Yard sale!

February 03, 2005

Sgt. John Szakalski of New York came out of his trailer at Camp Taji with a pair of big, inflated boxing mitts on his hands.

“I’ve got another pair!” he said to the soldier in front of him, punching his hands into the air.

“You’re selling the Sock ‘em Boppers?” yelled Lt. Kevin Irvin of North Little Rock, leader of 3rd Platoon, Bravo Company, from the steps of his trailer. “That’s how I settle fights in the platoon, man!”

It was yard sale day. Everything must go.

A clear, sunny day and warm breeze added to the festivities. Soldiers danced around to music booming from CD players and played with the toys they were trying to sell.

By the time the sun dipped, almost everything was gone and the boys of Bravo had recouped some of the money they spent over the past year trying to make a war zone feel like home.

The soldier standing in front of Szakalski — Ski to his buddies — was shopping for accessories to make her stay in Iraq more comfortable. She just arrived with the 3rd Infantry Division, the unit replacing the 1st Cavalry Division in Baghdad.

She ended up buying Ski’s TV, power converter and TV stand. The Sock ‘em Boppers were thrown in for free.

“I had to throw them in. She was a tough bargainer,” he said, putting away his money.

The appearance of the 3rd Infantry Division patch — a square with diagonal stripes — in the chow halls and on the roadways of Camp Taji means only one thing: It’s time for the 39th Infantry Brigade to pack since they are scheduled to head for home sometime next month.

Soldiers spend time between patrols inventorying and packing army gear into containers that will soon be loaded on ships headed home. A group just left for Kuwait, where they will receive the Brigade’s vehicles and large equipment before either loading them onto ships or turning them over to incoming units.

Home gets closer by the day.

The line at the Post Office is two hours long at times. Trash bins are overflowing. Boxes of food sent from home are left open on doorsteps, snacks for the taking.

There was nothing at Camp Taji when the Brigade arrived in April 2004. The line at the tiny camp store — the PX — was long and hot even though there was little to buy. The Taji PX has expanded twice since then. It’s now the largest U.S. Army PX in all of Iraq. And local Iraqi vendors have opened up shops selling DVDs, CD players, rugs, electronics ... everything.

Soldiers became able to install mini-refrigerators, TVs, DVD players in their rooms. And, packages from home imported even more comforts.

But, with the need to reduce possession in preparation for the return home, the yard sales commenced.

Items such as refrigerators, space heaters, fans, CD players, TVs, food, toiletries and one blow-up doll named Kristy lined the metal grate walkway between Bravo Company trailers.

Kristy was actually one of the first things to go.

Two pilots wandered into the sale and went straight to her. Her plastic grin never wavered as they haggled.

The winning price? $3.

One of the pilots was deflating her when Pfc. Michael Thomas of Evening Shade noticed.

“You sold her?” he said, noticeably upset that one of his buddies had put her on the sale rack. “She’s all I had left!”

One soldier offered to get her back, but Thomas decided to let Kristy go.

Irvin stopped one shopper as she wandered by with her arms full of new purchases and pointed out that his cooler, with a handle and wheels, would be an easy way to haul her stuff.

“And it gets awfully hot here in summer,” he said.

She wavered, but caved-in when she learned that bags of ice are available at the camp during the summer.

Irvin got $5 out of the deal and one less thing to haul home.

Lt. Col. Keith Klemmer, commander of the 206th Field Artillery Battalion, plans to leave the items he bought for his trailer to his replacement. The commander replacing Klemmer is the same man he replaced last year, since a brigade of the 1st Armored Division, which the 39th replaced, is coming back as a supplemental unit to the 3rd Infantry Division.

Klemmer joked Friday that they just keep improving the same trailer for one another.

“Hopefully I won’t be back to replace him next year, though,” Klemmer chuckled.

Posted by Amy at February 3, 2005 04:51 AM