OIF Deployment 2005 to 2006 » Lady Jess

Long Day

OIF Deployment 2005 to 2006 No Responses »

Nov 172006

I finally got all six chairs put together. It went alot faster when I finally took my mom’s advice and used a socket wrench. Pics at the end of the entry.

It’s been such a long day. Yesterday was too, but not as bad. I hate not being in contact with Hubby. Especially right now. Last I heard he was still waiting for a flight to base and was basically stranded at another base. It worries me, I know he has alot of stuff to pack up and get mailed before he heads home. And not alot of time to do it. That’s along with the normal Iraq worries, the worries about delays, safety, and all the fun that comes with it. I’m so ready for this to be over. I’m going to have to agree with Nina. Not much longer isn’t what I want to hear. Because not much longer right now feels like forever. I just want to know he’s ok. That’s all I need to know.

My hands hurt from furniture assembly, my whole body hurts from my overly macho lifting and dragging yesterday. My thumb doesn’t hurt any worse, but doesn’t feel any better either. I did order two thumb/wrist braces through amazon though. They should be here sometime next week. I have one kid at a sleepover tonight and one tomorrow night. Less time for bickering and fighting, works for me.

Oh and Daisy made the top 5 finalists in her category at dogster.com! All those votes helped. They’re still voting for best in show CLICK HERE to vote for Daisy!! She’s the GSD with the soldier attached!

And pics…

The Table

Who Stopped The Clock?

OIF Deployment 2005 to 2006 No Responses »

Nov 122006

I waited and waited to find out when Hunny would be home. It was torture. Or so I thought. Now that I know, time has come to a standstill. Maybe it’s just the weekend. I have hated weekends since this deployment started. I guess because during the week it was normal to be alone all day. On the weekends we were together. Of course things will pickup after payday. I have an appointment with the “shrink” that afternoon, an FRG meeting that evening. Thursday we have reintegration classes. I was going to skip them, but I do want to hear the ptsd info. I’m not worried about us adjusting, that will happen immediately. But I do want to know more about PTSD. I know him well enough to notice if he’s a little off, but better to be informed.

Then I need to get my hair recolored, and hopefully re permed if I can manage both before he gets home. If not, just the color. I’m going to go to Total Image to see the girl that used to do my hair. I’m thinking about getting my nails done too, but that probably won’t happen. Acrylics are so damaging. I need to get his favorite foods and snacks in the cabinets. I need to buy our thanksgiving fixings, I may need to borrow Lizz’s freezer for that. We’re just going to postpone our turkey day until he’s here. I have to get the truck cleaned out, vacuumed and washed again. I’m thinking I’ll use one of those places that does it for you.

I think I’m going to burst before the week ends. Even with my meds my anxiety is through the roof. We’re just so close, and it magnifies all my worries and fears to twice the normal level. What I really find amazing is they are finally coming home, and yet still the complaints continue. I will be thankful when I hear he’s done working, I’ll be even more thankful when he leaves that place. And when he gets off that bus and into my arms, I’ll be thanking everything that’s holy that it’s finally over. well, Until the next one.

My Day Thus Far

OIF Deployment 2005 to 2006 No Responses »

Nov 082006

This has been a fun day. I stubbed my big toe kicking poop out of the snow in my yard while cleaning it up. I had the daylights scared out of me when bugle calls started sounding…4 years married to the Army and I have never heard a danged bugle call on the base. But no today, not once, not twice, but 3 or 4 times within a 30 minute period the base decided to broadcast what I can only assume is the boogie woogie bugle boy of brigade rear d. Don’t ask me what call, It could have been the call to the colors, reveille, hell maybe they called in the cavalry to deal with post election day riots, I don’t know, I don’t care but I better not start hearing first call at o dark thirty. There will be bugles in bad places. And if it’s a recording, I’ll FIND a bugle for putting in bad places.

I need to go get dog food. I’m trying to work up the ambition top actually walk out the door. I need to put daisy back on her GSD food before she sheds any worse. And she really needs to put on some Lose Weight Exercise. So somehow, I’m going to start feeding her some raw diet along with her kibble. After we get moved that will be easier, I’ll have better access to real produce at reasonable prices. FOUR MONTHS TIL WE MOVE!!! Unfortunately that means only 3 months til I have to start getting ready. Feb 1st will start that process, and I get to do it alone for the first couple weeks. Why? because hubby has to go to school to learn to be a team leader. Yeah, he couldn’t have possibly learned that in 15 months in Iraq. *rolls eyes*. He leaves 2 days after my birthday for a month.

I need to call the clinic and get my thumb looked at. It’s been hurting for weeks now, like it needs to crack, but if it does it’s blindingly painful. it’s the whole heel of my hand on the thumb side. My left hand of course. For those that didn’t know I’m a lefty. Ok, I’m going to do that, and then go get dogs food. Fun Fun.

You Can't Say That!

OIF Deployment 2005 to 2006 No Responses »

Oct 312006

View will be shared in this post. You’ve been warned. Disagree if you must, but I’m not arguing any points. These are my beliefs and your arguments will not change them.

Why on earth is it so awful to NOT be angry about the extension? Why isn’t it ok to just deal with it. To carry on and wait? There is an overwhelming attitude that if you don’t loudly disagree with this extension, you are less of a wife, you’re blind, you’re blindly following the government. That’s bull. All the websites that popped up, what purpose did they serve? Have they gotten our brigade home any sooner? No. They have not. They’ve given the wives a place to vent, a place to ir their grievances. And that’s great. Everyone needs that. That’s why I have a blog. Or four. And every time an article is published at strykernews.com, the “against” readers attack anyone with a different view, and accuse them of insulting the troops, or of not being supportive. What is wrong with that picture? I admit this sounds paranoid, but I believe in it, and I’m not going to budge. The enemy reads these sites. Strykernews I’m sure is read by them. They see families, and soldiers alike voicing their unhappiness. Which they have an absolute right to do. But it gives them propaganda to use against us. Anyone remember Tokyo Rose? The Japanese/US citizen who along with a group of other women broadcasted stories of defeats, of cheating wives, etc over the airwaves after luring their American GI listeners onto the station with American music? Of course they already know we have unhappy troops. That’s a given. But seeing it over and over gives them more hope, to them it makes us look weak. Which of course we are not. We have the best forces in the world.

As far as Iraq goes, I’m still in support of it. The extension didn’t change that. And I’m tired of hearing “we didn’t find any wmd”. Well of course not! We spent months wading through UN bullshit before we could even get anyone in there after the inspectors were again kicked out (which by the way violated the treaty made after the first gulf war). Now, if you had something to hide, and knew you were going to be invaded and searched…what would you do? Destroy it. Ship it away and destroy any evidence of it. Sell it. So many options there. The other thing I’m tired of is “If we had deposed Saddam the first time…” yeah we’d be in the same situation, because the country has no leadership! And don’t tell me they have a PM. I know that, but he isn’t much of a leader right now. And of course there’s the “We need to pull out now” theory. What is going to happen if we do that? With an unstable middle east, the whole region is then vulnerable to take over by these insurgents/terrorists, our guys get sent back over, and into a situation 10 times worse than it is now. Or they get stronger and formulate another attack on us.

But you can’t say those things these days. All the media wants to print is anti Iraq, all they want to interview are wives and service members with grievances. When is it going to get better? When are opposing, positive opinions going to be anything but scoffed at? What is wrong with us? Shame on us for not complaining, shame on me for driving on. No. Shame on anyone that believes that.

Draft Of My Letter

OIF Deployment 2005 to 2006 No Responses »

Oct 312006

To Whom It May Concern:

I am also a wife of a 172nd soldier. And I am appalled at Tamara’s comment

When the 4-23′s Baghdad deployment was first announced, Tamara says the families split into two camps. “There were those wives who sat there and smiled like the women in ‘Apollo 13,’ who just smiled when they were thinking ‘Oh my God,’ kind of like Stepford wives, and then there were those of us who said, ‘This just isn’t right,’” recalls Bell.

I was one of those wives. I and many others made a decision, along with our soldiers to accept a situation beyond our control. One we could not change. Not one of us didn’t feel shock, disappointment, anger. But nothing was going to change the fact that these soldiers were extended, that we had a longer road ahead of us than we thought.

Where are the four page interviews about the wives that stand in quiet support of their soldiers? Those of us that have decided to do the very best we can to stay upbeat, and positive? Where is the neutrality? Unbiased reporting? We may not be in 4-23, but we have pride in our jobs, and we are not stepford wives sitting around with big fake smiles on our faces. And that’s another thing.

Why so much focus on ONE battalion? I don’t see that as fair reporting. What about 4-14 cav? 4-11 field artillery? 2-1 infantry? 1-17 infantry? The Engineers? The 172nd BSB?Â They were extended right along side those guys. They’re all in this brigade, they’ve all missed birthdays, anniversaries, children’s births, first steps, first words, some have even missed the birth and first birthdays of the same child. But no, not a mention of them.

Not a single interview with a wife that doesn’t have bad words about our government, or our military. Positive doesn’t sell magazines right? And you publish this at a time when hopes are returning, when the anticipation is starting back up, when we’re all getting excited again. Why? We don’t need these negative things thrown in our faces right now, we don’t need the innuendo, the implied doubts.

What a shame. We as wives have a job to do, just as our husbands have a job to do. As much as we hate terms like “Hurry Up And Wait” and “Suck It Up And Drive On”, that is exactly what we have had to do, and have done. And we’ve done it without complaints to the press, we’ve done it without the spotlight, just as we will continue to do, and as our husbands EXPECT us to do.