Drumroll, Please...

John has been given his new assignment! We will be moving to...





Ohio!

Wright-Patterson AFB, specifically, in Dayton, O-hi-yo. Now, for you non-military folk, being told an assignment is not the same as getting orders for the assignment. It's a bit akin to ordering a meal at a restaurant and then waiting to see what actually shows up on the table: The waiter might not bring you exactly what was on the menu because the duck was too lean that day, or maybe the mushrooms were out of season, but the chef substituted it with something just as good. Really. See if you don't like it. And oh, by the way, that's all we have and we already cashed your check.

Wright-Patt wasn't exactly on our radar as a strong possibility, to say the least. But it was out there, along with all the other possibilities. And while it did make it on John's list of preferences, it was down there a ways and not seriously considered. Kind of like the Presidential Election when you're presented with all the candidates you have to pick among, and you're not real keen about any of them, so you sort of go with the one the least undesirable and hope it jives with what everyone else is choosing, too, so you're not wasting your vote. But, lo and behold, once the majority voted it left you with the candidate that, while maybe not the least desirable, was the least considered, if for no other reason because you didn't think he stood a chance.

That being said, I'm finding I'm quite happy with what's been handed us. Returning to the Midwest is quite appealing: nice people; decent schools; all four seasons; respectable cost-of-living...

In the meantime, I'm taking on a whole new appreciation for the beautiful scenery around us now, and I'm reminded that Ohio will be our first home in six years with no mountains as a backdrop, though we're told that part of the country is beautiful in its own right. Neither John nor I have actually even been to Ohio, we have realized. (Unless you count driving through in a bus, at night, on choir tour my senior year of college.) (I don't.)