(Does the ENTIRE country smell like gym socks, port-a-potties, and kitty litter or just the parts I've been too?)
Well I definitely won the deployment lottery with this one folks, not only am I getting $3.50 per day in per diem, I have the sheer luxury of wondering if I'll have to actually revert back to the training that I barely retained.
Does my job really suck? Well no, not at all. Those who know me, know that tactfulness isn't my strong trait, but I make up for it with my quick whit, sense of humor and charming personality...should I go on? :-) My lack of tact and being "prim and proper" is what I find most comical in my position. I work in what is known as the "White House". I would say call me Olivia Pope, but for more than one reason I'll just stick to my own non-adulterous identity.
Anyway, I work for a 3-star [General] aka Fitz and the Colonel (Cyrus) who's his Chief of Staff. Most of what our office does is for the Col however. I'm one of three members in our dream team office that juggles about 100 different tasks. Our speciality: never drop one of the glass balls we're juggling. How these folks do it all, I don't know. But I have no choice but to quickly figure it out. They had my Blackberry ready before I even had ammo!
On the first day, I met the nice local who introudced himself as the housekeeper. I don't remember his name, but I've learned to just smile and nod when I don't want people repeating things 1,000 times. He cleans the building I work in, and at the time when I met him he was ironing the General's uniform. I was told he'd gladly iron mine too but I prefer the rugged look...you know, kinda like I'm deployed.
My room is decent and the building I'm in is similar to your standard dorm style living. Indoor plumbing; raise the roof! Somewhat of an oxymoron is a sign in the bathroom advising users not to consume the water, but states that it is disinfected and safe for hygiene uses. Riddle me this, how can you not consume water that you'd use to brush your teeth? I just stick to bottle water for keeping my braces sparkly. The size of my room is definitely manageable for six months and we (my room mate and I) have a TV and mini fridge.
The camp is not too large and there are only two main streets, but the paths between all the buildings is like an awful maze. The amenities are pretty good too. The spa is open daily and they wax eyebrows for $5 and you can get a full body, 50 min massage for wait for it...$20! Winning all around. There are also shops that are open daily that sell everything from $1 bootlegs, handmade rugs and scarves, clothes and shoes, and anything your heart can fancy. They also bring in local vendors for a bizarre every Friday and once a month there is a women's only vendor sale.
So let me rewind to my trip from the airport to the camp. That was definitely the most intense 20+ minute ride of my life. Unfortunately, I'll have to leave it at that. Just know once I am on my flight home I won't lose any sleep if I don't ever come to or near Afghanistan again.
Well I don't wanna miss chow, gotta go!
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