The barefoot guy on the roof is catching bricks tossed up to him from the pile below. They will be used to start building the parapet on this school tomorrow. The tents in the background are classrooms until the school is complete, and most likely, until school lets out for the summer. Boys in one tent, girls in the other.

I mailed home some boxes today, winter clothes, boots, shoes, books unread... The enormous amount of gear they sent me here with will go back to Texas having never left the duffle bags. Raincoats, mosquito nets, sleeping bags, winter boots, gloves, long underwear, gas masks, goggles, tent poles, and the list goes on. Enough to cost me a fortune in overweight airline charges I'll have to put on my travel voucher later. Today was an informal announcement that civilians will be allowed to wear either DCUs or their own clothes here on base. We knew it was coming because Air Force security teams were out doing radar speed enforcement and ticketing bicyclists for traffic violations just like state-side bases. I have just under two weeks left and it feels good to be looking at the home stretch.