What’s in Dad’s care package
Submitted by Debra Legg on Sunday, 11 July 2010
2 Comments
Dad claims he can't get to sleep without background noise, though snoring must qualify or else he would have been in a worse-than-normal state of chronic deprivation during basic training.
It's led to many marital disputes over the years, because I like dead quiet and pitch darkness. We finally worked out a compromise: The TV stays on until he dozes off, then I get to turn it off. Since I always fall asleep last because the dang TV keeps me awake, it works.
It doesn't work so well in Afghanistan, where plywood partitions divide rooms and any music or computer can easily keep the guy next "door" awake. So Dad's relied on the cheap set of head phones he bought before he left. They cost less than $10, so I was surprised that they'd lasted as long as they did.
He couldn't find even a cheap replacement set on his base, so this week we sent him a new one. A nice set, with a microphone that's gone a long way toward solving our Skype audio problems as well. I'm sure they've also kept peace among his fellow soldiers, who likely aren't as willing as I am to sneak up and turn off the noise after he falls asleep.
The rest of the package:
Mike & Ike and JuJu Fruits: I don't know if Dad's ever eaten these in his life, but they guys picked out theater-size boxes at the commissary.
Planter's Pistachio Lovers Mix: Dad's definitely a pistachio lover, so this 21-ounce can should keep him happy for a few days at least.
StarKist Creations: Two packs of plain tuna. Unlike the Bumblebee and StarKist packages we've been sending, the packaging is more compact in part because it doesn't come with crackers. I'm not sure if he's going to like it as well, though, it's packed in water instead of oil. We'll see!
Paydays: Two bars to fulfill the weekly Recommended Dad Allowance.
Copyright 2010 Debra Legg. All rights reserved.
Debbie, Ryan is supposed to leave in about 10 days now. Will he get a new APO? He is so tired all he can tell us is that anything we send him now will be forwarded and then he’ll let us know what his new address is when he knows what it will be…and this is the most frustrating deployment. He has been ‘about to get on the plane’ for two weeks now…driving me CRAZY.
They’re ALL like that, Leslie. Dad was “about to get on a plane” for two months! I think the Army invented “hurry up and wait.”
Leave a comment!
Food »
Egg-free blueberry coffee cake
I know I have a blueberry coffee cake recipe … um, somewhere. Where the heck did it go? Aw, never mind. I’ll just Google.
I’m glad I did, because the new one I conjured up went …
Girl Gone Wonk »
Let’s keep hating on health care through November
A couple of salient points in the hoo-ha coming today from those who lost the health care fight:
Not all Americans hate the new law. More people think it will help than think it will hurt. …
Health »
No, the government can’t limit your salt. But you should
Calm down, folks. Uncle Sam isn’t going to bang in your door and confiscate your salt shaker. Though it’s really not a bad idea.
According to a very poorly phrased Rasmussen poll, 55 percent of the …
News »
The legacy of Robert C. Byrd
It was more than 20 years ago when I met U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, but I recall two things vividly about that day.
The first was how ill at ease he appeared at what was …
Reviews »
YouTube safety mode is nothing special
It’s ironic that Google rolled out Safety Mode parental controls for YouTube in the same week that it made gmail unsafe for some folks in its careless rollout of Buzz.
Some of the early things I’d …
School days »
Big boys ride the bus
He trundled to the bus stop less than a football field’s length from our back door, waddling slightly from the balk of a backpack a tad to big for him. He clutched a sheath of …
By the way
08/18/2009 | 1:34 pm
Sometimes life is all about timing. There’s a chance the soldier took his protective goggles off briefly during training in The Box – 1,000 barren square miles at Fort Irwin where soldiers prepare for desert warfare. Then ...
07/24/2009 | 9:47 pm
So there I was last month, stressing until 2 in the morning over Dad’s “welcome home” cake, worried that it would be ugly or dry or have the wrong color stars. Silly, silly girl. If I’d ...
06/12/2009 | 12:05 pm
I’m kind of frustrated this morning because I don’t have girls. I don’t even know any girls young enough to appreciate this. But if I did, I’d be all over the tutu tutorial – say that ...
05/30/2009 | 8:17 am
Poor Boots. He wakes up every morning chirping with the birds and with a cheery greeting. “It’s a beautiful day!” Somewhere along the line, though, the grind of the world beats the beauty out of it ...
05/21/2009 | 11:18 pm
On one level, it’s simple: When you’re about to fall, just let go and fall. Trying to stop the tumble or, even worse, flailing your arms and legs as you land will make it worse. Somewhere ...
05/20/2009 | 9:03 pm
05/20/2009 | 10:18 am
This one landed in my Twitter stream just as Boots was diving into a bowl of … Cocoa Puffs: “New peanut flour warning for General Mills cereals.” Luckily, he’s not the child who’s allergic and Big ...
05/19/2009 | 12:56 am
From the country that wants to censor the Internet worldwide in the name of protecting its children comes another bizarre project, also in the name of “protecting children” The British have launched a database, at a ...
05/18/2009 | 11:38 pm
Do I ever feel like a dolt after my post last night lamenting the difficulties of finding dye-free snow-cone syrups. I went to a Middle Eastern market today to pick up some hummus ingredients and ran ...
05/16/2009 | 8:16 pm
05/15/2009 | 10:15 pm
Six hundred and eight three killed in Afghanistan. Four thousand, two hundred and ninety six killed in Iraq. Many stories of incredible lives, often amazing sacrifices. This is one such story. Army Maj. Steven Hutchison survived two ...
To subscribe