troop letter: Sorry it’s taken so long

October 26, 2009

Sorry it’s taken so long

Bob,

Sorry it’s taken so long to respond but this last week has been very
busy with operations.  If you happen to run into an old cheap bag of
starbucks coffee, it would make my day.  I’ve asked the rest of the
unit, and no specific items (other than sunflower seeds) were requested.
Anything else is always accepted with open arms(easy to please).
I’ll keep you posted on our status, and here was the update sent for
Oct:  Sorry it’s taken so long
Friends,

The days are long and the nights are short.  On Sept 30 upon arriving in
Bagram, we were welcomed with rocket attacks.  Nothing like spending an
hour and a half in the cold bomb shelter with only shower shoes, running
shorts, and my M-16 (note to self- sleep with a shirt).  The bomb
shelters have room enough for 20, but we were flexible enough to fit 37.
No one in our unit was injured, but unfortunately one soldier was killed
where the rockets hit.  Two days later, I arrived to my final
destination to Forward Observing Base (FOB) Sharana (high in the
mountains).  The elevation is just above 7400ft, which makes exercise
very interesting.  It’s a daily task to attempt gathering energy after a
12+hr work day to fit in time at the gym, but helps me stay proactive.
On a good note, most of Oct is already over and if this pace keeps up
I’ll be home before I know it. 
Our mission changed (and we are much safer)since my last email, so we
are no longer escorting vehicles in gun-trucks (most dangerous mission
in Afghanistan). 

Keep me in your prayers & I got you covered on this side.

Until the future,

p.s. My address has also changed and any packages can be sent to the
following (no rank please- due to security):

Joseph