Roller Coaster

Things have finally settled down today. Eric is asleep, our cat Roxy has finally come out from under the bed for the first time in 3 days, Nathan is playing his ps2 with his headphones, we have a permanent address, and the senate has managed to pass a bailout bill. All is right with the world.

This morning we were looking at two different houses, considering which one to make an offer on, and this evening we have signed a contract to accept post housing. You can't get more bi=polar than that.

Every since Eric got the email back on January 3rd, telling him that we were moving to Ft. Stewart, he has been stressing about this move. That, and his promotion. He has worked hard to make sure that we as a family are taken care of. I am so proud of him. He's usually not Mr. Romance, but that's okay. He wants to make sure that Nathan and I are taken care of and provided for. IMHO, nothing means more than making sure your family is provided for. (now, if he would spontaneously think to do the laundry or go grocery shopping or suggest a family outing, hey - that's just bonus.)

I can't tell you the relief about getting quarters on post. While we both really liked the older house we were willing to make an offer on, it is just so much more comforting to be on post. Especially if he's going to be deployed. I just prefer the safety of being in a kick-a$$ gated community if he were gone. If the roof leaks or the plumbing goes bust, I'd rather call housing to come fix it, rather than getting bids to get it fixed.

Georgia. What to say about Georgia. I went to a grocery store yesterday. Harveys. Never heard of it before, but apparently it's a chain around here. Was happy with my options there. But when the canned store music played "Georgia on my mind" by Ray Charles, I had to wonder, "do native get tired of this? Is this so trite that it's unbearable?"

Boiled peanuts at a gas station. What is that all about? Why would you want to buy and eat boiled peanuts? How is that different from the peanuts you buy at say, a baseball game?

We are now at a division. Fort Sill was a tradoc post - tra meaning training. Division is combat. There's another level called Macom, but I'm not sure exactly what that means. It seems to include the superior performance bands like the Drum & Fife Band, the Jazz Ambassadors and the President's own - the bands who are the true performers and don't have to sweat the hard core details.

It was obvious today as were tried to get one post when everyone was getting out for lunch. There was WAY more people on the roads than we were used to at Fort Sill, and there was no parking. Reminds me a lot of Fort Campbell. I thought Eric would stroke out dealing with the traffic. His goal in life is to avoid red lights at all costs.

I can't over emphasize enough how different our situation is now, compared to when we re-entered the military in 1999. Eric was only an E4 - now he is an E7. We went through Consumer credit Counseling and paid off a lot of miscellaneous debt that was weighing us down. We have a kid. I now have experience in the social services field that will expand my chances at getting a decent job here. We've worked hard to overcome bad financial decisions we made when we were younger. And I have to give props to Eric. He has worked hard on both his physical requirements and his leadership qualities. He's finally reached a point where he is a leader. I don't think I could have said that back in 1999 when we re-entered the army. Going to Iraq with the 101st gave him a maturity that he didn't' have before. (I'm a firm believer that most men don't understand maturity and responsibility until they're about 30, but that's another post.) He's learned that at his position, one of his missions is to develop leadership in the soldiers under his command. I think one of the most crucial things one can do is mentor or groom younger soldiers/friends/co-workers into realizing their potential. I think Eric understands that and is positioned to make those choices as a leader.

I think tomorrow we can just enjoy discovering the quirks of Hinesville. We'll get Nathan enrolled in school and see about finding some hotel to live in that is closer to post, and then I think we'll see about just being the tourists and sightsee=ers that we'd like to be. There have been some quirks we've discovered - the guy selling shrimp and fresh fish out of his van at the corner of hwy 196 and 19. The fact that we're the minority off of post. The boiled peanuts at a convenience store. Spanish moss, pelicans and mosquitos.

This Motel 6 room is getting smaller by the day...