A while back, I told you about Specialist Grundle, the annoying soldier who deployed with us to Farah Province, Afghanistan, in 2004. He was furious about not having been promoted and compensated by claiming superior soldier ability and quoting useless weapons statistics.

I was disgracefully overweight when I began my tour, but the extreme desert heat, small rations, and a horrible bowel disease we called “Farah Flu” quickly and drastically shrunk me. Somehow, Grundle remained fat throughout the tour, and one episode of his incredible eating capacity became a lasting company legend.