Travis Smith: my resume, bio and photos back to the main blog page

George, my friend and key player in many of my life’s stories, quit the army last month.  He’d been a lifer, but he got tired of certain aspects of army life COUGH*stupid hierarchies*COUGH and he’d been stationed at a recruiting center stateside for some time.

So, he got headhunted and he just took a job with a defense contractor.  He’s currently in an airport in Amman (I looked it up—that’s in Jordan) and he’s about to board a plane to Baghdad.  There, he’ll be doing defense contractor things, hopefully nothing that requires body armour, and sleeping under his desk, or so I picture it.  I know he’ll be in the green zone, which I picture being shaped like the logo for Target stores, but in the color of lime jello.

It’s not often you hear about someone leaving the U.S. military and then going to Iraq, but George has never been one to do things in the right order.  He also proposed to his wife before he ever went on a date with her.  He had a kid before they moved in together.  And I’ve regularly seen him eat dessert before his main course.  Sometimes he hits send before he writes an email.  It’s not tidy, being George.  So being in the middle of a “civil” war is just the kind of oxymoron he thrives on.

Anyway, his blog is a great read.  In addition to his regular entries about what it’s like to be a private (not a Private) person in Iraq, he’s also blogging his way to reading 100 books this year.

George, stay safe, make Iraq a better place, and come home soon.



 
 

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Overheard

“The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.”

...who said it?

“Almost every American I know does trade large portions of his life for entertainment, hour by weeknight hour, binge by Saturday binge, Facebook check by Facebook check. I’m one of them. In the course of writing this I’ve watched all 13 episodes of House of Cards and who knows how many more West Wing episodes, and I’ve spent any number of blurred hours falling down internet rabbit holes. All instead of reading, or writing, or working, or spending real time with people I love.”

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“Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.”

...who said it?

“I play with variables constantly.”

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“Only the person who has learned Continual Love coming from a heart of Gratitude/Worship can effectively deal with the problem of loneliness.”

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