www.RiversideRenegades.com

hey all,
things here have been hectic to say the least. I have some stories to tell,
but I will have to wait till I get home for a few of them. My company has
been setting records with how many operations we have done....matador,
newmarket, hoclanea, and now sword. Hit is a big city. it has trash
everywhere but still it could be nice. the architecture is amazing. The
houses are so cool and evertyhing is made out of stone and each one layed by
hand. It is really amazing to see them build some of these houses. some
are so cool looking I would live in them. The kids are everywhere. some
kids run out into the street to wave while others duck and hide. we were
throwing candy to them like some d**m parade, but they started getting to
close to the trucks and man did they get greedy and mean. the bigger kids
would smack the little kids and take it, so I started putting hot sauce on
lolly pops, to play a trick on them. I got a kick out of it. I also had to
start throwing flash bangs out the window to clear the crowds.
I must say that since I have been here I have learned to listen to my inner
voice and whatever else there is out there. sonething told me to put some
more aromor on my door. I dont know what it was but I did it. It took me
about an hour to harness another 50pd blast blanket on the side. Not 15
minutes after I was done they said it was time to leave. we go to pull out
and a guy pulls in the entracne. He gets stuck in the sand. he cant go
forward or back so he blows himself up right there. THe blast knocks a wall
down and puts a hole in the ground the size of a minivan. HIs left hand
hits off my widshield, and not a piece of nothing hit me.....there was
another occasion where an IED blew and shrapnel landed 100feet behind me and
Cpl Batt, but nothing touched us. we have been doing good. things now are
different. it feels like war, even more so than befor. we are sleeping in
run down buildings, no running water, using holes we have dug for toliets.
no showers, no hot chow. trash everywhere, nasty Iraqis ducking in and out
of houses, and corners. But it is all good now. I am back at the FOB, I
got a shower and I dont have to go out unitll tomorrow.
well I must go
talk to you all soon;
RAY

Hello again,
i was nicely supprised to have been pulled back to the FOb this afternoon.
I was supposed to be on a 24 hour bronze/HIT patrol, then a 24 hour Tasker,
then a 24 hour Uranium patrol, then a 24 hour limited raid team, and then 24
hours off. But as we were conducting snap vehicle checks, our command said
come in and get some rest.....nice.
There has been no real excitment lately, which is nice. I just got back
from a patrol I was sure would be dangerous, but it turned out to be nice.
It was on the East side of the river Euphrates. There is only one bridge
within a hundred miles that humvees can cross and it is downtown HIT. Last
time we tried to cross we got ambushed and had to pull back and blow the
hell out of the other side with heliocpters, but this time was different. I
rolled first with Kabar 1 behind our Kabar. so 8 vehicles in all. when you
get near the bridge you go trough ancient HIt. narrow streets, with
ancient ruins from when alexander the great came through. there is a huge
mosque on your right and it feels like you have been transformed into BC
times. there are low hanging wires and my truck pulled them all down, I
had my gunners and marines in the back lay on the floor of the truack and
cover themselves because we just went blasting through there. I did this
because of the car bomb threat. there are narrow streets and a market there
so we could barely fit my 15 ton truck through it all. they also have large
blankets strung from building to building to provide shade. I felt like I
was in the movie Aladin. it was wild, but scary because we are pushing
through this small street, people are running from us and from the downed
wires that spark and hiss all around us, and cars are trying to get out of
the way and backing into stuff and we are pointing our weapons at them
waiting to get the big ambush that we feared....it never happened. we got
to the bridge, which you must cross on truck at a time, and crossed without
trouble. when we got to the east side it was like stepping into another
world.
The people on the east are farmers and not bothered by any changes in
leadership. this was the first time any marines had crossed over to the
east since the innitial invasion. it was seen as too dangerous, they would
just send helicopters over there. well the farming people were the nicest I
have encountered. the children came up and shook your hand. paople waved.
they listend to you asked you to join them for dinner. it was nice. the
land was beautiful too, close to the river, about 1000m from the river it is
dead desert as far as the eye can see. but near the river seems like it
very well could have been where the garden of Eden was. It smelled like
flowers and there were crops everywhere. for some reason there were huge
fields of sunflowers. they had little irragation ditches so water flowed
all around. the houses had hanging gardens. there were cattle all around
and other live stock. it was really nice.
it is also were the muj run weapons north and south up the river, but that
was not the locals faults. I got out and asked a boy abuot if he heard the
mortars they shoot at the FOB and if he knew where they were coming from.
well his whole family came out. about 8 little kids jumping at my legs all
wanting to give me a high five and shake my hand. the father came out and
asked me in for some CHI and food, while all the young to older woman
giggled and waved from the doorway. At that particullary point I didnt mind
Iraq. But that was short lived. 24 hour later I crossed back in to the
trash laden hell hole of HIt. I caught A guys car on fire, when I shot a
flare because he refused to stop. He is lucky to be alive. the flare went
through his turn signal and lodged in the tire. lite up the tire and poof
his car was ablaze. we got him out and to the hospital, he was fine. his
car was not. but you and I will pay for it with out tax dollors so ohhwell.
well I gotta go, another op in fall;ujah is going and we may need to help/
I will write again soon
love
RAY