full speed into {the wall}

expecting is the greatest impediment to living. in anticipation of tomorrow, it loses today.

lucius.annaeus.seneca

i've been off the net on our blog lately.

because without jeopardizing opsec,

i can say this:

we are in the home stretch.

but strangely enough,

knowing how close we are to the end

has made me even less patient with this deployment.

is that strange?

you'd think that the brighter the light gets

as you near the end of the tunnel,

the easier it is to endure.

but somehow, it's more difficult because it's almost over.

it's so close, you can almost feel it.

....and yet, not quite.

i've heard it referred to as "the wall".

that point in the deployment where you just feel like:

i'm over this.

does this sound familiar?

what do you do when you hit the wall?

of horses and horizons

if you're reading this:

thanks for hanging with me.

i'm discovering that it's tough to be a good manager,

and a good student,

blogger,

friend,

wife,

all in the same breath.

something usually has to give.

{guess which one that was lately?}


but i'm here for now...

so time to share some photos!

are there any texas natives reading this?

and if so, can i come live with you?

holy horses.

your state is [ gorgeous.]

i haven't been outside the city in so long,

and it didn't really hit me until i looked up from the range,

the horizon stark black from the lack of city lights,

amidst a star-dotted sky.

this was actually taken at night,

in a cloudy atmosphere

under the harvest moon.

and i made a little friend:

this guy lived outside my hotel.

{seriously....in the front yard of my hotel.}

and i might've bribed him with some carrots.

just a few.

all in all,

it was just another week at the office.

a {nod} to temptation

i got this lovely catalog in the mail today

from the land of nod.

have you heard of it?

i've been getting them for the last few months -

an endless array of adorable decor,

clothes, and gifts

for children.

and although we have none yet,

by virtue of our friends and siblings, we now know plenty of kids.

and these catalogs are great for generating gift ideas.

but for me, they're also pretty good

at generating a little anxiety.

because i'm already challenged to limit my purchases of stuff for myself.

throwing away a restoration hardware catalog

or a j. crew spread

is like an addict washing their stash down the drain.

so hard.

but soooo necessary to the survival of our bank account.

and frankly, of our spirits.

because do we really need all that stuff, anyway?

still, with all this temptation,

what's it going to be like

when i have a super adorable little person to adorn?

i mean, really.

could you resist?

so wish us {luck}!

or better yet,

wish me will power.

almost like being {home}

i ended up working part of last week

in the same north cackalackey town

where the husband is stationed.

of course,

the town is still devoid of husband,

but i got as close to him as i could:

i borrowed his bed.

see, before he deployed,

husband moved most of his belongings into storage

and kept just the essentials

at his sister's home in the area.

and she graciously let me stay over last night.

and is it weird that i was excited

 to see his {stuff}?

pretty sure that under any other circumstances,

this would be called

"stalking."

luckily, since we're married,

it's just called:

i miss you, babe.

local {flavor}

ever notice how each military town has its quirks?

the things that make it uniquely what it is...

and when your friends announce their next duty station,

you can name all of its distinguishing traits.

por ejemplo...

if you ever visit jacksonville, nc....

proud home of a Marine base,

and a quiet small town,

you’ll probably notice an abundance

of three kinds of places:

i. auto shops

ii. furniture stores

iii. strip joints

soooooo.

given how prevalent these places are

surely, a person could be forgiven

for thinking that an establishment called “Driftwood”

falls into category two.

and that person would be wrong.

because it belongs

to category three.

(or, as my teammate explained it,

sure, that place sells furniture!

like tall metal poles. and "pillows".)

[oohhhhhhh.]

luckily, i got educated before i went in to look for a new ottoman.

close call.