European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 17, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday August 17, 1994 the stars and stripes Page 5 pfc. Joseph Franklin says life is pretty Good at observation Post 57, where he per forms guard duty at the Lookout Tower. It col. John Baggott commands More than 500 soldiers most of them from Schwein Furt Germany who Are serving in Macedonia. The  continued from Page 4 and at least at this outpost there s not even much going on up there. Soldiers take turns Manning the observation Tower but sightings of serbian soldiers Are As common As showers. Some civilians who wander into their sight Range might be serbian soldiers but no one is sure. I have seen no serbian militia that i can honestly say Are soldiers said pfc. Christopher Wheeler 19, who was on the second week of his three week tour of duty at the of. Most of the sightings and contacts Between gis and serbian soldiers have occurred in the Western sector which has six Ops and is manned by another army company. The Eastern sector which includes Franklin s and Egan s Ops tends to have Little if any visual or direct Contact with the serbs. Soldiers do come in regular Contact with the locals who live in their area. Bread and cola drinks Are just some of the items the locals offer to the americans. One boy even offered Egan a Chance to Swap a fish the boy caught for a . Government issued pen. Egan wanted to Trade for the boy s Sake but did t. The big things they want Are watches and Walkman Egan said and there s no Way i m going to give up my  although they have been in Macedonia since Only mid june the Blue baseball Caps that most soldiers at of 56 and of 57 Wear All seem soiled with sweat and dirt. The fact that August is Macedonia s warmest and driest month helps explain Why. The soldiers live and sleep in Small prefabricated buildings supplied by the United nations. Each one sleeps four and the size of the Metal buildings called Cones limits the amount of personal belongings a person can take to the site. Many of the soldiers at the Ops prefer the food served up by their Cooks to the food served Back at Camp Able sentry. Entertainment at the Ops is limited to movie videotapes books and a few Board or card  of 57, however soldiers have a Small but Well groomed volleyball court to play on. It s the Best Mission that i be seen logistically said staff sgt. Timmy Mills who is in charge of of 57. We get food water and fuel once a  staff sgt Timmy Mills in charge of of 57, makes friends with Stanimir Spasovski and his dog. The amount of water each of receives is no enough for daily showers. At Mills observation Post which sits on top of a Hill overlooking a Valley that separates the two countries soldiers Are allowed to take a Shower twice a week.  Vantichelt said he did t have a problem with that since he has been on training exercises where a Soldier gets one Shower a month. Most of the soldiers interviewed at the outposts said they were Happy with mail delivery which occurs a few times a week. Wichelt however said a recent letter from his Mother took a month and two Days to reach him. But perhaps the hardest adjustment for Many of the . Soldiers in Macedonia is getting used to the . Mandate that restricts them to just observing monitoring and reporting activity along the Border. If serbian soldiers Ever March across the Border into Macedonia . Peacekeeping forces Are instructed not to Stop them but to report the incident and await orders. They Don t always know Why they Are Here said capt. Listen Edge who commands the three Ops in the Eastern sector. Hell i Don t always know. It s difficult because we Are working for a couple of different  but Edge said any confusion soldiers May have is easy to sort out if they remember that the United states is in Macedonia As part of a . Peacekeeping Force. Still some gis said it s not so simple to forget what has been drilled into them since Basic training. . Soldiers aise taught to maim kill and demolish Franklin said. Over Here we hand out Candy to the kids and wave the Blue  Franklin and others wonder if what they Are doing is Worth it. Some believe that when . And in. Troops leave Macedonia the serbs will simply March across the Border and reclaim the former yugoslav Republic. All we want to do is do our time and get the hell out of this country Franklin said moments later. I can t wait to get Back in the  is photos by John Bohmer pfc. Christopher Wheeler remains vigilant despite a Lack of trouble so fan i have seen no serbian militia that i can honestly say Are