Evolution of the Underdog Cafe

Here’s my first picture blog ever. It’s all about the Underdog Café. This place that we built to keep sane over in a turret of chaos lots of times by our own governments decisions. This was our lifeline, a place to relax and forget for just a few moments that you were in a really shitty place where men, women, and even small children are trying to kill you.





It started out with just the bar and then we built a deck around a palm tree and put up a cammo net for shade.













During the summer months we had people coming almost every night. All ranks and units just were showing up to chill in our café. Some people were there to study, some people were there learning how to play instruments, and some were just there for the ice coffee and atmosphere.























We also completed a lot of our work out at the Underdog because not only was it attached to where we lived it made for a calmer work environment then anywhere else.























See kids stay in school or you’ll end up here. Thanks for the info Sen. Kerry. ASS!
Thursday’s were known as Band Day. We’d have an acoustic group play and those of us in the S-3 would wear our Hawaiian shirts.



























I’ll buy that for a dollar. Heh heh there’re going to kill me if they ever see this one posted. The invention of weather brought about it’s own problems. To prevent the rains but not create a hot box we put up our stick up tents without the sides.











































We held events on holidays whenever we could. We had a witch piñata on Halloween that SSG Meyers ended up breaking but most of these pictures are my friend and fellow pirate Vincent Pomante, who was lost to us on the 6th of December. Here’s to the good times we had while we had them. I miss you buddy.























Christmas time comes and with it we put the sides of the tent up and hook up a heater to it. It’s gotten cold in the desert.

































Thanks for the hat Hopie! I love it. The band had grown a bit. One of the incoming units, the 1-77 Steel Tigers, have a band and some of the member started to come and play. New Years Eve shows up marking the fact that we will soon leave.

















All great things have to come to an end and the 1-77 Steel Tigers Band and PFTO’s last concert comes and goes with a bang.









































The Underdog was open from June ’06 to February ’07. Even though we left it standing we’re sure that the next unit won’t take advantage of the place the same way we did. They just don’t seem as interested, but then again they’re just getting here to Iraq and haven’t been away from their loved ones for fourteen months. That’s all I have for now everyone. Hope you enjoyed the pictures.

See you all further down the road.

Mike