Settling in ... Georgia on my Mind

As I expressed in my last post, we have made it to Georgia and are settling in. We were able to find a beautiful single story, three bedroom house in this cute little "cookie-cutter", Mayberry-type neighborhood.

{Our new house}


{My new big kitchen}


{Our new master bathroom}

We have had our share of headaches trying to consolidate our home with the furniture and stuff from George's dad's house which had been in storage until Easter weekend. There has been A LOT of purging. I am amazed at how easy it is to get rid of stuff when I am extremely exhausted. I wanted to just off load everything in the backyard and have a bonfire at one point, but I don't think the neighborhood association would like that.

We continue to live in a world with towering cardboard boxes, but I am slowly getting everything in place. (Only 137 left to unpack!) George has ensured that the important things were done the day after we got here ... so the cable and internet have been installed and the motorcycle is nestled in the garage with easy access. (Sigh) My list seems to be MUCH longer. I am not complaining because it is much better than the week we lived in the Red Roof Inn.


{George and Sgt. Major in standoff at the hotel of whether pup would get a treat and a walk ... Sgt. Major won!}

George and I both managed to get a respitory infection the week the movers came to Fort Polk and it lingers until today. We eventually went to the ER after 10 days (here at Fort Gordon) and after 6 hours of waiting they told us it was not high on the list and he was given an appointment for the clinic the next day (GRRR!).

There are some noticeable differences here than at our previous duty station ... like there are A LOT more dining choices and shopping and my personal favorite is there are 3 libraries and 4 bookstores (that I've found!)

All in all, things are slowing becoming normal. I have learning my way around faster than expected. I am almost finished with the last of my school work so I can turn it in and finally finish my masters. George is working on getting back into his "Iraq" shape and finishing putting together the motorcycle.

On another note, now that we are in Ga., Sgt. Major has become a local celebrity since the UGA-craze has consumed this state. He is loving it. Our master suit is (not surpisingly) larger than military housing and he has managed to spread out his toys between there and the livingroom.

Until our next cup of tea ...

Misadventures of the Life of a Military Wife ... Finding the Gym

Well we are finally here at our new assignment in Georgia. Boy, has the past two weeks been a rollercoasters. There are so many stories I want to share it will take a while to get them all organized and will be out of order, but today I want to post about the gym. That's right ... the gym (this is for you, Army Blogger Wife).

Last week George and I both had been battling a respitory infection. Yes, on top of all the moving drama and activies, we were battling couchs, fevers and general icky-ness. So we made a decision that this week we would get back in the gym and start working out ... twice a day until he had to start his new school.

So yesterday, we got up early, ate breakfast, unpacked some boxes, then got ready to work out. We live about 7 minutes off post, which is enjoyable for us, but more on that later.

So we head to the gym. After searching through the post mp we found the closest one to the entrance from where we live. About 2 or 3 miles from the gate. It was small and not what we were used to from Fort Polk, which was a training center and had a large central gym with smaller unit facilities.

When we arrived we were turned away because you have to bring your own towel. Unlike Fort Polk who provides towels, these are Soldier run facilities and I'm guessing now that they don't offer any aerobic or other specialty classes.

So we headed home and decided to return in the afternoon. We soon learned that they do vehicle inspections and when they pulled us aside George told them we had a unloaded weapon in the Tahoe. We'd thought about going to check out the range. We were turned away and told that you have to call and get permission ahead of time from the Provost Marshall to bring weapons on post. So to break it down, you have to go on post to the Provost Marshall (Police Station) get written permission, return home get your weapon and then return to the range ... EVERY TIME. We also learned the range is open only two days a week (versus the five at Fort Polk.) So we returned home and gave up for the day.

We returned this morning where we learned the hard way that they close each gym for 2 hours during the day for cleaning. However, they all close at different times and they cannot tell you about the hours of another gym. The gym we went to was closed so we had to drive around looking for another gym.

At this point I was frustrated and told George "I just want to run on a freaking treadmill!" At which point he laughs and said he never thought he'd hear those words come out of my mouth.

We finally got into another gym where we learned we wern't in the system yet and had to be registered. No problem, but they told me that I had to log in each time under George's SS number. Not hard, but then there is a head count but no way to identify how many Soldiers versus Family members are using which facilities, whch in my mind would be a great way to determine class times and such ... but then again they don't offer that kind of stuff.

So we drop our bags off in the lockers and set out to find the cardio area. We found it small, cramped, and VERY hot. It was litterally a 10-foot wide corridor with a row of treadmills and a row of ellipticals. You could barely walk between them and they were facing a wall of mirrors.

Now maybe it's just me, but there is nothing motivating about staring at yourself while you work out, except maybe if you are a weight lifter monitoring your technique. On top of it, they had two TVs on the BACK wall. So you had to watch TV through the mirrors, which of course had not volume and there was no way to read the captioning. Obviously, it was not designed by anyone of the TLC or HGTV decorators!

We braved all of this and got on the treadmills where we started running while staring at ourselves. I had just gotten into a rhythm, passing the point of pain and discomfort from not working out for a few weeks, when there was a power surge and the treadmills and all other equipment shut down. I can attest that if you are not expecting a sudden stop when running at near-full speed very it will result in a painful jolt. I nearly fell off the treadmill!

Disgruntled and irritated we started our run over and then just left, hoping that when we go back this evening it will be better.

I soon discovered the lockerroom was the coolest place in the facility. I hurriedly slipped into a bathroom stall to change and discovered yet another design flaw. The door of the stall barely cleared the toilet, so you were forced to squeeze between the toilet and wall to open or close the door {sigh}. That also gives you an idea of how much room there was to change. I guess I'd better get used to the idea of changing in front of poepl again, but that brings back the horrors of middle and high school gym class ... I don't know which is the less of two evils!

On a funny note, as I was brushing my hair and fixing my makeup I noticed a sign on the mirror that read, "No dyeing hair in bathroom sinks ..." All I could think was, "Is that really a problem here? Is this lockerroon the hub of the salon elite on this post!?!" The things you learn ...

We returned again this afternoon, about 4 p.m. (EST) and found it full of clearly overweight Soldiers. We each grabbed a stationary bike and spent about 20 minutes on them before heading off to to the commissary to get groceries. George said that he thought that the reason it was so hot was because it helped those who aren't meeting the height/weight standard "sweat it out." Also the fans we being pointed directly on individuals instead of pointing into a circulating pattern.

Tomorrow is another day, hopefully it will be better.

Until our next visit ...

So Says the Sarge: Packing It Up

Hey! It's me, Sgt. Major. Mom and Dad are quite busy right now with the movin and all, so I thought I'd give this whole blogging thing a try. Mom gets awefully excited about it, but Dad isn't into it very much.

Well the house has been a flurry of activity this week, and no one is paying much attention to me. A few of the ladies packing said I was cute and one of the movers stopped to pet my head, but for the most part, I've been watching everything and getting quite anxious.

On Monday, Mom and Dad picked my up from the kennel where I'd spent the weekend. I was not happy and they were concerned that I was sad and slow. For some reasn that they can't figure out and I haven't been able to tell them, I cannot jump anymore. I can't et on the bed, sofa or in the truck without their help.

On Tuesday, Mommy unpacked boxes that she and Daddy brought from Grandpa's house in Houston. Daddy came home sick and was in bed with me all day on Monday and Tuesday. She also did A LOT of laundry and packed the bags to take with us. Just watching her made me tired.

On Wednesday, the packers came. There were so many of them. They said if I was good I wouldn't have to go in the kennel, so I perched on the couch all day with Daddy and watch the craziness. Mommy was back and forth trying not to get in the way. It was kind of funny.

Thursday brought the movers and I was confined to the livingroom. At least I had some room to move around and Mommy and Daddy hung out in there in between checking on the loading of the furniture. The house looked really empty when they left. That night we slept on an air matress in the bedroom. I was happy because I could climb on and off all night! Daddy was still sick and went to bed after finishing the packing. We crashed at about 11 p.m. Mommy stayed up until 1 a.m. cleaning. She finished on Friday and then we packed the trucks and left at lunchtime. By then I was very excited about riding in the car and was running around crazy.

Yesterday we srove for about 7 1/2 hours before stopping in Tuscaloosa, GA. to sleep. Then this morning we were on the road again. I slept most of the time, see ...



Time to go, I think I hear Mommy putting food in my bowl ...

My life fits in a carboard box ...

Actually it took a little over 100 boxes, but my life is currently boxed up! The packers came today and packed up everything. It took only 7.5 hours to pack the house ... and that includes braks. These girls were efficient. It was like a whirlwind. They came in each took a room and got to packing. I could only stand there feeling completely in the way and useless.

We started with 3 packers, but after an intial walk-through when they arrived, they soon discovered that it would take a lot more help. Our guest room, garage and kitchen were packed floor to (near) ceiling with boxes and furniture from when we cleared out the storage unit from Houston. It was a 10x20 filled with stuff we kept when we cleared out George's dad's house.

By the end of the day we had 9 or 10 packers here, but they got it all done!

It'll be a long process of unpacking and organizing everything in the new house, but at least I can sort through and get rid of stuff as I unpack one box at a time. I'm hoping that will be a less daunting tasks than trying to tackle it all at once.

True blogger, that I am, I took pictures of the current state of my house ... Enjoy! I'm off to find dinner (though we've got no pots, pans, dishes or FOOD. I guess that means we are eating out tonight ... and tomorrow and probably all of next week, UGH!)









This is everything we are taking with us. That's right, for the next two to three weeks, everything I have will fit in two vehicles. I hope I didn't forget anything important!



Ah, the life of a nomadic miltiary family. The ever organized person that I am, I've taken all sort of notes, for the future! I'll try to post my "wisdom" after the dust settles (and boy is there a lot of dust!)

Until our next cup of tea ...

Reading Challenge Week 1 Update

Greetings all! I just wanted to update my weekly reading for the Spring Reading Challenge 2009 hosted by Susan @ A Southern Daydreamer Reads.

As some of you may know, on Wednesday I took the exit exam for my LSU masters in Military History. There was so much reading that I had to do - 11 books in 8 days - to be ready. I got most of it done and here is what I thought of the books.

1. The American Way of War: A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy (by Russell Weigley): This was a very information book, if you're into into the stratgy of war. It covered American wars from the American Revolution to the Vietnam War. It was a LARGE book, and took me a while to read, but was not as dry as some history books are.

2. The Warrior Image: Soldiers in American Culture from the Second World War to Vietnam (by Andrew Huebner): A very good book. Maybe I liked this one because I work in public relations or maybe because a a military spouse I am intrigued by the way the public sees servicemembers, but either way it went into great detail about how American troops were viewed by the public from World War II through the Vietnam War. It was intriqing insight to learn about how the media nad art world portrayed troops both during and long after each war. I'd recommend it to those interesting in PR and the military. I'm definitely keeping this book!

3. Passage through Armageddon: The Russians in War and Revolution (by Bruce Lincoln): I was at the end of my time on this one and am currently re-reading it to get notes for another class. I will post a review when I've finished.

4. A Stillness Heard Around the World: The End of the Great War (by Stanley Weintraub): By the time I'd gotten to this book I was thoroughly tired of reading about the WWI to Vietnam period, so I probably won't give the book a fair review. It was informative though a bit dry. Not as interesting as some of the others.

5. Hitler's Army: Soldiers, Nazis, and War in the Third Reich (by Omer Bartov): I'd read this book before for the WWII class so it was only a brief review. It was informative, and not too dry.

6. War Without Mercy: Race & Power in the Pacific War (by John W. Dower): I was at the end of my time on this one and am currently re-reading it to get notes for another class. I will post a review when I've finished.

7. Why the Allies Won (by Richard Overy): I wasn't really impressed with this one. SOme of the others were more captivating. This one I think is the "classic" boring school assignment.

8. After Tet (by Ronald H. Spector):I'd read this book before for another class as well. It was informative, and not too dry. I just skimmed though an got a brief overview.

9. The Limits of Air Power: The American Bombing of North Vietnam (by Mark Clodfelter): A good book. Quite informative as far as the beginning and growth of America's air power and Air Force. I breezed right through it in a few hours.

10. On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society (by Dave Grossman): I was at the end of my time on this one and am currently re-reading it to get notes for another class. I will post a review when I've finished. Though I am intriqued by all the "internal workings" of a Soldier's mind!

11. Wartime: Understanding and Behavior in the Second World War (by Paul Fussell): This book kind of sragged a bit but had parts that held my interest. Basically each chapter started with a theme or story and then they had multiple stories that support the theory. Not bad, the stories were interesting though they went on for a bit.

In the meantime, I have also created a list of books to read "for fun." There are more books for school, but I've decided not to add them. Here is the list:

1. Death by Darjeeling (by Laura Childs): This is the first of the Tea Shop Mysteries Series. I am quite excited to start!
2. The Queen's Fool (by Philippa Gregory): My favorite author at this time
3. Jane Eyre (by Charlotte Bronte) I've got this thing about reading classics and I recently found the following complete novels all in one collection, so I HAD to get it!
4. Wuthering Heights (by Emily Bronte)
5. Shirley (by Charlotte Bronte)
6. Villette (by Charlotte Bronte)
7. The Professor (by Charlotte Bronte)

That's all for now. If you are interested in joining the challenge visit Susan @ A Southern Daydreamer Reads to learn more and to sign up! Off to read some more ...

Until our next cup of tea ...

Breathing a sigh of relief ...

I did it! 11 books in 8 days, a nerve-wracking 3 hours drive followed by a 2-hour written exam and a 1-hour oral exam. What did I get out of it ... a visor, T-shirt, pink LSU licence plate cover and ... oh, yeah, my MASTER'S DEGREE!!!

It's still hard to believe, hence the two days to post the news! Whew, is my poor brain tired. I still have to turn in the lat of my classwork, a few papers, but by the end of the month, but the hard part is over! I'm off to celebrate (again!) with a sugar-free fudge bar! (gotta fit in my new T-shirt!)

Until our next cup of tea ...