Update

I just returned from Irbil tonight.  I was pretty excited about my mission while there; it was the largest mission that I commanded.  It only lasted a half of a day though.  Bummer.

Things were pretty hairy for the guys here in Mosul while I was away.  We have been doing a particular mission every day.  The route takes us into the most dangerous area of Mosul for IED’S.  The guys were hit once while I was on holiday and again two days ago.  They were returning to the base camp when explosives planted under the roadway detonated.  They were escorting two armoured trucks which contained civilians.  The device was so large that it totally destroyed the two trucks in escort, shattered the windscreen of the security truck to the front, and left numerous holes in Josh’s windscreen from debris.  It’s amazing no one was killed. 

Josh told me that folling the blast, he approached the two downed trucks to check the status of the occupants.  When he went to the second truck and told them to exit and get into a gun truck, they refused so Josh said, "I smell gasoline."  LOL!!!  He said he’d never seen people exit a truck so quickly before!  haha

It looks like the contact I made with the President of Blackwater has already paid off.  There is normally a six month wait to attend their training session prior to deployment.  I received an invitation in less than three weeks!  If the assignment is in Afghanistan or is fixed site security, I’m going to jump ship.  I was out with John today and was telling him about the contact I made with the President dude.  We stopped at a hotel to check our email, and I said, "Hey dude…you’re not going to believe this…read this email."  He quickly asked me if I was going to leave, and I told him I’m not sure.  Then he mentioned the pay increase…we’ll see.  If it is site security, I’m outta here.  I need a break from this place and these people.

Time for bed.