The title of this post is "I'm not creative enough to come up with a title"

I swear this picture isn't put here to complain. Since this is a chronical of my journey in Kuwait, I would actually be remiss if I didn't include a snapshot of the weather. Rumor has it, it gets worse in July and August. When you're standing outside, in the shade and the fronts of your knees are sweating in 6% humidity, you know it's hot. And cram all that shit about "it's a dry heat". OK, 115 degrees is FREAKIN' HOT NOT MATTER HOW LOW THE HUMIDITY. Just putting that out there for posterity and emphasis. Rumor also has it that when the wind blows from the SE off the Gulf instead of from the NW off the desert, it does in fact get humid here. After my experience in Bahrain in 2003, that's not something I relish.

So, yeah, it's hot. Eventually, however, it all becomes relative. I wake up frequently in the middle of the night and have to walk outside. Last night it dipped into the high 80's and it felt so pleasant. Almost makes you want to head out for a run. This morning, despite the already rising temps, it was a lovely day. In fact, I saw blue sky for the first time in weeks. The sky here is usually a muddy white/light tan color from all the dust in the air. So even if there are no clouds, there is still no blue sky. With luck, I'll actually get baked while swimming at lunch.

Recently, we had to drive north to another base and once you leave the inhabited areas, it's actually rather scenic. It's not Painted Desert scenic but then, again, everything's relative. The inhabited areas come with miles and miles of stucco buildings (many uninhabited because they don't move people in until entire neighborhoods are complete). It's also full of electrical infrastructure (miles and miles and miles of the huge towers that carry wires) not to mention the oil industry. Plus it's the middle east - it's freakin' dirty....everywhere. At night when you drive by the piers and oil refinery facilities, you can see the not-so-distant sky line lined with huge burning beacons. They look like ginormous Olympic torches but are actually the fires that burn off the methane from the oil refineries. At night, it's pretty - they look festive but during the day, it's just plain ugly to see them burning. Leaving this behind for plain open desert dotted with camels and sheep makes the open scene "pretty".

Some interesting tidbits about Kuwait. Their roads are dangerous. We're not talking driving in LA or New York dangerous. I'm talking the "It is God's Will" dangerous. Muslims have an expression, "inshallah". It means basically "If God wills" meaning whatever happens, bad or good, preventable or not, is God's will. Based on what I have been told by some of the locals, they really take this to heart. Seatbelts? Don't need 'em. Kids running loose in the back seat of a vehicle going 160 clicks? No worries. Driving at 200 clicks (125 mph)? What-ehv... So they do whatever they want and if God wants them to live, He'll keep them alive. The car wrecks here are unreal. Talk about crash and burn. I'm waiting for some really good ones to take photos as I whiz by at my slow 90 mph to prove that I don't make this up. Just hope I'm not actually in one.

Some interesting tidbits about the Army. Their insane. No really. They do things that make no earthly sense. While I was amidst some of this insanity last week, I wrote a poem about it. Disclaimer - I'm not a poet. This isn't going to win any prizes... And for the record, I got distracted while writing the end and then couldn't get a good line so if this makes no sense, refer to picture at the end of yesterday's post.

24 May, Exercise Lucky Warrior, Day #1

I've got sand and sun, it's so much fun

It's like we're at the beach

But camels, dust and all that stuff

Put fun just out of reach

It's 50 cee without a cloud

The wretched desert heat

Has sapped my strength, my will to live

I need a quick retreat

I chose this o'er a carrier cruise?

I must be full insane

To think that being on Army time

Would be so much less ass pain

It's bad for me that Army life

Is run my masochists

Troops line up all in a row

Symetric, sick sadists

"Let's make it harder, make it hurt!!"

They all yell as one

"Let's slip and slide on our bare hides

get rashes on our buns!!"

"Kick my balls and smack my face

run sandpaper 'cross my nose!

Smack my fingers with a hammer

Then drop it on my toes!!"

Between the heat and Army nuts

I'm in a living hell,

God rescue me and make it stop

oooo....hey something sparkly....

Aloha, rosie