Back on the Chain Gang

Well, things have settled into my post R&R routine, with an inevitability that was almost scary. Last night was pretty bad, after driving up to hand the parents over to my brother Tim so he can have some time with them before they return to New England.

Driving home wasn't so bad, I was eager to return. Once I got in the house, however, I didn't know what to do with myself. It was so quiet. I ended up watching the second half of "The Sound of Music" and eating popcorn for dinner. I felt full of unshed tears just sloshing around inside me, threatening to overspill the brim at every movement. I managed not to spill yet, but I will soon.

Keith has strangely and miraculously been able to call me on his American cell phone throughout almost the entire journey, so I had been getting calls from him every few hours or so. The last I heard from him he was going to sit up and look at pictures on his laptop while waiting the three hours for his flight further into the desert.

"Maybe I got you the international calling plan by accident" I suggested, when we talked about the impossible calls.

"I don't think so," he said. "Calls won't go through to anyone else, and no one else with me can reach anyone. I can only reach you."

The miracle must have ended some time last night, because I haven't heard from him. I'll have to wait for a call from "Keith?" which is what I labeled his Iraqi cell phone number, back when I wasn't quite sure.

So now I am back to waiting for a question mark to call, eating oatmeal for breakfast and obsessively carrying the phone around with me. My job has changed, however; due to my back injury I can no longer work as a Care Manager without being in extreme pain and causing further damage to it, so I am going in today to start training as the receptionist.

I've done that once before and really enjoyed it, mostly because I got to wear high heels to work. I'm also looking forward to working nine to five. I have to go upstairs and change soon, but before I do, I wanted to include pictures of another thing that has not returned to deployment mode-our bedroom!

I enlisted my creative genius of a father to make a floral arrangement for our bedroom to match the bedding Keith and I picked out this Christmas, and I ended up letting all the delicious fabrics and sheers and colors go to my head and picked out a new rug, drapes, throw pillows and blanket while out shopping, bringing the total expense to something that makes my head swim, but oh well. It was so well worth it. And anyway, Keith bought a truck. Fair's fair.