Military Spouse's Appreciation Day Jessica!!

BULL WHIP Part 14

I think I'm finally done with BULL WHIP. I went back and read through the posts, and believe it or not, there are still many things left to report. I'm running out of time before I go on leave, so I'm calling it quits on these posts. (I do have a 15 minute video ready to upload at a later date, but I'll have to wait until I have a fast enough internet connection).

Overall, the mission was very successful. I lost track of the exact numbers of weapons caches and insurgents that were removed from the Valley during the operation. More importantly, the Operation served it's purpose of gaining a "foothold" in the Galuch Valley, allowing follow-on stability and governance to follow. Thankfully, we accomplished this while sustaining no casualties.

TASK FORCE IRONMAN (1-133 IN) and multiple Afghan security forces continue to "hold" the ground in the Galuch as I write this. The establishment of the District Center and Police Headquarters in now underway. Power lines are being run through the Valley, and soon electricity will be offered for the first time...ever.

Only time will tell if it will be worth it. There are so many factors in play, it's impossible to forecast what the Galuch will look like in the upcoming months/years/decades. Will the indigenous people of the Galuch seize this opportunity? Will the Americans leave in 2011, 2014 or whatever their withdraw date is? Will the Taliban come back with a vengeance and fight for the precious staging area (which was highly coveted because it made possible many of their attacks on Bagram and throughout Kabul City) that they were so rudely removed from?

Who knows. All I do know is that my part of the job is done. For 6 weeks of my life I gave it every single ounce of effort I had, and that's all I can do. I am already many missions beyond the Galuch at this point. The true fate of the Galuch is really up to the indigenous population of the Valley...and I honestly have no idea how they will respond to such a precious opportunity. I suppose the same can be said for Afghanistan as a whole. Patience in the West is thin. Time is running out.

A digital "drawing" I did of the view from Magic Mountain. A sight I'll never forget.

update..

Just a few random notes to catch up on...

Leave. Finally....I'll signing out on leave here in a few days, and could be back in Iowa (for the first time since last July?!) as soon as this upcoming weekend. Dates are fluid, as getting out of Bagram isn't the easiest thing to do. From Bagram, I'll head to Kuwait...where again it's a bit of a crap shoot as to how long it takes to process on through. From Kuwait, it's on to Europe and then to Atlanta where I'll catch my connecting flight(s) into Des Moines.

Needless to say, the blog will be hit and miss from now until the first week of June. It just depends on internet access and what I have going on. I don't plan to update this while I'm at home.

Mail. With my pending leave and not much time remaining in this deployment after I return to Afghanistan, it's about time to cut off the mail. Thanks to everyone for all the boxes and letters over the past 10 months. I still have a stack of letters to respond to, I haven't forgot and will try to respond before I leave this week.

Promotion. I received some good news a couple of days ago...I have been selected for promotion to Major. I received my first choice for assignment, and am very pleased. My promotion packet was submitted today, and it now begins it's long process toward receiving "Federal Recognition." I should "pin-on" sometime this September. With the new rank comes a new job. I will be moving to the State Headquarters for my "drill weekends" starting this fall, a move that will tie in very nicely with my full time job, which remains unchanged. I am very blessed. If I could choose one full time and one drill weekend job to return to after this deployment, I wouldn't change a thing from what is now in place.

bin Laden.

Not sure I have much to say that hasn't already been said. Kudos to President Obama for making the right decisions on how to go about getting him. Conducting a raid as opposed to dropping numerous 2000lb bombs was a wise call, as we (the world) needed evidence that he is gone for good. We did not need some analyst's qualified opinion that we 'think' we got him.

I think that bin Laden's removal will have a greater effect on al Qaeda than some people are predicting. This effect should not be confused with what is going on currently in Afghanistan, where we are fighting Afghan/Pakistani Taliban, foreign mercenaries and other insurgent groups. al Qaeda fighters number less than 100 here...this War goes on despite the tremendous blow we have inflicted onto al Qaeda with bin Laden's killing.

Not sure what to think about the whole death photo controversy. If we're not showing it because we have concerns about the fallout on US Military over here...then I'm okay with that. However, if we're not showing it because of Muslim sensitivity or censorship, then I'm not okay with that.

Frankly, I'm a little confused that many people are suddenly concerned about the effects that the bin Laden photos could have on the military here...these same people brushed aside these concerns when they decided to release recently discovered photos of Abu Gharib abuse, which only inflamed our enemies over an issue that had long since been put to bed.

There was also the recent decision to reverse a long standing policy that banned the public from viewing flag draped coffins of US Military dead returning to Dover Air Force Base. This was done so at the risk of emboldening our enemies, while further deepening the resolve of the anti-war protesters and providing them with propaganda...speaking of which...whatever happened to them (anti-war protesters) anyway?

BULL WHIP Part 13

Finally, after 6 days it was time leave OP2 and head to the Shura location on the valley floor.

RED BULLS Command and Control section for BULL WHIP. SSG Bryant, SGT Smith, COL Corell, LtCol. Filler and Me.

Leaving the mountain was not without drama. COL Corell's own UH-60 Blackhawks were accidentally diverted...you can probably imagine how that went over with the boss. The RED BULLS back at Bagram diverted another set of aircraft to us...only we had an issue...they were CH-47 Chinooks. No one had even attempted to land a Chinook at OP2 during the week because the landing zone was so small...heck, even the UH-60's were having difficulties.

As you can see from the pic above and the video below...they found a way to make it happen. (In the video, I'm the third of six people to enter the Chinook) Video courtesy of the JTACs that stayed behind for an additional 4 days, and delivered the video to us later that week.

Future site of the Police Headquarters for the Galuch Valley, which is now under construction.

This was the tamest of any terrain in the entire valley...hence why they are building in this area.

Securing outside the Shura.

The only 'public' or 'commercial' style building in the valley is a clinic that was constructed by a humanitarian organization many years ago. It was the only site that was remotely feasible for holding the Shura.

BULL WHIP Part 12

Excuse me here for a second, but I have to set the stage on this a little bit...

Depending on who you speak to in the US Army, everyone has their opinion as to which units are the best within our ranks. I have served in both the 3rd Infantry Division and the 1st Infantry Division. They are both great units, with incredible histories that continue to be written. There are many other Divisions in the US Army that have distinguished themselves in their own way. However, in my personal opinion, the 101st Airborne Division is the best. I have always been fond of the unit. Their air assault capabilities are legendary, which gives them the advantage in my book. Again, just my personal opinion.

Now, depending on who you speak to in the US Army, everyone has their opinion on career paths. Everyone heads their differing directions after commissioning, depending on what they want to do in the Army and/or Life. It's no secret that the Infantry branch tends to breed many of the senior leaders in the Army. This is for many reasons, too numerous and controversial to list here.

Within each branch, their are several different staff paths you can take. The optimal career path, and by far most challenging (when not in Command) is Operations...which in the staff world is referred to as the "S3." The S3 position is usually the stepping stone toward the next level of command. It is busy, stressful and to quote my current boss...if you come out of it with any friends, you haven't done your job.

Understanding this backdrop, you can perhaps appreciate the honor that it was when the 101st AIRBORNE Commander (Major General Campbell/call sign EAGLE 06) and S3 (Colonel Woods/call sign EAGLE 03) came out to OP2 to visit with us about BULL WHIP. It was an interesting visit, and very memorable.

COL Corell awaiting EAGLE 06's arrival.

Dropping off EAGLE 03 & EAGLE 06.

From left to right, EAGLE 03, EAGLE 06 and COL Corell (RED BULLS 06). COL Corell briefed the 101st on our current operations in the Gaulch.

Everyone had their own maps...we were literally trying to get everyone on the same "sheet."

Pic of me taken by a public affairs combat cameraman. I wasn't quite sure what to do, so I got out of the way for the initial part of the brief.

RED BULLS 06, EAGLE 06 and EAGLE 03.

Soon after this picture was taken, EAGLE 06 and RED BULLS 06 wandered off to discuss Command topics. That left COL Woods (EAGLE 03) and myself. COL Woods looked at me and said, "Get over here Vandy, time for a couple of old S3's to talk." (Wasn't aware that I was an 'old' S3, however I was beginning to feel like one after the planning of BULL WHIP).

COL Woods spread his map out over the rocks, looked over toward the two Commanders, then said in a hushed voice, "Everyone knows those guys only do what we come up with, so lets figure the next few weeks out while we have time." The next 20 minutes were fascinating blur, and a moment I'll probably never forget. Not to be overly dramatic...but the opportunity to stand in enemy territory, pour over a map and have a REAL discussion about current and future operations with EAGLE 03 was not lost on me. It was also reassuring to hear the 101st's true opinion of how BULL WHIP was going...they were extremely pleased.

Fog poured in while they were at OP2...and I was really hoping they wouldn't get stuck up there with us. It was an honor to have them stop by, but you can only keep a General occupied for so long.

Of all times for locals with their goats to wander into the perimeter...

EAGLE 06 & EAGLE 03 departure from OP2.

BULL WHIP Part 11

One of the constraints that made our operations in the Galuch Valley so challenging is it's isolation. The Galuch is incredibly tough to access, and has only one trail that leads in and out (hence, why we conducted an air assault operation as opposed to a much safer ground assault).

Resupply of our forces quickly became a concern due to the isolation, and there were some very interesting and abstract ideas discussed as to how we could resupply our forces. We decided on multiple resupply methods, one of which is called "Low Cost Low Altitude" (LCLA) resupply. It's a fairly simple process. Supplies are 'rigged' at an air base, attached to a parachute, and then dropped out the back of a C-130 by a specially trained crew.

One of the advantages of this method is that if the drop misses the mark, you can simply call in another drop and not worry about recovering items that may be difficult to get to, since they are considered expendable. We had some very interesting drops. Due to terrain, some that landed within a couple 100 feet were abandoned, while others hit their mark. We even witnessed one that 'burned' in, in which the chute failed to deploy. I must say that MREs and water explode quite nicely when dropped from over a thousand feet in the air.

C-130 deploying 2 LCLA resupply packages.

This photo was taken just as the drop on the left side of the picture was impacting the ground...unfortunately for us, it landed on top of a grave in a cemetery...oops.

C-130 Hercules

Sisyphus Understands Part 3

Planning Quotes:

• "Time flies when you don’t know what you are doing!" Planner.
• "I’ll know what I want when I see it!" Planner's Boss.
• "When the bosses talk about improving productivity, they are never talking about themselves." Planner.
• "A pat on the back is only a few centimeters from a kick in the butt." Planner.
• "You are always doing something marginal when the boss drops by your desk." Planner.
• "You can brief anything you want if you look serious and carry a laser pointer." Planner.
• "If at first you don’t succeed, try again. Then quit. No use being a fool about it." Planner.
• "Everything can be filed under “miscellaneous.” Planner.
• "If you are good, you will be assigned all the work. If you are really good, you will get out of it." Planner.
• "If it wasn’t for the last minute, nothing would get done." Planner.
• "When you don’t know what to do, walk fast and look worried." Planner.
• "When confronted by a difficult problem, you can solve it more easily be reducing it to the question, “How would the Rambo handle this?" Planner.
• "The last person that quit or was fired will be held responsible for everything that goes wrong." Planner.
• "Hope is not a course of action... We lived by it" Planner.
• "A dime dropped is a dime well spent." Planner.
• "I’m sorry if I ever gave you the impression your input would have any effect on my decision for the outcome of this plan!" Planner's Boss.
• "The facts are meaningless. Just make the graphics look right!" Planner's Boss.
• "We are going to continue having these meetings everyday until I find out why no work is getting done." Planner's Boss.
• "I didn’t say it was your fault. I said I was going to blame it on you." Planner's Boss.
• "The beatings will continue until morale improves" Planner's Boss.
• "We passed over a lot of good people to get the ones we wanted." Planner's Boss.

Proverbs 21:15

"When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers."

hmmm...

Let me get this straight. If I talk about military operations or equipment here at Bagram, my punishment is banishment from...

The congested traffic, ever present dust, rocks that twist my ankles, landmines, deafening roar of fighter planes, mud puddles that breed malaria, cold "non-potable" water in the showers, warm shelf stable milk, stench of burning trash, reflective belts, contractors, 107MM rockets courtesy of 'rocket man', plastic silverware/paper plates at every meal, electrocution hazards, and constant air pollution so thick that it makes the mountains appear fuzzy?