US soldier goes from rodeo cowboy to Afghanistan GI

US soldier is a veteran of war and rodeo
By CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA (AP) – 3 hours ago

FORWARD OPERATING BASE FRONTENAC, Afghanistan — Paul D. Bliss has, in his words, "pretty much destroyed my knees, dislocated my right and left shoulders, busted my left arm, fractured my right arm, been kicked in the face here," — he motions to a scar — "right above my right eye: 28 stitches from that. Busted my nose four or five times. Bruised my back a few times. I've also dislocated both my ankles."

That was before the 36-year-old U.S. Army sergeant went to war. A rodeo cowboy, he rode bulls for fun and money, and got tossed and trampled plenty of times.

So far, through two tours in Iraq and now a yearlong deployment in Afghanistan that ends this summer, he has escaped serious injury.

"I have gotten very lucky," Bliss said. "When your number comes up, that's what you have to face."

His unit, the 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment of Task Force Stryker, is operating in a fairly quiet area near Kandahar city in southern Afghanistan, though it took high casualties last year. Bliss, a Catholic, keeps the dead in his prayers: "Their names and their faces just stay in the back of my head."
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US soldier is a veteran of war and rodeo