Memories of Exile

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From the 4th of January, 2010, to the 23rd of August, 2012, I lived in that building (or it's twin to the left, off camera) over the course of 963 days, on Mondays through Thursdays. For two years, seven months and some 19 days. It was meant to be a one year assignment. I almost felt like I was back in the military. Though the pay was much better.

Work at the home office was slow, very slow (not the Home Office, I'm sure they were busy enough). Some of my colleagues were laid off, some left to find work elsewhere, but the head of our software department found enough of us to be sufficiently useful in all manner of endeavors (not just software) to find other work for us. I found a spot integrating a certain missile system, a system for which my company is somewhat famous, but it was a hundred miles away from Chez Sarge. Rather than commute, the company was amenable to putting us up in a hotel for four days a week.

So I worked ten hour days in order to "get it over with," so to speak. They were long days but the work was interesting so the day went by fairly quickly. This was in the days before the Chant existed so early on I had not much to do after work. As the hotel had HBO and a fairly large suite of cable channels, I watched rather a lot of television.

Law & Order (I think I saw every single episode over the course of those two and a half odd years, it was on every day, sometimes twice) was one show I spent a lot of time watching. The Sopranos was another, at first I wasn't all that thrilled with watching another mobster tale (The Godfather trilogy had seemed enough for me at the time) but then there wasn't much on one Sunday night (I would often go up Sunday afternoon rather than get up at 0400 Monday for an 0500 "go"), I watched one episode, the first of course, then another, then another, then "Oh dear, is that the time?" So yes, I went to bed.

Then in 2011 Game of Thrones hit the airwaves (a tale I told here), that one hooked me, watched the entire series right up until the bitter end. (An ending I was not happy with and I'm still hoping the old codger finishes writing the last two volumes before he heads west.)

Thing is, the music from that show takes me back to that long exile. Music has a way of evoking strong memories in our species, at least for those who look up from the mud occasionally to gaze at the stars and wonder.

I may have posted this clip by 2CELLOS before, but I'm posting it again. It reminds me of where I was some seven long years ago and reminds of just how good I have it now. Regardless of how the series ended.

It sucked being away from home, but I could go home on weekends and no one was shooting at me. Many of my brethren and sistren can't say that now, couldn't say that then. Many never came home, I did and the only danger I faced was traffic on the interstate highway system. Which while nasty at times is nothing in the big scheme of things.

Have a pleasant day, count your blessings, I'll see you Tuesday, right after juvat's regular Monday post. (I tell ya, you can set your watch by the guy. Or would that be calendar?)

Enjoy...

FWIW, the video was shot in Dubrovnik, which I understand stood in for King's Landing in Game of Thrones.

Speaking of thrones...

Operation Marble Throne Room commences on or about 02 December 2019. Logistic preparations are complete, material is in hand, and we're poised on the brink of a major bathroom renovation*.

Yeah, I can hardly wait...




* More on this later, POCIR.