All I can say about last night's post is that I was
*Wrong
*Wrong
*Wrong
Gunnar is actually supposed to be deployed next Thursday. I am trying to process this but have no idea how to. We barely got to be together for 2 weeks and now prepping for a really long separation. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. Stay in Fort Bragg? Go back to Columbus? Split my time between the two? Who's going to get my mail and newspaper here? Ok - not a life or death situation but still, there's a lot of details to work out. I don't know if the property management company would be too keen on providing housing for people that just abandon it anyway. It's just really very confusing. Gunnar is really upset. On top of that he has a nasty cold and just feels like crap altogether. A part of me thinks he might really enjoy a lot of aspects to being deployed. It's boys with toys in the biggest playground in the world. I think he will actually do a really great job there too. This is what he does best. I don't know how to even think about missing him for an entire year though. It's crazy to think of all the things he's going to miss.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Here's to Hoping...
We just heard that Gunnar's unit might actually be deployed next week!!
Pardon me while I lose my mind real quick.
Ok. I'm back. There's a lot of reasons this might not really be true. Here are the supporting facts:
* Supposedly troops only ship out the 15th of each month. Next week would be the 22nd.
* Gunnar and his soldier pals are supposed to complete a 2 week readiness course before any deployments can happen. Gunnar is only 3 days into the 2 week course as of today.
* There is supposed to be 1 month notice before deployment happens so soldiers can get their affairs in order (power of attorneys etc.)
That's all I can come up with right about now. I am going to try my best to not freak the heck out till I actually have a good reason too.
Stupid rumors.
Pardon me while I lose my mind real quick.
Ok. I'm back. There's a lot of reasons this might not really be true. Here are the supporting facts:
* Supposedly troops only ship out the 15th of each month. Next week would be the 22nd.
* Gunnar and his soldier pals are supposed to complete a 2 week readiness course before any deployments can happen. Gunnar is only 3 days into the 2 week course as of today.
* There is supposed to be 1 month notice before deployment happens so soldiers can get their affairs in order (power of attorneys etc.)
That's all I can come up with right about now. I am going to try my best to not freak the heck out till I actually have a good reason too.
Stupid rumors.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
...And Another Thing...
Spiders.
Big juicy disgusting spiders.
They are everywhere! They greet me in the morning when I'm attempting to make a pot of coffee. They scurry around when I'm trying to stomp on them in the hallway. I've seen them in nearly every room of the house, each on different days. Sometimes we do see two or three in a day. I'll admit I am scared of spiders. They freak me out! But on a totally different level, it's just gross to have bugs in your house.
So I called the neighborhood center today and the lady on the phone laughed at me in her cute little dumb accent. She said she's been chasin' them all 'round her house too and those suckers just don't git it, do they? Apparently unless you see at least 5, yes 5 big juicy disgusting spiders in one place at one time, it's not something they're going to help you out with.
Under normal circumstances, I would probably roll my eyes about the whole situation. But today it made me cry my eyes out for most of the afternoon. I really don't want to spend the next however many months/years here squashing spiders!!
Culture Shock
Well, I'm definitely not in Kansas anymore. As in Kansas = Columbus type of way. It's hard to describe the sights and sounds of the new neighborhood and surrounding areas. Our neighborhood is nice, big yards, good sized house, can't hear the neighbors etc. For some reason it's the cool thing around here to crank your car stereo up ridiculously loudly when you're driving down the road though. Gunnar said yesterday "I though bass went out of style, like, ten years ago". I thought so too. That sort of thing is just a bit annoying. Combine the bumping bass music with the rumble of artillery being fired all day and night, this place can take some getting used to. Oh, and then there's the massive jets flying low overhead, but I don't mind those much at all.
We venture off base and into the outskirts of Fayetteville pretty regularly. We explored the mall today (mediocre but decent) and have been to nearly all of my favorite chain stores. Of course we are all supposed to prefer and adore mom and pop shops but my goodness! There really is something supremely comforting about walking into every darned Target and knowing which way to turn to find exactly what you're looking for!
Another thing I immediately noticed when the family went out for lunch last week - people still smoke here. Everywhere! As a former smoker I can appreciate having a smoke and a drink together but since the smoking bans in Columbus, that sort of combination has been a thing of the past for several years. I did a double take when the hostess asked "Do y'all want smoking or non?". Oh! And actually getting to any destination is an exercise in patience greater than child rearing. I know the south has a reputation for having very slow drivers, and it's 100% true, but there's also the longets traffic lights in the history of the world here. I went to a few stores yesterday and really, I think I spent more time in left turn lanes with a red light staring back at me than actually perusing the aisles of the stores.
I have a lot of stuff to get used to around here. I am trying to stay optimistic but sometimes it's easier said than done.
We venture off base and into the outskirts of Fayetteville pretty regularly. We explored the mall today (mediocre but decent) and have been to nearly all of my favorite chain stores. Of course we are all supposed to prefer and adore mom and pop shops but my goodness! There really is something supremely comforting about walking into every darned Target and knowing which way to turn to find exactly what you're looking for!
Another thing I immediately noticed when the family went out for lunch last week - people still smoke here. Everywhere! As a former smoker I can appreciate having a smoke and a drink together but since the smoking bans in Columbus, that sort of combination has been a thing of the past for several years. I did a double take when the hostess asked "Do y'all want smoking or non?". Oh! And actually getting to any destination is an exercise in patience greater than child rearing. I know the south has a reputation for having very slow drivers, and it's 100% true, but there's also the longets traffic lights in the history of the world here. I went to a few stores yesterday and really, I think I spent more time in left turn lanes with a red light staring back at me than actually perusing the aisles of the stores.
I have a lot of stuff to get used to around here. I am trying to stay optimistic but sometimes it's easier said than done.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Friday, October 9, 2009
Settling In
Well we finally all made it to North Carolina. After a very bumpy road getting the truck unloaded (figuratively speaking) we are now faced with the enormous task of putting all of our shit away! Thank the heavenly stars this place has tons of storage space, because we have tons of junk. We are huge fans of throwing things out, and we do frequently, however there is still just so much stuff everywhere.
I have to take a moment and give an enormous shout out (however incredibly tacky that may be) to my parents and Nathan and Tim for packing and loading the truck and getting it down here. My in-laws, Connie and Denny came to Columbus and helped get the truck loaded and followed it down to Fort Bragg. They arrived late Saturday night but we were unable to unload the truck until we were able to weigh it on Sunday afternoon. With all the manpower, the unloaded went very quickly. Saying goodbye to my family was so impossibly hard to do. I really don't know how to function without them nearby. Connie and Denny stayed with us another night and then left for the beach. We joined them in Myrtle Beach for a night and then went our separate ways again. I can't even begin to describe how exhausting all of these goodbyes are all the time.
The word on the street around here is that Gunnar's unit may be deployed as early as mid-November. My brain seriously can't even process that information right now so I am just not going to think about it.
I am still trying to find my way around the new neighborhood. It's a strange place to me for sure! I am trying to get used to where everything is and how to get from point A to point B. It's not at all easy, I am learning though. And the base itself is like a ghost town. We must be in a war or something because there is not too many people around here. I really hope it starts to feel like "home" sooner rather than later.
I swear I will post some pics soon. I have definitely been slacking on uploading pics lately!
I have to take a moment and give an enormous shout out (however incredibly tacky that may be) to my parents and Nathan and Tim for packing and loading the truck and getting it down here. My in-laws, Connie and Denny came to Columbus and helped get the truck loaded and followed it down to Fort Bragg. They arrived late Saturday night but we were unable to unload the truck until we were able to weigh it on Sunday afternoon. With all the manpower, the unloaded went very quickly. Saying goodbye to my family was so impossibly hard to do. I really don't know how to function without them nearby. Connie and Denny stayed with us another night and then left for the beach. We joined them in Myrtle Beach for a night and then went our separate ways again. I can't even begin to describe how exhausting all of these goodbyes are all the time.
The word on the street around here is that Gunnar's unit may be deployed as early as mid-November. My brain seriously can't even process that information right now so I am just not going to think about it.
I am still trying to find my way around the new neighborhood. It's a strange place to me for sure! I am trying to get used to where everything is and how to get from point A to point B. It's not at all easy, I am learning though. And the base itself is like a ghost town. We must be in a war or something because there is not too many people around here. I really hope it starts to feel like "home" sooner rather than later.
I swear I will post some pics soon. I have definitely been slacking on uploading pics lately!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
The Big Day
I am calling it the Big Day because I honestly think I put more time and effort into planning for Gunnar's Infantry graduation than I did for our wedding. I planned every outfit, shoes, lip gloss to match perfectly. I got my hair cut, colored, nails painted, lost 30 pounds and bought super duper cute clothes. I was positively giddy to see him again! Of course it was 89 degrees and 120% humidity and I had to walk up and down hills and through Georgia mud to get to the Turning Blue ceremony but it was all SO WORTH IT! I felt like I was going on a first date again or something. The Turning Blue ceremony is the process in which the soldiers actually become part of the Infantry. There is a lot of Infantry pride with this group and it was actually amazing to see all of them in their spiffy dress uniforms. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a soldier in uniform!
We were able to spend the day together and then Gunnar had to stay in the barracks one last night. The following morning was the formal graduation ceremony at the National Infantry Museum. It was absolutely spectacular. Anyone that didn't get teary during the speeches had to have serious issues. I was really moved by a lot of the things they talked about but mostly the amazing history of the place and how intensely proud I was of Gunnar at that moment. After the ceremony we "hauled the mail" out of Georgia and drove north all day. It was fantastic to just be together again. We've always loved road trips together and this was no different.
The weekend was full of visiting family and celebrating Gus's birthday. We needed to get housing arranged and sent in all the necessary documents as early on Monday as we could. The house we requested had a waitlist of up to 4 weeks and our position on the waitlist was #29 out of 29. This meant that Gunnar would head down to North Carolina on his own and we would move down when the house becomes available.
I got a call on Wednesday that our house is ready and can we be there by 3pm Thursday (today). Ummm no. We arranged for Gunnar to go "move in" on Monday but the poor guy only has a roll of toilet paper and a pillow with him. Why is it that things either take way too long or happen so quickly that I can't possibly be ready in time??
Gunnar made it down to Fort Bragg today in just about 8.5 hours. And most likely he stopped for some reason every hour or at least every other hour. I thought it was a lot farther for some reason but all of the sudden 8.5 hours feels really manageable and not so much like it's the other end of the universe.
We don't have a moving date just yet. I am going to wait to see when Gunnar can get leave time and when I can round up some movers. I am excited to see Gunnar's pics of our new place though!
We were able to spend the day together and then Gunnar had to stay in the barracks one last night. The following morning was the formal graduation ceremony at the National Infantry Museum. It was absolutely spectacular. Anyone that didn't get teary during the speeches had to have serious issues. I was really moved by a lot of the things they talked about but mostly the amazing history of the place and how intensely proud I was of Gunnar at that moment. After the ceremony we "hauled the mail" out of Georgia and drove north all day. It was fantastic to just be together again. We've always loved road trips together and this was no different.
The weekend was full of visiting family and celebrating Gus's birthday. We needed to get housing arranged and sent in all the necessary documents as early on Monday as we could. The house we requested had a waitlist of up to 4 weeks and our position on the waitlist was #29 out of 29. This meant that Gunnar would head down to North Carolina on his own and we would move down when the house becomes available.
I got a call on Wednesday that our house is ready and can we be there by 3pm Thursday (today). Ummm no. We arranged for Gunnar to go "move in" on Monday but the poor guy only has a roll of toilet paper and a pillow with him. Why is it that things either take way too long or happen so quickly that I can't possibly be ready in time??
Gunnar made it down to Fort Bragg today in just about 8.5 hours. And most likely he stopped for some reason every hour or at least every other hour. I thought it was a lot farther for some reason but all of the sudden 8.5 hours feels really manageable and not so much like it's the other end of the universe.
We don't have a moving date just yet. I am going to wait to see when Gunnar can get leave time and when I can round up some movers. I am excited to see Gunnar's pics of our new place though!
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