War Without Internet

It turns out the loss of wi-fi access at the BX is permanent. He has access at his office, but that is a gubmint computer that is authorized for official use only, so access to personal email, Facebook, etc. is blocked. His new quarters don’t have access. That leaves the USO as the only access point, and that requires signing up for a 30-minute appointment, which is now in much higher demand since the BX went dark.

Oddly, he has found he has better access when they fly out to smaller, more forward-deployed operations bases. With the much smaller population they have a better supply/demand ratio, I guess. One such base he visited lately was so small he could stand in the middle and view all four walls.

Enough of that. If internet access is one of his major issues, then we are grateful that so much more of his situation and condition is satisfactory.

So why the new hooch? Nate has a new squad leader, a new buck sergeant. She was worried about maintaining accountability over her charge, so she had all of her squad members who were living someplace other than her housing area relocate to be near her. Her predecessor must have had amazing tracking skills.

Nate's had an interesting time adjusting. He didn't expect things at a forward operating base in war zone half way around the world to be so "normal" and familiar. He expected some major culture shock, and having to deal with living under some sense of imminent danger. But no, it's like any other American military base. Plus sand. Plus contractors who don't speak english. Or spanish. It's strange how the familiar can be disconcerting when you expect the unfamiliar.

He'll get a chance or two to get away from it. He had requested 2 weeks of R&R to come back to the states in March, but a classic Army foul-up has made it April now. He is also told to expect a 4-day pass or two to Qatar. That sounds like a good time on a world-class beach.