I so can't wait to go home!

Alright well it has been a few days since I've last made an entry, but know that is because I haven't really had much to write about. Lately things around here have been, well, completely quiet. Our lives have been completely boring and consist of nothing out side of our routines we do on a daily basis. Its mundane, but at least time seems to be passing fast. That I cannot complain about.

So today has been a very exciting day for me. The reason for this is that I have finally found out when I will be heading out on leave!! Its so close just a few weeks away and I'm so excited. I'm totally ready for a break from here and to go home and see my friends and family. The thing is lately I have not been able to stop thinking about being home and being on leave. I'm usually pretty good about not thinking about home much, but for the past week I have not been able to shake it from my mind.

It all started when we were still at the outpost. I was on guard shift up in one of the towers when another team leader who was on shift with me decided to stop on in. He happened to casually ask me "Do you ever think about home?" I proceeded to tell him that I didn't do so often, and we started talking about home and things that we missed. Well that on top of the fact that I knew my leave was coming up in the next month just added to me not being able to clear my head. It has been relentless ever since. I have been thinking about all the things I want to do and all the people I want to see, and places I want to go. So many things and so many ideas running through my head. I wish I could get them out. I don't like thinking about home all the time. I mean don't get me wrong, I like to think about people and home and whatnot, but it makes this place even worse. I've managed to get by with creating this false reality here that I live in. In my false reality, I've accepted in my head that this is my life and that it is not going to change. I have trained myself to believe that this is my life as I know it and for that fact it makes this place tolerable. Now that I am thinking about my life beyond here, it makes me see the bad in being in Iraq. I don't like that.

So I'm hoping that I can limit the amount that I think about home until I actually go on leave. Its so close thought that at this point I can almost taste it! I figure going back with be a nice break. It will allow me to recharge my emotions and mentality of being here and get me through the last 5 months that I will have here upon my return. In that regard it is a well timed leave I believe.

That's really about it lately. I haven't been outside on any mission since we returned from the outpost so nothing really exciting to talk about. I haven't been outside because I have been taking a "train the trainer" class here for a new system that we are getting for a few of our Humvees. It's been a pretty laid back class, the only dowside being I have had to do it during a few of my days off. Oh well, but its almost over and soon I will venture back in to the city of love! :)