final informal thoughts on kuwait...

...before I leave the creature comforts of a luxury hotel and head into Baghdad.

• Apparently, the term "sports television" in this part of the world has been redefined solely as "soccer television." There are 12 channels labeled "sports" and each and every one has a soccer game or commentary about soccer on it.
• I brought a couple of seasons of "The West Wing" with me on this trip and reveled in the irony of watching the fictional politics of Qumar unfold as I glance from the television and out the window to the Kuwait City skyline.
• I always find watching "The West Wing" pumps my psyche up for a mental challenge. I'm glad I had a chance to watch a few episodes to prepare myself for the comings days, weeks and months.
  
• I questioned my decision making in reading choice this morning; I was having an early breakfast at the hotel reading the latest issue of New York Magazine with Woody Allen and Larry David on the front cover. I realized as I was doing so that this may have implications in the Arab world beyond those on the New York street corner on which I bought the magazine.
• This hotel has amazing service beyond that which I am accustomed. Around midnight last night as I was preparing for bed I asked the front desk for a cable to connect my iPod to the stereo in my room (basically an RCA stereo cable into a 1/8 inch headphone input). The person at the front desk didn't understand my request and was extremely apologetic. I told him not to worry about it, but around 12:15 someone from the hotel's technical staff showed up at my door to ask what he could help with. I showed him what I was looking for and he aplogetically said he didn't have that particular cable. I told him not to worry about it, but about 15 minutes later another knock came on my door. It was the same technician with a spliced cable he made for me. It worked perfectly. That, my friends, is service. :-)
  

So enough of the light and fluffy. I am ready for the myriad challenges ahead of me. In the immortal words of Josh Lyman: "Game On!"

The Journey Officially Begins

I arrived in Kuwait City at about 4:00 p.m. local time after having departed from JFK at 9:00 last evening. That's basically an 11 hour plane ride and an 8 hour time difference compounded on each other. Surprisingly, I'm not yet feeling much of an effect from the shift (at least not yet). I did get a decent night's sleep and another slight nap before we landed, so right now I feel about like I should at 10:45 at night.

I have visited two malls and took a walk several miles around the hotel. Very interesting city. Lush extravagance directly next to extreme poverty in many places. Such is the way a place like this works I suppose. There are a couple of Ferraris parked in front of the hotel which is directly next to a large building with many boarded up windows, laundry hanging from balconies and broken windows and doors in the entryway; clear signs of a more destitute level of habitation within.

I have learned a few very important things about Kuwaitis: they really like shoes, watches and perfumes/colognes. Walking around the malls, store upon store sold high end accesories. They are not so much into what I am used to as “haute couture.” I suppose that becomes less relevant when nearly everyone is wearing matching white robes (or black robes for women). This is also clearly not a town for “night life” and I am quite happy I had a final “night out” back in New York rather than waiting to have a night out in Kuwait. It’s very strange to see a bustling city with literally no bars. And the “cocktails” they advertise on the drink menus at restaurants are, in reality, mocktails made of virgin fruit concoctions.

Looking forward to seeing 3 of my colleagues tomorrow and hitting the ground in full stride upon arriving in Baghdad. But for tonight, I am going to take advantage of the pool and jacuzzi overlooking the skyline so I’m fresh and ready for tomorrow…

and the countdown officially begins...

after a year's worth of anticipation, preparation and delays, i have a departure date for iraq and this time it's one i believe will come to fruition.

may 27th at 19:30 i should land in baghdad.

that makes the next several weeks look roughly like this:

april 26: my last official closing shift at the interviewing center
april 27-30: travel to ft. benning, ga (i'm taking the motorcycle)
may 1-5: CRC (contractor training and preparation) in georgia
may 6-10: travel back to lincoln via new orleans, houston, dallas, etc.
may 11-17: assist with the location move from downtown to fallbrook
may 18-21: wrap up any loose ends for training and in my life in general
may 22-25: tracy and i go to new york to spend time with friends before departure
may 26-27: fly to kuwait, then to baghdad

trying to determine the proper flights is looking to be a little more challenging than originally anticipated.

i never would have thought, looking back over the past few years, that i would be dealing with the logistics of having to determine how i will get my body armour transported to iraq with me. the types of logistical challenges this presents are different than ones i ever thought i would have had to work out.

i have a departure date

May 27th. Or 28th. I suppose, in the strict sense of the word, those are "dates" rather than "a date" but I'm not splitting hairs at this point. I have a pretty clear target for when I'm going to arrive in Iraq and that's more than I have had for quite some time.

The wheels are officially in motion. I can start putting dates to everything that needs to happen in the next 2 months before I leave.

Here is a sample of some of the things I need to get together before heading down to Ft. Benning, GA for my orientation and pre-deployment training:

• 30 copies of your orders, with exact and accurate name & SSN.
• Passport & 5 copies of it
• Drivers License or state ID (current, and not to expire while you are deployed) & 5 copies
• Generic Physical Inspection signed & dated from your doctor. Some type of cover letter stating that you are healthy and fit to be deployed, away from medical services, signed by your doctor is great. Also bring a list of any allergies, conditions, or prior surgeries, heart conditions, etc that you may have experienced. Anything of question should be explained in the doctor’s letter.
• Dental x-rays, less than 6 months old, signed & dated by your dentist. You will also need your dentists license number for DoD paperwork. Complete form DD2813 with your dentist (attached).
• Printed statement of your eyewear prescription, updated within last 6 months (if applicable).
• TWO pairs of Rx glasses (only if you need corrective lenses). On medical check-in day, you will be asked to show both pairs of your glasses if you do not have 20/20 vision. One pair of eyeglasses and various sets of contact lenses do not count.
• A record of any immunizations you have received in the last 10 years. If you cannot show prior immunization, you will at a minimum receive the following: Hepatitus A & B, Influenza, MMR, Tetanus-Diptheria-Pertussis, Typhoid, & Tuberculin skin test.
• Any prescriptions you may need, with a supply that you expect to last for the full length of your deployment. You may not need to show this at CRC, but if your conditions require serious medication, they may ask to see & verify that you have enough to last deployment.
• Know your blood type.

So far I have my Passport and Driver's License (but no copies of them)...I don't think I have anything else on this list. I need another pair of glasses? I need a recent prescription for my eyes? I need a physical? I need dental x-rays? I need to get moving!

I don't even know my blood type. But I'm sure the doctor who gives me my physical can handle that for me.

on the road again...

Today was an interesting day in traveling. Fortunately, all of my flights, hotel arrangements, subway rides, etc. went smoothly all day long (in sharp contrast to last week with 2 missed flights, a missed wake up call and piecing travel reservations together on the fly).

Only 1 minor annoyance with TSA in Omaha. I apparently did not drink the last 1/2 ounce of water out of my water bottle when I went through security. Rather than pouring out the water or letting me drink the last partial gulp, they packed up all of my things and walked me out of the gate area so I could dump the smallest imaginable amount of water into a trash can and go all the way through security again. Fun times. Very logical outcome.

I'm in D.C. in my hotel room getting ready for dinner. Spent the day talking about survey/questionnaire design. I was kind of in geek heaven. Lots of interesting topics and lots of good learning, growth and development in preparation for the Iraq position. I am going to be a full fledged polling dilettante by the end of this process; I am going to know a little bit about an awful lot.

And there are always worse places to spend a day or two than D.C. Now for dinner plans...

and so it begins...

I have been thinking about beginning this process for some time and I suppose this is how it starts...

This is certainly a transitional point in time in my life and writing about such transitions has always proved cathartic in the past. I have actually had a few requests to start a blog from friends and colleagues as the next 8 months of my life will likely hold a fair degree of drama and intrigue; more than most epochs of my life have thus far.

In late May or early June, I will leave for Iraq where I will live and work for 6 months. I am not in the military and I am not leaving my employer. I'm being "transferred" in a sense. I work for Gallup and our mission is "helping people be heard." The chance to work toward that mission in Baghdad was too great an opportunity to pass up.

I am hoping to share the process of preparing for this adventure and the subsequent 6 months with anyone who is interested.

As of today, I am living in Lincoln, NE, working at one of our Gallup Interviewing centers and waiting for the details of this trip to solidify.

As I am not entirely sure how much detail should or should not be included in my debut blog, I will leave matters at this and will expand in coming days, weeks and months. Cheers to all who are interested in following along on this journey.