I can't believe it is still December. I have not even made it through one month yet and it feels like it's been years since I've kissed my hubs. Argh, come on January, come on 2010, come on baby, come on summer!!! Sometimes I really do wish there were a fastforward button, at least for the very little remaining part of this year, I'm getting anxious!
I got a phone call this evening. Do you realize just how much someone's voice can change your day? I hadn't been having a bad day, it had just been a couple days since we'd talked so I was really aching just for the voice (never mind the touch) of my hubs. He sounded so very tired (it was about 3am his time so I can only imagine how exhausted he was) but it was wonderful to hear his voice. He even sang to me, that "Kiss Me Through the Phone" song. We used to sing it to each other when he was gone on training exercises. It made me giggle. :) I love when he sings to me. When he first PCSed to NC and I was still in MD, we would call each other late at night and he would sing me to sleep. I thought it was rough being separated then, man I didn't know nothin'!
Also, I have realized I have not even started any of my deployment goals. I'm a total slacker. Learning languages, reading books, learning new skills. I've been napping and running errands, those are my days. Buuut in my defense, it's not like I don't have lots to do to get ready for Miss Thang and I totally have a sufficient reason for napping (unlike when I was in college and napped all the time. At least now I can blame it on something -other than too much drinking- or someone rather).
I've been thinking a lot about career choices again lately. It was brought to my attention by one of my mom's girl scout 'friends' (I use that term lightly) that I have a degree and am using it to make babies and be a wife. I had a friend call me in a slight frenzy one night over nearly the same thing, she feels her career and academic achievements had been put somewhat on the way-side. Here we are, degree holding women doing what? She at least has a job, a very admirable one in my opinion, helping less-than-fortunate families. I worked in a daycare. Not that daycare work isn't fun and rewarding, it just has nothing to do with my degree and just about "anyone" can do it (although I'd like to see some people try, it ain't easy!). I assured her though, as I had to assure myself earlier when I was thinking about it, that not everyone can do what we do. Not everyone can pack their lives up for someone they love, move hours away from what they know and live a totally new lifestyle. Not anyone can give 100% of their full support and loyalty into someone who is gone more often than home. Not everyone can learn the ways of the Marine Corps life and commit to all that is expected of them. I know it sounds cheesy, but it's not like I'm a stay at home wife to some wealthy typhoon, this isn't exactly the easy life. And while it may seem like I do "nothing" to some, I'd like to see them walk a minute in my shoes and not say that what we, as Marine Corps (and other military) wives do is hard work. That being said, I still want to pursue my own career and my own dreams. The hardest part in doing that for me right now is still deciding what I want to do. Why it's such a tough decision, I don't know. I've thought about teaching, about doing therapy work of some sort and just the other day I told my mom I wanted to go to school to be a vet. That's where I have trouble. There are so many things that interest me I can't choose just one. Maybe part of the reason I haven't started any of my deployment goals just yet, I have too much fun dreaming about things I could be doing instead of actually getting them done... Is this lack of motivation? I don't really know for sure. I know I'm going to do something I've just gotta decide what it is. And besides, I'm already doing the best jobs in the world. I'm a wife and I'm damn good at it, and I'm about to be a mom, from what I understand THE single hardest job in the universe. A job that is never done. Ever. So I guess for now I'll just be content with the jobs God has given me and keep dreaming of what I do until I make some sort of decision... And I am gonna get started on those deployment goals... eventually ;-)
Showing posts with label Goals of Deployment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Goals of Deployment. Show all posts
Goals, Goals, Goals (I Need Your Help on This One Please!)
So, I've decided to help me pass the next 8 months, I'm going to construct and execute a set of Deployment Goals. A list of things to do to keep myself busy and enrich my own life while my husband is away. These goals can be characteristic things (like being more positive and thinking of other's perspectives) or tangible things to do (like learning a new language). We must remember that I am preggers and will have a newborn very, very soon, so unfortunately some of the neat things I want to do will have to wait for a lil (like participating in a triathalon). So, what are some of your ideas of things that you'd do to enrich your life and keep busy while hubby is away. I wanna hear em!
Here are the ones I've come up with thus far:
Here are the ones I've come up with thus far:
- Remain more positive and remember that other people have bad days too. Think outside my own perspective.
- Learn a new language. Hubs suggested Italian so I can teach it to him when he gets home, then we can take our honeymoon to Italy.
- Learn to knit and make something cute for Ariana.
- Finish our scrapbook
- Volunteer somewhere, maybe somewhere with animals
- Get my house clean and packed up
- Pay off credit/loans and save, save, save!
Your Bad Day?! (Watch it Lady) First Deployment Goal
This post is about complaining. Yup, I'm gonna complain about complaining. But it's my blog so I'm entitled to complain about whatever I want.
Yesterday, I got out of the house and did some stuff. They say being busy makes the days go faster (although I can't imagine making the days go faster, I only wish they feel like they didn't drag...) so I try to take their opinion. They, of course, being more experienced mil wives that have done this numbers of times.
So anyway, I get up and get ready (the hardest part of the day actually) and first stop at WIC. Yup, we're poor so we get WIC, when it boils down to it the average married Marine makes approximately 53 cents an hour (they are Marines 24 hours a day, that's how we calculate this, yes, it's an exaggeration but in some cases it's not... my husband will definitely be working 24 hours a day for the next several months...). WIC is usually a total f-hole containing rude government workers who often treat you as if you're standing there for your "hand-out" and screaming kids that are bored to tears after sitting for 97 hours. Luckily, on this day, WIC is relatively quiet. There are only about 5 other women and a couple kids there. Almost peaceful. The wait did not take nearly 97 hours, maybe a solid one. Maybe. And the woman who helped me didn't act like it was the end of her world in doing so. Phew, got that over with relatively quickly and painlessly. No complaints here!
Then I went about my day going to the bookstore and meeting up with my friend Lori for some book browsing. Our intention was ultimately movies, but we had time to kill so we laughed at Post Secrets for about an hour and then cruised the mall where we wound up at Ulta, a huge beauty product store. Love!
I found a neat little set with about 12 Ulta brand eyeshadows and lipglosses which I couldn't resist for the low price of $10 and Lori found a flat iron. We headed to the checkouts and were offered Ulta Beauty memberships (get so many points, get a free gift). Being all about free, I jumped at the opportunity and filled the card out. So did Lori at her register next to mine. I chatted with the salescerk and Lori while filling my card and then paid with my lovely plastic accessory the credit card. As the sale is complete, the cashier realizes that she has run out of receipt tape and thus can not finish the transaction until refilling it. Lori had been called to her register after me so she was still finishing her own transaction. The cashier had a little trouble filling the receipt tape but eventually got it - no worries, and finished. I noticed the woman behind us getting a little huffy but whatever - that happens when you gotta wait in line for frivolous things like receipt tape, it can be annoying and cause you to huff, totally ok.
That's when the cashier was finished with me and I moved over to stand beside Lori and wait for her to be finished. My cashier apologized to huffy woman for the wait when huffy woman proclaimed
O. No. She. Didn't.
Was she implying that it took so long because I decided to fill out the club card I was offered? Was she implying that my transaction was not important enough to take a few extra minutes and that I should be shoved to the side? These things I don't know, but I know she was making it sound like being up since 530 was a big deal and because of this, she deserved special treatment.
First off, 530 is a pretty normal time to wake up, especially for those in the average working world, I would imagine (Like I've said, I'm used to a husband who leaves for work by 5, isn't typically home til around 7pm and then still has time to do things with me before heading to bed...). And it was not even 6pm, not like it was midnight. And lastly, really? That's you're complaint? You've been up since 530? I only can wish that were my sole complaint.
Those of you knowing me know this did not settle well with me.
So, as I moved over to Lori I simply stated...
And no, I'm not saying that my day/week/last 4 months are the worst in the world. (They're certainly no worse than the other wives in our unit.) What I'm saying here is that it's key to remember that there's probably always someone who's having a worse day or time than you and people don't often consider this when they spout off about their own bad days. I know that Tuesday was the worst day of my life, putting my husband on that bus. But while I was having the worse day of my life I'm sure there are people who were having an even wors-er day, at least I have someone I love to miss and I have a warm, although empty, home to return to.
So, goal number one of deployment (and of life, I suppose) is to remain more positive and remember that other people have bad days too. The world does not revolve solely around me (or you, huffy lady).
And thus begins my list of deployment goals. Some tangible, some characteristic, all important and focus-worthy.
Yesterday, I got out of the house and did some stuff. They say being busy makes the days go faster (although I can't imagine making the days go faster, I only wish they feel like they didn't drag...) so I try to take their opinion. They, of course, being more experienced mil wives that have done this numbers of times.
So anyway, I get up and get ready (the hardest part of the day actually) and first stop at WIC. Yup, we're poor so we get WIC, when it boils down to it the average married Marine makes approximately 53 cents an hour (they are Marines 24 hours a day, that's how we calculate this, yes, it's an exaggeration but in some cases it's not... my husband will definitely be working 24 hours a day for the next several months...). WIC is usually a total f-hole containing rude government workers who often treat you as if you're standing there for your "hand-out" and screaming kids that are bored to tears after sitting for 97 hours. Luckily, on this day, WIC is relatively quiet. There are only about 5 other women and a couple kids there. Almost peaceful. The wait did not take nearly 97 hours, maybe a solid one. Maybe. And the woman who helped me didn't act like it was the end of her world in doing so. Phew, got that over with relatively quickly and painlessly. No complaints here!
Then I went about my day going to the bookstore and meeting up with my friend Lori for some book browsing. Our intention was ultimately movies, but we had time to kill so we laughed at Post Secrets for about an hour and then cruised the mall where we wound up at Ulta, a huge beauty product store. Love!
I found a neat little set with about 12 Ulta brand eyeshadows and lipglosses which I couldn't resist for the low price of $10 and Lori found a flat iron. We headed to the checkouts and were offered Ulta Beauty memberships (get so many points, get a free gift). Being all about free, I jumped at the opportunity and filled the card out. So did Lori at her register next to mine. I chatted with the salescerk and Lori while filling my card and then paid with my lovely plastic accessory the credit card. As the sale is complete, the cashier realizes that she has run out of receipt tape and thus can not finish the transaction until refilling it. Lori had been called to her register after me so she was still finishing her own transaction. The cashier had a little trouble filling the receipt tape but eventually got it - no worries, and finished. I noticed the woman behind us getting a little huffy but whatever - that happens when you gotta wait in line for frivolous things like receipt tape, it can be annoying and cause you to huff, totally ok.
That's when the cashier was finished with me and I moved over to stand beside Lori and wait for her to be finished. My cashier apologized to huffy woman for the wait when huffy woman proclaimed
"Yeah well I just wish you could put some people to the side and move on to the next. Some of us have been up since 530!"
O. No. She. Didn't.
Was she implying that it took so long because I decided to fill out the club card I was offered? Was she implying that my transaction was not important enough to take a few extra minutes and that I should be shoved to the side? These things I don't know, but I know she was making it sound like being up since 530 was a big deal and because of this, she deserved special treatment.
First off, 530 is a pretty normal time to wake up, especially for those in the average working world, I would imagine (Like I've said, I'm used to a husband who leaves for work by 5, isn't typically home til around 7pm and then still has time to do things with me before heading to bed...). And it was not even 6pm, not like it was midnight. And lastly, really? That's you're complaint? You've been up since 530? I only can wish that were my sole complaint.
Those of you knowing me know this did not settle well with me.
So, as I moved over to Lori I simply stated...
"Yes well some of us sent our husbands to war yesterday" (Lori did too) "And haven't slept since. Really?? 530???"For some reason that just heated me. You're going to complain to me about getting up at 530?! Have you any idea what my day/week/last 4 months have been like? Let's talk about it lady, and here I am still being decent to the sales clerk as well as to the other patrons in the store. So shut your fat mouth, wait patiently in line like the rest of us, and keep your complaints to yourself.
And no, I'm not saying that my day/week/last 4 months are the worst in the world. (They're certainly no worse than the other wives in our unit.) What I'm saying here is that it's key to remember that there's probably always someone who's having a worse day or time than you and people don't often consider this when they spout off about their own bad days. I know that Tuesday was the worst day of my life, putting my husband on that bus. But while I was having the worse day of my life I'm sure there are people who were having an even wors-er day, at least I have someone I love to miss and I have a warm, although empty, home to return to.
So, goal number one of deployment (and of life, I suppose) is to remain more positive and remember that other people have bad days too. The world does not revolve solely around me (or you, huffy lady).
And thus begins my list of deployment goals. Some tangible, some characteristic, all important and focus-worthy.
