‘Spirits Are Still High’

Army 1st Lt. Ryan Sanders
(undated letter sent late January 2006)

Greetings all,
I know what you are thinking. Ryan devoted time in his busy life to write me a letter and then also send the same letter to 10 or so other people. Well, you are right. This letter was written especially for you, and the others are just reading your letter and wishing I had time to write to them too. (I hope that was funny, but you know, my perceptions are a little distorted.)

Iraq is so much fun! It's cold and rainy and the streets outside the FOB (Forward Operating Base) remind me of cruising down the highways in Mexico ... in a tank. It's really cold when the wind blows and Camp Taji is so built up that the wind doesn't really blow unless you are in the motor pool or outside the gates. When the sky isn't cloudy (it's the rainy season), it is beautiful, especially at dusk. However, when it rains (3 sessions of 20 minutes each about every other day) the ground turns to soup. To be more accurate, it's more like baby poo. But these high speed socks I got for Christmas are excellent. When there is a breach in the "waterproof" lining of my boots, my feet are only wet for 20-30 seconds before the sock wicks it away. The wind/sandstorms haven't been bad yet, but apparently it is coming.

Camp Taji is a wonder of modern military waste. I have my own room (as do most of the SSGs and above) which has an air conditioner/heater. I also "acquired" a TV/DVD, desk, chairs, a fan, a stereo, and even a lectern for only $50. People are really motivated to sell when they are getting on an airplane home tomorrow. The DFAC, PX, internet cafe, phone center, 2 gyms, and 3 "Haji marts" (stores run by locals which specialize in less than legitimate copies of movies, software etc.) are all within ½ mile. The DFAC is run by a US civilian company and it carries just about everything (and Mike, it's all you can eat so you can go back). It reminds me of Jeff's stories about the Sinai where how we feed another nation's soldiers is a reflection on our nation. There is a significant chance that I will come home at least the same weight as I left.

We've started going on our patrols. I am essentially conducting the missions I thought: route protection, IED sweeps, & infantry support. My sector is pretty quiet, and I'm learning the routes and places I need to stay down and where I can expose a little more.

My platoon is doing well. Spirits are still high and the guys who were here last time are enjoying watching the new guys react to their first enemy contact. As usual, we are having maintenance issues. Tanks are just one big maintenance headache and I'm living on a day to day basis.

A couple of observations I've made: there are dogs everywhere. Yet none are pets. Where do all these dogs come from and how do they support themselves. I guess they are living off the Army. There is one dog in my sector, Corndog, who is going to be hurting when we leave and stop feeding him hot dogs and steaks. Another dog, Wardog (all these dogs have names, and it is an important responsibility of the outgoing unit to inform the incoming unit of the dog's names), lives out in one of my OP positions who comes up the side of the tanks and sits and wags his tail as he begs for MRE bits. There is even one dog who looks like a mangy Storm (his name is Stupid). You just can't resist him and I've found that he likes Powerbars. So we usually split one each morning. The locals do not like these dogs. I do not know if it's a nuisance thing, or culture thing, or what but they throw rocks and kick at these dogs whenever they get too close. The good side is the dogs don't like the locals so they come around our tanks and act as a guard at night alerting us to anyone sneaking around.