From:
Michel Mabee
Sent: Friday, July 16, 2004 11:40 PM
To: Steve Brykman
Subject: Re: Need a good laugh in Iraq

Hey Steve,

I've been on the road quite a bit this month. I just got back from Mosul yesterday. It's been a very hard few days. On July 11 we had three troops killed in ambushes on our convoys. That's thrown a real damper on the mood over here. We had two memorial ceremonies yesterday. I'll send you the latest letter I wrote to the families. At least my writing skills have been good for something out here. One of the things I try to do is write to the families of the soldiers from time to time because they are usually pretty starved for information. I try to be upbeat when I can in the letters - even funny if I can manage it.

I have about six months more of Iraq to endure before I can go back to my cushy Federal job in Greenwich Village, eat sushi and get fat. My favorite thing about New York is that you can drink a beer at Penn Station while waiting for your train.   Over here, we have no alcohol. We all drink "near beer" which is "less than .5% alcohol. That means that if you drink 15 of them, it's like having a beer. 30 of them is like having 2 beers and if you drink 96 of them you may catch a buzz.

What a country!

Mike
"Granite 7"

Michael Mabee
Command Sergeant Major
167th Corps Support Group
Tikrit, Iraq