Now what?!?!?!

So, I realized it has been over two weeks since I last posted on here. The main reason is because I really don't know what to blog about. I can't talk too much about what is going on here, because of issues I could get into with the military. I don't really have much to say about things going on back home, because I don't know too much of what is going on.

I know I said I would start taking pictures of the food here to compare with the food pictures from Australia, but I keep forgetting to take the pictures, and it just lost interest. I could talk about my fantasy football leagues, but it is just too depressing. My team that looked good in one league is winless, and the other team is one and one, but doesn't look that great either.

I could talk about things back home, and how it looks like Kim is going to be getting us a house. I am pretty excited about that, but that is muted because I am not really involved in the process. I can look at pictures and talk to her about it, but I still am not there. It will be nice to finally have our own place though, and we have some big plans. We want a game/rec room where we can watch sports and hang out. Put a wet bar up somewhere for drinks. I want a place to store wine, as I plan on continuing that process.

So things are going about the same here, and things are going on back home. However, I still have no clue what to really write about on here. Do I talk about how I love winelibrarytv, and the videos that come out three times a week? It is what keeps me going with the wine and makes me excited to get home and really start diving into that whole process. Do I talk about history and the podcasts there I am enjoying? I got some more books to read here, but the reading is going slower than I would like. It is in spurts, as sometimes you just dive into something heavy like a history book, and other times you lose yourself in what I call 'fluff' reading for a week or two.

I will figure something out and try not to make it over two weeks until my next post. To everyone who checks this out, I wish you all the best.

Until next time.....

Fantasy Football Time!!!!

It is football season, and that is the greatest time of the year. I am not a complete nut about football where I can rattle off stats and won loss records the last decade or two, but I do watching it. I also enjoy playing fantasy football. I have been around it since the early 80's when my dad started up his league. That league is still going, and I have become a part of it in the last dozen years or so. It helps me become more involved with the league as a whole, instead of just tied to one team. Kim is very die hard for the Vikings. I enjoy the Vikings, but really enjoy the league as a whole.

So usually every year I get into a couple of online leagues, and then dad's league. This year, because my connection here in the desert isn't the greatest, I decided not to do any online leagues. Some of the guys here though decided to do a league, so I will be in two still this year.

The league here in Iraq is interesting because we did the draft auction style. I have been doing this draft in my dad's league for a while, and truly love it. Instead of just one guy getting a chance at the best player, everyone has a chance. You get so much money at the start to budget with, and then bid on players to fill out your roster. I didn't do that well in the league here, as I hadn't really done any mock drafts, and didn't know how anyone would pick. I blew my money early and had to scramble late. It isn't the worst team, but it isn't great either.

The next night I participated in my dad's auction draft. Kim was most helpful in going to the draft for me. I was able to use Skype to talk with her on the phone and through her computer and help her with the draft. The technical issues were frustrating, but I think we did really well in this draft. I won't post either team here, because I don't think anyone cares really. If you want details on the draft, feel free to comment. I can always post more info about each league and the rules involved.

So with football season starting, and fantasy football here to occupy us with a distraction, I have a feeling that time will move a bit quicker. And that is a good thing as we start the downhill stretch of this deployment. At least it seems like downhill for me since I got back from Australia.

That is it for now. Not sure what I will talk about next time, but I will think of something.

Until then......

Back in Iraq.....

So I am finally back in Iraq to finish up this deployment. The trip back was pretty straight forward thankfully. We did get stuck in Kuwait for a couple of days, but that wasn't so bad. Let me have some McDonald's and some KFC to round out the trip.

Looking back on the trip, I have to say that I had a really good time. I didn't go out and do everything that I could have, but that is probably a good thing. The point of the R&R is to unwind and recharge to get through the rest of the deployment. If I would have been doing things everyday, I would have been worn out from the vacation. Instead, I was able to rest a bit, have some good food, do a few things that I normally wouldn't do, and also see another country.

Australia was pretty cool. Very civilized, obviously, and no language issues. That is a big plus, because when I had gone to Belgium for a week, there was a slight barrier there. Most people there speak English there, but it was still 'out there' so to speak. I enjoyed driving on the wrong side of the road and the cars with the steering wheel on the right. The money was a little in the favor against the US dollar, which was nice as well, but I still wound up spending about what I expected to pay.

The food was good too. There isn't really 'Australian' themed food. The main standard dish seemed to be fish and chips (french fries). We had italian food as well as some american style food. Steak and potato, pasta, fish, and other things that wasn't DFAC food. If you have looked through my photos on facebook, you have seen some of the dishes that I took pictures of while out there. I am going to start taking some pictures of our meals here so you can see some of the differences. There is some good food at the DFAC. You can have handmade sandwiches, and they do stir-fry now and then. Otherwise, I usually just take what looks semi-appealing from the main line. I want to show you just what it is we are eating.

Now, if you want to keep up with this little game I have started, just join me on facebook. I am going to start a folder with all the pics from meals in Australia, and then I will do another folder with the DFAC meals.

Football season starts, and I am doing my league back home, with my lovely wife doing the auction for me while I talk intermittently online. I am also going to be doing a league with some people here in Iraq. We are going to do an auction here for that draft, and the interesting part is that for many, this will be their first auction draft. Will I get to take advantage of that? Probably not, with my luck.

And the time counts down closer and closer as we start downhill to the end of the deployment. I will try and post semi-regularly on here, but don't get too excited.

Until next time.....