I need to jump back on my soapbox...

And write an editorial to the Stars and Stripes (military newspaper we get here in Japan)- but I am too busy!  I hardly have a moment to write this post.
 I'll get back to why at the end of my post.  First- a little update...

This week is Sissy's birthday.  She will be 8!!  Where does the time go I ask you?  So I am running around trying to find presents and party favors.  I miss Party City right now.  At least I got her off the track of having a Pokemon party.  I am SO TIRED of Pokemon!!  Instead of that- now we are having a slumber party.  Aaack!!  I'll let you know how it went- if. I. survive.

Last week we held another Compass session.  Did I mention that already?  Sorry- I tend to repeat myself often from time to time.  This time I presented the financial section.  I thought it went well for the most part.  I am really glad to have become a mentor.  I love meeting new wives (and hopefully a few husbands if we ever rope one or two to come)- and I really feel like we are making a difference.  Now our leader- the one who started it all for us at our base- is leaving us.  I love that woman and I am sad to see her go.  She has been a Navy wife for more than 26 years and is just a wealth of knowledge.  She knows more about the Navy than most sailors I think.  And she is not afraid to tell a sailor when they are doing wrong- "you are out of uniform" or "you need to pull up your pants."  She cracks me up.  She tries to convince us that we too have to responisibility to tell people when they are wrong.  I don't have the b..., well you know what I mean. ;)

So back to my post title.  Why do I need to write an editorial?  Well- there is this article on the front page of Tuesday's paper about the effects of deployments on military children.  While I DO agree that military children have so many hurdles to go through in life- I just don't understand why they are JUST NOW talking about this??  Before the war- Navy children have been enduring deployments for.. always??  The typical deployment is 6 months with many weeks of detachments (short deployments here and there) before the actual long deployment.  Before- deployments were 9 and 12 months (luckily before my honey's time.)  Where was the national concern for these children?  The family portrayed in the article made a lot of bad decisions, in my opinion.  (I am getting more opinionated in my old age.)
I am not upset with the other services- I equally respect all US military.  It doesn't matter where they go or why- gone is gone.  Children don't understand why mommy or daddy has to leave.  My own children are dreading their daddy leaving right now.  Brother woke up this morning scared from a bad dream about his dad leaving.  It breaks my heart.  Of course- anytime military parents have to go into a dangerous situation- that makes it even harder to bear.  My prayers go out to them all.

It is the media I have a problem with.  They only focus on what attracts the most attention.  Take for example- Tiger Woods.  Really??  Is that really so important that all other news goes by the wayside? 

*sigh*