If you ask a guy

You know the challenge of sending your favorite guy, the one you love, the one you married, to the grocery store? You give him a list of the items that are needed for the next time period. You ask him not to bring home junk. You try and make your elf not think about him lose with all those temptations. And, finally, you hope that dinner tonight will be something other than beer and crisps.

He comes home. Unloads the car and carries in his trophies like he had gotten all the food from scratch with his bare hands. As the bags mount up, your tensions rise.

He starts unloading the bags and you start to shake. Out come all these interesting items, most of which are only marginally food. Of those food items, unfavorite vegetables and fruits are conspicuously absent. Oh well, you think, I can probably do something with three bags of apples.

At the end, he is pleased with his trophies while you are only marginally holding on to your sanity. No cereal, no eggs, no milk, no bread. But three kinds of olives, four salsas and other condiments in gleaming jars proudly stand on the counter.

There is a parallel in the deployment world. Do not ask your spouse, your loving, kind-hearted non-military spouse to mail you critical military items. Instructions in writing which would make perfect sense to a service member are thicker than a brick to a civilian.

Please – go into the studio. Look in my green flight bag. I need the socks, t-shirts and sports bras. There is also a pair of tan desert boots that look expensive and are close to brand new. I think they are in the studio or bedroom. Can you mail those to me?

Wednesday I received two packages in the mail, both mailed on Saturday. Delivery time from Germany via MPS is quite good. One box was the one I had packed and left in the dining room to be sent the week I left for Ft Benning (that was 12 Sept). The other was huge. More than 24x24x24. In it was the green flight bag.

I pulled out the clothing items I needed and the bag of toiletries I had requested. I found another box and packed in all the ACUs, trash and the MRE which had made the trip. The ACUs are not friend/foe tagged nor are they fire resistant and can’t be worn in this theater.

And then there are the boots. My Norwegian Army boots from 1998, which I have been intending to get re-soled since ½ of one heel is missing. Since the soles are black, they don’t look anything like US desert boots.

Two boxes here, three boxes to return so that none are uncomfortably heavy. Total weight staying in theater? Under 2 kg and immeasureable love.

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2 Responses to If you ask a guy

  1. Angeluna says:

    Funny, and probably rather typical. How does this beloved man manage on his own? Had to look up ACU.

    Hope you get your desert boots next time.

  2. Cat says:

    The male of the species can be adorable (witness my father) but they do not listen…they just think they do.

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