A long Strange Trip

Three countries, and a 22 hour plane ride later, I now find myself back in the U.S. The late Jerry Garcia's words, "What a long strange trip it's been," come to mind as I continue to adjust and figure out what the hell happened over the past six months and what lies ahead from here. I still haven't quite made it back to Seattle so I really do not feel like I am "home" yet. I am spending a couple more days than I would prefer at Ft. Bliss in El Paso Texas due to stateside nonsense and inability of DoD civilians to do their job competently. It seems like once again the jacked upness of the WTF reached the across the banks of the Persian Gulf and Atlantic Ocean and spread to Ft. Bliss. The good news about being here for a couple of days is my ability to begin my alcohol reintegration training in haste. I have been able to enjoy an El Paso trade mark margarita or two at a place called Carlos and Mickey's. I am also enjoying the little things such as the smell of freshly cut grass, trees, and the high desert mountains of the Southwest and not being insanely hot. There was actually rain when I arrived. Although I am still not quite home yet, I know how great it feels to be back in the greatest country on earth. I am still not quite used to the change of pace. I compare re-deployment (military speak for leaving combat) to jumping off a freight train at full speed. I worked often from 10am to 10pm with half days on Fridays. It was Ground Hog Day for six months. It is wierd watching television, being able to eat when I choose to rather than having to go between 11:30-13:30 and 17:30-21:00. It is nice to have options once again, but it is different nonetheless. The one thing that will complete this long strange trip is seeing my family, the Seattle Space Needle, the Olympic Mountains with their reflection glistening off the Puget Sound and flying next to the snow capped top of Mt. Rainer. I can't wait.