By By Chuck Bodiford
"It's a little warm," said Seargent Harold Madison Thursday morning – Atmore time – from Iraq. "Right now it is 5:15 in the afternoon over here and the temperature is probably about 120 degrees. Earlier in the day, say around two or three, the temperature can get up to somewhere between 125-130 degrees." With a hairdryer you can experience this type heat. According to Madison, the high heat of a hairdryer blowing in your face feels very much like the wind blowing in Iraq.
Two main tools to beat the heat Madison spoke of are air conditioning and water. "Most all our facilities are air conditioned and we really push each other to make sure that everyone is drinking enough water and/or Gatorade. I myself try to make sure that I at least drink three bottles a day with each bottle being a liter and half."
There's an axiom that an army travels on its stomach, and eating goes hand in hand with drinking. According to Madison, there is plenty of food to go around. Madison recounted a breakfast menu similar that of many stateside restaurants. It consisted of eggs, grits, hash browns, omelets, bacon, sausage, biscuits, milk and orange juice. The lunch menu also seemed to make an impression on Madison. "Today I had Philly steaks, mixed vegetables and visited the salad bar," he said.
To date, Company A is still involved with the humanitarian projects along with their regular duties that other soldiers have mentioned in their Signaling Home columns. "We are starting to see some real results with our irrigation efforts to beautify the area. An example of this is seeing some green grass beginning to grow in certain areas," Madison said. As far as us providing signals according, to the Brigade Commander, as a whole we're providing the best signal."
"To my friends and everyone, I just want to say that I miss them and I'm ready to come back home. To Beverly, my kids and the grandkids I want to say thank you for the fantastic job you are doing with the family support group and I'm doing fine."