Just breathe...

I was going to write about a dumb ass soldier today over an incident that happened yesterday, but I believe it is best to not discuss it here... instead I am going to write about how I felt when I got up this morning.

My husband is deploying soon and I mean SOON. I got up this morning feeling sad, scared... at first I did not know why, but now I believe it has to do with the incident yesterday. Without going into details, I will just say that one of my husbands soldiers was completely disrespectful to my husband, and then when my husband and the Lieutenant (LT) went in to have a chat with this soldier he told my husband and the LT to fuck off and walked away from them. The soldier was mad because he was not getting his way, he was not going to be allowed to do what he wanted, and everything he tried to do to get his way leading up to that point failed miserably. Let me say I know what was going on because I played a part in finding an alternative solution for this kid.

Now I am here thinking I understand this kid was upset, but that gives him no right as a SOLDIER to disrespect an NCO and an officer! It makes me worry about how he will be downrange, will he try something stupid towards my husband when he has a weapon in his hands? My husband has said he is more scared of this deployment than any other one he has been on before... he is not the only one that feels this way because many others have told me the same. How scary is it that the majority of the guys feel like no one has their back when they go downrange? How sad is it that the wives feel the same? We ALL should have confidence in the soldiers that are deploying with our loved ones to protect eachother and be united like a family.... I do not have this confidence when I see someone throwing a temper tantrum because they are not getting their way.

It is taking all I have not to go down there myself to figuratively try to smack some sense into this kid (I say kid because he is just a few months older than my oldest). I am so pissed because of how he is acting, the things he said to my husband, and how he treated my husband and the LT. I guess I will have to settle for the counseling statement being done and my ass staying out of it. I am just so angry and scared...

I am going to take a break from blogging for a few days in order to spend quality time with my husband before he leaves. I will be back in a few days, I might be blogging drunk, but I will be blogging.

10 days in Honduras

First I want to apologize up front for the poor quality in photos. I had these pictures in a photo album for years and I scanned them today so that I could write this post.

Years ago I took a trip to Honduras. It is a sad story, but full of wonderful memories. My husband at the time was Honduran (hence part of the reason why I can speak Spanish), and I had flown down there to speak with the Consulate about getting him his residency in the States... but before I went I decided I would rather divorce him because of things I found out after he went back to Honduras and me deciding what was best for me and my children. 

Even though he knew that I did not want to be married to him anymore, he was still a gracious host. He always had a big heart. That is one thing I cannot fault him on, he was a wonderful man at heart, and a great father to the kids (when he was there). He just had a gambling problem and questionable fidelity that caused him to be gone from the house more often than he was home... not what I wanted in a husband.

When I arrived in Honduras he had my 10 days there pretty much planned out for me. First we stayed in Tegucigalpa where I landed (the scariest plane landing I have EVER experienced in my LIFE). One morning while I was outside having my morning coffee and smoke (OMG how I LOVED the coffee there) I was approached by a man selling backpacks Since he was the first person that approached me I bought a bag off of him.

This was the view of Tegucigalpa from the room.

Next we went to Choluteca where I met his little brothers. This was very sad because his mother had left to come to the States and left her children behind. There were many times that they would call crying because they had no food and asked for money. Their mother would sit on the phone with gold all over her fingers and around her neck saying she had no money to send... this bothered me because she never went hungry there in the States. How could a mother be like that with her kids? My ex told me he wanted me to see how they lived, take pictures, and show his family back in the States so that they would help more. This is what I saw...

This was the outside of their house

Their living room.

Their bedroom... mattresses thrown on the floor and a hammock hanging from the ceiling.

Their toilet, in a brick shed outside...

This is where they would wash. They would collect the rain water in barrels and wash up in their backyard. There was no indoor plumbing. No plumbing at all for that matter...

My ex told me a story when we were in the States of how the neighbors had  around 30 chickens... by the end of the month they only had two left because his brothers kept stealing the chickens so they could eat. I only saw one chicken when I got there....

I saw trash in the streets, it was a scene right out of those commercials we see for "Feed the Children" on television.

The place was so quiet, I cried after everything I saw.

Children playing outside a home.

It is no wonder I never saw his brothers smile.

There were bars on all the windows... crime is rampant. I saw armed guards everywhere in town... even in front of an auto parts store! This is a little store that sold snacks and drinks.

It is hard to be there and just ignore things like that.

And as we drove away on the bus I knew I would never forget what I saw there. I didn't want to.

After Choluteca we went to San Pedro Sula and drove up into the mountains to see Los Ruinas de Copan (Copan Ruins) in Copan, Honduras. That was the only touristy thing I did while I was there. I never saw the beach once... no matter I got burnt enough on my own I did not need to go the beach for that.

I love birds... I wanted to steal these and take them home!

I did get two little birds to sit on my finger though!

I loved the ruins, they were so peaceful and beautiful... I did break my sandals, so I was barefoot through most of the ruins. I loved it though... 

I found it interesting how at any red light men would come pouring out in the street to try and sell you mango's..

I am a fan of architecture... BEAUTIFUL church!

Ok, I REALLY wanted a picture of the police in uniform, but they would not allow it (though one told me to find him later and he would let me take a picture- mmmhmmm), so I posed ever so smoothly and got them :)

This was on my way down the mountain back into the city of San Pedro Sula.

Plantain pizza and shrimp pizza? I do not think so...

Overall Honduras was a beautiful country... from afar. If you looked up close you could see the poverty, the trash, the sadness. Leaving Honduras and leaving my ex behind was a hard thing to do, but something I knew I had to do. Through it all I am still in contact with his family, and view them as my brothers and sister still today. Honduras and that family are things I never want to forget, or leave behind completely.

München and Dachau

About a year ago the oldest son and I went on a Holocaust Remembrance Tour sponsored by the MWR (Morale, Welfare, and Recreation) on post. We were to go to Dachau and then go to München (Munich) to tour the city. The tour consisted off "Get off the bus and go wherever you want". We walked all over trying to find somewhere that was geared towards tourists so I could get souvenirs. They had dropped us off in the most expensive part of the city. Speaking of expensive, people must have more money than they know what to do with there because I have never seen so many Lamborghini's, Porsche's, and other expensive cars in MY LIFE. I absolutely LOVED the street performers that we encountered. Sorry for the video quality.. these were taken with my camera before I got my video camera.

Dachau was a sobering experience, and NO you CANNOT still "smell it". The smell of death is long gone. Here is a video I did, you can consider it your own tour of the camp.

My European hobby... wine.

I love wine, but sometimes I buy a wine that the bottle draws me in as much as the wine itself! This past summer I bought a wine that is DELICIOUS, but I have not even opened the bottle yet because #1 the bottle cost me $20, and #2 IT IS SO PRETTY!!!!

I know, it is meant to be opened and drank, and I will probably get to it, but first I am trying to find something to do with the bottle after I drink the wine because DAMNIT I AM NOT THROWING IT OUT!!!!!

Here is the bottle I got... any ideas?

Ok, and yeah, I collect cows... they are all over my kitchen!

Then a few days ago I went into a wine shop to get a new wine rack (because I did not have one). I did not want to pay for a huge one, so I got this small one...

Because I thought it would go well with my dining room decor...

I also got this AWESOME corkscrew!

Anyway, I digress...

In the wine shop there was glühwein (mulled wine- meant to be drank heated) that was EXTREMELY yummy; spiced to perfection and just all around PERFECT! While it is not that cold here anymore, I got a bottle for next winter... and once I am done with the bottle I can take it back for a refill at a discount! I did ask for free refills, but they would not go for it.

So anyway, how cute is this bottle???

When Mom is away...

Yesterday I was at work looking through Facebook doing my thing, and my oldest son sends me an IM on Facebook. I had to send him a personal message back because while I can see instant messages (chat) I cannot respond to them at work- it is blocked (by the way I have Facebook open so that my kids can contact me if need be, or I can send messages to people if I need something like an address or something for work or school- well that and I get bored). So, he asks if I am there, I send him a message telling him I am "here". He tells me he is going to shave our cat Draco because he is matted. Now my son has threatened to shave the cat before for shits and giggles, but this time he had an excuse.

Draco is our fluffiest cat, and the oldest son is almost 20 (I had him when I was 14 people... that is why I do not look old enough to have a son that old- because I am NOT!).

Draco

Oldest Son

So I am sure poor Draco was sleeping somewhere like the laundry bucket...

Minding his own business when the oldest son comes and yanks him from his peaceful slumber to rob Draco of whatever masculinity he has left.

When I got home the house was silent... I go to the stairs and I see a trail of patches of Draco fur...

I get to the top of the stairs and I see Sammie (Draco's mom) sitting outside of the bathroom door looking worried. I go in the bathroom and oldest son is wielding the electric shaver while the daughter is holding Draco. Draco looks at me as if to say "HELP ME MOM!" He says "Mrroowwww" instead.

This is what the poor thing looked like:

This is what was taken off of him:

The fat bastard got over it quick enough. We released him and he went right downstairs to the food dish (comfort food?).

Draco with Sammie (his mommy)

Apparently the oldest son liked shaving the cat because he kept looking at our other cat Soxxy (not pictured) and asking her if she wanted to be shaved too....

Engrish... it ALWAYS makes me laugh!

I love it when things come to me somehow and the English language is messed up or mangled... I remember years ago in Kearney, Nebraska there was this Chinese food place that everyone called "We Delivery" because on their take out menu they had in big bold letters "WE DELIVERY!".

The other day I got a restaurant menu in my mailbox at home. It is for Portofino's a German/Italian place here in town. The food is good, I ate their once... but now I am starting to have second thoughts, lol... 

Last deployment my husband was in Iraq. He sent 3 blankets home that he purchased there. Before I washed them I looked at the tag and I could not stop laughing! Here is the tag, front and back:

The character of soft is important!

Because you always want your blankets to belooked more beautiful! And use water... or not.

Do you have anything "Engrish" around your home? I would love for you to share!!!

Oh the things you see through a lens!

I have been so busy lately. The weekend was spent on school work, laundry, and playing games with the kids, and *joys of joys* getting the oil changed! The youngest went running errands with me, and he got BORED!

it was really windy out, so I was able to get a good picture of the flags.

Today I had to go to work, and on my break I went to take pictures... some interesting things around there!

But this last one struck me as odd... it is a tree right outside of my office building. Hubby says it looks like a troll. What do you think?