I'll Be Home For Christmas.....

Happy Holidays Everyone!!

It is that time of year. A time for family and friends to get together, sing Christmas carols, drink egg nog, and try not to eat too many Christmas cookies or else your New Year’s resolution will be to drop the 15 pounds you gained during the holidays, again. I am so looking forward to being home for the holidays. Because it will go by so fast, I will have to enjoy every minute I have. Sleep will be an "option" during my leave I think.

I spoke with Sarah last night and she told me that she has all of the presents wrapped up and ready to go. Now she can relax and listen to her Christmas music and pet the cats, waiting for me to get home. I can't wait see her and her smiling face greet me at the airport and say..........”I'm happy your home because the cat boxes need cleaning and we need to run some errands.” Just kidding Sarah, I know you wouldn't say that, or would you??????

Well this week we moved out of the hanger and into a shed outside of it because they are remodeling the hanger for a month. They are redoing the electrical so the fire hazards are less, if you know what I mean. They are also repainting it so that we can be at war and look good doing it. It will have better lighting for working at night and they are spraying it with "New Hanger Smell" so that we won’t know it is our old hanger. Anyway, we had to move everything out of it so that was a task in itself. It took a couple of days, but now we are settled into our temporary office and back to work. I'm just glad I'm going on leave so I won’t be around much to work outside instead of the hanger. It does get chilly here at night but not like back home.

That’s it, no more news. My life is pretty dull wouldn’t you say? Eat, sleep, and work, every day. Good thing there is poker night tonight……YEA! I need some Mexico money!!!

Just to let you know, this will be my last post for a few weeks till I return to Iraq. Wish me safe travels and I'll wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Take care.

Dan

Feliz Navidad!!

Hola,

I'm brushing up in my Spanish for my trip....how am I doing? Well, to tell you the truth I only know how to say hello, where's the bathroom, and to order beer. That’s all I need to know. I am so looking forward to the trip that Sarah and I am taking. It will be nice to be a civilian again for a little bit. I won’t have to shower in the same place as 10 other guys. I won’t be eating my meals with a weapon by my side. Just little things like that.

I hope all of you have finished your Christmas shopping (or Hanukah or Kwanza). I had mine done a while ago as most of you loyal BLOG followers know. Now I get to just enjoy the season and all of the nice things about it. Thanks to the Shea Family, I now have a 12" tree and a stocking in my room. Sarah also sent me a Santa pillow that you see in the picture. Now all I need is snow and I'll get some of that when I get home on leave.

This week in Iraq has been uneventful which is good when you are in a war zone. I did treat myself to a new DVD, The third Pirates of the Caribbean movie. I saw it in the theaters and I liked it so I bought it. Jesse also is back from his leave. It was nice to have the room all to myself for 3 weeks but it is nice to have a buddy around to go and do things with. Like today we are going to the East side for dinner at the Turkish Cafe that is over there. There gyros are very good and I'm in the mood for one tonight. Jesse and I have a lot in common so it makes it easy to get along and hang out. Other than that, I wear ACU's every day, carry my weapon every day, and go to work every day........very exciting!!

Take care everyone and have a Happy Holidays,

Dan

P.S.) I almost forgot to say thank you for all of the care packages and letters I have received this week. It is like Christmas every time the mail person comes around and hands out the mail.

I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas

HO! HO! HO! Everyone

I am starting to get in to the Christmas spirit. I went and bought some Christmas music, a Santa hat (as you can see), and finished my shopping this week. Maybe I'm so in to the spirit because I'll be home soon, but whatever it is I do love this time of year. My friend Rick set up this picture and I thought it was a fun idea to do. To put us in the mood for the picture I was playing Jingle Bells and singing along. Be thankful that you can't hear my singing on this BLOG because it would put you out of the spirit........LOL. We had so much fun setting this up that other people wanted to take their picture with the machine gun. I felt like I was the photo guy at the mall with Santa, It was fun.

It rained here a couple of days ago. It was the kind of rain that had BIG drops but it didn't come down hard. I took a picture if it, so look down below to see what I am talking about. The next morning it smelled so nice outside. The rain knocked down all of the dust, dirt, and pollutants in the air so it smelled so nice out. It was the first time it rained here and it was a nice break from sunny all of the time. At the same time back home they got 4 to 6 inches of snow. Now I wish I was there for that. I always like the first snowfall of the year. It is so clean and the way it hangs on the trees is so pretty. Sarah was telling me all about it and I started to get those pictures in my head. I can't wait to get home on leave and see it with my own eyes. Only 2 weeks left for that to happen.......WooHoo!!!!

Well, today is my day off so I am going to go get a haircut and get a pedicure. Now I know what you are thinking, Dan's at war and he can't get a pedicure???? First off it's ok for a guy to get a pedicure, and second it is not like it is an Avada salon or something. It's a trailer by the PX that's a beauty salon for the girls on post but more guys go than girls. Go figure, there’s like 10 times more guys here than girls. It is so nice, they rub your feet while they do it. After wearing combat boots all day, every day it is a nice treat to give yourself.

As a reminder, I will not be here for Christmas so if you are planning on sending items to me either do it now or after Christmas. I do want to thank everyone that has sent items already. I share everything with my platoon so the guys that don't get much mail can have things also. You all are so nice and I can't thank you enough for your support. Without your support I couldn't do what I do over here.

I have rambled on enough so I will say chow for now. Have a great holiday season and I'll talk to you all next week.

Dan

A Chill Is In The Air

Did you have enough turkey?

I did. Even though it was turkey loaf, it was still turkey. Be sure to look down below to see pictures from the chow hall. They really decorated the place well but, it till wasn't home. I did get to talk to my parents and Sarah's family on Thanksgiving so that was nice to do. Too bad the leftovers will not keep till I get home on leave (I do love Sarah's Grandparents stuffing...mmmmmm).

Instead, our company had a cookout yesterday. There was steak, ribs and chicken a plenty. It got cool last night, around 50, so everyone hung around the grills to warm up. There was fake beer, or beer flavored pop as some of us call it, and some if the guys had a jam session in the hanger. The whole event lasted for about 4 hours and the music for 3 of the hours. So, with the live music, fake beer, and BBQ, it was a little bit of home here in Iraq. It was a needed escape from the norm. I will also post those pictures down below.

That's about it for the week that was. I'm looking forward to my leave coming up here and going on vacation with Sarah. The days are going by quickly and I'll be home in no time. Just to let you all know, When I am on leave I will not be posting to the BLOG for obvious reasons. But till then, stay tuned for the latest updates on the adventures of SGT Dan Zirbes!!!

Take care all and I'll talk to you later.

Dan

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Gobble, Gobble,

Thanksgiving is days away and I see the turkey loaf, canned stuffing, and instant potatoes at the chow hall coming my way. The weather here is in the 80's for highs so it doesn't feel like it is only4 days away. there is suppose to be a chill in the air and lots of holiday commercials on the TV. Sarah told me that it sleeted yesterday after the Vikings game, that’s what I'm talking about. Well, I do get to go on leave here in less than 4 weeks, so I get to see it then. Call me weird, but I do like winter. Also, all of my Christmas shopping is done and the last of it will be mailed to Sarah in a couple of days. The deadline for mailing items to make it before Christmas is December 10th so I am trying to beat the rush so to speak.

I was also quite busy this week at work. Now that we have been in country for 4 months, things are starting to break and that’s where I come in. Between my two guys and myself, we have done repairs on 5 different aircraft. They are all still flying if that was your next question. Come on now I'm not that bad at mechanics. I do have a manual to go by, so it helps. We also had a BBQ at the hanger last Monday. There was steak, chicken and lots of junk food to eat. We even had beer flavored pop (non-alcoholic beer). I put some of the pictures from that on my facebook page so if you want to check them out you are more than welcome to. It was a nice break from the norm.

Now I am starting to ramble on so that must mean that I am running out of things to say. I do want to say thank you again for all of the letters, cards, and packages I have received. I do try to respond to everyone that sends something but if I have missed you do know that I do appreciate it. Have a Happy Thanksgiving and shop till you drop this weekend.

Take Care

Dan

11 Days to "Black Friday"

 

Hello all and happy Veterans Day.

This week, I turned to my retail side and did the rest of my Christmas shopping. The post office here says that if we don't mail everything out by the 10th of December, that it will not get here for Christmas. It's not the same shopping here as back home as you may already know. It is still in the 80's and 90's for highs and the sun is always out and bright. It's hard to get into the spirit when I'm used to cold weather and running my store with bustling shoppers looking for that perfect gift to give someone. That's why I reference "Black Friday" in the title. Call me crazy but, it is one of my favorite days of the year. I loved seeing the lines of people to get into my store and the energy that my employees had because of the fast pace. One year, I couldn't sleep because I was so excited, just ask Sarah. Retail is in my blood, and in 11 days I'll be missing the most exciting day in retail. Well, I could always pull guard duty, that could be exciting!! (Don't worry Sarah, I wont do that)

Also, today is a day to remember all of the soldiers that have fought for our country and allow us to live in the freedom that we have today. Yesterday,some of the guys and I were saying "Hay, we are vets now, we can join the local VFW." And one of them said "That's why we go to war every 10 or 20 years, so that they can get younger members into the VFW.". We had a good laugh at that one. Seriously though, Being here, doing what the the Army has trained me to do, makes me think about everyone over here. All of us are needed here to fight the fight. Weather you are a cook, mechanic, pilot, or ground pounder----every job is important. On days when I am not so busy, I think about that and realize that even though I was not needed today, I am here for when they do need me to get a bird back up into the air to "Fight the Fight". I guess what I'm am trying to say is-----hug a Vet today, because all of us in the armed forces are here for you and to make sure America is safe and free for the next generation.

Off my soap box now. Time for........."Mug at War" update. The screening was this last week and it is better than I even thought. It made me laugh, It made me cry. It is an epic for our time. I believe that it is Oscar worthy. Right up there with, the Dirty Dozen and Platoon. I'll post another movie poster below. I hope all of you Cargillians are spreading  the word. Getting the buzz out around the office.

That's it for now. I'll leave you with this........"The early bird gets the worm but, the second mouse gets the cheese." Think about that and enjoy the rest of your week.

Dan

Is It November Aready?

Hello everybody and welcome.

First a word from our sponsor, The US Army.........

Ever want to see foreign lands? Be in warm climates? Carry an M-16 everywhere you go? Then the Army is for you!! Not only do you get all of those things, you also get...FREE clothing, food, and Living quarters at the base of their choice!! Be Army Strong!!.........Now back to the BLOG you were reading.

Sounds great.......maybe I'll join up and.....oh.....wait....I'm already in the Army. That’s why we all dress alike here. I get it now.......LOL.

This week went by quite quickly for me because I was busy most of the week with maintenance as you can see in the photo above. I do like keeping busy and learning as I go. I try to learn something new every day. The only problem with that is I probably forget something when I gain the new knowledge. One of these days I will learn a new thing and forget how to walk or something strange like that.

Sarah and I also booked our holiday trip.....to Mexico. I'm so excited. Fun in the sun without wearing my ACU's. Can you say Mai Tai? Then we will be back in time for Mark and Jill's wedding. That will be quite the event also. Can you say open bar? Well, I don’t know if it open bar but I won't care because we will be dancing and having fun at the reception with family and friends. So all of this is happening in December, then back here for the final 7 months of my deployment.

"Mug at War" Update........Still in editing because we (me and a friend are putting it together) keep coming up with new ideas and things but it should be done real soon. It will be out for the big holiday push. Oscar material if you ask me. Great acting and the mug is brilliant in the roll of "Mug" the Cargill mug. I'll put a preview picture down below so you can post it up around the house it preparation.

That’s all I have this week. In the coming weeks I'll get into my Christmas shopping and getting ready for leave so stay tuned........

Take care all and I'll talk to you all later.

Dan

BOO!

Happy Halloween!

Hope I didn't scare you all too bad but I wanted to get everybody in the spirit. Sarah sent me some decorations to hang up in the shop and everybody loves them. Halloween here in Iraq will be a little different. No trick-or-treaters but they are having a costume contest at the MWR for prizes. I don't know where people are getting costumes but I plan on going as a army guy. I know it will be a stretch for me but I bet I can pull it off. I always liked Halloween at home and handing out the candy to the kids. All of the different costumes are great to see. All I had was a football helmet and a Vikings shirt and voila, I was a football player (One of my moms favorite pictures of me as a kid). Now they look straight out of a movie with all of the stuff you can buy. It's cool. Just to let you know, you know you're a Minnesotan when you design a Halloween outfit to fit over a snowsuit. '91 Halloween blizzard comes to mind with that one.

Nothing else exciting has happened to me this week, which is good when you are in a war zone. Final editing is happening to the movie "Mug at War". It should be a blockbuster hit for the Christmas season. Ebert and Roper have given it "2 Thumbs Up". The Anaconda Times say that it is " one of the bet war films this month" and the paper Stars and Stripes go as far as saying "It doesn't stink that bad". When it is done, I'll have Sarah post it on the BLOG here so everyone can see it after the special viewing at Cargill happens.

Now I am taking this time to say some public congrats. Congrats to Rory for getting a gig at Marty's once a month. Everyone go on that Friday and support him in his karaoke show. Congrats to my boss at Eddie Bauer who is now my ex-boss because she is going to be a district director for Ann Taylor. Marilisa, you will do a great job and I want to than you publicly for the opportunity you gave me at EB. Good Luck to you. And a final congrats to Matt, my wife's cousin, for joining the Army. I am very proud of him and now we are brothers-in-arms in the Army. He is in basic as we speak, and then of to AIT to be a supply specialist. Way to go young man and the next time I'll see you, your hair will be as short as mine (hehe).

That's all I got this week. Everyone have a great Halloween and I'll talk with you all later

Dan

This One Time, At Anaconda.......

Well, another week has gone by and I'm one more week closer to coming home on leave. Sarah and I are planing to take a short trip when I come home so we can have time together, just the 2 of us. We don't know what to do so any suggestions would be nice. you can leave them here on the BLOG and that way people can see your ideas and maybe want to go where you suggested also.

Now on with our show..........This week our hero was quite busy at work. In fact, I guess you could say I was the most popular guy in the company for a couple of days. I had a lot of engine work between me and my other 2 guys. We were very efficient and got the work done fast and correctly, which is important when you are dealing with helicopters. One thing about what I do for the Army is that it all seems to break at the same time so ether we are not doing anything or everything breaks at the same time, like what happened this week. All in all, it was fun to work at such a up-tempo pace and also stick to all of the standards put in place for safety. Now it's back to waiting fr the next time it all breaks, which is a good think because that means that they are flying and completing their mission.

I have received quite abit of e-mail and letters/packages this week. I just want to say thank you all for your continuing support and that we would be nothing without all of you standing behind us back home. We have received treats for people supporting us on Anysoldier.com and also from our families. My step-mother, Kathryn, sent a whole box of cookies and they were gone by the next day (by the way Kathryn, the peanut butter w/recess pieces was a big hit). Other faves have been the Nutter Butters from Wendy, one of the wonderful people from Anysoldier, Ritz and Easy Cheese from Kathie, Anysoldier supporter, and the coffee that my wife's aunt Sharron sent us (We do love our coffee here). Thank you all again, and if I don't get back to you right away, don't worry, I will.

For all of you Cargillians out there that reed my little BLOG, I am working on my movie "Mug at War" and it should be in Sarah's pretty little hands by the beginning of next month. Production is about wrapped up and now it is on to editing. For those of you who don't know, I have a Cargill coffee mug that I take everywhere. Now he has gone off and done his part in fighting terrorism in the movie "Mug at War". It is good (I Hope), and if you want to see it when it is done I'll try to put it on You Tube or something after Sarah is done with it.

I have carried on long enough, time to get back to all of my e-mail/letters. For those of you who have received letters from me, sorry about my handwriting, I know it is like chicken-scratch but at least I give your eyes a workout trying to reed it.....lol. Everyone take care and I will post again next week.

Later

Dan

View From My Bed

Papa Got A Brand New Camara

I am the all and powerful OZ!!!!

OK, I'm not , but I am in the land of OZ ...... I mean Iraq.......where am I again?

Back to reality. Time for the weekly update in the life of.....SGT Zirbes, soldier to the stars. (Don't ask me why I'm so goofy today. It must be the air or something.) This week went by pretty fast. I had a class on the environment on Friday. It was all about how we can take care of all of our waste products and leave Iraq better than we found it. You don't realize how must waste people produce till you see it first hand. The people involved are doing a tremendous job with the recycling and removal of all of the waste from the base. I'm now in charge of our hazmat program to get us into specs. I'd tell you more but I'd have to kill you with a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick. Speaking of Chuck Norris. Did you know the helicopter was invented when he was observed doing 10 roundhouse kicks in a row and lifted off the ground. Bet you didn't know that. That is what I call a Chuck Norris Fact.

On to other things.......I want to say thank you for all of the mail and support from everyone. I signed up my platoon on anysoldier.com and the response has been tremendous. We get at least one "something" everyday. All of my troops love the treats and letters we get. The food doesn't last long with 15 guys eating it, that's for sure. So again I say thank you everybody.

Now I bet you are wondering why I named this one what I did. It's because my camera's LED screen cracked on it and I needed to buy a new camera. The old one served me well. I took around 1200 pictures with it and I only had It 10 months. I have my mothers camera bug I guess because I had to buy a new one right away so I don't miss a thing. It is a little nicer than my other one. It has more features and is smaller so I shouldn't break this one (I hope). The picture at the top of this I took with the new camera. I think it looks nice.

I've rambled on long enough. I'll let you get back to your lives for another week. I will have more misadventures of.....SGT Zirbes next week for you all.

Take care,

Dan

Poison ROCKS!

Hello all and welcome back

This week went by fast. That's a good thing because it meant that things are moving along and next thing I know, I'll be home. In a nutshell, I worked, went to the bazaar on my day off, and played cards on Saturday with some of my buddies. Oh , I forgot to mention, Bret Michales from Poison performed here on Friday!!!!! It ROCKED!!

I know what you are all thinking, Dan has It so good and he gets to go to concerts and do all of this fun stuff in Iraq, I wish I was him. It is tough being me but somebody has to do it. I went to the other side of the base to the theater with 4 other people and got to sit 4 rows back for the show. He performed for about 1 1/4 hours and had a "meet-and-greet" afterwords. He played some Poison Hits and some covers like "Sweet Home Alabama". All in all, it was cool that he came all this way to perform for us. I got to shake his hand and thank him for coming and he thanks us for our service. I was a big love fest and it was a fun night. The next day I was off balance all day because of the music being so loud. I had that feeling of car sickness most of the day but it was worth it.

I'll post some more pictures down below so be sure to check them out. I plan on updating on Mondays every week but do not hesitate to e-mail me if you want some one-on-one time with me. I am pretty good at responding so feel free to contact me thru e-mail. I also like regular mail, so if you want to go low tech you can do that also. You can get my address from me via e-mail or ask Sarah for it.

Everybody have a good week and I'll talk to you all later,

Dan

Thank You For Your Support

Howdy all, whats happening?

One more week down and closer to coming home. Time does go by faster here than when I was in Ft Sill. I guess its because I keep busy here with work and corresponding with all of the people that supports me and the rest of my unit. I have written more letters and cards than I have ever and I love doing it. My handwriting is not the best so I have done a few with the computer so I can use spell check and make it look good. Over all I just want to say thanks and I will try to respond to everyone s fast as I can if you send me a letter or care package (I do like care packages :-)). It is just amazing the support that we get for doing our job for our country. Thank you!!

Now the good stuff. This week I started my Christmas shopping for people back home. I am not going to tell you what I bought but the items I have bought are cool I think. I am trying to get it done early here because selection can be limited around the holiday time I have herd so I start now so there is a selection. My mother-in-law would be so proud of me. She starts shopping for the holidays the day after Christmas and we are never allowed in the part of the basement where she hides them. The one thing I don't have to do is hide them, I'm in Iraq.....Hello!!

I hope everyone has had a great week and I will post again next week with more from Iraq and the life of a man called Zirbes.

Till Later,

Dan

Here I am Again

I'm back and ready to BLOG again.

I want to thank Sarah for keeping everyone updated in my internet absence. As you all know I am an internet junky and I am so happy to have internet finally. Now down to the business of blogging.

I have been in country now for 1 month and the time has actually gone by fast. I work a 6 on 1 off 10 hour day schedule that keeps me busy most of the time. On my days off I have gone to the PX and to the Turkish Cafe here on post. It is more like a room that has a window that you order food from and it is Turkish food. It is better that a kick in the pants though. I have also decked out my room with fun lights that Sarah has sent me. I have beer mug, Hawaiian shirts, chili pepper, flip flop, margarita, and bobber lights lighting my room. It makes it a little more fun to be in. My roommate and I call it "Club J-Dan". People like to come over because it is cooler than their rooms. Well, as you can tell I have internet now and that was no fun to set up. You have to have a degree from MIT to figure it all out, but we got it up and running and now I can communicate with the world again. I missed all of you.

Now I have received some mail from some of you. I got a letter from my Grandma. She is so cute and I love hearing from her. She is not on the computer so she gets to read my crappy hand writing. That's ok though because I love writing her. I also got a letter from my Aunt Dee Dee, my Mother-in-Law Pat, and friend Christina. I do love mail call and seeing my name on the board. I have also received packages form my Parents and The Lions club in Mound. A co-worker of Sarah's, Jewel, gave them my name and they sent me a very nice box of treats and other items that I shared with the members of my platoon. It was cool to have other people take notice that I haven’t met but cared enough to send something.

I just want to say thank you for all of the support and prayers that I have received since I’ve been deployed. My step-mom Kathryn says that they say my name every Sunday at their church and that makes me feel good and at the same time I feel that they shouldn't make a big deal of it because I just doing what I signed up to do. Either way I'm glad that there is such great support of all of the troops including me. I'm just shy you know......NOT!

This is the most I've typed in a while and my fingers are getting tired so I will end it here. Monday is my reset day so I will use that day to update you on all of my news and happenings of the week. Take care and I will talk to all of you later.

Dan

Fun in the Sun?

Dan still doesn't have his own internet access. We've ordered the satellite dish and it's on its way from the UK to Dan. (Shipping was $700.00!!!) It should arrive any day now. We've talked almost every day on the phone. He likes to hear about what is happening back here. He has called his room there home a few times, and it makes me a little sad since home is back here with all of us, but really, what else can you call it when you're going to be there for at least a year?

He's gone shopping at the bazaar on post and bought a few movies. He's been shopping at the post exchange, and ordered a few things online. He's enjoyed having ice cream from Baskin and Robbins.

He says his bike ride to work is about 10 minutes. For security reasons, he can't talk about what he does each day, but there are lots of other things to chat about. My mom got a chance to talk to him over Labor Day weekend and she really enjoyed it. The connection was good and had fun asking him questions about life over there.

He has enjoyed getting mail from all of you, so keep sending him letters! Hopefully the next entry will be from Dan.

In The Army Now

Hello again! Dan asked me to update his blog for him. He's still working on getting reliable and steady internet access in Iraq.

Dan went to a bazaar while still in Kuwait and bought a few items from the approved vendors. He had a good time and saw lots of very unique items. He called and asked if I wanted a hookah pipe. I don't even know what that is!

He is doing well and now working each day. He had a little bicycle accident and flew over the handlebars, with full gear on, but he only scratched up his hands. I've mailed him a new pillow and fun string lights with beer mugs, chili peppers, and Hawaiian shirts on them. He wants to hang them outside his door.

Dan says that he keeps very hydrated. They have bottled water and Crystal Light available everywhere. He's also been getting his daily fix of coffee from Green Bean, a gourmet coffee house on post.

The time difference is nine hours so we talk mostly while I'm at work. It's kind of funny because I'm eating breakfast and he's on his way to dinner. He says the food is good.

I'll close for now and let Dan update everyone when he gets time.

Thanks again for all your support.

Who Is That Masked Man?

Hi all and welcome to my BLOG.

I haven't written lately because of all of the training we have been doing as well as getting ready to move north from Kuwait. We do get some time to ourselves to wonder around and check things out. As you see in the picture, we do have a couple of creature comforts from home like a Burger King, Subway, Starbucks, and Baskins Robbins (My personal fave). The army does try to make it more homey on FOB's, so that you may forget for a little while that a war is going on around you. I will be leaving to go north to Iraq soon and then I'll have my own place to call home with my roomy. I have my next post after I get settled in there and I should have better access to Internet also.

Again, I thank all of you for your support and Sarah thanks all of you for being there for her during this time. Take care and I will talk to you all later.

Dan

Now This Is What I Call HOT!!!

Hello again everyone. I hoped you enjoyed Sarah's guest writing on the last post. It is a little tougher to get on the Internet here in Kuwait and I asked Sarah to do it for me and she did a wonderful job. She is a little more wordy than me but, I like her that way.

Now for the update............IT IS HOTTTTTTTTTT! Did I tell you it is hot? Well it's hot like an oven hot. But it is a dry heat (LOL). I am getting used to it already so now I just have to deal with the sand and other great things about the middle east.

As you see in my picture, my living arrangements here are cramped but cozy for now. We are in big tents and mine has about 40 guys in it. As I said earlier, the Internet sucks but, at least I can get on. They do have some things like home here in Kuwait, like there is a Subway, Burger King, Steak Escape, and a Starbucks all on post. I will try to take pictures so you all can see what they look like. The mess hall food is a lot better than in Oklahoma. Tonight I had Steak and Shrimp and it tasted like Steak and Shrimp, AMAZING!

Well, it's getting late here so I will let you all go. I will update when I can until I get to Iraq and to my own Internet connection.

Take care everyone and I'll see you in the funny pages.

Dan

Off to the Sandbox

Hey Everyone! I'm writing for Dan since he's now left for Kuwait and then on to Iraq. His leave went by so fast. He came home on July 23 and both of us left for Fort Sill, OK on August 1. During the 8 days he was home, we attended my brother's wedding, which was a huge success, had a ginormous BBQ at our house for family and friends, (I think we had at least 50 people over), ate at all of our favorite places, and celebrated our anniversary early. We also had guests come and stay with us from Germany. There was so much to do!

When we arrived in Lawton, OK, we rented a car and drove to OK City to see the memorial. It was a very somber visit. The memorial has been done really tastefully and truly honors the victims and survivors of the blast. We weren't able to see the museum, but we both want to go back so we can go through it. It chonicles the timeline of the blast, the investigation, the arrests, and the trial. We just arrived too late to see it. If Dan demobolizes at Fort Sill, then we'll go back. Dan sat on a bench and reflected on the last few months. He said that "this is why I'm going to Iraq. It may have been here, but terrorism is terrorism." I'm sure it was a poignant moment for him.

We came back to Lawton for dinner. We had steaks at a local steakhouse. They were so yummy! During dinner we heard about the bridge collapse and we were in shock! What a tragedy. We then drove back to the base and sat in the parking lot for awhile to talk before Dan had to check in at 10:00.

August 2 was the ceremony. It was 20 minutes long, but it was worth it to be there. All the top brass from the MN National Guard was there. I got to meet other people that Dan is deploying with. The Hawaii Family Readiness Group was there and they gave candy leis to all the soliders. It was really nice. People from MN were discouraged from coming to Fort Sill, but there were many people there from Hawaii.

Dan left for lunch and then we met up afterward. We couldn't leave the base, but he showed me around. Fort Sill is like a city of it's own. It huge! They have their own post office, bowling alley, bar, movie theater, etc. It's not a bad place to be. The weather is the only downside. The dewpoints were very high and the temps were in the 90s. The heat index was around 100 everyday I was there. I can't imagine marching with an extra 40 lbs of weight on me in this weather. Yikes!

We had our last dinner together at the Burger King on post. It was quick, but nice to spend any time we could together. I dropped him off at the barracks after dinner so he could attend some meetings. I went back to the hotel. Dan called about an hour later and I drove back to post. We spent time talking in the car and ended back at the Burger King for some coffee and soda. It was good to just be near each other.

I dropped him off for the last time at his barracks and we said goodbye. There were just a few tears and I went back to the hotel.

It was a whirlwind tour while he was home, but it was so good to see him and have him close. Just five more months, and he'll be back!

Dan will update again once he's settled.

Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

Waterlogged

Hello again everyone and welcome. I hope everyone has had a good week and all is well. This week has been a down week here. Everything has left to go over and all of the training is done. Soon I'll be home for 9 days and I can't wait for that.

I did take another PT test this week and I passed it with flying colors. I did 72 push-ups and 70 sit-ups and 2-miles in 16:03. Not my best time on the run but I did better in the other two than last time. I am feeling more fit now than I can ever remember. Now if only these last 10 pounds would fall off I would be a model or something :-)

We also got to go to the pool again yesterday. We cooked out and hung out all day long. I did get a little red, even though I reapplied my sunscreen like 5 times. It was very relaxing to be by the pool, but I did get waterlogged and pruned by the end of the afternoon (I know, it must be rough for me. lol).

Well, It's time for me to go to formation and find out what is going on today. Everyone have a good weekend and my next post will be after my block leave is over because I will see most of you in that time frame.

Gettin' Ready

It's Monday and do you know where Dan is? I'm right here in Oklahoma and getting ready to be home for 9 days.

Yesterday was our battalion picnic and we also got to have beer!!! It was hot and it tasted so good. There was volleyball, swimming, a dunk tank and did I mention the beer? It was a good time had by all who attended (which was everybody - Hello still in the army here - didn't have a choice - lol). Today I started packing up my personal items in preparation for next week. I sure collected a lot of items over the past 3 months but I think I'll be able to fit it all somewhere. After I'm done with that we are going to see a movie. I think we'll see "Live free or die hard" and then have dinner at the mall for a change of pace.

Everybody have a good week and I can't wait to see all of you when I get home. It will be very busy so if I don't get to talk to everybody, do stay in contact via e-mail.

Take care all

Dan

11 Days and a Wake-Up

Hello again, its me. I hope everybodys week is going well so far and the rest of your week is just as good. Things here are winding down. I'm very excited to come home on block leave in 12 days and so is everyone else here.

We did get a fun day yesterday though. Our First Sargent reserved an outside pool for the whole company to go swimming and have a cookout. It was a beautiful day outside. about 92 degrees and a slight wind. Everyone, including myself, had a blast. It felt good to not wear my uniform for most of the day and to sit out and get some sun.

We also have been playing volleyball for PT. Its a nice change of pace from running all of the time. The solders from Hawaii are pretty good and are a challenge to play against. Go figure, they live on a beach, they have played a few times I bet(lol). On Friday we have a battalion run in the morning. This is where we form up and run in a group and have somebody call out cadence to keep us in step. It will be a short run from what I've herd so that's good because running in formation hurts my feet(too much stomping, not running). Then our whole platoon is going to the bowing ally to do some team building that night. We were going to do it tonight but we just had some people come back from the FOB and they are going to diner together to celebrate being out of the FOB like my group had a picnic.

Well, time for me to go again. Dinner is calling and you all know how I hate to miss a meal. Take it easy and I'll talk to you all again soon.

Dan

Happy 4th of July

Hello everybody and happy 4th of July to all of you.

We were given a little more freedom this past week and I have been able to do some things other than army training. On Sunday, my platoon went to Lonestar Steakhouse for, you guessed it, steaks. It was a fun evening for all. the Twins were on the TV, I ordered the T-Bone and I had an ice cold........ice tea in my hand.(Still no alcohol allowed)

On Tuesday I got to go to concert put on my Army Entertainment. Trace Atkins was the headliner and Joe Nickels opened for him. It was a good show, as country shows fair. I got to sit in the sun, listen to music, and have an ice cold.......ice tea again. It was almost like being home, just with out Sarah, my normal clothes and my car to drive me there(we took a bus).

Then today we all got to sleep in because the concert ended at 11pm. then we had a BBQ for lunch with chicken, beef, and pork ribs. It was very good and I think I ate too much. Then I went to see Transformers at the mall. I thought I was a good movie. Lots of special effects and "Guy" type of things to keep me interested.

Tomorrow it is back to the grind of Army life. It was nice to have a little more freedom to do so things that I took for granted before this deployment. Now I look forward to coming home on block leave and spending lots of time with Sarah. I need my "Sarah" time you know.

Well, it's off to bed for me. Again I thank you all for the support you all have given me so far. I look forward to talking with everybody again soon.

Dan

P.S.) Be sure to look below for new pictures from time to time.

June in Oklahoma

Hello everyone

I hope all is well with everyone. I am borrowing a roommates laptop so I can converse with all of you. I have been busy with getting our company ready to move out overseas. Now everything is packed up and on a slow boat to Kuwaiti. I was in charge of helping get all of the packing slips ready for everything, and I do mean everything. You need to have a slip on the box in the box that also needs a packing slip. Then the conex needs a packing slip stating that everything else has a packing slip. Needless to say, I printed up a lot of paperwork in the past 4 days. Also, all of our aircraft are on there way overseas so now they are setting up classes for us to go to like drivers training on forklifts and tugs(aircraft movers).

Now I fill my days with paperwork and classes and bide my time till block leave. I can't wait to be home and be with Sarah, the cats and my family. Sarah is also coming down to see me off here in OK after block leave ends. We will fly in on the 1st of August at about 1pm. Then we will drive up to OK City and visit the memorial at the federal building and then drive back so I can check in at 10pm. Then the ceremony is either the 2nd or 3rd of August. Then Sarah will be back in MN on the 4th and I'll be on a plane to Kuwaiti.

I should get my computer back either on Friday or Monday and I will be back to my normal postings. Take care and keep in contact.

Dan

P.S.) I got the napkin Peggy and I thought about eating it, but I just sniffed it a while. Thanks, I needed that.

Quick Tease

Just a quick note to everyone. My computer is down and is being sent in for repair. That is why I haven't posted in a while. When I get access to a computer for more time I will post more pictures and get you all caught up.

Thanks for all of your support.

Dan

Another Week....Another $.50

Hello campers. Hope your week went well and your weekend even better. It is groundhog day here. Every day is the same. The only thing that changes is my underwear (my roommates are happy about that). This week will be a bit more exciting because we are doing airfield scenarios to respond to broke aircraft. It should put a little more spice into our lives. Then it will be bye-bye to the aircraft to get loaded on to a ship to go overseas.

I did find out when my block leave is. It will be July 23rd to Aug 1st. In that time, Steve and Kim are getting married, Sarah is setting up a picnic to have at the house for everyone to come to (details coming on that), And be sure to get all of the golfing in I can in between all of that. So much to do.

I will let you know how next weeks training went next entry so hang in there and keep all of your positive support coming. It means a lot to me. Like how I was able to web cam with my parents and Sarah's family in the past couple of weeks. It is nice to see everyone as well as talk to them. If any of you have a web cam and want to chat, let me know and I will add you to my skype list. Just install skype at www.skype.com and my screen name is zirbes72.

Talk to you all later.

Dan

The Gun Show

Hope every ones weekend went well and the weather was nice. Here in Oklahoma we work all weekend because that's what the Army has us do. It doesn't mean we can't have any fun at work. We had some down time so we had the first (and probably last) D company Gun Show!!!! There were big pipes and little guns but all in all we had a little fun. I measured in at 14". Not the biggest but I can't complain. I am trying to make them bigger while making my stomach smaller. Not being able to have beer helps with that. Anywho.....just a quick update. if anything else comes up, you all will be first to know.

Take Care

Dan

Life of a Mechanic

I'm back!!!!

Now for the rest of the story. This week I have been in a AGPU (Aviation Ground Power Unit) class. It is a four day class on how to operate it and maintain it while we are in Iraq. The teacher is cramming 2 weeks worth teaching into 4 days. It is going fast and furious bot I am learning a lot. We did get to do what we call a air start of the helicopter. It is something that we don't get to do normally so it was pretty cool. Next week it is back to helicopter maintenance and "normal" life.

Hope all is well with everyone and have a great weekend.

Dan

PS) I did start a Facebook at facebook.com if anybody wants to see more pictures from here and other things I have done.

http://www.facebook.com/p/Dan_Zirbes/693246576

Happy Memorial Day!

Hello campers and welcome back. I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday weekend. As you see, we had a day off!!!! They let us go to the mall for half the day to see a movie and shop. I saw Pirates 3 and I thought it was very good. I recomend it to everyone. I also walked around and looked at things I can't buy because I don't need them or can bring with to Iraq. I did buy some CD's though. I got "The Greatest Funk Hits of All Time". It has a lot of songs that make you want to grove and I like to grove. After we came back, I had someone buy me a stake at the grocery store her on post and I grilled it for dinner. The only thing missing was....you guessed it......a beer. Thats ok, I got a taste of civilian life for a little bit today. Tommarow, it's back to Army training and fixing aircraft.

Talk to you all later and I'll keep updating.

Dan

Dan, The Bad @$$

Hello all. Just a quick note to let you know whats up. I'm still training at the hanger for the time being. I am working days for now so it is like going to work each day. Just it's for 12 hours a day and 7 days a week not including PT and meetings. Hope you like the picture. This is my favorite one. you will see a different one later on eather on the guard website or thru the FRG (Family Readiness Group). Thats it for now, I'll talk to you all later.

Dan

A Day In The Life

Welcome back, I'm glad to have you visit again. As you see, our hero is just sitting around, again, and waiting, again. This is how I spent my day today. We were issued more stuff to take to Iraq like a new helmet, boots, uniforms, and many other items. One problem, they didn't take the old stuff! I'm in a room with 5 other guys and we are bursting at the seams with all of this army "stuff". Our leadership is talking about sending our old items back to Minnesota in a conex but that wont be for a couple of weeks. So as of now my wall locker is full, under my bunk is full, and behind our door is full.

I do want to say thank you to everybody that wished me a happy birthday. I was sent goodies from Sarah's Aunt and a puzzle book from Sarah's best friend Christina. Other people sent money that I spent on new DVD's to watch. All in all I had a good birthday. It only missed a steak and a beer to make it complete. I'll get that when i'm on leave.

Hope everybody had a good weekend and I'll talk to you all later.

Dan

My Birthday!!

Well you may or may not know but Saturday was my birthday. Yup, I'm 35 and all grown up. I just got a care package from the "Wife" and she included a picture of my birthday gift. I am posting the same picture here for you to see. Sarah knows I like time pieces like Tag Heuer, Omega, and others. I do own 1 Tag that Sarah got me when my mom passed away. Now I have 2!!! It is something I will cherish and hand down to my kids if we have any in the future. Just wanted to share this with you and thanks for tuning in to my BLOG.

Talk to you all later.

Dan

The FOB Days

I'm back!!!!!

It was a long 10 days but I made it through it. The training was good but the food wasn't. When we first started, we were in a classroom for a day learning what we would be doing out there. Then we moved out to the FOB. As you see in the picture, this is where I slept while we were out there. We went through a class on IED (improvised explosive device) training first. How to spot them and call them in. Then off to search and transport of an ECP (enemy combatant prisoner). We got to learn an class pressure points and how to handel them. It was quite a workout because we trained on each other. Next was the GAC (ground assualt course) and convoy training. I was the assistant convoy commander for the 4 days of training. My management skills came in handy in this area because for the snap decisions that have to be made if we come apon something in the convoy. It was hot and sweaty but, it was good training. Yesterday we did CQC (close quarters combat) techiques. We had to live fire on recognition targets and how to clear a room. It was very "In the moment" exciting but I hope to not ever use it. Then today we had our combatives class. It teaches us how to fight hand to hand and defend ourselves. Another good workout. Right now I am sitting with a icy-hot back wrap on to loosen my lower back up because I used parts of my body I didn't know I had.

Well, that was my last 10 days in a nutshell. If you look below, I added more pictures of my training that I thought were cool. Now my "Army" training is complete for now. I get tomorrow off as a "Reset"day and then back to aircraft maintaince and learning what I will do in country.

It's been great hearing from everybody, either by e-mail or by phone. I'm glad people think about me from time to time. Keep it coming and I will keep responding as soon as I can. Take it easy and I will talk to all of you later.

Dan

I lied, we had a picnic

Hello campers, hows it going. Well, as I said in my last post I wouldn't say anything till I'm back from the FOB. I lied. We had a BBQ today and we all had the day off from training. It was nice to get all of my laundry done and to catch up on my sleep. I also helped with the BBQ as you can see in the picture. We Had pork ribs, chicken, and chips. The only thing missing was the beer:(

Just thought I'd let you know whats going on to this point. I leave to the FOB on Sunday and come back on the 13th. I'll have lots of pictures to share with all of you.

Happy Mothers Day to all of you moms out there and remember, without moms, the dads would have to be the cranky ones. Just Kidding.

Later,

Dan

Wepons Qualifying

Hello again and welcome to my life. This weekend as I said, we were going through weapons training and it ended with qualifying and night firing yesterday. Needless to say it was a long weekend but it was a very long weekend. I did qualify in my first try on the range and about half of the company had to do it more than once. Then when it got dark we got to fire 30 rounds at a night target 50 meters away. It was tougher than it looked. I hope that I don't have to fire in the pitch black when I'm in country.

On Sunday, I get to go the the FOB (forward operating base) and live there for 10 days. I'll take lots of pictures and post them when I get back. We will be doing convoy training, FOB security, and warrior tasks. I bet I'll be tired after that also. So this will be the last post till I get back from the FOB because the rest of this week we are going to briefs and they are as interesting as a root canal. I'm not going to bore you with that junk.

You can always e-mail me and I will respond in kind so I'm not forgetting about anybody. Take care and I will talk to you all in 2 weeks.

Dan

Weapons Training

Welcome to my second week here in lovely Fort Sill, OK. Today we started our weapons training and familiarization. I will be on the range firing weapons on Monday after the classes we have to go through. As you see in the picture, we have to wear our helmet, IBA (Interceptor Body Armor), and our weapon everywhere we go for the next week. This stuff is HEAVY!!!! It could be worse, we have the ballistic plates out of the vest. They add another 20lb to the vest. After we go to the range, I will post the pictures of our night fire and other things we get to do with our weapons.

On a personal note, life is settling down here. I'm not buying as much stuff at the PX and that makes Sarah happy. I get to web cam with Sarah almost every night and my space I sleep in is becoming more cramped as they keep giving us more stuff. All in all the training is good and I do get personal time to do things like this, so that is nice.

Everyone have a good weekend and remember my birthday is coming up on the 12th, so just send money!!!(JK)

Thanks for visiting,

Dan

Combat Lifesaver Course

Hello again, it's me.

The past 2 days have been all classroom time learning how to be a combat lifesaver. Now I'm not talking about handing out mints to everyone in combat, I'm talking about what to do when you come upon a casualty on the battlefield. Yesterday we practiced how to give an IV to someone. I got to administer one and also be the pin cushion for one as you see in the picture. It was a great learning experience and I hope I never have to put these skills to use if you know what I mean. I'll be done with this class on Thursday and then off to weapons classes and the range. I will keep you all posted on how that goes. Well, I'm off to bed early tonight because I am going to do PT tomorrow morning at 5am. I've got to keep in shape for Sarah you know (I am bringing sexy back).

I'll talk to you all later

Dan

The Beat Goes On

This weekend was a busy one but I was refreshed on a lot of tasks I haven't done in a while. On Saturday we did whats called AWT or Army Warrior Training. This is something every solder needs to know and understand. I took all day and I was very tired after all of the classes and carrying all of my stuff. As you see in the picture I am simulating a head injury. I know, I know, you all knew I had one all ready but, that one can't be fixed. All in all it was a useful day of hands on and knowledge.

On Sunday, I took my PT (Physical Training for you non-Army types) Test and passed with flying colors. I was the best I have done in a long time. We get to take another one in 2 weeks so I will Keep training and getting better. I am down to 205lb now and that is amazing with all of the food they have us eat. It seams like I eat all of the time but, I am more active and caring more "stuff" everywhere.

Its time for me to sign out and let you all get on with your own lives. Remember, if you want to contact me directly, just e-mail me at zirbes72@hotmail.com.

Talk to you all later,

Dan

Land Nav

Today we did our land navigation by foot and in a vehicle. It was a great workout because we had to traverse over 2 mountains and over 5 miles of walking. As you see in the picture I was with 4 other people in my group. we made good time and had fun doing it. My PT test was moved to Sunday now so it give me one more day of prepping for it. I'm sure I will do well and I will also try to help other people to pass it. Friday is paperwork day. We get to re-check our files and make sure we have it all in order and if there were changes to it we can do that tomorrow. Well, I'm off to get my hair cut, I'll show you my new style in another post. Have a great weekend and I'll talk to you all later.

Dan

Deployment Day

My First Week at Sill

Well, here it is, my first BLOG.

I am in Fort Sill, OK doing my deployment training. This past week we set up our shops in the hanger here for us to work in when we get to our "Blue" phase in May. We also started in-prossesing and getting our paperwork all in order. Tommarow we start the "Green" phase. We will have classes on army radios, land navagation, combat lifesaving, convoys, and other army solider skill tasks. It will be alot for us to take in in just 1 1/2 months but im up for the challenge. Our first PT (Physical Training) test is on Saturday. They have set the bar high but im sure i can pass it. For the ones that don't, they get to do PT twice a day. That would SUCK!

This is just the start. I will try to make entrys as often as I can to keep everyone up to speed.

One last thing, I have been asked how the living is and I can say it is cramped but it could be worse. I will post some pictures of what it looks like around here so you all get a feel for the joint.

Talk to you all later,
Dan