Back in GTMO and loving it

So I have been off island and off line for the past week, well really six days...what an adventure.

First and foremost---Coming here to Gtmo from Norfolk was a breeze. This is of course when we finally got to follow Alan here in Aug. The flight rocked, we had not one but two hot meals on the plane. Not a bump, not so much as an unexpected drop in pressure. Nothing. Coming to the US this time freakin' sucked butt. Not only did we not get a meal, the snacks were awful. The stewards had no ice and only a few things of water to offer us. The actual flight was rocky and bumpy and nauseating. SUCKED. I was so freakin' glad to land.
Maegan and I got to Norfolk at 8PM and promptly jumped off the plane into cold weather. Not to worry though, I had packed us jackets in preparation. What ensued were three chaotic days of doctors appointments and a visit to the lab, where they sucked 15 tubes of blood out of me, shopping, taking things back, shopping again, oh and have I mentioned shopping. I made a total of 9 trips back and forth to Walmart and one trip to Lowes. I wasn't very successful in any of my shopping as you are sure to tell by my frequent trips back and forth. I did however manage to get just about everything on my list and what I didn't get I was able to order online. YIPPEE. That means that both Maegan and Madie have birthday gifts and I did a tentative scout of Christmas gifts.

I was also able to go out with Peyton and Courtney for my birthday and I had a great time. Then it was all over before I knew it and I needed to head back to Gtmo. Now what I have failed to mention was my astonishment at life in the US and our existence here in the land of OZ. On Wed morning I had to be in Portsmouth for my doctors appointment. When I lived in the real world driving to Portsmouth, while taking about 45 min. was no big deal. So I thought nothing of jumping into Peyton's SUV and heading to yonder hospital. Can I just tell you, MY GOD PEOPLE SPEED!!!! I came to the intersection that leads out of the neighborhood and I couldn't go anywhere. There were thousands of people zooming past me at what seemed like 1000 mph. I was floored. I have only been gone for two months, but HOLY CRAP. I managed to make it across the median and into the flow of traffic, but to say I was going slow would be the understatement of the year. These crazy ass drivers were zooming and flying by me at warp speed. Something like 45 mph, compared to my 20. I did finally manage to get up to speed only to be waylaid by the interstate. The interstate, I loved the interstate. Fast, quick, got you to your destination in great time. I got onto the entrance ramp and all I could think of was the fact that my lovely interstate highway was designed by the devil himself for I had driven into the depths of hell. Lights, horns, zooming cars. I was a bit scared to say the least. But again I did the impossible. Not only did I manage to get onto the interstate, but I managed to get in the "fast" lane and even get the SUV to a whopping 60mph. For all my non-VA friends, the speed limit there is 55mph. What I used to think of as crawling. However, after I got done with the doctor I jumped into the car and it was like I had never left. Amazing.

This is the other thing I observed. People in general are not only rude, and standoffish, but they are in a huge hurry to get to THERE. Wherever that may be, they just got to get there NOW. Well it seemed like everything was expected immediately. Our meal at the restaurant, the lights changing, the lady checking at Walmart. If for one millisecond you take what is perceived as too long, you get the go to hell looks, the roll of the eyes the "geeze lady" looks.

Not so in GTMO. We are a small island, the people here go SLOW. Dinner at the Windjammer could take as long as thirty or forty minutes to appear at your table. Hell it could take your waitress twenty minutes just to get to you table. Not because they are busy, just because. The speed limit is 25mph. Period, sometimes it is even 15mph in the school and hospital zones. You are expected to greet your cashiers, ask them how their day is, tip them. Holding the door open for ten people is NORMAL and EXPECTED. Finding a toy, iPod, or wallet means you make an announcement on the roller and email everyone you know so that the word is out that someone on the island has found your thing. It won't be broken, or empty! People wave as they drive by, slow down when you ride your bike, pull over for the police/EMT/Fire on both sides of the road. Church is on Sundays and Wed evenings-nothing else happens. Am I extolling the virtues of GTMO, I sure as hell am, GTMO and all the other small rural communities out there that have not forgotten that we are all human, going through the same struggles in life and we are here to help each other. So I say to all of you, when you get the chance, STOP!!! Take a breather. Wave at the lady doing her yard work, ask the Walmart lady how her day is. Just slow down. It make a world of difference to your life.

I did love being back in the states, but I really couldn't wait to get home to the hot humid tropics and see my husband and kids. I will tell you our flight out of the US was so much better. Peyton and Noa took us up to DC where we had a chance to go the zoo, and see Spencer, Nohad and Gerald. It was a great day, and then Peyton and I headed up to Baltimore, where I once again got us lost. But we made it to the hotel and off to bed. Maegan and I woke at 2:45AM and got our butts to the airport for our 3:30AM check in. The flight was better, like I said, but still no real meals. We did get sandwiches and chips though, which is far better than the Delta flight coming into the US. The flight out was Continental. So far Miami Air has been the best though.

So now I am home and back to meetings, and soccer and homework and dinner as a family every night. Know that I love you all and wish you well....