Terrible News....

For those of you standing, I suggest you take a seat as you read this terrible news. I know this may be shocking to people but....Michael Jackson is dead. I know I know I was crushed too. The king of pop is dead. Is it murder? Overdose? I do believe a more appropriate question would be: does anybody really freakin' care?

We pampered soldiers over here in Afghanistan have the luxury of 2 pre-programmed TV stations for us to watch in the dinning halls. I have been livid that despite the copious amounts of news worthy international news at our fingertips, North American media choses to plaster us with about a months worth of B.S. on Michael Jackson. Which brings to my point. When is it bed time at Neverland Ranch? Well its when the big hand touches the little hand.....No wait that wasn't my point. My point was this; doesn't the media in this communication era have a responsibility to perhaps air pertinent news with global implications. So how does this really tie into my situation here in Afghanistan besides irritating me during meals. Well the kids I say!

Kids are always the best to talk to, they are young and therefore have very limited life experience which generally means that they have not yet been indoctrinated and or infused with the grudges and tribal riffs that create so many problems in Afghanistan. They really represent a pure form of humanity with almost zero influence from outside their small world. No foreign TV, No foreign movies....just Afghanistan, their families and Allah. So while having a conversation with one of these kids through an interpreter I asked him what he thought of Michael Jackson death. He looked at me as if I was stupid (which I do not blame him for asking such a stupid question), and then said who was Michael Jackson? Finally, this child hit the nail on the head. Who the heck is this guy and why did we give a crap. Then we ate watermelon....

A little humour....

They say there is a little truth in every rumour...Although this may not be true Im sure it has some truth to it.

Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman of 83, arrived in Paris by plane. At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport in his carry on.
- "You have been to France before, monsieur?" the customs officer asked sarcastically. Mr.Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.
"Then you should know enough to have your passport ready."
The Canadian said,
- 'The last time I was here, I didn't have to show it."
- "Impossible. Canadians always have to show your passports on arrival in France !"
The Canadian senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look. Then he quietly explained,
-''Well, when I came ashore at Juno Beach on D- Day in 1944 to help liberate this country, I couldn't find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to."

"The safest place in Afghanistan"

Today we went to the "Safest place in Afghanistan" It was actually quite fun because for about 5 hours we sat and chatted with some Afghans, one of these Afghans in his mid-thirties even claimed to have killed Russians with the Moujahidine, and then recently he killed 9 Taliban in Panjawi before moving to the "Safest place in Afghanistan". Despite his crazy stories he was a joker and he seemed like a pretty cool guy. Long minutes passed of both parties being completely lost in translation until we eventually understood each other by using the universeral language of hand signalss and pointing. When this didn't work some of the kids who had very very basic English skills would do there best to translate for the us.

We chatted with kids alot and even profitted by taking some photos, the kids loved the camera, it blew their minds when we showed them the results on the LCD screen. For them that was a rare treat. Canadian Birds... What was that coordinate again?? Kids....This one was camera shy at first.... Relaxing, this is the first time I met these guys but apparently we are best buds. (Yes it was Thursday but I made it very clear to them that I was "off the market") More kids coming to see what all the fuss is about.

Doing the "Pedler" ...some of my best work.

Freedom Calculator.....Moral in .XLS format

Note: The attached photo does not in anyway shape or form reflect the The Canadian Forces or any of its personnel. Also the dates have been changed for Operational Security, the dates in the photo represent my birthday and Christmas and in no way are actual deployment or departure dates. Lastly for those who may find this offensive...too bad!

Well now that you all have read the disclaimer, let me explain. You may be wondering how we keep track of how long we have left in this country seeing everyday is groundhog day, well I introduce you to..... The Freedom Calculator!

This brilliant Microsoft Excel document allows you to keep track of how much time you have left in theatre. This user friendly spreadsheet even comes with visual aides to help promote the well being of the troops. For those who have ridiculously boring jobs and don't get out of the office much (Alan Vincent et al [BURN]) it even calculates down to the minute!

Yup that's right, those old fashion times of crossing the days off the calander are long gone. Simply type in your arrival and departure dates and it will update your "Sentence Served" automaticaly. Isn't technology wonderful?

Radio Interview..

Today I did an interview with CBC Montreal Daybreak, it was a follow up to our interview we did before deploying. If you listen carefully you will hear that I deflected all of his questions and didnt even really answer them...excellent.

http://www.cbc.ca/montreal/media/audio/daybreak/20090720DBK_RESERVIST_IN_AFGHAN.ram

long overdue...

Its been a while since I have actually been able to sit down and actually write an entry in this thing. My apologies to my avid readers (there must be at least one person out there) for not really putting any "meat" into my posts. I've been trying to keep you all happy with a few photos here and there and a couple quick notes. So here I am with an afternoon of free time so I guess I'll get to it.

Things around here have gotten interesting. Our tasks and missions have been changing which allows us to get into different corners of the country and see some new things. The other day we went to a small village south west of Kanadahar City and did some foot patrols in and around village. Its always interesting going to new places, and seeing new things.

Besides that everything is going well. We are trying our best to stay out of trouble and make it to the end of the tour with nothing but good experiences and some cash in our pockets. (For me this does not apply, seeing all my money will definetly be going to clearing all my University debt). Which brings me to my next point. I have been doing alot of thinking over the past couple of days and I have decided to finish my University degree upon my return to Canada. I am too close to finishing to toss it all away. Hopefully I will be able to continue working fulltime and finish up my remaining 30 credits over the course of 3 semesters part time.....well that is the plan anyway.

So I guess that is all from me for the time being. For all family friends who ahve been a little stressed lately because of the rise in violence, you need not worry I am well and trying to stay in the shade....

Cheers!

We Will Remember....

A wise man once said:

''Officers will tell you about hearts and minds and seeing the big picture beyond the rifleman view, but I am gun fighter privy to the view from the top .......guys like me are the real voice of reason in this war'' - G.H.

R.I.P. Pte. Sébastien Courcy

Je me souviens...

Reaching New Heights...

Today was a great day, we climbed up a couple of mountains and with a panoramic view of our surroundings we just kinda took it in....it was well worth the climb. An incredible view to enjoy after a quick climb. (Approx. 1,683 MAS) The hike back... An ANP soldier looks out from his Opsrvation Point. This is the description of the hand carved stairs that lead to a cave with Pashtu writing carefully carved into the side. This cave is located at the summit of one of the mountains on the outskirts of Kandahar City.The stairs and the cave at the summit. An example of some of the carved writing.. Me and a team member in the cave..

Me outside the cave at the summit overlooking the outskirts of Kandahar City (Approx. 1,700 MAS).

Another Day in Afganiland...

A few photos for your viewing pleasure.....

A quick smoke before the patrol begins...(Yes I know its a filthy habbit but there's not much to do here and it makes me look cooler { that's a joke, no comments please} )

The casualties of a Soviet Era....

Another day at the office...

Afghani workers trying to find the water ...

A view from a tower....

To keep the readers happy....some older news.

Here are a couple photos from the Canada Day Run for Fun we had....yes it was hot as hell and no I didnt win. I finished second in the 10km with a time of 49m43sec. For those of you you think that is weak, might I remind you that we are about 1100m above sea level and it is crazy hot...

Enjoy...

Running is a breeze when you are not carrying 80lbs of metal.... After the 10km run we ate and then headed out on patrol only to get back 12 hours later. It was a long day mostly comprised of doing...well...nothing.

No news is good news....

Every once in a while I get to see a good friend (left). It always good to be able and stop and shoot the shit about whats going on in our different neck of the woods. Here my friend was given a nice new headdress to wear as gift from a district leader. Being the opportunistic bastard that I am, I snapped a photo and will be mailing this one home to be framed and hung up in our favourite PUB for future mockery.
Sitting is the new lying down, when in doubt sit your ass down. With temperatures in the 60s some days now whenever we can its best to not move a muscle.

This gorgeous dog is named Sandy. Sandy was adopted by a Warrant Officer from the R22R on Roto 6. The WO later was killed in Afghanistan, Sandy has stayed put and every new rotation takes care of her. She is compltely Canadian, she is friendly and now apparently pregnant. Sandy even goes on patrol with guys day or night she will always be walking infront of the guys to warn them of any danger.

Last but not least, this is the face of not a happy camper. Just knowing that I have t get into a stupidly hot vehicle for a couple of hours is enough to piss anybody off. FML

Dog days of summer..

So, now that summer is in full swing, there seems to be no hidding from the heat, we have just accepted the fact that our lives suck and we should probably drink more water.....photographic evidence below. I think I drank 5 liters of water during this 3 hour patrol...maybe I should drink more. Those familiar with Kandahar City will recognize this landmark. However the top was recently somewhat destroyed by insurgent RPGs......Two polar opposites chill in the shade. I think they are brothers.

Me and "Killer" chilling in the Dan District

Another Sad Day.

Today was another sad day in Kandahar, we proudly attended the ramp ceremony for Cpl Bulger of the P.P.C.L.I. Normally seeing we are not based at the Kandahar Air Field we don't get to go to the ramp ceremonies. Today we happened to be there on other bussiness and we felt it was imperative to attend. The ceremony was short, but perfectly fitting. This young man will never be forgotten and I am glad I got to pay my respects as he made his final journey home.

We will remember..

Here is a small photo exhibit of army grafitti.....some of it is pretty funny stuff. Everyone feels the need to leave their mark in one shape or form.

Sometimes common sense eludes even the brightest infanteer. Somethings need to be explained in laymans terms.

I don't know if your gym membership includes perks like this one, but here you have a greater chance of getting tetanus then getting in shape.

This one I still can't figure out but I think he's on to something.....maybe he's missing a variable.

The 2nd Battalion of the Royal 22 Regiment makes an improvised pool and lounge area....as you can see Chuck Norris is the official mascot of Platoon 33.

Happy Canada Day!

Happy belated Canada Day everyone, this post was supposed to be posted yesterday but like all things in the army, change happens often and unexpectedly. Yesterday we were supposed to have Canada Day Celebrations at the KPRT, its a day to have fun, have a big BBQ and even get 2 more beers. This was supposed to be a welcome vacation for us seeing we have been going at it quite hard of late. But as we expected we did not get our day off, our BBQ or our Beer. Apparently there is a war going on and some of us have to keep doing our thing. Day break just before stepping off.This photo was taken off the screen from the remote weapon system. While scanning his arcs my buddy spotted me and snapped a pic of the screen. I like this photo because it has kinda a western era feel to it.

Has anybody seen an Improvised Explosive Device? I'm sure it's here somewhere!

The view from a tower looking out into barren land. The harsh realites of driving in some parts of this country. The sand and dust can be seriously intense.