"Hey Goose, you big stud!"

 "Take me to bed or loose me forever!"

Some more pictures from an amazing trip all around... black and white and men uniform never hurt a shot.

I got creative with my new camera, bought on base.  Luckily I had willing subjects.

Here I am in a bomb suit.  This space type thing is what they wear to dimantle bombs.  It weighs 90 lbs., which lets just say is a good portion of my weight.  I felt like I was in one of those sumo suits and I fell down Id never be able to get up.  Imagine wearing that thing in 130 degree weather.  Cuz they do.. the helmets have air conditioning built in!
WOAH Rach!  Who let her have a canon...!!??
Calm down there Private Benjamin....  great pic. :)
While at the palace, enjoy such activities as golf!  There was a driving range devised by the gentlemen who worked there and we did pretty well!  If you need to know what to send the troops stationed at Camp Victory, send range balls.  That's all I'm saying.
So, for this shoot I'm thinking us, the desert, and a military man with a plaque.  Genius!  It's genius!  right there!  That's it... I'm not even shooting you darlings!  Yes!  That's it!  Smile with your eyes... yes! 
Loving on America.
Ok.. So here we are shooting some rifles.  well... some M240 Bravos and such, but potato/potato.  Now, Ive really only shot blanks before, having been in the movie biz most of my life (and having, strangely enough played characters who shoot their fathers and whatnot on the Hallmark channel) but when in Rome as the saying goes... This was very cool.  We are not shooting at people but targets- to be clear.  We were given specific safety instructions and gear.  As you can see my trusty teacher is actually holding my helmet up for me because it was too big and when I laid down I couldn't see a damn thing.  I felt very manly afterwards.  Didn't do too bad either.
After a long day of shooting machine guns and singing pictures you just want to cut loose.  Tie one on with some non-alcoholic beer and really get in with the locals, right?  So we went to Tuesday night line dancing.  Electric slide and all.  But of course, DeAnna had to step it up a notch.  Blindfolded line dancing after being spun around 10 times.  The girl is a masochist for fun.  And I looked redonkulous par usual.  And sort of like the chick from Watcher in the Woods, that scary Disney movie from the 80's... uh..  anyone?  Bueller?
Rachel, DeAnna, Brian (our tour manager, guide, mentor, and personal Creeper) and me on the Iran border.  Ahh.. the sights!  The smells!  Were no different than everywhere else we've been!  But it makes for a nice picture anyway.
I mentioned in an earlier post about the cards and letters sent by kids... most of which make you want to tear your heart out and have an emotional breakdown... occasionally there are funny ones too like this one below.  Genius.
The three of us came to meet the General but to our dismay he was out.  So we decided to take some pics in his office to leave for him.  Seriously, I think DeAnna accidently called Japan.  Shh.  That phone bill is gonna be high.  Someone should have gotten a 5 for 5 plan Sir.
Dad, seriously.  Smile!
Deanna and I on the Blackhawk creeping it out and posing.  oh , by the way... another term- Creeper.  Its a noun, verb, adjective or adverb.  Thats the beauty of it.  It can mean moving in close... feeling out a situation... getting involved or psyched up.. or it can mean general creepy-ness.  Feel free to try it out in your own personal situations.  I'll go first.  "Man, I love these Blackhawk rides!  I could creep up in these all day!"  or... "DeAnna, why are you being such a creeper this morning? You're creepin out!"  also a personal fave, adding the word into popular lexicon such as,  "Hey! Creep it real!", "Creep it down" and my personal fave, "If you like then you shoulda put a creep on it!"  Just because.  Try it.  You'll like it.
Speaking of creepy... we stayed in Saddam's hunting lodge for 4 nights and this was the living room right outside of our door.. if you look at it you might remember this is where he did his final television interview.  Thats the creepy part.  Not the dudes in the chairs.  They were just there and very accommodating to my documentary picture taking.  And not creepy for the record.
We got to take a tour of the palace, which was really cool.  This was on the same property where we stayed and was a large mansion build by Saddam after the Iran/Iraq war.  the money the US government gave him as food money for his people was used instead to build this opulent palace. Nice right?  Anyway, he was so impatient that he killed many architects who wouldn't get the job done fast enough so they started building it with shoddy craftsmanship to literally keep their heads.  Going through it now, there are many panels falling off.. the heavy chandeliers are sometimes hanging by chicken wire (like the large one behind us)... its insane.  Now the US government uses it for a headquarters.
This is very famous chair given to Saddam by Yasir Arafat.  The black and white checks in the small area under the arabic lettering are to represent his headdress.  Many soldiers have sat on this chair and taken pictures, just like me.  It's truly a historical symbol.
I had an amazing time and I thank everyone that made it possible from Pro Sports MVP, Brian Lee, and my comrades, Rachel and DeAnna.  The best part was saying hello to all our servicemen and women and thanking them for all they do.  They bust their butts everyday in harsh environments around the world to look out for our best interests.  Whatever your beliefs about war or our political climate, the reality is we live in an imperfect and chaotic world, and the lives our men and women live over there away from their own families indirectly and directly benefit us and our quality of life here in America.  It's very difficult to judge or form a belief about a situation you haven't seen with your own eyes, and certainly about the people who give their lives to be there.  So I say thank you from the bottom of my heart.  It was incredible, rewarding and enlightening.  I can't wait to go back.

Movin' on up... to the Iraq side

This is the plane we took to Iraq.  Its a C-17 and it's huge.  Inside all the seats are bolted down in rows and there is NO leg room.  It makes coach look like a private plane.  Also, no snacks.  But you probably guessed that.

Once we were in Iraq we were off and running... or flying I should say... to several bases.  Here DeAnna and I flex for the guys in a base that used to be a shopping mall.  There were even old escalators there!
Sadur City- one of the best known bases in Iraq.  This base saw a record number of days in action.  Thank god for these signs.  I thought Id never find the market.
Our mode of travel.  Puffy, eat your heart out.
This is an arial view of one of Sadaam's palaces.  Now it's known as Camp Liberty.  There are several buildings the troops have taken over.  We actually got to stay there in the hunting lodge, which they've converted to accommodate diplomats, heads of state.. and uh, me.  
Munhommed and I.  It was a love affair that would never really begin... what with he being all of 12.  Our religious differences would tear at our heart strings like romeo and juliet.  But for that fleeting moment... on the back of his harley- er, uh- moped... I closed my eyes and we rode over the gravel... and it was just like Italy.  Just like it.  Ciao Munhommed.  We'll always have Sadur...
Chatting and gabbing with the guys
The fallen soldiers are memorialized
Cards and letters from around the world.  Most from children.  The notes make you want to cry.
Ok... This gentleman is Matrix.  That's his name.  I feel I must take a moment and explain the genius of Matrix.  He is an Iraqi Interpreter.  He also loves his camera.  so much so that he will sit and take picture after picture from about 3 feet away until that memory card is full.  And he did.  This is not a practice reserved solely for him.  Oh no.  We discovered in our travels that there were many "Matrix's" on bases.  Many of them Iraqi interpreters, some chefs, security detail and the like.  We fondly named them all Matrix... and its a perfect name really.  Because you can't escape it.
Us with our boyfriends at Sadur.  Munhommed, (my romeo) and his rival.  See there were not one but TWO Tiger Marts on this base.  These are markets that sell all kinds of stuff (see my previous post) and they are usually run by Iraqis.  In this case, two rival families vied for the best market on base.  They look friendly in this picture but rest assured, the competition for Tiger Mart of the year is stiff.  Also note Munhommed's belly.  Sweet thing.  Riding around all day can get sweaty.  He is working off that d-fac cake we saw him eating!
Our third base of the evening... note the xmas trees in the background.
Me in a tank.  Watch out!!  These guys were awesome.  They let us do all kinds of stuff- get in a tank, drive a Humvee... uh...  I mean, play uno, watch sports center...
Us with our certificates of appreciation
Vroooooom!  Hey, donuts in the parking lot anyone?
Getting to Iraq wasn't always the easy part... the planes may be large- but on time, they ain't.

Kuwait take off and landing...

On Jan 2nd I left for Kuwait to participate in a USO tour, visiting the troops.  I was so excited about it as it's a huge honor to give back to those who are serving our great country.  I left Los Angeles around 7am west coast time and after a layover in Washington D.C., took a 11 hour flight straight into Kuwait.  A good 24 hours of travel door to door.  Im travelling with two great girls, Deanna Papas (from ABC's The Bachlorette) and Rachael Smith (Miss USA 2007) and of course our trusty man Brian Lee who is the epitome of ready at all times!  (and he likes college football so we have a lot to discuss!)

Stepping off the plane was definitely an experience.  Everything is in Arabic, naturally, and all women wear scarfs covering their heads.  What I did not expect to see walking off the plane was a Starbucks immediately to my left!

We had to stand in line to purchase a visa, which you do by ticket, like at a deli.  I expected a sandwich with mine but no dice. 

Here Rachael and Deanna lead the charge while I film like a Japanese tourist

Micky D's anyone?

Man, they have everything over here!  (Although I would use the word "toliet" loosely)

This is a smoking room.  It has a sliding door like a pharmacy and basically its like a hot box of carbon monoxide... not that it really deters anyone from smoking wherever they please....

Alas, poor Deanna's bag didn't arrive and was stuck in D.C.  We are still awaiting it - hopefully tonight!

We drove about 40 minutes to Camp Afjran and settled in for a completely jet lag filled evening of partial sleep.  Its not bad- kind of like a dorm room.  Im planning a panty raid later.