COLD

Much of the snow has melted but it is still very, VERY cold. At least it is to me. At night it gets down to somewhere in the zero to ten degree range, and the high each day has been right around freezing.

I want to be quick to say that I have it very good here, relatively speaking. I am not on the front lines with the soldiers, who no doubt sleep outside in holes in this weather. Remember them, and certainly don't feel sorry for me.

Those who know me know that I can't stand the heat, especially when I'm trying to sleep. Our B hut is about perfect for me at night. I would say that we're able to keep the temperature somewhere in the fifties. I kind of like it at that level. My philosophy has always been that you can always put more blankets on to warm up.

However, extreme bitter cold can be a problem at night. Especially when you have to make the mad dash outside to get to the bathroom. Again, I am extremely fortunate. My hut is right next to the latrine, which is about fifteen yards away. The latrine has a heater inside, so it's not too bad.

Now here's the funny part. At least I think it's funny. You wake up at about 3am and you've got to go to the bathroom. You note that your breath inside the hut is creating steam, so you figure it's going to be less than hospitable outside. You debate whether it's worth it or not to make the mad "dash" to the latrine. You think, "I've got to get up in three hours anyway, maybe I can hold it." Upon further review, you realize that this is not the right approach. You consider the empty water bottle in the corner, and then you remember that you were raised better than that.

So you decide to make the mad dash. You then remember that boxer shorts alone are not authorized army wear. You think about "chancing it" thinking that no one will see you. Then you envision the headlines if you were shot in your Underoos. So you have to put on shorts, or your uniform pants.

You next put your flip flops on. They're great for the shower, but not so great for the ice and snow. I have on more than one occasion participated in an impromptu ice capades show on the way to the 'loo. I've also been so bleary eyed and frozen that I've missed the stairs a few times. Visions of the following telegram have inspired me to be more careful: "Defense Dept. regrets to inform you that Scott suffered an other than combat related injury while attempting to capture the latrine."

Anyway, once you successfully negotiate the dash to and from the latrine, it's back to bed. If you have escaped injury, it wasn't too bad. Now you get to face the cacophony of alarm clocks in three hours. I will write another post about that later. Until then, have a good Friday.