What a difference six months make. I took a hiatus from blogging and Jennifer has done an amazing job of telling our stories the whole time. She entreated me to contribute on a variety of topics, but we've had so much going on. "That's the point," she put so delicately. And what can I say, she's right. Don't tell her I said that though ...
So to recap in a nutshell ... got home December 24th, scrambled to buy presents for Christmas Day since I wasn't supposed to be home until New Years ... Jennifer's Birthday ... reenlisted in the Air Force for another four years ... Jennifer was informed she was heading to NCO Academy ... I found out it was time for me to relocate (apparently five years in DC is a long time) ... my options came down to Mississippi, Idaho or Washington State -- Fairchild Air Force Base, near Spokane, Washington, wanted us most ... remodeled the house -- hardwood floors, painted walls, redid both bathrooms -- all in time for us to pack up and drive cross country from one Washington to the other ... Jennifer found out she had to deploy to Iraq ... started packing ... Jennifer found out she was going to Afghanistan instead ... more packing ... Jennifer found out she was going to Manas, Kyrgyzstan instead -- or as I like to call it, a little slice of deployment heaven (side note: did the math, I have more deployments than I have permanent changes of station since joining the Air Force) ... more packing ... tried to spend as much time with friends as we could ... packed up the truck ... pulled the boys out of school a month early ... found out I won Air Force Print Journalist of the Year as well as a few other writing and photography awards -- all stuff I did while deployed ... made the drive ... driving ... driving ... driving ...
Funny thing about the United States: They say there are a bunch of states West of the Mississippi, but really, it's just one, so don't let them fool you. It's called Nothing. Much like the villain in "The Neverending Story." Except when you get over that one hill, then it's more Nothing. With the exception of a lot of miles on the truck ...
The trip wasn't all bad, though. Talked Jennifer into staying in St. Louis an extra day to catch a Mets game -- my last for a long time (figures, they lost). We also made it to Hannibal, Mo., which was a bit of a pilgrimage for me, it being the birthplace of one of my favorite writers, Mark Twain. Jennifer also indulged me in diverting several hours to Metropolis, Ill., for the Superman Museum. I even played the song on the iPod as we drove through town. That statue is, well, Super ...
We also made it to our last Five Guys burger in Missoula, Mont., for the forseeable future. That was after the three days of driving through the Nothing. Kinda like the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow made out of monotony. The only other thing of note in that stretch was seeing Mount Rushmore, so that was pretty cool. You know, for a mountain with four dudes heads carved in it ...
Jennifer's aunt lives in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, so we stopped and visited with them and had one of the better meals of our trip. They're our closest family, so it's really nice to have them. That and the area there is just amazingly beautiful. You know, for a lake ...
Finally it was Spokane. We got our house, we got unpacked (mostly) and we started work. And it's been nonstop busy ever since. There is always something going on, which is why I haven't felt compelled or inspired to write anything. But as Jennifer pointed out: "That's the point."
She's right, of course ...
She recounted these six months in much better detail than did I, however she posted no photos to go with them. So my contribution will be to add a little color to our last six month adventure ...
But mostly it's time to start a new one. Jennifer is on her way to her deployed location and will be working with some great folks. For Zachary, Edward, me and our dog, Judy, it'll be getting by without Jennifer. We'll have to learn to live without her warmth (in her heart, not her iceberg feet), her companionship (even when she's bossy) and her cooking (that'll be the hardest part) ...
Of course we wish her the best of luck on her deployment, as it's her turn to go, as I tell the boys. So far we're all handling it okay, but, of couse, we miss her already (especially her cooking) ...
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