2:05 AM 25 Dec 07--My Hooch at Bagram Airfield

Blogger's Note: The following post was written the night I arrived in Afghanistan. It is one of a series of time-stamped posts that I'll be after-the-fact publishing to Army 2.0 over the next few days. I hope that the out of order dates are not too confusing.

Merry Christmas, everyone. I'm laying on the bed I'll sleep on for the next 10 months, inside the shelter I'll live in for the next 10 months, about 10-15 meters from the bunkers I'll take cover in for the next 10 months--but only if and when the nice people of Afghanistan decide that attacking Bagram Airfield is in their political or personal best interests.

Before I go on, I should mention that Bagram is pretty darn safe place. We're a smidge north of Kabul, far away from the hot spots in Afghanistan to the south and east. That said, there have been attacks here. I do carry a loaded weapon here. It is still a warzone, for whatever that's worth.

Back to the hooch--I have my own little compartment here inside a larger structure that sleeps 4 of us, all told. My portion is about 7' x 7'. Not bad at all, especially after I spruce it up a bit.

I've been told that we're nestled inside some beautiful mountains, but as we arrived in the middle of the night (11:07 PM, to be exact) I haven't had the chance to see them yet.

The flight from Kuwait was 4 hours long and uneventful. I strained my eyes to keep reading The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen, and I did my daily brain exercises on my Nintendo DS.

I'm basically free to get settled from now until about 3 or 4 pm tomorrow. I don't know what's going down then, but it promises to be an orientation of one kind or another.

For now, I need to get to sleep. This might not get posted until some days after Christmas, but all the same--merry Christmas, and a happy new year to all.

Sad to be away from my family and wife, but in good spirits all the same,

Andrew