Pinned down by sand.
Steffan Tubbs, co-host of KOA 850-AM’s “Colorado’s Morning News,” trekked off to Iraq last week, hoping to be embedded with U.S. troops.
By the end of the week, the only place he was embedded was in one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces, now occupied by military officers, visiting media and dignitaries. One kind of “royalty” for another.
Tubbs, who expects to report the war from Iraq all this week, arrived in Baghdad about the time sandstorms did.
“The entire sky looks like the sepia-tone setting on a digital camera or recorder,” he wrote in his blog on KOA’s website. “The sand/dust mixture kind of coats you. … When it’s bad, it coats the throat and burns the eyes, covers the teeth and finds its way through the nostrils. And this isn’t even close to as bad as it gets. The sky is completely one color … dull grayish-brown.”
Tubbs, making reports several times a day via the magic of cellphone and satellite connections to his cohorts at the station, spent his first few days interviewing military personnel around a “mini-palace” of the former Iraqi dictator, a palace Tubbs equated to a four-star hotel, but with more marble.
His favorite bit of philosophy from a member of the military, following a mortar attack: “It’s either gonna hit ya or it ain’t.”
Friday, he admitted on the air that he was a little more “on edge” than the average in-country resident. The power went out suddenly one night, leaving him to wonder if he should run and hide or what. The lights came back a minute later. The fog (or sand) of war.
Before he left for Iraq, Tubbs told me, “I think you’d be crazy not to be concerned or worried but, at the same time, I’m not scared. Eventually, we’ll look back and say this was a major part of our country’s history. To go as a journalist and send back the stories is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
He’s getting that opportunity this week. He’s scheduled to move out of Baghdad, possibly to Fallujah, and be embedded with the 4th Infantry Division.
Around the dial
Actor-director Edward James Olmos at the Paramount Theatre on Thursday for a preview of his new HBO film, “Walkout.” It’s free, but tickets a must at 303- 964-8993, ext. 26. The made-for- TV movie debuts at 6 p.m. Saturday. … ESPN covers selection of the 64 teams for the NCAA women’s basketball tournament at 5 p.m. today. Beginning Saturday, the network will broadcast all 63 games of the tournament on its various outlets. …
Billions and billions: A man of the people, Charlie Ergen, CEO of Dish Network, chit-chatting with subscribers on “Charlie Chat” to help celebrate the satellite provider’s 10th anniversary. Last week, Ergen led Forbes magazine’s list of richest Coloradans at $6.7 billion. … Quotable: “The food’s not bad. Who knew they had Baskin-Robbins ice cream for the troops?” Steffan Tubbs
Dick Kreck’s column appears Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. He may be reached at 303-820-1456 or dkreck@denverpost.com.
