Sorry I wasn't around, for a bit there Blogger told me I was forbidden to view my webpage! Apparently that's been cleared up for now, and I appreciate everyone's emails and patience, I feel so loved :-)

While I couldn't get in here, I found a neat photo essay showing what soldiers in Afghanistan are carrying for luck, and to ease their pain of being so far from home. Click here and when you're done with the article click just below the title where it says "Photo Essay." It's pretty moving.

I also appreciated that the author referred to The Things They Carried, which is one of the few books about Viet Nam that my dad actually recommends. He served 32 years in the beloved Corps (the Marines, for those of you who didn't grow up military or watch Full Metal Jacket 5 million times. ;-) ) and was in both Viet Nam and Desert Storm.

So, when I have questions about war movies or literature, I always ask him first. Partially because I've learned I can trust his answers on the subject, and partially because when you get him riled he's pretty hilarious. For instance, when asked if Apocalypse Now was a realistic telling, he responded with a groan and said, "Arrrrrrrrg, whoever wrote that should have had his drugs taken away...or his typewriter...or both." In other words, it may be an interesting movie, but it's not terribly realistic.

Anyway, go check the photo essay. It can be easy to forget that we have soldiers out there right now. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers.