Well I’ve been much busier than I bargained for, so here’s the first 2011 update:
We had a few (possibly too many) guys on R&R the last month, so I’ve been filling in for nearly five different jobs. It wasn’t terrible, just that taking the ball while running was a lot like drinking from the fire hose.
The only real update in the past few weeks, however, is that it has finally gotten cold enough to show some snow. I realized I hadn’t really updated any photos since, like, October. I’ve gotten …

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Matt Spartz couldn’t attend his grandfather’s funeral in person, but Lombard soldier serving in Afghanistan found a way to pay his respects
By 1st Lt. Matt Spartz
Editor’s note: Army Lt. Matt Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, was deployed to Afghanistan in May with the 101st Airborne Division. A 2008 journalism graduate of University of Illinois, he is submitting occasional reports for the Daily Herald.
When I was a boy, I loved watching my grandpa, John Spartz, lead his VFW post during the Memorial Day parade in …

Editor’s note: Lt. Matthew Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, has been writing columns for the Daily Herald since his deployment to Afghanistan. Last week, he was wounded in a battle that claimed the lives of six American troops. He shares the details of that fight in the Pech Valley.
I faced my greatest fear in the sky-scraping mountains of the Pech Valley’s Taliban training havens, and now that fear no longer scares me.
My greatest fear was not death. I’ve been incrementally inoculated from the …

Here is the view from my new “office.” Also I have included some shots of my new room, which family (mom) always want to see but soldiers never think about. As always, click on the photo to see the entire album and the full-size pic (Britt).

Sun streaking over the Pech Valley mountains are breathtaking in the morning. But winter is truly setting in; the sun used to rise at 0430 and now doesn’t make it up until after 6 a.m., and is gone by 6 p.m.

Here is our awesome front …

Last week I walked into the heart of Taliban country, controlled Kiowa and Apache helicopters, slept in an aquaduct to the sound of an AC-130 gunship destroying the enemy, traded with local Afghan kids for hot chai, fought side-by-side with navy seals and prevented them from killing some stupid Afghan soldiers, and called for 155mm artillery while pinned down by sniper fire.
Now that’s a hell of a way to get your feet wet in a new job.
Everyone always wonders how they act in these types of situations, hoping they’ve had …