This Blog is Still Alive

Don't call it a comeback; I've been here for years. I've just been busy, that's all. With life. It can get pretty crazy, but I am glad that I can always come back and do some recollection, gather all of my thoughts, and try to put them in some kind of order.

The last half of the year has been wild. I think I left off last time while I was in NONCOM school or some time after that; I haven't looked at my last post since I read it. I ended up going to Colorado for high altitude training and had a real 'bang up' time, let me tell ya. Beautiful countryside though, and I got to see Cheyenne Mountain, where NORAD is. Luckily we were able to commandeer the 2nd Infantry Division's aircraft hangars and some of their equipment and parts. If we hadn't I think there would have been trouble because someone dropped the ball on packing. Anyways we had a hoot and I rode for hours on a Chinook and everything was peachy. Moving right along.

I guess I'll respond briefly to the shooting that took place at Fort Hood Texas by someone who was supposedly one of our own. One of our own would not have done such a thing, and I could make a wise ass crack at officers since the shooter was an everlovin' MAJOR, but it's pretty inappropriate seeing as how he took the lives of real soldiers. I won't even bring his religion or background into it; what happened was low down and dirty, and I guess you can't trust anyone these days. It's times like this when I'm glad that I'm hypersensitive to everything that's going on around me at all times. There's a better chance for survival that way, and I can thank Operation Enduring Freedom for that one.

Not only was I able to be home for Thanksgiving and Christmas, which I thank God for a million times over, but I took a significant step in life and got married. I've mentioned Jill in some previous posts. She has done nothing but bring about the most positive in me, and has made my life a million times better. I am very lucky to stand beside her in life and call her my wife. We got hitched on December 12, 2009, and haven't looked back since. It's going to be extremely difficult to leave her come time to leave for Afghanistan for the second and final time, at least in this Sergeant's Army stint.

Now on to the grit that everyone loves to hear about: Afghanistan! The rumors always start to swirl about our heads some months before we actually leave, and I've heard a few whoppers. Of course I won't discuss them here, because some of them could turn out to be true, and we don't want to tell Osama what the screaming eagles are up to. The other day someone told me to be careful over there, and I said I would but I had been there before. I was told not to get too cocky. And although the person was right, I wanted to tell the individual to shove it right up their ass. I have been there before; I've done my part already, and I'll do it again. I'm proud of who we are, what we've become, and what lay before us. No matter what, we will get the job done.

I've been back for one year, and it is already time to go back! It's crazy how fast a year can go, and it was a great one. I worked hard, and I enjoyed myself too, thanks in part to my beautiful wife. A lot of the veterans who went to Iraq and Afghanistan with my outfit are now getting out, and it hurts to see them go. We've shared timeless moments together, but I am excited that they get to move on with their lives and definitely can't wait to see how they end up. At least they don't have to put their lives in extreme danger anymore going to foreign lands with rifles and boots. For that I am grateful.

This will be my last party for the Army. I'll be going over, and coming back early to start out processing. Even so, I will still be over there for a considerable amount of time, which doesn't bother me except for the fact that I am now married. I hate putting my family through rough times, and if there were any way for me to make them not worry I would. So, for the new year, I hope that 2010 goes by quickly.

I find myself being more antsy this time than last. I don't know if it's the anxiety of 'let's just get this show on the road' or if it's something else. It would be a damn shame for me to get by for 5 years in the Army and then have something happen in the sixth. You can't really think like that though, or it will get the best of you. Sometimes the mind wanders more than it should, and you have to bring it back to a common place. Just do your job and shut up is my motto. Grin it and bare it. In every job in the army someone is depending on someone else, and as we all say...it's not about the politics....it's about the people beside you and those who depend on us. We tend to find comfort in others' discomfort; the fact that everyone you are with is going though the same thing somehow makes the job easier. We are going together, and we are coming home together. All of the leaders will see to it, myself included. I'm proud to be where I am, and damn proud to wear the patch I wear. My experiences have made me a better son, and a better human being for that matter. For that I am grateful. I know that many trials and tribulations await on the long road ahead.

General Bill Lee coined the phrase 'rendezvous with destiny' when the 101st Airborne Division was in its infancy before D-Day in WWII. And every time I want to complain about where I am or what I do, I read a few chapters from Band of Brothers or other books written by the 101st soldiers in WWII and I shut up quick. They had it rough; they were fighting to save the world. All I can say is, I'm glad I wasn't in Bastogne. The Battered Bastards of Bastogne still say they are glad not to be there to this day. They saved the world. What am I doing to save the world? I guess as long as we keep the fight overseas and off our shores we are doing something worthwhile. They can't come take down more of our buildings if we keep their hands full on their own turf. That's pretty much the only thing that gives it meaning to me. I don't give a damn about all of the politics and bureaucratic BS behind it. That all goes out the window, so it's that little bit of meaning that keeps it okay in my book to put me on a plane, and drop me off in the middle of nowhere for an entire year. Keep everyone safe here, and keep the memory of the fallen in our heads. People don't do this for nothin'; everyone has a reason. The world is a bad, bad place...but somewhere there is always someone with a good heart to fight the evil. I'm in the strong belief that light will always overcome darkness, no matter what. That's all for now.

Cheers,

-J