Care Packages and Thank-You Notes for our Troops in Afghanistan

self | 7-3-04 | patriciaruth

[jtill]

Received this thank you note from Bagram today:

Hi!

Thanks so much for the care package you sent here to Bagram. I wish I had my camera handy for when I opened it so that you could have seen everyone. (We have a ritual, that whenever anyone gets a package, everyone stands around to "help" open it - it's pretty funny.)

Of couse, the popcorn was a huge hit and a bag was popping within five minutes of the box being opened. Everyone was excited about all the books, too. I have really enjoyed getting back into reading again, and I look forward to digging into the ones you sent. Everyone was reading all of the titles and calling dibs on which one they wanted to read first. Thanks also for the pencils and notebooks. We will share with everyone - the chapstick, etc.

Above all, thanks for thinking of us and praying for us. That means so much in this strange faraway land.

L:)

[patriciaruth]

jtill sent these books to Bagram along with popcorn and other goodies. A thank you note to her from Bagram is posted by her above.

The Bean Trees, Barbara Kingsolver
Animal Dreams, Barbara Kingsolver
Chicken Soup for the Soul
Catch the Whisper of the Wind, Cheewa James
Capital Offense, Kathleen Antrim
The King of Torts, John Grisham
The Soul Catcher, Alex Kava
Quentins, Maeve Binchy
The Associate, Phillip Margolin
The Art of Deception, Ridley Margolin
Cold Hit, Linda Fairstein
The Next Accident, Lisa Gardner
Beyond Suspicion, James Grippando
Unfit to Practice, Perri O’Shaughnessy
Mortal Prey, John Sandford
A Long Day for Dying, Patrick A. Davis
Sleep No More, Greg Iles
Secrecy, Belva Plain
Separation of Power, Vince Flynn
Warning Signs, Stephen White
Silent Partner, Stephen Frey
The Stone Monkey, Jeffery Deaver

Going in the mail to Bagram tomorrow is now sealed box with
3 grocery boxes of 47 individual bags of various type potato and corn chips,
33 individual boxes of Cracker Jacks,
1 puzzle book,
1 Women's NRA magazine,
1 CD album holder,
VHS movie The Bridge over the River Kwai,
9 American flag pinwheels, and
18 small packs of gum.

Thanks to JustAmy and mathluv for some of the contents.

[The Mayor]

Bump....

My Church is putting stuff together.

[patriciaruth]

Where are you located? Do they have an APO address they are going to use to send the goodies?

[The Mayor]

That is great to read...

Thanks for posting that and for sending them a care package.

[The Mayor]

I don't know but I will send this thread to them.

Good info here, Thank you!
I'm just outside of Buffalo.
Grand Island, NY

[Victoria Delsoul]

Here is a big bump for you!

[jtill]

It was my pleasure!

[patriciaruth]

Here we are on the new thread, sending goodies to both Iraq and Afghanistan.

Can you write some cards or letters or notes for the soldiers?? We've run out of ones to send.

[asgardshill]

Bagram also requested Hildalgo and Shrek2 which will not released for another month or two, and asgardshill has offered to grab them when they do.

Hidalgo is in my hot little hands (the day after I sent my shipments, natch). Shrek 2 will be a while (not scheduled for video release until early November after Bush is re-elected), but I'll send it when it comes in.

[patriciaruth]

I was just thinking about Hidalgo today. Saw an ad last week that reminded me it was about a cowboy that takes his horse to a horse race in Arabia, with notice that it would be available August 2.

I wondered how long it would take you to snag it. LOL!

Takes one to know one....

Well, if you aren't broke yet and you want some suggestions for some movies to keep it company in your next shipment, let me know. We still haven't gotten any horror films for the commander. I wonder what he means by horror. Sixth Sense, Silence of the Lambs, Scary Movie, House on Haunted hill meets the Mummy, Dawn of the Dead, or the Killing Fields all have horror. Then there are classic action pix like Die Hard, Predator, Witness, Gladiator, Lawrence of Arabia and some classic comedies like Groundhog Day that we haven't got yet.

I watched Vin Diesil in A Man Apart last night, one of the previously viewed VHS movies that JustAmy sent. Surprisingly, it wasn't unwatchable. Film noir here means bad sound and amateur camera handling, with a theme reminiscent of Payback, Collateral Damage and Lethal Weapon. Diesil's no worse an actor than Ahnold or Steven Segal. Still it was reasonably good for those that want their nitty to be gritty, and like the heroes to be boyz from the hood, and their villians to be scumbags from Mexican cartel coccaine dealers.

I'll put it in the next box to Kirkuk. There are probably some brothers there that can relate to it.

So, you mailed your box?

Come to mama! Y'all come!

[asgardshill]

I wondered how long it would take you to snag it.

One of the bennies of shilling for the Asgard. (Heimdall prefers old Flash Gordon serials herself, and there's a Blockbuster and a Barnes and Noble within easy matter-energy transporter range).

Horror movies? Give me some titles, and I'll snag 'em. Here's what I have in the library right now:

DVD:

Hannibal
The Mummy / The Mummy II
Silence of the Lambs

VHS:

Alien/Aliens/Alien3/Alien – Resurrection
The Blair Witch Project
The Crawling Hand
The Pit and the Pendulum
Plan 9 From Outer Space (not really horror - it just seems horrific)
The Serpent and the Rainbow
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (old Gunnar Hansen version)

[patriciaruth]

Silence of the Lambs is prime horror.

If we're talking Brandon Fraser in The Mummy, that was kitsch horror, and well done. Or are we talking black and white oldie Mummy which scared my husband when he was a kid?

Someone promised me the Alien quadrilogy a couple months ago, and I'm beginning to give up on seeing them. I was looking forward to sending them for the Commander.

Don't remember the Serpent and the Rainbow. Texas Chainsaw Murders is legend, and the rest aren't particularly interesting from my point of view. But I am not a horror fan.

Those are my off-the-cuff opinions, but you be the judge.

[Kaslin]

I just want to share this with you that a chatter from a political room I chat in posted yesterday in the room and that I copied . The kid or his son he is talking about is also a chatter who comes in the room

9317 PM: Delmer -- Mon, Aug 2 3:05pm PST -----

Delmer
email from the kid....I'll leave out the personal stuff

Mom & Dad
We are in Kabul, only for a few days, moving on the Kandahar soon,our jumping off point.
What a suprise Kabul is since the last time I was here! The city has come back to life, the roads,
traffic lights and most of the buildings are up and running again. New businesses on every corner
and the biggest surprise, many of these new business are owned and run by women! Afghan women, not covered by a Burka. Of course there are still some in the Burka's but the majority of the women on the streets of kabul are wearing the more traditional dress of long dresses with just their hair covered and they are smiling, ducked head and shy but smiling. Another huge difference, there were not hundreds of kids in the streets, they are in school.We see very little military on the streets now, Ours or Afghanistan. Its a different place, a happier place. I'm told its not the same in the rural areas yet of course it will take time. I'll try and find a computer and write once we get to kandahar if possible.

and the rest is personal.

[asgardshill]

Someone promised me the Alien quadrilogy a couple months ago, and I'm beginning to give up on seeing them. I was looking forward to sending them for the Commander.

They're outta here tomorrow. With Hidalgo.

Don't remember the Serpent and the Rainbow.

Its creep city and great stuff. Zombies, Santeria, steamy Caribbean island locations, guys waking up from suspended animation in buried caskets, the works. Joe Bob gives it a big ol' thumbs up!

"The Pit and the Pendulum" has sentimental value for me. It was one of the very few "horror" movies that honestly scared the living bejabbers out of me (the scene where the protagonists find out that the dead girl wasn't quite dead when she was buried long ago).

"The Crawling Hand" is a grade Z 60s-era stinkeroo that had one cool scene in it - the expression of sheer terror on the face of the astronaut as his capsule makes a bad re-entry and is burned up (much like Kerry's presidential chances every time he opens his mouth). The upshot is that his disembodied hand (the only piece to make it back) takes its revenge on passersby. He was probably sore that NASA used the low bidder to build his capsule. Its probably best if that one stays here in the States - I wouldn't want the DoD to come after me for exporting subversively awful movies to innocent troops.

Anyway, flicks are on the way.

[patriciaruth]

Serpent and the Rose sounds like horror for a horror fan. Dump that in, too.

Never could figure out why people like horror films and roller coasters.

Voyeurism on real life they are missing? Real life has enough real horror and thrills for me. Like someone once said:

If you go around with a smile on your face all the time, you aren't paying attention.

[asgardshill]

Thanks for the new tag line :)

And roller coasters, bungee jumping, and stunt flying are muy cool.

[patriciaruth]

You should put your tag line in quotes. Wish I could remember who said it, or where I read it. Was maybe 30 years ago.

[asgardshill]

Well, it beats my first choice, "Over the lips, over the gums, look out tummy, here she comes."

[patriciaruth]

Could possibly have been one of Carrie Fisher's throw away lines in Postcards from the Edge.

My favorite line of hers was "Instant gratification isn't fast enough."