Skype and the USO

Here's an article about Skype's partnership with the USO to help military families and their relatives overseas stay in touch. It seemed appropriate for the holidays.

http://www.military.com/news/article/skype-and-uso-connect-military-families-for-holidays.html

It also made me think about a recent Skype call with a friend serving in the Army in Iraq. Randomly one night, he sent me an IM via Skype. I figured he was still in Fort Leavenworth or back home in California, but it turned out he was in Baghdad. We later switched to video chat, and it was really great to catch up with him. Although his computer in the rec room at his US Army base didn't have a working camera, the quality of the audio was perfect. Baghdad is only one hour ahead of France, which I call often, but it was still trippy for me to think that I was talking to somebody starting his day at an Army base in Iraq. I hope that my friend felt the same way. Seeing his Skype login icon every now and then reassures me that he's safe.

Happy Holidays everyone!