Best Cup of Coffee
Jacob stopped using drugs. It's funny you know, sometimes the places you hate the most is where you make your home. Jacob was 18 and traveling from the central coast of California toward Meadview Arizona. His family would be having Thanksgiving in Meadview, his cousins had retired out there. Traveling across the state of California was Jacob's mother (Lou) younger sister (Diana) by two years and Jacob. Traveling in a small 1990 Dodge Dakota pickup truck. There was not enough room in the cab for the whole family, so Jacob traveled that brisk day across the state in the bed of the truck. He tried to get warm in a sleeping bag but the licks of the wind were chili.
The family stopped off to get gas in Barstow California, as they pulled into a gas station. There was a homeless family, Father mother daughter and son. The children were Diana and Jacob's age. He thought to himself that life could be worse and he could live in this economically challenged desert town.
10 years later he would be stationed at Fort Irwin California and move into an apartment with his first wife Kerry in Barstow California. "Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous" Albert Einstien
Some mornings there is nothing better than a cup of coffee to start the day. It was a bit cold and the ground was wet with dew that morning. The convoy of military vehicles that was a small part of the 11th Armored Calvary Regiment camped out on the Kuwaiti side of the Kuwait/Iraq border. Our Battalion Executive Officer (XO) Major Russell was cooking up a cup of coffee on a single burner propane stove. The major saw Jacob eyeballing his coffee brewing and asked if he would like some. The XO explained that he had only one cup but split it with him. It was the best cup of coffee Jacob ever had. Jacob checked on his section of soldiers and ensured that they were up and preparing to mount up. We were briefed that today was an election day, (the first Iraqi election day) and the local Iraqi's would not be allowed out in the streets. It was explained to our group that we would not have to deal with traffic but that children would run out to our vehicles. It was than explained that they must not stop for anyone on the road and must push north into our final objective.
The group of soldiers had arrived into Kuwait a couple of weeks prior to entering Iraq. Kuwait is very flat, hot and the majority of the population are outsiders such as Indian or Filipino people seeking employment. Kuwait 50 years earlier was a country full of very poor nomadic sheep herders. The discovery of oil had given the Kuwiati people a very comfortable living.
Camp Buehring Kuwait, and the work begins. Arriving into country they began preparing for what laid ahead of them in Iraq. The vehicles were not prepared for a battle of new age guerrilla warfare. The enemy had been trained to penetrate weak areas of U.S. troops by using improvised explosive devices (IED's).
The men began to improvise their defenses by adding 1/4" thick plates to our doors and sandbags along the bottom of the vehicles in hopes to deflect blasts against these IED's. Jacob enjoyed the huge chow hall and a fairly good selection of food at Camp Buerhing.
Jacob had his differences with the two other section sergeants prior and during the deployment. Jacob believed often times it was simply due to the fact that each section sergeant felt like another section was not pulling their workload or maybe even being treated unfairly. Funny this seems to be the reason for many of the differences between individuals today.
Anyway Jacob was approached by his platoon sergeant and he explained that the vehicles were not ready to leave the base because they were not hardened with sandbags. Jacob knew that his guys were hard workers and always did what they were told. The trucks were looked over to see his trucks. Jacob found the trucks and found another section was taking sandbags off of his trucks and placing them on the other sections vehicles. Jacob was furious and ran into the tent and told the other Section Sergeant (Staff Sergeant Bosley) that he wanted to talk to him outside. Bosley was about half of his size and saw how angry Jacob was and declined to speak with him outside. Probably a wise decision.
