So, last week we checked where we were on the housing waiting list for Fort Campbell. #375 of 450ish. And we had movers scheduled. And no one cares. That is the main thing I've learned since we've been in the military: your problems... no one cares about them. At all. John was given his orders late. Housing wants us to prove it or they'll charge us $325 for telling them we're moving late. They worked out a deal with us that two days after talking to them they would come and inspect the house for damage and we'd have to pay all damages up front and out of pocket and then they'll waive the fee. So, woozy and tired on Percocet and Augmentin I tried to help John clean the house, but he mostly ended up doing it himself while I was feeling ill on the couch. They did the inspection and we'll just need to replace a few sections of blinds that kitties thought were so fun to play with. lol That should be $20 and the standard pet cleaning fee will be $30. Things on this end are going faster than normal. We'd been told we'd be moving "sometime in June" and now we have to be out by May 31st. I'd assume it would be that way next time, except that last time it was a month later than they'd previously said. *sigh*
I didn't know what to do about housing at Fort Campbell. Someone we know here had been at Fort Campbell a while back and said they'd lived in Hopkinsville about 20 minutes from base and it was a smaller town and nice for them. So, I went to Craigslist and started looking. I found some apartments that looked pretty nice that we could afford in our Basic Allowance for Housing (or whatever it means - BAH) and called their office to ask about their pet policy. The woman that answered the phone was so nice (another thing about the military and all things on base - they don't have to be nice to you because you have to go to them and most the time they're not nice to you) and is also a military spouse and knew everything I would need to do and need to know. So, I talked to John and talked to my parents and we decided to take it and I put down a deposit over the phone to hold our unit. Such a relief! We cried. Also, if you live on base, they take all of your BAH money, whether your housing is nice or crappy. We were paying the same for the place we couldn't open our fridge cause it hit the other side of the kitchen as we are paying here. Both were Fort Bragg housing, so that's the way it is. (And the pics of the Fort Campbell housing for our rank were not promising and guaranteed that we'd have all linoleum flooring through the entire apartment. But the place I found has carpet and vinyl. :D ) Living off-post, the BAH amount goes to you and if you choose somewhere less than the amount you are given, the leftover goes to help with utilities and other bills. :) So, we will probably be saving money living off-post anyway because we chose a place less than our BAH. (You can, of course, also choose somewhere more than your BAH and pay the difference but that would scare me too much. lol) Also, this way I'll have access to any public transportation and maybe have a life off-base... lol We'd like to get a second car soon, but since our pay cut that is further down the road.
We had been trying to get Patches spayed for some time now, but her respiratory problems kept coming back a few days after we'd stop her antibiotics. :( And there can't be breathing problems when they're going to have anesthesia. After getting the apartment, the spay was less pressing because we don't have to register them with the on-post vet, but she has been getting older, so we decided to do it anyway. She should be healed up just in time to move, getting her sutures out the day before the movers come to pack up the house and we can get her last couple of shots in Hopkinsville. I found a vet there and made her an appointment and I also found a place in the next town over that sells the cat food we use, so all should go just fine. She is recuperating nicely. We made her a little shirt to protect her stitches.
Our stuff is going to be packed up on the 29th and loaded and shipped out on the 30th (though those dates have changed several times in the past week x.x). I need to pack all we will need, anything valuable we don't want broken, everything the cats will need, and the cats in one small car and hope we're fine until the movers arrive. lol We'll be spending a couple of days in a hotel here (I think I found a good one that allows pets) and the rest of the time using an air mattress in our new place. (Saves $ and easier on the cats.) We've done this once before, but it's still nerve-wracking.
I think the transition will probably go fine, but I can't help but worry all along. :S I'm going in to see the dentist again tomorrow because the pain has gotten worse again and spread to my jaw so they need to look at it and probably take an x-ray. At least I'll have a dentist to transfer to right away.
Lots to do! But we can do it. :)
