Catching us up to date
(begin written entry)
I'm still in shock, honestly: who'd have guessed that the ADVON (advance party) would get to their unprepared site and say "Oh, bother, we'll just have to stay in this resort over here?" I know it wasn't the original plan, but the task force ALSO wasn't planning on the "mañana" attitude that often happens down this way. The result is very happy though - we get to live in (comparative) luxury at the task force's expense for a while, and the local economy gets a minor boost as we, in typical American fashion, throw $$$ at the problem in an effort to solve it.
Tents, cots, and fans ARE in my non-air-conditioned future, but not for a week or two at the least. Meanwhile: relaxation....
(end written entry)
A couple of nights ago, I stayed up waaaaaay too late, just watching futbol highlights, playing mahjong, and surfing the web on my partner's laptop. After finally racking out around 0430, I slept in until almost 1pm, went to lunch, hung out watching the touristas, shot the breeze with a comerade or two, then went back to the room to pack up the obligatory souvenir shot glass I got from the local vendor.
Back at the room: more futbol (ahora en vivo) while buddy played some online poker and chatted with his new bride. "Hey there" says the Army, "Congrats on your nuptials last month! To help you celebrate, next month we're sending your hubby downrange to a tropical paradise! What's that? WITH you? A-haha, don't be silly, my dear, we can't be having with improving the family lives of our troops, now can we...?" I know he'll be fine with it since we've both done this type of mission before, and it is only for a few months. Still it's a new thing for her, and not too fun the 1st time around. They'll be fine, though, I think - they seem like the steady type.
Later on, the weather decided we needed some rain on our parade, and threw a 6hr. power outage on top just for drill. As the daylight faded, I finished jotting some notes down by flashlight to the sweet sounds of Boston as pack-mate peacefully snored away the time before supper. I took my headphones outside and watched as the lightning and the fireflies had a friendly game of "Who's Flashier," and though I think the 'Bolts won out in the end, it was a close one, much closer than the simple on-paper comparison would indicate.
As an aside, I've long thought that the music of Boston is just a smidge on the adolescent side - not too syrupy or emo or juvenile, really, but full of that purity of emotion and feeling that can only come from the naivete of youth. We often hear the repeated line of Bob Seger's - wish I didn't know now / what I didn't know then - but these guys and their guitars re-capture the earnestness of the young man first experiencing the power of his adult emotions.
Whatever music does that for you, Dear Reader, whatever conjures that feeling of joy and laughter and nervous against-all-odds hope, imagine standing on the balcony listening to that music, with your face turned up into the gently falling mist, while a warm jasmine- and vanilla-scented breeze wraps itself around you as the night glitters and flashes. That's where I was last Wednesday evening. I hope that someday, you'll be there too.
I'm still in shock, honestly: who'd have guessed that the ADVON (advance party) would get to their unprepared site and say "Oh, bother, we'll just have to stay in this resort over here?" I know it wasn't the original plan, but the task force ALSO wasn't planning on the "mañana" attitude that often happens down this way. The result is very happy though - we get to live in (comparative) luxury at the task force's expense for a while, and the local economy gets a minor boost as we, in typical American fashion, throw $$$ at the problem in an effort to solve it.
Tents, cots, and fans ARE in my non-air-conditioned future, but not for a week or two at the least. Meanwhile: relaxation....
(end written entry)
A couple of nights ago, I stayed up waaaaaay too late, just watching futbol highlights, playing mahjong, and surfing the web on my partner's laptop. After finally racking out around 0430, I slept in until almost 1pm, went to lunch, hung out watching the touristas, shot the breeze with a comerade or two, then went back to the room to pack up the obligatory souvenir shot glass I got from the local vendor.
Back at the room: more futbol (ahora en vivo) while buddy played some online poker and chatted with his new bride. "Hey there" says the Army, "Congrats on your nuptials last month! To help you celebrate, next month we're sending your hubby downrange to a tropical paradise! What's that? WITH you? A-haha, don't be silly, my dear, we can't be having with improving the family lives of our troops, now can we...?" I know he'll be fine with it since we've both done this type of mission before, and it is only for a few months. Still it's a new thing for her, and not too fun the 1st time around. They'll be fine, though, I think - they seem like the steady type.
Later on, the weather decided we needed some rain on our parade, and threw a 6hr. power outage on top just for drill. As the daylight faded, I finished jotting some notes down by flashlight to the sweet sounds of Boston as pack-mate peacefully snored away the time before supper. I took my headphones outside and watched as the lightning and the fireflies had a friendly game of "Who's Flashier," and though I think the 'Bolts won out in the end, it was a close one, much closer than the simple on-paper comparison would indicate.
As an aside, I've long thought that the music of Boston is just a smidge on the adolescent side - not too syrupy or emo or juvenile, really, but full of that purity of emotion and feeling that can only come from the naivete of youth. We often hear the repeated line of Bob Seger's - wish I didn't know now / what I didn't know then - but these guys and their guitars re-capture the earnestness of the young man first experiencing the power of his adult emotions.
Whatever music does that for you, Dear Reader, whatever conjures that feeling of joy and laughter and nervous against-all-odds hope, imagine standing on the balcony listening to that music, with your face turned up into the gently falling mist, while a warm jasmine- and vanilla-scented breeze wraps itself around you as the night glitters and flashes. That's where I was last Wednesday evening. I hope that someday, you'll be there too.