We're just about in the rainy season here in Iraq (it actually kicks off in November and runs through April), and yet surprisingly there has been little rain. In fact, since my arrival on 6 November, I don't believe it has rained a single drop here in Baghdad until last night when it absolutely poured from the heavens. At one point I couldn't tell if I was hearing thunder or a detonation of some sort. For those of you who have never been to this wonderful country, rain produces mud on a truly impressive scale. The dirt here is so fine that when it rains it turns into this thick mud that truly bogs you down. Considering all I have with me are combat boots and a waterproof poncho of sorts, I may need to get on REI's website in a bit and get myself sorted out. December is definitely a rainy month in this place and having experienced it before, I'm not looking forward to 4 months of it.
Meanwhile, back on the home front Mr. Amiri has been acting up quite a bit. Temper tantrums, screaming fits in stores - the classic stuff we absolutely told ourselves we wouldn't put up with. Of course he's a bit too young to fully understand that his behavior isn't acceptable, but Napi (who is really the disciplinarian in the house) is putting him under manners (as we would say in Jamaica). I doubt my absence is the cause of this, because as I said, the majority of the "don't do that" speeches he receives comes from Napi. The boy better tighten up though - it won't be too long before he truly appreciates an old school spanking!
