NikB's latest update (#23)

[NikB]

Hey all - thanks for checking in!!

ST
Thanks for the interesting military perspective. I had heard that too, that the media vs. reality is pretty different (shocking eh? ).

Still hanging in there waiting on the BD thing - it's this coming Thursday (the 13th) so we'll see what happens between now and then. Good ideas if I do go over to his mom's...thanks!

f21
Thank you!! Yes sooo glad to be caught up on sleep, amazing what a difference that makes. I need to check in on you, know you had a tough convo coming up.

Catching up...

First off, just got back from a great time meeting a fellow DB'er - lots of fun!! More on that in a sec.

I originally was heading to Sonoma on Friday but almost everyone canceled - so I decided to make it Sat. only and save my $$ for another attempt in a month or two (think December was maybe a rough month to have a get together for a lot of people). H had a race on Friday that I went to for part of the day and had a good time. Got to spend some semi-quality time together and also catch up with another friend, so that was good. Also learned that limiting the time and having my own car there were good boundaries for me - I felt a lot "safer" knowing I could leave if I wanted. Wasteful on gas I suppose but worth it.

This morning I got up and packed and left for Sonoma - H was hilarious. We had been sitting on the couch enjoying morning coffee/tea when I got up to pack and stuff. H saw the suitcase and said "Oh you're going somewhere?" I said "Yeah remember, I asked if you'd be home to make sure someone was here to watch the dog." He said "Oh yeah... well, I didn't know it was overnight." (I'm scratching my head thinking... why ELSE would someone need to watch the dog?). Then we had this convo:

H: Where are you going again? Did you tell me already?
Me: Sonoma.
H: Oh - by yourself?
Me: No, meeting some friends.
H: Oh, well, that'll be fun then. [in a funny tone... like if it wasn't w/friends it wasn't fun.. which is something that always bugged me in the past so I did comment on it]
Me: I had fun by myself there too though, love that place.
H: True. Oh.. so, overnight?
Me: Yeah.
H: All girls?
Me: Don't think so. Have a good night - see ya tomorrow!

H looked entirely confused... gave me a big hug and kiss and said to have fun, though.

So... on to Sonoma. WOW what a beautiful day. The storms are gone and the rain really cleared out the air so it was just a beautiful drive. I stopped in at one of my favorite wineries from my trip a couple months back and wandered for a bit, took some pictures, tasted some wine... it was nice. I tried to take photos from the same views as my prior trip. I'm thinking I'll try and do this a few times a year, and that it would be neat to take photos from similar views over time and various seasons.

Got to my hotel and WOW again!! This room is incredible. I thought the last place I stayed in Sonoma was nice but this is even better, especially for winter time! I picked it mostly for location which is walking distance from the Plaza, but had no idea how nice the room would be. It has a fireplace!! Complete with a Duraflame log that I am now enjoying whole-heartedly. It also has a sliding glass door that opens to a private deck/patio... the patio gate then leads to a courtyard with a really pretty fountain, covered/heated spa, pool, steam room, and a gas fire-pit. It would probably be really nice if it was just a tiny bit warmer or less windy. It's so windy right now that literally I'm listening to the wind whistle through the court yard... kind of an eerie sound (and loud enough it's coming through the walls!). Love the fireplace though. It's pretty great to be here in Sonoma in front of a fire typing to everyone... ahhhh.

Only one other DB'er made it to the DB "meetup" - but it was great!! We met for what was originally going to be drinks til we waited for the dinner reservation - but it was kind of awkward since only two of us came, so instead of eating in the dining room area we just ordered a small dinner in the bar and hung out. Seemed like time flew by, I couldn't believe it was 11 when we left! (or maybe even a bit later). I won't say too much here for now - not sure how much he wants mentioned online - but we had a good talk. Always nice to vent/talk. We seem to be in similar places where things are just comfortable enough that we're "sort of OK" with it but both recognize it's not nearly enough - so was good to talk to someone in a similar situation.

Tomorrow plan to head back over to the Plaza and do a little Christmas shopping before heading home. It's funny, I've only been gone from home since about 10:30 this morning... but feel like it's been a week or more. Not sure if it's travel in general, being here, or what... sure helps my strength, though.

Off to catch up on others...