Final Book Club

Last night was the final book club for me. It was a good meeting. We didn't spend a lot of time talking about the book though. But that was okay. It happens sometimes.

We had lots of tasty food (our hostess served these AMAZING meatballs in some kind of fig sauce) and there was a lot of conversation. I was presented with a card signed by all the ladies with a photo taken of our group at El Greco last June. It was really a nice gesture.

I borrowed a couple of books from the hostess since I lack for reading material right now. Rebecca Wells' Little Altars Everywhere and Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. I won't see her again before I leave, but I can give the books to Christine, who will give them back to her.

I came home with more food than I brought. In addition to the leftover food that I brought, I also came home with two banana chocolate chip muffins and a half dozen oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

Today is kind of a lazy day for me. Lance has the car, so I'm not going anywhere all day. I have the day off from working out. And it's not very pleasant outside. Lance is going to get home early today (he's now officially finished with work and he's supposed to be spending all his time outprocessing) in order to change into his civvies, and then we're going to the chow hall for Thanksgiving dinner.

For any of you who are traveling today for the holiday - stay safe, and HAPPY THANKSGIVING.

Bittersweet Thanksgiving Dinner

I thought I had said goodbye Teri and Jeff both last week, but as Lance and I walked toward the chow hall for our Thanksgiving dinner this evening, they were standing outside - Teri with her family and Jeff by himself (since he dropped Andrea off at the airport this morning).

He told me that Andrea read my card this morning and cried. I told her to wait until she got back from Canada. I just hope she wasn't too upset on the flight.

Anyway, we went in, handed the cashier our tickets, and got into the cafeteria line. The place was completely packed. They had some weird pate that nobody was eating, but most of it seemed like pretty standard Thanksgiving fare, except for perhaps the Beef Wellington and the salmon. Overall, the food was very good, but the pumpkin pie just wasn't right. The crust was spongy, not flaky like American pie crust. And the pumpkin was really shiny, like someone had sprayed a fine coat of lacquer on it. I kind of feel cheated out of pumpkin pie. It was good, but it wasn't real pumpkin pie. To their credit though, they served American dinner rolls (also brotchen, and I love brotchen, but I must have American dinner rolls with my Thanksgiving dinner).

We sat with Teri, her husband, their daughter, Jeff, and another officer (Lance always finds it odd that he is the only enlisted among officers at nearly every social gathering, but most of my friends here happen to be officers and/or their wives). Jeff bought a couple bottles of wine and brought wine glasses for everyone. We had a toast, and then chatted over dinner. It was the closest we could get to a big family Thanksgiving. And it was also a good way to say goodbye. I won't run into Jeff again...he leaves for Bavaria in a few days (although he vows to come to Seattle with Andrea and visit ASAP since his best friend lives in Issaquah and now we'll be there too). But we said goodbye...again. Teri is incapacitated because of her knee surgery, so if I see her again, it will probably be at Schinnen, and only if her husband brings her. Otherwise, I probably won't see her again. And I like her husband and their daughter a great deal too...just really great people with big, kind hearts. I will miss them all.

I left, satiated by dinner and the warm companionship of friends, but also feeling very sad.

Tomorrow won't be any better. The family is gathering in Findlay, and we're not there. And it won't feel like Thanksgiving here. I don't have the tools to even cook a turkey (nor do I particularly want to, having had 2 turkey dinners in the past 2 weeks)...I'm just doing a big pot of meatballs/L'il Smokies, a cheese plate, crescent rolls, pumpkin bread and apple pie a la mode. I can't even watch the Macy's parade this year. Mostly, I just feel lonely, bored and sad.

Christy called me today, which was nice. But I felt bad, because I told her last week I would call and it completely slipped my mind. We have plans to meet up for dinner a few nights before Lance and I leave. Her family will be leaving too, just a week or so after we leave. So we'll have the chance to say goodbye to them, although I suspect we'll see them again too, because they have family around Seattle. Everyone knows someone there, it seems.

I have plans on Friday for lunch. On the 28th, I go to Aachen with Christine and Ruth. A few days after that, they'll be doing something with me to send me off to my new life (it's all very hush-hush...not a peep from them about the plans). Each passing second brings us closer to Seattle.

This all feels very deja-vu. I believe my posts were quite similar when I was about to leave Ohio to move here. Four years ago. God...it boggles the mind.