It's Been Awhile

Dear Blog, it's been a while (over 1.5 years to be exact) since I last wrote to you. While I was at West Point I wrote quite often but pretty much ignored you after my first deployment in 2005. I did end up leaving the Active Duty Army after I finished a year in Korea, though I ended up joining the Reserves. I started down the path to become an elementary school teacher, but then realized that I'm far too introverted and also miss the military intelligence world too much to continue on that path. Now I spend my days working out and taking care of my niece and nephew (pictured above) as I try and decide what I want to be when I grow up. Of course, some of my time is spent taking trips back to Korea to visit my wonderful boyfriend.

I'd love to start blogging again in the future, but I think I need to work on my photography skills first. The blogs I enjoy reading have a great balance of photographs and writing, while you, dear blog, are mostly writing. I'm sorry to say, but this may mean that we need to part ways. Please don't take it too hard. At least I'm telling you this instead of continuing to ignore you. You can feel comfort in the fact that I haven't started a new blog...yet.

Cost Benefit Analysis

I know that I do not want to make a career out of being in the Army, but yet I do not have any clear idea of what I would around this time next year if I were to get out of the Army at the first available opportunity. It’s not for lack of trying to come up with ideas of what to do next, and perhaps no neon arrow pointing the direction I should go on 12 July 2010, but I’m at least trying to narrow down my possible courses of action. One option that I know is available to me here in Korea is the incentive program to extend my tour by a year. This in itself is worthy of it’s own analysis, but for now I’m only considering how any additional time in service will affect my post-9/11 GI Bill benefits (http://www.gibill.va.gov/GI_Bill_Info/CH33/Post-911.htm/). Under the GI Bill you are granted tuition assistance, a monthly housing allowance, and a yearly stipend for books.

I’ve made many assumptions and generalizations while doing my cost benefit analysis and I’m not going to spell most of them out, though I know that would be the proper thing to do. I will say that I decided to use the cost of one year of studying for a Masters in Early Childhood Education from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Three consecutive terms made up of nine credits each comprise the year resulting in a cost of $8,816/term or $24,448/year. One other assumption is that the basic housing allowance provided under the GI Bill for Ann Arbor is $997/month or $11,964/year.

My initial obligation to the Army is complete on 28 May 2010. To be eligible for any amount of the GI Bill I need to stay in at least 90 days past that date, or until 27AUG 2010. To be on the safe side I’ve added one extra day to each of my calculations of how long I would have to stay in. If I stay in until 27 AUG I will receive 40% of the benefits of the GI Bill.

Active Duty Completed..............Date................% Max Benefit Payable
At least 36 months..............28 May 2013..................100%
30 months to 36 months............NA...........................90%
24 months to 30 months............NA...........................80%
18 months to 24 months....27 NOV 2011...................70%
12 months to 18 months....29 May 2011....................60%
6 months to 12 months......27 NOV 2010...................50%
90 days to 6 months...........27 AUG 2010...................40%

If I were to stay in for an extra 36 months IOT recieve full benefits, then the amount of money I would receive would be as follows:

ETS./Benefit %/Tuition (3 terms)/Housing/Books/Total

28MAY10...100%...$26,448.00..$11,964.00...$1,000.00...$39,412.00

Since I don’t plan on being in the Army until 2013, this is the breakdown of what I would receive depending on if I spend an extra year in Korea or not. Though the last ETS date is May 29, 2011, I would actually have to stay in Korea until July 11, 2011 if I do an extra year. The 50% calculation is thrown in just for fun.

ETS/Benefit %./.Tuition (3 terms)./Housing/Books/Total

27AUG10....40%....$10,579.........$4,785.60......$400.00.....$15,764.80

27NOV10...50%....$13,224.0 .....$5,982.00.......$500.00.....$19,706.00

29MAY11...60%....$15,868.80....$7,178.40......$600.00.....$23,647.20

27NOV11...70%....$18,513.60....$8,374.80......$700.00.....$27,588.40

The 50% calculation is thrown in just for fun. The 70% calculation would be if I went to the Career Course right after Korea and then only did my mandatory one year at my new duty station before getting out, though it would take a huge change of mind for me to go that route.

A very broad generalization is that the difference between me doing one year or two years in Korea is $7,882.40 per year in tuition assistance if I decide to go back to school after I get out of the Army. If I went to the career course instead of getting out getting out right after Korea (see career course assumptions in above paragraph), then it’d be a difference of $11,823.60 per year in tuition assistance.

Decisions...decisions...

20 Years Ago

This morning one of the CW4's I work with was trying to set the stage for a story and asked where I was 20 years ago...he seemed shocked when I said kindergarten. After his initial shock wore off he continued on with the story stating that 20 years ago he was a PFC in Panama.

First Impression

11 July 09 - Korean Air
So far so good. Luggage was a bit over, but dad paid the extra cost. I'm in a window seat in a 3 person row. The seat is comfy enough with leg room. Next time I'll send more clothes ahead of me so that I don't have to carry them. The plane is nice and the flight attendents are kind so far. there is a small bottle of water, a blanket, headphones, and a little case containing socks, a toothbrush (I think), and an eye cover if you want to sleep. The only thing lacking so far is an outlet to plug in my computer.

Just had my first Korean meal...kinda. I don't know if the plane counts. I had Bibimbap which consists of some vegies (spinich, some sort of root, sprouts of some sort, mushrooms, etc.), sesame oil, rice, and a hot pepper paste. There was also a seaweed soup, a pickle dish, and fruit for dessert. Oh, and free wine.

There is a couple in my row who have a small baby. The flight attendant brought out a bassinet thing that attaches to the wall in front of them that the baby can sleep in.

12 July 09 -First Impressions of Korea
The countryside is rather beautiful with lots of large hills covered in lush green trees and other vegetation. The temp is probably in the eighty's, but it is very humid and the sky is completly overcast. I had the exact same thought as the Soldier sitting behind me on the bus to Yongson, though he was the one who actually voiced it. We both noted that it's nice to be on bus where we can look out the windows and see the country, unlike the buses from the airport in Kuwait when we were deployed where the curtains were kept shut and we where warned not to peek out the window. There are lots of rivers and wetlands here as well as the sea, though the wetlands appear cultivated or at least void of the mess of vegetation one would see in the states. The vehicles on the road are fairly new looking for the most part and mainly consist of mid sized sedans and SUVs. The roads are well paved and free of trash and debris. So far I haven't noticed any strange smells, though many people told me that would me the first thing that would hit me when I got off the plane.

New Quarters

I’m sitting at the computer in my new quarters enjoying having a place to call home for the next year. The place is rather spacious, though only if you were expecting something the size of a broom closet to start with. I’ve found that if I keep my expectations low usually they’ll end up being surpassed. I’m a pessimistic optimist, or perhaps I’m an optimistic pessimist. I think ahead and plan for the worst case scenario, but deep down I know that it likely won’t happen. However, since I’ve set my expectations so low to start with I end up coming away happy when they are surpassed by any extent.

Let me start by describing the wonderful qualities of my new quarters. First off, I have my own place which is always a huge plus (and by place I mean room in the CPTs quarters on post). Upon opening my front (and only) door guests will quickly be able to make themselves at home because on their immediate right is a full size fridge/freeze which they can easily access to get the cold beverage of their choosing. Should they want a warm snack instead, the microwave is conveniently situated atop the fridge. If my guest decides he/she wants a glass of water instead then all he/she must do is walk one or perhaps two steps if they are vertically challenged, and they will find themselves in front of the kitchen sink and cupboard area. If my guest, having heard the running water from the sink, suddenly realizes that he/she is in dire need of a toilet then all he/she must do do an About Face (180 degree turn) and walk 4 steps in a straight line past the bathroom sink/cupboard area and into the tub/toilet room. Upon completion of his/her business in the bathroom area my guest can return to the kitchen just in time to see me pulling a fresh baked batch of brownies out of my oven (with 4-range stove top).

Having gotten both food and drink, my guest and I will retire into the living room region of my quarters. The dresser/computer desk/entertainment center is situated on the same wall as the kitchen, though there is an open doorway between the two. On the other side of the living room is my bedroom. The bedroom is conveniently designed with no wall or separation of any type between it and the living room and the bedroom. An untrained eye might suggest it is all one room, but they of course would be wrong. There is a cosy two-chair round table pushed against the far wall that nicely divides the room. Of course, to watch TV my guest would have walk four steps to sit in my bedroom on either the recliner that is pushed up against the foot of my bed, or sit on my full size bed. While sitting and enjoying TV my guest can look around and notice that my bedroom/living room also include a nice built-in vanity with plenty of storage space, and a lockable closet with storage overhead.

As all new (or new to the owner) places go, my place does come with its own little quirks. For example, apparently my range-top light is wired to the two electrical outlets in my living room area. In order to have power going to those outlets the range light switch must be in the On position. However, if i have my computer plugged in one of the outlets and a lamp on my round table plugged in the other outlet, then the computer and lamp will both trade turns as to which one gets power leaving me with a lamp that goes on and off every half-second and no range-top light. Should I turn the lamp off completely the range-top light will occasionally turn on, though only for a minute or two. If I manually turn the range-top light off neither the lamp or the computer will have power going to their outlets. As much fun as this sounds, I plan on calling maintenance tomorrow.

Though I have to work out a few kinks, I do think I’ll enjoy living here. My new boss is actually my former company commander and one of the guys I’ll be working with was in my Beast squad at west point and also in my OBC class. Life here is what you make of it. I hope to make it a good time...and who knows, perhaps I’ll end up staying two years.

Garlic Broth

New recipe posted at http://threecookingsisters.blogspot.com/

Productive Weekend

I think I accomplished more today then I have all month and therefore want to record it so that I can someday look back on today and wonder how I did it. Today was actually supposed to be a restful day of going to Mass and then possibly going down to Austin to drop off my bike for a tune-up. Mass happened, the trip to Austin didn't. Here's why:

Saturday morning I woke up to a thunderstorm rolling in. My plan had originally been to go for a bike ride working on keeping a higher cadence, and then coming back and doing my normal Saturday chores (vacuum, clean the bathroom, sweep, mop). I managed to get out of bed and then the pouring rain started, so I made blueberry pancakes and decided to go back to bed. I'm not sure what I did all day until the evening when I went over to my friend Andee's apartment to meet her puppy and go out to dinner with her. All I know is that most of the day I was very lazy and didn't do much of anything; definitely not any chores.

Sunday morning I woke up around 8am and since I had a couple hours still before Church I drove over to Shipley's Do-Nuts to get breakfast. While I was getting ready for Church I decided that since Christ The King (yes, there's a Christ the King Catholic Church in Belton, TX), has mass at 5pm I'd instead go visit my former church in Killeen for the morning service. I enjoyed seeing people I hadn't seen in over 1.5 years and was finally able to return to Mike a DVD set that I borrowed from him in the fall of 2007. After Church I went out to lunch at a Mexican restaurant with Amy and Willy.

Having eaten far too much food and feeling stuffed and sluggish I decided to go for the bike ride that I couldn't go on Saturday and leave the trip down to Austin for Monday or Tuesday after work. I rode 20 miles, got a little more sunburned on my arms even though I was wearing sunblock, got lost in Temple, TX a couple times and decided that if the Garmin Edge 705 has maps for Korea then I am definitely getting one, and was also able to keep my cadence higher than I have before...though I still have a lot of work left to do (thanks MAJ Yee for letting me ride with you the other day and teaching me a ton!).

Upon my return from the bike ride I showered and made it to the 5pm Mass. On the way back from Mass I noticed that I still had some energy left and was in a good mood so I decided to finally start baking the stuff I promised some friends last weekend but never got around to making. Originally I was only going to make a batch of oatmeal butterscotch chip cookies for Andee, but I still felt good after makeing those so i started on the batch of chocolate chip cookies for Mike G. and ended up also baking the batch of caramel brownies for Andy T. Whilst those were baking I was able to do my chores and more, to include: cleaning the bathroom and shower; sweeping and mopping (swiffer mop that is) the all the hard floors and vacuuming all of the carpet; washing, folding, and putting away two loads of laundry; spot cleaning the walls (a pinch of baking soda on a damp cloth works just as well, if not better, and is less expensive then the Mr Clean Magic Eraser); and emptying and taking out the trash.

Now I'm off to bed to read for a bit and then sleep until my alarm goes off at 5am to wake me up for PT. The price to pay for my awesome place is that I have to be out the door by 0530 to make it to 0630 PT on time. It's a price I gladly pay...as long as you don't ask me at 0500 when I'm hitting the snooze button on my alarm and counting the days till I can sleep in again.

Facing the Past

I never thought I’d be one of those people. Those people were the ones who saw action, watched people die, saw real combat. The closest thing I ever got to the action was listening to some indirect fire impact on my FOB the first day I arrived. At first I didn’t even know if it was a controlled detonation or the real thing, so we didn’t take cover until the 2nd or 3rd one landed and the sirens went off. Even then we stood in the doorway of the T-building listening to them impact and watching other people run down the street toward us and away from the DFAC. One person died. One or two wounded. All I heard were the booms. There were a few more attacks during the year, but nothing major. No more people were killed or injured by them. Why then did I find myself sitting in the office of a social worker listening to her tell me that it was going to be okay, that they were going to get me the help I needed and that I could heal. Why was it a relief to hear her say that I could heal? Heal from what? I haven’t seen anything; I haven’t done anything. Why do I need to heal? But she saw the tears that were burning my eyes threatening to spill over; those tears that weren’t for anything at that moment, but yet were never there when I needed them. Those tears that weren’t there when I let down my guard and allowed myself to think about the past and the family and friends I loved who I was so far from, about the past, and about everything that had happened.

Don’t reflect on the past. That was a skill I taught myself at West Point. When I was younger, after a vacation or some exciting event, I would marvel at the passage of time and allow myself to count back the number of days prior that it occurred and think about how different my current situation was compared to what had happened. I enjoyed reflecting on the time I’d had and the memories made. After I arrived at West Point I found that if I allowed myself to count back to the last time I saw my parents, or the last time I was home, the homesickness would overwhelm me. I quickly learned to stop thinking about the past, to stop counting the days backwards, and to stop comparing my past and current situations. If the past was better than the present then it was painful. If the past was worse than the present, then it was painful. Therefore, don’t think too much about the past. Short dosages of memories were okay, dependent on the memories and situations, but nothing more. I trained myself well…too well.

I also learned how to control my emotions to a greater extent, though not so much as control them as bottle everything up. The hardest night of my life, the night that stretched into day and wouldn’t end, I knew I couldn’t hold those emotions in much longer. That night amidst everything else I was fighting for control of my emotions. My reward became telling myself that when it was all over I could go back to my room and cry. I hadn’t cried for a while and it was a relief to know that this time tears would come. After it was finally over and I was safely back in my room I allowed the tears to flow freely and they didn’t stop for hours. When I thought I was done with the crying I would remember the look on the woman’s face as she pleaded for me to tell her what was going on and the tears would come back, along with the doubt about if I had recommended the correct course of action in having her detained. Alone in my room I relived every moment of that night, but in doing so it also took away a lot of the sting. I’d already cried over every moment and the weight of it was lessened. I worried that it would come back when I went to testify before the judge, but it didn’t. Perhaps it was the prayers of my family and friends, though they didn’t know exactly what they were praying about, or the fact that I’d already grieved about that night, or both. It taught me a new lesson: Perhaps it’s time to start facing the past again.

18 Days of Leave

I wonder if anyone reads this blog anymore...I certainly don't. Right now I'm home on leave for Iraq for 18 days. My leave ends on the 23rd; just in time to miss Christmas. At least I get to enjoy the pre-Christmas festivities and see family and friends.

Things I've done at home so far:
Sleep
Eat a ton of junk food
Enjoy time with my parents and Heidi
Hang out with Hannah and friends
Spend time with Misha
Go to a prayer meeting (AWESOME!)
Go to Mass at CTK
Go skiing
Go to the spa
watch a little TV
read
Drive for the sake of driving
Go to the gym
Not think about work

Things yet to do:
Visit Betsy, Mark and Iain in MN
Sleep
Eat a ton of junk food
Spend more time with parents, Heidi, and Kevin
Hang out with Ruth
See more friends
Celebrate a family Christmas
Go to another prayer meeting
Go to the gym again
send some care packages back to Iraq
Do my Christmas shopping (I probably should get that done before the family Christmas)
Shop for my niece and nephew just because I'm their aunt and can spoil them if I want to
Still not think about work

So far this leave has been quite relaxing and enjoyable. The time home with family and friends, and also the ability to get away and be by myself for a bit has been extremely nice. Plus, God once again heard and answered a prayer of mine this past Sunday.

Mid-August

Though the week as a whole went by fairly quickly, the days seemed to drag by and this month also feels like it is passing very slowly.  Part of the problem is that I keep thinking about leave...3.5 months from now.  In the grand scheme of things that is not a very long time, but when I think about the fact that its only mid-August and I won't be able to do all the stuff I'm dreaming about (mainly sleep), and see all the friends and family I miss so much until December, it wears on me.  On the brighter side of things, I've convinced myself that the hottest part of the year has officially past and it will only get cooler from here on out. Since August is the hottest month of the year, and 15 August is the middle of the month, we have therefore past the hottest day of the hottest month.  I don't care how skewed and wrong my thought process is about this because I am happy in my little world thinking that it will only get cooler outside.  Plus, I'm convinced that as it gets cooler out the time will also start to pass quicker.  My logic is full of holes, but at least I'm happier thinking this way.

 

I wonder which handgun he decided upon, the 1911 or the Springfield XD?

Congratulations Charlie!!!!

I'm extremely proud of my cousin Charlie because he graduates from Marine Corps boot camp today.  I've been telling all of my friends here in Iraq about him.  Way to go Charlie!!!

The Tree

A couple days ago after dinner two of my coworkers, Katy and Joe, and I decided to make a quick trip to to the PX. The sun was setting by that time and as we were walking the short distance from the DFAC to the PX and as we crossed the road I happened to look towards the south perimeter of the FOB. Off in the distance I noticed what looked to be the outline of a tree that was significantly taller than the walls surrounding the FOB. The FOB isn't very large (a mile in length at it's longest point, and significantly less in most areas) and so I don't know why I hadn't noticed this tree before, but it could be due to the fact that usually it's so bright out during the day that I end up looking down at the ground instead of up at my surroundings.  In any case, I pointed the tree out to Katy and Joe and we all stopped for a minute trying to figure out if it was actually a tree or just smoke from some smoke stacks.  Eventually we concluded it was in fact a tree, and actually a normal looking tree at that.  There are a few trees on the FOB, but as Katy pointed out, they look like Dr Seuss trees.  Other than that, vegetation on the FOB is quite scarce and the sight of a relatively normal looking tree off in the distance was rather refreshing.  I looked for the tree again today in order to confirm that it is actually a tree and not smoke and it was still standing there. 

The Gym

New mile record for me: 6:47 (once again though, 0% incline on a treadmill).

 

I've been a bit more homesick than usual recently.  This week has been a rather slow week work-wise and so I was able to average 13 hr work days and then get to the gym around 11pm. 

 

I'm half attempting to do this program at the gym called Body For Life.  It's an exercise regime and somewhat "diet" that you're supposed to stick to.  I regularly cheat on the diet and often do my own workouts (mainly cardio with a little weight lifting a couple times a week), but still managed to lose 3 pounds and 2-3% body fat (supposedly down to about 18%).  When it comes down to it, I'm not sticking to the program at all, but at least I'm still seeing results. 

 

I tend to talk about working-out on here because I don't feel comfortable talking about work due to OPSEC and other issues, and the gym is one of the few things that leaves me with of a sense of accomplishment and where I can see positive results. 

Promotion Pictures

Introvert

This deployment has given me a chance to see the extent to which I am an introvert. Many people have a mistaken notion of what it means to be an introvert and often put a negative connotation with the word introvert. They associate with someone who is anti-social; however, the merriam-webster definition of introvert is, “to turn inward or in upon itself as a: to concentrate or direct upon oneself.” Whereas a person who is extroverted is rejuvenated through interaction with other people, an introvert is drained by being around many people and re-energized by more solitary activities. That is not to say that an extrovert cannot enjoy time alone and an introvert does not enjoy interaction with others, but there is a inherit need for each person to re-energize in some form or fashion.

I bring all of this up because I have realized me need for time away from others this deployment. Whereas I originally didn’t want to take a couple extra hours off from work each week, after moving to my new office location where I am surrounded by people each day and the extent to which I have to interact with various other people on a daily basis, I’ve found the morning off once a week to be a huge blessing. Today is the second morning off that I’ve taken, with the first being two weeks ago. After my first morning off two Soldiers I work with mentioned to me that I was glowing. My co-workers frequently made that exact same comment about me last deployment the day after I’d taken some time off from work. Not only am I internally re-energized, it amazes me that there is also such a significant change in my appearance after spending a few hours alone.

I’ve set a few guidelines for myself on my time off. Spend some time in prayer and Bible study, no baking, no violin practice for church, get plenty of sleep, avoid crowds as much as possible, try and avoid unnecessary interaction with others, and spend the majority of the time lying in bed. Though I love serving other people and trying to make their lives more enjoyable, I cannot serve them best if I am a grumpy, overly-tired grouch.

This deployment I’ve also made new friends inside and outside of work; however, as my work hours increase my ability to spend time conversing and exchanging emails with my friends has significantly decreased. Though I really enjoy my new friends, I unfortunately have exhausted all of my mental and emotional reserves by the end of the day and have next to nothing left for further interaction, conversation, and sharing of thoughts with my friends. I hope that this changes sometime so that I can once again look forward to conversing with my friends on topics other than work related issues.

Time Off

I'm finally doing it...I'm taking four hours off tomorrow morning.  This week I began to notice that I was becoming very gloomy, depressed and felt burnt out.  The last time I had a quasi-day off was in mid-late April when I was up in Taji doing equipment inventories.  The last day I was up there all of the inventories were complete and so it was almost like a day off before we had to fly back to Falcon.  Both yesterday and today I noticed that even though I've been getting plenty of sleep my body felt the same as it does after I've been awake for 36 hours.  This afternoon I decided to finally make the decision to take some time off, and while I was walking back to my room tonight I realized just how much I do need to take a break.  I was walking down a road that has 20ft tall concrete barriers running parrallel to it and at one point, though I'm not sure how I managed to do it, but I ran into the barriers and fell down.  Thankfully it was dark out and I don't think anybody saw me fall, but if anyone did see me I'm sure they spent the rest of the night laughing at the LT who ran into a barrier and fell down because she was walking next to it. I had a good laugh at myself after I picked myself off the ground.   

5 Miles :)

Today I ran 5 miles faster than I ever have before: 40:12.  I cheated a bit because it was on a treadmill and the incline was at 0%.  The first 5 min were at a 9:14 pace at 0.5% incline.  Then I went up to 8min/mile pace at 0.5% incline for another mile or so  before going down to 0% incline and going up to a 7:54 min/mile pace, and then increased the pace for last 0.5 mile up to 7:30 min/mile pace and then up a bit more for the last quarter mile.  I left the gym quite happy :)

Work...Sleep...Run

I suppose it's been a while since I have written anything, though Heidi is still winning the lack-of-new-post contest.  Not a whole lot is new here, save for that I have a new job since the last time I posted on here.  Work keeps me rather busy and most of my time is spent dealing with detainees, though not in person.  I try and shoot for about a 13.5 hour work day (not including PT), I'm very happy if it is only a 12.5 hour work-day, but don't sweat it if it is 14-15 hours. The only downside of the longer work days is that I have less motivation to get up at 6am the next morning to go for a run. Soon I'll have to start running even earlier since it's starting to get hot by 6am now.  Before, it didn't really start to heat up outside until 7am. 

 

I've found that if I don't run in the morning I have no energy that day.  Even with that knowledge it is still very hard for me to pull myself out of bed a lot of mornings.  The past month I've averaged 17 miles a week, though my goal is to average at least 20 miles.  Some mornings, in order to motivate myself to get up, I make a deal with myself that if I get up and run early I can go back to bed after my shower until 8am.  The plan sometimes backfires on me though, like this morning.  I planned to run 5 miles, but had a really hard time getting up and so I made the deal again.  The problem was that I got up later than usual and I knew that I wouldn't have much time to sleep, so I ended up only running two miles on the treadmill so that I would at least run 17 this week...and then went back to bed. 

 

There are also many days that I think about how eventually I'm going to be able to take leave, and that going to bed and sleeping for an incredibly long time sounds wonderful.  I'm not sure why I'm so tired because I do get plenty of sleep, and if I don't get enough sleep it's my own doing...such as right now. 

 

We're supposedly allowed to take 4 hours off a week (come in late or leave early), but I have yet to see anyone do that.  Some days I may take a bit of a longer lunch, or like today, go visit a friend for two hours because I needed to talk to someone and get my mind off of things, but even then I feel like I'm slacking because I'm gone for so long.  There are occasional days that I'll come in late or other people will come in late, but it's always because we had to stay really late or were called back in to work the night before.  On the upside, right now the weeks are moving very fast.  I can't believe it's already Sunday again. 

 

Time to get some sleep.  Good night.

 

 

Grieving

My heart aches for his wife, daughter, and Jon. Though I didn't know him very well, I do know that Tim was truly a man after God's own heart. The world lost one of it's best.  You're in my prayers.

HACKED!!

The two recent posts about shoes were not from me.  My blog has apparently been hacked.

 

-The real Shibidie