175 Days Later...

Almost there! Looking back on my deployment, I can hardly believe that I've been here for six months. Of course, it never felt like it would come to an end throughout the entire deployment. I can't wait to get home and see Betony and the boys again. I'd be lying if I said that I haven't imagined what my homecoming would be like. This 6-month deployment has been much harder on me than my 24-month mission to Chile, mostly because I was able to immerse myself into the mission and forget about concerns back at home. That's not possible now that I have a family of my own.

What's new, you ask? Well, I really don't have any news to share. I don't have a plane ticket yet. I don't even know if I'll make my scheduled flight out of here because there isn't much wiggle room for any bad weather that may delay air traffic. (I know, I know... that sounds pessimistic, but I've had to deal with this stuff for the past several months and it's very unrelenting.) Still, I'm doing my best to remain upbeat. Some days are better than others. Some days I don't even want to get out of bed, much less go to work. I haven't had a day off since I've been here. I was having a rough time a couple days ago so I decided to listen to a little James Brown. If you're ever in a bad mood, just play "Get Up Offa That Thing" and you'll feel much better! The lyrics alone inspire a better mood: "Get up offa that thing and dance until you feel better. Get up offa that thing and try to release that pressure!" On to the photos!...

The first four pictures are over the Fallujah area.
The river you see there is the Euphrates River.




What? You thought there wouldn't
be any pictures of weather?




Since this will be my last post from Iraq...