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(U) Omaha - The Heart of the Heartland
FROM:
NSA/CSS USSTRATCOM (F1C)
Run Date: 07/26/2004
FROM:
NSA/CSS USSTRATCOM (F1C)
(U) "Where the heck is Omaha? Who the heck cares?" My high
school sweetheart gave me a t-shirt with this written on it after she
and her family vacationed in Nebraska. I often teased her about
being a "farm girl," saving up her pennies to go to the "movin'
picture show," and riding her horse to school. I would have never
thought I'd marry that girl. And it is even more surprising that I
now live "in the middle of nowhere" with my first love and our two
children.
(U) Why would you want to live in Omaha? I get asked that
question often as I occasionally return to NSA headquarters. I
simply respond by saying that the Omaha metropolitan area "still
cares about the county fair." In the midst of a city of 390,000
(716,000 in the metropolitan area) that's trying hard to be
considered a "real" city, there's a down-to-earth simplicity you
would typically find in a small farming town.
(U) You'll find gentlemen farmers working in fields very close to
the growing contractor community building new facilities near the
base. You'll find dust-covered pickup trucks taking a trip to town
being passed by a Lexus on its way to the next important business
meeting. On the radio, the agricultural digest follows the morning
financial report where you can find out how much pork bellies are
going for. No matter how hard it tries, Omaha will always be at war
with itself - trying hard to transform itself into a big city, but never
able to separate itself from its agricultural roots.
(U) To put it bluntly, Omaha is a nice place to live. There is
something for everyone. The most popular activity is football.
Nebraskans are known as football nuts. Most everyone follows the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Cornhuskers. You will certainly
notice the "Husker Nation" on football Saturdays. Almost everyone
will be wearing a red shirt. Flags and banners will be displayed on
houses. And you'll see cars with pennants or magnetic placards
from the Old Market in Omaha to 9th Street in Lincoln.
(U) The Omaha area has "tons" of recreational activities from little
league baseball and peewee football, to girl's soccer, softball, and
volleyball, to parks and bike trails that wind throughout the city. If
culture and sophistication is more to your liking, Omaha has a
symphony, several community playhouses, the Joslyn Art Museum,
the Durham Western Heritage Museum, a botanical garden, and
the world class Henry Doorly Zoo. This year is special since we are
celebrating the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark expedition:
activities and displays commemorating this accomplishment are
planned throughout the summer up and down the "Mighty Mo."
(U) Omaha has a variety of restaurants. Although it has most of the
national and regional chains, I find it more interesting to go to the
SERIES:
(U) SID Around the
World '04
1. Letter From Ottawa
2. Yakima: Fertile
Valley in the High
Desert
3. Life in Alice
4. Omaha - The Heart
of the Heartland
5. Life in the Big Apple
6. 'Dropping Anchor' in
Anchorage
many family restaurants you'll find through the area. One, for
example, is Johnny's Café. Many, many years ago, as people
were migrating west, a young polish immigrant crossed the
Missouri and stopped for the evening. Someone was looking for
someone who knew how to cook. "Johnny" volunteered to cook
vittles for supper, and the rest is history. He stayed in town and
opened a restaurant that his family has been operating ever since.
His restaurant has now gone Hollywood as it was in a scene in the
movie "About Schmidt" starring Jack Nicholson.
(U) In my three years at STRATCOM, my family has really enjoyed
our time here. My kids are beginning to ask me how long we can
stay. From the moment we arrived, my wife and kids easily
transitioned - the move was a perfect fit for everyone. I've found
the work at the command to be very diverse. No single day is the
same. As frustrating as it may be working with the command to
incorporate four new missions into day-to-day operations, it's
much more satisfying when you finally accomplish the task at
hand. And the next task is already right there for you dig into.
(U) "Where the heck is Omaha?" It's right in the middle of the
heartland of America where you'll get a smile and hello from the
cashier at the grocery store. "Who the heck cares?" You'll find that
a lot down-to-earth people in your neighborhood that care about
you and your family. When you PCS to NSA STRATCOM, you'll
probably drive into town on I-80 from Iowa. You'll see a sign on the
bridge over the Missouri River that succinctly sums up what it's like
living in Omaha; "Welcome to Nebraska - The good life." Hurry up
and buy your Husker shirt and I'll see you soon around town.
"(U//FOUO) SIDtoday articles may not be republished or reposted outside NSANet
without the consent of S0121 (DL sid_comms)."
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DERIVED FROM: NSA/CSSM 1-52, DATED 08 JAN 2007 DECLASSIFY ON: 20320108