Yes ladies and gentlemen, I'm enjoying another lazy Sunday not unlike all of the other Sundays I've had since I've been back in the US. Burnt out after my first week back at work and tired from running 13.8 miles (the tenths add up; get off me) yesterday morning, I sit in my room typing and watching TV with a serious case of bed head at 1430. (If I was smart enough to figure out how to post a picture of myself I probably would. For the sake of anonymity and in deference to my already ailing love life I suppose not posting a pic is for the best.) Ah, but I digress . . . The run yesterday was quite miserable but I suppose it wouldn't have been as bad if I had been training more consistently but, 3.5 weeks of vacation--and a bit too much food and alcohol--hasn't really helped things. Regardless, I did finish and not too far off my marathon training split of 8:30 miles. I did, however, begin to wonder if my goal of 8:30 miles was a bit too ambitious. I had another realization while running for two hours yesterday morning: finishing something difficult like a long training run or difficult climb leaves one with a great sense of accomplishment but in retrospect, the emotions and thoughts that one experiences during the run, climb, etc, are often much more profound and significant than the end result. Okay, so let's a cliche to sum up my wordy explanation: the journey is much more important than the destination.

So what right? Well I thought about this yesterday and today, I wake up, turn on the TV, and a documentary based on the book "The Long Way Around" is airing. The book is written by Charlie Boorman and Ewan McGregor--both actors, the latter of which is quite famous--and is about their epic motorcycle journey around the world. The book happens to be a favorite of mine and one that not only epitomizes the "journey" cliche but also happens to be a book that I read and quite enjoyed during my recent journey back to Iraq. I started it on the plane ride over to the sand box in January of 2006 and it carried me through the first month of the deployment. It was a hard time for me and a dark period in my life, one that I chronicled in my journal. The book even earns mention in said journal. I'll dig out the ol' journal and include some excerpts about the book and the deployment in my next post. Until then, look left and right as you continue to move forward.

I'm writing at the urging of my mentor, friend, and former professor Paul. He's always motivated me to keep a journal or record of my adventures while in the Army and I've only been able to do so sporadically. Maybe this blog, which I started months ago, will serve as my outlet. I don't have high hopes of becoming a regular blogger but hopefully I can contribute enough excerpts from my past to entertain some folks and, perhaps, pull a book together one day. We'll see.

This site is dedicated to the men and women of the United States military—past, present, and future. All—regardless of service, rank, location, gender, race, and/or creed—have sacrificed something during their tenure as a defender of democracy. May the burden of loss be lifted from the shoulders of our sullen Soldiers, for theirs is a battle that continues long after they depart foreign lands and whose sadness wanes not in spite of the enormity and magnitude of their often intangible rewards.

Microsoft Word's dictionary function offers the following definitions for our name sake:

Sullen

Hostilely silent-showing bad temper or hostility by a refusal to talk, behave sociably, or cooperate cheerfully

Cloudy and dull-dull and gray because of clouds, fog, or haze

Soldier

military-somebody who serves in an army or other military service

dedicated worker-somebody who works with dedication for a cause

skilled warrior-a skilled and experienced fighter or military strategies

Citizens,

Hopefully this post will be the first of many here at Sullen Soldier. I'm new to the blogging business and assembling my team as we speak so look for more posts in the near future.

Note: I'm originally from California so words like "near" and "shortly" are considered extremely relative.

Thanks and stay safe.