Update on Spotted Horse (Ken)

Post date: Jul 11, 2009 7:4:56 AM

Ken (my dad) is deployed to Bulgaria.  Here is his last email update sent to my mother:

Hi Honey,

  I got NIPR capability here yesterday.  But could not get back to office

to write.  We do not have the cyber café set up yet.  The MWR guy arrived

today to start running wires.

  You will never guess.....they have wild pigs here.  I have a picture of

one sneaking up on me which is not 20 feet away.  This whole area has dozens

of them.  As soon as we got here I saw the momma pig with eight little

oinkers eating plumbs which had fallen from the tree next to our office and

sleeping area.  They call our building the White House. Reason, its four

stories and is painted white.  We have offices on the fourth floor, a few on

the third floor and woman's sleeping quarters.  On the second floor is men's

sleeping quarters and showers.  The water has Ecoli so brushing teeth in the

stuff could kill you.

  When the tents are ready, I am suppose to move to a tent.  My office will

move to a truck van, converted to a office.  No electric there yet, air

conditioners coming soon, computer net work coming soon.

  Oh, and they have Gypsies.  They travel the roads in single horse drawn

or donkey drawn wagons.  The wagons are only about four foot wide and 10

foot long. Rubber car type tires.  Gypsy clothing.  On Sundays some of the

horses have red headdresses.  I have also seen entire families of gypsies

walking, caring babies in arms and heading for an intermediate destination

10 kilometers away.  Not sure how far the family was going to walk, but the

stretch of road from outside our base entrance to where I later saw the same

group was 10 km away.

   The army gets up here at NLT 5:30.  So I get up with them.  They have

PT, I hop on my mountain bike and ride for an hour. At least one soldier who

is excused from running will start biking with me. At this time we do not

have a DFAC. Still under construction.  Our HQ advance element meets at 0800

and caravan to a big truck stop area to purchase fresh coffee and gas

station type food.  Currently we also buy enough for lunch to go.  Then at

evening meal we go back to same area and eat at the seven or eight Mom & Pop

operations which have good salads and barBQ.  This is a welcomed change up

from having to eat MREs.

  Take care.  Love to all.

KENNETH YOESTING

Director of Logistics

TF-E FWD