March 2nd is when I left Tal Afar, September 4th, 2011 is when I left Iraq, and September 11th, 2011 is when I landed back in the States - that means that it's been about six months since my tour ended, and a year since I helped (not to take all the credit) shut down the PRT branch office... crazy!
12 March 2012
05 March 2012
On Family
To be honest, I've never really been close to my extended family - cousins, uncles, aunts, whatever. I think a big part of that was growing up in the Midwest and being the only family in Michigan, while everyone else was on the East Coast at one point in time, before a few families moved to the West Coast. Since I joined the Army Reserve, I've had a lot more opportunities to visit family during training and whatnot, and I traveled on my own to the DC area before and after my deployment to Iraq... probably more in the past three years than the rest of my life combined!
Last week, me and a few buddies stopped by a Chinese restaurant a family member works at... and he pulled out all the stops - complimentary pop, discount on our bill, etc. to make us really feel welcome. I'll admit, I felt a little uncomfortable with the hospitality... is this what extended families do for each other? I don't really know, since I haven't really had that experience on a regular basis. It was really nice, and definitely an incentive to move to the DC area when I'm able.
Last week, me and a few buddies stopped by a Chinese restaurant a family member works at... and he pulled out all the stops - complimentary pop, discount on our bill, etc. to make us really feel welcome. I'll admit, I felt a little uncomfortable with the hospitality... is this what extended families do for each other? I don't really know, since I haven't really had that experience on a regular basis. It was really nice, and definitely an incentive to move to the DC area when I'm able.
03 March 2012
On Fighting
This past week, I got my ass handed to me.
A lot.
It was a LOT of fun though, and I never thought I'd be interested in learning more about martial arts, hand to hand combat, and all of that stuff until I took Level 1 of Army Combative training. I'm by no means an expert but I've definitely learned a lot of useful stuff that'll save my ass, or at least prolong it, in a bare knuckle fight.
It was also really interesting, tapping into my raw aggression and adrenaline in a way that I don't really think I have, at least not for a while anyway. It's something we kind of hide or frown upon as a society, but isn't it really an integral part of the human experience?
A lot.
It was a LOT of fun though, and I never thought I'd be interested in learning more about martial arts, hand to hand combat, and all of that stuff until I took Level 1 of Army Combative training. I'm by no means an expert but I've definitely learned a lot of useful stuff that'll save my ass, or at least prolong it, in a bare knuckle fight.
It was also really interesting, tapping into my raw aggression and adrenaline in a way that I don't really think I have, at least not for a while anyway. It's something we kind of hide or frown upon as a society, but isn't it really an integral part of the human experience?
26 February 2012
On Divorce
A significant number of my friends are getting married this year, and I hope to make as many weddings that I'm invited to as possible. Though I'm happy for them and wish them well, I can't help but worry about the possibility that somewhere along the line, something will become irreconcilable and that some of these new unions might end in divorce. Granted, most of these friends getting hitched are of a particular social group where both bride and groom-to-be are evangelicals with similar worldviews... but that's not always enough right? Evangelicals have a lower rate of divorce, but the rate among all Christians, evangelicals included, is similar to the national average.
Where I'm coming from... I saw a few marriages fail during my Iraq deployment, whether it was divorce, infidelity, or both. I won't go into details because it's not my place, but it just caused me to be really disappointed in the human condition. Sure, it's a unique set of circumstances that 99% of American couples will NEVER have to face but at the same time, in this day and age you only have a 50-50 chance of making it through marriage, depending on what source you cite!
I don't want to come across as passing judgment or anything, and this ties back into the jealousy piece - I admit I'm a little jealous that some friends seem to have this figured out, and I know for certain that they're intelligent enough to avoid exercising poor judgment. I'm just cognizant that not everything goes according to plan, and I just wish that my friends can avoid suffering unnecessary heartaches and emotional devastation. A lot of this kind of bullshit and suffering from failed human relationships is the natural state of the world, but I think we can do better than that.
Where I'm coming from... I saw a few marriages fail during my Iraq deployment, whether it was divorce, infidelity, or both. I won't go into details because it's not my place, but it just caused me to be really disappointed in the human condition. Sure, it's a unique set of circumstances that 99% of American couples will NEVER have to face but at the same time, in this day and age you only have a 50-50 chance of making it through marriage, depending on what source you cite!
I don't want to come across as passing judgment or anything, and this ties back into the jealousy piece - I admit I'm a little jealous that some friends seem to have this figured out, and I know for certain that they're intelligent enough to avoid exercising poor judgment. I'm just cognizant that not everything goes according to plan, and I just wish that my friends can avoid suffering unnecessary heartaches and emotional devastation. A lot of this kind of bullshit and suffering from failed human relationships is the natural state of the world, but I think we can do better than that.
24 February 2012
On Jealousy and Focus
I'll admit it: I'm jealous of my peers, other Asian American Christians in their mid-20's. I know, the grass isn't always greener on the other side, it's just the perception that a lot of them are moving onto bigger and better things - they're successful in starting their careers, finishing up grad school, and/or getting married, while I moved back home right before Iraq, and in a lot of ways am stuck here due to my Army Reserve obligations.
I'm cognizant that deploying in and of itself is a remarkable achievement and that I've had a lot of interesting and unique experiences, I just feel like I've never quite had a singular long term vision put together of where I want to be... glimpses of greatness and good ideas, but nothing necessarily concrete, and even then I don't have the drive/will to see things completely through.
I am taking steps to improve upon this and drive towards a singular direction, using something I've always been good at - networking! One thing I'm doing is helping an old acquaintance I met playing airsoft revamp his online store in order to generate sales - back in undergrad I had expressed interest in opening my own business with the assistance of friends, but that never progressed beyond an idea, and now I'm actually getting involved with that kind of business stuff without risking my own capital... it's interesting, to say the least! Basically, I'm trying to monetize my interests, we'll see how that goes...
I'm cognizant that deploying in and of itself is a remarkable achievement and that I've had a lot of interesting and unique experiences, I just feel like I've never quite had a singular long term vision put together of where I want to be... glimpses of greatness and good ideas, but nothing necessarily concrete, and even then I don't have the drive/will to see things completely through.
I am taking steps to improve upon this and drive towards a singular direction, using something I've always been good at - networking! One thing I'm doing is helping an old acquaintance I met playing airsoft revamp his online store in order to generate sales - back in undergrad I had expressed interest in opening my own business with the assistance of friends, but that never progressed beyond an idea, and now I'm actually getting involved with that kind of business stuff without risking my own capital... it's interesting, to say the least! Basically, I'm trying to monetize my interests, we'll see how that goes...
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