The Health Insurance Scam

Today I want to pout like a child.  I got my first pay stub from my new job and Uncle Sam took out quite a huge chunk.  It's partially my own doing since I claimed so few exemptions.  I just don't want to get stuck with a bill again this year after last year's mishap.  But my God! 

So I'm feverishly calculating my taxes and deductions.  I also worked out my life insurance policy and retirement fund contributions.  And after that I got the mind-numbing experience of researching health care packages.

Now for you readers in Canada and Russia (and by the way I'm totally stoked about a reader in Russia!  I'm excited about my Canadian fans too, but Russia is much further away, which increases the cool factor.  So thanks for reading!  And become a follower of the blog or at least like me on Facebook! You might get cookies!)  the health care debate in America might be boring to hear about.  Sorry.

There are some major perks to having free health care while in the military.  The main one being it's F-R-E-E!!!  Duh!  But that old adage, "You get what you pay for," is 100% true when it comes to military medical treatment.  Yes, you get assigned a Primary Care Manager, but you rarely see that doctor more than once in all the times you go to medical.  Often you see someone that works for that guy.  Or that guy transfers after your last visit with him.  And you have to hope and dream that every time you go in for a reoccurring issue that the last guy put in detailed notes.  But most likely you have to start all over.

Getting a referral is a bit of a joke some times.  And even when you get the referral, you basically have a better shot of winning the grand prize at the local BINGO hall on Friday night than you do being seen in that month.  When I was pregnant, they weren't going to get me in to see a doctor for my FIRST visit until I was almost 20 weeks!  They just couldn't fit me in.  (Sorry I got knocked up during a high baby-making time frame, but I'd love to be seen by a doctor!)  And I at the paperwork orientation I was one of 2 active duty servicemembers there.  The rest were spouses who had the opportunity to go out into the local area to get treatment if they wanted.  I was stuck.  I had to be seen by the military doctors... when they got around to it. 

So yes, there are some major drawbacks.  Like every problem you have can be treated by staying hydrated and taking Motrin.  (You think I'm joking?)  Or like calling for a mental health appointment because you're about 2 days from a break down and they can fit you in next month. (That's not a joke either.)

But today I found out just how spoiled I was.  Reading through all the health insurance options with my job is overwhelming.  Trying to pick the best plan for the best price is crazy.   There are a million different options.  And trying to find one that is going to cover well baby checkups for Elly, the random sickness appointments for Stoofy, not to mention the near fatal accidents I create for myself at least once a year need to be factored in.  Plus glasses for the family, dental checkups, and prescriptions.  I'll probably need a prescription for anxiety by the time I'm done with all this paperwork!

And trying to figure out PPOs, HMOs, FFSs, FSAs and all the rest of the medical alphabet soup sucks. I wish there was a help calculator where you put in some of your pertinent personal information and then it spits out 2-3 of the best options for you.  Then you review those and voila! You've got the best, most comprehensive medical coverage $193.83 a pay period can buy!

Now all I have to figure out is my tax bracket and how best to not let those jokers on Capitol Hill screw me.  That's probably a lost cause...

A Few of My Favorite Things

In the spirit of end of year review mania that seems to hit our country about this time every year, I figured I'd jump on board.  And as a side note: until I started working in news I never knew why every single tv, radio, paper, magazine, etc. puts out a best of at the end of the year... until I wanted some down time around the holidays too.  So what's the easiest way to create that for yourself around the holidays?  Just rehash all the shit you've already done and call it "new"s. 

Anyway, even though I've only been a part of the blogosphere since July (and I took that trip to Jupiter, aka fell off the blogging planet) I still feel like I've got some gems in my archives.

So here are a few of my favorite things (in no particular order):

1) Breastfed Thighs
I'll do my best to keep the positive about my thighs come the end of January.  That's inevitably when swimsuit shopping season begins and I'd much rather slice my left hand off with a circular saw than expose my thighs to the world (or expose the world to my thighs depending on how you look at it). 

2) What Did I Step In?
I feel like I step in a pile of shit every week.  Some weeks are shittier than others.  But this one just tops them all.  I mean, seriously.  What the hell is wrong with people?  Clearly advertising geniuses know how to plug their products with cute babies.  Because people will literally look past whatever shit you've got when there's a cute baby to look at instead. 

3) Got Milk?

This is actually a blog from my early days.  I hadn't really introduced everyone to Abby yet.  But I realized since I talked about her so much as a friend, that she just needed to be named and be a full-blown character in my daily crazy.  The main part of the blog really was word for word an email I sent her after being fascinated and disgusted by my cow-like ability.  And although I've stopped breastfeeding, I'm grateful for having endured that crazy shit for as long as I did for Elly.  She'd better be a grateful little kid when she grows up or else! 

 

4) Losing My Hair.. and Marbles

I still chuckle a little every time I read this.  And then the chuckles are drowned out by my tears of sadness over my awful hair.  I have had it cut into a nice, hot-mom cut.  So at least my hair is a lot more manageable than when it was longer.  And by the way, I STILL haven't found that freakin' calendar yet! 

 

5) Tinkling

I actually have to go use the little girl's room right now.  So I'd better stop what I'm doing and take a break or else I may have a code yellow alert!

 

6) In Search Of...

It still truly amazes me how your body completely changes when you're pregnant.  And then morphs into something completely different after the baby.  I'll never understand people (specifically insensitive asshole men) who say, oh you're just lazy that's why you don't have the exact same body after having the baby.  Uh newsflash dumbass, it doesn't work like that.  Not only am I searching for my ass, I also grew bigger feet.  No amount of zumba is going to fix that shit! 

7) Being an Adult Rocks!

I crack up every time I eat a deli sandwich now because I only think of windshield meat.  If you ever end up tossing turkey on someone's car and they eat it, please let me know!!!! And if you do witness that, I hope you scream at them "BEING AN ADULT ROCKS!!!"

8)BOOBS!

This is still one of my all-time favorites.  Because I am so impressed at how many different ways I could work the word boobs into the blog.  And because of that, I actually had a few people stumble upon my blog because of their key word searches.  Here's what can land you in Betty's world if you google it: "Big Milk Boobs," "Boobs," and my personal favorite "Boobs Rock the World."  Yes, yes they do! (PS, I'd love to know who googled "I'm not doing that" and found me!!!  LOL! What the hell aren't they willing to do I wonder!)

9) Vanilla Tuna

There are some people in this world you meet and never remember again.  And then there are some people that leave a lasting impression on you for the rest of your life.  The stinky girl in my Navy school is one of those people I'll never forget.... and I'm so grossed out by it!

10) Caught Red Handed

Elly just kills me some days.  Every day she's learning, exploring, and absorbing new information.  She amazes me... right up until she's caught red handed doing something shouldn't have done but has no idea that it was a no-no.  I clearly have a long road ahead of me teaching her important life-lessons.  And I feel like a lot of them are going to be really messy!

11) Pumpkin Pie and Jail Time

What's terrible about this pregnancy memory is that even though pumpkin pie is my absolute FAVORITE dessert and it's what I love more than anything for my birthday cake, I still haven't had a slice in 2011!  Sad :-( I better get on that before the year is over and I better make sure I don't go to jail getting pumpkin pie!

12)   That's Not Fair

The phrase "That's Not Fair" could quite possibly be one of the most famous sayings heard in my house growing up.  Either (or in my opinion, mostly) my sister or me would utter that phrase whenever we had felt slighted.  Our mother was very careful to make sure that things were as fair as you can make them for two completely different-minded children constantly at each other's throats.  So I feel like because of that, I have an obsession to try and make things as far as possible in the world when I can.  However, there are things that just can't be helped.  Like the fact that Snookie makes millions more than I do.

Well there you have it!  Betty's favorites of 2011.  I can't even imagine how exciting 2012 will be!  In just a few short months Elly will be a year old, Stoofy and I will celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary, I'll go on at least 12 tirades threatening to kick someone in their shins, and on top of that, I've got the regular comings and goings of life to chronicle. 

Please be sure to follow me on Facebook, become a fan of this blog, and most importantly TELL YOUR FRIENDS!  I am a narcissist and I need constant positive approval.  So the more people who like me, the better I feel.  JOKING, but not really.  Force your friends to like me if you have to.  It's fine, I completely approve of it!

And I'll have plenty more to add before the year is over... but until then, thanks for enjoying 2011 with me!

I'm One Lucky B!

If you've been reading my blog, you know that I recently got out of the Navy.  And if you've been reading my blog since I started, you also know that I've been crazy (that might not be a strong enough description actually) about looking for a job so, you know, I'm not homeless and the baby has food.  (You know, nothing major or anything.) 

Well, I've been very fortunate in landing a great job in the civilian sector, and it's truly been a major blessing how it's all worked out. 

I'm a firm believe that I'm very lucky.  Not like lucky in that I win the lottery or anything (I wish!), but mostly lucky in timing.  I miss near accidents.  I miss major disasters.  I miss events that I wish I could have been at, only to get an opportunity to have an even better experience (sometimes even behind the scenes) for that missed event!  And just when I think I've hit a bad spot and my luck has run out, I realize (sometimes I have to be reminded and forced to see the positive) that really, it's not that bad and I'm actually very lucky how things work out for me.  (My mom says it’s because when I was very young, like the age Elly is right now, she and my dad took me to Mexico and all these Mexican ladies swarmed me and blessed me.  It freaked my mom out since she didn’t speak Spanish and they kept grabbing at me.  Uh, yeah, I would have flipped out too mom.)

Take for example this whole Navy thing.  I've felt very slighted by the Navy.  I feel like I've been cheated on and just finished divorce proceedings. But now I've just gotten to the next step in the grieving process; I'm not as bitter any more.  (Well, I'm a little bit bitter still.  Just being honest with my friends!) But it's nothing like what it used to be.

Instead, I've taken all my knowledge and experience I gained in the Navy and put it toward getting a new job.  And then as luck would have it (and awesome timing) a series of crazy events lead me to my job today!

First, I was going to move to Washington State.  But I started getting notices that my resume was moving along with jobs in the DC area.  So Stoofy and I decided to try staying put.  I told my supervisor that I was staying in the area and for her to keep her ears open for jobs for me. (And that's called networking folks!  Or nagging depending on your view.) Well, one of my co-workers decided to take it upon himself to cancel an assignment he had no business cancelling without our supervisor's permission.  My supervisor got a call from the canceled event coordinator. 

Well those ladies got to chatting (after a whole lot of yelling at the nimrod who shirked his duty!), and it just so happened that the woman coordinating the event was looking for a journalist for a job position!  Hot damn!  So my supervisor said I've got the perfect girl for you!  And low and behold.... I got my foot in the door.

Now, this isn't exactly success yet.  But it's a start.  You see, there are major budget cuts happening across the board in the federal government.  (And unless you've had your head up your ass for the last few years, you would already know that fact!)  So there was absolutely no guarantee the job they needed to hire someone (like me) into would even exist after a round of budget cuts.  But as it just so happens, my soon-to-be supervisor worked her magic and got approval.  The only hang up was she couldn't hire anyone until the guy still filling the job before me officially left his position, late in November.

Well, that's no problem, since I couldn't take a job until after my final day in the military....LATE IN NOVEMBER!!!  Oh snap!  Another win for the good luck girl! 

We began processing all my hiring paperwork that goes into federal employment after I got a soft job offer.  Processing paperwork to be a government employee is a lot like your paperwork in-process for the military.  The only difference is you don't get a shot in the ass when you become a government employee.  (That should be a selling point when advertising jobs.)

And wouldn't you know it, my paperwork was having issues and it didn't look like I was going to make it by the deadline to start my job on time.  I had until 2:00 pm on a Friday to get everything in so I could start on Monday morning or I’d have to wait two weeks before I could officially start.  I held my breath and sucked it in and just barely got it all in on time!  And thank God I did! 

I started my job just a couple weeks ago and have begun to hit the ground running.  I'm very grateful for my job and the opportunity to get my career going.  And even more so grateful after I found out just last week that had my paperwork been delayed, I wouldn't have a job to start today.  Because they just laid down a hiring freeze.  My job offer would have been frozen and I would have been sitting at home with Elly wondering what the hell am I going to do now!?!?!?!?

So when I say I'm one lucky B, I mean it.  I get things in just the nick of time.  Life seems to work itself out in just the right moments.  And for that, I'm forever grateful!


****Betty's note: My mom set the record straight.  I was actually much closer to Elly's age right now when I was blessed by Mexicans.  She wanted to make sure I got the facts straight.  Side note from Betty's mom: It was Labor Day weekend 1983 in Metamora, Mexico, just across the border from Brownsville, TX.  I guess I need to plan a trip there with Elly ASAP. (Maybe once I actually earn some vacation time!)****

World of Wild Crafters

You know World of Warcraft? (Yeah, I don’t either. I've heard about it, but I really have no idea what it is...) Well, if you don't know about WoW, I'm almost sure you probably don't know about the WoWC!

WoWC is the World of Wild Crafters.  I know, you're thinking, how crazy could crafters be?  Other than the occasional hot glue gun accident or needle incident, there can't be too much to it, right?  WRONG!!!  The crafting world is filled with enough characters to write a spinoff of Harry Potter or Melrose Place (the original one). 

You've got your scrappbookers (they're a bunch of cutters), your cake and candy makers (they're usually my favorite because I never turn down food), floral arrangement ladies (I'm pretty sure they're all born in the spring and named April), wood workers (their slogan is "We do it against the grain"), painters and photographers (that's like a Hatfield and McCoy feud.  And the framers are stuck in the middle). 

There's the jewelry makers (who are easily distracted by all their shiny things) and the needle point girls (don't piss them off  unless you want a needle to the eye).  And don't forget the quilters out there.  (They are usually found in gangs they like to call guilds and they're like the Masons of Crafting.  Once you've made a rambling rose quilt with appliqué you reach the 33rd Degree and get a special ring.)

And then you have the knitters and crotcheter.  They're a tough crowd.  And you're usually one or the other.  No bi-craftials allowed!  (I don't consider myself bi-craftial.  Instead, I consider myself an ambassador between the two sides since I do both.) I know, I know.  You're thinking "Betty, I think you've finally cracked."  But honestly, this is serious business! 

You see, being a military spouse means you move around a lot just like your servicemember.  It's usually really hard to keep bouncing from job to job.  Not to mention the cost of day care is pretty much absurd.  So many wives find ways to keep themselves busy, and market their hobby as a means of extra income.  Shit, I'd do the same damn thing if I could.  I totally want to make money off of what I love to do, and was going to do anyway! (Isn't there a saying about if you're doing what you love then it's not really called work?)

Well, in the WoWC on a military base, you end up having many people that do very similar things.  It's inevitable.  It's not like there's one knitter or only one baker in the world.  I mean, we do live in America.  In case you didn't get the news flash, we support capitalism here (unless you're busy occupying Wall Street).

Turns out, when there's a little competition, some just can't handle it.  It's gotten so serious lately, people are starting to de-friend others!  I mean wow!  This is EXTREME!!!!  Whoever said crafters are a bunch of boring old ladies has no idea what they're talking about.  This shit is the makings of the next hit reality show!

And apparently the wives are involving the husbands as well.  When I told Stoofy about this, he scoffed. 

S: "You women find the most ridiculous things to bitch about.  You wanna know what those guys are saying? 'Dude, did your wife bitch at you when you got home? Yeah.  Me too.  Over crocheting? Yeah! FUCKING IDIOTS!'" 

When I explained this is serious business and there's now competition, he replied:

S: "Everybody's got somebody else!  McDonald's has Burger King.  PF Changs has Panda Express.  Everyone has competition.  Get over it!" (This is where I realized we’re both fat kids because we’re using food chains as an analogy.)

Me? Well everyone's got a blog in this world.  I just have to figure out what my gimmick is to keep hooking readers.  (Hahaha!  I said hooking! I'm now a pimp! You’re all my bitches!) Maybe if I can't hack it as a blogger I'll keep working on the script for my new pilot show Crochet Drama: Secrets of the WoWC.  Maybe Snooki would be available for the lead role?

Nightmares of the Working Mom

I feel like I'm living a nightmare right now.  It's weird, because so many things are positively falling into place as I get out of the Navy and transition into the real world.  Everything except one: daycare for Elly.  Now that we're all moved out of base housing and temporarily settled with Abby, the next hurdle in my life is finding full time daycare.

First of all, watching a marathon of Law and Order: SVU is really not helping my daily panic attacks when it comes to for Elly’s childcare.  (Kids getting murdered and neglected all the time.  Who the hell let me have the remote?)

And it obviously can't be just any daycare.  I have a laundry list of requirements, but when tasked with typing them all out in an ad on Sittercity. I drew a complete blank.  I think I'm actually paralyzed with fear just thinking about leaving her with a stranger.

I'm a psycho new mom.  Like I take crazy to a new level when it comes to Elly.  So I constantly picture wherever I drop her off, the lady will smile and wave, and then as soon as I'm down the street, Elly's left to crawl through glass and cigarette butts, eat the dog food, play with everything dangerous, left in her own filth and the lady that said she spoke English can't actually read any of the instructions I left.  I show up and my daughter is completely traumatized and I collapse in a heap of working-mom guilt.

Just typing this is making me cry. 

Because there isn't going to be anyone in this world that can do what I do.  Not even my own mom, but she's the next best thing! She at least keeps my daughter on a schedule.  I on the other hand have let it all go to shit.  Ok, so maybe there is at least one person in this world that can do what I do... probably because she's already raised my daughter once when she raised me.

But still....

I keep envisioning child neglect and abuse and just plain old craziness in every daycare.  And yet, I'm stuck.  We're a two income family.  It's what works for us.  (Especially in the most expensive place to live in America according to the latest census information.  I also live in the #1 wealthiest county in America.  The median income is around $89,000.  I won't be making that.)  So I have no choice but to find daycare.

I'm also a coupon clipper and deal shopper.  But this isn't exactly one of those things you become a full-on penny pincher.  Because who skimps on their child care?  If there's anything in this world that the saying "you get what you paid for" more closely describes, I'd be shocked.  Honestly.  If you're going to be paying pennies to some secret evil witch, you can't be surprised when you show up at the end of the day to pick up your kid and she's in the oven.  But on the other hand, we can't exactly afford an au pair!  Geez! We're not one of the Real Housewives of DC couples!   

Now, I know I'm making this so much worse in my head than it actually is.  I get that. 

I know I will eventually find the perfect place for Elly and it will become a second home for her.  And maybe that's what scares me just as much (if not more).  What if I find a place that's just so perfect, that she likes the babysitter more than me?  What happens if she loves her more than me because she spends all day with her and not with me?  And now I've come full circle in the working-mom guilt. 

This is why I'm living a nightmare right now.

Let's do the Time Warp

It feels like forever since the last time I posted a blog... maybe because it has been FOREVER!  A lot has happened in the last week.  I survived my first earthquake, babysitting the neighbor kids (talk about a crack up!), my daughter's first real sickness and trip to the ER, a hurricane, my husband returning and you know, the usual... life.

And it feels like every time I get ready to type something up, I get easily distracted... by something, you know, shiney.  And then I blink and it's 10 days later.

It seems as though the entire time I was pregnant and my life before having a baby was fast pace.  But now that I've had a baby, it feels like life is flying by at warp speed!  Already 6 months has flown by and my baby girl rolls over, sits up on her own, eats food, and waves 'hi.'  I'm sure next week she'll be wearing high heels, asking to borrow my car and drive to the mall to hang out with her friends.  Shoot me now.

Plus, I have less than 90 days left of my military career.  It feels like 7 years has FLOWN by.  It feels like yesterday I was headed off to bootcamp and doing a buttload of push-ups.  And even though I haven't gotten to do everything I wanted during my time in the Navy, I've still gotten to do a ton of awesome things and go to a ton of amazing places! 

I just wish there was a way to put life back on the play button rather than on fastforward.  I most certainly don't want a rewind button, but maybe a slow motion option.  Ultimately, I just don't want to be going through a time warp, I want time to smell the roses.  Not that I like smelling roses, or have any for that matter, but if I had time to, that would be cool. 

So if anyone has a way to slow things down, please let me know!

Role Reversal

As my bio description states, I'm hooking for jobs and pimping myself out in resume form. On top of that I'm saying prayers daily that I some how don't end up homeless and unemployed.  I'm in the process of getting out of the military.  It wasn't my choice, and if I had it my way, I would have served 20+ years.  But my fate is sealed and I'm on my way out due to budget cuts and the changing tide of the Defense Department. 

It happens.  In fact it's happening so much the military as a whole is in a major downsizing.  Worse, is the number of unemployed veterans from the current wars.  The latest unemployment numbers for vets right now are sitting at nearly 12%.  That's about 3 percentage points more than the overall unemployment rate. 

So to keep myself from those statistics I'm a job hunting, networking fool.  Any chance I get, I work into the conversation that I'm getting out of the military and looking for a job, plus I rock.  Why wouldn't someone want to hire me? 

And not every day has been a good one.  There are some days where I think to myself, "Betty, what the hell are you doing applying for that job? You aren't nearly qualified for it, and there's no way you're going to get it.  You're just a crazy kid!" But then I realize, I have nearly 10 years of experience in my field.  I've been doing this for a long time.  And I'm pretty good at it.  Plus I rock!

If you've never applied for a federal job before, let me tell you what it's like.  It's tourture.  Getting waterboarded would be more fun. You need to tailor your resume to each individual job.  Then you have to answer a laundry list of questions.  Half the questions are the same, just reworded differently.  It's not fun.  And then you submit everything and wait weeks to even hear back if you're resume made the cut.

The worst part is when you get a notification that you're qualified, but not best qualified.  What the hell does that even mean? You're good, but you still suck for us.  Nothing like an upper for your Thursday morning. 

Well, all the hard work of applying has finally started to pay off.  I've gotten a couple calls and recieved notice my resume has made it through the first round of cuts.  Now it's time to start getting ready for interviews.

I've been interviewing people on various subjects for 7 years.  I'm pretty darn good at asking questions and getting the exact soundbite I want for my story.  But being the person peppered with questions is something totally foreign to me. 

I'm so scared that they're going to ask me what my biggest weakness is and I'm going to launch into some crazy ass story that ends in my crying over spilled breast milk.  Or worse, I make a completely inappropriate joke about somebody's inept organizational skills and it turns out it's my prospective employer's desk I'm making fun of.  Or WAY worse, I ask the woman escorting me to the interview room how far along she is, and she replies she's just fat.  UGH! 

Needless to say, I'm super nervous about interviewing for a job.  It's an employer's market, not a job seeker's market.  And I just need to prove that I'm the shit (but don't smell like shit)! So the rest of my day today will be spent buying 10 pairs of nylons (because I'll rip a whole in 9 of them just trying to get into them), researching the job and employer, and pattening my P&P method.  (That would be the pray and puke method.)

In the end, I know this is just my way of getting "hyped up" for the game.  And that I'll actually be just fine and will find a great place to work that pays well, has good benefits, gives me all the federal holidays off, and enjoys my witty sense of humor.  Now, if only they'd just reveal themselves to me so I can stop P&Ping. 

Get This SHIT!

I have a lot of "get this shit" moments in my life.  And now that I have a child, I feel like I have a lot more of them!  It seems to be the only thing I care about any more.  When was the last time she pooped, what color was it, how much was there, what does it look like, etc... All questions I NEED TO KNOW!  And what's really crazy is that it's actually really important.  It's not like my 4 month old can tell me her tummy hurts.  I just have to inspect what's going in and what's coming out to know. 

If only all the other "GTS" moments in my life were this simple.  If only I could just inspect what's going into the situation, then I could easily decipher what's coming out of the situation. 

In Mommy world, Elly poops on me, but at least she gives me a warning.  (She gives a little grunt and leg lift to let me know it's coming.)  It's like her little present to me.  For Mother's Day, she pooped on me.  Happy first Mother's Day, Ma!  (She also puked on me on Father's Day, but who's counting.)  Those are things to be expected.  

But in the real world, there is no warning.  Yes, I understand that everyone gets a little shit on from time to time and people just have to deal with it.  But is "just dealing with it" the best system? 

My "GTS" system (Not to be confused with Pauly D's GTL system) goes a little something like this: I see a train wreck coming.  I try to ward it off with precision planning and execution.  I try to account for all variables and it looks like I've successfully corrected course to prevent said train wreck.  And then BAM!!!!  I'm totally hit by the train coming from another direction.  SHIT IS EVERYWHERE!!!

The sad part is, after I get hit by the shit-train I'm not even all that surprised.  And that's when I say "Get this shit!" 

I usually swap GTS moments with my BFF/Almost-Sister, Abby.  She and I share in these moments because it’s comforting to know someone’s in the thick of it with you.  But unlike Pauly D who can mix up his GTL regiment with Ronnie and the Sitch and T before they G or L, there's no mixing up our GTS moments.  We just have to sit here and take it.  So says the military.

And then it dawns on me, I'm so programmed by the military to take shitty moments and just accept them as normal.  Shit is what's normal to me.  Big, heaping piles of stinky, oozy crap is normal to me.  Great.  I'm used to the smell.  Does that mean I can't smell it if I've stepped in it?  And if so, does that mean I'm the smelly kid in the back of the class?  Yup, probably.  GGGREEEAAATTT!!!!!

Just the shit I was hoping for! 

I'm hoping that this kind of training proves to be helpful in the civilian world.  And I really hope I have a lot less GTS moments when I no longer put on a uniform in the morning.  And even if I have a lot more GTS moments after my military service, I hope I no longer just suck it up and deal with it.  I hope I learn that shit stinks and I don't have to put up with it if I don't want to. 

Until then, I've got another fully-loaded stink bomb diaper to change.  Elly just lifted her leg to let me know the shit-train is about to pull into the station.

Until later
~Betty