Day 202.

Well, even though I set an alarm on my phone to go off on day 200, I still wasn't able to make it to sit down and blog. Oh well!

Some good news... Arron will be home pretty darn soon. I almost can't believe it... feels like years have passed! For obvious reasons, I won't be posting specifics, but be sure that I will stop by and update you with homecoming photos. :) I have my dress and my boots, and am waiting on my tights to come in. Eeeeek! It's finally all coming together.

I officially applied for a May 2012 graduation this week. I'm so excited! There is so much to do between now and then, but the good news is that Arron and I are looking at a Greece cruise next May/June to celebrate. :D

I promised a picture of my new hair, and I won't disappoint.

This is me and my softball partner / fellow Texan Danny Poss. :)

I think that's about all for now. I've been working mornings all week and work and I'm exhausted! Ciao ciao!

Day 196: Time Well Wasted

Today, on my agenda was to hit up the post office, Commissary, and BX, and then get gas along with get my car washed and vacuumed. I was supposed to come home and work on homework afterward.

... None of that happened according to plan, except the post office.

I went to make an appointment to get my hair done (my roots were horrible!) and the lady said she could fit me in right then. 3 hours later I had full highlights and my hair looked so much better. I went home, forgetting about the gas, car wash and vacuum, and just couldn't make myself sit down and concentrate on homework. I guess those things can happen tomorrow!

But I guess my theme of the day is time well wasted...

Those leaves were a foot deep in the yard, and "wash me" was written all over the car. Watching movies all day with you wasn't on my list of things to do, but we laid on that couch--girl, we never left the house. It was time well wasted, and there's no way I'd trade a few more things that I could have crossed off my list for a day that I'll never forget. No I didn't get a thing done, but I sure soaked up every minute of the memory we were making. And I count it all as time well wasted... --Brad Paisley

I took the day to pamper myself and it made me feel really good. I bought the new Sally Hansen Nail Effects to try out, as I had heard really good things about it. They turned out adorable, and I love that they can't smudge. It took longer than I expected to get them done, but it was worth it.

Hot pink glitter for the win. :)

Thursday night some friends and I hit up karaoke, as we usually do on Thursday nights. This time was my turn to be DD, and it was definitely interesting. Shannoa had just gotten back into town from spending a few months in the states, and I count her and Gino to be my two closest friends here.

Shannoa and me.

G-nooooooo.

The Three Musketeers.

Tonight I'm going out with Shannoa to a house party of a mutual friend's. It should be interesting. I'll get pictures of my new hair then. Ciao ciao!

Day 190: Midterms, thunderstorms, and grocery shopping--Oh my!

This weekend was filled with midterms--oh, the joy! Two to be exact, with another one due next weekend. However, they weren't too horrible and didn't take up more than about 4 hours of my weekend total.

The good news is that Arron and I sat down (I use this phrase loosely, as we're 3000+ miles apart) and realized that if I hit the books hard next spring, I can graduate with my bachelor's in MAY. Say what?! Abso-freaking-lutely! Which means I am in the home stretch and only graduating a year late, which (I must brag) is impressive as this was my first summer ever taking classes AND I took a semester off to move to good ole Italia. :) To say that I am excited is an understatement.

In other news, I went to church this morning. Not just any church, but a Catholic mass. I was not raised Catholic, nor do I plan on converting, but I was open to see what it was all about and I got the chance to get to know a friend better because of it. :)

However, in the middle of the service, the thunderstorms hit. They lasted for a good while (long enough to get us all drenched as we're running amok to our vehicles after the service), and now they're back again to lead us into Sunday night. I love, love, LOVE thunderstorms... mainly because I love to lay in bed and read while they're assaulting the trees outside. :)

I put "grocery shopping" as a topic on here for one reason only... and you men may want to stop reading here. (Forewarned.) However, every woman knows that when it's that time of the month, you do not step into a grocery store unless you HAVE to. I made that mistake today... along with breaking Momma's #1 rule--never, ever go to the grocery store hungry. Oops. I had high hopes of making rosemary chicken and potatoes for dinner... but ended up with two chocolate chip with pecan cookies, chips, and salsa. Yum.

Oh, and Arron comes back next month. Can you say downhill slope? :D

Day 183: Where Were You?

I know many people over the age of 15 can tell you where they were 10 years ago today. I know exactly where I was--7th grade English class with Mrs. Farris. When she told us what happened, immediately the phone in the classroom started ringing. The person on the other end of the line asked for her to send me to the office. I was shaking. You see, my father was a pilot, and in that moment it didn't matter that he usually only flew on the West Coast... I had to walk across the school with the dread that my father was piloting one of those planes.
I got into the office and my godmother, Cheryl, was there. I could see the worry in her eyes, and she could see the worry in mine. Before I could even say anything, she spurted out, "Do you want to go home?" I had to dislodge the stone  in my throat before I could ask the horrible question about my dad. I don't even remember what exactly came out of my mouth, but she hugged me and said, "Oh, honey, your dad is fine. I just thought you might want me to pick you up to go home, since I'm picking up my girls too."

I went home with Cheryl, Lauren and Sarah. My brother Paul wanted to stay at school (something about too many absences due to orthodontist appointments). I went home and laid in bed with my mom as we watched the coverage of the towers. We got to talk to my dad who was grounded, I believe in Phoenix. Hearing his voice gave me such a relief. By that time I got home, I believe the towers had already collapsed, or did shortly after I got home. I just remember watching the footage over and over again, and hearing for the first time the names Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. I was only 12, and I could tell that our world was going to be forever changed.

Where were you when the world stopped turning
That September day?
Out in the yard with your wife and children,
or working on some stage  in LA?
Did you stand in there in shock at the sight of that black smoke
Rising against that blue sky?
Did you shout out in anger in fear for your neighbor?
Or did you just sit down and cry?

Did you weep for the children who lost their dear loved ones,
And pray for the ones who don't know?
Did you rejoice for the people who walked from the rubble,
And sob for the ones left below?
Did you burst out in pride for the red, white, and blue,
And the heroes who died just doing what they do?
Did you look up to Heaven for some kind of answer,
And look at yourself at what really matters?

Where were you when the world stopped turning
That September day?
Were you teaching a class full of innocent children,
Or driving down some cold interstate?
Did you feel guilty 'cause you're a survivor?
In a crowded room, did you feel alone?
Did you call up your mother, tell her you loved her?
Did you dust off that Bible at home?

Did you open your eyes, hope it never happened?
Close your eyes and not go to sleep?
Did you notice the sunset for the first time in ages?
Or speak to some stranger on the street?
Did you lay down at night, think of tomorrow,
Go out and buy you a gun?
Did you turn off that violent old movie you're watching,
And turn on I Love Lucy re-runs?

Did you go to a church, hold hands with some stranger,
Stand in line and give your own blood?
Or did you just stay hone and cling tight to your family,
Thank God you had somebody to love?

- Alan Jackson, "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning"

Day 180: Hello there!

Why hello there, day 180. You sure have taken your sweet time to get here! Geez...

Yes, today is day 180. If you go by the day of the month, we have 6 days until we hit 6 months (on the 14th). We finally have a tentative date for when the guys will be home, and it's in less than 8 weeks! So stoked. It feels like a lifetime has passed since Arron left... so much has changed! A couple of my coworkers and I were talking and they started work either right before or right after Arron left, and it seems like they've been working with us forever too. Blah, I hate how long deployments are.

But the good news is that we have made it 180 days, and that we have less than 60 until he comes home. Hooray!

Day 177: Playing Catch-Up

This past week has been hell on wheels! I've been playing catch-up in all areas of life since Monday.

What happened, you ask? Well, my trusty (and almost brand-new) computer decided to crash Sunday night / Monday morning. Not quite sure when, but it didn't reboot overnight like I told it to and then the whole thing fell to pieces. As Monday was Arron's and my two-year anniversary, it put a damper on the whole mood for the week. I seriously went to work in tears about 3 out of the 5 days I worked. Everything went wrong... Luckily one of my supervisors, Katie, came to the rescue and lent me her computer for a little while until I get one that Pops is sending me... Mine had to be shipped to Toshiba to be completely wiped clean. Blah!

So I've been playing catch-up with school, since I'm in three classes right now (read: self-inflicted suicide). (Is there any other kind of suicide but self-inflicted? I digress...) It also doesn't help that I have NO motivation to do any of my work. Can we just fast-forward to this time next year, after I have my degree??

Thursday night, Tessa, Jamie, Kelly, Gino, and I went out for karaoke and for my birthday. My aim was to get so drunk that I forgot Arron was deployed. I failed miserably, but did get very inebriated. Last count anyone had was 12 shots of Patron and one shot called the "Blowjob."

This weekend was a three-day weekend, thanks to Labor Day. It's always nice to have a three-day weekend right around my birthday! I was asked by the girl's softball base team to go to Camp Darby with them for the last tournament of the season. Camp Darby is about 5-10 minutes outside of Pisa, so about a 4 hour drive from Aviano. We left Friday evening after work and just got back this afternoon. We didn't do so hot, but I did get some pretty awesome hits. I skinned my knee, however, and realized that I had forgotten how much a skinned knee hurt. Geez! I also somewhat rolled my ankle, but not so bad that a tape job couldn't fix. It's sore now but I'm able to walk without much of a limp. That just means that I can't run around with the kids at work as much. :)

The guy's team took the championship at Darby, and they went undefeated throughout the tournament. It was crazy how far some of them could hit... there was a 300 foot collapsible fence, and about 40 feet on the other side of that fence was the base fence. Right outside the base fence was a two-lane road and big oak trees on the other side. Some of the guys were hitting balls that were clearing both fences and hitting the trees! Some Italians were pulling over and grabbing the balls; we figured they were "cool American souvenirs" to these people who never watched or played baseball/softball.

Today, if you read the title of this blog, is day 177. That means on Thursday Arron will hit 180 days, meaning he officially has done a short tour in the desert. Usually the Air Force doesn't like to keep people in the desert longer than 180 days (because they don't like to give out short tours for it), but I guess they made a special exception in our guys' case. Lucky us. However, what that means is that Arron pretty much will never have to go back to Korea unless he asks for it, which is nice. He also gets another ribbon on his ribbon rack, which I guess is cool, too. I'd just rather him come home though.

On a different note, today is my Pops' birthday. I know today is probably pretty hard for him, as my birthday was for me. There are so many "firsts" in the first year after Momma passed, and I couldn't help but sit around on my birthday and remember the gifts she sent me last year--my colorful woman's hammer and a pair of jeans that I desperately needed in this European world, along with a new laptop battery (before my old one bit the dust).

But today is about Pops, the most amazing father I know. I wish I could describe him in words. He is the epitome of strong, both emotionally and physically. I don't know that I could weather the death of my beloved as he has, and though he has his days of mourning, he is constantly hopeful for tomorrow and the future. He is so invested in his children's lives that we talk almost every day, just to compare the weather and see how each other is doing. He spoils Darcy and Carly to no end, and I know they are as grateful to have him as I am, along with Paul and Jacki. Pops, I love you. I can't wait to see you in December!

Ciao, ciao!