Instead of going to the office or sharing a meal and presents with his family, though, Yoo reported for duty in Balad, Iraq, where he is serving with the Army's 10th Mountain Division.

Just as he did on Thanksgiving, Yoo, a second lieutenant, slept in Christmas Day, went to work and looked forward to a special holiday meal that included steak, ham and shrimp.

Yoo, like a handful of others serving in Iraq, grew up in Cupertino. He graduated from Monta Vista High School in 2000.

"My family moved around the West Coast quite a bit because of my dad's job [in the electronics/semi-conductor industry]," Yoo recently wrote in an email interview with the Courier. "We eventually landed in Cupertino when I was about 11-12 years old. I have lived on both sides of the highway in Cupertino and attended the city's schools."

After Monta Vista, Yoo initially followed a conventional path and enrolled at UC-Davis. However, a summer abroad program at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, transformed his future. There, he met a former member of the Army Special Forces.

"He told me a lot of crazy things he did as a sergeant," Yoo writes, "I got interested in about what he did [and] I constantly saw soldiers walking around Korea, which was awesome to look at, and I figured, hey, I could do that."

Inspired, he joined the military in 2005 after earning an undergraduate degree in managerial economics.

"[My friends] all thought I was crazy; most did not even know one person who was in the military," Yoo writes, while estimating 75 percent of the U.S. military comes from the South and the Midwest.

"I think the reaction was because they couldn't see themselves doing it. I guess coming from a middle class family in the Silicon Valley, I was expected to do an office job such as lawyer, businessman, doctor. But for me, I wanted a different path."

He has certainly found it in Iraq, where he was assigned two months ago after serving at Fort Drum, N.Y.

As an ammunition support officer, Yoo is in charge of managing and coordinating ammunition. He ensures soldiers receive the bullets they need. As a second lieutenant, he also conducts investigations, inspections and arranges training events and other informal events.

"I don't think there is such a thing as a normal day, because every day, something always comes up," he writes of his busy schedule. "The uptempo of this place is amazing. It's like trying to fit two years of work into one year. There are times when I go all over the place trying to get things done ... my job time seems to fly by, which is good to know ... I do it because it is all about taking care of soldiers."

In a conflict that has so far taken the lives of 2,300 American and coalition forces--including Matthew Axelson, another Monta Vista High graduate--and anywhere from 30,000-100,000 Iraqi lives, Yoo's daily routine also comes with everyday dangers, both combat and otherwise.

Balad, an hour's drive north of Baghdad, is in the middle of the Sunni Triangle, an area known for the intensity of insurgent activity. As a part of that activity, Yoo's supply base, Camp Ananconda--home to more than 20,000 military personnel--is reportedly nicknamed "Mortaritaville." According to an October Seattle Times article, the base had received roughly two mortar attacks daily since July.

Even so, Yoo declines to discuss any combat close calls. He writes, "the Army doesn't like its soldiers to talk about their times." However, there have been other brushes with danger, he says. "One close call was when I was fixing an electrical outlet, and I accidentally touched live wires ... Everyone heard and laughed about it."

The difficulties extend to more than just his daily duties. The weather is a particular hardship. According to Yoo, Balad has a desert climate he likens to Arizona, with hot days and freezing nights. The large amounts of dust accumulating in his quarters are also a particular nuisance. "It just keeps collecting no matter how many times I sweep it," he writes. He also says he has been warned by soldiers with longer service in Iraq of constant rain creating bottomless mud pits and giant sandstorms, but has yet to experience them.

Nevertheless, Yoo says the Army does its best to provide for its soldiers. His base is reportedly one of the better ones and has air conditioning, heaters, running water, hot food, electricity, a workout gym, beds, a movie theater and post-exchange stores. According to Yoo, the services and facilities have consistently gotten better for soldiers. The Army even arranged for a visit from Santa Claus on Christmas Day--though Yoo did not say if he, too, had to wear body armor.

Yoo also describes himself as lucky to be an American and have the creature comforts the Army provides. "If people in the U.S. think they have a crappy life, think about the local populace here or anywhere in the world living without running water, air conditioners, electricity, little or no food," he writes.

As for improvement on the ground in Iraq, for Yoo that is an open question. Following the Dec. 15 elections, there had been hope among officials that the volatile conditions in the country might abate. But Yoo writes, "if there is a difference after the elections I would not be able to tell other than the weather getting colder and colder." Still he says, "Things are getting better here ... people can vote; infrastructure is being built-up; schools are being built for children."

Even so, Yoo, while neutral on whether the occupation is a good or a bad thing, believes it is important to hang in there.

"People believe the U.S. should pull its troops now from Iraq," he writes. "Sure, that'll be great if I go home tomorrow instead of 10 months later ... [but] Iraq would fall apart completely and we would be leaving billions of dollars worth of equipment and supplies. If it was up to me, I'd have every U.S. soldier, sailor, marine and airman pack up and leave. But think of the consequences of what happens then. What will happen to the people of Iraq?"

Regardless of individual opinions on the war, Yoo encourages people to support the troops.

"Unless you have been in the military, you will never know how difficult it is to defend a country, let alone help rebuild one thousands of miles from home," he writes.

When he does come home, Yoo--who was last in Cupertino in August for his five-year high school reunion at BJ's Restaurant--looks forward to seeing family and friends, eating pizza and Asian food, which he can't get in Balad, and pursuing his outdoor interests--especially hunting, fishing, skiing and snowboarding. He says he has read the Courier several times online to stay in touch with the community.

"Every American here only wants one thing--to come back home safely," Yoo writes. "I can't wait to comeback to Cupertino to see people I know, and to get ready for the next adventure I create for myself."

And, of course, he anticipates drawing inspiration from his experiences as a soldier in Iraq.

"Any time in the future I'm having a bad day, I know it doesn't even compare to what I've gone through already," he writes. "I have already gone through the worst."