A Looooooong Time Comin'

but it's finally happening.  In about 2 short weeks, we'll be back on US soil.  Back to the Ozarks we go...off to Fort Leonard Wood for a bit.

And so the fun of packing has come and gone...the furniture and most of the rest of the house all out of the house as of yesterday.  The rest of the goo gone in about a week and a half...us on a plane and Stateside by the end of the first of April.  OPSEC shot to hell, don't care...I'm ready to be home.  Ready to settle in and get back to business with getting ourselves set for the inevitable.

We've done alright from over here (Hubs is practically debt free...a little work left on mine).  But there's more to do.  So ready to get onto the rest of it.

Alas, that's all for now...see you on the other side of the pond soon!

Um...Wow!

Sorry I've been incredibly MIA...things are still crazy, we're still in Germany (obviously) and still awaiting orders back to the States.  Could be NC, could be TX or could be GA.  Yeah, they so aren't sending us back to MO (surprise, surprise).  Still don't know when...could be 2 months, could be 3 weeks, could be less.  So essentially we are living in perpetual limbo.  I'm sadly getting used to it.

It's rough, honestly, not knowing.  Harder on the kids knowing that we'll be leaving, just not knowing when.  Hard on me with planning out my classes and hard on Soldier on so many levels.  The whole not knowing is seriously a pain in the ass with any kind of planning to be honest.  Even the should be simple stuff like grocery shopping.  I know it sounds weird, but it is.  We could come down on orders and be gone in 3 weeks or less if they want it so...and I've seen a few friends get the "less" bit...like 8 working days.  Not so easy when everything around here closes not only on US holidays but German ones as well.

Anyway, we're still alive...still kicking...still waiting. 

More No News...

Soldier's diagnosis is pretty well complete.  Five (5) herniated disks...two in the neck, three in the lower back.  Moderate spinal curvature (and not in a good way) and possibly some (hopefully) temporary nerve damage.  Yay us!

No news on a "you're headed Stateside" date...the new system does that now, sends Soldiers back to the States to MEB out...fine by me!  Although I will miss my Doners, Eis and real schnitzel.  I won't miss the lovely goings-on that the Post has happening...like cutting off the hot water and heat at night to "save money/energy" (said with a mocking laugh, btw)...yeah, you read that one right.  The damn heat was on ALL summer, with the exception of the two warm (80's) weeks we had in September...now, the temps are hitting mid to lower 40's at night and mid 50's during the day with a wind that blows straight the f**k through the not so weatherproofed windows...no heat.  Nice.

Anywho...we await dates, which we won't get until mid-November at the earliest.  Either way, the Brown Dog and the Black Cat will have to find new homes...can't fly with us if the temp is 45 or below and as much as I love them, I don't see us forking over $1500 to fly them via PetAir to the States.  That conversation with the Screamers went over like a brick.

There's an update...scarce as it is.

No News...

is good news...right?

Well, we got news and it isn't so good.  Soldier is more damaged than originally thought, which means the land in Nevada is a no-go for right now.  No-go as in we won't be going there and starting from scratch.  Instead we will be heading home to MO, finding a place there and starting from not-so-scratch.  Soldier won't be doing any heavy lifting, building of big things or the such for quite some time.  He will be getting Medical Out, we just don't know when that will start or how it will work with new regs.  They (Garrison, I think) are trying to get a new regulation written that all Med Boards get sent back to the States to finish out.  That means homeward bound we shall be...eventually.

We've found a few places that have caught our eye...small homes, acreage, areas with no to few restrictions...not all that close to family but closer than we are now and not as far as Nevada.  We will be keeping the Nevada land...just in case.  It'll make for a nice backup and/or long family camping trips (really long).

Since we are now aware of the inevitable, the waiting is horrible.  Soldier has it the worst...unable to do much of anything...morning walks to the company (because he can't drive with the meds he's on and refuses to wake us all up at 0dark30 for me to drive him) wipe him out for the entire day.  The meds are pretty heavy and he's tired/hurting all the time regardless.  There is very little I can do for him to help, so we just plug away at the time we have left here.  I'm keeping an eye on him...watching for signs of depression and the like.  But I know what he's thinking...'what good is a Soldier that can't soldier?"  Not sure how much it's affected him, he talks but not a lot.  The good news is that he has a fantastic doc that really cares and goes to bat for her Soldiers.  This woman is an original and I adore her.

Alas, that's all the news from here for now...chilly night air is creeping in (we're having an Indian Summer right now) and the dog needs to pee.  

Not Feeling It...

this 'hurry up and wait' thing that we have going on here. Today of all days. This is the same place (not exactly but close) we were 10 years ago. Germany, waiting. Only this time our eyes are no longer closed to many things...we are more prepared, more worldly and more disenfranchised with the 'status quo.'

10 years is a long time to watch while you are stripped of rights and liberties despite your protests, votes, etc. The shape of the nation now is a disservice and discredit to those that lost their lives that very long day 10 years ago and those that have lost their lives since.

Pray, if you pray...meditate positive vibes if you meditate...but above all, prepare for the inevitable fall.

(P.S. Check the blog roll, there's a newbie. The Bunker Index. It's worth the bookmark.)