Afghanistan Series // Anthony

Anthony and I have teamed up from across the world to add another segment to the blog - Afghanistan Series. Here's how it works. He takes the pictures, "outsources" them to me, and I manage his post-processing end of the deal. By the time this little stud leaves Afghanistan, I'll have no choice but to hire him! Take a look at these awesome shots he took with our little Sony point and shoot - the same one I took with me to China. 

Here's what Anthony has to say about his experience as of today:

Tossing the ol' baseball around is an incredibly nourishing break from reality. A grassy field is a grassy field; a baseball is a baseball; and good friends are good friends. In this sense, my Memorial Day in Afghanistan may have been Memorial Day just about anywhere.

But unlike back home, Memorial Day in a deployed environment isn't about remembering the sacrifices of soldiers. That's what everyday here is about. If anything, I gathered that Memorial Day in Afghanistan was about taking a break, embracing the fact that life is short, and wondering why-the-hell-haven't-I-thrown-a-baseball-in-such-a-long-time?

I appreciate the support I've been getting from friends and family. Lisa has been amazing. There are plenty of soldiers here that don't get that same level of support. I don't mean the 'goody bag' kind of support, I mean the 'genuine concern and care from one's loved ones' kind of support. I now wonder why we don't give each other this level of consideration generally. Typical 21st century ennui can be as emotionally devastating as a deployment. What is it again? Oh, yes, 'failure to be oneself is the sickness unto death.' Back home you have no excuses, no self-awareness of the special circumstances of deployment that explain away a long list of personal failures. The challenges are surely different, but we don't give each other enough credit on a day-to-day basis.

I must confess that I am getting dumber. If anything, deployment has cut me from the joy and titillation of academic excesses. There is no audience here for my kind of distractions. In the wake of this realization I have decided to write a novel. This will again launch me into Kierkegaard's agony, something I can't seem to keep away from. Can I bring myself to do what I know I should, or will settle for a lesser self? This is essentially the essence of all angst.

Quality of life here is actually much better than I expected. I am fed three times a day, and I do not have to do any dishes. Of course, everyone here has explosive and painful diarrhea. I won't go into it because I don't want to sully the reputation of this fine blog. There has been enough sullying already, I can assure you.

My spirits are high to begin with, but they are buoyed even more by Lisa's growth as a photographer. Her work is getting better, and I'm very confident that she'll start attracting some attention soon. My favorite part of the day is checking up on the blog, downloading the images, and scrutinizing over the EXIF data.

Without further ado, Lisa's been gracious enough to post a few images that I took on Memorial Day:

Stay tuned for more of the Afghanistan Series.