The Angel Sistas

The Angel Sistas have moved...

2006-08-30T22:10:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if you would call this an ending but it is definitely a new beginning. Nelly and I have a new home thanks to the hard work of Wendy.

http://darkblueworld.info/coaliton.angels//

This will be the last post of the Angel Sistas. We hope you will continue to read about our experiences as we support deployed troops.

God bless!

Thank God he is ok

2006-08-29T17:10:00.000-07:00

I have to admit, I was getting worried about our brother, Ryan, again. I have written him so many times and haven't heard back from him. When he has gotten quiet, something was wrong. Well, my instincts once again were verified...

Finally, after not hearing from him in about 3 weeks, I got an email from him today. If it hasn't been one thing with him, it has been another. Well, ya know what he said today?

I'm back. I had my tonsils taken out and am on light duty now.

When he gets home, Nelly and I are going to have to finally meet him considering he is our adopted brother and we have been thru a lot with him. And maybe then, we will get another picture that he promised us :-)

Sure we get attached to our soldiers but he is more than a soldier/friend...he is our brother.

Their tour got extended

2006-08-27T01:23:00.000-07:00

About 3 weeks ago, I got an email from one of my e-pals, Steve, to let me know that he will be heading home in a couple of days. I had asked him to please let me know when he arrived home. He promised me he would.

Needless to say, I didn't hear from him till today. I had forwarded him a joke and he wrote back...

I wish I was writing to say I was finally home. I guess the President was so impressed with the job we did in Mosul for a year, decided to extend our tour and send our unit down to baghdad.

Steve is not sure when they will be home now. He asked for prayers that they will not have to spend another Christmas in Iraq.

I can't imagine how they are feeling. They were just 5 days away from coming home and then they got the rug pulled out from under them and were sent to Baghdad. Families were getting ready for their homecoming, the unit was pretty much all packed up, and their job was finished where they were. I understand there is always the possibility of the tour getting extended because there is a job to do. What I don't understand is why does the government wait till a unit is just days away from going home?

My heart breaks for the families. Children, wives, husbands, moms, dads, brothers, and sisters all looking forward to their loved ones finally coming home, only to have the rug pulled out from under them too when they are told that their loved ones aren't coming home yet.

I need to get Steve's new address to send him and his unit something to try and cheer them up. The only thing that will truly cheer them up would be to come home. But it won't hurt to try and send them a little cheer and extra support.

Please keep them in your prayers that they will be home soon.

Finally, the letters got out!

2006-08-24T20:52:00.000-07:00

WOO HOO!! I finally found a post office that knows what they are doing. On Monday, I had talked to Karen at the post office when I went to send out packages to one of my officials and brother as well as letters to the British troops. I told her that no one else understood the address and wouldn't process the envelope. She told me to bring them into them and they would get them out no problem.

The letters that I had written for German troops about 3 weeks ago finally were sent out today. (Of course I rewrote them because I couldn't send the others with the old date.) A big thank you goes to the ladies at the Pleasanton Post Office. Those gals KNOW what they are doing! They didn't even question me about the address and that it wasn't a APO or FPO.

From now on, I won't attempt sending out any packages or letters to our troops thru the post office right around the corner from where I live. I will only go to the one that is close to where I work.

Pretty soon, I will be on a first name basis with all the ladies that are at the Pleasanton Post Office and they will get to know our soldiers :-)

We will be adopting another soldier next month

2006-08-21T18:39:00.000-07:00

I am sure we will be adopting more soldiers before September but I found out that next month my brother-inlaw's brother, Kevin, will be deployed to Iraq. My sister, Tina, told me that his mom will be sending him packages. Also, my sister's Brownie troop will be adopting him. But you know what? A soldier cannot have too many people looking out for him/her.

As soon as my sister gets his addy in Iraq, I will get it from her and we Angels and Valkyries will adopt him!

I have known Kevin for 12 years and I still don't see him as being old enough to be in the military, let alone be deployed to Iraq. When I first met him, he had just started high school. That's how I still see him, as a teenager in high school, even though I know he is 26.

His family is proud of him and so am I. He will always be in my prayers along with ALL of our men and women in the military.

GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS!

He's joining the Air Force

2006-08-20T16:44:00.000-07:00

My step-brother, Brandon, got his orders...He leaves for the Air Force on September 5th. My step-mom wrote me to tell me and she asked if I would keep him in my prayers. She knows the support that I give to our troops and wanted to know if I had room for one more. OF COURSE!!

We Angels and Valkyries do not turn anyone away! It will probably be a while before he gets deployed but as his big sister, I will support him anyway.

He is making me proud to be his sister (even if I am only a step-sister).

Is it so difficult?!?!

2006-08-18T21:50:00.000-07:00

I have to vent for a second...Is it so damn difficult to show our soldiers that they are cared about?!?! Really, wtf?!?! Are people so wrapped up in their lives that they can't take time out to write a letter or two (or if you are me, Nelly and other Angels, a couple thousand) for soldiers who are trying to make this world a safer place to live?!?! It really irritates me that people behave like this and they are the reason why our soldiers think that no one cares about them!

I don't care what your opinion is about the war. You can think what you want to about it but just don't disrespect and ignore our soldiers! What I care about is our soldiers and how they feel as if no one cares!

Do you know how long it takes to get it thru to a soldier that we care and aren't gonna abandon them like others have done? At times, I have struggled to get the point across to soldiers that there are people who do care. It breaks my heart to hear the words from them..."people just don't care about us".

It is time more people show our troops, whether American, German, Canadian, Dutch, British, Australian, or any other country, that they are appreciated! It's not difficult to say "Thank you!" Try it some time, you'll be amazed at the friendship that will develop.

Courage of our troops

2006-08-17T21:05:00.000-07:00

Let me introduce you to Doug and Mark...

I had the honor to be able to write Doug because of Tim. Ya see, Doug and Tim are friends who are deployed in Afghanistan. One day about 2 weeks ago, I had been talking to Tim and he told me about Doug. So when I sent Tim a package, I included a letter of thanks for Doug.

Doug was on a convoy that had gotten hit. As you can see, Doug suffered some injuries, including some schrapnel in his neck. Mark was on the same convoy and got schrapnel in his foot. Fortunately, there was no loss of life! Even with their injuries, they helped get their buddies to safety. The courage of our troops amazes me!

Doug wrote me to thank me for the letter and the kind words. He happened to include his picture. What a nice guy but again...they all are!

He won't see the full support that we Angels and Valkyries give because he and his unit will be heading home soon but them heading home is the best thing for them. I am just thankful that I was given the opportunity to write him. Sometimes it is the kindest words that bring the biggest smile to a Heroes face.

Cool scarves

2006-08-15T18:43:00.000-07:00

I decided it was time to try something new...making cool scarves for our soldiers. Sure the summer is almost over but I thought maybe they could still use them.

My adventure began by going to the store to get the fabric and crystals. My daughter and I climbed into the car. She was in her flower girl dress from my sister-in-law's wedding and I had on my Spongebob pj's. Needless to say, we got looks like we were crazy, hahaha.

Anyway, I picked up the fabric, no problem. It was the polyacrylicamide crystals that was a pain in the boo-ta-ta to find. According to the instructions you can find these crystals at any craft, home improvement, or general store. YEAH RIGHT!

The first store, of course didn't carry them. So off to the craft store we went. The two employees that I asked looked at me as if I was talking a foreign language that they didn't understand. They had to go find someone else to ask since they had no clue what I was talking about. So, Mikayla and I dressed up the bears while we waited, hehehe. Needless to say, they didn't have them.

Store #3...this was the best. I walk into the home improvement store and instead of looking all over the store for the crystals, I asked if they carried them. I didn't get the look of...huh? They asked me, "do you want those in flat, eggshell, semi-gloss, or glossy." HELLO! It's not paint! I had explained that to them and they still asked the question, sheesh. By this point I was flustered and left.

I was gonna head home but I was determined to find these crystals. I tried one more store...EUREAKA!!! They carried the crystals! WOO HOO!!!! It was finally time to go home and start to sew.

This is the first time I have made these and I don't have very much experience with sewing. But it is high time I learn...

I wanted to send something in packages that were made from the heart and would help our troops to stay cool while out in the heat...

Not too bad of a mess for someone who is still learning to sew, huh?...

Finally, two days later and they are done...

I sent the first 10 off last week. Hopefully I will hear from my "test" soldier, Tim, soon if they worked the way they are supposed to or not.

Even though it will be cooling off soon, I will continue to make them throughout the winter. By the time the hot weather comes around next year, I will have plenty stocked up to send out. Nelly has asked if I can send some to one of her soldiers and I will be sending some out to our other soldiers as soon as I get more made.

I can't wait!!

2006-08-10T18:45:00.000-07:00

My unofficial, Ron, gave me the best news today...He will be home soon!!! He can't give me a leave date but he said that he will be home in time to bring his family to come and meet me and my family in October!

I think I have told of how I met Ron but just in case, here it is again (brief)...

Meet Ron...

I wrote him a letter after receiving his name from my LWT leader. Not long after I mailed the letter, I received a IM from him. It didn't take long for a friendship to form and for the harassment to begin, hahaha.

He told me about his family and how he was gonna be a daddy again. Unfortunately, he could not make it home to welcome his daughter into the world but he shared pictures with me that he received. What a cutie patootie she is!

He had to celebrate his 21st birthday in Iraq. Well...me and my big mouth promised him 2 bottles of Crown so he can really celebrate his 21st b-day when he gets home and I don't break a promise. However, there will be a rule that accompanies the Crown though...He is NOT allowed to drink them both in one night! He already knows, no drinking and driving (we've discussed that). He's very responsible for only being 21.

He constantly picks on me about my age (and no, I'm not old), so I have to remind him that I will kick his ass. He started pretty low on the Angel Sistas Ass Kicking List but he has managed to maintain the#2 spot, hahaha. Of course he doesn't believe that I will kick his ass but I guess I will have my chance to prove it when he and his family visit in October :-) We talk a lot of smack but that's how our friendship works. Even though we pick on each other most of the time, we have vented to each other too.

October can't get here fast enough! Two months and counting...

Here for our soldiers

2006-08-10T09:33:00.000-07:00

I am forever telling our soldiers that I am here anytime they need or want to talk. They usually tell me that they don't want to burden me with their issues (not sure if that is the best word to use). I'm not sure if they understand that as an Angel, a Valkyrie, and a friend, I can sense when something is bothering them. When I get the feeling that something is wrong, I offer to listen but I don't push them to talk.

In the last several days, some of my soldiers have been taking me up on my offer to be here to listen. I won't go into detail because I respect the fact that they feel comfortable with talking to me. Sometimes soldiers don't want to worry their family even more than they already are and it helps them to talk to a friend when he/she is having a rough day.

If I could make it better for them, I would in a heartbeat. Sometimes I feel I should be doing more to help our soldiers but I guess being there to listen when they need to talk is one of the best things that I can do. But sending out letters and care packages doesn't hurt either :-)

Meet our Valkyrie adoptees

2006-08-09T10:53:00.000-07:00

Ok, it is time you meet our first Valkyrie adoptees. They are awesome. What can I say about them? Well...

Meet Tim...

He was the first to respond to one of my letters to the Canadian troops. He is stationed in Afghanistan and is one of the few who got an eleven month tour vs. the standard six months. Right off the bat I knew he was unique. In his letter he said, "I do it (his job as a soldier) so I can make a difference." Well guess what? That's why Nelly and I support our troops, so we can make a difference. Ever since he wrote me back, we have become friends and talk as often as we can.

Now, meet Arjan...

He was the lucky second soldier to become a Valkyrie adoptee. Arjan is from Holland but is stationed with Canadian soldiers. They are actually part of an multi-national camp. He cracked me up from the beginning. In his letter he said, "What do we do with a Dutch dude you are thinking?" I knew right then he and I would hit it off. We have just about the same sense of humor. His wife is beautiful. He shared their wedding pictures with me. I have talked with her a couple of times and she is very nice. She would like to help Nelly and I with the Valkyries. :-)

Meet Carl...

I'm not sure if he is aware that he has been adopted by the Valkyries. I should let him know that ;-) Anyway, Carl is hilarious and is also from Canada. He keeps giving me pointers for riding my motorcycle, "Keep the shiny side up." Sheesh, ya drop it once and ya get harassed forever but I wouldn't have it any other way, hahaha. Carl is a newlywed and is spending his first year of marriage deployed. He said that he has been told that the first year of marriage is the hardest. Well, I hate to tell him this but it doesn't get any easier the longer you've been married, sorry.

Each one of our soldiers holds a special place in our hearts because they not only become a friend but they become a part of our family. They share their family with us, their good days, and their bad days. I am just glad that we can be there for them as a Soldiers' Angel, Valkyrie, and a friend when they need to talk or just want to laugh.

Back from a break

2006-08-06T09:14:00.000-07:00

This Angel and Valkyrie is back!!! Unfortuntately, my support for our troops kind of took a back seat. I am not going to go into great detail but my world was crushed on July 8th. My sister and I lost our mom that day. Since then, I have been piecing my life back together and it is not easy. I would like you to meet my sister, we call her "T"...

It is time for me to get back into what I do, take care of my family and our soldiers. I working on getting packages together for Tim, Arjan, Carl and Jerry.

Oh, speaking of Tim and Arjan...I am waiting to get permission from them to post their picture so I can introduce them to the world. They have been so busy lately, so I wait for the right time to ask them.

I met Tim from writing letters to Canadian soldiers. He is such a sweetie but aren't they all? Tim is our very first Valkyrie adoptee :-) He tries to act tough but I break him down, hahaha. He is tough to crack on some things though. For a long time, he didn't want me to send him a package, he just wanted to have another friend to talk to. He thought I was obligated to do that. I had to explain to him that I don't feel obligated, I send out packages because I want to.

Arjan, what can I say about Arjan? He is a Dutch soldier that got one of my letters that I had sent to the Canadian soldiers. He is a sweetie too and our 2nd Valkyrie adoptee. He has shared wedding pictures. He and his wife make a great couple. I have talked to her a couple of times and she is very sweet too. Talking to Arjan is great because of the cultural differences. I find myself explaining certain American phrases to him (especially the southern phrases). One of these days, he is gonna use my own words against me, hahaha.

My hope is that one day, I will get to meet our Canadian and Dutch soldiers just like I want to meet my American soldiers. They all hold a special place in my heart and are a part of my family.

International support

2006-07-22T22:09:00.000-07:00

Well, it finally happened. T. Angel and I have ventured out to show our support for deployed troops no matter what country they are from. I can't tell you how many letters we have written but it is in the hundreds.

Thursday, I received the surprise of a lifetime. There was an email from a Canadian soldier!! He told me about himself and some of what he does in the sandbox. Since then we have emailed each other twice a day. This football season is going to be great because he and I really get into football. That means we will be harassing each other :-) He explained that they do not get any days off but he will be getting a 4 day pass in August. Normally, their tours last 5 to 6 months but he and a few others will be there till November and they got to the sandbox in January. He sent pictures but I haven't asked for permission to post his, so I can't share at this time. Their safety is first priority!

If receiving one email wasn't enough, I received another email from a Dutch soldier! I was definitely on cloud 9. He told me about his wife and even shared wedding photos of them. They are such a cute couple and were just married in March. He added me to his messenger list and we chatted for almost 2 hours. I told him about my sister, Nelly, and he asked that I give her his contact info because he lives in Holland and that is right next door to Germany. It would bring him some familiarity to talk to someone else that is close to home.

This morning I checked my email and to my surprise, there was another letter from another Canadian soldier. I already like him for his honesty. He said that he was handed my letter and he thought "Oh great, another bleeding heart" but he was pleasantly surprised when he read my letter. He said he was really happy to know that I have a motorcycle. I have to let him know that I just got it and am still learning how to drive it. He told me how much he misses his wife and his '04 Harley Roadking :-) I need to sit down and write him back, unfortunately I haven't had a chance to do that today. I will write him when I am done with this post.

I have 50 letters to German troops that I need to mail off on Monday. I am still trying to find a contact for Australian troops. As soon as I find out where to send letters, 100 letters will be sent out to the Australians.

T. Angel and I are building the international support for deployed troops slowly. We don't want to mess this up. In our hearts, we know that this is what we need to be doing and ain't nothin' gonna stop us!! Watch out world...The Valkyries are on their way!!!

This makes it all worth while...

2006-07-07T12:02:00.000-07:00

One of my soldiers, messaged me this morning. We did our usual harassing of each other. He is becoming more and more a part of my family. When he had to get going, he said "tell your family a soldier says hi". I told him, "no, I will tell my family that *** says hi!" He sounded surprised that my family knows who he is. I let him know that he is a friend to my whole family. What he said next just made me cry and it is what makes being a Soldiers' Angel worth while...

"I was never assigned to you for you to be my angel yet we still became friends."

How can you not take them into your family and your heart when you realize that you are making a difference in their lives? We are already talking about when he gets home that he and his family is gonna come and meet me and my family. I can't wait!!!

GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS!!!

A proud momma moment

2006-06-19T18:48:00.000-07:00

I know that normally, we talk about our Heroes and what we do for them and what they do for us but I am having a proud momma moment and just had to share...

Saturday, our little girl showed us just how grown up she is now. She asked her daddy to take the training wheels off of her bike. He ,of course, was reluctant because he doesn't want his princess to grow up yet. I talked him into it.

They got down to the street and she climbed on her bike. Her daddy was expecting to run along beside her and help her balance but to our surprise... she took off on her own!!! She didn't wobble or fall. She looked like she had been riding for a long time. She made a u-turn and came back towards us gaining more speed.

It wasn't a half hour later and she was racing the little boy from 2 houses down. She was speeding back towards the house and I asked her to slow down and she slammed on her brakes and started to skid. She was funny because she didn't get scared, she said "WOO HOO!!!"
I can tell already she is going to be our "dare-devil". She jumps off the curb with her scooter, jumps the scooter as she goes down the street, and is now trying to pop wheelies on it, hehehehe! She shows no fear. In some ways, I think that is good but it also kind of worries me.

WELCOME HOME TO THE 228TH FSB!!!!!!!!

2006-06-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

THEY'RE HOME!! THEY'RE HOME!! THEY'RE HOME!! Mission accomplished and a job well done! The 228th FSB is home!!!! My official that I adopted last year while he was deployed to Iraq is home!!!!!!!! He contacted me this morning! WOO HOO!!!!

He said that he is doing good but his back is hurting from the long trip back. He's not sure what is in store for them today but they are all just so happy to be home again.

WELCOME HOME

MIKE

AND

THE 228TH FSB!!!

HOOAH!!!!!!

I've been off for a while

2006-06-04T16:38:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to give a little update since I haven't been posting much lately. School has really kept me bogged down for the month of May. Now that my writing classes are over, I am hoping to really get back in the swing of things.

My 2nd official that I adopted last year, comes home this month. He can't tell me when, all I know is sometime this month he will call me to tell me he is home! Believe me, I have grilled him about this but he can't tell me their leave date because of security. I understand and I definitely don't want him to say anything that could possibly jeopordize their safety. He still chats with me online, so I know he is still there. I can't wait for the couple of days in a row that he is not online cuz then I will know he is on his way. Then it won't be long after that, that I get my phone call from him!!!

Our adopted brother, Ryan, e-mailed me today. He apologized for not writing but he got in trouble for mouthing off to the person in charge of the computers and he was banned from using the computers for a couple of days. I almost wrote him back to give him a hard time about it but I didn't. I know his computer time is important to him because that is his outlet sometimes. To surprise him, I am going to send him a special homemade batch of white chocolate chip cookies this week. He really loves those.

My newest official, I have to say, I have not talked to him in a while. I feel so bad that I haven't had time to send him a package lately. When I went out today, I got him a few things that he mentioned that he would like to have. I have to pick up a few more things but I plan on doing that tomorrow and getting his package out to him this week.

And, finally, an update on my 21 yo unofficial that couldn't be home for his daughter's birth. His daughter was born on Mother's day. Mom and baby are doing good. He sent me some pictures of his new little girl and she is adorable. He is getting a 4 day pass soon to Qatar (I hope that's how it is spelled). I am trying to find him a inexpensive digital camera to send to him before he goes. I hope I find one soon cuz I am running out of time to get it to him. He still gives me a hard time everytime we talk. He told me today that he will stop the sarcasm and I told him "DON'T YOU DARE!!!" It's funny how when my soldiers don't pick on me, I think I did something to upset them. He has already told me several times that when he gets home in November, him and his family are going to come to meet me and my family. He is becoming more and more like a brother to me everytime we talk.

Oh, one other update... I bought a motorcycle yesterday! I finally decided it was time to do something really fun. I have talked about learning to drive a motorcycle, so my hubby and I finally went out yesterday and got one. It is a 2006 Kawasaki Ninja 500r and it is candy apple red. I am learning to ride it and already have the battle scars to show for it. Yes, unfortunately, I dropped it yesterday and I landed directly on my knee. It really hurts when you hit the pavement but I am ok. Since then, I have gotten back on it and am taking it slow. Speaking getting back on it, I need to go practice some more before I start on dinner. I will try and post some pics of my "crotch rocket" later :-)

HOOAH!!!! Radio - Buzz For Bucks

2006-05-27T09:29:00.000-07:00

Dom our Manager on HOOAHRADIO has put out a challenge to all hooahradio listeners to rais $2,000 by Memorial Day, he will shave his head bald.

HOOAH!!!! Radio - Buzz For Bucks
Want to see Dom shaved bald? Well, Dom has put out a challenge to all HOOAH!!!! Radio listeners to raise $2,000 dollars by
Memorial Day, May 29st, 2006.
If the challenge is met Dom will shave his head with help from Zam at 10 am EST on Memorial Day.

And, you the HOOAH!!!! Radio listeners will be able to watch it on a
LIVE Video Steam, and pictures will be posted on the website!!
Challenge Goal: $2,000
Raised So Far: $195.00 (as of May 26, 2006 @ 8:24 am EST)

There are no words

2006-05-23T05:43:00.000-07:00

There are no words, listen to it yourself, the poor people... OMG
They first show how the plane crash the WTC than you can listen to a call from someone that was in the building and called 911.. OMG...

SAT 1 is a German TV channel, I remember the day when it happened, I was at work. We had a little radio in the office and I just listened to the news when they said "Two Airplanes hit the WTC"

I ran into another room "HAVE YOU HEARD THAT? TWO AIRPLANES HIT THE WTC?" everybody stopped working. We were looking for more information in the Internet, but it was so overloaded that we couldn't load any website. All of us went home, the streets were empty, it was like a ghost town. Everybody were sitting in front of the TV watching it over and over again. No one could believe that this really happened.

I had to take the train back to my town and people were asking each other if they heard anything news. Total strangers started conversations asking if they heard something, if it was true.

It was true, when I came home the horses were still in paddock, no one has been outside, they all were sitting in front of TV watching the news. No movie was running, no documentary, doesn't matter what channel you were viewing, every channel brought the same picture.

Two Airplanes hitting World Trade Center.
You could listen to the voices, some people filmed the whole szene "OH MY GOD, HOLY SHIT" the voices full of fear, like they don't believe what they just have seen with their own eyes.

Day after day the same picture, two Airplane hitting World Trade Center... and every single time I was crying and was mad. Those that highjacked the Airplane are no human beings, they were MONSTERS!

I have been on a School right next to a US Barracks. There is a little way between the fence and School to get to the Parking Place. When I had to go to School they were outside the gates, patrolling in full Body Armor.

The Schools Director held a speech and we were outside, showing them our solidarity, held each other on our hands and nearly 500 Students have been outside to show that we are with them and that we feel all the same. We were shocked, nobody talked. No teacher thought of doing classes. I have never experienced a total silence in a class room.

We didn't know what to say, everybody was in a total shock, it took nearly two weeks that the teachers were able to teach us.

The world changed on 9/11 and we all felt that it'll never be the same again...

I have been on Ground Zero myself, I have never seen WTC with my own eyes, only on pictures or on TV, but I have seen Ground Zero with my own eyes. The pictures of the missed people still on the wodden wall... it chocked me all up and made me cry, but it did not only made me cry, it also made me mad and angry.

Something Funny

2006-05-21T09:00:00.000-07:00

Ca..a..n..'t re..e..sist...

Do NOT click on this L.I.N.K

HAHAHA I love it.

National Post and it's "Zeitungsente"

2006-05-20T09:23:00.000-07:00

Now that was a shocker, especially as German I thought that Iran must be insane to pass such a law which reminds everybody of Nazi Germany.
The problem is, that this whole story, which appeared to be false (in German we call falls news "Zeitungsente") probably makes it much harder to solve the problems in a "well-mannered" way...

"The Key" of Pallyforums said:

Living in a Canadian city and seeing the front page of the National Post displaying the WWII pictures of Germany Jews with their arm badges on the front page made me pause on the way to work.

You want to know what the National Post wrote? Probably upsetting millions of people all over the world, reminding of a Hitler Regime and Nazi Germany. Well done National Post, well done. Next time check your sources! I am definitely no friend of Iran, but this, posting false news that is upsetting millions of people, false news that can and probably will blockade a peaceful outcome...

Holy Lord, we already have one war, do we really want another one?
I already lost friends, I don't want to lose more, and if there is a chance to solve the problems in a peaceful way let's go for it, but this story... this article of the National Post upsets millions and millions of people, why did you do that? Who has given the green light for this story? What the hell is going on with our world? Is there someone that wants to provoke another war?

You want to know what they wrote? Read and enjoy:

Human rights groups are raising alarms over a new law passed by the Iranian parliament that would require the country's Jews and Christians to wear coloured badges to identify them and other religious minorities as non-Muslims.

"This is reminiscent of the Holocaust," said Rabbi Marvin Hier, the dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles. "Iran is moving closer and closer to the ideology of the Nazis."

Iranian expatriates living in Canada yesterday confirmed reports that the Iranian parliament, called the Islamic Majlis, passed a law this week setting a dress code for all Iranians, requiring them to wear almost identical "standard Islamic garments."

The law, which must still be approved by Iran's "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenehi before being put into effect, also establishes special insignia to be worn by non-Muslims.

Iran's roughly 25,000 Jews would have to sew a yellow strip of cloth on the front of their clothes, while Christians would wear red badges and Zoroastrians would be forced to wear blue cloth.

"There's no reason to believe they won't pass this," said Rabbi Hier. "It will certainly pass unless there's some sort of international outcry over this."

Bernie Farber, the chief executive of the Canadian Jewish Congress, said he was "stunned" by the measure. "We thought this had gone the way of the dodo bird, but clearly in Iran everything old and bad is new again," he said. "It's state-sponsored religious discrimination."

Ali Behroozian, an Iranian exile living in Toronto, said the law could come into force as early as next year.

It would make religious minorities immediately identifiable and allow Muslims to avoid contact with non-Muslims.

Mr. Behroozian said it will make life even more difficult for Iran's small pockets of Jewish, Christian and other religious minorities -- the country is overwhelmingly Shi'ite Muslim. "They have all been persecuted for a while, but these new dress rules are going to make things worse for them," he said.

The new law was drafted two years ago, but was stuck in the Iranian parliament until recently when it was revived at the behest of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Ooooookay... Iran might be not THAT bright, but I don't think they are THAT stupid to pass such a law. Now read this:

Chris Wattie, National Post
Published: Friday, May 19, 2006
Several experts are casting doubt on reports that Iran had passed a law requiring the country’s Jews and other religious minorities to wear coloured badges identifying them as non-Muslims.
The Iranian embassy in Otttawa also denied the Iranian government had passed such a law.
A news story and column by Iranian-born analyst Amir Taheri in yesterday’s National Post reported that the Iranian parliament had passed a sweeping new law this week outlining proper dress for Iran’s majority Muslims, including an order for Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians to wear special strips of cloth.
According to the reports, Jews were to wear yellow cloth strips, called zonnar, while Christians were to wear red and Zoroastrians blue.

Don't we have enough problems with Iran? Do we really need this? Do we?

People say that the National Post leans right, but this goes way beyond the pale, I wonder who has given the green light to post this news. Shouldn't they check if the informations are correct?

I really don't like Iran but writing a false article of a law that does not exist, handing out wrong information ... definitely doesn't help to solve our problems and is the wrong way.

But what if it isn't a "Zeitungsente", what if it is true and there is such a law coming up?

I am pissed off

2006-05-18T18:08:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had theater rehearsals, like usual.
The only time I had no rehearsals was during spring break.
So I digged myself into work and learning for my part. No one EVER said that we would have rehearsals on May 10th, so I did not know about that.
So I went to rehearsals yesterday and two of my schoolmates came as well.
There are only three guys of my School in this Theater Group, the others are people that are out of school for more than 10 years.

They have NOTHING to do with this school, they are done, and it is TEN FREAKING YEARS AGO that they have been in School and graduated from it.

The other two actors are in the middle of graduation. Have a lot of huge tests and oral tests. Anyway the Regisseur of the Theater Play kicked EACH OF US yesterday.

We couldn't believe it.
First, WE are THE ONLY STUDENTS OF THIS FUCKING SCHOOL IN THE PLAY AND HE KICKED US!

Secondly TWO OF US THREE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF GRADUATION

Third, he said it was because we have not been there on Saturday. OOOOKAY!!!!!!!
Some of the other actors, who are already done with School for more than ten years, are late or do not even come to rehearsals. NO ONE TOLD US THAT WE WOULD HAVE REHEARSALS ON SATURDAY AND THEY JUST LOOKED FOR A FUCKING REASON TO KICK US!
It is politics, ALL ABOUT FUCKING POLITICS.
There is a girl, she is NEVER, NEVER on ANY rehearsal and she can do what she ever likes to do, she NEVER will be kicked.
All of us three are so fucking pissed, we know that we are good, we are better than most of the others but they don't want us in this play for what fucking reason ever....
We put a lot of work into it, and we do not even dare to say our opinion because the Regisseur is the Director of the entire school so we fear that it will get back to us in our grades.

You know what?
First all that Anti Americanism on that school, it was so worse that I had to change classes, there was no other way. The other guy is half American half Bavarian and he has a lot of problems with Teachers as well... the other girl is kind of a buddy but had to learn for graduation which is ABSOLUTELY understandable. What is more important? A Theater Play or your future? If the Regisseur does not understand that... you know what? FUCK OFF! Get lucky with your Theater play, we are good enough and there are several Theater Groups that want the three of us, so get happy, we are done with you.

His comments... the reasons why he kicked us. HILARIOUS!

You know what I do tomorrow?
I take my resume, go to another school and get enrolled over there for the next Semester, I am done with that School. The other School actually is a conservative catholic school, I am sure that I won't have the problems over there like I have on my current school.

Perhaps Mohawk is going with me.
(His nickname is Mohawk because his anchestors are native Americans. His Dad served in the Army and married a German.)

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

2006-05-18T04:05:00.000-07:00

OMG!
Our little brother knows when he is going on leave.
Usually he should have gone on leave in May but a couple of things went wrong and so he couldn't go.

He wants to come to Germany for a couple of days and wants to hang out for a bit and finally we have the date and know when he is coming. Weeeeeeeeeeee! That is so awesome that he is coming.

I asked him what he wants to have for his first dinner, you know I expected that he says something like Steak and mashed potatoe, something REAL... you know what he wants?

I havent had a home cook meal in ages lets see what
would i want, a home made burger.Im sick of chicken we eat that so much.

Also it must be horrible over there at the moment, especially because of temperatures.

I hate the feeling of always being wet.
Its so hot it feels like being in an oven constantly, im baked and extra crispy you might say. Sun block is usless i might add it does nothing, when its hot as hell nothing will help.

He said that he is sweating so much that he could probably create his own lake, his feet are hurting from all the walking and that it is hot as hell but that he is all excited that he finally knows when he can go on leave. Also the new team is a lot closer now, thank god.

Little Bro I swear you'll get the best homemade burger EVER!

Urm... does anyone have some good recipes?

Patriot Guard Riders

2006-05-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

"I commend the Patriot Guard Riders, a group of dedicated individuals who upon seeing an injustice, chose to rise up and not permit anyone to dance on sacred ground. At funerals around the country, they have ridden in on their motorcycles, with American flags waving, signaling to those present that they are there to protect the families as they mourn their loss."
- Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs Steve Buyer (IN)

Because of a Vietnam Vet Poser I got into contact with the Patriot Guard Riders and talked to Waldo who is the Deputy Executive Director of PGR.
I asked him if it'd be possible to join up myself and he said that would be no problem, so I became a Patriot Guard Rider.

What is the Mission of Patriot Guard Riders?

The Patriot Guard Riders is a diverse amalgamation of riders from across the nation. We have one thing in common besides motorcycles. We have an unwavering respect for those who risk their very lives for America’s freedom and security. If you share this respect, please join us.

We don’t care what you ride, what your political views are, or whether you’re a "hawk" or a "dove". It is not a requirement that you be a veteran. It doesn't matter where you’re from or what your income is. You don’t even have to ride. The only prerequisite is Respect.

Our main mission is to attend the funeral services of fallen American heroes as invited guests of the family. Each mission we undertake has two basic objectives.

1. Show our sincere respect for our fallen heroes, their families, and their communities.

2. Shield the mourning family and friends from interruptions created by any protestor or group of protestors.

We accomplish the latter through strictly legal and non-violent means.

It is an honor to be part of this Brother and Sisterhood.
Also, PGR have started the OperationPatriot Guard Crossworld, which launched in February 2006

The purpose of this pen-pal program is to unite PGR/ALR members, and their immediate families, with active-duty and retired U.S. soldiers/veterans worldwide.

The PGR/ALR member is asked to make a commitment to send at least one letter per week and one care package every three months.

For more details, or to sign up for this free program, please go to www.danionline.net/opgcw.html

If you have any questions, please contact Dani (kyrieeleison1611) dani@danionline.net

If you want to know more about the Patriot Guard Riders, simply go to their Website at:

http://www.patriotguard.org/

How did Patriot Riders start? That is the History as Jeff writes on the Website:

Several people have asked how the Patriot Guard Riders got started. Here’s what we’ve been able to piece together. If anyone can give us more details, it would be greatly appreciated.

It all started back in early August of 2005 with the American Legion Riders chapter 136 from Kansas. They were appalled to hear that a fallen hero’s memory was being tarnished by misguided religious zealots who were protesting at funerals. They decided to do something about it. At the ALR 136 August meeting, Director : Chuck " Pappy " Barshney appointed members, Terry “Darkhorse” Houck, Cregg “Bronco 6” Hansen, Steve “McDaddy” McDonald, and Bill ”Wild Bill” Logan to form a committee to strategize and form a battle plan to combat Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church.

When they heard that the WBC was going to protest at the Funeral of Sgt. John Doles in Chelsea, Oklahoma, they established a Mission Statement, which included getting the families permission and contacting Law Enforcement and other Motorcycle Groups in Oklahoma. They agreed that their ultimate goal was to get veterans and motorcycle organizations involved in every state so that each state could handle the situation internally and not rely on other states to do the job. They were very successful in mustering riders to honor Sgt. Doles and limiting the intrusion by the WBC.

After the Chelsea Mission the Kansas American Legion Riders wanted all Motorcycle Groups/ Organizations to be recongnized . On the 18th of Oct. 2005 the Patriot Guard name was established and was announced on the 27th of Oct. ,2005 to the 100 + motorcyclists present at the Tonganoxie Mission to Honor Spc Lucas Frantz .

Following the missions in South Haven, KS and a later ride in Edmond, OK, Jeff “Twister” Brown, from Broken Arrow, OK, decided to do more than just ride. He saw a need to get a strong nation-wide communications and recruiting program in place. He contacted the original AL riders in Kansas and told them of his plans. They openly shared their experiences, suggestions, and encouragement. Within a matter of days, Brown had formed the Patriot Guard Riders and began a nation-wide campaign to garner support.

Similarly, after a mission ride in Greeley, CO, Hugh Knaus and Jason “Waldo” Wallin answered the call of the newly formed Patriot Guard Riders, becoming the national webmaster and communications director, respectively. Within a matter of days, a mission statement was refined and a website was built, rebuilt, and launched. A call immediately went out to individual riders and groups across the nation to join and ride with the PGR. State Captains were recruited to work more closely with the members in their area.

The growth has been phenomenal. Within a week their membership included many riders from associations like the VFW, American Legion, Rolling Thunder, ABATE, Combat Vets Motorcycle Association, Intruder Alert, Leathernecks Motorcycle Club, and almost five hundred individual riders. To the credit of Hugh and “Waldo”, the PGR website had received almost 566,000 hits in the first two weeks! Patriots from all over America and several foreign countries responded. Emails were pouring in from people wanting to support and join the newly formed PGR.

So, that’s a pretty concise picture of where we came from and where we are today. A great deal of credit goes to that small group of Kansas American Legion Riders, but none of this could have ever been accomplished without the patriot member who takes time out of their life to honor a fallen soldier and their family.

May 15th

2006-05-17T09:05:00.000-07:00

May 15th... well it is already two days ago but I still want to write about Saba and her experiences...

May 15 is a date that goes by un noticed by well...most people, but not for us palestinians. It is the 58th anniversary of the Nakba..so i ll take this opportunity to fill you in about the nakba and what really happened.

Saba from Bahrain and Beyond is a fellow Blogger. We usually disagree on a lot of things, especially about America, but the both of us simply want the same: FREEDOM.
Anyway, Saba is a very nice girl and I like reading her blog because I get another perspective and point of view. Her story has a lot to do with Germanys History, and I do know that Germanys History is responsible for so much pain, pain that probably will never stop....

We did not only bring pain to the Jews, we brought it to the Jews and to Palestine...

My mother's family fled to Syria, where my dad's stayed in Ram allah. My grandfather's city was demolished entirely (Tiberius), so they were forced to leave their houses and belongings behind. They were put on trucks and taken away, aparently forever. They have no right of return, none of my mum's family is allowed to go back. They havent been to Palestine since 1948, as of now my grandparents reside in Jordan, with Jordanian passports and Jordanian nationalities. The nationality was passed on to all their four children. My dad being raised and lived most of his life in palestine is still allowed to go and reside there because he has a palestinian nationality or (green card "no not the american"). We dont have passports but have these cards. Now i have one, because i went to palestine before turning 16 years old and i applied for a citizenship. My brother however who is 16 now could nt get a granted permit to enter palestine because he is a boy. SO now he doesnt have a palestinian nationality or jordanian nationality. *sigh*. Thought i would share my joyful history with you all! And remember this day is the day where we all look back and hope to go home some day.some day!

If there would be a possibility to turn back the time and change History I would do so... our anchestors are responsible for so much pain...

Memorial Day

2006-05-16T14:51:00.000-07:00

Lord help Germany when we get together.

I have never celebrated memorial day. That'll be the first time ever.

One of the paratroopers called me up and said I should come out because they want to celebrate with me, so I told him to jump into a car and get to my place to hit the town so they'll see a little more than just Stuttgart.
So he asked if he could bring a buddy and I told him that'd be no problem.
So I made a couple of calls as well and asked Dave if he'd like to come as well. When I said that one of them probably needs a matraze he said:

"HECK WE ARE SOLDIERS, WE SLEEP ON THE GROUND!!!"

So IF things are working out we'll invade the town on memorial day and Lord help Germany when we all get together!

If that doesn't work out Dave will come out when he is on leave in July.

Morgan also sent me the picture of the Ball.I am so proud of them, aren't they all just beautiful and gorgeous?
Doesn't Morgan just look beautiful? When Menno saw her pick he held his breath heh.
Dave and Brad just look gorgeous.

Hopefully the both of you can meet up while Morgan is on leave. It is the first time off since she is back from Iraq. Well she had weekends but theis is the first time that she has 30 days to get her mind straightened out and some rest you know...

Dave and me are sometimes talking for hours, it is like I am talking to an older brother. We were also talking about George and he said that he kind of understands George because the Army could be kind of a Relationshipkiller and that he probably don't want to hurt me but that the Army keeps them THAT busy that IF you have time for yourself you take it to relax and don't think of anything else.
I know about that, I do know about everything, that the Army keeps them busy, and that they sometimes do not have ANY time, yet it still hurts and the only thing I can do is just to move on.

Can you believe that I still have his plants, socks and shirt? I don't think he'll ever pick them up.
He probably has new plants that will die when he goes to the next gunnery unless Nicks Girlfriend takes care of them.

I wonder if he holds the promise to come back, he said he never quits a friendship and promised to come back... I wonder if he does....
I better don't wait for him.

Military Counseling

2006-05-16T14:33:00.000-07:00

The appointment with the Chaplain was pretty good. First thing I could hear when I rang the doorbell was the barking of the two little pomeranian dogs.
One of them black, the other one white.
The white one was a little rat. He did not stop barking and the Chaplain sent him out of the room.
The black one was pretty neat.

Anyway, I talked to the Chaplain and asked him if he could help me to find out who is responsible for military counseling in my town. So he took a look into a huge red book and searched for military counseling, after he found what he was looking for he called his secretary and they made copies of the pages.

He was the first person I talked to that did NOT get into a political discussion.

Anyway, when I came home I got into contact with the counselor, he is on a training at the moment but we made an appointment and I will talk to him next week.

He did not make it

2006-05-16T03:09:00.000-07:00

Remember the post "Life ain't fair"?

I called the German Staff Sergeant today because of the telephonenumber for a counsellor.

"How is your buddie doing?" I asked
"His problems are solved"
"What?"
"He did not make it" he said with a dry tone in his voice.
"Oh my god, when?" I asked. I expected everything but that.
"During the surgery, last week" he said "But I have no time to think of it, I have a training and Graduation from School, the test will be Thursday so I have to think of this first."
"You will make it, I know you will."

So his buddie did not make it.

Life just ain't fair.....

Where ever you are.... rest in peace, you'll be always in our hearts.

Armor4Troops

2006-05-12T21:59:00.000-07:00

Just because I like Lt.Col.Ledee and because Armor4Troops did so much for my Troopers I'd like to say thank you to them.

Lt.Col.Ledee is a great great man, always helpful and nice.
He has done a lot for my troops and the first time we talked he was pretty surprised that a German was calling him because of Armor.
So I first had to explain that I was calling for American Troops...

Anyway, since that day I've called him a couple of times and he always sent gear to my troopers when I requested it.

So what is Armor4Troops ?

Founded in December, 2004 by Marine officers, who wanted to make a difference by providing some critical needed equipment to our American troops fighting terrorism in various foreign countries in support of our nation. The Armor 4 Troops Foundation is a national, non-profit, charitable organization. We are located, licensed and duly registered in the State of Georgia. Our "tax-exempt" status as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization was approved by the Internal Revenue Service on February 22, 2005.

LtCol. Robert Ledee, Executive Director, is a highly decorated combat veteran who served his country during Four wars over his thirty one year career. Among his many service decorations are:

Purple Heart Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, 17 Air Medals-Individual Actions, 2 Presidential Unit Citations, 4 Vietnam Service Medals, 3 National Defense Service Medals, Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, 3 Letters of Commendation from Marine Corps Generals, and many others.

Since the inception of Armor 4 Troops Foundation, LtCol. Ledee has been honored and appeared on national talk shows, national and local newspapers and radio stations across the United States.

The Armor 4 Troops Foundation is solely dedicated to the constructive efforts of supporting our American troops.

Lt.Col.Ledee also said that when ever I need help with my Troopers I could always call him.
You know, one day I am truly going to Atlanta to hug the Colonel because he has done so man great things for our Troopers.

Anyway, Armor4Troops is a Foundation and therefore it needs help:

Please understand that without the generosity of everyone who has made a donation to the Armor 4 Troops Foundation, no matter how small, none of what we have accomplished for our American Fighting Force and protectors of our Freedoms, would have been possible. To all of you who have shown your support, we are truly grateful.

As of May12, 2006, the Armor 4 Troops Foundation has delivered or shipped directly to our American troops in the field, Two Thousand Eighteen (2,018) pairs of protective anti-ballistic eyewear, in addition to the hundreds of multi-function tools, Under-Armour, anti-bacterial socks, compressed rubber boot pads and many other sundry products to improve the quality of life to our troops.

We are proud to say that over 95.31% of all donations that we have received have gone towards purchasing this equipment for our American Troops. This is the highest percentage of any charitable organization in the U.S.

If you want to know more of Armor4Troops simpy visit the Website at http://www.armor4troops.org/ and perhaps you can leave a little donation so our troops can be provided with Body Armor and Gear.

It's truly a small world

2006-05-12T19:16:00.000-07:00

I am a not only a Soldiers Angel, I am also a Patriot Guard Rider.
Yep, you heard right, a Patriot Guard Rider.
Well, I am in Germany but the reason I am a PGR is that I think it is a good thing to support.
The PGR's guard Families from Protestors on Funerals.

I came into Contact with PGR because of Dale Peters.
Dale Peters claimed to be a Vietnam Vet and told me that he has two serving sons.
However, he betrayed a lot of people, including me and finally was busted by ArmyParatroopers.org (I've asked them for help and they did a great great job).
So I came into contact with Waldo of the PGR's and when I updated him on Dale (Because he also said he was PGR) I also asked him if it'd be possible to become a PGR as German.
Walso said that this wouldn't be a problem and so I joined them.

When I opened my Introduction over there I never thought I'd actually meet the Daddy of a friend of mine, but read yourself:

Hi Nelly.....good to "meet" you. This is truly a small world. I'm sitting here in a radio station in Laurens, South Carolina with a young man named Matthew Allen who says to tell you hello. I'm pretty sure you also know my son, Josh. Welcome to the PGR.

Steam Randy Stevens Laurens SC

That is too funny, isn't it? The Daddy of a good ol' friend (Josh, who also is a blogger) of mine is the State Captain of South Carolina. I didn't know that. When I read that post it totally freaked me out, I was sitting on my desk and laughing my butt off. I never thought and expected to see the Daddy of a good ol' friend, or Matthews' name on the PGR Forum. I was so surprised and this is kind of a typical Nelly story... always good for a surprise hahaha :)

Matthew is a Physics and German Language Student on Clemson University. He is a buddy of Josh and when he came to Germany I promised to pick him up on Frankfurt Airport.
That way Matthew and me became friends. We had a great time and he visited Amsterdam with my best friend and bro Menno. We hang out a loooot of times at my place and had a lot of fun.

Another nice storie happened when I made the Show for Greg of GregNotes.
Dave of "Dave is not here" contacted me and said that it would be a nice thing to do.
Two days later we talked again and found out that he was stationed in Mannheim Coleman Barracks. So we had a lot of things to talk about because I am grown up right next to Coleman Barracks.
It was so funny, because we know the same stores, like Fantasy Forest (which happen to be a Roleplaying Game Store) or Prinz, he knows the Compost Pile, Dog Cannels, Sunflower Fields which are gone... MANY THANKS TO IKEA for that!!!

It is always funny to meet somebody that was stationed at Coleman Barracks, there are so many memories and it always ends up in "Hey do you know this and that?" or "Have you been there or at that place?"

I wonder if he was one of the Soldiers that used to jog through the streets while I was waiting for the Schoolbus...

This is what it feels like

2006-05-12T12:07:00.000-07:00

I've been working most of the day, so I didn't notice that my roommate left for the weekend.
When I went to the kitchen I've seen that little orange envelope on the Sidebar. It was for me.
When I'v seen where it came from I had a HUGE Grin on my face.

So this is what it feels like, huh?

Guys, I know exactly what you feel when you get a letter! It is the most wonderful thing you can get. It can rise your spirit for nearly a month and you can live from it.

There was a little red box in heart form in it and a postcard.
My Austrian friend (who is serving in the Austrian Armed Forces) sent a little valentines present, because he was so busy he couldn't send it earlier. So he send a little postcard with it and said I would be not allowed to use it for the Soldiers because this would be only for me, and ONLY for me, hahahahaha and that comes from a Soldier.
Rob, I promise you to not use it for my Soldiers, but I want you to know that you put a huge smile and grin on my face.

Sometimes I think you can read my mind, it came the right moment to rise my spirit :)

Thank you!

She said the words...

2006-05-10T19:48:00.000-07:00

Last night as I was tucking our daughter into bed, she looked at me with the most innocent eyes and said, "Mommy, Kyle kissed me and now we have to get married."
After I picked my mouth up off the floor, I looked at her and asked, "What do you mean and does Daddy know about this?" She went on to explain that when you get a kiss, that means that you are going to get married.
I asked her where did Kyle kiss her, was it on the cheek, hand, or on the lips.
I wanted to know.
She tugged on her lip and said, "Here, mommy." I asked her did that mean on the lips and she said "Yeah." Once again, I asked her if she had told her daddy and she giggled and said "nope".

Well, here's the part where it gets really good.

Mat came walking into her room to say good night and I looked at him, without trying to laugh, and asked him if he knew about this situation.
I kid you not, he stopped dead in his tracks, got this total serious look on his face and said, "WHAT?!?!" Mikayla covered her mouth and started giggling. As I got up to leave the room, I patted Mat on the shoulder and told him "That's your girl, hehehe!" I really thought he was gonna blow a gasket.

Our daughter is only 4, so you know how kids are at this age. But being a "Daddy's little girl", that logic went out the window in my hubby's mind, hahaha. It took him a good 5 minutes to calm down.

I feel really sorry for the poor soul that comes to our house to take "his little girl" out for that first date.

New Family Members

2006-05-10T11:39:00.000-07:00

We are having new family members.
(I've stolen that pic from Daves site haha)

Morgan, Dave and Brad!

The three recently came back from Iraq. Dave and Brad are battle buddies. I don't know Brad yet but Dave said I should simply count him in.

Morgan and me have a lot in common, we went through similar kind of stuff so she sees me as a Sister. Same here Morgan, same here, and I will never fail my little Sister.

Belle, I hope you have no problems that our Family is growing and growing and growing.
Besides you'll love them, Dave and me talked for hours and hours, on phone and messanger, we laughed our butts off. The three are stationed in Germany but Morgan goes on leave soon.
After she comes back from leave they plan to come to Münster.

You know what Dave said to that?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA You do have a soldier's sense of humor!!!!!!!! I love it!!!!!!!!
You have you definitely have, like I said before Lord help Germany when we all get together!

You know, the both of us have the same humor, and the both of us are sometimes worse than Soldiers... you'll fit right into it, as well as Debi.

HA! From what I can see, Dave is definitely right, Lord help Germany when we all get together because we definitely rock the town and I'll drink one for ya'll.

I have been good to myself

2006-05-10T03:48:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you just have to do something for yourself too.
I have been talking to a couple of girls on USMILNET that go through the same thing.
It is called PTSD!
Yes I am facing my demons.
I finally face them and it took me years to realize that I have a huge problem.

Anger, there is a lot of Anger inside me and everytime someone is pulling a trigger I totally freak out. Sleepless nights.
People sometimes ask me if I ever sleep.
Well, to be honest, I barely sleep.
I was a longterm sleeper in the past and I slept like a stone all day long.... today you easily can wake me up and it happens that I stay up all night long just because of the darkness.
My friends sometimes laugh at me because I am jumpy.
They say it is easy to scare me off, well yes it is and there are reasons that I am easily scared off and jumpy.

I carried so much weight with me, for so long.. you just gotta smile and people think you are allright, just be funny and horse around and nobody asks any questions. Most of the people don't want to deal with your Shit anyway so you better hide it and never let it out.
Suck it up!
Yes... suck it up... but you can't do that for a long time. It'll eat you up. It'll make you furious and freak you out and one day, one day you will realize that you MUST face your demons before they'll totally eat you up.

So I finally faced my demons, talked to Goldie, Morgan and the other girls that face the same demons, caused by war or personal experiences...
Goldie has a huge knowledge about PTSD, she deals with more than four years with people like me and the other girls, for more than four years with people that struggle with PTSD and I've never thought that someone could get through my wall. Someone where I finally listen to.
Many called me hardliner or blind because I always ran in a defensive mode to defend my guys.
It was a trigger, and everytime someone is pulling that trigger I see a huge red flag and freak out.
Goldie made me think, her words are pure wisdome and experience in combination with knowledge which is good for your soul and make you think.

"Be good to yourself first"

So I have been good to myself first, I went to the little store where I use to get stuff for my Soldiers and bought a book for myself.
Not for my Soldiers, it was for myself, than I went downtown, got some "Iced Latte" at Miners, sat down and pulled out the little book I keep writing for Apollo.

When I ordered the next "Iced Latte" the female Bartender asked me if I am American and I had to admit I am not and realized that I ordered in English.
I live English more than German and don't think of switching back sometimes.
For Europeans I sound like an American, even people from England thought I am.
Americans still can see the different, I do have an accent and I'll probably never get rid of it. Some Americans forget that I am not a native and assume that I know everything of the English language but sometimes it takes a little mistake of using the wrong word or simply "You" instead of "Ya'll" ... and people can take it personally...

Anyway I switched back into "German Mode" and told her I am no American, that I just was in the "English Mode" like usual and we had a good laugh...

Afterwards I went to the little park behind the church.
It is such a peaceful place.
I sat down, pulled out my book and started reading, than I noticed that muslime woman that sat opposite me. Having a little West Highland Terrier on her knees, a German Shepard in front of her. Talking to both of them in fluently German. She obviously was waiting for someone. I watched her and the other people a little while and started reading the book.
After a little while a young boy ran through the park
"MOMY, MOMY.. LOOK WHAT I GOT!"
The little boy was so happy and went to the muslime woman. He was wearing a Shirt in army camo colors. Than he showed his mom what he bought, it was a Leopard 2 KFOR Tank.
It was one of these things you have to build and paint yourself.
His eyes were sparkling and he spoke fast.

"Mom, Mom, Mom, I am so glad I got it, I am so happy, and it didn't even cost 10€ so I was able to get a present for my brother." he said
"Let me take a look on the box" his mom said and started reading the instruction.
"Hon, they betrayed you, this is for kids in age of 13, you are just 8, you will have no fun with that, let's bring it back." she said.

The boy was stunned, his head was hanging and his mom kept talking to him.
"Listen, you can go to the other store, it is just over the street. Get yourself something you can play with but this will be to difficult for you. So let me bring back the tank and get the money back. "

So the boy sat down and his mom put the Westhighland Terrier on his knees, took the tank and brought it back to Karstadt.

Ten minutes later she came back.

"There you go, your wallet. Now go to Horten and get yourself something nice."

I'll never forget that HUGE grin on the face of that little muslime boys, than he ran away.
So I got back to my book and noticed that a group of two (perhaps) 13-15 year old boys and one girl sat down right next to the muslime woman.
The boys obviously been muslimes too, the girl definitely was german.
They have been shooping for sneakers.
One of the boys started to smoke a cigarette. They've been so young and already smokers which is something I'll never understand.
I watched them a little because usually you are suppossed to something when you see kids that smoke and in Germany you are not allowed to smoke until age 16.

Anyway I got back to my book and than the young boy came back.
"MOM MOM MOM, I HURRIED FOR YOU, LOOK WHAT I GOT THIS TIME!!!"
He was happier than the time before. I don't know what he got, but his mom liked it.
They talked a little and I noticed that the youngest of the other trio started to smoke a cigarette to. The girl noticed that I was watching the boy and said something to them.
I just shaked my head and they knew that if they don't get away I'd say something to them, and it would have been not the first time that I tell kids to throw the cigarette away because they've been too young for smoking.
So they got up, looked at me, throw the cigarettes away and hurried to get away.
I couldn't help it, I had to smile...

See, this experience showed that not every muslime is a terrorist. There ain't to many muslime boys that are wearing army camo shirts and he acted like every little boy that loves the Armed Forces. His sparkling eyes showed that they are heroes to him.

The other two kids obviously were so westernized that they had no problems to walk around with a blond girl that was wearing no headscarf. Instead of that she was wearing a short skirt and a tanktop. They've been that westernized that they acted like usual kids, doing stuff that is forbidden, smoking cigarettes and I am sure that when they've been out of my sight that they lightened the next smoke.

The muslime woman, her son and those two kids ... all of them have been able to talk German fluently...

You know, when we look beyond the pale we see that we sometimes aren't too different and that all of us want the same thing, yet there are still those that wants to destroy this thing and that is the reason we have to work together and not against each other, because together we can accomplish anything and everything.

Yes, that is something I believe in and I think after the Show on HOOAHRADIO I will grab my new book, go to the little park to be good to myself again!

Four Hours

2006-05-09T04:12:00.000-07:00

Wow, my Sailor Nicky is home, he made it, he is back in the States and we talked a total of four Hours on the phone. It was amazing to hear his voice and finally talk to him. We had so much to talk about and the time just flew away. On Saturday I plan to make a little homecoming party on hooahradio for him.

At Saturday I have been out. A friend of mine had his 30st Birthday and he still is unmarried.
In the northwestern part of Germany is a tradition: When you are still unmarried and you turn 30 years as male you have to sweep the stairs of City Hall.

Well, Metti did sweep the stairs and he had to wait for the virgin that can free him with a simple kiss.

Surprsingly there have been THREE Virgins that gave a kiss to him and freed him from the unthankful job to sweep the stairs hahahaha.

He's not going to make it home

2006-05-07T22:20:00.000-07:00

My heart has sank for my youngest soldier.
He told me tonight that he is not going to make it home to see his baby girl being born on Saturday. He took emergency leave a few weeks ago because of complications with his wife and the pregnancy.
Since he did that, they said he can't go home now.
He loves his wife and children so much and all he wants to do is be there to meet his newest baby girl when she comes into this world.

Tonight, he asked me if I would help him find something for his wife for Mother's Day.
I sent him some links for 2 beautiful bouquets of flowers. He was also looking at dolls that she collects.

He so wants to find her something special and that she will like.
If I haven't mentioned before, he is a good husband and father.
I hear the love for them everytime he talks about his family and that is each time we talk. For only being 21, he is more of a man than most men are at 35 or 40. (And I don't mean that as an insult to anyone).

I wish that there was something I could do to get him home for his wife and baby. Is there anyway to help my buddy? Who do I have to talk to, to get him home on leave?

I am taking him home to his family

2006-05-05T07:56:00.000-07:00

I found this one on USMILNET, just thought I should share it with you.

Received this from my brother via e-mail

To those who do not know:

The memorial service by the Marine Corps and Naval units for any fallen Marine consists of a rifle, helmet, dog tags and pair of combat boots.

Semper Fidelis". Faithful to God, Country, Family and the Corps

Why we are free today!
A Simple Thank You

Last week, while traveling to Chicago on business, I noticed a Marine sergeant traveling with a folded flag, but did not put two and two together. After we boarded our flight, I turned to the sergeant, who'd been invited to sit in First Class (across from me), and inquired if he was heading home.

No, he responded.

Heading out I asked?

No. I'm escorting a soldier home.

Going to pick him up?

No. He is with me right now. He was killed in Iraq. I'm taking him home to his family.

The realization of what he had been asked to do hit me like a punch to the gut. It was an honor for him. He told me that, although he didn't know the soldier, he had delivered the news of his passing to the soldier's family and felt as if he knew them after many conversations in so few days. I turned back to him, extended my hand, and said, Thank you. Thank you for doing what you do so my family and I can do what we do.

Upon landing in Chicago the pilot stopped short of the gate and made the following announcement over the intercom.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to note that we have had the honor of having Sergeant Steeley of the United States Marine Corps join us on this flight. He is escorting a fallen comrade back home to his family. I ask that you please remain in your seats when we open the! forward door to allow Sergeant Steeley to deplane and receive his fellow soldier. We will then turn off the seat belt sign."

Without a sound, all went as requested. I noticed the sergeant saluting the casket as it was brought off the plane, and his action made me realize that I am proud to be an American.

So here's a public Thank You to our military Men and Women for what you do so we can live the way we do.

Stuart Margel, Washington, D.C.

Added: This "Quote" shared by grateful Americans of words spoken by a 'Great American'...

"No arsenal, no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. - - - Ronald Reagan

A Special Show for Gregory Anton

2006-05-05T06:25:00.000-07:00

The Mudville Gazette sent out a special request for Gregory Anton who recently returned from his battle in Iraq. Now he has to fight a new enemie. The Docs diagnosed Colon-Cancer and Greg is in Wesley Medical Center.

I leaved a little note for him on his blog and he got back to me. I read a little on his blog and so I thought it would be great to dedicate the "European Morning Show" of Saturday to him and his family.

So the "Saturday European Morning Show" will be ALL about Greg and his wife Sheryl. I asked him about his music taste because I'd love to play his music for this Show, and let's see if he is coming up with more songs he likes to listen to.

He also said I could put his adresse out there, so if you want to send something, a card, a letter, some Flowers for his recovery, feel free to use his Adresse to send something nice:

Gregory Anton

Wesley Medical Ctr.

5001 Hardy St. Room 336
Hattiesburg, MS 39402

Greg's Show is on Saturday 6th of May, 2006
from 2AM eastern time - 4AM eastern time.
Simply tune into http://www.hooahradio.com

you will find the button "click here to listen" and it leads you to the site where you can chose your player. I recommend winamp to you :)

My "Smiley" is ok...

2006-05-04T21:50:00.000-07:00

My heart stopped the moment I read "better now...there was a mortar attack".

My official, that I nick named Smiley, had written that to me when I asked him how he was doing the other day.

He told me that several guys lost their hearing but there was no loss of life (Thank God!).

Smiley was fortunate though and had a wall protecting him from the effects of the blasts. He was kind of quiet after telling me about it but I understood.
I didn't push him to talk about it but he knew and still knows that I am here for him if he needs to talk.
Smiley has become a good friend.
He talks to me when he needs to vent and he lets me do the same, even though I don't vent often cuz he doesn't need to hear me venting.
He askes me how I am doing with my homework and tries to help me when he can.
Did I mention that he is a good friend? Wait, I take that back, someone who is in Iraq, defending our country, making sacrifices everyday and letting his "Angel" vent or offers help with her homework, is a great friend and I am blessed to have him as a friend.

The most beautiful thing I have seen in my life

2006-05-04T00:37:00.000-07:00

When I get to know this young incredible Marine, he was already on Mailstop. So we simply talked and he showed me his pictures. One Picture I will never forget is himself in the sleeping back and freezing and that tired look on his face.

Anyway, the last time I talked to him was the day before they left Kuwait.
Yesterday he added all the DJ's on Hooahradio and so he too added me, and I just told him who I am. He turned the webcam on, showed his room in Camp Pendleton and than he started dancing.
He danced and jumped through the room, and this was the most beautiful thing I have seen in my life because it was so honest.

He said this was his first day on leave and tomorrow he'll head home to Alabama. I'll give him a call tonight to see if he finally made it, because he ows me to sing a song.

The answer to all these are similar...

2006-05-03T09:37:00.000-07:00

This was emailed to me with no author
and I thought the magnitude
and the simplicity were awesome ...
Love to All

This says it all!!!!

A mother asked President Bush,
"Why did my son have to die in Iraq?"
Another mother asked President Kennedy,
"Why did my son have to die in Viet Nam?"
Another mother asked President Truman,
"Why did my son have to die in Korea?
Another mother asked President F.D. Roosevelt,
"Why did my son have to die at Iwo Jima?"
Another mother asked President W. Wilson,
"Why did my son have to die on the battlefield of France?"
Yet another mother asked President Lincoln,
"Why did my son have to die at Gettysburg?"
And yet another mother asked President G. Washington,
"Why did my son have to die near Valley Forge?"
Then long, long ago, a mother asked...
"Heavenly Father, why did my Son have to die
on a cross outside of Jerusalem?"
The answer to all these are similar --
"So that others may have life and dwell in peace,
happiness and freedom."

IF YOU DON'T STAND BEHIND OUR TROOPS,PLEASE, FEEL FREE...
TO STAND IN FRONT OF THEM !!!

A little Wonder happened

2006-05-02T10:06:00.000-07:00

After I couldn't reach the German SSGT's cell, today I called his office.
One of my Soldiers once said "No signs are good signs" and I guess he was right because the SSGT said that his friend survived this night and that he is doing a little better.
Tonight the SSGT takes a little time off to go to the Socker game of the 1.FC Cologne and perhaps he is coming out afterwards.

I also went downtown to get new boxes and food for my soldiers. I went to the little grocerie I usually go to and put tons of instant food into my basket and when I went to the cashpoint all the people looked funny at me because of the amount of snacks I threw on convoyer-band.

Some asked:

"Jeeeeeez what the hell are you doing with all of that?"
"Urm.. that isn't for me, all of that goes into da Sandbox, you know?"
Hehe, I couldn't resist to use the term Sandbox and so they looked irritaded at me.
"Iraq" I answered the unspoken question.
"ooOOOooh" the young women grinned, I don't know what she was thinking but most people found it so funny that we all laughed and horsed around while the poor shop assistant had to seperate the snacks to scan them into the cash desk. I think I blockaded the cash desk for more than five minutes and usually people get grumpy when they have to wait that long. The line became longer and longer, I do not know what it was, I never experienced something like that.
You know I was wearing a shirt that said "Wear red on Friday, support our Troops" which is very provoking over here and no one said anything, no one did call me any name, they just looked at the amount of snacks and laughed their butts off and joked around.

Their also is that young guy on Pally Boards.
Pally Boards was in need of donations because of treachery and thefterie.
This young guy and a couple of other people bought 14 prints ($50 each) and want to give those prints as freebies to deployed Soldiers to honor their sacrifice.
Think of that... 14 prints, $50 each ... that makes a total of $700 for our Heroes... I wished I had that money to spend on my troops in a month.
Damn I already went way far over my budget this month and we just have May 2nd... I need a sponsor... or a better job...

WELCOME HOME ROBERT!

2006-04-30T09:28:00.000-07:00

WELCOME HOME

ROBERT

WO HOO!

edit: Nicky is still over there, damn...

A German Hero Serving the US in Iraq

2006-04-30T07:48:00.000-07:00

There is this young incredible German Guy that is serving with the US Army in Iraq.
Funny thing, he is serving with the same Unit like my official adopted Soldier.

There is this Forum, which is helping you to solve questions regarding setting up a buisness or visa questions, and there he was, the young guy that applied for the greencard to join the Army.
He did it and is currently deployed to Camp Anaconda, assigned to the same Unit like my official.

European Morning Show on HOOAHRADIO

2006-04-29T15:15:00.000-07:00

So I finally have a show on HOOAHRADIO.

At the beginning I had a couple of problems because I was so nervous but after a while I found my own style and it was a lot of fun. The people loved the mix of a little History and good music. I was talking about Beer, legens of ravens, a little history of Münster and Mannheim. That there will be a Reunion of the Berlin Veterans this year and a lot of other stuff.

I have the Show on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 2-4 AM eastern time but I can stretch it up to 4 hours or even longer.

That means I am on air from 8AM-10AM or till the next DJ is coming up.

It was great because all my friends were listening and they loved it, asked tons of questions and thought it is a great way to stay in contact.
Especially Debi, I lived with her a couple of months and we haven't seen us in years, she was so thrilled and me too. Anyway, I gotta get going to get the show together for today. Have to do a little research before going on Air so I don't talk BS about a couple of themes hahaha

A German Games Shop Is Supporting the Troops

2006-04-28T06:07:00.000-07:00

Remember when I talked about the book "Murder in Cormyr"?
Well, today I have been to the same shop again because I wanted to get SciFi books for my Paratrooper. The Shop Owner and me had a little conversation and we found out that the both of us are from Southern Germany and that we even know the same people like the owner of the Fantasy Forest in Mannheim.
We also started to talk about the military, that he had British Costumers that are BTDT's and that he was SGT himself on the NATO base.

I bought a couple of books and games, he made a special price for me and then he went to the shelf and pulled out another couple of games.

So I have:

The THREE STOOGES Card Games
(...)This game allowes three players to slug it out the old fashion way... just like the Three Stooges(tm) did...

Abduction Card Game
You've been abducted by aliens. Be the first to escape... the others better not get in the way.

Abuse Card Game
The Final Insult
before gunpowder
before the fall of Constantinopel
Before Friggin Collectible Card Games!!!!
There Was Something Else...
this game will make YOU wash out your mouth with soap

and

NBA Showdown Sport Card Game
The two player starter set

He said that the NBA Showdown Sport card games doesn't run in Germany so he gave a lot of them to me that I can send them to my troopers. He also said that when ever I need something special for them, a special request or anything else, I could always come to him.
And he wants to make sure that when he gets books (especially english books) of remaining stock that I always get a special price, so this little German Games Store is supporting the Troops. Isn't that great?

And all in all I have 30 Books and 12 Games.
That'll be a nice package.
11 Books will go to Belles' official and the other stuff will go to my official, exept for the ScFi books, they'll go to my Paratrooper adoptee .

I still can't believe it!

2006-04-26T19:22:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh!!
Tanker Angel is too funny!
It all started out when I asked Joe, the Fedex delivery man, for a picture for my "Wall of Heroes".
Ya see, he was in the Marines from 1999 - 2003.
I don't know what finally made me decide to ask him for a picture from his time in the service but I did. The look on his face was priceless. He said he would get one of him in his dress blues for me.
For 3 days, he would come in and tell me that he is still working on getting the pic to me.

Yesterday, I got home and checked my email and guess what?!?
There was an email from his Aunt with his picture attached! So, what did I do? I sent the picture to Tanker Angel, introducing him to her.
This morning, Joe, came in and asked if I got the pic.
Of course I told him that it is already hanging on my "wall".
He came around to my side of the desk and was looking for his picture.
It was too funny to see him looking for his picture to make sure he made it up on my wall.
I was able to chat with Tanker Angel after that and told her what he did. She asked me to let her know when he comes in for the afternoon pick-up because she wanted to tell him thank you.

Well, I gave her my phone number at work thinking "nah, she ain't gonna call."
Boy was I wrong! At 4:16 p.m., Joe came in and I let TA know that he was there. It was about a minute later and she called!
I started laughing. Joe walked by and I said, "Joe, you have a phone call."
He looked at me like I was crazy.
I told him that it was TA calling from Germany.
The look on his face was priceless. I wish I had a camera with me to get a picture of his face at that moment. He asked her what time it was there, how we knew each other, and he told her something else but I can't remember because I was laughing too hard. I couldn't believe she actually did that! hahahaha I am sure that Joe will say something to me tomorrow about it but I'll just smile and ask "What?!?" Yes, Tanker Angel and I may be crazy sometimes but that's one of the things we like about each other.

Life ain't fair

2006-04-26T08:07:00.000-07:00

Sometimes life just ain't fair.
You know, there are so many bad people that are healthy and live a long life and than there are people that never smoked a cigarette, never drank alcohol, never done anything wrong and bad and they get disabled in an accident, or killed on the battlefield. Life just ain't fair!

When I called the German SSGT they told me that he is at home because of "Family Issues".
First I thought something could have happened to his dad who is the Sergeant Major of Family Care Center and I called him to see if he is on post. Gladly he picked up the phone, I didn't mention that I knew that there is something wrong and just told him that the first four packages for the German Troopers go out on Monday and thanked him for his help.

He said "Well, like son, like dad huh?"
I laughed and said "Isn't it like dad, like son?"
"Well, you knew the son first, don't you?" he horsed around.
"That is true, and he is very nice, like his dad." I smiled because both of them are very nice.
He giggled "I try to."
"Anyway" I said "I am going to send the packages on monday."
"Let's hope it'll be a full success" he said
"Oh yes, it has to be, there will be many english letters from a lot of SA people."
"Mhm... well they all had english in school but some aren't that good, anyway the Officers shouldn't have any problems and they must speak english over there anyway, since it is the NATO Language each of them should be able to talk English."
"Haha, I guess they'll understand Thank You." I joked
"Of course they will."
"Well, I have to let you go now, thank you for all you are doing and I'll talk to you later."
"I'll talk to you later, bye"
"Bye"

Afterwards I called the office of the SSGT again and talked to a SGT, he too said the same thing and I asked him for the SSGT's Cellphonenumber. The SGT first said that he's not sure if he can hand out the number so I said "Well, I guess it is allright when you give his Cell to me..." and explained myself.
"oooOOOoooh this is you... allright" the SGT said and handed the Cellnumber out to me.

A little later I called the SSGT and it just said "The person you are calling is temporarely not available at present"
About a half hour later he called me back, telling me of his best friend and bro ... and I am telling you, life just ain't fair.
So I listened to this SSGT, he fought with himself to not move to tears... life just ain't fair... his best friend and "brother" might not survive the week and he needs more than just a prayer. He definitely needs a wonder.
While I listened to the SSGT I realized that a Soldier really is a Soldier. The only difference is the language, he too sticks to the same values like Brotherhood, Honor, Pride and Integrity. He could have been one of my guys and deep inside I knew that this was the beginning of a friendship. I told him that I'll be always there for him, that he could call me anytime, doesn't matter what time he is calling. That if he needs someone to talk to I'd be there for him and that was the moment where he opened up, he asked a question I couldn't answer.. he asked "Why? Why him?", it is a question nobody can answer, the only thing that popped into my mind was "There are no words and life ain't fair!"

Weekend Pictures

2006-04-26T07:32:00.000-07:00

Actually the shirt is G's shirt... funny thing that I still have his shirt and a pair of socks...

I told you I had a lot of fun at the weekend :)

On the right you see a very very nice guy, he is a swimmer and we plan to go for some dancing

Don't you ever say that again about yourself

2006-04-26T01:10:00.000-07:00

One of my Soldiers and me had a long conversation about Soldiers and relationships.
I was surprised of his opinion because he said that the military would turn most of them into assholes. He said that he is an asshole himself, that he doesn't want to speak for all Soldiers but that he guesses he knows men because he's one himself. That there would be this saying in the military:

the millitary is a married mans hell a single mans heaven

Well, I don't think that there are only assholes in the military, you can find assholes everywhere, not only in the military. I asked him why he'd say that he is an asshole, and this has been his words :

Cause I am
I am a guy
most men are
and then when we join something like the service it changes us in to that even more
I know that he is not an asshole.

Well ... you can find assholes everywhere in the world. I know he just cares, and worries about his friends and is always straight forward and never hides anything of his friends.

love u take care sweetie, have fun, don't kick any asses

Nope.. he definitely is no asshole! How could he ever be one?

J. you hear me? YOU ARE NO ASSHOLE! And if you ever say that about yourself again, I'll kick your ass for damn sure! You are always honest, you love your friends (I love you too as a friend) and you always say it how it is. So don't you ever say again that you are an asshole yourself.

Anyway, I also got a message of our adopted brother.
I am so proud of him. Very very very proud.
He became a team/squadleader and said that it is a lot of responsibility and that he has almost no time for himself because there is always something he has to fix for his guys.
I know exactly what we gotta have to do.

Angel Sista! That'll be a job for Valkyries!!!
Can you hear it? The Ride of Valkyries? Of Wagner?

2006-04-25T06:45:00.000-07:00

Well, there are so many things going on that eats our time up.

I am still in contact with the German Sergeant Major and I am going to send the first four packages on next monday. I still hope that there come enough letters that I can send and if I have to write enough different letters myself.

My training for HOOAHRADIO was going pretty well, I set up a 25 minute testshow, Dom just has to go with me through it. A couple of friends listened to what I planned to do and said that is sounds not too bad.

The Paratrooper and me are talking nearly daily and we became pretty close friends,
Amy and me have a secret project going on and NOPE there is no disk on my desk that has "SECRET PROJECT" in red letters on it hahahahaha

At the weekend I have been out. YES!!!! I HAVE BEEN OUT!!!! The whole weekend and it was so damned funny. I met lots of new people and people I haven't seen in months. On Saturday a friend and me drank a couple of beers and just horsed around, laughed a lot and just were silly. It was soooo good to be out and just do what a young woman is suppossed to do... just having fun. I came home on Sunday evening and fell into bed, half death and fell asleep until my roommate showed up at around three AM... aaaaaaaack I hate it when he is doing that, he does that every sunday, showing up in the early morning and waking me up.

Also, things with G. aren't going to well, we had another crisis. They have sent him to Vilseck for two weeks, I didn't know about it. Anyway, one thing came to another and I thought he doesn't like to have any contact so I wrote an email to him that it is up to him now. That if he wants to stay in contact he has to do the next step. First my birthday, than this.. just didn't know what to think of everything.
Yesterday he wrote an email back ala "What the hell are you talking about" and I never felt that stupid before. I should have trusted him. I definately should have trusted him.
He said he doesn't care because he has other things to care off but he never would end a friendship. Still it is hurting that he doesn't even care that he has hurt me or that I have yelled at him... what for a friendship is that?
I am on a point of resignation because I don't understand him, the problem is that I can't get him to talk. What am I suppossed to do? To give up?
All he does is working, working, working, working, working... nothing else, just working... he is worse than I am...
The only wife he has is called Army, and I guess that there is no place for another woman yet ....

German Care Packages

2006-04-22T09:35:00.000-07:00

Well..this is what a German Care Package looks like :)

Murder of Cormy

2006-04-22T09:28:00.000-07:00

Oh man.. sometime I should think first.

There is this Signal Officer I know. This Signal Officer is a huge fan of Forgotten Realms and Fantasy books, so I were looking around for new books and found this newly opened little store just a few streets away of my place.
I went to this store yesterday to get some new books for this Signal Officer and saw this full line and thought that this would be a series of a Forgotten Realms Saga of "Murder in Cormyr".
I didn't know that it was only a single book.

I asked the guy if he could make me a good prize for for those books and he said that he'd like to have 28 Euros for the 21 books which was very nice and I am sure that I will be a goooood costumer in future.

Anyway I went home and wanted to pack the books into a box. Than I saw that I bought one and the same book for 21 times hahahahahahahahaha

Well.. I guess I have to send the books to 21 different Soldiers... yup this definitely was a blond moment...still .. 21 books for just 28 Euros that was a damned good deal ;)

He's going to be 21!!

2006-04-17T21:58:00.000-07:00

One of my unofficials, Mel (named changed for obvious reasons), contacted me today for the first time in weeks! I was so happy when he instant messaged me this morning!! He had to come home on emergency leave but he is now back in Iraq. He told me why he had to come home and how much he is worried about his wife. To hear him talk about her just amazed me. I could feel the love that he has for her in the way that he talks about her. He tries to call her everyday, if he can get a phone connection. He just thinks the world of her!

Mel and I continued to chat and I brought up that his birthday is in 2 days. Mel is turning 21!!!! To him it is just another day because he hasn't been home in 3 years for his birthday.
It broke my heart to hear him talk that way. I kept asking him what he wanted for his birthday and his answer every time was, "I don't want anything." He did finally tell me one thing that he wanted but because of the respect that I have for him, I am not going to tell the whole world on this blog. But I can say it is the sweetest and most precious gift that I pray he gets, unfortunately, no one but God can give him what he wants.
Well, as we continued to talk, he started picking on me again. He was surprised when I told him that I missed the picking. Now, come on, once a friend starts picking on you and you get used to it and then *POOF*, you don't hear anything, you wonder what happened. I told him if my friends don't pick on me then I think that they don't like me or are mad at me. That's how our friendship works, we pick on each other. And let me just say, he can dish it out too! He has me laughing so much sometimes that I cry from laughing so hard. Today, I knew he needed to laugh, so we started in on each other. He constantly picks on my about my age and me being blonde, hahaha. I get some good come-backs in there but most of the time I am laughing too much to zing him right back. But he does not know what he is in store for when he gets his birthday gift but it will be pay back for all the age jokes!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MEL!!! My hubby and I will buy you a couple of shots when you get home! Until then, stay safe and stop stepping in the mud puddles after it rains :-)

Homecoming and Support Research

2006-04-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

I just talked to one of my unofficial Marines and they are on their way home.

WO HOO! That is so awesome, the Marines are back to the States soon, the Paratrooper is coming home soon as well. Nick will have his homecoming too.. Ryan gets on leave soon, it is awesome. I am so so so so so happy for them.

I also got in contact with the Soldatenhilfswerk in Germany, I do want to know how to support the Germans and I make research on how to support the British Soldiers as well. It is good to know because there are so many in Afghanistan and in Iraq and you never hear anything of them. Since that conversation to the German Soldier I am wondering if there is anything I can do for them.
Also there are so many British in my town, it'd be sad to not think of them.

I will see if there is any possibility to work with the Germans and British together.

It made my day

2006-04-15T03:13:00.000-07:00

I just love my friends. They are weird, crazy and absolutely insane but I do love them to death.
Especially two of them. One is gay the other one is my best friend (his mom would love me to be his future wife but well... haha I see him as my brother so how could I ever be his future wife? I'll hand him over to one of my sisters hahahaha).
Anyway, let's call my gay friend Drako and my best friend Edorian.
Edorian called yesterday morning to ask if I'd like to come out and I said that this would depend on a couple of things, he said that we could hang out at Drakos place, having some beer and watching some movies.
Basically I wanted to go to my credit institut but instead of that I fell asleep because of the very bad cold I have. It is an up and down since weeks, sometimes I'm feeling a little better, than I do not get out of bed and can't speak because my voice is gone, than I am having temperature and cough all day long and not even able to get up, a day later I am fit enough to go downtown and get stuff for my troopers.
Yesterday I fell asleep because I felt horrible. When I woke up I immediately called Drako to tell him that I won't come. So he called me back because he has a Flatrate for his phone. So he set me on speaker and both of them, Drako and Edorian, were entertaining me all night long.
Gawsh.. you just gotta love that guys. (NO THEY ARE NO COUPLE!!! Edorian is absolutely straight!!!!!)
Anyway, I don't know how long we were talking but it just made my day, I was laughing my butt off. Both of them can entertain you, when they start goofing around you can't stop laughing and your belly definately hurts because of that.
It was good to talk to them for so long and Edorian said he wants to come out on Sunday.
I was jealous because they had beer and I didn't so he said he simply brings some beer and the old comic H-Man DVD's hahahaha that is my brother, such a caring boy that he brings some beer and the trashy H-Man DVD's, you just gotta love my boys!

When we stopped talking I went back to bed only to get a call around 1.30 AM.
So I picked up the phone and it was Edorian, giving me a call that he finally got home and we made some plans for Sunday.

This morning Drako called again and we were talking about my passion for Soldiers Angel. He said that I should get into closer contact to Soldiers Angel Germany in Landstuhl. So I'd have more backup and not only the backup of my friends in the States. I'd need people over here that are working with me as well.
It is just a couple of days ago that two guys I know said that there always is the possibility to immigrate to the States and one even said he'd made me an honorary American. Another friend also said I should think about immigration.
Well, I thought about it, I love both countries and I am totally twisted... anyway, I can't even think about it at the moment, I am not done with my education and I'd like to get my certificates first. And what the hell is wrong with being a German and a Soldiers Angel? Yes I do support the troops, it is a passion, the troopers are my weakness. A lot said I'd be an Inspiration but I don't want to be an Inspiration... I don't know what it all is about. I am just me, nothing more or less. I do what I feel is right to do. I know that they just worry about me, that I could get too deep into all of that, but I am definately not the reincarnation of Jeanne D'Arce nor am I Mother Theresa.. I am just me.. is that so hard to understand?

Anyway, Edorian is coming out on Sunday and I am happy he is coming, oh boy I'll definately kick his ass, long time hahaha!
Why?
Cuze he always deserves it!

A new adoptee

2006-04-15T02:44:00.000-07:00

yup yup yup, there he is, a new adoptee.
He too is a Paratrooper and recently deployed to Iraq.
He is not submitted to Soldiers Angels and I ran into him at the Paratroopers Home.
He was stationed in Germany for a pretty long time and is able to talk and write it almost better than I do. He loves German Hip Hop and the German Culture, has roots to Germany and just loves my country. That was enough to know that I of course have to adopt him.
Someone that loves Germany as he does needs a German Angel that can send him the little things like Haribo or Apfelringe, Thomas D and Fantastischen Vier.
Damn he is more into German Music than I am hahaha. He has seen Berlin instead of me. You know I live my whole life in Germany, have seen so much of the States but never been to Berlin. That is sad...

Anyway, there also is this friend of Southern Belle, he is in Europe and perhaps coming to Germany, if he wants to I'll be his Tour Guide. And I must challenge him somehow, I owe that to Southern Belle hahahaha.

There also is this young MP he is in Heidelberg, he is a couple of years younger than I am but it sounds like he could need a little TLC ... so I'll take care of him, wether he likes or not. He wants to get into K9 which is pretty funny because my Daddy is a Dog Handler and doesn't live too far away from Heidelberg.... perhaps I should introduce them to each other...

Spring Cleaning

2006-04-13T22:50:00.000-07:00

I can't help it, it doesn't matter what I do, it always turns out to a little adventure. HAHA It is always the same. I start doing something that is boring and it turns out as a hell of a fun.
I don't like cleaning up places when someone is around, I don't like people watching me doing such work, so I waited until my roommate left for training which was in the evening. My neighbours new roommate (she moved into the little room I had before I moved into this one) had a little party and invted me. Unfortunately I had spring cleaning plus I have a very baaaad cold, so I didn't feel like joining the party.

I tuned into HOOAHRADIO, like always, and started cleaning up my room, and trust me the music they are playing is perfect for stuff like that. I sang and danced around while cleaning up hahaha. Don't know if you guys have the same tradition. Over here you clean up the stuff before easter, don't even know where it comes from, almost every student I know does it before easter.
Anyway, while cleaning up I am having a conversation with Jonathan, who donated once a desert camo to Amys and my adopted brother, we were talking about the politics, the differences between German and American Elections. He was very surprised that you don't have to be a member of the party to elect them, and that I have lots of respect for the French because the people still stand up and fight for their rights. And the best thing is that they won! That should teach us something ;)

Anyway, I have seen that my Angel Sista is online and told her that she MUST see my room. So I led her through my room with the webcam which was kind of funny because I always had to rerarange the light to show her something. Anyway, it is amazing how much fun you can have to do something silly like that. stuff like that always turns out to an adventure and that are the little things that can make your day.

I also talked to my grandparents, they are back in Germany. I have sent them a link with the adresse to the new blog. Nobody of my family knew the old one but this time I thought "Hey why not? It is a good way to keep in touch and they can read what I am doing all day long"
Well.. they said that they do not really agree with what I am doing.
It was nice to talk to them and it surprised me that they really looked into the blog. They asked me since when I am that religious because they read the entry with the cathedral.
Well, I know I was not that close to the church in my youth time and I hated to go to church and the confirmation was a torture.... yet, after a couple of experiences, a long dark way I found my way to the church and they've been there when I needed them most.
I volunteered for them and loved doing that kind of work, which is one of the reason I am going for the teaching certificate, I'd love to do more in that area. I'd love to go to countries that are not that blissed like Germany or the US and teach kids that can't can't just go to school like we did. I do like to give them a future. If there is a chance I'd even go to Iraq to give those kids a future because THEY are the future of their country.

Remember to thank a Vet

2006-04-12T19:47:00.000-07:00

Today as I walked in the doors of the office, there was a man standing there. As I started to put my things down at my desk, he swiftly said why he was there, to repair a cooling vent in one of the storage rooms. He was very polite and kept apologizing for abruptly starting my day. I laughed and told him "no worries." I noticed his name on his uniform, Jeff.
The person that was to let Jeff into the room had not gotten there yet and I didn't have the key for that room. So, Jeff said it was no problem to wait. I offered him some coffee but he politely turned it down. He decided to go back down to his truck for a few minutes till someone got there to unlock the door.
When he came back upstairs, he noticed my "Wall of Heroes".
It is this area at my desk where I keep pictures of my soldiers that I write. He asked if my husband was in the service.
I told him no and I explained what I do with the Soldiers' Angels and those were pictures of my Heroes. His eyes lit up and he smiled. He told me thank you for supporting our troops. He said that he wished we were around when he served. I didn't think twice and told him "Thank you for your service!" The look on his face was priceless. It was the look of pride and appreciation.

I could tell that he didn't hear "Thank you" very often unless it was related to his current job. We got to talking and I found out that he was in the Navy from 1979 to 1985. Unfortunately, we didn't get to talk long because he had a job to do and I had my work to do. But I can tell both of our lives were touched today by a simple, heartfelt "Thank you".

As we thank our troops who are serving today, we need to remember to thank our Vets too. Let's not forget that they also made sacrifices for our country.

Mission: Encouraging Sgt Downs

2006-04-11T21:42:00.000-07:00

There is this young Soldier.

His name is Sgt Kevin Downs, he is 23 years old and from Tenessee.. a National Guardsman and his tank was blown up. He is the only one that survived and still suffering from it.
Someone submitted him to the LWT of Soldiers Angel:

There is a young soldier (a 23 year old Tennessee National Guardsman) named Sgt. Kevin Downs. He was blown out of his tank in Baghdad a year ago and left with no feet, mangled arms, and burns over 60% of his body. He is a Tennessee boy. Everyone else in the tank was killed. His condition is not good. A surgery to improve the use of fingers on one hand inadvertently caused previous skin grafts to break down, and the grafts on his legs are cracking as well and may require beginning over at square one.
Kevin is tired and low in spirits. He needs our prayers and support through cards. Would you please send him a note or card to let him know you are thinking about him? Remember him in your prayers as well.
Now I am going to ask a special favor from me. Would you please send this to as many people that you can in your e-mail addresses? Hit FORWARD and let my e-mail introduce Kevin to your e-mail buddies. I would love to see him get cards from everywhere and hopefully he will know that people all over the country appreciate him leaving the safety of his home and country and fighting for our freedoms. I personally have never met Kevin or his family but when my minister let us know that Kevin needed a lift, I couldn't keep quiet. I love America and know that it could very well be one of my family members. Thank you for all that you will do. Semper Fi, Louise Tamayo - Thanks again! Every little card and prayer will help!
His adresse is:
Sgt.Kevin Downs
Brooke Army Medical Center
3851 Roger Brooke Drive
Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234

Ps from Tankers Angel: His adresse is published on his Log and on Urban Legends

Claim: Prayers and cards are requested for Sgt. Kevin Downs, who was injured in Iraq.

Status: True.

Example: [Collected via e-mail, 2006]

and this is the Origin of Sgt. Kevin Downs:

Origins: On 14 August 2005, near the city of Tuz in northeastern Iraq, the Humvee that Sgt. James K. (Kevin) Downs and three others were traveling in was struck by four explosive devices. The four men were members of a National Guard unit, the 278th Regimental Combat Team, a Knoxville-based unit of 3,200 soldiers deployed to Iraq in late 2004. The three other National Guardsmen in the Humvee were killed in the attack. They were 22-year- old Sgt. Gary Lee Reese of Ashland City, 35-year-old Staff Sgt. Asbury F. Hawn Jr. of Lebanon, and 30-year-old Sgt. Shannon D. Taylor of Smithville.

Sgt. Downs was blown into the air by the blast, and his resultant injuries included two broken legs, a broken arm and pelvis, and second- and third-degree burns over 60% of his body, including burns to his eyes, throat and lungs. He was first evacuated to a hospital in Germany, then transferred to a burn unit at a hospital in San Antonio, Texas, where he is now recuperating at the Brooke Army Medical Center in Fort Sam Houston.

Kevin's recovery has been slow and awful, an endless sequence of pain, suffering, surgeries, and setbacks. In the face of it, it is hard for him not to give in to depression. Those wishing more detail about his battle to get well are encouraged to read the log entries on the Kevin Downs page maintained on the web site of the South Cheatham Advocate, a newspaper in Tennessee.

The last update on it was on March 31, so it is pretty recent.
The Blog that is talking about Sgt. Kevin Downs is inspiring, the last entry was made on April 1st:

The news just keeps getting better and better from BAMC in Texas. “He’s doing a lot better since he got off that medication”, Catherine Downs said, “you wouldn’t believe it!” Catherine has been saying for weeks that Kevin needed to get off as much of the pain medication as possible in order to feel better physically and mentally, and she was of course, right.

Not only is Kevin walking on his new prosthetics, he’s also learning how to “squiggle himself out of the bed into his chair and squiggle himself back into the bed from his chair”, Catherine said. That’s a huge step toward getting home, Kevin has to be able to take care of himself before he gets to come back here. He’s also eating on his own, brushing his own teeth, “He’s just taken right off”, Catherine said. “As soon as he’s able to put those legs on himself he’ll be walking right out those doors”, she added. He still needs assistance with those legs and dressing himself, but therapy is working hard to knock those things off the list as well.

Catherine said that Kevin is looking better every day as well. “He got a haircut today, and got a shave, they’re keeping him in that military look”, she laughed. Aside from that doctors put some sort of “acid stuff” on Kevin's face and “it has really cleared it up”, Catherine said, “he’s really looking good”.

He’s sleeping in braces at night to help get his knees to straighten all the way out, and work continues to help him straighten his arm more, and get strong enough to be more and more self sufficient.

More and more you can tell that area residents are preparing for Kevin Downs’ return by getting out those beautiful yellow ribbons. Don’t put it off! Go see Shawn Rider at AmSouth Bank in Kingston Springs and she will GIVE you a ribbon to tie on your mailbox, or a tree in your yard, or your car antenna, or wherever you want to express your support for Kevin and our other soldiers. Shawn is not asking for payment, but if you feel moved to do so, make a contribution to the account set up in Kevin’s name.

Shawn would also like to thank the Kingston Springs United Methodist Women’s Group for their donation to purchase more ribbon, and Trish Harris for the big bag of tied bows that she brought, and everyone who has picked up a ribbon or made a donation.

Yet, the best thing is that this email is flooding the Internet from one Angel to another, from Supporters to Supporters, from the San Antonio Crew of the Army Paratroopers to the Patriot Guard Riders of America and everybody is following the call:

LET'S SHOW HIM THAT HE IS NOT FORGOTTEN!

For my new "Official" and his Troops

2006-04-11T20:26:00.000-07:00

About a week and a half ago, I asked to adopt another soldier. My first "official" came home last month - WOO HOO!! My second "official" comes home either late next month or early June. I wasn't going to "adopt" another soldier because I have mine and Tankers Angel's newly "adopted" brother and many "unofficials".
I figured I would just take care of them. Well, one morning while I was talking to my husband, I got this urgent feeling that I needed to "adopt" another soldier. I immediately wrote the 2nd Adoptions Team at Soldiers' Angels and asked for another soldier in need. I waited patiently and finally 3 days later, I had "official adopted" another soldier. I was so excited! I wrote him an email right away that night introducing myself and thanking him for his service. He wrote me back the next morning and is such a sweetie. To hear him talk about his wife and children was wonderful! I can tell he loves them very much.
He also told me that there are 1o men in his unit. I thought to myself that I cannot send something just for him. From reading his letter, I could tell he would share whatever he receives. I asked him for the names of all of his men and he sent them to me. Tankers Angel wrote them each a letter and I got to thinking what I could do for them. For my "official's" first care package, I bought socks (enough for all of them), cookies, popcorn, I am going to burn some Christian and country music cd's, and miniture Snickers. Another Angel, B., is burning some cd's and getting a book for his package as well.

I asked myself, what is something special that I could do for my official and his men? Everything I thought of just didn't seem right. Today as I was mailing off my "brother's" package, I thought I would go to the Glad Tidings Catholic Store. It just seemed like the place to go to find that something special. As I was looking around, I had to keep in mind that I was shopping for 11 men. All of a sudden there they were, 10 wooden crosses on a rope necklace. I thought that would be perfect for them. Of course, I found a Celtic cross with Jesus on it for my official. Sorry, but I had to do something different for him.

When I left the store, I knew I needed to include a prayer to send with the crosses. I found the perfect prayer to include...

FOR YOU TODAY
I said a prayer for you today and know God must have heard. I felt the answer in my heart, although He spoke no word! I didn't ask for wealth or fame, I knew you wouldn't mind. I asked Him to send treasures of a far more lasting kind! I asked that He'd be near you at the start of each new day; To grant your health and blessings and friends to share your way! I asked for happiness for you in all things great and small. But it was for His loving care I prayed the most of all!

Now I need to write 11 individual letters, which won't be a problem. I just have to get the kids to sleep first so I can concentrate :-) I hope they will like the crosses and if they do not want it or have another faith, I can only hope that they will give the cross to someone who needs or wants it. Now I need to go get started on the letters...

Not without Food

2006-04-10T22:59:00.000-07:00

Wow! I can walk from the door to the window without falling over the boxes. HAHA!
You know, when I had Birthday my mom sent a card and she put 50€ into it and said: "Get yourself something nice." So what did I do with that money?

EXACTLY! I spent it on my troopers, got new Flatrate Boxes, a couple of new Books, Great Voices of Operas (a ten CD's Box, hey Mom I copied them on my PC so it was for me also) and two other Classic CD's which I also copied on the PC. (yep mom, I can see your head shaking)

Explanation: When I wrote the first letter to my official I told him that I love Operas and Classic Music, so he wrote back if I could recommend something. I did not only recommend stuff to him I simply sent Classic and Operas not knowing if he enjoys them or not. I just thought Opera could be something different to all that angry Rock and Hip Hop stuff, because Classic and Opera is something to relax and enjoy. It let you escape into another world, you can lean back, close your eyes and fall asleep while Rock, Metal and Hip Hop is something where you usually can't relax. It is kind of angry music.

So I'll send him with every new package a new CD of that Opera Box.

I packed everything together and put one box into the German Military Ruck. Thank god the Ruck is big enough to carry at least one box with it. I took the bus, the place behind the busdriver is usually for old and disabled people. There was this old man. He was the only person that helped me, his eyes, the way he held the package in his hand, like a treasure ... he definately was a WWII Veteran.
You know, there were so many people in this bus, so many that went into the bus before I payed for my ticket, not any asked "Can I lend you a hand?" they don't care, but there is this old man, that sits behind the busdriver and takes the package so that I have a free hand to pay the busdriver and he looks at this letters "Feldpost". Takes care about that package like it means the world to him.
He gave it back to me with a shy smile and I noticed his old hands, hands that probably held a rifle and killed people.
I don't think that all the others in the bus even noticed this unspoken conversation, I don't think that most people are sensitive enough to notice such a conversation.
Have you ever had such a conversation? You look at each other, look into the eyes and you know that there is nothing that could be said because the both of you know that no words are needed?
"Thank you" I said (no not for his service because he lend me a hand), and went into the back of the bus.
Sometimes I wonder why more and more people lose their manners. Nobody cares about the next, they only care about themselves... it's sad...

Anyway, I went to the mail office and there were so many people inside that I did not get to the usual guy. It was a woman and she looked at the labels.
"That is not for Germany" she noticed
"No it isn't"
"What is it for?" she already knew because of the names and ranks.
"Americans!" I said "But it doesn't matter, field mail is field mail!" I added in a not so nice tone.
"Anything else?" she asked not nicely back.
"Yes, why is it that sometimes the mail still comes back?"
"What does the label say?"
"That I didn't pay enough but field mail is fieldmail isn't it?"
"Yes it is" she said "This time it is in huge letters on the box so nothing should be wrong"
"It is ALWAYS in huge letter on the boxes or letters and it STILL comes back, why is that?"
She looked at me like she wants to kill me but I couldn't resist the way she asked where the boxes go to called me out and I don't like it when someone messes with my boys.
"I don't know." she said, I nooded at her and left the mailoffice not knowing what to do next, trust me I don't know why I did that but I went straight to the grocerie. Took one of that little baskets walked straight to the Snack Bar, bought tons of Snacks went straight back to the mail office got another flatrate box, got a card of da vinci wrote a little note on it and sent it out.

It just popped into my mind... "Not without Food!"

I am doing it as a surprise

2006-04-09T22:56:00.000-07:00

It was a surprise that my official SPC was online. He had a lot of trouble with the Internet in the last couple of weeks because of all the rain. His room was flooded and it fried his modem, so we haven't talked in quiet a while.
I know that he is going on leave soon, and today we actually talked about what he wants to do while being on leave.
Well I know what he really misses hahaha but I am sure his wife will be glad to give it to him.
The thing that really touched me was the Christmas part.
First I thought his wife would give it to him as a present because he was in Iraq, but it is actually HIM that is giving Christmas as surprise to his wifey and his stepson.

[06:19] OOOO: so what else are you going to do when you are back home?
[06:21]XXXX: go to aruba.
[06:21]XXXX: have christmas.
[06:21]XXXX: buy a house maybe
[06:23] OOOO: Oh my god, you'll have christmas?
[06:26]XXXX: yes I am gettting a tree and everything.
[06:28] OOOO: that is so cute of your wifey
[06:29]XXXX: no I am doing it as a suprise.
[06:29]OOOO: you are doing it as a surprise for your wife?
[06:29]XXXX: yes
[06:29]OOOO: oh my god, that is so cute of you, she'll love you to death
[06:29]XXXX: yes.. heh.

Oh my god, is that sweet? What a loving husband he is. Giving her this present, with Christmas tree and everything. I knew he is a true sweetheart. They always try to be rough and tough but inside they are the most softest, loving, caring persons you can think off.

My first slideshow

2006-04-09T22:17:00.000-07:00

Tonight, I finally got the chance to put together my first slideshow to send to my soldiers. It is pictures of S. Carolina, Georgia, and some parts of wide open spaces still left in Californina. Yep, there is still some open space left in Calif. Anyway, I spent the longest time arranging the pictures and deciding on which song to use and having never done this before, I figured out how to do the "special effects". Now, if you really know me, then you know that I am computer challenged :-), so you can imagine how long this took. Well, I saved it and I was just so thrilled to be emailing it to my soldiers and my friends that I forgot to attach it to the email. Doh! So, I attempted sending another email. This time, I realized that the file was too large and wouldn't attach! Crap, now I had to explain this to everyone that I originally tried to email this slideshow to. A little while later, the lightbulb turned on and I found a website to "host" my slideshow so they can see it. So, the 3rd email went out on where they can view it. Hopefully, my soldiers will be able to see it (depending on their internet access) and I told them that I will make the next one smaller so I can email it directly to them and it won't be a pain in the boo-tata to view.

Civi vs Soldier

2006-04-09T12:17:00.000-07:00

Joyes Pizza Service stopped by. I ordered a Waikiki Pizza with pineapple, double cheese and ham and a bottle of icecold Fanta. So I went to the kitchen took the pizza cut roller and tuned into HOOAHRADIO, eating the pizza (with fork and knife, yes that is germanish haha), writing letters (that is the reason I eat it with fork and knife) and surfing Army Paratroopers stumbling over this topic.
Everytime I read stuff like that I realize that it has nothing to do with propaganda.. it is absolutely true! While I am sitting here on my desk, eating a double cheeze, pineapple ham Waikiki Pizza with Fork and Knife, writing some letters, surfing the net, drinking some icecold Fanta.. my boys and girls are out there fighting for us. Not having the privilege, and yes I call it a privilege, to order a double cheese Waikiki Pizza.
Instead of that their rooms get flooded by tons of water because it doesn't stop raining, They are outside not knowing if they survive the next day... anyway.. that is the mail, it speaks for itself:

Your alarm goes off, you hit the snooze and sleep for another 10 minutes.

He stays up for days on end.
__________________________

You take a warm shower to help you wake up.

He goes days or weeks without running water.
__________________________

You complain of a "headache", and call in sick.

He gets shot at, as others are hit, and keeps moving forward.
__________________________

You put on your anti war/don't support the troops shirt, and go meet up with your friends.

He still fights for your right to wear that shirt.
__________________________

You make sure you're cell phone is in your pocket.

He clutches the cross hanging on his chain next to his dog tags.
__________________________

You talk trash on your "buddies" that aren't with you.

He knows he may not see some of his buddies again.

__________________________

You walk down the beach, staring at all the pretty girls.

He walks the streets, searching for insurgents and terrorists.
__________________________

You complain about how hot it is.

He wears his heavy gear, not daring to take off his helmet to wipe his brow.
__________________________

You go out to lunch, and complain because the restaurant got your order wrong.

He does not get to eat today.
__________________________

Your maid makes your bed and washes your clothes.

He wears the same things for months, but makes sure his weapons are clean.
__________________________

You go to the mall and get your hair redone.

He doesn't have time to brush his teeth today.
__________________________

You are angry because your class ran 5 minutes over.

He is told he will be held an extra 2 months.
__________________________

You call your girlfriend and set a date for that night.

He waits for the mail to see if there is a letter from home.
__________________________

You hug and kiss your girlfriend, like you do everyday.

He holds his letter close and smells his love's perfume.
__________________________

You roll your eyes as a baby cries.

He gets a letter with pictures of his new child, and wonders if they'll ever meet.
__________________________

You criticize your government, and say that war never solves anything.

He sees the innocent tortured and killed by their own government and remembers why he is fighting.
__________________________

You hear the jokes about the war, and make fun of the men like him.

He hears the gun fire and bombs.
__________________________

You see only what the media wants you to see.

He sees the bodies lying around him.
__________________________

You are asked to go to the store by your parents. You don't.

He does what he is told.
__________________________

You stay at home and watch tv.

He takes whatever time he is given to call and write home, sleep, and eat.
__________________________

You crawl into your bed, with down pillows, and try to get comfortable.

He crawls under a tank for shade and a 5 minute nap, only to be woken by gun fire.
__________________________

You sit there and judge him, saying the world is a worse place because of men like him.

If only there were more men like him

HOOAHRADIO all the way

2006-04-08T22:30:00.000-07:00

Wow! That was unbelievable. I was part of the Show for DJ Army Brats Mom.
Dj Army Brat is an adopted DJ of HOOAHRADIO. Both of her parents are deployed. Her Dad to Afghanistan and her Mom to Iraq which is unbelievable itself. I just can guess what this family is going through.

Anyway, her mom is on leave and she's home. Today was a tribute show for her and we had so much fun while being on Air. It was definately an honor to talk to her.

Everytime I am part of a Show it becomes an emotional thing. Most of the DJ's has family members that are deployed so each of us has to fight with tears. All of us are supporting the troopers and the experiences we make are based on emotions. You laugh with them, you cry with them, you make your life a part of theirs, so all of us can tell a little storie that can move you to tears.

It is always fun to talk to the people of HOOAHRADIO, we laugh and cry at the same time and it is always an unforgettable moment to hear the voices of people you usually talk via email or messanger with.

I met several Angels whose I just knew via email on Teamspeak of HOOAHRADIO and it is always nice to talk to them. You just gotta love it.

Anyway... I downloaded the DJ Software today and put all of my music into it. DJ Rage trained me how to put this and how to put that... and now I am playing with the Playlists and get familiar with the Programe.

I can't wait to get my next training. That'll be a lot of fun, a German DJ on HOOAHRADIO.

Sidenote: Zam said that she is going to send the T-Shirts for my Troopers as soon as possible and that she also has a couple of CD's original signed by the Korey Brunson Band who sings the song "We know you are out there" (you gotta love that song and especially Korey Brunson himself, he sang a birthday song life on air for me)

The Tanker Brothers

2006-04-08T12:09:00.000-07:00

Well, today I'd like to talk about the Tanker Brothers. I know them since a couple of months, and you can find them over at "The Tanker Brothers", if you want to have a straight opinion, they'll definately tell you like it is. Straight forward without holding anything back.

You just gotta love them.

Also, if you are able to read German, check out the German "Panzerbrüder Blog" which is the German Sister Blog to Tanker Brothers. I am definately honored to be a part of this little Brotherhood.

I salute you and the wonderful Sunflower.

2006-04-08T01:45:00.000-07:00

Mom sent pictures of the new filly.

Welcome to the world little cuty!!!

A bit about Southern Belle

2006-04-07T22:08:00.000-07:00

Howdy!

My name Southern Belle, well, not really but my real name is for me to know and you may or may not find out.
What can I share about me?
Hmmm, let me think...
Well, first and foremost, I am married and have 2 beautiful children and my family is my life.
I am from South Carolina, however, I don't live there anymore (long story).
My sister is older than me but I do have a much younger brother. No, I don't have that "middle child" syndrome because my brother is 19 years younger than me.
I believe in God, telling the truth, being a true friend, and supporting our troops. I became a Soldiers' Angel in May 2005 because I wanted our men and women who are defending our freedom to know that my family and I appreciate them and all they do.
I don't want to know what our lives would be like without our Heroes. Since becoming a "Angel", my family has grown. I now have 2 "adopted" brothers and an "adopted" sister. Well, I guess that is me in a nutshell. If there is anything else you want to know, just ask.

They'll let you know

2006-04-07T14:55:00.000-07:00

The greatest fun you can have is going downtown having some window shopping. The only problem is that I usually spend more money on my Soldiers than I planned to.
So I am downtown and see this and that and get it just because I think they could use it.

A friend of mine said I am like a motherhen for my Soldiers.
I guess he is kind of right.

Going downtown is always a little adventure.

Have you ever watched "The Beauty and the Beast"? In the beginning when Belle is walking through that town everybody is wishing her a nice day, it is like in my old town. When I went downtown there has always been people that knew me and everybody was waving and wishing me a nice day. Especially the kids I worked with.

Now... I don't know anyone in my new town, except my neighbours and roommate.
Most of my classmates does not live here or I simply don't know them.
Yet going downtown is still an adventure.
I always go to the same groceries and there are always the same people working. It is a little supermarket and once the Student looked weird at me like he wanted to ask "What the hell are you doing with so much Boxes of Babywipes?" or "Jesus... is this for an entire year?" that was the moment I had to explain myself.
"Humm how to put this, it is not for me" I smiled at him
"Where does it go to?" he asked and smiled back.
"It goes to Iraq" I packed my bags with the Wipes, Snacks and other stuff.
"Ooooh.. ." the Student said and nooded at me.
"Yep."

Kind of the same is going on in Mail Office. Sometimes I go there to cash some cheques and almost every 2nd day to send some stuff. I always go to the same person, it is funny, it is very rare that I have to go to a different person.
So that young guy always grins when I bring him all the letters and boxes.
Sometimes it happens that the mail comes back because not everybody knows that Field Mail is the same shipping price as inner country, than I have to bring it back, one time the nice guy asked "It's fieldmail, does it go to Afghanistan?"
"Nope, it goes to Iraq" people behind me started to whisper.
"To the British?" he asked
"No, to Americans... like always" I added.
"Ah" he grinned, "Well, it doesn't matter it'll cost the same and someone has to think about them." he said.
"That is what we are here for." I said and he put the new label on and sent it out. People followed me with their eyes because they heard the little conversation.
Since that day he has a huge grin on his face and always asks loudly "IRAQ?"
I grin back "YEP?"
"AMERICANS?" as if he wouldn't know.
"Like always!" it is like a little game. People usually don't talk about it when they are pro, but they always find a little way to show their unpopular opinion and if it is just like the gesture of that Mailman, they'll let you know.

Keep me in your prayers

2006-04-07T09:55:00.000-07:00

I had a little adventure downtown, I was in the cathedral not knowing that the Fresno Cali Highschool Chorus was in town. I have seen them on the street with their shiny world tour jackets.We had market day and a lot of people were on the streets. Anyway I went to cathedral to pray for our Soldiers, especially for my officials.

I am protestant but I always go to the catholic cathedral because I know it is always open instead of the protestant which is always closed. So I went inside, lightened some candles and sat down on the wodden front row. The picture of the pope is covered with a purple shade to protect it. A screaming golden eagle is holding the preachers microphone. The walls are made of thick beige sandstone and huge sculptures are hanging on the wall. So I sat there and prayed, and felt that peace that you always can feel while being in a church. All the problems fell of for a little while, just god and yourself. Feeling that holy atmosphere you always can feel.

The Cathedral is also a magnet for a lot of tourists and schoolgroups.

Ten minutes later the group from Fresno California came inside and I realized that they are going to sing.
The singers are from all over the world, whose families fleed from war to start a new life in the USA, to live the American Dream.
I watched their faces, Japanese, Chinese, Mexican, Caucasian.. from everywhere.
So I simply walked up to one of the teachers.
"May I ask you something?" I asked
He said "Yes of course"
"Well, I am a Soldiers Angel and I have a couple of adoptees in Iraq, do you think I could get a signature of this chorus? I have one Soldier that is very religious and I am sure he would love to get something like that."
He was totally surprised, than he looked at me, a warm smile, his hazel eyes were smiling. I am not sure if he really was one of their teachers, he could have been old enough to be a Vet of WWII, anyway I bet he never thought to meet a Soldiers Angel over here.
"Oh really? From each of them? Sure, I think they are more than willing."

So he started collecting the signatures, and than their show came up. I have never seen so many people in the cathedral.
When they started singing it was like listening to the voices of Angels.
Oh my God, I have never heard something that was so beautiful, never!
I had to fight to not move to tears.
It was so amazing, so wonderful.
Between each song two of the singers told us a little about the song that came up next and said a couple of words of the person that wrote the song. It was wonderful, so wonderful, it was so wonderful and amazing what they were able to do with their voices. The Germans totally flipped, they applaused them, some even with standing ovations. The singers had a huge grin on their faces, the dirigent said that they are not used to so much applause and you've been able to see how proud those kids were.

The message of their show was loud and clearly:

TOGETHER WE CAN ACCOMPLISH EVERYTHiNG!!!!

Also the nice man gave the signatures to me and said that I will also get a CD for my Troopers with all the songs they sang.
This shows again, you just gotta ask ;)

Afterwards I went to grocerie to get some food and when I came home I heard the phone ringing. I ran into my room and picked up the phone.

The person spoke english and first I thought it'd be John.
"John is this you?" I asked
The connection was bad and it was very loud in the background.
"No this is not John" Bob said
"Ooooh, I am so sorry, Bob?"
"Yep"
"What is that in the background?
"A Helicopter"
"Oh, okay... "
"Oceane, keep me in your prayers"
than he hung up.

WE ALL KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON,

KEEP HIM IN YOUR PRAYERS,

TOGETHER WE CAN ACCOMPLISH EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING!!!

A bit'bout Tanker Angel

2006-04-06T10:40:00.000-07:00

Let's take a view on the other side of the world.
Just a bit over a yonder...

It is 9.30 over here and Belle just said she's going to bed because it is after midnight.
Over here we have morning, the sun is shining, the birds are singing, not any cloud to see and I can listen to the usual noices of an awakening town.

So I am sitting here at my desk and wonder what I could write to introduce myself. It is never easy to talk about yourself, yet we Angels have to introduce ourselves with every letter we write to a new Soldier, but it is a lot easier to write an introduction to a new soldier instead on writing it on the Internet.

Why it is easier?
Hummm... let's see, cuze the whole world isn't reading!

Anyway, I am 27 years old, Student, a German Citizen a Soldiers Angel, soon to become a DJ of HOOAHRADIO and Co Author of the Tanker Brothers German Blog "Panzerbrüder".
Why?
Cuze you guys freed my country and I believe that every human being has a right to grow up with true Freedom. Without you guys I'd be probably not the same person. So I am truly thankful for what you did in the past and what you do today.

A good friend of mine (Captain Mike) recommended Soldiers' Angel to me...
So here I am, working with Southern Belle and kicking one ass at a time!