1000 words for Hot

I was thinking recently about how, I've heard, that Eskimos have 1000 words for "snow" so I asked an Iraqi friend if Arabic has 1000 words for "hot."  He said no but there are probably 1000 words for "camel." 

Sand Storm

Yesterday we had the first clouds I've seen in many months.  They were white and whispy against the usual clear blue sky.  Things cooled down late in the evening and the sky darkened almost as if it were about to rain.  Should have known better.  Its way too early for rain in Iraq.  Today the sky is red and brown as a sand storm blows through. 

If you've never seen a sand storm it looks much like a heavy fog.  In fact, if you take pictures thats exactly what it looks like.  The sand is a talcom powder fine mist so the way you can tell it isn't a fog is that you're eyes start to burn and you start to sense the copper taste of sand on your tongue.  Visibility drops such that when moving you seem to be in a bubble approximately 100 yards wide. It always looks like the heavy part of the storm is swirling around you just down the road. 

Its also a heady time for insurgents who use the cover of the storm to practice their mischief. 

PRTs highlighted on West Wing Week

Last week White House videographer, Arun Chaudhary, visited Iraq and covered some of the work of the Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Baghdad.  This week his report appears in a YouTube segment called  West Wing Week.

I didn't get any camera time but I was along on the Um Al Abeed trip.  The Sheik in the video has been a strong force for good.  These are the kinds of folks who are actually making a positive difference in Iraq.  These farmers are working hard to survive and improve the plight of their villages.  The question is; with PRTs and the last of the US military leaving Iraq next year will the work have a lasting economic and political impact on the region and Iraq as a whole?  

Be sure to check out West Wing Week on YouTube.