It's no longer just theoretical...

20080315-42-14685.jpg, originally uploaded by flamingobear.

Anybody know who's running with my girls here? Evan and Lauren Vertuli are cruising down the driveway. I didn't bother to get any artful pictures while the Vertuli's visited, but this is better than nothing... at least it proves they were here.

Any visit from the Vertuli's, who are responsible for Jenn and me meeting, is welcome. We were thrilled when the emailed to say they might be in the area and we talked them into staying the night. The reason for the proximity, though, isn't a great one. You see, Mark is deploying with the 101st Airborne this Thursday. They're headed to Afghanistan for 15 months.

The wars, for me, have been completely theoretical for me to this point. I haven't known anyone who was involved... for me, the wars have basically been the source of disagreement for other people's arguments.

Well, now I'm going to be paying more attention. I hope to keep up with Mark and what's going on through email and perhaps a game of online chess.

Elisa probably won't play chess with me, but she's going to be in our thoughts a lot as well. She's about to embark on 15 months of parenting a 2 and 4 year old without Mark around. It makes me tired just thinking about it. And not once did I hear her complain at all. That, to me, is as impressive as what Mark's about to do.