Readjusting

My sisters should be back home, safe and sound, by now. Matt and I have taken no time at all to get used to having each other around. I am finding that I am having to learn how to balance things again. I'm behind in school. I need to figure out how to balance school, Matt and time for myself. It shouldn't take me too long to get down, but it is still an adjustment that I need to make. What a great adjustment, though!

I think that we all had a good time while my sisters were here. It was definitely more activity than I have done, but now that I have started to be more active, I don't plan on stopping. Matt and I went for a walk last night. Otherwise, we're just planning on chilling for a bit before we begin our month of travels. :)

Long day ahead

Yesterday we had a fairly light day. We had intended to take a bit of a hike in the mountains, but the trail that we wanted to go on was closed. So, instead we ended up driving around the Navy base with our own personal tour guide. Jess and Tracy took some pictures and stuff, then we headed home to prepare for the Badger game. For me, preparing is no more than changing outfits, but it takes on a new meaning with my sisters. They occupy the bathroom area for quite a while, it's funny.

Anyway, we went to the Badger game and it was a lot of fun. It was the first time that either Tracy or I had been to a football game (outside of high school), and we were both impressed. We had pretty good seats and it was surprising how small the cameras on TV make everything look. There were a lot of Badger fans in red, but the Hawaiian fans were really nice to us. We won the game 41-24. We then walked to a nearby food place, where Matt met us and then drove us home.

Today will probably be our busiest day yet, and I'll let you know what goes on tomorrow!

Busy busy busy

In a few hours, I went from being bored and having nothing to do to being really busy all of the time. My sisters arrived at the airport as planned, and I drove them back to my apartment. Thanks to Hawaii traffic, we didn't get back to the apartment until 4:30 or so. I had to leave to pick Matt up at 5:15, so that didn't leave me much time to sit and catch up. My sisters didn't know that I was going to pick Matt up, either. I just told them that I had to run to the store quick.

Matt's plane was delayed for 20 minutes. That hour at the airport was probably the longest of my life. I would go on a mini emotional rollercoaster every time the door from the exit area would open - I would wonder if that was him and then see that it wasn't. Eventually, though, he finally walked through the door and right past where I was sitting (he didn't see me). I tackled him from behind and the rest is history :)

We're all having a good time thus far. Yesterday we went on the Atlantis submarine tour and walked up and down Waikiki strip. Today we are going to go for a little hike in the mountains and then my sisters and I are going to the Badger game while Matt stays home and catches up on his video games. We've got a lot of stuff to do in a little time, so I've got to go!

OMG OMG OMG

I just found out that I have to make two trips to the airport tomorrow. My sisters arrive at 3:15pm, so I need to go and pick them up then. Then I have to make another trip to the airport at 6:15pm to pick up Matt! That's right, he's coming home for good tomorrow night! He's known about it for about a month, but just decided to tell me the day before he's coming home. Apparently his chief decided that it wasn't cool that he had to buy his own tickets home from Australia, so they decided to let him go while they were in Guam. What a great surprise! I am soooo happy. I'm not going to tell my sisters about it, I'll just tell them that I need to go pick something up quick. Hehe.

Just a few days away!

My sisters arrive here in Hawaii in just a few days, and I am really excited! I can't wait to give them a thorough tour of the island and all of the amazing things that there are to see here. I'm trying to put myself back the first time I was here and remember the things that really stood out for me. I have come to take this paradise for granted, and I know that I should get out and enjoy it more than I do because my time here is coming to an end before I know it. Matt and I have plans to do a bit of that when we finally get home together in January.

Anyway, I have a tentative schedule for them. I know that we could probably do nothing but go to the beach and shopping and they'd have a good time, especially since the weather back in Wisconsin is sub-freezing and it's over 80 here (as always). I'll keep you all posted on some of the things that we do while they're out here.

So far away

The worst part about being so far away from everyone that I care about is not being able to be there in person to help them when I need to be. It comforts me a little to know that there is still a network of people there to help you all when I'm not there, but I still feel a little guilty for being so far away. The worst part is knowing that I'll probably never live in the same state as most of you again. I have been able to talk to Matt a little over email over the past couple of days, and for the time being, our plan to move to Daytona Beach still stands. I'll be a little closer, much less of a plane ride, but still not there for day to day stuff. I'm still just a second away over the phone, though :)

Conspiracy theories

Having exposed myself to a lot of talk radio recently, I am hearing some debates about "trading our freedom" for certain forms of government protection. This prompts me to remember some of the more interesting people that I've encountered having worked in a call center. I have seen some people who are really out there. One guy was convinced that the government was using satellites to spy on him. More than one person insisted on hitting the "channel" button on their phone when giving me a credit card number because they were convinced that someone was listening in on their phone call. I even had one guy who repeatedly told me that he refused to take his medication because he thought it was a mind control thing.

I don't buy into government conspiracy theories, but even if I did, I really wouldn't care. I have nothing to hide, so I don't care if the government is watching my every move with satellites and security cameras. I guess I'm willing to trade some of my freedoms if it means a little extra protection. I think there's a lot that we probably don't know, and I prefer it that way.

Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo

I have always liked the Bloodhound Gang, which is the group that sings the song listed above. I had never really listened to the song and thought it was just another one of their weird songs, which it is. But tonight it cam up in my playlist and I realized that foxtrot, uniform, charlie and kilo are all words used in military speak to represent their respective letters. Then I realized what the song is all about - Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo. Yeah, I'm a little slow. I wonder how they slipped this one past the censors. HAHA.

In other news, I finally got a few emails from Matt tonight. It came at a good time because I've really been moping around the last few days - I've been tired all the time and just haven't been feeling well. This really helped to lift my spirits. Only 34 days until he's home.

Talk radio

Lately I have been listening to talk radio. And I actually enjoy it. I feel like I learn something that I didn't know every day. I listen to political shows, financial shows, news shows, etc. It's really quite interesting. This is a large change for me, because I used to hate talk radio. I think I just got tired of listening to the same music over and over, whether on the radio or on my computers. I am also finding that I am much more opinionated on some of the topics discussed than I would have thought.

In other news, I am patiently awaiting any type of contact from Matt. I haven't heard from him since October 12, and I'm starting to get anxious. Every time I get an email notification, I eagerly check to see if it's from him. He comes home in 38 days and I can't wait. It sure does help that my sisters are going to be here in two weeks :)

Riots

I've been reading a lot on cnn.com about the riots outside of Paris. Riots to me seem very stupid. I understand that they have a point that they want to make and that they want their voices to be heard. But at what point will they realize that destroying their cities are just leaving them worse off than they were before the rioted? I can just picture it..."Hey Pierre, do you want something from the bakery? Oh wait, we torched it yesterday."

Just my random thought for the day.

Time

When I was little, time moved very, very slowly. I couldn't wait to grow up and do the things that everyone tells you that you're not old enough yet to do. I don't ever find myself wishing that I was a kid again, because I really do enjoy being an adult (including all of the responsibility that goes along with it), but as I continue to get older, time seems to be speeding up. Sometimes I feel like I'm just rolling down a big hill and the momentum keeps gaining as I go. Of course, I want time to go quickly right now until Matt gets home, but I'm talking in more general terms. Even the last six weeks have really flown by, and I have no idea why. It seems like one day I wake up and it's Monday, then all of the sudden it's Sunday again. I have a feeling time isn't going to slow down and that I'm going to keep tumbling down that hill.

Right now I feel like my life is just on idle, waiting until Matt's out of the Navy so I can push the "pause" button again and get my career back on track. I don't regret a minute of it, though. :)