(669) Can't sleep

My sleep schedule is still screwed up. It's past midnight here and I can't fall asleep. I only got three hours of sleep last night because I had to be out the door by 7 to go on the ICR (Inter-cultural relations) field trip. I did a lot of walking around and the only thing that kept me awake was a 5hr energy drink. I didn't nap or anything, forced myself to stay up til 9. Been trying to sleep since then. I took melatonin... didn't help... I'm up to taking 3 pills of it and it's not doing anything. Thinking about going to see a doctor so I get some form of sleep.

Things I'm worried about:

• Unemployment, got a call today asking me to call them back on Wednesday during business hours about my ability to work in Naples. Um... can't really get a job here. Well, that's what I've been told. There's an employment thingy here so I will talk to them either tomorrow or Wednesday to see if I have any options.
• Not sleeping...endless cycle there
• The logistics of bring my cats here
• Getting my sojourner's permit - extends my visa. Was supposed to be done by 8 days since I got here, but it's not... not really up to me, it's up to my husband and his unit. Also doesn't help that his work is 40 mins away... we have no car yet and the bus only runs 1x a day and we've been doing the orientation/ICR stuff
• Household goods/car getting here safely and soon, living in a hotel this long without a lot of space is starting to get to me

Don't mistake this as me complaining about being here. I was just google tips on falling asleep and it said to write what your worries are. Not sure if this will help. 

(668) We are in Italy!

We arrived yesterday. I have been on base in the hotel since then recovering from the long plane trip. I hadn't slept in over 24 hours and I was exhausted. My sleep schedule is still off and I haven't adjusted to the current time.

It's so strange being in another country. Even on base, most of the workers are Italian and speak to each other in Italian when they're not talking to you. We have AFN at the hotel and all the commercials are in Italian.

I do feel a little homesick. I am missing my old life back at Ft Drum. I had a lot going on, working, volunteering, etc. I had a home with stuff in it. Now, we've been living in hotels for a while and it's getting to me. We should get housing soon because the sponsor said there was no waiting list for the type of housing we need. So any day now... We'll have to buy an air mattress or something because we wont be getting our household goods for 1-2 months or so. I just want to get settled in our new home and start a life here somehow. I am completely out of my element.

The worse thing so far is not having a data plan on my phone. I just got the new Droid 3 in December because I was due for an upgrade. Well, the phone place here couldn't take our USAA credit card for a contract, so we both have prepay phones. Not much you can do without a data plan. Especially google maps, which would've been useful for navigating here, but it looks like I'll have to buy a GPS.

I feel so out of place here. I want to feel comfortable. I want to meet people.

I hope I start enjoying this place soon!

(667) Looks like we are actually PCSing...

So much has happened. We are now using one bedroom. Our household goods and unaccompanied baggage has been picked up. On Jan 3, we clear housing and the next day we drive down to New Jersey to drop the car off. We will have the whole weekend to visit NYC (I've lived in NY my whole life and have never been). On the 9th we fly out and on the 10th, Michael reports to his new unit.

It still doesn't feel like we're moving to Italy. It feels like something is going on because most of our stuff is gone and we're sleeping on mats on the floor living out of suitcases. It just hasn't hit me that we're going to be living in Italy for 3 years. Right now we have less than 2 weeks living in the US (11 days). It's so surreal.

The one big thing that could change all this is his clearance being denied. If that happens, 1 of 2 things happens... we stay here and we get all our stuff back and I'm an irritated person or his unit gives him a temporary clearance, just for that assignment.

I just hope everything works out and in 2 weeks I am in Italy.

(666) New Years Resolutions

1. Run a 10K. This doesn't necessarily need to be an actual race, just being able to run that is good with me. I completed the Couch to 5k program a few weeks back. This year (once we get settled at our new duty station), I am going to start the Bridge to 10K program.
   
2. Read the bible. Last year I tried to do the Bible in 90 days program and didn't finish it, mostly because my husband came home from Afghanistan. I think I will try something a little less drastic that gives me more time. I think I am going to do the 1 year bible reading plan.
   
3. Lose the 15lbs I have put on this past year and get back to my normal weight. I don't know how realistic this will be since we are moving to Italy.

(663) Couch to 5k

Today, my husband and I are starting this program. It seems manageable. It is 3x a week for 9 weeks. Here's the link to the program and here's the link to the Android app. Hopefully I can stick with this... I need to do something since I don't go to zumba anymore. It seems like it'll be good because you don't start off running the whole time and that's one of the parts that I struggle with. I get discouraged when I can't run that far and then I just give up.

Has anyone done this program before? Did it work for you? Any tips?

(661) Stupid noises

I know I'm in the minority here... that seems to be the case regarding military spouse life. Whatever. Our post just started (or made louder) the noises it plays. It goes off around 7am and 10pm and it's so annoying. I'm not one for tradition and all that. I just think it's annoying. My life is inconvenienced enough by the army that adding another thing like this make me want to leave. I wasn't the only one complaining and a response on the housing page was to move off post... honestly not really a viable option for us... seeing as how we are most likely PCSing in a few months. More and more I wish we hadn't decided for Mike to reenlist.

(660) The most awkward exam ever

In order to PCS, I have to get medically screened to make sure there is nothing wrong with me that they can't handle at the new duty station. Part of that requires my last yearly girly exam. Well I thought I had one done last year but turns out it didn't count (it was because of irregular periods, so they didn't do a full exam I guess). So I had to get it done today. I HATE these exams. No matter how hard they try, the whole experience is so freakin awkward. The doctor was really helpful though.  She put me on prenatal vitamins because I'm trying to get pregnant. She asked if I wanted a prescription and I said yes, that way I didn't have to pay for them lol.

That's another thing done. Still have to wait about 10 days to get the lab results back and then I can make the appointment with EFMP person. We're still waiting to hear back from whoever regarding his clearance and we can't get orders til he gets that and we pretty much can't do much else until we get orders.... hurry up and wait...