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Random Thoughts 4-June-2006
I think they get larger everyday
I watched lacrosse on AFN during breakfast yesterday. It looks like a fun sport—very fast paced and very physical. However, my first reaction was that the players resemble a bunch of helmet-clad entomologists on crack trying to capture insects in their nets.
I have determined that chow hall workers are not always responding to your verbal declaration of what food you desire, but merely measuring the volume of sound you produce when their tongs are near each item. For instance, I once asked for peas on top of my mashed potatoes while I was getting gravy on my steak. Guess who got gravy on their mashed potatoes too. It was, after all, my mistake for trying to stretch the lad beyond his abilities. Because of this I have instated a program to teach vocabulary to the chow hall workers. When ordering my items I do not point, but merely say what I want. They will usually point at something and look to me for approval. If it’s correct, good to go. If not, I repeat “No, ____†and they try again. I don’t point anymore. Somebody has to do it, because they’re obviously not studying their food service vocabulary with flashcards in their off-time. When I studied Arabic I could memorize 20 vocabulary words in about an hour. That’s really all we’re talking about here: vocabulary. Just a bunch of nouns linked by a few prepositions (on, in, etc). No verb tenses, no masculine/feminine agreement, no possessives…just nouns. I don’t think expecting them to know the names of the foods they serve is asking too much (especially since they work for an American company, KBR).
Artillery is loud! I can’t imagine how badly the sound hurts the Marine pulling the lanyard on the gun. We are easily ½ mile from the closest gun and they can rock our world, even inside our workspace. A split second after I hear the boom a percussion wave of air moves our plywood wall inward a fraction of an inch. It’s interesting that one can differentiate the sounds of regular projectiles and illumination rounds.
Today the high was 112 F. The forecast calls for 116F by the end of the week. My one and only perk to working midnight to noon is avoiding the heat of the day. There’s a 2 hour period from about 0500-0700 when the sunlight begins to light the sky but hasn’t made it hot yet. I try to PT during this time. The heat is also taking its toll on mechanical equipment. Generators, air conditioner, and radiators have all required repairs in the last week because of it.
As I waited on another Marine near the Chaplain’s Oasis I decided to step into the shade and take off my blouse to cool down. It was unforgivingly hot outside. After I did so I sat in a chair, put my feet up, and glanced at the thermometer on the wall. It read 102 F, in the shade, where I had just declared a safe haven from the heat. I happily sat there for about 20 minutes. It felt cool compared to direct sunlight.
I recently received a care package from the Student Activities organization at Mira Costa Community College. It included several pairs of socks that have turned out to be incredible. They must be some type of fabric blend, because they are ultra-comfortable and don’t retain heat too badly. Thanks!
I am unsubscribing from my RSS feed from Yahoo News: Iraq. The stories it posts are so incredibly anti-war slanted that I just can’t take it anymore. I would expect this from CNN, but I thought Yahoo might be different. I suppose not. On a related note…
I have also discovered a large leftward slant to Time magazine. After reading a multitude of semi-biased articles the coffin was nailed shut when they proclaimed Ted Kennedy one of America’s ten best senators. It is also sad that in their recent article profiling 100 of the world’s most influential people they subtitled GWB’s entry as “Salvaging an Administration.†I also thought it snide that they treated Condoleezza Rice objectively until the last couple lines where they threw in their jabs.
I would love to check the exact wording of the Time articles quoted in the above thought, but my Time magazine has disappeared. Perhaps I shouldn’t bring magazines to work until I’m ready for them to walk away. If I see someone touch my Scientific American magazine I’m going to stab them in the hand with my roller-ball pen.
That heat must be unbearable. I would not wander far from AC. 94 days and counting.
Be SAFE & COOL