Yesterday on Christmas day a colonel from another battalion stopped in to say hello and wish us happy holidays. We held formation at 1400 and he gave a speech and then the chaplain that accompanied him gave us all a blessing. I talked with the chaplain, a major, briefly before the formation. He said that our unit will be home this summer. He said that the enemy is being pushed off the supply line from the Iranian border to Baghdad up into the mountains. I told him that their resistance was like a blob of jelly: when you press down in one spot the jelly just squirts out to the side. then when you press on that spot it just moves again. What we're trying to do with this surge offensive is get them all at one time and be done with it. I'm not sure that's really possible but we have to stay positive. Every day we bring in more detainees for questioning, usually blindfolded and with zipcuffs on.
After the formation we all sat down to eat Christmas dinner. We had mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, cranberry sauce, stuffing, and chicken instead of turkey. It was pretty good and everyone had a fun time talking. There was even an eagle ice sculpture which I helped prepare. The cook was all by himself trying to cut the plastic mold off so I decided to give him a hand. It took almost half an hour to cut the plastic off!
It has been getting pretty cold so we got a bunch of kerosene heaters. Because of the high ceilings in the building there's no problem with the fumes and we turn the heaters way up so the flame is high and it looks like a small fire. There's a bunch of ammunition and weapons around so we have to be careful.
The day before Christmas we fired the mortars. We used both trucks and fired more than 90 rounds. Usually we just fire a short distance and you can see the rounds impact, the "splash" it's called. This time however we fired at a target a few miles away. It was pretty loud in the truck firing all those rounds, even with double hearing protection of earplugs and a headset. The truck absorbed the shock of the cannon each time we fired, rocking down a foot or so. There was a lot of smoke from the cheese charges which are the small canisters of gunpowder that send the round flying. There was lots of yelling and shuffling to get the rounds out of the casings and hand them to the assistant gunner. It's the kind of thing you never forget.
I waited until Christmas day to open all my mail, but it turned out that I got too much and I didn't even open it all. I still have some packages for the new year! Thanks to everyone back home who sent me letters and gifts, I really appreciate the support. A big thanks to Dino Campanis of Bellefonte, PA for sending me over 120 care packages since June. Everyone still runs over to see what's inside them. I hope everyone enjoys the rest of the holiday season and good luck in the new year! Hopefully the war will be over soon and things will lighten up.
Welcome!
6 comments:
Merry Christmas Amos! Thanks for keeping up updated!
Sounds like a Christmas to remember.
We got your cool postcard today with Santa pulling a sleigh in the desert.
Glad he made it to your outpost!
Hoping for better times in 2008.
Happy New Year!
Mom
I learned of your blog from Sherry Roger's blog and have been reading your posts. How interesting it is to have this glimpse of our brave men who are serving so diligently. Thank you and all your fellow soldiers for what you do for us all. I appreciate your dedication. How wonderful it would be to have a world without wars…but then again some things are worth fighting for. I pray you have safe days and peaceful nights as you carry the warmth of family and friends in your heart.
Amos, I got socks for Christmas. I couldn't hold out any longer and bought myself new underwear in October. We are going to Connecticut for the annual burning of Ano Viejo on December 31st. Karen and I both enjoy reading your posts and feel privileged to know you. I am already thinking about my costume for the Highlights Party in the fall and hope to see you there. Happy New Year!
Happy New Year Amos! You don't know me. My name is Tim Molnar and I go to St. Basil's Byzantine Church in State College with your parents. I was talking with them last night and asked about you. Your Mom told me about the blog you have and gave me your blog address. So I wanted to drop you a line and say "Hi."
A little about me: I am 47, soon to be 48 (1/16), married with a nine year old son, Danny. I'm, employed at Penn State, as is my wife, Beverly. She is a writer/editor who does lots of brochures that go to high schools and things like that. I'm in the College of Communications and teach Radio Broadcasting. My backgroundis in radio. I was a deejay for several years in the 1980's and then switched to talkshows. I worked across the northeast U-S and was working in State College when my present job came open. So I applied and am happy to say I'm at PSU. Please note that I didn't say I "work" at Penn State. What we do is not the same as the 60-70 hours weeks I put in at B-103/WMAJ or WRSC/QuickRock! Boy is there a big difference!
I have only read a few of the blogs so far but plan on reading as many as possible. I enjoyed all the ones I have read so far. Your vacation in the DR sounded interesting and I particularly enjoyed the interview with the Iraqi police officer.
My nine year old son, Danny, wants to send you an e-mail. He is a fourth grader at the Park Forest Elementary School here in State College. We live in Park Forest. One of those wonderfully quiet cul-de-sac's a block away from North Atherton Street. We get virtually no sun at all. Too many trees. And no sand. Different from Iraq!
Keep safe. Know that you have been in our prayers every night for many months now. Every night we get together and pray that "all the soldiers will come home safely and soon, especially those soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, and most especially Amos Matsik and Todd Wheeler, both from State College." I don't know if you are a "townie" or not, but since your parents are here, we'll include you as a townie. (I actually think the phrase is more like "Younze local?" Does that sound familiar? What's the other one--"younze up the college?) Please don't be insulted if you're not a townie. I'm not but we love State College a lot.
Keep your head down and stay safe. Post as often as you can.
Tim Molnar
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