Happy Halloween from the Conga Club

I am so far behind in my posts. I have two awards to accept and write and tag, and lots of stuff to do so this will be pretty short and sweet.

Here are some pics from last night out Salsa dancing at the Conga Club. (In slide show form because it's way faster than uploading individual pictures)

I love salsa dancing because it's something i can do to get out when hubs is gone. Everybody knows everybody and unlike regular night clubs, there are actually social dance rules, so the guys respect you and you can just have fun without worrying about fending off creepers and drunks. Plus, I don't have to drink to have a good time. Salsa = good clean fun. :D

'Course, it still would be much more fun if Monkey was there. I actually get a little bummed out when i get all dolled up to go out for stuff and he's not there to enjoy it. I try to take lots of pics so he can see what he missed. ;)

Been doin' this...

I should have saved this for wordless Wednesday, but...

Pretty much spend my days doin' this... *sigh*

MilSpouse Friday Fill-in

IT"S FRIDAY EVERYBODY!!!

And that means it is time again for the MilSpouse Friday Fill-in over at Wife of a Sailor.
Head on over to Army Dogs this week to link up to the Mispouse roundup!

1. What’s the nicest thing a stranger has ever done for you?
   When I was going to college I had to take the MAX lightrail to school everyday. One day there was a problem on the line and the max was stopping half way to where I needed to get off. I was going to be late for work. The woman next to me was nice enough to not only let me borrow her cell phone to call work, she gave me a ride to my station so I could get to my car and be on time.
   
2. If you are having a hard time going to sleep, what do you do to help yourself?
   I'm not very good at getting myself to sleep when I can't. Sometimes I'll just lay there and play games on my ipod touch. Staring at the tiny screen in the dark makes my eyes get tired. Sometimes that's enough. Or, if I can't sleep because my mind won't shut off, I'll get up and write down whatever is on my mind so I don't have to worry about remembering it anymore.
   
   
3. Name something that makes you wish you were a kid again.
   Finding out that I have a touch of ADD. I wish i could go back and study a little harder, and spend a little more time on my homework. Also, i just miss not having so much drama and responsibility. My job was to go learn stuff and run around. That sounds fun.
   
   
4. What is something you never believed until you experienced it?
   I always thought that love songs were exaggerated. I didn't ever think that real love would be that powerful. Until I found it. Now all those love songs, almost seem inadequate in expressing how I feel!
   
   
   
5. What can’t you say “no” to?
   Albertson's cookies! Oh, and Redvines. Or, Caramel. Or... yeah... i like sweets.
   

Thursday 5

Hey! It's time for Thursday 5 with Mrs. Gambizzle!

But first, a picture from last Saturday night at the grand opening of the Conga Club. This was after a couple hours of dancing, it a very hot building. It was really fun, I'm going back this weekend for the costume party. As soon as I figure out a costume. I was planning on having my sailor back so I wasn't planning on doing anything festive. But, since I just found out that I won't, I'm now in a scramble to pull something together.

Anyway, here you go. Wish they had some of me actually dancing, but oh well.

Me and one of the guys from Salsa Con Coco.

Now back to the Thursday 5.

Giggly

Snuggly

Thankful

Excited

GLEE!

Got a little Giggly at practice last night. We joked that our dance partner ship was like a really bad codependent relationship. "Give me some space", "Don't push me"... :)

Wishin' I was gettin' all Snuggly with my man... was supposed to be, but... well, you all know how that goes some times. *I'm lookin at you Navy* :(

I am thankful that my blood work from yesterdays doc visit came back and only said I was vitamin D deficient and not anemic. I chalk that up to living the Pacific NW.

I am excited to dress up for Halloween this year, even if it's because my Monkey isn't home. I haven't done anything for Halloween for the last three years. I LOVE dressing up. That's why i love ballet. You are never too old to wear a tutu. At least, in the "appropriate" setting.

I got a bit of glee in my not so awesome week from a pretty really nice little gift I received.

Happy Thursday, one more to go!

Monkey Mail - FISH!

I have been waiting every so patiently to be able to make this post. He got his fish! Go Monkey! I'm so so proud of him. He has been working his tail off to get this done. Staying on the hot-runners list every single week he was on the boat. His goal was to do it on his first underway and he has. :D

I have been promised pictures. I will post them whenever the Navy gives him back to me.

Hopefully thing will be at least a little bit less stressful for him for the rest of this trip. He's been so stressed out and not getting much sleep. I hate it when he runs off of caffeine all the time.

Anyway, here's a bit from his email:

"Tuesday, 26-OCT-10, 1441

GREAT NEWS! I passed my board yesterday! I was super stressed out, but at about 1400 (2pm) I was running around gathering the board and stuff. I had roughly 35lbs of goodies for the board. MUAHAHA! The captain even came in and stole some while i was simulating my firefighting skills. I got an FFE (fire-fighter's ensemble), SCBA, routed a fire hose, and would have (if it were a real fire) been fighting it in just over 1/3 the required time. Not too shabby especially considering - i have never put an FFE on before. ROFLCOPTERS! (I tried to google ROFLCOPTERS, and couldn't find anything that explained it well. It's WoW geek stuff, haha)

I had four people on my board vis the normal three. It was about an hour and a half. Got three look-ups. One of which i wanted to slap myself for because i knew that i had known the answer at one point and i kind of knew what it was but i couldn't say it. The second was a history question and the third was to list the systems that the chill-water system cools. I could only remember two things it cooled at the time.

I turned my look-ups in and got all my board members to sign my card, then the Doc and CoB. The yeomen have it now so it can be routed to the XO and Captain. I should be getting pinned tonight. (Which was yesterday!)

Anyways Mrs. Beautiful!!! I love you and miss you so much!

Next couple days is gonna be crazy. Have a ship-wide examination, a day full of drills. Which i determined due to scheduling - I am gonna be on watch for. Which sucks cause of rigging.

Love you!"

Read more about being qualified submarines here.

Wordless Wednesday

Monkey Mail - "OMFG"

:( Poor Monkey! Just got an email from him. It was about two sentences. The subject was "omfg... hell"!

 "This SUCKS!

SSM inventory = biggest bone-job on the boat. and I have my board tomorrow. Haven't had time to study because the SSM thing takes priority so im sneaking it in where i can. Dont have much time.

Wish i could write more, no time.
LOVE YOU SO MUCH!"

It's a huge bummer that he's not getting time to study for his board. He's been working so so hard on getting there, and wanted to kick butt on it. But, he's not getting to give it the time it deserves. :( 

Well, good luck Hon! Sending kick-ass vibes your way!

For all our hubs' whoz iz cunductin' they maintenance, yo.

I happened across this video this morning on the Navy facebook page. It made me giggle and I wanted to share. Enjoy!

30 days of me: Day 5

Your Favorite Quote

I'm going to give you two. The first I found in a greeting card once, and it always makes me smile.

I wish I had it to show you the cute picture on the front.

"It wouldn't be boring if cows could go soaring on beautiful butterfly wings.
And maybe they'd do it, if we could see to it, to simply imagine such things."

The second one, I'll have to paraphrase. I can't remember exactly how it goes. It's a proverb. It has actually greatly reduced the amount of stress in my life. Goes something like this:

There is no need for worrying about a problem.
If there is something you can do about it, then there is no need to worry.
If you can't do anything about it, then there is no point in worrying. 

Basically, what that means to me is that, if you can do something about it, do it! Be proactive and do something. If there is nothing you can do, then there is nothing you can do. Take a deep breath and ride it out. Worrying isn't going to help, it's just going to stress you out. It has really gotten me through some tough times. I've learned to stop and ask myself, "Can I do anything about this?" If yes, then I figure out how to do it. If it's out of my control and I can't figure out how to fix it, I just step back and let what will be, be.

Apartment hunting and salsa

This has been my second weekend of apartment hunting. All by myself. Last weekend was pretty depressing. I started at all the "affordable" place. They were all either, smelly, scary, or ugly. I was feeling pretty defeated by the time I got home. This weekend. I went to the places that were at the higher end of our budget. WAY better. Just $50 in rent makes a huge difference. Well, also about 5 miles further from Portland. I have to resign myself to the fact that I will not be able to live in the area that I want unless I want to live in a stinky ugly place. The places that I like are juuuuust out of our price range. So further towards Beaverton I went. And the places were much much nicer for almost the same price. My favorite one we would only be able to do if we somehow got in on deal. 

I'm trying not to fall in love with any one place because I still have to take Monkey around to the top few and let him help decide. 

Then I came home and ate a huge slice of pizza dripping with orange grease, followed with a much to large bowl of ice cream. Hey at least I chose vanilla instead of moose tracks. But it's ok. Because I'll burn it off at the new salsa club I'm going to tonight! Yay! 

Typically, I never go out dancing on Saturday nights. I'm usually so danced-out by the end of the week I could care less. Plus, the dancing starts so late that by the time I'm supposed to leave I'm getting sleepy. Also, I hate driving a parking downtown, and I hate going places alone.... blah blah excuses excuses.

But, there is a brand spankin' new salsa club opening tonight. Not just a club that has a salsa night. A salsa club! Brand new floors, largest floor in Portland, two levels (only one if for dancin), VIP lounge.. There are a couple other places around but one is super divey and the other is always too full and there are tables at the edge of the floor and it's just not my favorite place. I'm really excited about checking out this new place. The doors open at 8 so if I leave at 7:30 that's super early and I won't be so tired. The only downside is that the cover is $13. It's because there is a live band but still. I think it's $10 on a regular night. Most expensive place, i think. Anyway, I'm excited. I gotta go figure out what I'm going to wear.

MilSpouse Friday Fill-in

It's FRIDAY! That means it's time for MilSpouse friday fill-in, hosted over at Wife of a Sailor.

This weeks questions and answers:

1. Are you a night owl or an early bird?
   If I had to choose I would say night owl. I CAN NOT get up in the mornings to save my life! I'm not cranky or one of those people who need their morning coffee in order to be personable, I just can't wake up. Once I get my feet out from under the covers and on the floor, I'm fine. But getting there is usually pretty agonizing. :)
2. What makes you jealous?
   Currently, I can't think of anything. But I can tell you that back in the day when I was first taking dance lessons (Monkey was my instructor), before we were admitting that we liked each other, I would get so jealous when he would dance with other female students at practice parties. Especially when he looked like he was enjoying it. It was stupid, but darn it... i wanted to be his favorite student! haha. I guess I was after all. ;)
3. Have you started Christmas/holiday shopping yet? When will you finish? (There’s only 63 days left!)
   Have not officially started yet. But, I have a few ideas and have started scouting some things out.
4. What would you have a personal chef make you tonight?
   If you've been reading this blog for very long you'll have read the post where I don't really care about food. Kinda, meh... I'm a bonafied picky eater and rarely eat veggies. A kick-a$$ bowl of Mac-n-cheese would do just fine right now! Mmm mmmm.
5. Where was your first kiss?
   My first kiss or our first kiss? I would love to tell you about our first kiss, but there may be a debate over exactly when/where that was, so since he's not here to confirm or deny, I'll go with my first kiss. I just realized I don't remember my first kiss. I know his name was Noah, I was... a sophomore in high school I think. Maybe a freshman. I remember it was awkward and I didn't really like it. And he had to correct me and tell me to turn my head so our noses didn't squish together. But I don't remember where I was. Until i went to write this I was completely thinking it was with someone else. Guess it wasn't very memorable. Sorry, Noah. :/ But then, I remember he wasn't very upset when I broke up with him that summer.

Monkey Mail - Priorities

SO nice to be getting emails "regularly" again. And by that I mean every few days. But, that's waaaayyyy better than being two weeks apart! 

He's getting closer and closer to his fish! That is, if they give him enough time to study. :/ 

Here's pieces of his last email:

"Hey beautiful

Counting down the days, getting closer, and I have more and more to do plus the ship has a big “test” so-to-speak right before we pull in. I am trying to juggle between my collateral duty and my studying… and its sucks already. This thing is not going to be easy and it’s taking away from my study time for my board which worries me. My board is in two days now and I just spent 6 hours working on this cataloging business and I’m maybe 20% done. It has to be done as soon as possible because it is a turn over item with the boat. Meaning that we cannot hand the boat to the other crew until this is done.

I keep telling myself to just “be amazing” and kick the ass off of everything in front of me. WABAM!!!

Haven’t slept yet, started taking the caffeine pills again (I hate it when he does this) because with all this [stuff] I don’t have time for much sleep. I am going to finish some look ups for my last check out, take a quick shower and get a couple hours of sleep before going on watch again. I have the mid-watch this time which sucks because I have a bunch of mid-night routines to do.

Okay --- now that I have vented my frustrations about the situation…. I am going to go continue my ass whoopin’ of all this stuff. By frustrations I mean the boat stuff. Also I just (30 seconds ago, as Doc walked passed) discovered that my board has actually NOT been scheduled yet… this is either good or bad and I can’t decide which. Anyhoozle…

Love you, miss you!"

Thursday 5

It's that time again. Thursday 5 with Mrs. Gambizzle. I skipped last week, but here we go with this weeks 5. It's been a heck of a week so I might have to get creative.

Happy
Giddy
Joy
Glee
Thankful

 

I'm Happy that except for last night, I've been sleeping ok.
I'm Giddy that salsa costumes have been ordered along with two shiny new pairs of dance shoes!
I get Joy from my kitty being extra snuggly as the weather gets colder and papa (Monkey) is gone longer. 
Glee: umm... I get to get back on pointe this weekend. It's been a little while. It's going to hurt but I really miss it. 
I am Thankful that this underway is on the downhill side. I am totally jonesin' for some Monkey!!!

30 days of me: Day 4

My Favorite Book

I hate telling people that I don't really read. Like it makes me look less intellectual or something.

But really, i just can't sit still that long. I don't watch much TV either, for the same reason. I usually only read for entertainment on plane rides and car trips, when I'm confined. That being said, the last fiction book that I've finished was in Jr. High. I keep starting books. I have about three in process right now that I take on planes and road trips. (Wicked, Don Quixote, and Sex Drugs and Cocoa Puffs) But I can't really give an answer to this question. It just depends on what kind of mood I'm in as to what I like to read. And since the last book I finished, other than Dave Ramsey's - Financial Freedom, was the extent of the Redwall series as it was about 12 years ago...umm... I'm going to say... the Thesaurus. Because while I may not read much, I like to write, and my Thesaurus is well loved.

Wordless Wednesday

I miss dancing with hubs.

The not so glamorous life of a salsa dancer.

Ok, so for all my new friends, in case you didn't know, amongst other things, I am a salsa dancer. I dance in a local salsa dance company called Salsa ConCoco. (The picture to the left is me but not from the dance company. It's from a competition. But you get the idea, just imagine more people and a different, cooler costume.)
When you think company salsa dancer, you might think: sexy costumes, spray tans, fringe, sparkles, fake eyelashes, a little bit of glitz and glamor, spins, smiles, fun...

Cut to last nights rehearsal. We are working on a new stunt. It's supposed to be really cool and slick. Right now... it's not. Right now, it kind of resembles, well, me... stomach first on my partners back, writhing around trying to stay on said partners back which two other people spin me in a circle while my poor partner has to hold up my dead weight with his back, and then I slide off the side and hit a super star pose to celebrate not dying. Over and over. Today, my left arm is tired, sore, pink, and swollen. Super sexy. :)

I'm sharing this, first, because my arm has been bugging me all day. But also, because I am amused at the thought of the above described sight. When we're all dressed up, yes, we are all sparkles and fringe and fake eyelashes. But then there's the hours of sweating, and falling, and grunting, and flailing, and general not so sexiness-ness. haha

I feel sometimes like i have this alter ego. Like Fight Club, but...Salsa Club. Haha. I go to work and sit at my desk and do my work. Then leave, like everyone else. But unlike everyone else I go to a studio, put on some 3 and a half inch high heels and get spun and flung and sweaty and bruised. Then the next day i go back to work, and sit at my desk, and do my work. No glitter, no sparkles, just a swollen arm and picture of the costume I have to wear in two months taped to my monitor to remind me that I really don't need that three o'clock snack.

I wish i could do it all the time. But, costumes are expensive, so I must work to pay for my habit.

Just for fun, here's a little video of me and hubs dancing last newyears after the performance. So i've already changed back to normal person clothes. Nothing spectacular. But I really love dancing with him. After all, that's how we met. :)
(Sorry, It's so dark, YouTube does that)

Monkey Mail - Getting Closer

So he's getting even closer to his fish. Only two signatures left! He promises pictures. 

I'm skipping the part of the email where he talks about getting himself in trouble. I'll let him tell that one since I still don't know the whole story. 

Here's portions of his email. The parts in brackets are my edits for various reasons.

"Hey mrs beautiful! Miss you. I have kinda been a rack monster recently, stopped staying up all the time because i dont like standing watch tired. Makes you unalert. Even if you are caffeinated to high heaven (Thats further from under water).

I have two signatures left on my card. Im working on lookups for one of them and the other is a test that involves running around and acting like there is a fire... I think anyways. They take pictues when we get pinned. But if we are doing the dependant's cruise i might see about getting pinned after we pick you up. I'm not sure that will work though. Especially being a Nav type, just cause we have so much [stuff] to do while piloting. If not though, you will have pictures at least.

Also - i figured out that if i say the word "missile" in an email, it triggers radio to have to read it. [yyyeahhh... story for this later]

I HAD THE FUNNIEST MOMENT LAST NIGHT! We were working on an [_______] ([Sailor M] and I). Its just a little electronic position sensor that is really like... the embodiment of over-engineering. Anyhoozle, we got to talking about something... and [Sailor M] who recently got his fish had the audacity to call me a nub. This cracks me up because once i get my fish, I am senior to him by qualifications. [..."Funniest Moment" story for later...]

There isn't really much going on. Cant wait to see you. Our schedule is gonna be weird when we get back. 

Anyways. Gonna get back to it. Love you honey!"

Monkey Mail::Finally!

Oh my goodness! FINALLY! It's been just shy of two weeks since I'd heart anything from him last. I didn't even realize it until I checked the date of his last email. I guess i was being more patient than i thought. But it was really driving me crazy, I really wanted to know what was going on. To just read his words and imagine his voice in my head. And I wanted to know if he'd gotten his fish yet! He hasn't. But he's very very close. I received three emails from him a little bit ago. I'll put pieces of them below. I think there was at least one other but it didn't make it through. He talked about it in another email, which is how I know it's missing. 

Here are pieces of two of the emails.

"Hey sweety. This will be delayed getting to you. But its the 9th of october, about 6 am right now. Not much to say really, its kind of the same thing over and over and over again. Still working on quals...  Have just 12 signatures left.

Looking forward to our plans when i get back. Im the sound silencing PO for refit assist which i found out afterward is a pretty sweet gig. I didnt know that when i volunteered though.

About to start clean-up. We had field day today then had to do after watch clean up not half an hour after. Swept for half an hour and came up with.... not much.
__________________

My beautiful Ducky

12OCT10 - 10:14AM

Grrrr I miss you so freakin much! 5 signatures away now. Kinda chillin'.

We are out of energy drinks from the rec committee. hehehe. I have some... they are gold now. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Keep my phone on me more often now because it’s got your pictures on it. [Sailor E] keeps trying to get my board scheduled early cause that’s what happened to him.

I’m waiting for taco Tuesday before I go to sleep, I shouldn’t eat before I sleep but Taco Tuesdays are AMAMAMAZING. I don’t care what anyone says.

Think I mentioned before that I nailed a pretty sweet gig for refit. I can’t see what my sent emails were because of our email system. like... I don’t have a "sent" box.  So I don’t know what I have updated you on all the time.

So many things to qualify --- BCEF still... then all the other Quartermaster/ Conventional Navigation stuff. This honestly doesn’t make much sense to me. You know how I like to work in patterns and rhythms. When I find the reason and the system I can do so much with it. But Rules of the Road are like.... a ton of random rules with no discernible pattern. It’s annoying."

 

Warm fuzzies for Friday.

Today's Friday Fill-in hosted by Wife of Sailor asked the question "What are three good things in your life right now?" As I was reading through everyones' posts I noticed that pretty much every one listed their husband as the first thing on that list. :) I have to say, I LOVE that!

I think there is a special kind of love that it takes to willingly and boldly enter this lifestyle. The kind of love that even after spending so much time apart, after dealing with all the military "stuff", and all the other challenges we face, and knowing that all of this is because we fell in love with a sailor, or a soldier - he's still first on our lists. Still the best thing in our lives and we're so proud of them. I'm proud to be in this club. This amazing collection of people dubbed 'MilSpouse'. I think we rock!

Just sayin. :)

MilSpouse Friday Fill-in

1. What are some things on your bucket list?

Make some little Monkeys :)
Travel to another country with hubs.

Go zip-lining.

Place in a ballroom competition. (Against more than three people. More like at least 7-10)

2. How long have you been a MilSpouse and where have you been stationed so far?

About a year and a half. He's been in CT, and GA, and now WA. I've been waiting patiently for him on the West Coast through all of them.

3. What is a list of songs that sums up your life so far?

Wow, without putting in hours of searching to find just the right songs for each part of my life. We'll just condense the whole thing to one song. "Like a Roller coaster". That 'bout sums it up. Especially lately.

4. What is your favorite kind of pizza?

Chicken and Mushroom

5. What are three good things in your life right now?

1. My amazing husband.

2. The fact that I am able financially to (mostly) do all the things I want to do so i can stay active and occupied.

3. Soon we finally get our own place. Big yays!

Wordless Wednesday

Look! It's me. Doing things. With people. At a place. :D

Ok, so I haven't got the "wordless" part down yet. May I should change it to "Just a few words Wednesday"? :)

30 days of me: Day 3

My favorite television program

Hmm, maybe I should have picked a different list...

I have barely watched any TV in the last year or two. Previously I lost patience for it and currently I don't really have access to a TV that I can control when I even have time for it. So, I just don't really watch.

But, back in the day when I did watch, it was (surprise surprise) Dancing with the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance. I guess those were actually the only two shows I could gain access of the remote for now that I think of it. Even when I did watch TV I don't think ever really got to pick what I watched. Hmm... Now I can't sit still long enough. 


Soon though, when we finally get our own place, i will have [basic] cable and plenty of time with solo control of the remote. I may need make an update to this post in a few months. Though, really, I hope I don't get back into TV as a default form of entertainment. 
The television will only be used for good, like work out videos, and Wii! 

No news is... well, no news.

I feel like I owe friends and family a real Monkey update. The blog has been a little bit fluffy lately.

Unfortunately, I have nothing. He's out there somewhere, floating around in his big tin can. I guess maybe he's nearing Lost Island? ;) The last email i received said that I wouldn't be hearing from him for a while... and I haven't. :(

Wish I had more to share. He's probably getting pretty darned close to getting his fish. I can't wait to make that post.

So, that's all for now. Just didn't want to leave ya'll hanging in the dark. I am still updating about Monkey, I just haven't had anything to say. Hopefully soon.

30 days of me: Day 2

Favorite Movie: Moulin Rouge
A  love story, with singing and dancing! I know, not a new concept, but I love the cinematic style. I love the quirky characters, some of which are actually named and comically modeled after real people from Paris in this era. LOVE this movie. I know every single song. Which are, by the way, all remade 80's songs. Cool, right? This is not just a musical. This is Moulin Rouge!
It took me forever to get Monkey to watch this with me. When he finally did, he was kinda 'meh' about it, but I still sang every song to him while we watched. :)

In case you've never seen it, here is the trailer.


My favorite song from the movie:


And this one:


And I did a Tango to this song:

30 days of me: Day 1

My Favorite Song

Of course it would start with this one. Here's the thing, I don't have a favorite song. Or a favorite artist, or a favorite genre. I'm really not THAT into music. Don't get me wrong. I really like music. I like listening to it, i love dancing to it. I'm just not "into" it enough to have a favorite anything. Maybe it's just because my taste is so broad. I really like it all. My first CD was a mozart. My second was the soundtrack to Mr. Hollands Opus, then Sister Act. Then, I don't remember. I didn't really get into mainstream music until like later in Jr. High. And it was probably only because my music collection wasn't 'cool'.
Right now, i listen to mostly popular music. But i still love everything. (Except gangster rap) I like anything with a good tune, i tend to lean towards to quirky happy stuff lately, or thing with really good melodies. The one song that came to mind though when trying to answer this question was a song that might not really fit into any of these categories. I love the melody, It's passionate, haunting and gives me chills. I especially love the video.

Christina Perri - Jar of Hearts

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

This is my first Friday Fill-in. I'm jumping in at number 16. 
Head on over to Wife of a Sailor to check out everyone elses Friday Fill-in's.

1. What is the longest road trip you’ve ever taken? 
Cross country! From Georgia to Washington when we finally moved Monkey to his new command, back on this side of the world! It took us about 5 really really long days in a huge white Jeep packed with everything he owned. We ate at Wafflehouse every morning until we ran out of them. This was the longest amount of consecutive time we had ever spent together. We didn't argue even once.

2. Do you collect anything? Tell us a bit about it.
Not as much as I used to, but I was pretty into collecting cows for a while. :) Stuffed cows, cow collectibles, etc. I really liked cows. I still do, but I also don't like hauling extra stuff from place to place and I currently have no place to put them anyway. Aside from that... leg warmers! Ok, but legitimately. I am a dancer so I really do wear them for dancing. I just like to have options. Lots and lots of options! 

3. What is your favorite part about being an adult?
Wait, I'm an adult? Crap! When did that happen? 

4. What song brings a tear to your eye?
There are a few. Mostly songs that remind me of my Mr. and Me. Depends on the day as to which ones hit me the hardest. How long he's been gone, how my mood is in general that day. One of my favorite "us" songs, though is "Lucky", by Colbie Caillet and Jason Mraz. The lyrics have an amazing parallel to our story. Right down to "I'll put a flower in your hair". He requested and picked out the flower that I wore in my hair when we got married.


5. Describe your first plane ride (how old you were, where you were heading, etc). 

My very first plane ride was an international flight to London, England. It was the year I graduated highschool. I was traveling with probably 75-100 other singers and musicians for a three week choir, band, and orchestra tour around Europe. The night before the flight, my boyfriend at the time made me watch the movie Final Destination.  

Thursday 5

This is the Thursday 5. Mrs. Gambizzle over at http://lifeasasailorsgirl.blogspot.com/ poses 5 words. We think about the last week and come up with five items that fit in with the words and link up over there for all to share. This is my first week trying this out. Here goes.

Happy

Thankful

Joy

Glee

Giddy

 

I am happy that I got 6 "modified mail" messages in my inbox this morning. :D

I am thankful that so far I've been avoiding this gross cold that is going around. *knock on wood*

I think I can take a little a small amount of joy in the changing seasons. Lets go ahead and be optimistic about this. This means, sweaters, beanies, scarfs, and mittens.

Yesterday I was digging through some photos from last Christmas and New Years. They made me smile with glee. That was the best Christmas ever.

I am absolutely giddy about this new piece of choreography that I'm working on right now. The music is awesome, and had fun splicing it together. I might ask for an extra hour of lesson tonight to work on it more. I want this one to be rock solid and amazing!

Wordless Wednesday

This is another one of those project that I've found floating around. And I like it. Seeing as I'm at work and a little unprepared, here's what I've got from what I can get to. Enjoy! (Next week's wordless wednesday will have fewer words, I promise.)

Because I miss him and this makes me smile. :)

30 days of ME!

So, I've been bouncing from blog to blog seeing what's what, trying to get more involved in this MilSpouse community. And I keep coming across the "30 days of me" project. I think I will borrow it.
Thank you to April over at Diamonds and Dogtags for sending me to A Southern Belle & Her Officer to find the list.

So here is what we will be learning about me, over the next 30 days (or so). I may not post from this list every day. I think i will parcel it out in between regular postings. Starting... tomorrow. Or, maybe tonight. We'll see.

30 Days of ME
Day 1: Your favorite song
Day 2: Your favorite movie
Day 3: Your favorite television program
Day 4: Your favorite book
Day 5: Your favorite quote
Day 6: Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 7: A photo that makes you happy
Day 8: A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 9: A photo you took
Day 10: A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11: A photo of you taken recently
Day 12: Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13: A fictional book
Day 14: A non-fictional book
Day 15: A fanfic
Day 16: A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17: An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18: Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19: A talent of yours
Day 20: A hobby of yours
Day 21: A recipe
Day 22: A website
Day 23: A YouTube video
Day 24: Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25: Your day, in great detail
Day 26: Your week, in great detail
Day 27: This month, in great detail
Day 28: This year, in great detail
Day 29: Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30: Whatever tickles your fancy

Getting better at keeping it together

Well, it has been about a week since he left. I think. I've written 8 emails so it must be a week. Yes, I do write him every single day. I can't help it. I'm so used to spewing my whole day to him over the webcam. FYI, he's an excellent listener. He actually cares when I've had a tough day at work and doesn't mind listening to me rant about it for a half an hour.

Writing every day also helps me feel connected to him. It's almost like we're having a conversation. All be it a very one sided conversation. But I know he reads them and feels connected to what's going on back home, too.

Each time he goes out I last a little bit longer before I totally start getting all mopey. I'm still doing fine. I guess I'm getting used to it. Last Saturday was a little rough, though. I completely couldn't concentrate at ballet. I think it was because I have been really excited about this new piece of ballroom choreography that I'm working on. And being in a dance class in which i can zone out at the barre, reminds me of how badly I wish I could be dancing it with him. It always takes me about a week to get into the groove where I'm not checking my phone for text messages throughout the day, or getting prematurely excited to get home and get on the web cam.

I try to suck it up. I did, after all, choose this lifestyle. I know I will get better at it. Until then, I MISS MY MONKEY!!! I just practice keeping sane, and keeping busy.

Still can't wait for him to get home, though! I know family is there for me when I need it, but nothing compares to being in his arms. That's when everything is all good. *nostalgic sigh*

Blog Spiffification!

Hey, if you haven't been here in a little bit you may or may not notice a couple new things.
Look up: I have a new header.
Look down and left: I have a button you can grab.
Look a little up and to the left: I have added pages. Soon to hold "Our story".

This is phase one. Getting all the gizmos and gadgets up and running. Eventually, I'll get around to putting it into one of those fancy templates. I haven't yet for two reasons. One, because I haven't had time to figure out how to make my own template but I refuse to use a prefab one because I'm a designer, and out of principal I should make my own, right? And two, because well, a new template wipes out my current code and I'd have to redo my google analytics code, and I just don't feel like doing that right now. So, for now, this is it. I'll be working on the rest slowly and one day there will be another round of changes. One day.

"Why all the sprucing up?" you might ask. Well, as this project is evolving and as I have been perusing through the blog-scape, I have run into the fantastic community of MilSpouse bloggers! This is amazing. A whole network of ladies who blog about the same thing. The everyday life of being a MilSpouse. I have found these blogs to be a great source of insight, inspiration, community, therapy, etc. And i want to be more a part of it.

So, i am changing the focus a little bit. I am going to start posting to a little broader audience. I will be participating in weekly bloggie activities. You'll see what I mean when they pop up. To all the friends and family who already read this, fear not! You will still get all the same timely Monkey updates, plus more! More about me, my life, my feelings and all that jazz.

I hope to get more followers, more feedback, more contacts out there who are going through the same trials and tribulations of being a military wife. I like this idea of being part of a specialized community. Support from all these new friends who are all bonded by one common thread. The adventure that comes with being in love with a Sailor or Soldier. I also hope that my semi daily musing might act to help or at least entertainment another MilSpouse who is perhaps also very new to this adventure.

To all my current followers, family, and friends I hope you are as excited about this change as I am. (If not please let me know) We're just adding some new friends to the mix!

If you are reading this, and you are a fellow MilSpouse, please say "Hi" in the comments section! I would love to see who's out there!

Monkey Mail: movin right along

Yay, another Monkey mail! However, he says that it may be the last one for a while. They won't be able to send emails for a bit. I don't know how long that is. He said he will keep writing so I may be getting a flood of them all at once. I'll post the highlights.

He must have been writing really fast on this one. I had to fix a lot of words so they were readable. :)

"Much more relaxed now that squadron is gone. People aren't as stressed out. I have been working on some watches and my fish. Focus is a little more spread right now because it has to be. BUT! I got the last signature in phase 4 last night before watch! So now im on the last phase which is walk-throughs. And the advanced DC exam. Then Board, i think it will be a couple weeks but im pretty excited. Once i get that and battery charger qualified i can finish up armed watch-stander, Reaction force, POoD and Sentry... then im pretty much in the clear on qual stress.... maybe not though - then they will make me do fathometer, radar and quartermaster type stuff probably.

Had a super crazy day the other day, we surfaced for a few hours while i was on watch so I had a bunch of rigs to do that i had never done by myself. Chief and ET1 were pretty happy with how i did through that. Secured one of the harder sections on my walk throughs, so that will be a breeze."

I'm really excited that he's getting so close to getting his fish. He's neck and neck with another guy who's been on the boat longer.

I'll have to find things to post about in the mean time since it will be a while before we get our next Monkey Mail. Suggestions?

Monkey Mail: Gettin' it done.

A surprisingly long email for the first one. :D I think that means he's slightly less exhausted than usual. It also sounds like he's getting really close to getting his fish. And, as always, continuing to kick booty!

"Hard to believe i have been underway a couple few days already. Think i left tuesday, now I can't even remember. I have been standing LAN-Tech. Kinda cool to stand a decent watch as something other than a UI(under instruction). People have noticed too, got a lot of surprised looks that i am qualified LAN-Tech being so junior. Working on Quals, but i only have one signature left of phase 4 now, and its a longer clock, after that it will get easier.

Had a really strange day today. Weird set of drills and i was a monitor, but something got goofed up so i never ended up having to do anything, so I was power-knapping waiting for something to happen and it never did so i pretty much got an "equalizer" as its called of sleep. that is to say like.... 6 hours. I think... time got so meshed up in there."