update

A few days ago I witnessed a man shot in the neck, another shot, fatally, in the head, and another died from unknown wounds. These were not US or NATO forces, thank god. However, one of our soldiers from this outpost succumbed to his injuries during the same firefight, and two others were injured. They ambushed a convoy while it was rolling through a very dangerous area. The MRAP (mine resistant ambush protected) caught fire and was ultimately destroyed. It was a smoldering shell of a vehicle.

Aside from that... life isn't so bad here in Afghanistan. Others in my unit have it worse. Some have it better. The biggest bummer has been missing Father's Day, Fourth of July, and in a few days, my daughter's 16th birthday. Kind of a big deal, but I'm going to miss every one's birthday and every holiday within the next 11 months.

Keeping track of days has been pretty difficult. It's really hard to tell which day it is unless you have a watch or a calendar. Then there's our internet connection. It's sometimes spotty, sometimes blacked out (meaning we can't use it at all) and there are others who stand in line to use it so having meaningful conversations can sometimes be difficult.

My biggest supporter has been my wife. She's been really great. I can't imagine doing this without her. Getting packages is like Christmas. Even though it sometimes takes months for mail to get to this extremely remote location.

Things are just getting ramped up here in Afghanistan as "fighting season" is about to begin. This is where they come out of the holes they've been living in through the winter months and take pot shots at us, ambush us, hide in the bushes and try to blow us up then run and hide. An extremely cowardly enemy. Probably because they know if they went toe to toe with us they'd have a better chance of surviving as an ice cube in hell.