SOUTHWEST ASIA — A young airman deployed to an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia for Third Country National (TCN) escort duty is wondering how he will balance his exhausting eight-hour workdays with other activities, such as off-duty education, chilling at the pool with his buddies, and maybe even hitting the gym, sources confirmed today.

Airman 1st Class Jason Brooks arrived in-theater a few days ago and has spent that time in-processing and learning the ropes. As a TCN escort, Brooks' daily work has nothing to do with his normal job as Cyber Systems Operations specialist. Instead, he spends eight hours a day escorting workers from the Middle East and various third-world countries to make sure they don't try to sabotage anything on-base or spy for the Russians.

"It really is tiring work, both physically and mentally, to babysit these off-base workers while they clean bathrooms and stuff to make sure they don't [mess] stuff up," said Brooks, during an interview in the air-conditioned base library. "I need to find something to do in my off-time to help me take my mind off of work. Quite a few of the guys on their way out suggested volunteering for base activities, tanning at the pool, or taking classes."