Friday.
2:30pm.
And just like that, the countdown begins.
5 more days until I begin this great adventure.. I still have to figure out what comes with me, what gets shipped ahead, and what will be backfilled as needed. I'm stressed not because I am not in control of the situation, but in my inability to execute based on the need to both find things I need (like cheap cargo khakis - and I don't have the scratch to drop $50 a pair at the army-navy stores right now) and knowing how much will fit into each "category". I have been told to take a backpack with me -- that's it -- so I have to pack enough to last me until my shipping trunks arrive. I should get my trunks today, so tonight will be Packing Nightmare, Act I.
My Dad and Stepmother were here for a few days. It was good to see them, and even better to watch them play with the kids. I have a 4-hour layover in JFK, so I will get a chance to see the rest of the NY family before I go.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Orders
I just got word that my orders have been issued by the military. I still have the vaguest idea of what I will need to bring and what I should leave home. It's a bizarre thing -- I've packed to move, and I've packed for short trips -- I've never packed in-between, and I've especially never packed when I have been this clueless as to WHAT to pack.
I've scoured the Internet for advice, but there seems to be a marked lack of it - so one thing I will do here is post what I have learned in the hopes that it will help someone else.
We met with a lawyer today and handled some estate planning stuff - always a cheery topic - but it had to be done. The reality of leaving is really beginning to settle in now, and it has my mind running around in circles, arguing with itself over matters both silly and serious. One part will worry about what the living conditions will be, then another will counter that if everyone else over there can hack it, that I can too. Another part screams that everyone should man up and deal with whatever happens. All's quiet until the first part pipes up again, wondering about what I'll be able to buy there versus what I need to bring, and the whole cycle starts over.
Of course, I am worried about the separation from my wife and three kids and how it will affect us. Fortunately, 2 of the kids are young enough to the point that I don't think it will bother them - but the 8 year old is getting discernibly sadder by the day. I am confident that my wife can handle the day-to-day running of the household, but I naturally worry about the extraordinary - hurricanes, fire, car accident, and the like. Fortunately, the list of people who have offered to help her with whatever might arise is long. My extended family is worried about me from a safety perspective; however everything I've read and heard leads me to believe that these fears are almost assuredly unfounded. The funny part, of course, is that everyone is worried about me, while I'm worried about everyone else.
I've started looking into what it would take to operate my ham radio over there. Not terribly sure yet -- and I'm not getting answers to my emails on the subject. Hopefully I get it nailed down soon. If I can get permission to do so, it would greatly relieve the boredom.
I've scoured the Internet for advice, but there seems to be a marked lack of it - so one thing I will do here is post what I have learned in the hopes that it will help someone else.
We met with a lawyer today and handled some estate planning stuff - always a cheery topic - but it had to be done. The reality of leaving is really beginning to settle in now, and it has my mind running around in circles, arguing with itself over matters both silly and serious. One part will worry about what the living conditions will be, then another will counter that if everyone else over there can hack it, that I can too. Another part screams that everyone should man up and deal with whatever happens. All's quiet until the first part pipes up again, wondering about what I'll be able to buy there versus what I need to bring, and the whole cycle starts over.
Of course, I am worried about the separation from my wife and three kids and how it will affect us. Fortunately, 2 of the kids are young enough to the point that I don't think it will bother them - but the 8 year old is getting discernibly sadder by the day. I am confident that my wife can handle the day-to-day running of the household, but I naturally worry about the extraordinary - hurricanes, fire, car accident, and the like. Fortunately, the list of people who have offered to help her with whatever might arise is long. My extended family is worried about me from a safety perspective; however everything I've read and heard leads me to believe that these fears are almost assuredly unfounded. The funny part, of course, is that everyone is worried about me, while I'm worried about everyone else.
I've started looking into what it would take to operate my ham radio over there. Not terribly sure yet -- and I'm not getting answers to my emails on the subject. Hopefully I get it nailed down soon. If I can get permission to do so, it would greatly relieve the boredom.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
The Beginning
Three days ago, I accepted a job as an IT contractor in Iraq.
This, as you might surmise, was not an easy decision. As a married father of three and having had reasonable success in my stateside career, my focus was on raising my kids and enjoying life. I was an active volunteer, did some photography on the side, and enjoyed my work. Iraq, while in the news often enough, was merely something else and somewhere else.
The economy changed all that.
I was laid off from a job I had for around nine years back in June of 2007. I wasn't worried, and figured that I'd find another job pretty quickly - certainly no more than a month or two.
I was a little off - it took ten months.
The new job was great - even better than the old job. Ten months in, I was feeling great about the future and looking back on my layoff as an aberration in an otherwise fulfilling career. I had just come back from a trip to the company headquarters in Europe when the call came - I was back on the street again. The difference this time was that all eyes were focused on the economy, the unemployment rate, and the realization that we were in a global recession. I jumped right in to the job search; however I realized pretty quickly that the outlook was bleak. I wasn't getting many return calls. I got few interviews. I sure as hell got no job offers.
As bills mounted and collector calls became more frequent, it became apparent that I would have to find a job outside of my norm - but even this was a dead end. Positions like I had held a decade ago didn't want to hire me because they felt that as soon as the economy improved, I'd leave for a better job. I presume this was much the same reasoning held by hiring managers in other industries -- this isn't his forte; as soon as he finds something else, we lose our investment in him. Honestly, I can't say I blamed them. Of course, the competition is fierce as well; by some reports, there are so many employees applying for each position that only the relative cream of the crop are selected. So if you have even one skill missing from their requirements, it's goodbye before the hello.
Despite all this, I kept looking. One night, (6 nights ago, to be precise), I answered an ad for networking contractors in Iraq. I was shocked to receive a reply roughly an hour later -- at 11:30pm. A few emails later, I had an interview set up for noon the next day.
During the three hour long interview, I was given what I was hoping was the "worst case scenario" description of the conditions, peppered with a few tidbits of hope. I surmise that I was being prepared for the worst but left to hope for the best. At the end, I was asked to go home, discuss the matter with my family, and to get back to them with a decision.
Ultimately, we decided that it was the only reasonable choice we had - and so, I am preparing to depart.
This, as you might surmise, was not an easy decision. As a married father of three and having had reasonable success in my stateside career, my focus was on raising my kids and enjoying life. I was an active volunteer, did some photography on the side, and enjoyed my work. Iraq, while in the news often enough, was merely something else and somewhere else.
The economy changed all that.
I was laid off from a job I had for around nine years back in June of 2007. I wasn't worried, and figured that I'd find another job pretty quickly - certainly no more than a month or two.
I was a little off - it took ten months.
The new job was great - even better than the old job. Ten months in, I was feeling great about the future and looking back on my layoff as an aberration in an otherwise fulfilling career. I had just come back from a trip to the company headquarters in Europe when the call came - I was back on the street again. The difference this time was that all eyes were focused on the economy, the unemployment rate, and the realization that we were in a global recession. I jumped right in to the job search; however I realized pretty quickly that the outlook was bleak. I wasn't getting many return calls. I got few interviews. I sure as hell got no job offers.
As bills mounted and collector calls became more frequent, it became apparent that I would have to find a job outside of my norm - but even this was a dead end. Positions like I had held a decade ago didn't want to hire me because they felt that as soon as the economy improved, I'd leave for a better job. I presume this was much the same reasoning held by hiring managers in other industries -- this isn't his forte; as soon as he finds something else, we lose our investment in him. Honestly, I can't say I blamed them. Of course, the competition is fierce as well; by some reports, there are so many employees applying for each position that only the relative cream of the crop are selected. So if you have even one skill missing from their requirements, it's goodbye before the hello.
Despite all this, I kept looking. One night, (6 nights ago, to be precise), I answered an ad for networking contractors in Iraq. I was shocked to receive a reply roughly an hour later -- at 11:30pm. A few emails later, I had an interview set up for noon the next day.
During the three hour long interview, I was given what I was hoping was the "worst case scenario" description of the conditions, peppered with a few tidbits of hope. I surmise that I was being prepared for the worst but left to hope for the best. At the end, I was asked to go home, discuss the matter with my family, and to get back to them with a decision.
Ultimately, we decided that it was the only reasonable choice we had - and so, I am preparing to depart.
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