March 28th 2009

I don't think the reality of this deployment has hit me in full yet. As I sit here on this plane, many emotions Ive previously felt during my last deployment surface again and make me feel the same way I did last time. Anxiety, nervousness, stress, fear, and happiness. Anxiety because there has been so much hype around this deployment... I'm just ready to get this thing started. nervousness because Ive been questioning myself for some time about how i might react in certain situations that are work related. stressed for a number of reasons. stuff like wondering if all my bags got on the plane even though I saw all 4 of them get loaded. Fear of the unknown is always in everyone's emotions I would assume. but even with all of that running though my head Im happy. I feel its a great opportunity for me to finance some of my future trips, get some great photos along the way, and above all else, make sure everyone gets home on time. That is all for now. Going to try to get a few hours of sleep before we land in Manas.