If you would have told me when I was younger that I would have spent two full years of my young adult-hood in Afghanistan, I would have laughed and said not in a million years.  I joined the military in July of 2007 when I was 18 years old.  I didn't come from a wealthy family and my parents had just finalized their divorce so my motive to join was to obtain financial aid for college.  I wasn't quite sure what to expect and there were definitely times when I thought "what the hell have I gotten myself into?" but with that being said, I met some amazing people along the way and formed some irreplaceable memories.

Here are some photographs from my time spent in Afghanistan from 2011-2013.

Walking back to my hotel after dinner near Trattoria Ponte Vechhio in Florence, Italy.

Rainy Christmas Eve day.  Kasi and I took the Staten Island ferry to catch a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty.  This was our view of the city as the ferry pulled out of the station:

A lazy summer day with my better half on the beaches of Lake Erie in Ontario, Canada.