My previously-promised description of the individuals with whom I work at the Troop Medical Clinic is, indeed, forthcoming; I will hereby beg a little more time, as there are a few soldiers I still need to photograph, so that you can put a face with the name. Expect that post before the end of the week (possibly in two parts).

So what is happening around here? Weather cooled off a bit today, which was greatly welcomed. Last night I walked out of my trailer to hit the showers at around 2030 hrs (8:30 PM), and was absolutely bowled over by the heat—still nearly 110 degrees even though it was pitch black outside. That is a really strange sensation; we expect it to be hot when the sun is beating down on us, but having that oppressive heat in the absence of the bright light seemed very foreign to me.

Found out about the Al Asad serviceman who died this weekend. He was a 20-year-young CPL from Waterbury, CT who died in a “non-hostile” incident (i.e., an accident, or from an illness). Very sad, and a relatively local boy for some of my family members. Gordon B. Hinckley called war “the most wasteful of human endeavors.” Amen to that.

You may notice the irritatingly-mobile text to your upper left, counting down the time I have remaining in Al Asad. So little time to cram in as much digitally-pilfered media as possible. Here is what I am doing to entertain myself these days:

Books
1. David McCullough – John Adams (Bought this a long time ago in audiobook, just now reading it; a great presentation of a story most of us don’t know well.)
2. Tony Parsons – Man & Boy (Smarmy British rock critic goes straight and grows up a lot. Lorri’s recommendation.)
3. Lorri Rupard - Jane Weisz, Undetermined Major (Cute, sweet, semi-autobiographical, insecure and did I mention sweet? A little self-loathing, some betrayal, a couple of Mormon swear words, and a touch of redemption brings this one full-circle. Plus, I’m married to the author.)
4. Shelby Foote – The Civil War: A Narrative (1960s work which presents the CW as a story rather than an abstract history; David McCullough learned a lot from this brilliant writer.)
5. George Higgins – The Progress Of The Seasons (Baseball in historical, poetic perspective. I’m a sucker…)

Music
1. Death Cab For Cutie – Narrow Stairs (Less mellow than their priors, but still has that sweet, chilled groove; Cath and Grapevine Fires are the cold-chill-inducers for me.)
2. Grateful Dead – So Many Roads (Anyone who says these were untalented stoned-out hippies needs to listen to this 5-disc box set, and you’ll here some jazz fusion, blues, and really raggedy CSN impressions.)
3. Neko Case – Furnace Room Lullaby (Still my favorite pure singer, going on two years in a row; these songs are simple, eerie, and brilliant. And country[!].)
4. Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago (Orson-Pratt-bearded dude goes into the Wisconsin woods for a few weeks and emerges with a strange, holistic album which just sounds like it has a very very small carbon footprint. Freak folk, my favorite new genre.)
5. Jakob Dylan – Seeing Things (I just love this guy. Great songs, great voice. Am I the only one?)
6. The Weepies – Say I Am You (A folksie couple writes sweet, quirky songs, mostly about love and the like.)
7. Scarlett Johanson – Anywhere I Lay My Head (All Tom Waits covers. Anybody who likes Tom Waits this much can’t be talentless. Can she?)
8. Talking Heads – Remain In Light (An old classic, but if you haven’t heard it before, it will be new to you. The first song scares me; the next few make me smile and wiggle around.)
9. Kings Of Convenience – Quiet Is The New Loud (Quiet folksie music that I can play at work. Acoustic, beautifully instrumented, quirky tunes.)
10. Silversun Pickups – Carnavas (Been in constant rotation with me for the past 1.5 years, since I heard ESPN’s Bill Simmons talk up this very unknown group. The singer sounds like a girl, the bass player is a girl, the songs have approximately 4 chords apiece, but still are intricate and interesting. When they rock, they really rock.)

Also watching a lot of Deadwood and John Adams, plus the mix of MSNBC, Fox, and CNN which the Armed Forces Network provides on their news channel. That’ll get less interesting after tonight, as the Obaminator appears to have it in the bag. Not much in the way of sports, due to the time lag and the fact that no one at the AFN appears to like American League baseball. I’ve caught the end of many of the Celtics’ games when I get up in the AM, though. Saw Maria Sharapova beat the stuffing out of some poor German girl at the French open the other day, and I can’t say that I’ve ever seen anything like it. A six-foot-three Russian woman who screams every time she hits the ball, and destroys all in her path? How can you not be mesmerized by that?

Kids, that’s all I’ve got today. Same as it ever was…