March 24, 2020
“Ignorance is Bliss” is a series detailing conditions and developments from inside an isolation site at Fort Bliss, Texas, housing US Soldiers returning from overseas deployments.
Today marks day three of intermittent fasting, which was great. Black (rifle) coffee for breakfast, and Oreos and jerky (a nice change from MREs, and probably just as nutritious) for lunch. So far, skipping breakfast hasn’t bothered me; I’m not sure if that’s because I’m getting used to it, or because I’m lazy.
Today’s major event was mail delivery — finally! I got my water kettle and SIM card, which gives me somewhat better opportunities to communicate with the outside world, to the extent that I want to. (Those of you in the know, message/email me if you want the new number). Still waiting on the coffee, which is fine; I have enough of the precious good stuff to get me through a couple more days, and everyone else can suffer through Folgers. I regret nothing.
I also got a massive box of snacks from Mom. Jerky and Oreos — mint thin “diet” Oreos (everyone knows they’re calorie-free) and super thick fudge-covered Oreos (decidedly not calorie-free). I’m hoping my roommates will be willing to help me disp them all so I don’t get fat(ter).
I caved and ordered Mexican for dinner. It was…fine. Not great, but fine. Life lesson: don’t order nachos for delivery. By the time they deliver it, the chips are soggy from condensation. I don’t know what they served for dinner, because I gorged myself on nachos and soggy tacos.
Contractors are still working on infrastructure; I can hear them working around the clock. I’m not sure specifically what they’re working on, because I can’t see beyond the tents they’ve already built. In any case, there’s clearly a lot going on.
People complain about the little things, and to be completely honest — yeah, some of it’s justified. The food’s not great, and we’re sleeping in quonset huts with a bunch of other dudes politically correct gender-neutral pronouns. But seriously…first-world problems, man. The accommodations are adequate, the food is adequate, and Fort Bliss is doing their best to stay on top of something that’s a developing situation for them as much as it is for the rest of the country world.
Stop. Whining.
In other news, I’m working on “Westbrook Resort” t-shirts, which should be fun. The one bar of AT&T reception I have out here isn’t helping, but…hey, first world problems, right?
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