Gospel groove

I am now medically cleared for Kosovo, which is exactly what I expected. I'm trying to eat the way I'm supposed to, and for the most part, it's working out.


Sunday was my best day since I came here. I decided to be a little adventurous with my church going, so I went to the gospel service at the post chapel. No one wanted to come with me for some reason. When I got there, I realized that caucasians were a definite minority. I expected that. But the civilian ministry team from Calvary Baptist Church was so welcoming. The minister had a deep, DEEP voice, and you could hear him over everyone in the church when he sang. The piano player had some mad skills on the keys, but his voice was beautiful too. Surprisingly, I knew most of the songs we sang. The only difference is that in this service the songs had a groove to them. And they clap and say their "Amens" like the best of 'em. I have not had that much fun at a worship service in a time. It was exactly what I needed. I'd love to bring this experience back to my home church someday.

Hello from Camp Atterbury

Well, I finally made it to my mobilization station. It has been one crazy adventure since we landed last Friday. Our one advantage is that we had so many of our inprocessing requirements done months before we left. Most of the stations we went to only required a signature or a validation that we had already done the paperwork. I was happy to find out that I had all of my required shots done, except for the mandatory TB test and blood draw for HIV. Oh, and I almost forgot that every female had to have a pregnancy test done. At least I knew what the results were going to be...

I should probably note that I had my blood drawn more than once because I've had a medical issue that has gotten worse since I came here. The Army is concerned about my low energy/dizziness/possible low blood sugar problem. I had to go in for more testing earlier in the week, and the TMC doctor thought of every problem under the sun, except for what was actually wrong. He referred me to what they call "case management," the people in charge of making the decision on whether a person's medical issues make them nondeployable. Scary stuff. After a half hour of troubleshooting with a lieutenant colonel, we finally came to a decision that I'm hypoglycemic. He probably subconsciously thought I was anorexic as well because he told me I don't know how much a Soldier needs to eat. Therefore, I'm on a sort of probationary period where I had to follow his guidelines, get more blood drawn, and have a follow-up meeting at the end of the week. I will hopefully convince him that I will be just fine now that I know what's wrong, and then we will agree that the first doctor completely overreacted.

In the meantime, my team has me under constant supervision. My boss put me on a vitamin regimen - One a Day Maximum multivitamin in the morning and a B complex supplement after lunch. Everyone else is watching me like a hawk, often with food in hand whenever I seem to be having a low period. Things are improving little by little, so hopefully I will be my energetic self very soon.

Despite the health "crisis," I'm adjusting to Camp Atterbury life better than I thought. The place isn't as bad as a lot of people told us it would be. Of course, we North Dakotans are struggling to deal with the heat and humidity. But our barracks cancel out the heat with frigid air conditioning. We actually have to go outside to warm up. I'm glad I brought my great grandmother's quilt to keep me warm in the middle of summer.

How many trips to Wal-Mart does it take to get to Kosovo?

And the answer: Four so far. Over the past couple of days, I have made too many trips to local businesses, making those last-minute purchases before I leave. It occurred to me while I was purchasing my ugly white PT socks that there are a lot of people in North Dakota who are making similar purchases. As I thought of this, I saw a military guy carrying the same kind of ugly PT socks. Well, his haircut tipped him off as a Soldier. His frantic facial expression also gave it away. People who have traveled or dealt with the first year of college dorm life know that look. It's a look of desperation, expressing a sincere desire to not come back to Wal-Mart, but knowing the probability of returning. Poor guy. He looked like he had been there too many times already.

Lucky for we 700 North Dakotans who have been spending too much money at Wal-Mart, we are out of time. The time has come to do what we've been preparing for. I feel relieved. I have grown tired of goodbyes, drained of all possible emotion. I've contemplated what might happen while I'm over there, but I'm ready to just jump in and see what happens.

I will still make a trip to Wal-Mart before it's all said and done. I forgot toothpaste. And a fingernail clipper. Bummer. I guess that makes it five. Did I mention there's a Wal-Mart near Camp Atterbury?

Three duffel bags

I pulled all of the remaining Army gear out of my locker at the armory a couple days ago. I dragged the two duffel bags and rucksack downstairs, placed them in my newly-designated military corner. I sat against the wall to catch my breath for a bit. (I'm not quite in deployment shape yet.) The gear called my name, begged me to empty the contents of my bags and inspect the gear. I can't help it. I'm a trained Soldier who has been brainwashed to take care of my equipment. Some of the stuff, like my gas mask, hasn't been properly maintained since annual training in May. Other gear is newly issued, equally deserving of my attention. So I sat there in my military corner with a rag, a couple of screwdrivers, and my iPod, maintaining the equipment designed to get me through the next year.

When I was first issued my field gear, I almost laughed at how useless it was. I couldn't imagine having a need for a gas mask for anything other than weapons qualification. My first aid kit was just a toy. Things are a little different now. My gear deserves my time. All of the tags and plastic wrapping came off my cold weather gear out of necessity when I worked during the flood. Now my other gear is experiencing the same attention. Things are definitely changing.

Stranger yet is my current life perspective. I think of things in terms of the three duffel bags I am taking with me. My mind is constantly trained on finding a way to bring my entire life with me in these three duffel bags, both literally and figuratively. Of course, I'm realizing as I go that some things will have to be left behind until I return. I can't pack my dogs in a duffel bag, and there is no way to pack my favorite tea bar or coffee shop. But I plan to bring photos of my dogs and a few bags of my favorite tea, with hope that someone will help me replenish my stock along the way.

Welcome

This is my blog. A porthole into my own life from now until I come back from Kosovo. I hope that it will keep everyone back home informed about what is going on in my life while I'm overseas. I also hope that blogging will give me an opportunity to use my journalism skills. Maybe this is a lot to ask of a blog. Maybe not. I am just figuring out how to use this means of communication, so bear with me. I haven't quite defined clear objectives for this adventure. What with operational security considerations and my "shy writer" personality, writing for an audience will take some getting used to. But if you are ready, here we go...