Back when the Boss and I were dating she made an offhand remark that turned out to be quite prophetic.  “Come with me, and I promise you an adventure!”  I was thirty, single, had just finished a year of substitute teaching, had no contract for the next school year and probably wouldn’t make the next month’s rent, so I said, “Ah, what the hell!”  I moved to Kansas City.

Fast forward 13 years.

We had thirty-six hours before the Boss left for CRC at Fort Benning in Georgia.  It was one a.m.  She came to bed huffing and puffing, and I honestly thought that she was angry about something.  My first thoughts upon waking were, “I didn’t do it!  It can’t be me.  I haven’t done anything stupid in weeks.  Not even remotely stupid.”   After half an hour of thrashing and moaning (and we were both thinking the same thing by this point) we decided to get her dressed and drive her to St. John’s hospital where she passed a 2mm kidney stone.  Woo Hoo!  Scratch that one off the list of things to do before deploying.  We weren’t certain whether or not we could fit that one in! 

They didn’t believe her when she walked into the ER and announced that she had a kidney stone.  They offered a few alternatives.  Maybe it was a UTI.  Maybe it was a tumor.  Maybe it was a...but the CT scan confirmed the Boss’s self-diagnosis. She is, after all, THE Boss.   A couple of hours later the pain vanished, and shortly thereafter the offending culprit washed from her body.

We’re having it stuffed and mounted while she’s away. 

She told the doctor that she didn’t have time for a kidney stone.  She had things to do.  She was deploying.  He asked her where she was going, and then asked her whether or not she wanted to go.  He pulled out a pad of paper and offered, “I could write something and get you out of this.”   It was a kind offer but she declined. I drove back to the ER to find a happy, smiling, and somewhat tired Boss ready to go home. 

We fit in some last minute shopping yesterday, a lot of laundry, a “Good-bye and Good Luck,” LOST-themed lunch/picnic from her co-workers, and a date at Applebee’s for Buffalo wings, beer and cribbage, the latter being one of our favorite things to do since we started dating.   

As I write, she is sleeping.  It is Friday morning, and in a few minutes I have to wake her.  We are going to load the car, drive to Target to purchase a digital camera for her trip, and then go to the airport to drop her off.  She flies to Georgia for a week’s worth of training and then she’s off to the sand box. 

Our next adventure begins today!

P.S.  For those of you following the adventures of the last few days, the proper attire is underwear.  He was a former welder with big, strong hands, and he wasn't cute.

Works for me.