22 March, Camp Doha, Kuwait 0915

Another day at Doha, and it's starting to feel like we are in a routine. Morning coffee/breakfast with John and Todd (Spencer sleeps in), email at the MWR offices, workout at the gym, lunch, then get ready for our excursion to the evening's performance. Tonight it is Camp Navistar, about one hour from here and a stone's throw from the Iraq border. In fact, I've heard we will be, technically, in Iraq (if you go by the old maps). When Saddam Hussein was thrown out of town, the borders shifted slightly to Kuwait's advantage.

Yesterday was another huge success. We entertained an audience of about 750 at Ali Al Salem. The draw was so large, in fact, that they moved our performance out of the scheduled venue and into the PAX Terminal, where we had much more room and higher ceilings to accommodate our stunts. The metal building echoed with whip cracks, applause and laughter for nearly two hours. And, when we finished our finale (Spencer, aka "Slash," supports a cinder block on his chest while lying on a bed of nails as John, aka "Hack," breaks the block with a sledge hammer, swinging the heavy tool between the torches Todd and I are throwing to one another as we maintain our balance- Todd on a free standing ladder and I on a six foot unicycle!) the crowd lept to their feet!

During the handshakes that followed, we were each gifted three special coins. In the rich tradition of the Military, coins are created for high ranking officers, for special occasions, and for squadrons or bases throughout the theater. Each coin is unique and extremely limited edition. It is considered an honor to receive one, and they instantly become a valued collectors' item. The coin is passed from giver to recipient with a subtle, understated handshake. You can imagine our delight to add three beautiful new coins to our collection!

In preparation for this trip, Spencer and John produced our own coins, commemorating the tour and incorporating the "Operation Swashbuckle" insignia. We are having great fun gifting them to the people we meet during our travels. And, they are much appreciated by those who receive them. It's a special way to acknowledge those who are working so hard to make us feel welcome and support our performances.

Yesterday before we left I got another haircut, even shorter than the one before. It is a "number two" by military standards (zero being bare to the skin), and I'm in no danger of messing it up anytime soon.

Click Image to enlarge.

March 21, Kuwait

Greetings from Kuwait, where the skies are endless blue and the price of gas is 17 cents per gallon! It is Monday, just after 0900. We slept in later than usual after last night's performance and missed breakfast this morning.

Yesterday, we spent most of the day here at Camp Doha, our home base. We've developed a consistent routine of eating, exercise and other diversions to pass the time and enjoy the surroundings. We also moved to new living quarters and they are a step up from where we had been staying.

At 1500, Brody picked us up in the SUV and Larry followed behind with the pick up truck carrying our equipment. For about an hour or so, we headed out for a strange journey into the desert. We traveled until we had passed the "graveyard" of Iraqi tanks, (relics from the 1991 invasion), and many herds of camels and we officially arrived at a camp called "Middle of Nowhere," or "Camp New York." On the way into camp, we even did a special performance for the guards at the gate. These soldiers were unable to leave their posts to enjoy the show so we brought the show to them.

With nothing to obscure the horizon, the desert sunset was stunningly beautiful.

It was hard to imagine now why we have a base in such a location, until we learned that this was a strategic staging area for troops and equipment prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom. The day we arrived, many troops had shipped out to new assignments, leaving a skeleton crew to manage operations. The entire base is being dismantled and we are officially, the last act to perform at this camp.

The show took place inside the "briefing tent" and we played to about 100 people. The crowd was so ready to laugh they almost beat us to the punch lines. We added many improvisations to the script and had as much fun amusing each other as the audience. This show is getting so tight, as we are constantly finding new levels and new ways to enhance each others' performances.

The international news we are hearing seems surreal. Yesterday, we learned of a bombing in Qatar (where we just were), another in Ramadi (where we are going soon), and a flood in Kabul (where we almost went) which killed over 200 people. We also learned of a 7.0 earthquake in Japan. We are following stateside news as well, and that has been disturbing. All things considered, this seems as good a place to be as any other.

Tonight we perform at Ali Al Salem. All week we will be moving the act closer and closer to Iraq. Our last Kuwait performance will be just 100 yards away from the border between these two countries. On Thursday, we strap on our body armor once again and fly into the Iraqi interior.That is the experience we are all looking forward to as we will be going into the "hot zone." We know this is where laughter is most needed. Also, we can’t help but realize we will then be in the home stretch of this incredible experience.

I'm really looking forward to getting back to my family and to my future speaking engagements. I am anxious to tell the story of what I've seen and of the incredible effort on display here every single day.

(L) Sunset in at Camp Doha. (R) Briefing Tent at Camp New York.

March 19, Kuwait, 15:13

Last night we said goodbye to Qatar and boarded our own personal C130 to Kuwait City. In the back of the bird there were just the four of us and the flight's Load Master, Tom Marhulik. Before take off we met the flight crew and several others who were taking photos with an American flag at the rear (open compartment) of the plane. We jumped right in and caught some great pictures with them.

While enroute, the fun continued, as Todd and I passed juggling clubs around Tom at 20,000 feet. John and Spence did a swordfight, and I threw in a back flip for good measure. It was our first "in flight" performance, and our audience (just Tom) seemed to really enjoy it.

Upon landing, we were met by Brody and Contee, our hosts here in Kuwait. We spent most of today with Brody touring the city, shopping and eating at a great buffet style restaurant in town. We are back at base now, resting up for tomorrow's show at Camp New York! More later; my computer time is about to expire.

Click image to enlarge.

(L)Flight crew to Kuwait. (R) Showtime at 20,000 feet for an audience of one.

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