The TDY Blues
I was extremely lucky for the past six months because the Army pretty much gave me uninterrupted time with my service member. With the exception of two small, week-long TDYs, we’ve been inseparable. It’s actually the most time we’ve ever spent together, and it has been awesome.
As the age-old saying goes, time flies when you’re having fun. That has been the case for me. I’m constantly surprised at how much has been going on in such a short amount of time! A new separation for us was always impending and I knew something would come up soon because my husband was due for a class.
It was a matter of time for him to receive TDY orders…
Well, TDY orders came and my husband is now gone—and here I am.
To be honest, I’m bummed. My husband is bummed, too. As soon as we got a good groove in our life together, we’re dealt a two-month separation.
I know, I know. It could have been worse. His orders could have been for a longer TDY or even worse, a deployment. I can’t help it though. I’m still a little down about our separation, especially after coming from a year-long hardship tour.
Instead of letting the TDY blues get to me, I’m working on putting together an exciting agenda for myself while he’s away. Also, I’m not really alone at home. We adopted a very adorable cat. She has been keeping me company and is an awesome roommate. Nothing is boring with her around.
Also, I’ve already planned some weekend trips to my old stomping grounds in New York City. I thought this time would be a great opportunity to reconnect with old friends and spend some time having fun. I have to be honest, it will be weird to see my old apartment, the home I had right before I PCS’d to Virginia, but I really miss seeing the shining faces of my friends over there.
I’m also trying to encourage my parents in Texas to visit. They haven’t been up here yet, and I’m looking forward to sharing my new life as a married lady with them. Really, I just don’t want to wrap up my first summer here at Fort Belvoir on a sour note. Although my husband isn’t here, it doesn’t mean I can’t make the most of it!
These are just a couple of things I have on my to-do list in the coming months, besides visiting with loved ones.
- Scrapbooking: My husband and I have been doing so much in Virginia! I started collecting tickets, pictures, and other miscellaneous stuff from each adventure. For example, I have the cute parking pass for our car when we went camping. It actually wasn’t an intentional collection. I began a huge pile that started to get unruly. When I was going through it I couldn’t just throw everything away! What would be a nice way to display and curate all the memories? My bridesmaids created a very special scrapbook for my wedding, and I thought that would be a perfect way to keep things organized and together. It will also be a great hobby to keep me busy in times we’re apart.
- Fitness: Okay, I sort of let things go a bit since getting married. I used to go to the gym at least three times a week, but with my husband actually around, we would just spend it sitting around together. Bad habit. Shortly before he left, we discussed getting a gym membership again. The gym on post offered classes, but you have to pay. I’m more of a group fitness person. There is a gym literally across the street from me (that offered a great discount, too), so it seems like a missed resource. So far, I’ve gotten back into the gym at least twice a week with my husband. Now, I’m going to try and go more to get my stamina back up for organized runs again.
Despite missing my husband, I’m looking forward to the coming months to myself. Like I mentioned before, time flies when you’re having fun. My goal is to keep having fun!
How do you get through separations? Does your family and friends visit? Or do you visit them?
