throwback to deployment

I fell off the bandwagon as far as posting deployment updates, partially because I didn't want to violate OPSEC or PERSEC, partially because I was really busy and never made time for the blog, and partially because some things were just really private. But, now one of my classmates (or former classmates, I guess, which is really sad when I think about it) is about to experience deployment and I thought I would brush up on my experiences of the year. I jotted down some notes from time to time, so here are my (mostly) exact words. I also wrote about how I felt the night he told me that he would be deploying, and our thoughts later, and things becoming real (and you know it's really real if I'm at an FRG meeting--I haven't attended one in almost two years).

about 5 months before deployment
He snores a lot. It's annoying now, but it'll be too quiet in a few months.

about 4 months before deployment (Alan was in the field)
Day one of not seeing Alan for over 16 hours. Good deployment practice and I managed the dogs, house, and [foster] kids by myself.

about 1 month before deployment (1:29 a.m.)
I'm not at all tired ... and now, due to the extra time spent awake, I'm devastated about Alan leaving for a year. I'm so sad that we'll be apart. That's a huge portion of life that we'll miss together. I don't want him to go. I just want to hold on to him forever.

about 3 weeks before deployment
"That's what you need to show the cops when you get pulled over."
[Alan pulled out the insurance and registration in the Jeep.]

about 2 weeks before deployment
I was about to start creating a grocery list on an app so it would appear on both Alan's and my phones. Then I realized that the next time I go shopping, I'll do it alone.