I have successfully moved to Camp Slayer, into a house. There is a huge room partitioned off to make cubicles with beds in them, and my little cubicle-room has a sliding glass door (unopenable) right along the lake. It's beautiful, quaint, and much safer than that tin-can trailer. This morning's walk to breakfast was nostalgic, but I couldn't tell where the nostalgia was coming from -- Bahrain? Japan? At any rate, the temperature was cool and there was a strong breeze coming off the blue-green lakes. It was a peaceful walk, and I even passed a few stray dogs and cats who seemed oblivious to the change this once-Ba'athist resort has undertaken the past few years.

I work in the "Perfume Palace" now. Still don't have indoor plumbing, but that's alright. The palace has an enormous dome, which I work inside of. I must get pictures of it... I can see the palace from my bedroom. :) This is SO MUCH better than Victory. Camp Victory was like a bustling Army extravanza.... and Camp Slayer is like a small town with a little Main Street.

Must start work! ~ Amber

i've been unable to write recently because i've been sick and stuck in my trailer. the doctors didn't know what was wrong with me (weak, dizzy, strange creatinine levels) so they wanted me to go to the CASH (which is like M*A*S*H) at the International Zone. It took me two days to finally get a flight here, during which i was stuck in my trailer. well, the doctors here took some more blood tests and decided i'm fine and "on the way to recovery." it's embarassing that i came all the way here via helo and nothing is wrong with me except that i had an "unknown viral infection." yes, i know, it's a good thing everything is fine now... on paper anyway. i still feel crappy. at least psychologically i know now that i'm not heading into kidney failure again. for the first time in days, i want to eat something... but the chow hall doesn't open until noon, and i'm supposed to catch a bus back to Victory then (they call the busses Rhinos, and they're armored but ugly). so... to answer emails, i'm fine now and should be all well again in a few days to a week (according to the doctor).

while i was waiting to be seen, there was an Iraqi National Guardsman with his foot wrapped up and he was moaning and crying for some pain meds. he didn't speak any English, but after they got a translator, found out he hurt his foot in Fallujah a few days ago. he kept begging for medication, but they couldn't give him any until they figured out what was wrong exactly. i felt bad for him, but he was moaning incredibly and it was just a foot.... the British guy across from me kept his eyes down as did I, mostly, avoiding the Iraqi's attention because there wasn't anything we could do for him. a pitiful case, and it was unnerving.

there are so many banged up soldiers here. i can tell they've been in battle, and several have shrapnel wounds on their legs and their hands bandaged as if they've been in a fire. and here i am, weak and sick but apparently "just fine" wandering the halls hungry and thirsty until my time to make the voyage back to my home base. i am looking forward to getting back to work tomorrow, but i am embarassed that the only explanation i will have of not being able to work the past few days is an "unknown viral infection." the doctor said she'd seen lots of really strange illnesses here. she got to chalk me up for another.

well i'll get off the computer now and let some other wounded/sick use it. i'll go read my book ("Crime and Punishment") and wait out another hour or so until i catch the shuttle to the bus.

it's sad i came all the way to the International Zone and i don't get to see it.

it's been raining. although i enjoy the familiar smell of wet pavement... i do not so much enjoy the mud. it's not just normal mud... it sticks to your boots and piles up and up so suddenly you find yourself two inches taller and walking on rounded soles. it's got the consistency of chocolate pudding mixed with corn starch.

the change in climate is welcomed, though. it suddenly feels, smells, and looks a bit like Fall. or at least a Fall with Palm trees.

i think i am getting addicted to running -- and that's alarming, coming from me.

www.mnf-iraq.com

this past week went by fairly fast. (a good thing)

yesterday was the lunar eclipse. i went outside to watch it for about 1/2 hour as the last sliver of the moon was blanketed in the earth's shadow. one of the girls watching it with me apparently had no concept of astronomy and was shocked when i said the eclipse was because we were between the sun and the moon... she asked, "so the sun is directly behind us then?" it was cute. she was amazed, and maybe she'll pick up an interest in astronomy from now on.

the really neat part of the eclipse was that the mosques started singing loudly, which was both beautiful and eerie. it seems that having a lunar eclipse during Ramadan is a big deal, and if you're a jihadist, it's a great time to pick a fight (guess you get to Paradise quicker or something). we were somewhat expecting mortars or a firefight, but it was relatively quiet. just the moon, and the shadow passing over it... and a few bats, swooping across the orb. (it really did turn into an orb -- no longer the silvery disk, it looked like an orange balloon not too far in the distance.)