Diary Entries

as I was in 2003

as I was in 2003

The table of contents is below. Follow the submenu links on the right side to read several different days’ entries.

The front matter of the book, along with the complete first chapter of the book can be found on the iUniverse site so I have not reproduced them here. If you really want a kilo of dead tree matter, you can order the book here through Amazon.  It is POD and doesn’t matter if you buy it new or used from any of the off-sale shops. By far better is to go with the eBook directly from the publisher.

It may seem like you are joining an ongoing story; true. I originally started sending a daily email to family and friends when I deployed to the Balkans in March of 1998, as Commander of Task Force Med Eagle. On redeployment, my email list dropped to about twenty-five. I continued my emails, although a bit sporadic over the next several years. On departure for Kuwait, I added new friends and colleagues to most of my original readers This book contains those daily notes from my April 2003 arrival in Kuwait until departure in August 2004.

All events noted here actually happened. The names of most individuals have been replaced by their duty position, or occupation, where appropriate. A number of major missions have only minor mention because of operational security at that time. Any events or operations that would be considered of a classified nature were never included in the first place. Reality and truth far outrank fiction in making life interesting.

Sitting in Kuwait, we were not at significant risk. I saw units and personnel en route north to Iraq, and returning for redeployment to home station. There were good times. And those times which were more than challenging. From leaving home, for fifteen-plus months on the ground, this was my world.

Content

 

Foreword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix

April 2003—Arrival . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

May 2003—Settling In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

June 2003—New Personnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 54

July 2003—Making a Difference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . 94

August 2003—Future Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

September 2003—Not Always Easy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 160

October 2003—Older, No Wiser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . 199

November 2003—Rain and PDHA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

December 2003—Weather, Whither, Mid-tour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

January 2004—Troop Movement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . 278

February 2004—Medical Unit Rotations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

March 2004—N**y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

April 2004—A Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362

May 2004—Little Victories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . … . . . . 395

June 2004—Shifting South. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433

July 2004—Holding On. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . 465

August 2004—Going Home. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. . . . . . 498

Afterword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . 509

Glossary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511

Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521

About Holly Doyne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523