Neglect Makes the Heart Grow Stronger

It seems that I have been too busy to write.  It will probably be this way from now on.  The fighting season has begun here, I can safely say that.  I expect to be busy in the coming months.  I will try to write when I can, how much I can, but be warned it will be in snippets.  A lot has been happening this past month.  I have had to do a lot of work in order to help my soldiers and myself get organized and ready for the fighting season.  There are things we as a fighting force are missing, and a process (long and aggravating) to get what we need.  I hope to be going on more missions to bring my expertise and knowledge directly to my brothers in the platoons.  At this point it is more about how much firepower and knowledge we can bring to the battlefield to destroy the enemy.  I think many Americans see Afghanistan as a place similar to Vietnam, at least in the sense that the enemy is hard to pinpoint and equally mixed into the population.  This is true and false.  The truth is, there are regular bad guys who are Afghans fighting Americans.  There are Afghans who are criminals and have no stake in the war aside from the money they can steal or take by force.  Then there are fighters from every where who have come to this battlefield to kill US soldiers.  I don't like that, in fact, the idea that some asshole came to this country to intimidate good people and kill innocent people makes me very angry.  And just like Bruce Banner, you wouldn't like me when I'm angry.  I tend to spend all my time figuring out a way to kill that guy.  These aren't locals who are defending their land or their people, these are murderers who think they can do whatever they like because they are Muslims.  In fact, they are making good, faithful Muslims look terrible because of their bloodthirst.  It is just a small pet peeve I have.  In either case, be aware that a battlefield exists here, a very tangible battlefield where we can tell friend from foe (most of the time).  And don't worry, it isn't like me to back down from an enemy that makes me angry.

Time is Always a Factor

I meant to write this last night when I worked all through the night.  Unfortunately, I had actual work to do which took precedence over my blog.  But there is something to be said for getting work done.  I am getting more done each day, and more information is being processed and analyzed than ever.  Time is always a factor though.  I find myself counting the minutes and even seconds I spend on tasks.  I counted the minutes of a presentation just to judge how much I would need to shorten it.  A lot of people get offended when I am short with them.  Or they think I take it personally when they give me a hard time about something.  The fact is I am so busy I don't have time to joke, or to be polite.  I know there is some knowledge out there that says it doesn't cost anything to be polite but I beg to differ.  It costs time, everything does.  I find myself rushing to the next thing and scheduling things back to back in order to be more productive and get more shit done.  I got ragged on during dinner a few nights ago, and I was like "yeah ok whatever" and turned to walk away.  They called me back just to assure me they were joking.  I wanted so badly to be like "I don't have time for this" but I just said ok so I could walk out faster.  It isn't time friendly to argue or discuss something trivial for me.  I think there was a time when I thought I had some time each day.  But now it keeps getting sucked away.  But on the other side our operations are growing by leaps and bounds.  I am confident this will be a defining part of our time here.  The infrastructure we create for this area, tactically, will be unmatched throughout the surrounding area.  Sleep is overrated anyways!