House Cats

Many of my family and friends have written to say thanks for being here. I'm very greatful. Many ask about the danger. Danger has many levels. It IS dangerous to be in a war zone. Rockets, mortors, IEDs, etc. But to me, the flight here on a Marine helo was about as excited as I want to get. The pilots and crew do this five to ten times a day.

There is a Mississippi-based combat element here on the base. These folks from my home state go out every night looking for and finding the insurgents, with some few souls getting killed in the process (See Clarion Ledger article here). I wear IBA and kevlar helmets "around" the base, not off of it (at least not often). My level of danger when compared to the boys from Mississippi is miniscule. In fact, the Army colonel in whose compound I work says that we support types are "house cats" in comparison. True.

So, when you write to me, just know that relatively speaking, I am in a safe, restricted zone within a dangerous combat zone, where indirect fire can do the trick. It's just that the odd's are in my favor.

House Cat