Theres no place like home... A weak attemp at Kansas humor

Friends and Family of Frank (FFofF shirts will be available soon),A lot has happened since the last time I wrote anything. Most notably, Ifinally got to go on leave! I got to spend 2 great weeks back home andgot surrounded by all the people I haven't got to see in 8 long months.Lots of exciting things happened while I was home and since I returnedto Fort Leavenworth. If you got a few minutes to spare, put on yourreading glasses, crack open a fresh Diet Coke and prepare to beentertained.I got to choose my dates for leave and I decided on Sept 11 to Sept 25,Thursday to Thursday. Why, you ask? Well, first, I thought 9/11 would bea good day to see my Mom and Dad for the first time. Seeing how 9/11 waspart of my motivation for joining the Army, I thought it would be oddlybefitting. Second and most important, I sheepishly admit my mainmotivation for leaving on a Thursday was because I wanted to give myselfplenty of time to make it back for the Louisville football game. Iwanted to see my Leps roll over Northwest and I am happy to say, I wasnot disappointed. From what I was reading on the net, it was susposed tobe a game but Northwest appartently didn't get the memo. What made thegame all that much better was that it was played in typical Ohiofootball weather: rainy and with a slight chill in the air. OK enough onthat. I got into Akron/Canton airport around 9pm on the 11th and that'swhen my vacation began. My main goals while home were to see as manypeople as I could and then do as little as possible with the rest of mytime. After 8+ months of going full speed ahead, I wanted to do theexact bare minimum required for survival. I think Mom can confirm this.I unabashedly slept in every morning until my body woke itself up. Twoweeks without an alarm clock was simply heaven. There are few things inthis world that I love more than sleeping in. luckily for me, thosethings were all waiting for me in Ohio. I got to see most everybody Iwanted to see. Here's a short list of everyone. Obviously Mom, Dad andKatie (she came up the last week I was home), Gma Walker, Aunt Gail andUncle Dale, Kyle and Keely, Kurt, Carla and family, Stacey, Andy andJackson, Steph and Bill, Gma and Gpa Warnock, Alan and Karen Warnock,Tami along with her kids, Aunt Jan at the bank and tons more people atchurch. As far as friends go, I saw Amanda, Krista, Jen Rae, Nikki Hallat the football game, Megan Swaggard (an old high school friend), NikiBrabec (a friend that moved away in 3rd grade) and a whole bunch ofpeople that I graduated with and played football with. I'm sure I left afew people out but I was home for 2 whole weeks and my memory is alittle fuzzy nowadays with all this computer and radio knowledgefloating around in my brain. While I was home, I got my fair share of homecooked meals which isamazing considering it was full blown football season. Packer practicetook up most of Dad and mine nights ie prime homecooked meal time.However, in spite of tight schedules, Mom still seemed to performculinary magic and make her son very, very happy. I was most excitedabout what is simply known in my house as "Frank's Favorite." I call itSpanish Rice to my friends. I don't even need to ask Mom for it when Icome home, she knows. With what I am hoping becomes a tradition for myhomecoming (wink, wink), the Spanish rice exceeded my expetations. Itseems that after being away for long periods of time, my taste budsforget what Mom's cooking tastes like so it is always a treat to sitdown to a Warnock family meal.Probably the most fun I had while I was home involved helping Dad coachhis Little Leopard team, the Packers. It brought back all the memoriesfrom high school and hit me really hard when we went into the lockerroom at the stadium before the Packer-Cowboys game. They had added moregraffiti and art to the walls since I had last seen it 5 years ago butwhat really made the games and locker room speeches flooding back wassomething that has not changed or been edited in 8 years. It is in the upper left hand corner of the dry erase board. 4 Points that were said before every game all 3 years I played football and I am sure are recited before every game now. No regrets, trenches, competetors vs. athletes, 4 quarters. It brings chills to my spine to type and think about those days again.

Well that is all for now. I will follow up with this in days to come and post some pics about my 2 weeks home.

Your Soldier,
Frank