bitter sweet...

i finally made it to the south. we got on the plane at 2:40 pm friday evening. time to take off, but wait...theres a delay. so we sat on the runway for 40 more minutes. lol...that's okay...i think. we should still be able to catch our connecting flight to pensecola. HAHAHAHA... do any of you remember home alone? you know, where they sprint thru the airport to get on their plane. that would be us. we made it as they were closing the doors. but we made it. i dont know if you can understand the excitement i felt as i landed in pensecola friday night. i get off the plane in my dress blues and start sweating immediately. it was awesome. we go to pick up our luggage and it wasnt there. not exactly a wonderful start. our ride came to pick us up at the airport and took us to the base. my friends who are in pensecola already are asking me where i am. i told them im in the barracks but not theirs. they told me they kept some of the aircrew candidates with the air traffic control sailors. AGAIN...HAHAHAHAHA. they do, but not the newbys. at 3 am my luggage arrived....soaking wet and dirty. lol. i spent the night in the wrong barracks. i got up the saturday morning to go get things straightened out and i got a heartbreaking phone call from my family. my grandfather had passed away that morning. i didnt know what to do. my world was a whirlwind.

this was the man that had an influence on my choice to be in the military. he too was a navy man. i so loved talking to him about it before i left for bootcamp. he was so excited. where's my navy girl? that's what he called me. lol. it kills me that i didnt get anything accomplished before he passed. i know he is proud, but i wanted to exchange stories with him. laugh about things that other people didnt get. he was my buddy. and i will miss him very much. all i know is that when i get back to pensecola i will not give up. there is a 10% passing rate for females in aircrew. i fully intend on being in that 10% because one...noone tells me i CANT do something and two...im gonna have a chief hovering over me making sure i dont quit. lol.

i just ask that you keep my family in your prayers. he truly was an amazing man who loved all of us dearly. and the feeling was mutual. it is hard to let go, but exciting to know that he will now have all new stories to share with me once we meet again.