17 June 2009 Update

The food in this war zone simply rocks. Wow are we spoiled. I recall listening to my dad talk about K rations and reading about C rations which were earlier versions of the K rations and occasionally watching movies where all there was to eat was cheese and bread if one was lucky. How about a meal with a simple plate of beans with beef and some hard bread? It used to be a luxury to get hot food which often came from any fire that you used to heat the items in your helmet.

When I first joined the military we used the old helmets, they were the same ones used back in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. We were shown the value of heating water in the helmet so that we could warm our food if required or have hot water for a shave or bath. Now our helmets are Kevlar andc ouldn't be used for such but no worries as there is always a hot meal close at hand or one can simply use the heater pak which now comes in every MRE. Take the time to Google C and K rations and compare them to the MRE of today.

The military however now ensures that a dining facility is one of the first things on the ground no matter how large or small the unit is as hot and or good food sure can win wars. I was telling Tina back in January or February that the fruit which is available in our dining facility is out of this world. I eat so muchf ruit of varying kinds simply because it is available, I love the fruit. We have basically everything a person could want to keep us content and happy. The dining facilities are basically the same as large cafeterias with numerous selections all prepared and ready. I find I opt for the same things for each breakfast which is basically fruit, cereal, a piece of ham, a slice of cheese and juice. I usually eat salad and a sandwich for lunch as the hot food line is far too busy and time is precious if I'm not at the entry control points where I end up eating a nice MRE. I always eat from the hot line for dinner which has several choices.

So if the food is so good why would someone want to go and eat at one of the half dozen fast food joints that are on this big base? We've got a Subway, Burger King, Pizza Hut and several deli joints. This large base is really set up to spoil the troops who might be missing the old taste of home. The outer bases often send their troops here for a few days of down time and rest from the higher stress of the areas under constant fire. Anyway, I like the dining facility as it has pretty much everything a person might want to include hamburgers and hot dogs.

There are five major dining facilities on this base serving over 50,000 meals a day, yep, a lot of food goes through here. Anyway, each of these facilities serves a different cuisine, for example we have a British, Asian, American and German dining facility all within walking distance. Then there is an outstanding American run facility a bit of a drive away. All and all we can eat until we are fat or at least content. We often sit at dinner and comment on the fact that our food budgets are going to go up when we get home as it will be hard to live without all of the variations and of course fruit.

Hope you all have a good food filled day, love you all, Lincoln