Happy belated Halloween.

"Most of us don't need a psychiatrist therapist as much as a friend to be silly with." -Robert Brault

Since settling into Norfolk again, there's been a range of emotions from longing for California and my salty friendships from yesteryear's deployment, to begrudgingly attending the Knives Meetings when everyone already has their friendships intact from flight school and East Coast duty stations. So like a moth to a flame, I've been extra clingy attentive to spending more time together and trying to navigate he-in-the-instructing-pipeline and I in my working-from-home-sponsored-Vitamin-D-deficiency.

I literally can't thank the world enough for sending fellow West Coast brethren to live in this now-frigid location that's not quite as chic as The District nor as classic Southern as Charleston. It's Norfolk. Le Navy's armpit. And yes, I know there are sketch parts to both D.C. and Charleston, but let's be honest - you think we'd live in less than glamorous places?? No. No. No.

Thankfully this Halloween we were able to celebrate in style and warmth as I rocked my 30-degree leggings beneath the made-in-China penguin suit with my fellow West Coast transplants. It's been a very rocky transition back here. It's obvious as I fall off the blogging wagon, hunker into my bed before 9pm each night, and eat myself into feeling better (hello slightly-bigger-butt). I sense that I'm failing at this military move mindset and can only watch myself trudge through the motions. Thank goodness I have tickets already for California. We're going to need a bigger boat checked back for the return trip.