A Week of Travel, and a Much-Needed Weekend at HOME

I know I’ve read a great quote somewhere about travel making you appreciate being home. I combed the internet today, and all I could come up with was one about air travel being nature’s way of making you look like your passport photo. I guess that one describes my week pretty well too, although I didn’t get international travel out of it. It just felt like I did.
Thanks to the Army’s latest cost-cutting measures, TDY has become even more ridiculously painful than usual. Instead or the three separate trips I needed to take, I ended up with a smashed-into-three-days itinerary of six flights and almost no sleep. I headed to Miami first, with three uniforms stuffed in a bag, certain I had forgotten some mandatory accoutrement or other. (I hadn’t, but definitely appreciated the wool Army Service Uniform in 85 degree heat once I arrived.) There we pulled off a huge argument, a massive dog-and-pony show for SOUTHCOM lawyers (involving those outdated headphone translation devices we had seen only in movies), and a law school recruiting event. I had carefully carved out 15 minutes for pool time at the hotel, which neatly coincided with a hurricane (pictured, for evidence).

I made my way to Kansas City alone, having lost two travel companions to army travel hiccups, arriving in time to grab a few hours of sleep in the hotel room I didn’t have to share only by virtue of being the only girl in our office. Bleary-eyed the next morning, I found my Captains, who had arrived the day before in time for Kansas City barbecue- a fact of which I was insanely jealous, having subsisted on granola bars and the odd airport chicken wrap for day- and we took off for the day's overscheduled (but budget-friendly!) adventures. The morning at the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks, lunch in a six-way video teleconference, and the afternoon teaching classes, followed by a mad dash back to the airport. In our minivan. 

Just when I thought the travel gods had finished with me, I had snagged a last row seat on a full flight next to the toilet, which promptly overflowed. At least the awful face I had made in my passport photo wasn’t green! I eventually made it home after midnight, made myself shower before falling into bed next to my adorable husband who had waited up for me, and passed out… for a couple of hours, before the alarm warned me that I needed to get moving because we had mandatory fun this morning. But of course. This week’s schedule really had been concocted by some kind of masochist.

The mandatory fun turned out to be terrific though- a run (well, shuffle for those of us still nursing ankle injuries) around the tidal basin to see the cherry blossoms in peak bloom before the throngs of tourists were out- and I gutted out the email catchup that necessarily follows a week out of the office. But Friday date night turned into whatever was in the fridge and passing out on the couch while it was still light out. What a week! I was thrilled to just be home. Seth had knocked off most of a long honey-do list and brought me flowers, and spring had finally sprung in Bethesda.

We had a beautiful, relaxing “recovery” weekend, sleeping in and hanging out in the backyard and enjoying the balmy weather and flowers and cherry trees that we thought rivaled those downtown. Sunday we got to enjoy a rare treat: a visit with Mamma Gran and Aunt Mary Pat, who were passing through on what sounded like a hilarious tour, and Mom’s homemade strawberry shortcake.

Oh, and Seth shared his milestone news: his PEB was complete, and he was found fit for duty! We’re thrilled, and I couldn’t be more proud that this has been his focus all along: getting back to the business of being a Soldier. Seeing those words is a concrete validation of all his hard work and mental toughness and perseverance (and, yes, of our commitment to achieving that goal as a team.) It feels like a major victory on the road back to normal.

As I walked out the door this morning, almost recovered from Army travel and enjoying the sight of a different kind of “snow” (the warm wind blowing the petals off the flowering trees on our cul-de-sac), I definitely had a “Wizard of Oz” moment: there really is no place like home. 

Photos of the week: I love this one of Seth and Dad, hard at work at the grill on Sunday…

… but the prize has to go to our two priceless nieces. As usual. (Lehua, enjoying Friday at the beach, and Natalie, learning to be a birdwatcher like Mom & Dad.)