Living it up in Korea

Just thought you might like to see how Cliff and his friends are living in the lap of luxury on this trip. Nothing but the best for my sweetie.

I could tell you all kinds of funny stories about tents collapsing under the weight of the snow, inadequate space heaters, etc. (Apparently someone didn't know space heaters have limits. With that logic, you could just put the thing outside and heat all of Asia, right?) But I won't. That which doesn't kill you only makes you stronger, right?

Friday...The Good...The Bad...The Awesome...and The Suckish

Let's start with the suckish, shall we? Suckish=1:30 AM musters for 6:30 flights. Seriously?



Put your hips into it, honey. Isn't it sweet that Jake wanted to be woken up to take Dad to the drop-off point? I thought it was. We dropped him off and went back to bed. At least we had that luxury...it was going to be a long day+ for Cliff.



Good=Kids headed out for a night of branch youth conference, including sleeping on tatami mats and climbing on poles and ropes.

Bad=Patrick having to miss out because it's the performance weekend for his musical.



Good=Just Troy and I getting an opportunity to spend time together. I offered to take him to dinner, since it was just the two of us. He chose Tony's, since he'd never been. We hadn't actually taken any of the kids there yet. It's just been our date night thing. This is just to show you that although I always get the same thing, there are other things on the menu. Especially if you like Spam.



Which Troy does. I do not. This is a Hawaiian omelet. It had spam and pieces of cream cheese in it. And Kimchee on the side, with the obligatory scoop of macaroni salad and a bonus Spam riceball. Would that be Spamnigiri? Anyway, he said it was great.



Good=Garlic shrimp twice in the same week. I think this makes up for the less than awesome birthday, actually.



Awesome=Patrick on stage. This was his first musical. We are going to see it tomorrow...and I will tell you all about it.

Flashback Friday...National Park Tour

Don't you just love a good road trip? This was June 2003. Cliff had just barely returned from his first tour in Iraq (as in, we didn't know if he'd even make the trip) and we went to my brother's wedding in Wyoming. We decided that while we were in that neck of the woods we'd better take advantage and see some sites. Cliff loves nature and national parks, so it was a perfect opportunity.

This also happened to be Cliff's "Golden Week" of birthday, Father's Day and our anniversary. As a matter of fact, Cliff's birthday fell on Father's Day (as it does from time to time). It was the day after the wedding, and we were trying to make it to Mt. Rushmore that night. Turns out, we were trying a little too hard and Cliff got pulled over for speeding just as we got into South Dakota.

Remember, we went right from Cliff's homecoming to packing and leaving for this trip. The van was still painted with red, white and blue window-chalked messages of "We love you, Daddy" and "Welcome Home...Our Daddy Our Hero", etc. If you look closely at the picture above, you can see some of it. (Trivia: That stuff STICKS. I kid you not, 5 1/2 years later, when our van was going to a new home, we were STILL finding little streaks of red or blue chalk.)

So back to the cop. He sees all this writing and asks what it's all about. Cliff told him he'd returned from Iraq less than a week ago and we had just been to a wedding and were headed to Mt. Rushmore. He took Cliff's license back to his car and came back a few minutes later and said, "In light of your service to our country, AND the fact that it's Father's Day AND your birthday, ("How did he know that? Oh yeah...duh! The license.") I'm going to let you go. Slow down.



We took SO many pictures...and these were not digital, either. (We didn't join the digital age until after Cliff returned from his second tour in Iraq the following year.) Rather than include a bunch of bad pictures, I just chose a few of my favorites and/or ones that tell a story. I have no idea where we were in the above picture of Troy. Could have been Mt. Rushmore, Devil's Tower, Yellowstone or Grand Teton. I just love the picture. He had just finished 5th grade and life was pretty uncomplicated.



OK, I know you can barely see us...but there are only like 3 pictures of me the whole trip...and this is the clearest one. At least proof that I was there.



Probably the thing the kids remember most about every stop we made...the dreaded "Jr. Ranger" program! We had just made the decision to start homeschooling...so I was a little hyper-vigilant in the education department and insisted they participate in the Jr. Ranger program at every stop. Each time they did, they earned a sweet little badge or patch. I would have LOVED this as a kid. I don't know what their problem was. (I think it's so funny that Patrick is seen chatting up the lady ranger in this picture. He's always been...Patrick.)



This was taken at a night time, patriotic program and flag ceremony. It was beautiful. Before they went into the closing song, they asked for any military members to stay after and come forward to help retire the colors. The program ended with the National Anthem, for which we stood (of course). As soon as it ended, the large crowd started to pour up the aisles and out of the amphitheater, but we remained standing, waiting for a clear path to head down and help with the flag (without having to swim up stream). Only...this little boy in the red jacket didn't get the memo. He saw a crowd, and just followed. It only took moments for him to disappear and us to realize he was gone. Talk about panic! A 4-1/2 year old boy lost at Mt. Rushmore in June! We pushed through the crowds, yelling, attracting as much attention as possible...accosting rangers as we went, who went into action with their radios, alerting everyone to be on the look-out for a blonde boy in a red jacket. I don't know how long it took, but we got word he had been found upstairs (he had even followed the crowd into an elevator!) by a lovely snowbird couple. To this day, Jake insists we are the ones who left him...not the other way around.



This is definitely Yellowstone. If you've been there, you'll recognize the geo-thermal activity going on in the background. You'll also remember the lovely, sulpher smell! (Trivia: A few months later, we were watching some of the videos from this trip. As SOON as these steam/boiling mud shots came on the screen...Jake reached up and plugged his nose. Like it was smell-o-vision or something!)

The entire trip was awesome (even though we tent-camped through the whole thing) and I would recommend it to anyone...but you'll need longer than you think, especially at Mt. Rushmore. It is incredible! It was especially timely and our feelings were especially tender, given what Cliff had just been through. (I would have even gone sans air mattress if that's what I needed to do for him to have this trip...and that's saying something!)



The End.

Cliff Canvases Korea

Finally...the post you have all been waiting for...(OK, the post I'VE been waiting for...so I can clear out this backlog of other posts I have in the cue!) I finally got Cliff to sit down with me and pick some pics from his Korea trip and tell me about them. The words here are my own (have to protect the innocent).


The Marine Corps always travels in the lap of luxury. Starting with a 0400 flight in a KC-130J. Pretty posh, no? It was about a 3 hour flight, so not bad.

Cliff was in Korea for about a month as part of an exercise. They got a chance to go out for liberty on the weekends. Sometimes they had stuff arranged for them to participate in, but sometimes they were on their own. Between the other Chaplains and RPs (Chaplain Assistants) he was there with...and the other guys in his Marine unit, he always managed to find company. (Hey, can he help it? If I was there, I'd want to hang out with him, too!)



This particular liberty, he was riding the train into Seoul with some other chaplains and doctors (Navy has to stick together sometimes, right?)



They went to the top of the N Seoul Tower and took a look around.



This is what they saw.



Cliff can't remember for sure, but thinks this is a Buddhist priest (as opposed to Judas Priest? I am so going to hell. Wait...do Buddhists believe in hell?). Anyway, Cliff said he was very nice, he spoke some English and has a brother in California. I said, "Near Anaheim, maybe?" It took Cliff a minute, but I earned a chuckle/eye-roll combo. (Yes, I'm headed to hell for sure...just reserve my non-stop ticket on the bullet train...)



They spent some time shopping, as well. Cliff brought home a very lovely amethyst pendant for moi. They specialize in amethyst in Korea. I like this place already.



Had to share some Engrish. What does one have to do to be an influential force in the vinyl toy world? ("I am a force to be reckoned with! {in the vinyl toy world, that is}")



I would LOVE to go around the world collecting pictures of mannequins. It is SO interesting to see each culture's take on the mannequin. ("Hmmm...we need to make our mannequins appealing and inviting...something people could see themselves in..." "OH, I know! How about Satan in his underwear?")



They got snow a couple of times during the trip...which was a pretty sharp contrast to the balmy breezes in paradise I was experiencing here in March.



This was another liberty trip. This one was an organized event put on by the Korea-America Friendship Society. This statue really defies description for me, so just click, enlarge and enjoy. This was outside the cultural hall where the event was held.



This was Cliff's favorite act. There were other singers and dancers, including some famous Korean opera stars.



Lunch was served as part of the tour.



Looks very yummy. Cliff says it's called Bulgogi, meaning thin slices of marinated sirloin beef you grill yourself and add veggies and noodles.



The Korean forces base parking lot. Not kidding.
(I've seen similar lots in Tokyo, too... and an indoor bike garage a block long.)



And once again, first class accommodations headed home. This picture makes me smile. Not just because of the gorgeous guy in the middle...but I know both of these guys Cliff is seated with, and they (and their wives) are some of our dearest friends here. We are so lucky to be surrounded by great people. Marines rock!

Another Award for the Cliffinator

Cliff was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for the work he did on his last deployment.

I'm sure most of the twelve of you who follow this blog are already aware...but Cliff spent six months of last year in Kuwait overseeing the dignified transfer of remains of US and allied forces, active duty and civilian, for Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to supervising both the mortuary affairs teams, he was also the Officer in Charge of the Marine detachment, and was responsible for tracking and ministering to all the Marine patients at the hospital on the base. He was the only Chaplain, so he was busy all the time, mostly surviving on a naps-worth of sleep. He participated in 200+ ramp ceremonies, day and night, to assure every fallen angel received honor and respect every step of their journey home.

We are (of course) very proud of his service ALL the time...but especially proud of this opportunity he had to serve. He said it was a million dollar experience he wouldn't have paid a dollar for...and I can see why. There is a reason the job only lasts six months. It's a lot for one person to handle, emotionally and physically.

Anyway, we don't always go in for his awards (the fifth Navy Commendation Medal kind of lost its luster...just sayin') but this one, we got all dressed up to see. Here are some photos of the day:

Don't they look excited to be here?

Call to attention...

While the citation is read...

And everyone listens intently...

And the Colonel adds words of his own...

And then Cliff gets to speak, too...and makes me cry a little...partly because of the sweet things he said, partly because of the memories it drudged up.

Jake's getting too tall...we're going to have to rethink our standard formation.

Oh, how I love that man!

Congratulations, Sweetie...well deserved!

Flashback Friday...Decade in Review

2010!?

Where have the years gone?! Join me here for a recap of the last 10...

2009-Our kids went back to public school, Cliff deployed to Kuwait, we sold our first home, Cliff was promoted to LCDR and we completed our first year on Okinawa. Troy started football, Patrick started JROTC and cross-country and both of them started wrestling.

2008-Cliff was selected as the Miltary Chaplain Association's "Navy Chaplain of the Year". He and I flew to So. Carolina for the ceremony. We found out we got orders to Okinawa. Troy started taking college classes. I traveled to Vincennes, Indiana for Site Directors' Conference. We put our beloved home on the market. Troy turned 16 and got his drivers license. Cliff left for Okinawa over Thanksgiving weekend...the rest of us followed right before Christmas.

2007-I started a part time job on the base as the Site Director for the college there. LOTS of stress, LOTS of responsibility, sometimes full time hours...not much pay. Learned a TON and felt great about helping Sailors get their associate degrees. We adopted Charlotte the cat. Continued to LOVE living in our new home. We also continued to LOVE shore duty as Cliff stayed close to home. Cliff started teaching at the college as adjunct faculty (psych and speech) and I resumed taking classes.

2006-Cliff reported to NAF El Centro as Base Chaplain and we started out our new lives as trailer trash. We learned we didn't need much to be happy. We slept in the trailer, did wash in the trailer park laundry room, held school in an unused classroom in the base chapel, either ate dinner in the trailer or the chaplain's office kitchen and watched TV in the meeting area outside Cliff's office. We loved our time in "Mayberry" where everything was within walking distance. Sold the trailer in July and moved into a furnished 2 bedroom apt. on the base for the last 2 months when we couldn't take the heat anymore. Cliff turned 40! We finally moved into our first home. Jake was baptized!

2005-Coree was Baptized! We had to move houses...just within our neighborhood as they were gutting all the houses and remodeling them. We were the last ones to move into a new house. We bought new furniture and fixed it up nice as we thought we would be there another 4 years. Cliff had orders to the Naval Hospital in San Diego. That summer we were "asked" to "prayerfully consider" orders to NAF El Centro instead. We took those orders and bought our first home there without even seeing more than a floorplan on paper. Jake started homeschooling in the fall. We moved out of our house right after Thanksgiving and spent the month of December traveling to visit family. We moved into our new RV home at the NAF El Centro trailer park (while we waited for our home to be built the following summer) on December 30th.

2004-Cliff deployed to Iraq again...in February again! He was there 7 months this time. Jake and Coree went back to public school for the last half of the school year. Coree decided she liked homeschool better, so she returned home for the fall semester. Jake stayed on for another year.

2003-Cliff changed duty stations...this time with the Marines. He checked in in February and within 3 weeks was in Kuwait ready for the deployment into Iraq to begin. That summer he returned and we traveled to my brother's wedding in Wyoming and visited several national parks on a wonderful family vacation. In the fall, we started homeschooling!

2002-Cliff returned from deployment, and I went on a Vegas getaway with Janette. Patrick was baptized! The 3 older children started attending a new charter school, SDCCS. I decided to take another break from school in order to be more involved with the cooperative charter school.

2001-Cliff did his first deployment as a Chaplain. We moved from Camp Pendleton down to San Diego once the kids finished school. Adopted Brownie the dog. The older boys started a new school, I started a new college, and Coree started the preschool there. Cliff was promoted to Lieutenant. September 11th. Cliff deployed with the Stennis Battle Group in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Jake graduated from Children's Hospital "Toddler School" and started a new preschool with the school district. His diagnosis is upgraded to PDD/NOS. We spent the holidays apart.

2000-I worked the census, turned 30, ran several 5Ks and a half marathon and took college classes. Troy was baptized! Cliff finished his Masters Degree, left 15 years in the Marine Corps on one day and was commissioned a LTJG in the Navy (by my grandfather) the next...and went to Navy Chaplain School. While Cliff was gone, Jake was diagnosed with Autism and began an intensive treatment program at Children's Hospital 5 days a week...and my beloved grandfather passed away suddenly. Cliff reported to his first duty station as a Chaplain...DESRON 21 in San Diego.


Cliff's graduation kids w/ Gma Mary and Gpa Mike
(circa 2000)

Wow, how much changes in 10 years!

Conference 09...Day Six...Cliff Speaks and Saying Goodbye

When Tuesday rolled around, it was Cliff's turn to speak. Each year, several Chaplains who have deployed during the year are invited to give a presentation on what they did/learned/overcame. Typically the topic is "Ministry in Combat" but since Cliff's deployment was much different, so was his message.

Cliff spent hours on his presentation, and just reviewing his Power Point slides several days beforehand was enough to leave me in a sobbing heap. There are so many emotions I have associated with his deployment.

Pride. I was so proud of the part he played in honoring the fallen of our US and Allied service members.

Sadness. Profoundly sad. Sad for the families whose loss is so tremendous...but also sad for everyone involved, for each death touches many who do their part to honor the sacrifice.

Worry. Not worried for his safety this time. But worried that what he was doing and seeing...day in and day out, with only a naps worth of sleep before he'd have to get up to do it again, with no down time, as the only chaplain...would profoundly change him. Worried about him being surrounded by death and also having to minister to those trying to process it themselves. Worried about the Chaplain having a Chaplain.

Weariness. It was hard for me having to be a single parent to teens after one of the most significant "shake-ups" of our family's history. Everything about us changed...leaving our country, our home, our loved ones (while they dealt with some pretty tough challenges), not just our "schools"...but our entire means of education. I could go on. It was a rough transition...and to have Cliff leave in the middle of that really shook us up. Some of my children's needs seemed impossible for me to meet alone.

I don't know that I can really explain it effectively. The information that Cliff and I were asked to share between our two presentations would have been impossible to share comprehensively. We could hit the highlights, give people a glimpse of what he did there and I did back home...but there is no way to convey it in all of its complex messiness and triumphant glory. No way. So to attempt to do it justice was almost painful in itself. To listen to Cliff try to squeeze all that he experienced in its complex layers into a 10 minute presentation was beyond difficult. He could barely scratch the surface. To me it almost felt trite, because I knew so much more...but it was what it was. Which brings me to my final emotion...

Gratitude. Grateful for the Lord's unfailing tender mercies which surrounded both of us during that time. Grateful for the two living "angels" which I know were sent to work with him in their respective capacities. One was an assistant who was so obviously tailored to Cliff it cannot possibly be a coincidence. (A kind, salty-old Marine, complete with Scottish brogue and BYU ball cap...need I say more?) I am so thankful for his strength and his sense of humor. The other was a Chaplain serving at another base nearby who had been a mentor to Cliff in years past. Whenever Cliff would write that he was going to go visit this base (which he did about once a month) I would cry tears of joy knowing his "pitcher" would be refilled in his fellowship with this Chaplain over a nice long dinner (a GOOD dinner, for a change). Gratitude for the "sacred ground" upon which he was able to tread in the experiences he had ministering to the living and the dead. There's no way to even touch that in a 10 minute presentation.

As it always does, the conference ended far too quickly. It was time to say our goodbyes until next year. We needed more time with some of our people, and so we called my dad and luckily he was OK keeping the kids without us for a bit longer. We had one last dinner with some of our closest friends. One of those Chaplains will be retiring this next June. We met him 18 years ago when he performed our wedding at the MCAS El Toro chapel, and in the years since, he and his wife have been some of our most cherished friends. The conference won't be the same without them!

The way to a man's heart?

I know I've mentioned before, how pathetic the food was where Cliff just spent the last 6 months. For whatever reason, this little base was not on the same contract as the rest of the bases in Iraq and Afghanistan. Nasty doesn't begin to describe what the food was like. One evening on the phone, Cliff said to me, "I knew when I walked into the mess hall and it smelled like vomit, I should have just turned around and walked out." Instead, he paid and got as far as the food line, let the smell of expired fish overwhelm him, THEN walked back out, getting a refund as he left.

This hurt my heart, as food is such a morale issue, and I knew he was doing a very psychologically taxing job, day and night. Every time the topic of food came up, I told Cliff to keep a list of everything he wanted and I'd make it ALL when he returned. This, coupled with needing to take him to all the great restaurants we had found, explains his 7 pound weight gain since he's returned home.

I didn't take a picture of all of them (missed the chicken enchiladas, the chocolate chip cookies and the brownies, maybe more) but here's some of the highlights.


Apple Pie
(notice it's made with love?)



My world-famous pizza, Hawaiian style


(before and after)



Cardiac Arrest Lasagna with 4 cheeses--ricotta, mozzarella, provolone and parmesan--not to mention fresh herbs, sweet sausage and sauce from scratch.


(inside and out)

And we're still working on the list. I haven't made him a cherry cobbler yet...or homemade rolls... or chicken and dumplings...or tenderloin steak...or shredded beef burritos. This is going to take some time!

He's Home!!!

It's official!

Because I made my own reservations through my favorite travel agency here (H.I.S.) and Cliff had to have the military make his, we were not able to get on the same flight headed back to Okinawa. Luckily, we left within a couple of hours of each other, though...so we headed to the Tokyo Handeda Airport together, and I got off the monorail at one terminal for my airline, and Cliff headed to the other terminal for his. I got to Okinawa with plenty of time to eat some taco rice and do some shopping. Our friends, the Coulters, had volunteered to bring our kids down to the airport, and they appeared right on time for Cliff's arrival...only the kids didn't bring the signs they'd made. Evidently, they weren't perfect enough. Teenagers!

Here's the scene unfolding:


Here he comes...



Closer...



He sees us!



Yes!



Hugs all around...



Is he taller than me yet?



Together again, at last! Now it's time to really let our adventure begin!



A bit grayer around the muzzle, and not quite as spry...but just as happy to see her master as she was 5 years ago!

Just in case you were thinking things went too smoothly...we arrived home to find our A/C frozen over. It was nearly 90 degrees in our house. Luckily, maintenance came out right away. Then, while the house cooled back down, we went to get something to eat...with a van borrowed from friends, since ours died a month into Cliff's deployment, and since the law says one car per licensed driver (and the van was in Cliff's name) we had to make do with O'Malley this whole time.

Next order of business...van shopping!