Kathleen - military stuff

[Guest guest]

Kathleen,

Doing okay, actually, though not too happy that flyboy in Bend, Oregon has

been complaining about never hearing back from me....lol! He sends me a

funny picture or a neat cartoon addressed to " Undisclosed recepient " and

then wants to know why I don't write back to him? My goodness, doesn't he

realize that with an address like that he makes me feel like I'm just one of a

million? Hrumph!

At least Jerry puts my real name on his emails.......he gets more feedback that

way, too!!

How are you doing, Kathleen? After marrying two flyboys, and having two

sons who also went AF, you probably don't have much respect for my choice

of military companions, being as you were in the REAL military....lol! Does it

help my status any that my oldest and dearest brother was Army, also? And

he went in back when " The Draft " was the fear of every highschool senior or

failing college student, by going into Army ROTC during college. Vietnam

was in full swing then and he lost several of his school chums in the war.

Being multi-lingual, he lucked out and was sent to Intellegence in Germany. I

was working as the secretary to a retired Army Full Bird at the time, who liked

me well enough to offer to pull some strings on my brother's behalf. When my

brother gots his orders for Germany, instead of 'Nam, I always wondered

whether it was luck or by other means. I blame the Army for sending him over

there, though, because he never came back to the states, except to visit, since

his assignment there back in the early 70's.

We are all still trying to adjust to 's Iraq assignment. My husband is

still

angry and wants to write an appeal, but won't allow it. Knowing that

has a hernia already and is scheduled for an MRI to look at a cyst in a

very private area of his private areas, (ahem), that was just discovered, I am

not happy about him going where the medical care is sub-standard. I know

that they would just whisk him up to Rhinemein if something happened

requiring hospitalization, but even so, I wouldn't be able to be there if they

did.

And Austin just suffers silently, with an occasional question to me about why?

We just found out that he will be coming home the third week in August on a

four day pass to say goodbye, so we're looking forward to that and plan to

have all the rest of our " kids " here at the same time to sent him off well. It

will

also be his 33rd birthday, so we'll celebrate that, and an early Christmas.

I don't know why I'm telling you all of this, but being as you're prior

military, I

guess you understand better than many do what it's all about. When my

husband got out of the AF in '88 I never dreamed that my children would ever

go that route, but they were only 15 and 12 then, so you just never do know

these things until they tell you.

I've forgotten where you live now. Are you anywhere close to a military base,

and do you ever get to fratenize with your former miitary friends? Did you get

CP while you were in service? My son, Rob, was dx'd. with epilepsy during

his second year in service and they gave him an immediate medical

discharge. I was wondering how they would treat a cp patient, since that

condition isn't as definitive like epilepsy is......

With love, hope and prayers,

Heidi

Heidi H. Griffeth

SC Rep

SE Regional Rep

PAI

Note: All comments or advice are based on personal experience or opinion

only, and should not be substituted for consultation with your medical

professional.

PS- you asked such a simple question, yet got such a long answer. Ask

anyone who knows me, I am not a woman of few words.......lol!