B10 Album

Heres the link to see Brian's photo album. Just click on the album and it should run through. Brian still needs to edit captions and rearrange some of the pix-its a work in progress...
Enjoy!

http://oneeyemay.myphotoalbum.com

Chrissy

B9 Promotion

I received word last yesterday that I will get promoted to E-6/Technical Sergeant or "Tech" Sgt for those who aren't in the military. Just wanted to pass the word along. Other than that, all is going as well as it can from an Iraqi prison. my on-line photo album is almost set up and once i organize my pix, i'll send out a message letting you know.

take care and i'll see you when i see you.

B8 from Steven

I sent the Turkish Mays AAFES gift certificates through the Internet for Christmas. It was really easy and secure; all you had to do was enter the amount, your CC (of course) and the mailing address. They said on the site it took a few weeks, and they add a service fee of about $5.00. Chrissy, I assume you guys received them and were able to redeem them ok, right?

Anyway, here's the website: www.aafes.com/docs/homefront.htm. Just click on the link at the top of the page. You can also order by phone by calling 1-877-770-4438.

B7 on Brian via Chrissy

I just wanted to let you all know that I spoke to Brian yesterday. He is doing well considering. He asked that I send his new email along to you: Brian.May@iraq.centcom.mil
I went ahead and asked about ideas for care packages, etc and he asked that no one send food. He said he eats 3 good meals and wishes not to keep food in his room due to a rodent issue- we all know how much Brian loves mice and rats...Anyway, he is still living out of a bag and is anxiously awaiting moving into his own room,probably some time today. He said the best thing would be AAFES gift cards so he could shop at the BX and help to make his room more comfortable (he would like to buy some rugs and a footlocker, etc). He will be staying in a renovated section of the prison. He will have his own cell so you can imagine it probably needs some work.Other items may come up once he gets a little more settled but he believes he took enough toiletries for his stay.He has been very busy at work and I believe he wishes for it to stay that way- it gives him something to do and passes the time. We all know he is a strong person and he sounded optimistic as he said "one week down". Keep him in your thoughts and prayers...
Chrissy

B6 Abu

i could probably write everyday about Iraq, but I won't because it's kinda monotanous... I get up early, take a shower in a portable shower, get dressed, head to chow, head to work and play with case files all day long. i am responsible for logging the case files into a database and organizing the files. that's pretty much my job. i move files all day long. it's late here and it shows that we have a lot of work. Abu Ghraib is a very primative location with great people assigned here. It's a small town and reminds me of B-boro. i've met a lot of folks and when i get the hang of my duties, i can continue to network. i can't tell you much about the units assigned here or where they're from, but we have all branches represented here except the coast guard. back to Abu. it's dirty. i live in an old jail cell and when i get to my permanent room, that's a former jail cell too. we all live in jail. dirt is everywhere. i was given a website to upload pix and i've been taking them. once i get an account, i'll send out the address.. we have a portable shower and one "hard shower" that is worse than a camp ground shower. no internal plumbing is available and we have port-a-pots everywhere.
this place gets attacked often, whether by mortar, rocket, or car bombs. casualtities do occur and we all kind of adjust to that. i've gained a new respect for the marines and army because even though i have it as bad as i do, those gusy are out there kickin in doors, in 100 + degree temps, putting their lives on the line. they're a hard group and are happy to get a hot meal. a group was on base the other day after a patrol and they looked rough, but they were smiling and friendly. i was telling one marine about my job and told him that we take care of the folks he catches. i sparked his interest and he was asking about how many prisoners are at Abu? how does the court system work and things like that. i thanked him for what he does and told him i'm just doing my part. there aren't many AF here and when folks see us they give us that look like, why on earth is the AF here???
sometimes i wonder the same thing.
more later. it's almost 0030 and back to work at 0800. it's a 7 day a week thing.

B5

things are OK here. have you heard anything about those goggles (the sun shields Brian wants)? we had a very bad sandstorm the other day and the wind has been constantly blowing. they'll come in handy. work is different, just learning the job. At Abu Ghraib, we start the court process for the insurgents. We touch EVERY case file that we're involved with, literally thousands of cases. history in the making. not the safest place in the world, but i go everywhere with my body armor on (we have to).

B4 Iraq

Just wanted to let you know that Brian has arrived in Iraq. He will be at Abu Ghraib Prison. He wrote "it's rather spartan" there, unfortunatley.Nothing he really needs at this point. He isn't really settled- just sleeping in a tent for now. Said by Friday he should be more settled. The traveling week has caught up with him and he is really just tired right now.
Keep him in your thoughts- I know you all will. This is the unit address where he will be:
MAGISTRATES CELL
C/O 306 MPB
APO AE 09342

FYI. Our local church and the church we visited in Atlanta last week are offering protective prayers and prayers for a safe and rapid return.

B3 QATAR

The BLOG won't work for me because my access will be limited to "unsecure" websites. They have firewalls set up in Qatar and I can't access my yahoo.com account. I'll try what I can in Iraq, but I don't know if they'll allow me to acess either. For the time being, my incirlik.af.mil account will be good and once i get in country I'll get my iraq email account. i know taylor is going to get more bracelets and they may have come in already.
more to follow. HOLY CRAP IS IT HOT IN QATAR!!!! it was like 100 degrees at 10 AM... i guess it's desert for a good reason. i'll take some pix of my surroundings later tonight.
b

OK b. your send em and I'll post em. Poppop

Congrats Ms. Grad

Lyndsay May will join the illustrious group of Daniel Boone grads on Thursday night, June 9th. Another outdoor ceremony and let's all hope it does not rain. This is likely the last grandchild to take that walk where grandma once served on the School Board. See you there?

Tom's Foot

I guess it is almost a month since Tom had his foot run over by the concrete mixer truck. His progress has been very slow in spite of the fact that the x-rays did not show damage. The other day they decided to x-ray again and felt they saw something. It was elected to do an MRI and that was done this AM. A couple hours later he got a call that informed him that there certainly was bone damage in the foot.

Girlfriend Vicky, a nurse, got a look at the plates and told Tom that most every bone in the foot had been fractured to some degree. He goes back in to the doctor on Monday and it looks like he is back a square 1. We assume a decision about the next steps (pardon the non-intended pun) will be made then. He has been dealing with a lot of pain and now finds his efforts to get it working again may have been futile.

B On the Move

Just want to pass on that I just received an email from Brian and he has landed safe in Qatar. He predicts he will just be hanging out there for a few days before his actual departure to Iraq. I will let you all know if I hear anything else.
Chrissy