"Singing in the Rain"

I once wrote about the hazards you face while out here on Combat duty. You worry about the rockets and stuff, but it’s the simple things that can really hurt you around the base. Take for example the rain. When it rains here, it comes down like a cow pissing on a flat bed rock. Big ole’ drops that actually hurt when they hit. Since this is all talcum powder sand with a clay base, there is nowhere for the water to run off so it collects and forms little mini lakes around here. Having walked over the same route to the Chow hall, I know where all the pot holes are and low spots where you need a boat to get through. The smaller puddles work great to get the mud off of your boots as you splat through mud, water, mud, water on the walk.
The other night as I was walking back from dinner after the big rain all day, I was following two new Marines as they navigated the little lakes in their path. I say new Marines because if they had been here long they know the cardinal rule of “never walk through a puddle” It was a guy and girl combo. The guy was taking the direct path through the water puddles and the female Marine was skirting around the edges. I was following the route of the female Marine, taking my chances with the mud and muck. She was not having an easy way with the mud and decided that after this next puddle she would walk with him. Big Mistake…
There in front of us was a mini lake with the access around the edges made up of 6 inches of mud. They start plowing through the middle of the water joking about having to put on new boots. I stopped to watch for a minute because if I’m not mistaken, there is a giant hole right about there… the guy on the right steps off into a foot and a half hole, pitching forward grabbing the closest to him who was this poor gal standing all of about 5’4. Both of them go face first into this giant puddle and disappear under the brown muddy bath. When they trudged unhurt out of the puddle, you could hear them screaming all the way to the other side of the base. She was screaming “I told you so” and cursing “Shit, Shit, Shit, my uniform is all messed up!!!” I asked if they were ok, and had to bit my tongue not to laugh out loud.
That, I’m sorry to say made me chuckle though as I walked around the edge of the lake taking my chances in the mud. Those two have just learned a valuable about walking around in Iraq… It’s not just the Rockets that can get you and don’t trust your buddy who says, “come on, it’s not that deep”
Take care guys and I’ll talk to you soon,
Semper Fi,
Taco