Sean's Deployment

Well, we officially know that Sean will leave for Iraq in June, although we don't have the specific date. The typical length of deployment for officers in the Air Force Nurse Corp is 6 months, so we expect Sean will be back by Christmas (hopefully). We're pretty sure he will be sent to the Balad Air Force Base in Baghdad, although that has not yet been confirmed. The Balad AFB has it's own hospital (where he will work) and air port (which he will fly directly in to via Air Force plane). He will not have any cause or need to leave the base and go into the city and will be very well protected. There will also be bunkers nearby, as well as helmets and vests if needed. He will not have any part in the fighting, although he will receive some firearms training before he goes. His duty will be to take care of those who are severely injured in the fighting etc and are brought to the Critical Care Unit of the base hospital. His work week will be 6 days on, with 12 hour shifts, and 1 day off, for rest. It will be pretty strenuous, but will keep him occupied and tired enough not to miss home too much.

Sean will be very busy over the next 5 months with preparations for his departure. He will need to do the necessary training, paper work etc to prepare for deployment. He also needs to finish his CRNA (Nurse Anesthesist) application packet, which includes taking the GRE (Master's program entrance test). In addition, he is currently taking a chemisty class which will finish up a few weeks before June. Our 10 year wedding anniversary is also in June, so we're hoping to maybe take a weekend trip to celebrate that before he has to leave. With all this going on, please keep him (both of us actually) in your thoughts, and please send Sean the occasional encouraging word if you think of it.

Portraits

Since I have gotten my D50 I have found more and more that I absolutely can't stand flash photography. "So what" you say. I have also found that the majority of my photography is indoor photography/lowlight photography which does not bode well for me as a flash-hater. The solution is a faster lens that is capable of a lower F-stop (f 1.8). For those of you who don't know, this simply means the iris in the lens that lets light pass through is much larger and therefore lets in more light. The result is a photograph that looks soft and natural. This works well in lots of situations. The lens really excells with portrait photograhpy as well. The following are some shots of Dani and Cooper that are essentially straight off the camera with very little post-processing work.

Sean

Big Burn

There is a huge mountain of branches and wood chips outside Helotes (less that two miles from our apartment) that caught fire around Christmas. The pile of mulch, which has been sitting in an open field for more than a decade, is about 400 feet long (a football field is 360 feet long), 225 feet wide, and 70 feet tall. Experts have predicted that if the pile were allowed to burn itself out, it would take over a year. The entire city smells like an ashtray all day long. Some days are better than others depending on the direction of the wind. I have had non-stop allerygy issues since the fire started. It sucks.

But it sure does look neat at night! So I went to the pile with my friend Harry and took some pictures. Find a positive in a bad situation, right.

Enjoy

Out of the Crowd

I decided to watch our Sheryl Crow concert DVD this weekend. There was one song in particular that I wanted to hear - Riverwide. It is one of my favorites, and is one of her slower more obscure songs based on a Walt Whitman poem from Leaves of Grass. I have heard her mention this poem every time I've watched the DVD, but had never bothered to look it up. Over the summer, I had purchased a copy of Leaves of Grass, so decided it was time to read the actual poem. The peom is called, Out of the Rolling Ocean the Crowd.

I was immediately impacted by the message it conveyed. It speaks of how we are all smaller parts of a larger, more powerful whole. And of how we need to make the most of the connections we make with our fellow human beings, for as long, or as short as those connections or relationships may last. . .of how we need to truly value eachother as part of something bigger than ourselves. At least, that is what the poem says to me. Here it is. . .

Out of the rolling ocean the crowd came a drop gently to me,
Whispering "I love you, before long I die,
I have travel'd a long way merely to look on you to touch you,
For I could not die till I once look'd on you,
For I fear'd I might afterward lose you."

Now we have met, we have look'd, we are safe,
Return in peace to the ocean my love,
I too am part of that ocean my love, we are not so much separated,
Behold the great rondure, the cohesion of all, how perfect!
But as for me, for you, the irresistible sea is to separate us,
As for an hour carrying us diverse, yet cannot carry us diverse forever;
Be not impatient - a little space - know you I salute the air, the ocean and the land,
Every day at sundown for your dear sake my love.

Isn't He Sweet

To avoid confusion, this is Danielle. I'm posting using Sean's name because something got messed up with my password.

I've decided to devote this post to embarrassing my husband. I have been pretty much out of commission with a bad back this week, and very limited in my range of motion since Tuesday. Don't worry Mom and Dad, I have an appointment with a chiropractor tomorrow.

There has been a lot I just couldn't do, and Sean stepped right in and took care of everything. So, I want to take up a little of our blog space to thank him. He has been amazing, and I appreciate everything he has done to help me! He vacuumed, emptied the dishwasher, did the grocery shopping, took care of the dog (who, by the way, got neutered on Wednesday). He also took care of my needs while I rested on the couch. He never once complained. What a guy!

I feel incredibly lucky to have a husband like Sean. He is a hard worker, very responsible, considerate, loving and fun to be with! He makes me want to work ever so much harder to nurture our relationship, as a wife and a friend. To start, I think I'll go make him some cookies!

Thanks, sweetie. I love you!