TEXAS LEGISLATOR TO GO TO AFGHANISTAN WITH NATIONAL GUARD

A Texas legislator joins the war effort in Afghanistan:

Rick Noriega met his cousin to say goodbye Tuesday before heading off to Afghanistan with the National Guard, leaving his job and family just as many other Americans have done.

These two did it differently, though, because Mr. Noriega is a state representative, his cousin Michael Solar is a powerful lawyer and legislators headed off to war have special needs. So, the goodbye was a fund-raising luncheon to operate Mr. Noriega's legislative office while he's gone.

The good wishes expressed by supporters were heartfelt, and the event was an essentially American one: Mr. Noriega, descendant of sharecroppers, Hispanic success story, reporting for military duty today. He's the first Texas legislator sent into Afghanistan or Iraq.

Mr. Noriega, 46, three-term Democrat from Houston's House District 145, clearly found all the attention a bit embarrassing.

"What I've tried to do is shine some light on what every soldier and their family have had to go through," Mr. Noriega told the gathering. "I just hope that when all of our soldiers come home, we can celebrate them equally."

He's had a family gathering, a union hall celebration, a City Council proclamation. He's also had other experiences of the weekend warrior called to active duty, such as comforting his wife and two sons, reworking the family budget, checking his will, being turned down for insurance.

"It's no different than anybody else," he said. "The separation, the anxiety, the T's that need to be crossed, the I's that have to be dotted."