Well, for my now 6th time in a row, I’m going to the O-Fest! Oh yeah! I didn’t think we were going to be able to go, but Rob knows how much I like going that he just made hotel reservations for us. We normally stay with Jewel’s dad, but I didn’t want to impose on them this year. I’ve been so busy that I’ve hardly had a chance to get in touch with him. I know that Jewels is going to be here in mid-October and I’ll need to make another trip over there. I just don’t like to constantly ask to stay with them. They love it when we come, but I feel like our visits are straining on them.

Anyway! Woohoo! Rob’s printing up the reservation right now. It wasn’t as much as I was expecting to pay!

Today, we went to Ronneburg Castle to check out the Medieval-fest. It was pretty interesting. Crowded beyond belief and a bit exhausting. I forgot my camera and Casey pulled on the leash all day long. He would not calm down. He was being better than he had been in recent past. He still wants to chase cars, but at least he wasn’t barking at everyone to give him attention. When he met new dogs, we was very nice. There were a couple of dogs that just weren’t very friendly and he just walked away from them, with his tail between his legs. He was so sweet to the other dogs. There was even this one beautiful German Shepherd that he went up to, very gently and started to sniff him. The shepherd didn’t growl or anything and the owner got mad at him. It was pretty sad. Casey just walked away.

Just as we were about to leave, we ran into Paul and Liz from the unit. Liz really wanted to play with Casey, but he was too busy getting to know another dog to even realize that he was going to get a warm pat!

Oh well. I’m going to sign off for now. Rob and I are going to watch a movie and probably go to bed early tonight.

TTFN and thanks for reading!

This week has been very busy, and at times, trying on my patience. I can gratefully say that I’m now down to three things left on my agenda for the week! Woohoo! I finished the newsletter and I’m proud to say that it’s finally PUBLISHED! What a relief that is. That took so much of my time and energy! I hope that everyone enjoys reading it. I poured out my heart and soul into it and I honestly didn’t think I would have enough left to finish. Thank God he guided my hands to type the last two stories this afternoon because I have been struggling with them for two days now! It was EASIER than I thought it would be, but still difficult, in its own right.

Lilo and Casey are sleeping on the sofa (not together!) and Gizmo, where I would expect to find him, on the Cat-tower! Things are calmer in my house, but I still feel a great deal of stress as I prepare for the meeting this evening. I have a guest speaker coming in to talk to the families and of course, lots of business to take care of. Lord, give me the strength to get through this all!

Yes, you read that correctly! My cat has returned home. She looks mangy–covered in dirt from head to tail and she’s most definitely lost some weight. She’s so light and no more hangy belly. She’s been gone almost 13 days. I don’t know what she was living off of while she was gone, but apparently not a lot. She allowed me to pick her up and bring her inside the house. She darted straight for the food bowl and I gave her some wet food (which is kind of like killing the fatted calf…LOL). She ate the food so quickly, I doubt she tasted it. I have no idea where she could have been, I’ve gone out everyday shaking her treats and calling her name and I never found her. She came back home of her own free will and probably out of hunger and exhaustion. Yeah, my cat is home! I want to throw her a party, but I think I’ll just love on her for a while!

Thanks for reading!

It’s been a pretty relaxing day. I more or less took the day off to get some stuff done around the house. I didn’t get everything I hoped to get done, but it’s a start, anyway!

Found out that the guys passed their certification and will be home this evening! I’m so happy and proud that they finally got it together!

I’m tired today and I don’t know what to talk about. I’m gonna go for now.

Yeah, one would think with a title like that, that I might have something to report about, but alas, I don’t. Maybe I should title this “Little Doings”, but I like to be contrary sometimes…if not all the time! Haha! For some really weird reason, I like to argue…not fight. I can hear my mother’s voice ringing in my ear now…and my dad’s…and on and on and on…to include Rob’s! “Why do you like to argue with me?” he says to me at least once a day. “I’m not arguing,” I’ll say. “See, you’re arguing now!!” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had that conversation with people. More than I care to think about, for sure.

I was up until 6:30 this morning playing Sims2. They have a new expansion pack out called Bon Voyage and when I play this game, time eludes me. I had no idea it was so late until I looked up from the computer screen and realized that they had Yoga on TV. I knew it was really early then because I’ve only seen that show once, and that was when Rob went to the field the first time and he woke me up at 3:30 in the morning and I was wide awake.

I didn’t sleep too late today, though. A couple of my neighbors wanted a kitten and I found a guy who works at the Fire Station just down the street who had 4 of them to give away. I know that one neighbor was super excited because she was out the door at least a few minutes before I was. She had to go home and get her hubby because she couldn’t decide which kitten to take. The other neighbor wasn’t home. I’m checking every couple of hours to see when their car pulls in so I can take her and her kids down there to get one. They were SOOO cute. I really wanted to take one home, but I know how Rob feels about it and he believes that Lilo will come home when it becomes colder.

I’ve resigned myself to the fact that my cat is either gone or dead. Though, I have to say, things are a lot more peaceful without her and there are no fighting animals! Casey and Gizmo get along just fine, though Casey’s learning how to play with him. This morning I caught Gizmo eating the dog’s food. I wonder why he did that, because trust me, he has more than enough food in his bowl! Casey was laying on the floor playing with Winnie the Pooh and there goes Gizmo to Casey’s bowl and started to help himself. I asked him why he was eating Casey’s food when he had plenty of his own and then Casey was like, “Hey! That’s mine!” and walked over and started to eat.

When I was a teenager, I had a dog and my brother had a cat. The dog frequently got into the cat’s food, but that was more to irritate TJ more than anything. When TJ got really sick, Raggs would wait until TJ was watching him and would take a couple of bites of the food…to get TJ to eat. The vet thought that was sweet. He said that Raggs knew there was something wrong with the cat when he wouldn’t eat. Turned out, TJ had this weird digestive problem and when he ate, it made him sick, but he was getting sicker because he wouldn’t eat. It was cyclical. The day that my brother got back from Basic Training, TJ was so ill that we had to take him to the Emergency Vet and we had to put him down. I cried that night. I was with my dad. Jerry was out with his friends. 6 months later, Raggs got really sick and had to be put down. Dad was alone that day. He was taking care of my Dolli, and still is. I don’t know if Gizmo was trying to irk Casey, but the story reminds me of my other pets.

Okay, so enough rambling. I should go. Lots to do. Need to put together the FRG Newsletter! Ciao!

I know that is the oath that doctors make when they become doctors, but I can’t help but feel that way, too. It’s so sad because at league tonight, my leadership abilities are being tested to the max and it’s a tough decision that I don’t want to make. How do you tell your friends “no”? This is the reason that I didn’t want to be team captain to begin with. I didn’t want the job, but no one else did either. It was easy enough though, at first, all I had to do is sign my name on the sheet at the end of the games and make sure that everyone has paid their dues. It was just that easy until this evening.

One of my bowlers was in the field for the last two weeks. There is another bowler that is on my team because the guy who is in the field BEGGED him to join. There is my American friend who has lived in Germany for 30-some years and then there is the retiree. I’m the only woman on the team and we have mixed league, so at least one person from the opposite sex must bowl. Since there are 4 guys and myself, I pretty much have to bowl every week (no problem for me, I love bowling!)

Well, the retiree was working at the bowling alley as a pin-monkey and was only supposed to be a temporary sub, but on our team roster-basically to fill in for the soldier. Well, he comes up to me tonight and says that he wants to bowl every week now and the guy who was begged to join said, “If I don’t bowl every week, I don’t bowl at all” I don’t like ultimatums…I really, really don’t. Then there’s the other guy that’s been in Germany and he’s pretty easy going and he’ll just go with the punches.

The original team was me, the American guy, the soldier and I told the retiree to join us (which he did, basically on a contingency basis [though he was already trying to work it out with his boss so that he could have Friday’s off]) and now I have to decide what the solution is going to be.

A few of things have come to my head:
1) the extra bowler can just leave our team and join another team that needs a bowler.
2)I can make a roster and rotate the guys
3)I can say “Low man out” meaning that the one who scores the lowest in the series of 3 games will have to sit out the next week.

I really don’t know what to do, because no matter what, someone’s feelings are going to get hurt and I don’t want that, at all. I like all of my bowlers and I couldn’t care less how well or poor a person bowls. It’s about fun and this is not fun for me, right now. I don’t think they understand what they’re putting me through.

I can’t talk to the soldier because he’s in the field and I never got his phone number after his first games. I’m so torn right now that I actually feel pain in my chest and sorrow in my heart. I can’t bring myself to cry, not that it would actually help the situation, but only make me feel worse, so I guess I’m glad that I can’t cry. This is awful.

As for the bowling, I did poorly. 106, 130, 102. I had other things on my mind the first and last games. I’m really upset about this. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.

Well, I better go. It’s 1130 and I should get some rest. Thank goodness I can sleep late, that is, if Casey will allow it 😉

Well, TTFN and thanks for reading.

Well, Rob was home for a couple of days from the field and he’s gone again for another week. Hopefully, everyone does what their supposed to and they make their certification because I would hate for them to be gone longer than is necessary.

Things are starting to get underway and I’m so busy these days that I don’t know how I’ve kept up.

Today I went into work and the projects that I am working on looks like I am going to have to take my issues to a higher level and I don’t know how I feel about that. I’m a little angry about it because the email that I received this morning said, “Your concern is founded, but we have to act under the guidelines of the regulations…” and then cited examples in the reg as to WHY it can’t happen and I think that’s why I’m so mad. They say, “You’re absolutely right, but we can’t do it!” Well, my parents raised me to believe that there is no such thing as CAN’T and there is nothing I hate more than being told no, because I’ll do it anyway and my dad can corroborate that! It might be a little difficult, but I won’t be told no, especially after they say I’m right! GRRRR

So, I saw the layout of my story today and they’re even publishing a picture of mine! Woohoo!! I’m gonna get a few extra papers and send em home. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished so far…who would’ve thought… 🙂

Well, it’s bowling night and I’m on my way out the door. I’ve gotta get Casey in the bathroom and get going. I’ll update when I know more.

Thanks for reading!

Yesterday, I went out with the Army Community Services here in Hanau to take a trip downtown and learn where the buses go and learn a little bit about the trips that the ACS takes with new family members. It was really cool. I hadn’t seen the farmer’s market in Hanau until yesterday, so it was pretty darned cool. I was also able to talk to the Family Advocacy program manager about a concern I had about the community and hopefully things will change. I know change doesn’t come fast in the Army world, but at least the boulder is wobbling now. Once it’s rolling though, it’ll gain momentum! At least it’s wobbling! I am feeling pretty good about that!

Today I had PWOC and that was nice. This is a different kind of Bible class than I’ve ever had before, but it’ll be a good experience, I think. It’s been a pretty long time since I’ve done Bible study, so I don’t have a lot to base this on, other than what I remember as a kid.

Anyway, I should get going. I’ve got laundry going and I’d like to get this living room straightened up a bit before Rob gets home. Thanks for reading and have a great day.

It has been non-stop in my house all day long. First, it was the dog wanting to go outside at 6 am and then we all went back to bed. We got up around 8:30 and the phone didn’t stop ringing. Actually, it’s not ringing right now, but I fully expect it to…lol

But it turns out that my story is going to be published, it was only *slightly* changed. I’m not sweating it. I’m actually really happy they liked my story. I personally liked it a little better the way I had written it, but what are ya gonna do?

Then, it seemed like there was a crisis with the FRG every where I turned around. It’s okay now, and we were able to get everything worked out just fine and everyone is doing well and is happy (mostly).

Rob and I have been invited to go to dinner at a neighbors house this evening and I think they wanted to go bowling, but I have to say, I’m pretty damned tired. I would fall asleep right here, if I could. Casey is crashed out on the couch and Gizmo is sleeping on his perch. Lilo still hasn’t shown her face and this morning I looked out on the balcony and I saw the BOS (they do all the repair work and other miscellaneous jobs around the installations) and I thought he was getting dead animals, but no, he was putting up fencing around the CDC. I walked over to him and I almost asked him if he was picking up dead animals, but I thought better of it and just watched him for a moment until I realized what it was that he was doing. I really miss her. I want my cat back. It’s now been 5 days. I called the Vet clinic so they know what’s up and I called the company that we have her chip registered with to put the alert on her. I’ve done everything short of making fliers. I don’t know if I should or not. Here’s my theory: If someone is taking care of her, then they want a cat. I just hope that she’s being taken care of well. I would hate for her to be mistreated or if she decides that she has a new home, that she doesn’t get left behind. We’ve been very good to her and she’s always come home and she’s always been well fed. I don’t like to think of the other scenario–that she’s dead. Just typing those words makes my heart heavy and my eyes water.

Well, I don’t know what else to say other than I just need to get going for a little while. Rob’s going to be home soon and I’ve done nothing around to get this place clean, of course, I have been working all day.

TTFN