OIF and it's VETS

[PAT]

Made a cup of coffee this morning. I grabbed the biggest mug I saw with no regards to what was on it. When I sat down, I noticed it was an OIF mug that I bought my dad while I was overseas.
Now that the war is finally over, it made me think about it and the time I spent over there. That war has wrapped me up since I was a freshman in high school. I've cried and laughed from it. I've lost friends because of it. It's taken up so much of my life that its hard for even me to fathom.
But I can say one thing... It sure is nice to sit at the lake house and enjoy a cup of coffe reminiscing on the war and knowing that it is now over after so many years.

Thank you to all who has served!

Idk why a simple mug hit so hard to home. So sorry of I'm rambling.

 

[dbev24]

Thanks for Ur time it is definatly appreciated!

 

[emiller3]

X2, very appreciated

 

[PAT]

Thanks for saying thanks. I know there is a lot of OIF guys on here. I wanted to thank them. It's strange how something as simple as a mug made me think about it all over again lol

 

[Texas Chevy]

Its always around the holidays when it hits me the most what was lost there. When I look at my family and think about all the friends I lost who won't be with theres

 

[PAT]

yea it sucks. but thankfully its finally over. its just such a strange feeling knowing how that war has shapped some of us for so long.

 

[juddski88]

I think about it everyday. I think about the dust, the sitting around waiting for green skies, I remember the feeling of family we all had. I remember the late night Skype calls back home, only to have them go to hell in 3 minutes. I still talk with some of my interpreters on FB. I still get emails from some of the younger IPs I worked with. I loved it. And if I was still single, I would volunteer again in a heartbeat for another deployment.

 

[Buccanoles]

Very coincidental you posted that. Just last night my wife showed me a coffee mug I bought in Ramadi in 04. It says "Happiness is Iraq in my rearviw mirrow" I hadnt even used it in 7 years.

 

[MACKIN]

Good stuff and I'd like to say thanks it can't be said enough. Freedom has no price and with out your service we would not have it. Thank you

 

[fctry286]

Again thanks. No one will ever know how much appreciative we all are for our men and woman over seas. God bless.

 

[PAT]

I think about it everyday. I think about the dust, the sitting around waiting for green skies, I remember the feeling of family we all had. I remember the late night Skype calls back home, only to have them go to hell in 3 minutes. I still talk with some of my interpreters on FB. I still get emails from some of the younger IPs I worked with. I loved it. And if I was still single, I would volunteer again in a heartbeat for another deployment.

Yea I know what you mean man. I wouldn't change any of it for anything. There were times that I was hating life over there. But I have a lot of memories that I look back at and laugh over. Skype was one of them lol. That and those BRUTAL sand storms that make you feel like your on mars bc everything turns red. And of course all the weird shit guys do/weird conversations that come up when you get to much bored testosterone in one area hahaha

 

[A_T_Ver]

I was stationed in Ramadi in 05, operated all over anbar province, and around Tikrit and Baghdad i think about that place every single day...
Weird to think that it's over now.

 

[PAT]

I was stationed in Ramadi in 05, operated all over anbar province, and around Tikrit and Baghdad i think about that place every single day...
Weird to think that it's over now.

Agreed. We lost a guy a year after you were in ramadi.
Now for oef to end!

 

[Akdiesel]

Great thread Pat...some great responses as well....thanks everybody who did their part.

 

[juddski88]

Agreed. We lost a guy a year after you were in ramadi.
Now for oef to end!

Ramadi can suck a big one. It wasn't half bad when we first got there, being the only guard unit in al anbar amongst 45,000 marines, we were left alone and everything went smoothly. Once the 82nd took over, everything went downhill, Ramadi and Hit and Haditha started going to hell in a handbasket. The PTT mission the Marines had structured was spot on, once the 82nd tried to change that to a MMT mission for us, nothing got done

 

[dmaxdaddy]

Again thanks. No one will ever know how much appreciative we all are for our men and woman over seas. God bless.

X2!:thumb:

 

[Buccanoles]

Ramadi can suck a big one. It wasn't half bad when we first got there, being the only guard unit in al anbar amongst 45,000 marines, we were left alone and everything went smoothly. Once the 82nd took over, everything went downhill, Ramadi and Hit and Haditha started going to hell in a handbasket. The PTT mission the Marines had structured was spot on, once the 82nd tried to change that to a MMT mission for us, nothing got done

I got there during the transfer from the 82nd to 2nd Marines / 2 ID. That was a mean f'ing place no matter what.

 

[crazycrew]

Thanks to all of you who do what do to make sure we can keep doing what we do. It's greatly appreciated


Sent from My iPhone

 

[Texas Chevy]

Oh al anbar. i was there (Ramadi, Fallujah, TQ) in 05-06, 06-07, and 07-08 I was in the Basara Provience with the MIT team. Good times and Bad times.

 

[juddski88]

I got there during the transfer from the 82nd to 2nd Marines / 2 ID. That was a mean f'ing place no matter what.

yea I bet, I was there with a kid who was in the 2nd big push in Fallujah with you guys. He was tasked with ops squad in Ramadi doing PSD runs and QRF on their off days. Hands down one of the best, most calm guys I know. One of the E6's in my platoon was with the 94th MPs in the intitial invasion and was basically the clean up crew for the SF going through Al Anbar for 8 months. It was funny to see him remember a certain neighborhood that he would reminisce and call out " hey I tagged that building!"
Out of all the places our company was split up into, Ramadi was still the most violent in 09-10. We did pretty well not incurring any combat related injuries, my team was operating in Baghdadi where it was super quiet, and we were one of the only teams not to get attacked or "tried"