Contracting Outside the Wire - Afghanistan Stories

[@oatlord]

"I could spend 3 hours telling it..." Yes. Continue.

[@thetexastickler5698]

Right shits super interesting

[@brandonn6266]

Please continue for as long as you like @fall Off The Map

[@codyconway5353]

Good, I’m glad someone agrees. I came here to say the same thing...

[@corneliuspraeda6452]

Clearly, after listening to this account of the Afghans and Afghanistan, really what we need to do is giving them another trillion @#$%ing dollars, and deploy 100k troops, and their problems will be all fixed. Yep, just like that... As far as your "rambling stories", don't be too hard on yourself. This is interesting and worth a watch. Really, the authenticity you convey really helps grab the viewer imo.

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks. And yeah, throwing money and people at Afghanistan was never a good idea. We see places like that and assume it needs to be fixed. Some things can’t be fixed because they aren’t broken, they just don’t align with the world we want.

[@s0nnyburnett]

gotta pimp the US dollar out to every corner of the world to keep the value up while we print trillions more to inflate it further.

[@lloydkaipainen2317]

Rambling a bit but still interesting/entertaining. Really loved your episode where you got stuck in middle of nowhere. Reminded me of when I almost rolled a 4wd in Costa Rica. Anyway you seem like you need more adventures. Do you plan to have more beach town adventures soon?

[@FallofftheMap]

Mike W basic requirement is just an EL01 state issued license. Being a master electrician and/or having a security clearance makes getting hired much easier, though once you manage to land the first overseas job of you work well with others and make friends you’ll likely find jobs through word of mouth after that.

[@FallofftheMap]

Lloyd Kaipainen not sure when my next beach town adventure will be. I’m buying a 1/2 hectare of land in the mountains and building a house with a small fruit orchard next.

[@pablomontoya8303]

"The artist formerly known as a Marine!"

[@RahShanProductionsMTU]

Lmao that’s a good one.

[@oniwabangroup]

Great story as usual, don't worry about time

[@eagleclaw9766]

Dude you been threw some stuff, I can see it in your eyes. Let the haters hate, one day they will get a bobo and know the world doesn't evolve around them. Thank you tho sir, I'm so glad I found this channel. And plz ramble we will watch haha.

[@funnyyylock]

Love the videos man I'm gonna be watching all of your new uploads. Thrilling story man glad you're alive.

[@FallofftheMap]

Awesome. My videos tend to bounce back and forth between my old Afghanistan stories and my new life in Ecuador at the moment.

[@annabel5976]

You really bring your stories to life. Don’t worry about “rambling”. If it took 3 hours, I’d watch for 3 hours! More por favor 🙏 💙

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks.

[@hhawg1]

I was in Iraq at Camp Victory as a civilian contractor in 2005, 06. I felt pretty safe but the conditions in the camp were pathetic. Better than what you experienced in Afghanistan for sure but we had no alcohol, weren't allowed to go to the Green zone, no recreation. Basically we worked 12 hour shifts, watched movies and slept. The pay was great but the boredom was brutal. No electricity, generators everywhere. The army had reestablished communications after we demolished it in the war, and to call it a mess would be far short of an actual description. I'd never seen such poor work. It took us months to get it to where we could identify what was what.

[@FallofftheMap]

Yeah, after I managed to get on with a LOGCAP contract that was pretty much my existence on three separate tours. I didn’t mind it so much. I’d sort of just flip a switch and go into all work no play mode. After a year or so I’d quit and just enjoy life for a year or two, then sign up for another contract.

[@captaincrustyradio]

@@FallofftheMap Hi Jesse, I had already been a contractor in Iraq 2006/2007 and in Afghanistan in 2009/2010 before I found your videos, but they are spot on! Your videos are a MUST for LOGCAP job prospective workers wanting to deploy that have never been. I found some old Afghanistan pictures and video on a flash drive while putting data on a backup hard drive. So I made a video of my flight from Farrah Airfield, Afghanistan when I moved to another FOB in Afghanistan. Anyway, I linked your KZbin Channel as a must watch. Take care, brother.

[@breachoft.o.s6881]

Please do more of these stories!!!! I love them

[@adamw-m4634]

I was a contractor for 27 months in Iraq and 23 in Afghanistan. First time I’ve ever watched a contractor video. I’m subscribing and thumbing you up.

[@FallofftheMap]

Nice. Welcome to the channel.

[@adamw-m4634]

Thank you for the videos and the channel. I appreciate the message. I was trying to get back to Afghanistan and there are positions I was even offered a few for the MRAPs but my Secret clearance is no longer active. I was told that after two years of inactivity you lose it. They want active clearances. I was offered a welding spot in the Marshall islands last summer. Missile defense systems like you mentioned.

[@FallofftheMap]

Marshall Islands are pretty nice. There’s a couple bars on Kwaj. People get into diving and deep sea fishing. There’s a weird bicycle culture. Guys are tricking out their bikes like they would motorcycles. You can take a ferry over to Ebeye and get into a little trouble over there, or just walk around and look at the squalid conditions on one of the world’s most crowded islands. I wish I had spent more time on Kwaj. Some of the other islands have way too many mosquitoes and not enough wind to keep cool though.

[@quasarproductions2690]

Your 20+ minute flew by like it was 5. Keep sharing your life with us my friend! Its fascinating.

[@zachalaka111]

I found your videos recently but you are an aaamazing story teller. I love it when you put out new content!

[@geoffsaunderson5766]

Fantastic, real, humble, no bullshit colourful stories. Refreshing on YT, subbed mate.

[@FallofftheMap]

Geoff Saunderson thanks, man.

[@WTP_1776]

love your stories, thanks for sharing

[@stateradio115]

Amazing story or three. The longer the better! Can see the places where you sort of went off on a tangent like you described at the start but those tangents were still very interesting. If you ever do run out of ideas in the future I think people would still be interested in your perspective on culture, daily life, friends you met, technical work, ect. What is an Afghan worksite like? What are some of the worst OSHA violations you saw would be a great and probably funny video. Keep it up!!

[@firegamers3803]

Awesome just found you’re first Afghan video and this one came out just as I went to check out another

[@FallofftheMap]

Cool. I’d intended to put this video out weeks ago, but you know, procrastination.

[@ethanreeve4271]

No need to shorten, these keep me occupied at work! Great conrent

[@tnarggrant9711]

You're basically electrician Han Solo. Do you literally survive on luck and pretty eyes?

[@phoenixmacaroni7501]

These stories are too good to stop now, keep going.

[@williamboyer2315]

I like your Afghan stories. Thanks for sharing!

[@Walter_E_Kurtz]

Thanks for the great video again! I love the Afghanistan story.

[@lpe655]

Keep these coming. Thanks for sharing.

[@Dominic-nq6qy]

I have been waiting for this video thank you

[@matthewhlavenka6233]

Love your stories. Please keep them coming. The longer, the better

[@ridingwiththereids]

Common now. Can't just leave us hanging,again!!! Love the stories man. Glad to see you home safe!

[@fortwoods]

Those who have been there outside the bases know that your story is true.

[@bearcatdog858]

this is just the coolest shit I've found on youtube in so long. Don't ever feel like you're just rambling, I'd listen to the story of you walking out to take a _shit_ in Afghanistan

[@FallofftheMap]

@Brownpill thank you. It’s comments like this that make it all worthwhile.

[@carlthacker570]

You’re a good rambler. Enjoyed listening to you. Your hair looks great don’t sweat it

[@solarcide]

@Fall off the Map - appreciate the story telling intermixed with modern Ecuadorian and other life adventures. Keep at it, for sure. The overwhelming majority of your viewers dig the free following organic style. Whether service or contact or whatever, taking about stuff experienced wherever occurred is cathartic. Stay healthy!

[@FallofftheMap]

I really appreciate this feedback. Thank you.

[@afwaller]

This is great, fantastic content. This is what we’re here for. Thanks.

[@apergiel]

Good story telling. I like the examples of how electrical wiring was done wrong and then corrected.....while wearing a ammo vest and looking over your shoulder, and noticing a backpack in the corner that wasn't there yesterday. (I extrapolated on your story) :)

[@FallofftheMap]

I was like “wait, I don’t remember that happening.”

[@tobymdev]

loving the stories and the channel in general. kudos and thanks!

[@_the_kekambas_]

Dont worry about "rambling" i was thoroughly entertained the whole time.. not once did i think "jeez i wish this guy didnt take so long to tell this story" just do you, man and keep em coming!👍🏻

[@jayklink851]

Thanks for sharing that story, super entertaining!

[@redbud815]

I very much enjoy your stories of you time spent over there. I know I'll never go work there, and it's nice to hear from someone that has. Thanks for sharing!

[@franciscoburgos787]

Sounds like a rough place. I personally, never went outside the wire. Never wanted to either, but nobody ever mention there was a brothel out there. WTH?

[@FallofftheMap]

Yeah, I didn’t know about it until I heard the screaming and caterwauling. I think it’s safe to assume that an Afghan brothel is probably a truly terrible place.

[@3x0ticContent]

Brothels in Afghanistan are pretty much non existent and the only place you'd ever find one is in kabul in which they're 100% illegal and run by criminals, and there are probably only a handful at most. Every other parts of the country are very conservative and would never allow it

[@SIl_Ae]

I'm so glad I found your channel. Love the stories

[@harrisonf3303]

Please keep making these videos. It is intensely interesting.

[@brianemery8945]

These stories just pull you in!. Keep em coming!

[@d.h.601]

The like to dislike ratio for me rn is 750 - 9. That’s amazing. Great story, keep em coming cuz these are actually interesting and I’m bored af. Keep up the great work

[@stroupid]

Love your stuff, dude!

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks!

[@chuno7354]

Im happy this ended up on my recommended.

[@FallofftheMap]

Me too.

[@Max-zr7hr]

just found your channel great stories!

[@Jriss3]

Love these videos man. Keep them coming!

[@CreatorRob]

I like these stories. Shows the frustrations of the situation and environment from a non-combatants point of view. You also take some time to humanize the characters in your stories. Pleas keep sharing if you have more and want to.

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks. I probably have a few more good Afghanistan stories to talk about before I start talking about some of craziness that happened while I was contracting in Antarctica.

[@joeyfrakes5455]

Such a great video bro!!! Keep sharing!!! Your stories are awesome!!! There's probably thousands of guys that wish we could contracted !! :)

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks.

[@yop1010]

When I see a video that's like an hour long I tend to be a little apprehensive so I get why you would want your videos a little more bite sized. With that being said once I start listening to your story I'm hooked.

[@denaboersma6983]

It’s not rambling, that’s just the way you remember the story. Great stories at that please continue

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks. Sooner or later I’m going to run out of Afghanistan stories. Maybe I’ll have to switch to telling old Antarctica stories.

[@denaboersma6983]

@@FallofftheMap Afghanistan, Antarctica, Marshall Islands, and so on. These are places 95% of us will never experience

[@cdert90]

I just want to come in here and say that I'm not a contractor I've had very little interest in Afghanistan in general. but your story is about Afghanistan are gripping you're a great storyteller and I honestly haven't listened to a lot of your other videos but each time I see a new Afghanistan one I'm listening to it I highly recommend you do more of your stories and even talk more about the technical bad wiring jobs. I find it tremendously interesting to hear how other people are doing really bad wiring and the results that come of it. Great job and look forward to many more of your videos

[@80milekyle70]

THANK YOU!!! Love the videos

[@FallofftheMap]

Thank you.

[@adamholmes1992]

Great stories! I love your videos :)

[@rakeshcristobal8320]

Looking forward to part 3!

[@SvSGaming]

This is super interesting, I'm glad you got through all of this and can tell the story to people like me all around the world. Cheers man, best of luck in this pandemic!

[@neighdolfhorstler3158]

You have a very compelling way of telling stories.

[@jackf2164]

God damn. Just found your channel, I was also in Afghanistan in 2010. Our main fob was fob kunduz, we were at check point 5... fun. Been in residential * contracting for years at this point. I need to look into contracting for my skills ....

[@jimcook8852]

Kunduz not far from where I was at Marmal.

[@Marty32]

In light about the cowboy-type mentality with everyone shooting each other, I took a close protection orientation course through a former CAF JTF-2 turned security contractor dude. Great guy, knows his stuff and truly cares about people-but he told me the exact same stuff. Glad you made it out in one piece man! Great story.

[@FallofftheMap]

Yeah, it was a wild time. It’s a whole different type of wild where I’m at now, in Niamey, Niger where we’ve got three different terrorist groups fighting for control. Bokoski Haram, iSIS in the Sahel, and the comically named Delta Avengers. So far no attacks on base, but the civilian massacres are starting to get pretty damn close.

[@jonwinder6622]

this dudes stories are super entertaining

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks

[@d4v3tm]

i love these stories!

[@danielsilvis203]

Thanks for the content!

[@rileybonner4678]

Love these stories

[@tnarggrant9711]

The answer to your ending question is absolutely.

[@BrOnX_BoOyAH_86]

Interesting stories man

[@Tritorpol]

Great story!! Must be crazy over there.. I was able to get 3 bottles through the airport lol they never took a look at my luggage. Should have got brought more with me.

[@208miuwu]

Shiranna my buddy was running the post office during your time at that FOB. Small fucking world

[@hypejtp4053]

The stories are very entertaining. Probably wasn’t funny for you at the time but The Mad Max part with the AK47 had me laughing at out loud.

[@ToddScott21]

3 hours....I gots time for that...carry on bro.

[@Iknowvfx]

I heard horror stories of troops in iraq getting electrocuted to death while showering due to faulty wiring...of course their families were told they were KIA.

[@FallofftheMap]

Yeah, it was a thing, though I don’t think the coverup and lying to their family part happened. The electrocutions were pretty well documented and investigated. They resulted in KBR losing a some but not all of their contracts.

[@Iknowvfx]

@@FallofftheMap Word. I heard it through some OIF/OEF vets, quite a few of them have bad memories of their time in Iraq. I'm sure they embellish their stories.

[@garrysekelli6776]

@Mike W but if they are electrocuted strongly enough to die but survive then they still have been electrocuted.

[@gregson8533]

These stories could be made into movies.

[@FallofftheMap]

A few folks have commented along these lines. I was leaning more towards writing a book about it, or at least trying to.

[@mongoose3617]

I enjoy hearing about your experiences contracting. I'm hoping to eventually get into contract work myself!

[@ValueNL]

Quit larping and join

[@adamw-m4634]

Pretty hard to get into contracting right now. Everything is winding down and the companies want you to have an active Secret clearance. Well, depending on what you want to do for a job probably. I think you may have missed the boat on contracts though. Give it a shot and apply.

[@FallofftheMap]

Yeah, it’s low tide right now, but that doesn’t mean we won’t be swimming in work in 5 years. If I were job hunting right now I’d be looking at jobs on military bases in the Pacific like Kwajalein and Guam. As we drew down in Afghanistan and Iraq we pivoted towards China and missile defense sites. I was supposed to go work on Kwajalein again last year, but the virus meant a long quarantine and no vacations, so I opted out.

[@mongoose3617]

@@FallofftheMap yeah there are still a suprising amount of contracting jobs for medics around still

[@mongoose3617]

@@ValueNL Yeah I joined 2 years ago. But thanks man 🤙

[@thetexastickler5698]

Love your content brotha 🤙

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks.

[@codypowell1654]

I enjoy the stories would be awesome too continue

[@boodro2122]

Haha I just left a comment on your first video about, "Once a Marine, Always a Marine" lol. There's no "ex" or "former". Those guys stay ready for life. Alright, really looking forward to the rest of this story.

[@boodro2122]

Oh, that's great! What a journey! Thanks for telling it.

[@Cleared_hot]

We know it’s not made up. I would ignore anyone who said it’s bullshit. Great videos!! Keep it up

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks Fast Eddy. KZbin can be a pretty harsh audience.

[@matthewmcbride1379]

Well, I'm in Quarantine...I have three hours to watch your next story.

[@russellnewmexico1]

12 months in paktika 09-10, 4 of them in sharana. Base was very nice, seemed pretty safe. The other 8 months were in the surrounding area: not nice, very un-safe.

[@FallofftheMap]

Yeah, I’d heard that about the surrounding area. Glad you got through it.

[@russellnewmexico1]

@@FallofftheMap Me too. I had heard it got worse after we left, glad I wasn't there for it. Love your videos, Ecuador is next on the short list. Hearing your experience as a contractor doesn't surprise me in the least. We were always jealous of big money but at the end of the day we could call for apaches and medivac if we needed it. Those de-mining contractors were absolutely insane, rolling around in hi-luxes with 3-4 afghan guards, all high as giraffe nuts

[@jayklink851]

Favorite movie, favorite character! "didn't watch my buddies die face down in the mud"-In Nam- Walter

[@habib080]

i enjoy this. im also afghan american and never been to the motherland

[@seanmaltby9049]

i want to hear more great stories bro

[@n00dles79]

I'm so happy the first video made it's way to my screen. You're an awesome dude, and your story kicks ass so far: fu** the people who say it isn't true. You gotta stick up for yourself more!! You demand one bottle of liquor and if he denies you start calling over the customs agents that initially denied him. He'll change his tune right up. And c'mon brother you get ambushed you shoot to kill. That's what they're doing to you. Shoot to kill.

[@Chipsnrips]

Do not feel bad about the long videos, it doesn’t come across as rambling or anything even remotely similar. I think we’re all just here to appreciate your stories, you seemed to have lived a pretty wild life.

[@rustyshakleford5230]

I found your channel from your video ragging on Albany NY. Youve got an crazy life for an electrician. Albany has become way worse in the last 2 years btw.

[@wojt0961]

Would love to listen to you on a podcast man. Proper 3-4 hour conversation talking about all your experiences

[@FallofftheMap]

Maybe one day.

[@sphandengraving5691]

You’re telling the real deal. Oh those memories lol

[@sphandengraving5691]

Some sort of issue thanks a lot

[@DJTheMetalheadMercenary]

Hahahaha, that was a great story man. IRQ was pretty much like that too in the early 2000's, freaking nuts hahaha.

[@FallofftheMap]

I do wish that I’d gotten to see and experience a little bit of Iraq as well. Many of my friends went.

[@DJTheMetalheadMercenary]

@@FallofftheMap In those early years be glad you didn't man, it was literally the most dangerous place on earth up to 2008 or just after (right when I was getting out of the Army, I was in one of the largest and most deployed units in the branch), lots of security contractors and trucking contractors killed and kidnapped (which still happens there at times)-- great quick money, but was insanely dangerous. Safest places were (and I guess still are to what extent "safe" is in Iraq fighting Daesh lol) Baghdad's Green Zone and the Northern Kurdistan autonomous Region.

[@DJTheMetalheadMercenary]

@@FallofftheMap I digress though, you'd probably have found a rowdy crew to watch your 6 and get through and have some fun while you were at it haha, industry's still boomin' over there so maybe i'll run into you at some point ;)

[@feelinghealingfrequences7179]

Earned my sub

[@mandarinontheside5624]

Maybe some generic stock B roll to complement your stories? Your content is great

[@christopherrasmussen8718]

I was in green. Different trip, same place.

[@RahShanProductionsMTU]

You seem honest it’s not like the story sounds too crazy for a place like that 😂.

[@gumbotime9564]

The time is a problem I like long videos

[@branonlamphere9624]

I worked for KBR and ITT Excelis (Vectrus now) at Bagram and Shank. ITT was the best contractor ever👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻.

[@FallofftheMap]

Are they still good now that they’re Vectrus? I’ve heard mixed things.

[@menopillion9853]

I liked the video a lot. Too long? I didn't think so.

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks.

[@grommike3726]

Woot woot!!

[@shmuelp4504]

Please don’t worry about rambling, if you spent “three hours telling it” I’d still watch it.

[@zack4149]

Hey man love the videos ! Any info on work for an electrician from the UK ! Peace

[@FallofftheMap]

In Afghanistan and Iraq the big US defense contractors like KBR, Fluor, and Dyncorp hire both US and UK licensed electricians, but it’s really difficult to find a spot right now. The whole shit show is scaling back. My suggestion is to get on the big job search engines and get a little creative. Leave the location field blank and put “overseas electrician” in the search field or “electrician passport” or any creative combination you can think of. When I’m looking I run about a half dozen variations of this search a couple times a week.

[@onetry7406]

I like your stories

[@FallofftheMap]

Thanks.

[@ashersolomon9560]

I have never experienced a “hot wall” that’s sure something to watch out for, kinda like delta P situations

[@FallofftheMap]

Yeah, if the system had overcurrent protection the amp load of turning a cement wall into a heater would almost certainly have tripped the breaker. If the system had a ground wire it would have immediately sent the fault current to ground rather than through the relatively high resistance cement wall to find a way back to the source (the generator). Situations like this are rare because they require multilayers of mistakes in order to exist.

[@Eshayzbra96]

more please

[@KazzArie]

Super cool story! I’ve seen main room lighting in decent, livable apartments in KZ where it’s a wire hanging out of the cement ceiling with attached fixture - just a wire and bulb basically. If wire set into the cement needs replacing, is the concrete drilled and plumbed with conduit? Or are channels chiseled? Conduit layed and set on the surface? How does that work?

[@FallofftheMap]

If the wiring fails it’s typically abandoned where it is and new wiring installed on the surface of the walls in a type of conduit called panduit. Holes are drilled wherever it has to pass through a wall. It’s a pain in the butt.

[@jimcook8852]

I ask to be transferred to Shank or Joyce and was denied. Im single with no kids. The Taliban didnt scare me.

[@garretthensley6527]

Dude you look a LOT like another youtuber I watch named Steeve Wallace. He's a Canadian camper who does stealth camping and basic survival videos. Cool dude!

[@FallofftheMap]

I had to go check him out. Yeah, I see the resemblance.

[@garretthensley6527]

@@FallofftheMap You look more like him when you don't cut your hair. But yeah, brothers from another mother if you ask me lol