Safe and sound and...

Well, I'm finally here. I left on Friday afternoon, and was told once I got to the holding area, that we'd be flying out the same night. Shortly thereafter, however, we were told that our flight would be delayed for three to five days! Well, we arrived here yesterday, and got ourselves hooked into our new home.

Once we got to work today, I found out that I would be working in the radio section. so my day was already starting on a high note. THEN, my boss told me I'd be doing a radio show...today! Talk about fast spin up. Finally, to add to my great day, he told me that I am going to be the NCOIC of the radio section (for you non-military folks, that means I'm the section supervisor overseeing everything). So I did my show, and I emailed Vanessa to let her know I was here and safe. She tried to call me, but I'd already finished my shift by that point.

I am working on getting intrenet connected in my little room in our 8-person hut. Once I do, I'll blog daily (when possible), and load photos to show you what I'm seeing.

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I got Vanessa's anniversary present in the mail today...I don't know if I should go ahead and open it, or wait until the 7th. It's not too far off, so maybe I'll wait. Hard to believe that we've only been married a year. We've been together so long, and acted married for just as long, that it feels like we've been together forever - and in a good way. I'm sad to miss our first anniversarry together, and more that we'll miss out on a lot of important dates for the rest of the year. But that's the life we've chosen, and that's what God wants us to do...makes us stronger, I suppose.

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Send me letters...not chocolate...

I will write in code for the next few lines. Each line is a seperate one for the address.

ETGVX AXBGSXEFTG

CEV / TYG TYZAGBLMTG

UEWZ 415

UTZKTF TBK YBXEW

TIH TX 09354


hint: A=H
If that's too hard, contact Vanessa to find out the address, but I won't post it here.

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Tomorrow, I have briefings all afternoon, so I won't be doing my show. That's okay, I have waited a long time to get back into radio, one more day won't kill me.

So, to all my Family and Friends out there, I will say goodnight, and I Love you all.
Please keep me, Vanessa, and my brothers and sisters in uniform in your prayers.






ULI

Up, Up, and AWAY...

Well, if you're reading this, I have successfully made it out of Germany, and at least touched down in Southwest Asia. I can't tell you where I am now, or when I'll be leaving, but I'm okay for now. (Currently, I'm in an airport terminal with free wireless, so I thought I'd let you in on my progress so far)

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Vanessa is the strongest young lady I know. She has so much to deal with, and she's very emotionally vulnerable right now - and my departure isn't helping matters at all. Still, she made it almost all the way through me leaving without crying. There were a few right before she left the terminal, but that's expected. I know she's going to be okay, and we have a strong support group that has ofered to help out whenever needed. I Love that woman of mine, and I'm better for knowing and Loving her.

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I want to address the CARE package question that many people have been asking about:
1) From what I hear, socks and underwear are hard to find items because as soon as the BX trailer gets them in, people buy them out immediately. Turns out, they'd rather buy new, than wash dirty. I know how that goes, but come on.
2) I'm actually going to try and lose some weight and build some muscle on this deployment, so if possible, try to limit the candy and snacks you send. Chocolate is usually a bad idea, because the temp can soar into he 150's where I'm headed. Dried fruits are welcome though.
3) Call me sappy, but a hand written letter, photos, or even a nice card mean a lot to me. If you want to make me smile, send any or all of these things.
4) I read that a New York pizzaria sent 20 frozen, packed-in-dry-ice pizzas to troops deployed to an area near me. If Bob's would be willing, I'd pay for the shipping. :D

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Look for me on Yahoo Instant Messenger under the name, "quinnharle." If I'm around, we can chat real time. If I'm not around, leave me a message.

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Okay, that's all for me right now. The next time you read anything from me, I will be "at the beach." If I can ask one thing, it is keep Vanessa (and me if you like) in your thoughts and prayers. If you can, send her a note once in a while, to let her know she's not alone.


I Love You all.





ULI