Sunday, July 30, 2006

life of the party-

who knows where that phase was developed...i'm serious...cause I can speak from experience, that after the party there is certainly no life left.

there's always a calm before the storm. we are just under a month out from our deployment to Iraq, and things are calm and quiet here in VA. I sometimes find myself beginning to get a little nervous. I know what is ahead for me in the next year, and I know that it is going to be difficult to cope with. I know that I will be alright.


andy

Saturday, July 29, 2006

A bad day golfing...

sometimes i find that a bad day golfing beats a good day working, oh who am i kidding i would take a bad day golfing anyday. but somebody has to work to keep social security alive. so i am doing my part. plans for Iraq continue to hit peak. we are just about to get released for a block leave period at which point we will be on lockdown until our departure.

Leah and Brian are thouroughly excited for the arrival of Noah-which could be any time now. (but I dont think that they are nearly as excited as I am!!!)

Patricia the workaholic(just like her father :) ) is on a reduced work schedule and is very much pregnant, but no jello and onion cravings yet-but im still holding out....


Mom and Dad-I love you and cannot wait to see you-
Andrew

Monday, July 24, 2006

Do you ever have one of those days....

Well-there's good news and bad news, and based on the typical American response to the question, "which do you want first," I am going to give you the good news first-

I just saved a ton of money by switching to Geico!!!!

now for the bad news...

I am one of the soldiers who has been selected to join the 148th Quartermaster Company in their deployment downrange. The company was short about sixty soldiers to meet the requirements of their mission in Iraq, and were able to fill the ranks with soldiers from the 240th Quartermaster Battalion as well as elements of the 530th Combat Service Support Battalion that is in the process of building up here on Ft Lee.
so later this summer I will be headed to Iraq for my second tour there, and my third deployment of my career. We will be headed in the the Kurdish controlled northern part of the country. It will be a year long deployment, and at the conclusion of the tour I will be able to ride my time in the army without another deployment to Iraq (no guarantee on any other countries, but we have our fingers crossed ;) and hope for the best).
We are unsure of the exact mission that we will be responsible for, but, considering that Haliburton does my job of bulk petroleum distribution, we will most likely handle a convoy security mission or Forward Operation Base security. I am trained and prepared to learn from the soldiers that we replace, because they are the subject matter expert on the Battle for Iraq (one of the many battles in the war on terror. Just thought I would keep that in conversation...).

On a lighter note, I took an IQ test recently and scored a 133---so if anyone is headed to Who Wants to be a Millionaire, I will make myself available for your call a friend lifeline...


all for now,
much packing to do-

Andrew

Sunday, July 23, 2006

Saturday, July 15, 2006

raise your hand if you're Sure!!

Hello to all-
Long time no update. Here is all of the news from my end…things in the army continue to slowly push me towards insanity…but I continue to force myself to do the right thing. It is kind of like when I was a kid, and mom would make brussel sprouts, I would force myself to eat-wait, I just hid them under the cushions until dinner was over, now I remember. At any rate, things are going well. I received significant recognition from my battalion commander for my work, and engineering skills during the field exercise last month. I continue wait for the glorious day when this is all over.

Things are well on the home front. Leah and Patricia are getting their homes prepared for the arrival of their sons, Noah and Kyle. All is very exciting on the home front as we prepare for a Christmas holiday together for the first time in a long while.

Things on the work front are uneasy. The units deploying to Iraq are in training and their mission continues to be uncertain, and there is still a 50-70 percent chance that I could get snatched up into one of the units that deploys later this year. I am praying that I do not get sent, but I will do my duty if I am called.

All for now.
Ill keep you posted with more news later.

Andrew