Thursday, June 19, 2008

Where it begins...

After nearly three years of fat, happy, civilian life post-Iraq, I've been called up to active duty once again. In early August I go back into uniform for several weeks of training and paperwork at Fort Bragg, NC. From there, it's off to rural Afghanistan for a one year tour trying to create some stability and development.

My plan is to offer some glimpses of (and, maybe, insight into) the journey from Los Angeles City Hall to Forward Operating Base (FOB) Somewhere in Afghanistan.

Where it Began...

In July of 2003, fresh out of grad school, I arrived at Fort Knox, KY for Army basic training. Just a year after my first miserable day in the Army (lots of angry men in brown, round hats, lots of push-ups) I was in North Carolina preparing for a year in Iraq.

I spent most of that year e-mailing home to friends and family. David Nickerson, a great old friend of mine who I haven't called in far too long, posted them all on our college's alumni blog, along with some really moving (for me at least) commentary.