GIVING LIFTS

(22SEPT2008)

When I was in Balad, Iraq, I had my own vehicle and would often give lifts to soldiers who were waiting for shuttles to get around post. I made good contacts this way and at any rate I was doing them a favor and it was the least I could do.

As my office in Balad was only a short walk from the hospital, I would usually swing by and pick up soldiers in casts and on crutches who were struggling to get to the PX to buy toiletries or other sundries. I remember one soldier I picked up was limping pretty bad and I felt like I was doing my good deed for the day, helping a wounded soldier by giving him a lift to the Taco Bell. Then he told me he broke his ankle playing basketball and I didn't feel so bad for him anymore.

This morning I was riding with two of my colleagues and we were headed from the laundry point to the APOD when we saw an Air Force CPT with several USPS packages waiting at a shuttle stop. As the APOD is right near the Post Office, we offered her a lift and she happily hopped in.

Turns out she's working near Kabul and is in Bagram on her way out for R&R. She's part of a team that is training the ANA how to set up, operate, and maintain telecommunication hubs. She told us that it's been a little hard going. Setting up satellite dishes is fairly technical and many of the ANA soldiers she works with had never seen a computer before. When I asked her what the ANA soldiers were most impressed by, she said "The mouse. They can't believe the mouse does what it does."

APOD = Aerial Point of Debarkation
CPT = Captain
USPS = United States Postal Service
R&R = Rest and Relaxation (leave/vacation)
ANA = Afghan National Army