So, I don't know how much of my audience has ever lived inside of a walled (even if somewhat medieval in terms of style and construction material) compound surrounded by razor wire and sniper nests and armed men and packs of wild dogs; I am guessing that unless there are many prison inmates reading about my life while taking a break from searching for recipes for toilet bowl hooch, the percentage is low. It feels a lot like prison...I have a job which I dutifully report to, I have a small cell where I go at the end of the night to sleep, they feed me three squares a day, and there is a small gym where the inmates (sorry, employees) all get jacked to impress their girlfriends back home when they finally get paroled (whoops, I mean rotated off crew). Luckily the prison comparison ends there, as there doesn't yet appear to be any roving gangs of sodomites frequenting the showers. Needless to say, there is nowhere to go...no change of scenery from day to day, just the same earthen wall, the same snipers nests, the same men with guns (though crew change changes their faces, I suppose), and the same wild dogs. I suppose that while my nature generally looks for change pretty frequently, there is something somewhat pleasant about the simplicity of life on the inside...all that you have to worry about is work, eating, perhaps fitting in a workout...well, and I guess maybe an attack on the compound or someone stepping on an un-detonated mine. Better than having to worry about shower rape or getting stabbed with a toothbrush for a pack of cigarettes though, so at least we have one up on prison.
I have been running into issues today with politics and personalities here at work...people are all different and sometimes dealing with them makes West Qurna a minefield figuratively as well as literally. A large crew drawing from vastly different cultures, outlooks, and personality types makes it difficult to ever get anything done without hurting someone's feelings or bruising someone else's delicate sensibilities. I am having some issues juggling a couple of my crew members' personalities and trying to get them to see eye to eye with some other people here who need to be respected, even if nothing else. Some people want to rule and get upset when they get challenged, while others want to hide in the corner and feel put upon when required to take a stance on something...how does a person navigate through it all?! C'est la vie, I suppose...the world has always been a mess, communication has always been difficult between people, and who am I to expect it would be any different here. If anything, Iraq, I guess, is a perfect example of different groups absolutely unable to work together in a meaningful way towards a common good. The Shiites, Sunnis, and Kurds have seemingly been doing all that they can to have this new Republic of Iraq fail right out of the gate...
On a different note, the people here are absolutely fascinating...so many different types of guys (the whole crew is made up of men) from all over the world. Everyone has a story to tell, and everyone has a unique perspective on America, the world, and life. I can't even begin to explain how much I have enjoyed talking with one of the Romanians on the crew; hearing about his life in Romania both makes me happy to have been fortunate enough to grow up in America, but also somewhat jealous of the pastoral life that he now leads there with his family. I have befriended an Algerian who is leaving crew for home soon, and his home sounds remarkable! And lastly, a Libyan, who was on a seismic crew during the Arab Spring in the deserts of Libya and was part of the group of locals who helped guide the foreigners across the desert and safely out of the country...the story was almost straight out of a novel or movie!
In conclusion for now, Iraq, as anywhere, has its ups and downs...there are personality conflicts and politics to play no matter how far from the corporate office you travel. I guess I was just surprised to find that here at the ends of the Earth, it is all the same...just another day at the office.
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