Remember when all we talked about was Iraq?

It seems like a long time ago, does it not? Nowadays I feel like Afghanistan gets the lion share of the media coverage, which is by no means a bad thing.

These three recent columns on the state of affairs in Afghanistan--two from the Post and one from Slate--paint an interesting overall picture of the country.

Anne Applebaum sees a silver lining, and takes the candidates to task for their all-dire all-the-time assessment of the country (as I've done once or twice myself).

"But in the meantime...we haven't exactly "neglected" Afghanistan, as Barack Obama and others often say. It's just that we haven't yet faced up to what we have undertaken to do here. Afghanistan is bigger than Iraq, more rugged, more impoverished and vastly more complicated, with more languages, more ethnic groups, more tribes and more-lethal neighbors. It has only begun to test our stamina."

Fred Kaplan lays out the differences between Iraq and Afghanistan in the context of a potential Afghanistan "surge". He's right to point out some key differences, but Kaplan's dismissal of significant tribal conflicts within Afghanistan betrays a fundamental lack of understanding of the situation there. Applebaum alludes to this reality in the pull quote above.

Finally, David Ignatius bemoans the Taliban's continued ability to successfully come out on top of the Information battle. This one has particular interest to me, as public affairs and strategic messaging were part of my responsibility for the provinces I worked in. I think my team and I did good work, but as Ignatius suggests, Information operations are a part of the fight that we (the coalition) are still getting the hang of.

The Crusaders and the Conservatives

Check out this fascinating article on two competing factions that exist in today's Army.

On the one hand you have what the author dubs the "Crusaders"--guys and gals who see the Army as a nation building force that must be organized around the principles of fighting a counter insurgency fight. General Petraeus is clearly a member of this school of thought.

On the other hand we see the "Conservatives"--Army officers who believe a narrow focus on counter insurgency undercuts our readiness to fight any conventional wars we happen upon in the coming years.

I'll leave it to y'all to figure out which group you think makes more sense...

But the key point that the author draws out--one that is so often ignored in such discussions--is this: sure we need to organize the Army to fight the counter insurgency fight if nation building is to be Army's primary purpose...but who ultimately decides what the Army's purpose should be? And is terror-fighting interventionism so damned imperative to begin with?

Again...these are interesting (and monumentally important) questions for everyone to ponder and answer on their own. In the mean time, I'm gonna go get some lunch.

Reconstruction and Development in Afghanistan: Part 3

Today is the last day of NPR's three part series on R&D in Afghanistan. Which is a little sad, I have to say...I've enjoyed having articles to comment on that hit right to the core of my job in Afghanistan. Thanks to NPR for the series, and my wife for pointing it out to me.

As with the first two pieces, NPR hit on some key points in today's edition. To summarize a handful:

1) Afghans must take the lead on R&D in Afghanistan. To do that, they need to continue to become better at governing. Through participating and/or directing this R&D process, I think they have the perfect vehicle to do so.

2) Transparency (i.e. voice and accountability) and control of corruption are among the keys to long term success in Afghanistan.

3) "Patience is wearing thin within the donor community"--I don't know if this is the case or not, but I've read research that suggests that in post-conflict situations, donors begin to become disillusioned (or simply bored) after 8-12 years. The coalition been in Afghanistan going on 7 years, but we have to remember that Afghanistan is a new paradigm for post-conflict R&D (because it's part of the US's self declared global war on terror). And you can make the argument that, with conflict still existing in some parts of the country (though not all) that we really aren't post conflict anyways. But all the same, this is something for us to keep our eye on.

Again, it's a little sad to say goodbye to this series, but I hope everyone has enjoyed the ride (as I have). Have a good night, and I'll see you tomorrow.

An Explanation of Sorts

Here at Army 2.0 we’ve had some new visitors of late, so I thought I might take a moment to summarize the basic premise of the blog.

Without further ado, I present to you the following tale of sadness and woe, hope and redemption, absurdity and plagiarized Stephen Baldwin anecdotes:

Boy goes to college, joins Army, meets girl, leaves Army, and goes to business school. Boy meets IRR. IRR falls in love with boy. Boy gets dragged kicking and screaming away from boy's girl off to the IRR's secret lair of sado-masochistic love and waffle fries...and in the process, boy meets other boys who were similarly ensnared. Boy all of a sudden doesn't feel quite as bad about everything, eventually gets back together with girl, and all of the various boys and girls go on to fame and fortune as Investment Banking Internet Consultant millionaires.

That last part hasn’t actually happened yet (if you want to be all technical about it). And each of the aforementioned boys is currently continents away from their respective girls (which sucks pretty hard). But still…I think you guys get the idea.

Off the top of my head, here are a few other questions you might be asking yourself about my current situation:

Q1) Why did you go back into the Army after you finished your MBA?

A1) I was involuntarily mobilized from the IRR to return to active duty. I was originally ordered to report in October 2006, but the Army granted me a delayed report date so that I could finish school (and get married, as it turns out).

Q2) What is this IRR you keep talking about? Is that like what happened to Ryan Phillipe in that one movie?

A2) Check here for my most detailed explanation of the IRR (and here for a recent update). The IRR is different from being “stop-lossed”, which is what happened to Ryan Phillipe in the creatively named movie “Stop Loss”. Whereas a stop-lossed soldier is retained on active duty beyond their active duty commitment, an involuntarily mobilized IRR soldier is one who came off of active duty and was drafted back into service.

Q3) Where’s all the juicy stuff—details about what you do, opinions on various Afghanistan related subjects, etc?

A3) Isn’t learning about Duke basketball recruits and times I was awarded giant novelty checks just as interesting? And aren’t first person narratives written by my cat more interesting still??? Beyond that I don’t know what to tell you…literally. I’ve disclaimed any and all opinions in the blog’s header, but I’m not sure where the line is in terms of sharing, and I’m not interested in testing that out. I do my best to capture the experience of a life spent building the infrastructure of Afghanistan without listing any details or passing judgment on how well or poorly we’re doing it. I offered up possible explanations for my reticence two posts back.

Q4) Who would win in a fight—Oski, or the Blue Devil?

A4) While I will always root for a Duke team ahead of a Cal one (even in football, if it ever came to that) I think that Oski could take the BD in a fight. Oski is pear shaped (low center of gravity) and I’m pretty sure his cardigan has magical powers. That’s a tough combination to beat, and I don't think the Blue Devil has it in him.

I think that’s it from here—thanks for stopping by, everyone. I hope you enjoy your stay. Please feel free to email me or write comments with any other questions that you have.

Reconstruction and Development in Afghanistan: Part 2

The nice people at NPR have posted the second part of their three part series.

Thanks nice people at NPR.

Today's story isn't quite as illuminating as yesterday's, but it does hit on one of the key questions when it comes to who should hold the purse strings for Recn&Dev--what it the capacity within the Afghan government to strategically plan and allocate resources?

As you might imagine, I'm going to leave that question maddeningly unanswered. Which has to leave you wondering...is this Exnicios character:

1) A 10th degree rainbow belt in OPSEC?

2) Saving the juicy bits for his (as of yet unsold) post-IRR manuscript--I Gambled and Lost: The Andrew Exnicios Story?

3) Too intellectually lazy (and/or focussed on the NBA playoffs) to have "opionions" about important "issues"?

Unfortunately for everyone out there, that's a question that I'll leave just as unanswered as the first one...

Reconstruction and Development in Afghanistan: Part 1

Everyone should check out this article on NPR, the first of a three part series on the perceived "slow pace of development" in Afghanistan.

One of the provinces discussed at length is Bamyan, which you'll recall is one of the provinces where I work. Among other duties, I basically write the budget for the US military's development spending in Bamyan (and a few other places) which, I have to say, is something I'm pretty darn proud to be able to do on a day to day basis.

In fact, if you ranked all of the things that I spend time on in a given week, the road network in Bamyan (one of the key subjects mentioned in the article) is literally be 1st or 2nd on that list. Hang in there, Sayed Muzafar--we're working on it!

My commander (COL Ives) is ultimately responsible for the US's governance and development efforts in our area, just as a CEO is responsible for everything that happens in his company. If he's the CEO then you could call me COL Ives' Chief Development Officer. For those of you who have been wondering--that's it, that's pretty much what my job is.

There is so much I could write about this article (building infrastructure and the capacity to govern in Afghanistan is what keeps me up to all hours) but I'm not really sure where to draw the line in terms of how much I can say and/or comment on. I might (gulp) write something up and send it to me friendly neighborhood public affairs officer.

No matter the case, check back for parts 2 and 3 of the story in the coming days.

Secretary Gates at VMI

The SecDef gave the commencement address to the VMI class of 2008 the other day, and for some reason the event was carried on TV out here. We were excited to watch because Secretary Gates made specific mention of COL Ives, my boss here in Afghanistan with Task Force Cincinnatus. COL Ives is a graduate from the VMI class of 1980, and Gates talked about Ives for a few paragraphs in the address. Money quote:

"Afghanistan is a desperately poor place. Part of a NATO commander’s job is assisting the birth of a new generation of Afghan leadership – one that will withstand the urge to abuse power or put a hand in the till. Governors of the northeastern provinces sit down with Colonel Ives, and there, again, he often brings forth Cincinnatus, the Roman consul who, over two thousand years before George Washington, voluntarily left a high position rather than milk it for all it was worth."

As my Duke and Cal posts would suggest, I didn't go to VMI, but it's a school that's fairly well interwoven into the fabric of my mom's side of the family (i.e. the Smiths). My grandfather and uncle/godfather are grads, and my mom's whole family lived on campus while my grandfather was commandant of cadets at VMI in the early 60's.

So, all told, pretty cool stuff.

While I was away...

I sat in for my brigade commander at a meeting a couple of weeks ago, and I was literally the lowest ranking guy in a room of about 30 people. By my rough count there were 4 Majors, 13 Lieutenant Colonels, 10 Colonels, and the General--except that the General wasn't there.

As the meeting began he was elsewhere, no doubt doing important General things. It appeared that I was off the hook, and I would brief my brigade's portion to a room full of disinterested higher ups who were really only there because they had to be, not because they wanted to know what all the brigades had to say.

But since this is me we're talking about--and my morning with the General was not to be denied-- he made his entrance 30 seconds before it was my turn to speak. No big deal, I told myself. If there's one thing I'm good at it's briefing stuff. But seeing as the General didn't know who I was, I felt an introduction should be my first order of business.

"Good morning, sir. Captain Exnicios, Task Force Cincinnatus S9 standing in for the Brigade Commander."

It was a pretty good start, I thought--forceful, confident, everything a fine junior officer such as myself should be.

"Exnicios?" the General responded. "Is that your real name?"

"Yes sir, for my entire life." Where was he going with this?

"Wow. It sounds like some sort of horrible disease." But hey, at least he pronounced it right.

And from there I did my briefing, which went fine. The General (who seems to be a genuinely alright fellow, insults to my Exnicios heritage aside) complimented me on my performance, and that was that.

About a week later I happened to find myself driving in an SUV with the General's aide, a recently promoted Captain who carried himself with a slightly obnoxious swagger as befits his aide-de-camp/West Pointer status. The two of us were chatting with our driver, a Civil Affairs sergeant who had recently arrived in theater, which led to the following exchange.

CA SGT: "Some of the officers we have aren't that great, but some are really good."

General's Aide: "Yeah, I've heard that a lot of times you CA guys get stuck with really horrible IRR officers who got called up, don't want to be there, and just fuck off the whole time."

I resisted the temptation to reveal my status as a proud member of the IRR, and the conversation moved on to other things. Later that day the good Captain was asking for my story, and I informed him that I was one of the aforementioned "good for nothing" IRR officers. If he was embarrassed he hid it well, and he quickly feigned interest in my life and times. He let me know "how much it must suck" to get called back. He also cited the recent WaPo article on Captains getting out of the Army, an article that I don't have a very high opinion of. I pointed him to the vastly superior NYTMag piece from last summer, though I'm sure he hasn't looked it up.

Anywho, there's no really exciting way to end this story, so I'll just say this--how have I not gotten into the oped writing business yet? I suppose that's something I can look at on my way out the door...

Guess Who's Back? And from Kabul, no less?

There's been a serious case of reticence here at the 2.0 these last few days, and for that I apologize. But there's a good reason for it, I swear! Don't believe me? Then check out these pictures of me gallivanting about places in Afghanistan that aren't named Bagram Airfield!

That's right, I left the comfortable confines of my daily routine here and headed south to Kabul, the capital city of Afghanistan. I traveled there to attend a conference with the United Nations Assistance Mission Afghanistan (UNAMA), the UN's main effort here in the 'Stan.

Before I get on with the post, a few notes about people who work for the UN.

1) They are all enormously articulate. Too articulate for their own good, articulate. Listening to them speak, I found myself questioning the mastery of the English language I'd always given myself credit for.

2) All UN employees speak in vaguely European accents. Of the two main dudes who spoke, I would have sworn that one was British and the other Scandanavian. Turns out that the one I thought was British is from Denmark, and the guy I thought was Scandanavia is from Canadia. I found this enormously confusing, but impressive all the same.

At the conference we discussed a number of issues facing the Afghan people. As is the case at these things, talks focussed on issues of governance and development, aid and security. Relationships were forged, and alliances struck. Problems were identified, and we all agreed that fixing the problems would be a keen idea. The "how" of that whole process, now we didn't exactly have time to get to that. But trust me when I say that we'll do everything within the power of our vaguely European accents to make the how happen.

And for now, I'll leave you with a few more pictures--not of the conference itself, more to follow on that. But here are some shots of trip, I hope you enjoy.

#1 and #2: The Afghanistan country side as seen from inside a helicopter

#3: Cigarettes for sale at the Kabul Intl Airport don't actually want you to smoke them

#4: Our hero eating a Jungle Curry at the Thai Restaurant at the Kabul Intl Airport

Laser, Rocket Arm #1: A fitting farewell from Faith...

Completing the trifecta of captains/recent MBA grads/IRR call-ups, I'm Andrew's friend, Chris. I apologize for delaying my debut, but like Andrew and Jeff before me, I am finally getting to experience the joys of FOB Patriot, Ft. Bragg. I am also heading to Afghanistan but will be a CA team leader on a Provincial Reconstruction Team (more to follow about this in the future).

In my first blog post (that's right, my first, so CAQC monitors - you can stop searching for my secret blog), I thought I would share a tale from my last night in the comforts of the Faith Barracks.

The Faith Barracks were home to Andrew and I our entire time in Ft. Bragg (minus FOB time), so needless to say, they hold a special place in my heart. Sure the the heat might not always work or in some cases work too well, but this has been my IRR home away from home. It wasn't Jeff's luxury skyscraper, but it was briefly home and I thought Faith and I got along pretty well. At least I thought we did...

During my last night before moving out to the FOB I was up quite late packing. I had slowly been getting everything ready but I definitely underestimated just how much crap you can accumulate in 6 months. Around 3 am I was finally putting the finishing touches on everything. I had to be up at 5 am, but I was ready to drift off to sleep.

That's when Faith decided to intervene. In a very fitting conclusion to that chapter of my mobilization (and par for many of the IRR mafia's experiences at Ft. Bragg), the fire alarm went off.

I don't know if there is anyway to describe the Faith Barracks' fire alarm as anything but the loudest and worst sound I have ever heard in my life. It physically hurts your body, not just your ears. This is valuable when trying to evade a fiery death, but not such a good thing when trying to squeeze in the last couple hours of sleep you will have in an actual bed for a while.

My first thought was that Joe (slang for lower-ranking enlisted soldiers when they screw up) had gotten drunk and decided that pulling the fire alarm sounded more fun than Halo 3 or Rock Band. Then I smelled and saw smoke pouring out of the ventilation.

I never did find out what caused the smoke. I suspect the goons from the Holland Barracks. All I know is that 5 fire trucks (one of which is pictured above by my masterful photography skills) and 90 minutes later, I was allowed back in my room. I'm not sure if I fell asleep but as I laid there I had to laugh at Faith's farewell to the IRR.

Happy New Year's Eve

My goal for the night? To be asleep by 1030! Such is the life of an intrepid Whateverthehellmyjobis like me. I still have a little work that I need to get done before sleep, and I haven't really talked to Lauren much in the last couple of days, so I'm keeping this short tonight.

Assuming everyone else is denying themselves New Year's fun in a show of solidarity with me, you should take a break from Army 2.0 for a night and read up on headier events currently transpiring here in Central Asia. I recommend e-Ariana as a solid, daily news source for all things Afghanistan...so enjoy~!

Week 1 Roundup and General Awesomeness

It has been quite the eventful week here at Army 2.0. To summarize:

I left Fort Bragg last Saturday to head to Afghanistan. Terrorists, it would seem, very much needed fighting, and a little thing like Christmas wasn't going to stand in my way of taking out the trash.

After brief stops in Maine, Ireland and Kuwait, I finally arrived here in country. I spent Christmas at Bagram Airfield, the largest installation that the Army has in Afghanistan.

Along the way, I reflected back on my pre-military appearace, and I said goodbye to a good friend.

An interesting first week at war, I reckon--with many more yet to go.

A late Merry Christmas to everyone, and a happy new year to all. Happy Holidays, and for my non-daily readers--I'll see you next week!

Saying Goodbye to a Friend

Today was a difficult day. Today, I bid farewell to Jeff, who has been sent on a (possibily) temporary mission to FOB Salerno. It's a good job that Jeff's going to, and we've heard very good things about the command there. I know that Jeff is going to do great, and I wish him safety and good tidings as the new year quickly approaches.

Jeff and I go way back. We met at the M16 range at Fort Jackson during my second week there, Jeff's first. Along with Chris and LTC Smalls, we formed a close knit group that weathered storms great and small at Fort Jackson and Fort Bragg.

Chris, Jeff and I had similar stories to tell--we got mobilization orders during our second year of MBA programs at Indiana, Ohio State, and California, and we subsequently were granted delayed report dates in order to complete our degrees.

The emotional roller coaster that is the IRR accepted us as passengers back in the Fall of 2006 when we each received our initial orders. By the time we all met in June of this year, I for one, was enormously relieved to find two guys who were trapped on the same ride that I was. We quickly bonded in the way folks so often do in the military, over a shared hardship. That we had similar histories and goals only strengthened the bond.

Inevitably, though, the three of us (along with LTC Smalls) would not all be sent to the same place in the war--or so we thought. As the battle rosters ebbed and flowed (Djibouti, anyone?) I all of a sudden found myself, this past October, in the same unit as Jeff. This was exciting stuff--regardless of what happened in the unit, or what jobs we might hold, at least I'd have a good friend at my side.

At the end of October, Jeff and I met up with our current crew. We were told that we would have similar jobs, on the same staff, and speaking for Jeff--we were pretty excited to be able to stick together.

There is a long, (possibly) interesting story to tell regarding what has happened in the months since we joined the unit. One day I'll share that with anyone who would like to hear it.

Which brings us back to the present. The latest twist in our tale happened a few days ago. Jeff was told that the unit needed to fill a position at Salerno, that he had been chosen to fill it. These things happen in the Army all the time, of course. It would be naive to assume that just because Jeff and I had been slated to work together for the next 10 months, that such would definitely be the case. Still, the announcement came like a blow to the gut.

Jeff and I had been one another's band-aids, I think--keeping each other grounded as the IRR process continued its inexorable march to the sea in FOB Patriot, en route to Central Asia, and finally here in Afghanistan. All of a sudden, it came time to rip the band-aid off. To engage in our duties here in Afghanistan independent of someone who remembers what the Impact Zone at Fort Jackson was like. Or the sickly feeling in your gut when you walked up the steps of the building with the red awning.

We will both be fine, of course. There are good folks here at BAF--good friends and colleagues. I'm sure Jeff will find the same thing at Salerno. And I think Jeff and I will do well at our respective jobs. And who knows, perhaps this really will be a temporary gig, and Jeff will return to BAF triumphantly in a couple of months to assume an interesting, useful, clearly defined role on one of the infinite number of staffs that live here.

All the same--today was a difficult day.

2:05 AM 25 Dec 07--My Hooch at Bagram Airfield

Blogger's Note: The following post was written the night I arrived in Afghanistan. It is one of a series of time-stamped posts that I'll be after-the-fact publishing to Army 2.0 over the next few days. I hope that the out of order dates are not too confusing.

Merry Christmas, everyone. I'm laying on the bed I'll sleep on for the next 10 months, inside the shelter I'll live in for the next 10 months, about 10-15 meters from the bunkers I'll take cover in for the next 10 months--but only if and when the nice people of Afghanistan decide that attacking Bagram Airfield is in their political or personal best interests.

Before I go on, I should mention that Bagram is pretty darn safe place. We're a smidge north of Kabul, far away from the hot spots in Afghanistan to the south and east. That said, there have been attacks here. I do carry a loaded weapon here. It is still a warzone, for whatever that's worth.

Back to the hooch--I have my own little compartment here inside a larger structure that sleeps 4 of us, all told. My portion is about 7' x 7'. Not bad at all, especially after I spruce it up a bit.

I've been told that we're nestled inside some beautiful mountains, but as we arrived in the middle of the night (11:07 PM, to be exact) I haven't had the chance to see them yet.

The flight from Kuwait was 4 hours long and uneventful. I strained my eyes to keep reading The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen, and I did my daily brain exercises on my Nintendo DS.

I'm basically free to get settled from now until about 3 or 4 pm tomorrow. I don't know what's going down then, but it promises to be an orientation of one kind or another.

For now, I need to get to sleep. This might not get posted until some days after Christmas, but all the same--merry Christmas, and a happy new year to all.

Sad to be away from my family and wife, but in good spirits all the same,

Andrew

Almost There

I can't give specifics, but I'm getting very close to my travel date/time. I'll be moving through several different countries on my way to Afghanistan, and once I've moved through, I'll tell the tale here.

The problem, then, is that I don't know when and where I'll next have an internet connection.

How will I overcome that, you wonder? With pluck, grit, and a healthy dose of hardworksmanship, that's how.

By which I mean I'll be writing posts to myself on the laptop as I go, saving them on a flash drive. When I get access to a computer, I will upload the posts. Tale told, end of story, right?

Now, for those of you wondering if lack of access can explain my poor blogging record over the last month...sadly, this is not the case. For the sake of making excuses, though, let's say that I've spent the last month driving around the US in a van solving mysteries.

OXFAM Isn't Impressed

As it turns out, not everyone is as impressed with the job US Army Civil Affairs does in Afghanistan as we in the US Army Civil Affairs are.

OXFAM, a left leaning think tank dedicated to bringing about social justice, released a report suggesting that the Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Astan engage in projects that are "unsuitable, unused or targeted by militants". Ouch.

Another criticism is that the civil projects spearheaded by the PRT's squeeze out local initiatives. This is a particularly interesting criticism, as one of the major tenets of civil-military operations is the legitimization of the host nation government. That is, the very thing OXFAM criticizes the PRT's for is something that the PRT's are explicitly trying do the opposite of. Not sure where the disconnect is.

One of the dudes at the Small Wars Journal (see comment 18) points out that we in NATO are still trying to get our head wrapped around COIN. So regardless of the merits of OXFAM's report, I think we will continue to improve our ability to rebuild in Astan.

That said, I'm sure things will start to improve exponentially once I bring my deadly rifle skills to the fight.

WSJ Article and Portapotties

For the time being, here at FOB Patriot at the forward edge of Freedom, life is a study in competition.

On the one hand, I am focussed outward on places and events and goings on that have very little to do with the day to day mundanity of FOB living. Here is an interesting op-ed from the WSJ that touches on some of the big picture things going on in Astan.

On the other hand, my short term health and happiness is entirely a function of the day to day mundanity here at FOB Patriot. And yesterday, the powers that be installed 5 new Portapotties 50 meters from my tent. That means that I can take care of basic human functions without walking 10 minutes to the other side of the FOB. And it makes me enormously pleased with life.

So, on that note, have a great holiday weekend everybody.

Afghanistan Blogs

Hey everyone. I have a favor to ask.

I'm trying to track down all of the interesting and informative blogs out there that focus on Afghanistan. I'm interested in blogs by soldiers, aid workers, locals, journalists, pundits...any and every source that in some small way contributes a viewpoint that reflects the situation in country.

Part of my job for the time being is to help my Civil Affairs unit develop situational awareness of what's going on at the micro and macro level in Afghanistan. Big Media reports are easy to come by, and I'm curious to see how useful blog sources can be to complement/contradict the news media at large.

Feel free to post to comments, or to email me directly, and thanks in advance for all your help--I can honestly say that doing this will help me and my unit of doing a better job fighting the Taliban and AQ. Crazy sounding, I know...but true.

Hello, Goodbye

Lauren and I spent our last pre-FOB weekend together yesterday and today, and I just sent her on her way to Charlottesville, VA where she has training for the next week.

The two of us have had our share of goodbyes already, but this one felt pretty final. That's because sometime later this week I'll head off to train for several weeks straight, after which I'll have a few days off before my unit deploys to Afghanistan.

So, while this goodbye wasn't our last before deployment, it does bring our unprecedented run of weekends together to an end. Namely, since this whole process started Lauren and I were together every weekend since July, with a single exception in late September. We were a Rockies-esque 16 for 17 on weekends, despite all the Army stuff going on and Lauren's cross country move from Colorado to Virginia.

And because this improbable summer that the Army has improbably gifted us is finally come to an end, things are a bit sad.

But at the same time, I'm finally about to start the Army Training I need to get my skills back to the level they should be prior to deployment. I'm excited to meet my new unit, to start building my new role on a new team. And more than anything, I'm excited to get overseas so I can do some good for some folks, then get on home once and for all.

Checking In and Saying Hey

Hello everyone!

Obviously, I've been away for a while. After 68 posts in less than 2 months of Army 2.0, this is my first blog since August 20th. To celebrate my return I thought I'd start tonight with an update on my timeline.

I won't share exact dates (even if I had them, which I don't), as troop movements are sensitive information that I can't post in this forum.

It turns out that I am going to Afghanistan. I'm currently slated to be a Public Safety Officer for the 451st CA Battalion. I don't know what this means exactly, and I might get moved into a job before all is said and done, but I meet my new unit tomorrow so I'm excited to learn more. As best as I can tell a PSO works with the police and emergency response, that sort of thing. An interesting, important mission, though not one I know much about.

When I link up with my unit tomorrow, we start a 4-6 week block of pre-deployment training. From there we'll deploy overseas sometime in December.

Fun stuff. More to follow.