I'm home. Thank God. I spent the longest two and a half weeks of my life in Texas at Ft. Bliss for a stupid course I had to go through for Army purposes. It was called Warrior Leader Course and was essentially supposed to teach us how to be effective NCOs. I was one of five females out of a company of 127 people total. 50% of the males were active-duty infantry guys, so I had my work cut out for me; not only am I National Guard and clearly all sorts of ate up, I'm also a female, so obviously I'm totally worthless. My instructors thought it would be funny to make the the platoon sgt, so as to force those infantry guys to get used to a female being in charge... that was a blast. Or not. We butt heads for a few days, but then we all came to a happy understanding, and I actually enjoyed the people I was with.
But Ft. Bliss sucks. An ironically named place, for sure. It was hot, it was humid, I was sweaty, I got next to no sleep, and 3am is an unacceptable time to be expected to get up every morning. Also, drying out the sink everytime you use it is a retarded requirment. I also don't plan on making my bed for the next two weeks. What a rebel am I...
Right before I left for Texas, however, I moved. Again. I swear, I move more than any person I know. No more crazy landlady, no more flakey roommates, no more ridiculously ridiculous old house full of problems to deal with. I now share a nice little space (eight whole blocks from my last place) with my roommates Liz and Nick, and my cat. I love only having one floor, I love having carpet, and I love only paying $250 each month for rent. Suh-weet.....
So after the two weeks (what felt like months) spent in TX, I flew into Portland Friday night. My boy and my baby brother came and got me, we grabbed some Taco Bell, and then went home to crash. Saturday was a lazy day, which led up to my birthday concert: Jon Butler Trio and G.Love and Special Sauce. Effing amazing. Their recorded music is ok, but both Jon Butler and G.Love dominate with their stage presence. It was a blast. I loved having my little brother there, he had fun, the boy was there, beer was had, dancing was done, all in all, an excellent birthday night. Followed by a party at my new house, which was also ridiculous amounts of fun. Not a lot of people, but just the right mix and just the right amount of drunk. It was divine.
Sunday I managed to sleep in until 10am (!!!) and then demanded that everyone go to brunch since it was my actual birthday. Mimosas and bacon make me very happy in the morning. The remainder of the day was spent with baby brother doing the downtown thing, then pizza and watching The Office Season 4 at my house with a whole group of people.
Then Monday was back to work. I missed my office and my desk and my music and my shot glasses. I hate being in an active duty setting, but I love working full time National Guard. This is waaaay better than the actual Army. Also, because I got 100% on my land navigational course, our SMG promised to give me an entire bag of jerkey. Home-made. Sweet.
In other news, things with the boy are amazing. Who know that just taking time apart and doing things on our own for a few months would result in such great things. He's grown, I've grown, we're both in different places, and I couldn't be happier. He leaves today for a 12 day tour down to San Diego, then up to Idaho, a show in Portland on the 19th, and then Spokane. Sad that I've been gone for two and a half weeks then four days later he leaves for 12 days, but I'll live.
All in all, I'm hoping 24 shapes up to be a good year. So far I've enjoyed it; hope it keeps on this way.
Always.....
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