Mike McGuire Update

From Peter King of Sports Illustrated:

"I think this is the latest from U.S. Army Sgt. First Class Mike McGuire, whose men -- they call themselves the "Wolf Pack'' -- are on the ground in Iraq looking for the IED's, the homemade explosive devices that are killing so many innocent people. Where, I don't know. His whereabouts must be kept secret. But here's his heartfelt note.

"We are here enjoying the sand,'' he e-mailed me last week. "It's everywhere. All I need is a lawn chair and a drink with an umbrella in it. Is there a city in this country? It's flat everywhere and seems like the people just come from the sand. We shot and zeroed all of our weapons systems and are ready to move forward. Did my wife send you the picture of my platoon? [She did.] I just wanted you to see the soldiers I work with. One in particular is this young kid named Private Jewell. We call him "Jittering Jewell." He is always worried and wanting to call home. We keep him under wraps. He's a good kid. Little more time away from Mommy and he will be OK. His dad is a big follower of your column, so he lets his son know when you write about me. One thing I am proud of is that these young soldiers are well-trained and ready to do whatever it takes to accomplish the mission and return home. You should see how we have been living for the past few weeks. We have 70 guys crammed into one large tent. Really, I have about two feet of living space on each side of me. Some guys have even less. But we don't complain. Smaller walls bring you closer. Water for running showers is at a premium. Around 9 at night, it's hard to get. Chow here is excellent. In this dining facility in the middle of the desert they have a Baskin Robbins. Can you believe it? Spent my birthday today loading up the vehicles getting ready for roll out. The 'pucker factor' is high when riding through towns or the desert or any area for that matter. It's a rush like I have not felt, like a altered sense of awareness. Things will really start to pick up soon. I will keep you posted.''

You know what I think when I read that? I think I will never experience a "pucker factor'' in my life, at any point, the way McGuire's men experience it every day."