Tag Archives: military wife

Three years in…

January 5, 2017 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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Later this month we will celebrate three years. Three years since our wedding day, and four years since we first met. Two, almost three houses later. 3 countries. 6 national parks. 9 US states. Marriage is a strange thing. By strange I don’t mean bad – I just mean that it has changed my life. Actually, i’m safe in saying that it has changed both of our lives irrevocably. Sometimes, it is not the decisions you come to that is ultimately important, just that you Continue reading →

Rocky Starts and PCS adventures

August 6, 2016 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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PCS Adventures: Our home, this home where we began our married life together, is empty. Well, almost empty. There’s a few plastic totes, some suitcases, an air mattress and a couple of folding camp chairs. The house echoes and every sound carries without our furniture to soak up the noise. Every PCS (acronym for “Permanent Change of Station” which is military speak for moving to a new location) is different and no matter how many times you’ve moved there are new challenges that crop up. Continue reading →

The Green Card Club

September 29, 2014 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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The “you are preselected for a new credit card,” and the junk mail from cable companies are some of my least favourite kind of mail! The kind you rip up or shred without even taking a look at them. On the other hand, the white envelopes with the US citizenship and Immigration Services blue logo have become some of my favourite kind of mail. At each stage, they have heralded some little step forward. This time we are moving a leap forward! Last week, RM Continue reading →

When the world turns upside down

May 9, 2014 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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In my world, most of the world is north of where I stand. The water is scarce, the sun burns, and the only bit of land South is Antarctica. Everything is a little bit upside down. Until now. If you have been reading posts here for any length of time you might be wondering why I’m not on a train somewhere in Asia right now. Yes, you’re right. I was supposed to be in the midst of Overland from Oz. But I’m not. Instead, I’m Continue reading →

Transitions

April 4, 2014 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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tran·si·tion noun \tran(t)-ˈsi-shən, tran-ˈzi-, chiefly British tran(t)-ˈsi-zhən\ : a change from one state or condition to another : passage from one state, stage, subject, or place to another : a movement, development, or evolution from one form, stage, or style to another : a musical modulation : a musical passage leading from one section of a piece to another : an abrupt change in energy state or level (as of an atomic nucleus or a molecule) usually accompanied by loss or gain of a single Continue reading →

Ready for this: to love someone else

March 21, 2014 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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ready for this
To love someone else: I’m just learning what it really means. Day in & day out. Separated by 1000’s of miles or by the sheets and extra covers my small little self needs to stay warm: the learning is a process. Being content – being away from each other – is harder than I ever could have expected. And that’s saying something given how much time we’ve had at a distance already. The thunder rolls. I normally find this comforting. But not tonight. Tonight, I Continue reading →

Almost Homeless

March 17, 2014 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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I’m almost homeless. I haven’t really had a place that was my own since I left the cottage-by-the-sea. I’ve seen glimpses of the possibility of home, but I’ve been barely able to make the room in which I’ve slept my own. I’ve moved around a lot, too much even for me. It’s been less and more dramatic than it might otherwise have been. But after 2 years of almost homelessness, I have a home now and it is on the opposite side of the world. Continue reading →

The things you notice running with jetlag

March 10, 2014 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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traveling solo in south east Asia
I am back in Australia, back at work, jetlagged, and missing my husband of just a month intensely. I went for a walk to the beach at 5:30am this morning. Jetlag has its mixed blessings:waking up before dawn is one of the upsides. I ran, or tried to. Running with jetlag is one activity I do not relish. The first couple of runs while jetlagged are all kinds of uncomfortable. My body cries out. My chest feels like it is going to explode. My feet Continue reading →

I am a legal alien

March 1, 2014 by Anna Blanch Rabe
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In America, I am a Legal Alien. In America, I am an alien. In America, I am a Legal Alien. In America, I am an alien. I am not protected by the constitution of the United States. I cannot travel In and out of the country on my own whim. This is a bit of a problem. You see, we have different passports. I am Australian. RM is American. However, Love knows no passport. We accept that we are complicated. We chose this. We chose Continue reading →