Things they never tell you

Don't even get me started... LOL

The company that booked our cats' flights neglected to tell us about what we would have to do at Lufthansa Cargo at Inchon. My husband had to go through a HUGE hassle of back and forth with cargo and customs to get the cats.

Nobody ever said, "You will need to pay about $85, fill out a bunch of paperwork, etc. etc., but you can do it all ahead of time."

I mean, I checked everywhere - I researched online, I asked the vet, I asked Lufthansa Cargo, I asked Pet Air Carrier. NOBODY said this. All I was told was the same thing over and over - "Your husband just needs the Air Waybill and Rabies Certificates to get the cats."

Bullshit!

So, if you ever ship a pet overseas, be prepared to go through far more hassle than anyone tells you. If they tell you it is simple, they are lying.

It's not that it was a big deal. It's just that nobody gave us the straight poop.

But Stormy managed to pee in her kennel.

As always.

However, she was very calm for the ride from Inchon to David's dorm, I'm told. Shiva, however, was feisty and ready for OUT! :)

The cats are very much "themselves" after their journey. Shiva found the highest place in David's room, and Stormy found the most out-of-the-way place to hide.

David has to bathe Stormy (since she's white and marinated in her own pee a bit; he also is sweet enough to wash the shirts I laid over the absorbent cardboard bedding - I told him I didn't need the shirts. They were included so the cats would smell me and perhaps be less stressed, but he is willing to put the pissed-on clothing in the laundry with his own clothes. I'm not sure if I should be grossed-out or grateful).

Overall, I cried with relief when he called at 5:30 a.m. (my time) to inform me that the cats were in his room and running free.

Now I just need to focus on being impatient about the passports. I'm told they should be here during the coming week, but no later than next week. Don't I deserve some super extra amazing good fortune at this point?

What are the odds that the State Department FedExed them on Thursday, before they went off to enjoy their holiday weekend???

(No cynicism, please!)

My internet access is limited. That is, the wonderful people with whom I am staying don't have it. So I am using the husband's office down the street. Don't expect me to pop in here daily. This is just to let ya'all know that we are down to the final hurdle.

The moment we have those passports, we are out of here!!!

When kitties fly...

Tomorrow they get picked up at 11 a.m. and of course I am not happy. I've been following the Fear of Flying course that Melyssa suggested. It has helped a little bit, but the news of the airplanes crashing into oceans recently? Not so helpful.

I worry about my helpless kitties drowning or dying in a crash. I worry about us doing the same.

Of course, putting a whole bunch of energy into negative thinking is not productive, so I try to spend my time thinking positive thoughts.

But it is difficult. I have always hated flying.

Anything else in life? No problem. I can deal with it, see the bright side, and/or work with whatever comes my way. But flying? Ick.

Not so much.

I'm wired

The hotel offers both wireless and wired internet access, thank goodness. My lil' ol' laptop was supposed to have wireless when I purchased it, but it doesn't.

Anyhow, here I am waiting for one of the dryers to be available. LOL When guest laundry is only 2 washers and 2 dryers, it's competitive to get into them!

Tomorrow the carpets get cleaned; on Monday, we have our final inspection and get cleared out of housing. Hooray. Closer and closer to our destination...

...and many people seem to be worrying about us going to join hubby in South Korea. Well, I guess the next 2 weeks will tell...

Is that... could it be... a finish line?

I feel like I've done so much and not nearly enough. There are things I hoped to accomplish before my internet was shut off tomorrow morning but, alas, I will not get those things done.

Today I took the cats for their health certificates.

Shiva totally attacked the vet tech. Claws, teeth... The fur flew. They asked if he was normally like that. He is not.

And they weren't doing shots or anything. They were just checking their overall health and well-being, taking the information off their rabies certifications for the form, etc.

Once Shiva was back in his crate and staring at all of us with a smug "I owned you, bitches" look on his face, I said, "I brush his teeth for him."

The vet said, "He lets you brush his teeth, but he didn't want us to touch him???"

Yup.

I figure Shiva is just stressed, because once we left him alone, he was his bold, adventurous, in-charge self. He strutted around the exam room like he owned it, even exploring the sink, the scale, and the vet's and tech's legs.

He just likes to do things on his own terms, I guess!

After dropping the cats off at home (no way was I going to leave them sitting in a hot car - that's wrong!), I ran to the bank and the Post Office, where I Express mailed the health certificate (APHIS Form 7001) to the USDA in Annapolis.

Now the USDA stamps and/or signs the form and returns it to me (in the prepaid Express envelope I stuck in there). Originally, I planned to FedEx them at a cost of $20 per service. But the Post Office on base saved me money by being cheaper in the first place ($17.50 for overnight Express mail) and giving me an even cheaper envelope for one of the mailings ($13.05). So I paid $30.55 versus over $40.

There might be a finish line in sight...

The cats are supposed to fly next week. Once they are with David, I can focus on being impatient about the passports. :)

By the way, I don't think I ever followed up with regard to Stormy.

Her thyroid level went from a 29 to a 4 and change. Significant difference, but she is still on medication. The vet suggested giving her a break - not doing the radiation again at this time, but rather putting her back on Tapazole to control the thyroid level.

She has gained weight and is happy, pretty healthy, and more affectionate than ever. So the Radiocat therapy didn't kill the entire tumor, but it got most of it. There is always the chance that a tumor developed in the OTHER thyroid gland. That can be treated with radiation in the future.

For now, she is stable on her medication. I would definitely recommend using radioactive isotope/iodine therapy to treat a hyperthyroid cat. And the sooner you are aware of the problem and do the radiation, the better!

Ok, one more thing today - gotta drag my tired ass out for a 2 hour ride north, to bring dad to an appointment. I don't wanna... ;-)

"Squid plus cat equals squat"

I know I haven't been good at keeping up with everybody, comments, etc. Moving is, well, busy!

Ok, so there is news, but I don't care to share because I'm a firm believer in jinxing good things with too much information. So please just keep your fingers crossed for me - I want to get to Korea already!!!

It's a crazy-busy week ahead, and I'm not looking forward to it. Well, I have to admit to looking forward to the carpet cleaning. That may seem odd, but to me it is the last "goodbye ya'all" thing to be done as far as detaching myself from the base here.

I spent last night trying to do some positive visualization, but it was frustrating because I was freezing. The in-laws are here; they like it cold. I try to accomodate. I turned the AC down to 73 degrees, but it was far colder than that in here by the time early morning crept our way.

So I was shivering, wrapped around a shivering Gavin. Tonight, we are wearing hoodies to bed! LOL

The air show still went on yesterday here at DAFB, but the rain prevented the Thunderbirds from flying. We weren't planning to attend (not with Gavin having a cold AND hating the noise of the jets), but we could see it very well from the backyard on Friday. I thought we would enjoy the show from the backyard again this weekend... If the rain holds off today, we will.

We're on a spontaneous school break. It felt like the right thing to do with the chaos of moving. We'll get back in the game NEXT Monday (the 29th). For now, we have enough to do!

I told David that my hope is for Gavin to go to college at 16. We know he can do it. :)

Them's fightin' words

So now the biggest hurdle? The cats.

I will NOT give up another living being (again) for this move or for the military. Next they'll want me to give up my child.

So first of all, the company we are using to transport the cats wants them to have bigger crates. Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuck. Pardon my language, but I spent $120 on 2 perfect crates. Apparently not perfect enough. They need to have 3 inches clearance above their heads while standing. Sheesh.

I do not have the money to do that. At this point, I need to have $138 for the carpet cleaning and $99 for the vet visit for their health certificates, plus an undetermined amount to FedEx the forms...

Yes, that's the next frustration.

David will deal with getting crates online and having them shipped to me or the local PetSmart location.

But then there are the health certificates. They have to be obtained within 10 days of flying.

They have to be stamped by the USDA.

That means I have to get that shit from the veterinarian (one who is USDA affiliated, and apparently there is only one in Dover, since the veterinarian on base no longer works there. By the way, with regard to the veterinary clinic at Dover Air Force Base, why the hell does that place even exist??? You people are USELESS).

But I digress.

So I have to get the one local USDA affiliated vet to fill out the paperwork, then FedEx it to the USDA in Annapolis, and include a prepaid FedEx envelope for them to return the paperwork to me, so the cats can fly.

The "veterinary clinic" here on base said I could go to Fort Dix. Drive 3 hours to have my cats examined then 3 hours home, and STILL have to send everything to Annapolis? Fuck that.

And, no, the vet can not fax it to the USDA. The vet I found in Dover is WILLING to fax the paperwork, but the USDA won't take it that way.

Complete bullshit in my opinion.

Anyhow, I feel bad for the nice young lady who made my appointment with the vet, because I burst into tears when she asked if I was looking forward to going to South Korea.

"Waaaaaahhhh! Nooooo! I'm not! It's been too much of a hassle to get this stuff done, and I'm doing it all alone, and it's soooo frustrating!"

She tried to be sweet and assured me things would get better. Poor girl. She probably isn't used to dealing with tears, except in the case of a pet dying or something.

*sigh*

As for me, it looks like I've got a place to stay. A friend owns an historic home in the next town over and wants us to stay with her. She has offered us the master bedroom (because they are converting the house to a B&B, so they have moved their bedroom downstairs), and another bedroom for Gavin.

Though Gavin might want to sleep with me, what with the ghosties and secret passages throughout the house!

She has offered internet access, TV, and nice local water (versus the cruddy well water at our old house).

How could I say no?

I told her that I would be there July 1, after the cats leave for the airport. So I will have to stay in my old house for a little while, but not for long. Only a week. Technically, I CAN stay in this house (on base) through the morning of June 29, but the carpets are getting cleaned June 25. Sooooo I want my fur-shedding friends and personal belongings out of here before that.

The only reason I won't go right to her house is because I have the cats, and I don't want to freak out her dog, who is quite elderly and frail.

So, yeah. I'm TOTALLY frustrated over the cats now. So much crap to do! So many hoops to jump through! It is true that if the government wanted the military to have families, they would assign them.

To all you single ladies, I'm warning you now:

Don't marry a military man.

Sweet hello romance goodbyes

Gifts my friends gave me at our little dinner included my favorite candy (Sweet Tarts), a blanket of my favorite Japanese icon (Hello Kitty), a book ("The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance"), and stationary and an address book (hint, hint?).

Today I sold the washer and dryer. Good news. Hot food for dinner!

But yesterday?

Yesterday was a different story.

It all began during the lovely dinner we enjoyed at my favorite Delaware restaurant. We were having fun eating Mexican food, talking in ways that would make the "Sex & the City" writers blush, and of course I was basking in the moments when my friends would bow down and say to me, "We're not worthy!"

(They've done that to me for YEARS. It never gets old.)

When I got home there was a message from the person who handles passports at our base. It was something along the lines of he was going to submit our applications (he had them since May 28) but wanted our Korean Visa applications to submit with them (we don't have to apply for our Visas until we arrive in country).

I WAS PISSED.

Totally ripshit, I called my husband. I was bawling my eyes out and it takes alot to upset me that much.

After all I have been through for the past 2 months trying to make everything happen, this was too much for me. NEVER mess with a woman the day before her period, who has given up her dog, and who is facing her serious fear of flying (particularly in light of the Air France tragedy).

Not good.

David spoke to his bosses and they immediately get involved. Now, I don't tend to do the whole "chain of command" thing in the military; I deal with problems head-on, but sometimes it takes someone else to make things happen.

So I went in the next day, and the person I had to see had probably already read the email from David's boss... Either that, or my rage was palpable.

Regardless, he was apologetic, humble and did his best to be helpful, under the circumstances. None of it really softened me or my anger. I filled out the Korean Visa applications and he assured me the passport apps were going out that very day (yesterday).

Meanwhile, I asked for photocopies of everything, got a second set of passport photos taken for myself and Gavin, and dropped all of that into an Express Mail envelope. I spent $17.50 to send the passport applications and support documentation to my husband, because now HE will take everything to the Embassy in Korea and submit the applications to them.

We need our travel passports ANYWAY if we want to see more of Asia during our stay.

David knows people who have gone to the Embassy for passports and had them in 3 weeks, versus the 6 weeks typical of the State Department. He said that if the passport process goes smoothly with the Embassy, then he will book our flights the very moment he has those travel/tourist passports in his hands, come get us, and tell the person at the passport office here on base to send the No Fee ones to our APO.

Hot damn, he wasn't as mad as I was, but he sounded more adamant than usual!

Meanwhile, the cats fly out in roughly 2 weeks. David sent in the paperwork to schedule their flight for July 1. Lucky kitties.

And a lovely young lady came to see the last household items I have for sale - the TV, DVD player and surround sound system. I'm fairly certain she is calling me back tomorrow, as she said she would. (So many people say they will return for something and never do.)

Also it looks like I'm making lunch plans tomorrow with one of the women from the UU. :)

It has been difficult to appreciate the good little things going on around me, knowing that my passport applications just SAT for the past 3 weeks without any action... But grabbing onto those good little things has helped me get over my disappointment.

(Admittedly, I did leave some intentionally Witchy mojo in the passport guy's office yesterday... But he totally deserved it.)

As for Gavin, not much homeschooling lately. I had "The Bartlett Line" taking up my time during the past 2 days. He enjoyed helping me put postage on the newsletters, though.

It looks like the next week should be fairly uneventful. Then I move into the old house next Wednesday, the carpets here get cleaned on Thursday, and we have a birthday party to attendion on Saturday.

If all goes well with the passport applications through the embassy, I should be flying by the 2nd week of July.

Cross your fingers for me.