2009.04.30
30APR09--"Army Wives"
Today, my Iraqi counterpart asked me "'Army Wives.' You have seen his show on television?" Read more »
Evolution of Driving in Iraq
The way that US military vehicles travel on roadways in Iraq and interact with local traffic has significantly changed over the last five years, especially throughout the last 12 months. Read more »
2009.04.24
23APR09--100 Degree Mark
Today, the thermometer crested 100 degrees for the first time in 2009. The high was 102. Read more »
2009.04.21
21APR09--Yogurt and Perception
Just the other day, my Iraqi Army counterpart told me an Iraqi expression: "Eat what you like but wear what everyone else likes." Read more »
2009.04.19
Award Ceremony
A few days ago, the Army recognized my team's hard work with an awards ceremony. Read more »
2009.04.17
The Mystery of the Holes in the Shoes
I have been having trouble with running shoe lately. It would seem that my big toe is making holes straight through my socks and then straight through the mesh that goes along the top of your foot. I have been hypothesizing for months, but today, my thinking has taken a 360. Read more »
2009.04.15
New MRAPs
A number of weeks ago, my team turned in our Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles the Army issued us new ones. Read more »
2009.04.10
Arrest Order for Civilians Yelling Insults
Last week, an Iraqi Army commander ordered his battalion of Soldiers to not respond with insults or physical force when civilians yell insults at the Soldiers. Instead, he ordered his Soldiers to arrest the civilian on the spot. As Americans, my team was shocked to hear this order. The notion of an American Soldier making arrests on the streets of downtown Roanoke for yelled insults is laughable. Read more »
2009.04.07
07APR09--Presidential Visit
President Obama made a surprise visit to Baghdad today en route to other international visits. Read more »
2009.04.02
02APR09--Experience of Influence
Today, my team was called to an Iraqi base, where the Iraqis stored a recently-captured suicide vest. Apparently, the Iraqi Army had declined to allow an US explosive ordinance team to dispose of the item. Our task was to uncover more information about the vest and to approach the topic of its disposal. Read more »
About this blog
Rich Connaroe graduated from Northside High School in 2000 and VMI in 2004. Now a Captain in the U.S. Army, Connaroe begins a one-year deployment to Iraq in August. During that time, he plans to make regular blog posts that he hopes will connect readers of the The Roanoke Times to U.S. soldiers who are deployed in Iraq.
