At any rate, it's great to be back and I look forward to writing more.
Cheers,
Josh
Friday, April 23, 2010
New Post
Well, I am back finally from deployment. I am trying out a couple of new services that Blogger is offering. (New for me that is.) For example I am writing this from my email, and there is a new mobile phone post function... Though with the new smart phones, why not just email your post in and get over the 160 character limitation of the SMS.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
New Post---- Unbelievable Enough As It Is
Well, I am about four weeks from the end of my deployment to Afghanistan. Of course much has happened since the last post to this Blog.
So this last year in review;
2009 started with a great night featuring much good company and cheer with the Nakajima's. The friendship that we developed with them will remain even as time passes.
Work continued, and as I continued to learn how to manage major capital improvement projects I was struck how much I still don't know. But boy was it ever interesting to learn how to make things happen.
So in January I received orders to transfer to Gulfport, MS. To the 22nd Naval Construction Regiment. So the intent was to get close to Kristin's family and best friends from college. And it was the job that I wanted. I should have been suspicious because everything was lining up perfectly.
Sometime in February I got a call from the Detail er. It's never a good thing when the Detail er calls you... LOL
So there was an issue with PCS money, and the bottom line was that I lost my orders and would be going to the 30th NCR instead. The 30th is located in Port Hueneme, CA, which is the same base that we lived on when I was in NMCB Five.
Kristin was disappointment, but at least we were going to a location we were familiar with and we even had several friends still in Port Hueneme.
So in May, amid a whirl-wind of working at closing out my projects, building a turnover binder, and training my replacement, we started the massive sojourn of moving from overseas back to the States. We decided that we would not go directly to Port Hueneme. I had not taken a single vacation in the three years that we were stationed in Japan. I deserved some time off.
Off to Seattle we went. We spent a wonderful three days with the Bowsers in St. Mary, WA up by Everett. It was great to see the kids and watch Ronan reconnect with Sarah Bowser who was born four days before he was. We also had dinner with Sam Wirsching and his family before flying out to Gulfport, MS to visit with Heather, Kieth and company.
Gulfpot was a great visit. We were all able to visit with friends and family. I was able to see Tim James, one of my coworkers and best friends from Japan, Kristin was able to see al of the girls and even a new addition. We picnic ed out on the beach, swam in a pool everyday, and had a very relaxing time before renting a car and driving up to Shreveport for a week.
Shreveport was everything that I recalled. Hot, muggy, and .... wel that's about it. We stayed with Kristin's mother, Connie, and had a chance to visit Rourke and Mel, and their kids Erin and Haylee. (I remember them when they were babies.) During the time, we drive up to Bentonville, AR to visit with Tim, Vicki and their two kids. We spent a day out on the lake, hung out around the pool, and generally relaxed.
The next stop on our tour of the country was a visit up to my family. We flew into Spokane, and after picking up our rental car drove to Michael's house which is 15 minutes from the airport. During that visit we had the opportunity to hang out with Rebecca and her new boyfriend Jeff (As well as his two boys), Mom, Dad, Randy and Erin. Of course we spent plenty of time with Michael as well.
After spending a week up there, it was time to start our final let down to California. We had much to do before I had to report into my new job at the 30th.
So we flew from Spokane, to Seattle, then on to LAX, from there we flew to Oxnard. (That will be the last time that I ever fly into Oxnard again.)
We picked up the rental car, and immediately went to go pick up the car that we had ordered while we were back in Japan. we had bought a 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI. So it was back into a diesel with us. Full nav system and multimedia package.
It was ready and off we went to the hotel.
We ended up staying in the old BEQ on Point Mugu NAF until we could get into base housing at Port Hueneme. It was interesting staying in there with two little boys and two adults. But we got through it and moved into our new/old house, which is two driveway entrances down from the house we previously lived in.
I reported for work, and after four weeks, we deployed to Afghanistan.
And that, I will save for another post.
~Josh
So this last year in review;
2009 started with a great night featuring much good company and cheer with the Nakajima's. The friendship that we developed with them will remain even as time passes.
Work continued, and as I continued to learn how to manage major capital improvement projects I was struck how much I still don't know. But boy was it ever interesting to learn how to make things happen.
So in January I received orders to transfer to Gulfport, MS. To the 22nd Naval Construction Regiment. So the intent was to get close to Kristin's family and best friends from college. And it was the job that I wanted. I should have been suspicious because everything was lining up perfectly.
Sometime in February I got a call from the Detail er. It's never a good thing when the Detail er calls you... LOL
So there was an issue with PCS money, and the bottom line was that I lost my orders and would be going to the 30th NCR instead. The 30th is located in Port Hueneme, CA, which is the same base that we lived on when I was in NMCB Five.
Kristin was disappointment, but at least we were going to a location we were familiar with and we even had several friends still in Port Hueneme.
So in May, amid a whirl-wind of working at closing out my projects, building a turnover binder, and training my replacement, we started the massive sojourn of moving from overseas back to the States. We decided that we would not go directly to Port Hueneme. I had not taken a single vacation in the three years that we were stationed in Japan. I deserved some time off.
Off to Seattle we went. We spent a wonderful three days with the Bowsers in St. Mary, WA up by Everett. It was great to see the kids and watch Ronan reconnect with Sarah Bowser who was born four days before he was. We also had dinner with Sam Wirsching and his family before flying out to Gulfport, MS to visit with Heather, Kieth and company.
Gulfpot was a great visit. We were all able to visit with friends and family. I was able to see Tim James, one of my coworkers and best friends from Japan, Kristin was able to see al of the girls and even a new addition. We picnic ed out on the beach, swam in a pool everyday, and had a very relaxing time before renting a car and driving up to Shreveport for a week.
Shreveport was everything that I recalled. Hot, muggy, and .... wel that's about it. We stayed with Kristin's mother, Connie, and had a chance to visit Rourke and Mel, and their kids Erin and Haylee. (I remember them when they were babies.) During the time, we drive up to Bentonville, AR to visit with Tim, Vicki and their two kids. We spent a day out on the lake, hung out around the pool, and generally relaxed.
The next stop on our tour of the country was a visit up to my family. We flew into Spokane, and after picking up our rental car drove to Michael's house which is 15 minutes from the airport. During that visit we had the opportunity to hang out with Rebecca and her new boyfriend Jeff (As well as his two boys), Mom, Dad, Randy and Erin. Of course we spent plenty of time with Michael as well.
After spending a week up there, it was time to start our final let down to California. We had much to do before I had to report into my new job at the 30th.
So we flew from Spokane, to Seattle, then on to LAX, from there we flew to Oxnard. (That will be the last time that I ever fly into Oxnard again.)
We picked up the rental car, and immediately went to go pick up the car that we had ordered while we were back in Japan. we had bought a 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI. So it was back into a diesel with us. Full nav system and multimedia package.
It was ready and off we went to the hotel.
We ended up staying in the old BEQ on Point Mugu NAF until we could get into base housing at Port Hueneme. It was interesting staying in there with two little boys and two adults. But we got through it and moved into our new/old house, which is two driveway entrances down from the house we previously lived in.
I reported for work, and after four weeks, we deployed to Afghanistan.
And that, I will save for another post.
~Josh
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