January 20, 2008 11:20 pm by Ray Moser.

Please read my post at my work blog,

webMethods Consultant Blog

I will no longer post to this blog since I am no longer in the combat zone.

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September 14, 2007 7:45 am by Ray Moser.

Hey one and all, I’ve been derelict in my duties with respect to keeping my BLOG up to date.  So, here’s a nice long blog to fill in all the blanks.

First, I have to thank all of my wonderful friends and family members who have kept me stocked up on photos from home, coffee, skittles chewing gum, medicine and gossip.   A special shout out to my “West Coast” relatives, who for whatever reason, have stayed in contact with me since I first joined the Army 25 years ago.  Hi Aunt Yvonne!!!

My last post was June, so I will detail some of my experiences here starting with Army work.

I shifted gears from working on an Intelligence Team to Operations.  I run all the operations for our two detachments.  The main focal point is the planning required to meet all the criteria to get us home.  This requires collecting a lot of forms, coordinating with various departments and making sure we meet all of our hard dates/times.  Right now, I expect to be home before the end of the year.

I went home on leave in July and it was a good time.  I saw my son and daughter and my lovely wife.  I didn’t know it, but my wife became a Christian in my absence.  Prior to that, she was a practicing Hindu.  She says she has found peace with God and her life has become more meaningful.

During leave, we went to the beach, Disney World, and my son and I spent a lot of time together riding on the motorcycle.  I think the beach by-far, was everyone’s favorite place.  We also had one big get-together and everyone showed up and behaved!  Overall, leave was awesome and I hated to come back.

Upon my return to AF, the First Sergeant went on leave and I took over as Acting First Sergeant.   It meant a lot more hours and I had to concentrate on Soldier issues.   I learned a lot about managing people and how to get things done Army Style.  For the 3 or so weeks he was gone, life was certainly very hectic and the hours very long, but, it did make August go by without nary a blink.

I have been tasked to work on a database project now and my civilian job directly correlates since it is a data migration/synchronization and integration issue.  I will integrate data from several sources to create one system of record that will be used all over.

My spare time (ha ha):

I spend almost every evening chatting with my wife online with the web cam.  The connection here is poor and very slow but it’s worth it.  I get to see my daughter on the cam on occasion.  Sometimes it is for a few minutes and other times, I get maybe an hour.

I also try to get a back massage once per week.  At $20/hour, you can’t go wrong, but they are definitely not well-trained.

I am teaching myself Java programming.  I’ve been hacking around in Java for a long time, but I finally have wrapped my arms around the idiosyncrasies of Java and plan to use it with my job once I get back.

Speaking of Jobs, I have been in contact with several of my colleagues back at BearingPoint.  I am looking forward to my imminent return to work and I will never take a latte for granted again!!

Things I am looking forward to when I get back (just a short list):

• Family
• Motorcycle
• My car - Any car to drive for that matter
• USDA Prime Steaks
• Half and Half for my coffee
• Hot bath
• My bed
• Homemade macaroni and cheese
• Walmart:  I get more than one choice of Shampoo and soap

Things I will gladly leave behind:

• Military Showers
• Bottled water:  Cannot drink from the tap here.
• My uniform
• The dust, it is fine like talcum powder and it gets everywhere and in your eyes.
• The PX (post exchange store)
• I guess I should end it now, before they come and haul me away

Also, before I go, a special hello to JR, who has just went to Iraq.  May God watch over you!

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June 1, 2007 1:14 pm by Ray Moser.

A lot has changed since the last time I posted here. 

We have had a suicide bomber, several rocket attacks and some mortar attacks. 

The food hasn’t changed much, and I have tried as I can to vary my diet and discover “new” foods.  This is getting difficult to do, but I’m sure it can happen.

My work-out routine was going well until I went to Qatar on pass.  The food in Qatar on the base was so good, I went hog wild (no pun intended.)  I gained over 10 pounds.  The trip itself was restful until it was time to go and delays piled up to extend my stay in temporary housing for 2 days.  Anyone who has stayed in temporary military housing knows that Motel 6 is the King’s choice between the two.

I have continued to work out and my weight has stabilized, I have gotten much stronger and am in much better shape than before.  I have even started running.

 My views on the military are much different now.  I am not sure if I will apply for warrant officer candidate school, or simply ride my next few years out and retire.  That is the more likely choice based on my experience here.

I am working on year 18 now, and will have 2 years to finish up.

Work has changed as well.  My mission has changed completely and I am now the Operations Sergeant for our facility.  This detail-oriented work keeps me busy and gives me great satisfaction.  I am basically a project manager but for the military.  Seems like something I may know something about??

As for my friends and family who have sent me goodies, I can only say thank you, thank you and thank you.  The coffee is the best.  Afghanistan is the only place where Starbucks does not have a footprint.   So, I have it sent over.  In addition, I drink Dunkin Donuts and Peets.   I can sort of thank my California Cousins for introducing me to Peets Coffee.  After they took me for a tour of the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale Brewery in Chico, CA, they took me to Peet’s, where I quickly became addicted to Admiral Dikinson’s blend.  Thanks Peet’s.   It is quite tasty and only $18 a pound.

With regards to my family.  I do miss my wife, son and daughter.   My son is not taking it too good.   In fact, he was quite mad that I had to go and thought that I volunteered (hey, I’m not kidding.)  After many phone calls, letters, etc., he now understands that I am doing my duty.   My daughter recognizes my picture and voice.  We’ll see what happens when I return home on leave in July.  

My wife is the best woman in the whole world.   She continually writes me and sends me goodies.  We both make it a point to sit down and web cam every single day.  We have missed web cams probably less than 3 times since I have been here unless we purposefully couldn’t due to my work schedule.  The web cams make all the difference in the world.  I get to see her and she I.  I see my daughter playing, dancing and just being a little kid.  I plan to continue to web cam while I travel when I return to work.

Which leads me to the next item is work.  I can’t wait to return to BearingPoint.  They have treated me royally during this deployment and that was something unexpected and that will not be forgotten.  I am waiting for a fresh load of software from one of my compadres at webMethods so I can get back on the bandwagon with that software.  I hear that the new software release 7.0 is super. 

On another note, I have been learning Java and studying Oracle 10g.  I hope to have a good working knowledge of Java development and architecture to help me out in the future.   In addition, nothing really happens for anyone without Oracle, so Oracle is always a good choice when it comes to learning topics.

We have a new Captain at work who will teach me some Spanish.  She is from Colombia and I hear that Colombians speak some of the best Spanish.  I am also studying Indonesian.  This is in my slight spare time, so it is not getting 100% of my spare time.

I read books, magazines, but mostly, my spare time is spent behind the web cam with my wife.   

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February 17, 2007 6:15 am by Ray Moser.

42 years ago  today, I was brought into the world.   Who would have thought that I would end up at Bagram Air Field in the middle of a Global War on Terror?

As a quick update, the PX finally received an order of eight bicycles.  I bought the first one off the top of the palette.   I drove the unit van to the PX and delivered the bicycle to my BHUT.   A quick examination of the assembly guide showed that the allen wrenches are required.   I finally found a set and was able to put the bike together.  Last Wednesday, I took the bike out on an inaugural mission around the 8.2 mile perimeter road of the base.   I made the trip in about 45 minutes.  It was 25 degrees out.

Today, I will leave work a little early and go to the day spa for a 2 hour massage.   The rates are cheap ($20/hr) and the results are good.   When you get older, it pays to take care of your body.

I’ll eat dinner afterwards and make sure that I get one piece of cherry pie, my favorite.

Tomorrow, I start an industrial-strength diet and work-out regiment so I can get ready for my SFC board PT test.  

On another note, the base is conducting a direct-commission board in April.  I am thinking of submitting a packet for that.  But for sure, I am preparing my Warrant Officer package for the May Board.   Becoming a butter-bar at 42 is a difficult decision.   The army is screaming for warrants, so I am focusing more in that area.

As far as work is concerned, it is going fine.  We basically prepare paperwork and work on briefings for the command here.  It was gratifying to see that our work has the potential to reach all the way up to the National Security Council for briefing and review.  The Army is a huge conglomeration of gears in the big machine.  It’s nice to see that a few, seemingly unimportant gears, can have such a dramatic impact on operations.  

We have passed day 57 and spirits are still high.  I think that soon, we should start going on our R&R trips to QATAR.   The sooner, the better!

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February 4, 2007 3:01 am by Ray Moser.

Well, not really a nickel; after taxes, I probably receive less than 50 cents on the dollar. 

I thought I would provide an all-encompassing update for the general masses.    I received my bicycle helmet and light from home, so now I am ready to buy my bicycle.  I spoke to my local contact here and they expect the new shipment in within the next few weeks, or any day. 

Jen, thanks for my birthday box.  I now have the widest selection of body lotions on the entire Air Base!   The birthday card is hanging on the wall in my room.  The programmable whoopie cushion will be used stealthily.   Thanks again!

The last few days have been a blur.  I was trying to figure out why.  I started the malaria medication and as a result, I went into dehydration mode.   Saturday I rested and drank lots of fluids to fix this up.   I spent yesterday watching movies and drinking lots of water and OJ.   I also took some more pictures.

Interestingly enough, I was able to resurrect access to my corporate computer and gain access to our systems back home.   It was delightful to receive emails from some of my workmates.  

Work is going well and I have started to do some programming on Microsoft Office, Access and Powerpoint using VBA for the Army.  It’s part of an automation/efficiency concept that I came up with.   

I can’t remember if I reported this, but we finally received all of our goods from the Army.  I’m unpacked and well stocked.

That’s all for now! 

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February 4, 2007 2:52 am by Ray Moser.

Well, it’s Sunday, February 4th and it’s my brother Rob’s birthday.   It’s also Superbowl Sunday, but not really.  We have to wait another 12-15 hours for that.  

Happy birthday Rob!

You’re probably wondering why I’m posting for Rob and not my brother Dave or daughter.  Simple, I didn’t send him a birthday card.  Sorry Rob.

Anyway, happy birthday to you!

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January 14, 2007 2:45 am by Ray Moser.

What do you do in a place where there is nothing to do on your day off?  This is certainly a question worth it’s “wait” in gold.

This was my first entire day off since arriving here on December 20th.   I slept in until 8:15am local time.  Then, I ate a quick and light breakfast and then hit the gym.   Afterwards, I showered and then grabbed my camera (A pentax K110D) and walked the central part of the base to take pictures.   Ever since the dawn of digital, I’ve become quite a photo buff, hence the purchase of the digital SLR.   Notably, I walked to the Pat Tillman USO and took pictures of the facilities and his Jersey. 

Then Lunch.

After lunch, I spent some time playing my PSP game, Brothers In Arms D-DAY (I think).   Then I grabbed my SLR again and hit the road North all the way to the North PX and took pictures of the mountains along the way.  

I do need to point out that it is unlikely that I will post very many pictures here in the interest of Operational Security.   The Internet is open to everyone including the enemy.  So family and friends will be able to see the pictures via CD-ROM eventually.   No one else can.

After the trek north, I returned to my BHUT and grabbed my Clancy Novel.  I went to work and sat in the MWR room and finished it off.   We have nice couches and lighting so it was a good choice.

Then, I went to dinner and had steak and ice cream.

Afterwards, I walked dinner off and then headed to the day spa for my weekly massage.  

After the massage, I chatted with the wifey on web cam. 

The End

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January 8, 2007 2:24 am by Ray Moser.

Hi folks,

Well, here at BAF (Bagram Air Field), many people have arrived to replace those who are leaving.    The people who are leaving are selling off all of their comfort-related items like heaters (uh, opps, we don’t have heaters here..), televisions, refrigerators, shelves, lights, bicycles, etc.

So, I have made some purchases to make my little room in the hut a little more comfortable.   The first thing I obtained was a ladder so I could get in my bed.   My bed is like a loft, and it’s a little over 5′ from the floor and there is no way I’m getting into without killing myself.

One of the guys here who is leaving sold me a really nice hanging light and a clip light so now, I can see even when the main lights are out.   I also purchased a set of plastic drawers, a chair and a rug.  

Eventually, I’ll get some sheets, but right now, it’s so cold, I sleep in my cold-weather sleeping bag and my wooby (pancho liner).  

I’m still looking for a bicycle so I can get some good riding in.  It’s about 8 miles or so around the roads here and it’ll be fine as long as I don’t get run over by one of the truck drivers.

The bicycle can wait though.  It’s so cold today, my fingers turned numb.  I mean, it’s really cold.   I estimate it to be no more than 5 degrees outside at the moment.  But, it is clear with no precipitation.

That’s all for now.

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January 1, 2007 11:51 am by Ray Moser.

Yup, nothing out of the ordinary today.  We worked yesterday and today.  In fact, we work every day.

 However, for added celebration, at work, we counted down to “midnight” Eastern time and we dropped a ping-pong ball from a chair to the floor.   That was about it.

I think we have something like 345 days left until we leave.   So, nothing much to look forward to.

The food is starting to taste gross because there is so much of it.  There are a number of dining facilities here, but the best one is run by the Army.   Believe it or not, they kick some serious butt in the kitchen.   It is by far the tastiest I have had in a long time (as far as military food.)   Friday is “special” night and they really cook up some good stuff.  While the other chowhalls have steak and crab, they make killer lasagna.

Since this is a multi-force contigency here, there are dining facilities from other nations besides the USA.   The Koreans, Egyptians and UAE have distinctive dining facilities.   I’m scoping out methods to scam my way in or to somehow get an invitation.  Nothing like ethnic home cooking to make things taste good.   Also, there is another Army dining facility that I have not visited but will let you know how it works out.

There are a couple of PXs here (stores) where you can buy things.   It’s pretty limited and you really can’t special order any items.   I spoke to the manager because I would like to buy a long-range Bugout Bag, but they cannot order it for me and if they did, it would take 4-6 months.  Then, the manager told me that last month, 12 of their connexes were stolen as they made their way through Pakistan.   That’s why there isn’t a lot of goods on the shelves.   Don’t get me wrong, the PX has plenty of stuff, just not a great selection.  

 I hope our stuff doesn’t get stolen.   It has happened to other units.  We still haven’t received our boxes of goodies that we packed before we left Ft. Dix.

Work today is pretty hectic.   Can’t seem to find all the stuff I need, but will get it done.  I’ve already seen next week’s schedule and it is 3 times the amount that I have this week.  Can’t wait!!!

 Anyway, I hope all of you have a great happy new years!  And Dave, hope you feel better.   Sorry to hear about your situation.   

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December 25, 2006 12:09 pm by Ray Moser.

First, I’d like to offer up a Merry Christmas to everyone back home.  I’m doing well and on target with my personal fitness goals. My last weigh-in prior to tonight’s Christmas dinner was 193.5 lbs.  Not bad!

 The base here is sprawling but easy to walk around on.  There is one main road that runs the length of the base and on one side is a giant sidewalk that everyone uses.

I worked for about 4 hours this morning then took the remainder of the day off.  The base put on a nice lunch and dinner here.  I also went and had a nice 2 hour massage.  The massages go for $20.00 per hour.  Merry Christmas to me.

Yesterday, I had finally got connected on the Internet service provided by AAFEEs.   It’s slow and kind of sucks.  I was hoping to get onboard with the satellite service but we do not seem to have coverage in my particular area.  So it’s slow and futile.  I can use SKYPE, but it really works only with SKYPE and not landlines or mobiles.  I did sign up for the extras, but the voice calls are pretty garbled.

It’s been snowing outside since late yesterday and it’s accumulating rapidly so I expect to have more than a foot by tomorrow morning.  It really doesn’t seem to be very cold.  New Jersey was much colder than this.

As for work, I really can’t provide any finite details as always, but I am working in a safe environment far away from the troubles down South.  I can say that I am not doing the work that I originally had planned to do.  No one is.  When we got here, they sliced us all up and sent us to various departments or offices to work.  No one is going outside the perimeter of the base though.

As far as the stress level is concerned, at least for me, there is not a lot.  I call home usually once a day or sometimes twice.  Work keeps me busy.

Of course, I do miss my job back home.  I miss the traveling and miss my family.  But, I am here doing my part for the Global War on Terror. 

On that note, I can tell you that stuff here is very real.  The threat here is very real.  The bad guys are still training other bad guys and preparing them for the fight that could lead to the USA.  I don’t feel bad about being here and I am able to do my part.  

They have several gyms here on post and I have worked out every day since I’ve been here except for today.  I will return to working out tomorrow and I will continue to go to work to make a difference.

Merry Christmas to everyone!

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