Kabul or bust!!

A couple of points I have realized and need to point out before I start on the latest and greatest of my adventures.

A) Roberta (my sainted mother) was right....keeping this blog is a great diary and I should have been more diligent in the writing of my "Where in the World is Jamie Blog."

B) My 4th of July resolution is to keep up with my blog-and of course this will also make Roberta happy (another goal in my life-did I say she was a saint?)

C) I have horrific grammar....and spelling....and need a thesarus....other than that I feel a pulitzer in my future.


Where to begin?? As many of you know I am on my way to Kabul to serve as one of 3 HR officers in the ever growing Embassy. It will be a one year tour, this also means as soon as I get there I will "get" to start bidding. My dream posts are: Tripoli, Damascu, Khartoum (did I mention my mother was a saint-she is willing to keep me supplied in pickled okra and grits at any and all locations).

I arrived in Washington DC last week after a FUN filled 5 weeks in Stillwater. I HEART Stillwater. My favorite place in the world, I believe the availability of orange, grits, good friends, pickled okra, Sonic, Target have a lot to do with it. It was very much a "this is your life" vacation. I got to reconnect with High School friends and we ALL look fabulous and 29! It was great to be able to pick up after ** years of having not seen each other. There was a lot of.....and I had a crush on him, oh he was so cute and did I REALLY wear that???

I lost my cool kids card when I attended my parents high school reunion in McAlester. A couple of things everyone should know about McAlester, it is home of the state prison and "Sparky" the electric chair. You NEVER pick up a hitch hiker when leaving McAlester. However, no one came up to me and said "my you look so long for having graduated in 1960 (I would have had to go sit in Sparky had that happened.....) and I got to see my cousin Carrie! You can tell we are related-I don't think either of us paused for a breath the whole time we were together. Following the reunion we headed to Texas to do some shopping and pick up another dog to add to the Armstrong clan. (I have long ago come to terms with the fact that Bill and Roberta like the dogs better than Bill or myself...sigh). I took my shopping very seriously, when purchasing shoes (and lots of shoes were purchased) I started with two conditions: Can I outrun the Taliban in these shoes? Do they make my butt look big? Then I had an "a ha" moment....I don't need to outrun the Taliban-but rather just one other person. So needless to say the 3 inch faux alligator pumps made the cut.

Upon returning home with aforementioned alligator pumps, 2 pairs of wedges and a years supply of q-tips it was time to prepare for Thanksgiving in June. When Kathryn and I SKYPED with the family (everyone from St. Andrew's is family) last Thanksgiving I realized how much I missed a true Thanksgiving and after all in 2010 I am going to be in a war zone (my oft repeated favorite phrase, sadly beginning to lose some of its cachet) so we planned Thanksgiving in June (TIJ). I must mention that during the planning for TIJ, I mentioned my love of eggnog (only surpassed by my love of cupcakes) and recommended buying some eggnog and freezing it for TIJ-however my request fell on deaf ears. Upon arriving home I enquired as to the status of the eggnog and found that there is NONE to be found. SERIOUSLY-am I the only person that feels eggnog in June would not be refreshing? I think it would be a perfect 4th of July beverage-just add a bottle rocket. I then learned (thanks to Rachel and Barbara) that one can MAKE eggnog at home. There was much rejoicing at Chez Armstrong (did I mention my mother and father are saints??). So I threw myself into researching the miracle that is home made egg nog. I found a recipe-rolled up my sleeves, cracked open 12 eggs, poured in the 2 cups of sugar and whole milk (uuummmm healthy now I know why I HEART eggnog). I diligently stirred this heavenly concoction as it began boiling, with some apprehension I scooped out the scrambled eggs that began forming on the surface of the eggnog, at this point I have to admit I began rethinking my love of eggnog. Fear not once a dash (well....two dashes were needed to mask the scrambled egg consistency) of nutmeg was added I had made eggnog!!! I lovingly placed the eggnog in the back refrigerator to cool and thicken (in hopes of hiding the scrambled egg part)....as I relaxed I heard someone (my sainted father) open the back fridge. I then heard crash, clank followed by an emphatic DAMN and my eggnog spilled all over the garage (still smells like nutmeg). Bill is sticking to his story that the fridge door broke-however I think there is more to this story than meets the eye. For those of you on the edge of your seats...I was not daunted and made a second and much improved batch of eggnog!! Thanksgiving in June was a huge success and those of us at the children's table had a fantastic time!

More to follow-I haven't had a cupcake in a matter of hours and I am beginning to feel a little light headed!