An Anticipation and a Silver Tooth, Noxious Fumes, and Poetic Truth

Eddie, I'm really excited for you to come home. Even though we still hear from you regularly, and even though when you're Stateside I don't see you anyway, I still feel like I'm missing you. I know how anxious you must be to come back to the US and see your daughter and pal-around unarmed (well, in your case, do you actually go anywhere UNARMED?). Anyway, I'm happy for you. Don't let your guard down, dude.

I got my tooth fixed! Yes! I started work on Monday. I'll be on Temp orders until 31Mar, but after that, it's anybody's guess what status I'll be put in. Hopefully a full-time slot opens that I'm qualified for. A SSgt is going to ABM school soon so that's at least one.

...hold on, I think my gas detector's going on in the kitchen....

...false alarm. That beeping was just the microwave defroster, doing the job I programmed it to do: Defrost two chicken breasts. I don't even have a 'gas detector,' and I'm suddenly petrified that I could be inhaling loopy fumes. "There's a fume in this truck and I don't know if I'm dead or what."

As for Double O, I called his house last week but he was out. I asked Julie to have him call me tonight, but no phone call yet (it's 1:08 a.m.)... but hey, you know, that could be for any number of reasons.

Peace and Love,
Mungo

PS, Here are some of my favorite:
"Grooks" by Piet Hein

A PSYCHOLOGICAL TIP
Whenever you're called on to make up your mind,
and you're hampered by not having any,
the best way to solve the dilemma, you'll find,
is simply by spinning a penny.

No -- not so that chance shall decide the affair
while you're passively standing there moping;
but the moment the penny is up in the air, y
ou suddenly know what you're hoping.

A WORD TO THE WISE
Let the world pass in its time-ridden race;
never get caught in its snare.
Remember, the only acceptable case
for being in any particular place
is having no business there.

NOTHING IS INDESPENSABLE
A Grook to warn the universe against megalomania
The universe may
be as great as they say.
But it wouldn't be missed
if it didn't exist.

One for Eddie!
WHAT PEOPLE MAY THINK
Some people cower
and wince and shrink,
owing to fear of
what people may think.
There is one answer
to worries like these:
people may think
what the devil they please.

(These are only a few, Piet Hein wrote, they say, 10,000 grooks in his lifetime. A "grook" is a nonsense word he invented to define them.)