I suffer from serious full-time writer envy.

I’d love nothing more than to stay at home and write full-time, especially now that the weather is warm and my patio beckons to me. My absolute favorite place to write during the summer months is on the patio, under the umbrella, overlooking the water while the boats go by.

We live on a tidal river and are close enough to the ocean that the water has a briny scent, and seagulls bob on the waves. I don’t get to spend nearly enough time on my patio appreciating the beauty because I work a full-time day job for the Department of Defense…in a noisy city, away from sparkling water and seagulls…inside a very old building… in an office with no windows.

Sigh.

The other night, I was whining to my husband about how much more writing I’d get done if only I didn’t have to go to my day job. He gave me a tolerant look, but instead of saying something about how I never complain when that weekly paycheck rolls in, he told me that I’d be miserable if I wasn’t working full-time. And not just working full-time at any old job, but working full-time at my particular job. Where else would I get ideas for my military-themed romances if I wasn’t working shoulder to shoulder alongside our uniformed servicemen and women? Where else would I have the opportunity to sit in the cockpit of a Blackhawk helicopter, or have a Super Horner fighter pilot give me an up-close and personal tour of his jet?

I don’t want to admit to my husband that he’s right. I want him to acknowledge that my job is demanding and stressful; that I sacrifice time with my family when I’m required to travel for weeks at a time. Again, he just gives me the look, and I finally acknowledge that it’s during these extended trips, when I get to really know the military guys and gals that I travel with, that I hear the best stories. Like the one from the Marine sniper who met his girlfriend through an “adopt-a-soldier” program at her office. The care packages she sent to this guy were nothing short of inspired.

Just this past weekend I received a call from a friend and coworker who recently decided to do a voluntary 6-month deployment to Iraq. She’s single, attractive, and very dedicated to her job but has absolutely no military training or experience. She’s just a regular civil service employee like myself. How will she ever manage to survive a 6-month deployment to the desert, surrounded by battalions of hard-bodied soldiers? I can’t wait to find out!

And so I’ll spend as much time on my patio as I can during the weekends, but I’m not about to quit my day job. Not when there are so many great stories out there to tell! If you have a loved one serving in the military, my heartfelt thanks go out to them for their service, and to you for what you endure while they are gone. And if you have a story you'd like to share about your serviceman or woman, I want to hear it! God bless and thanks for stopping by!