Buy Now

Iraqi father shows off his daughter to the camera

During long deployments I have a bad habit of buying things that I see in magazines or online and having them shipped to the house in Atlanta. When I finally arrive home I normally have a dozen or so small boxes waiting for me, most of which I’ve already forgotten about. This drives my wife bananas, and rightfully so.

None of these purchases is essential, just things that I think that I would like to have at the moment. I have to admit that some of them have been pretty extravagant over the years causing my wife to shudder every time the UPS man rings the bell. I think that the key here is the phrase, “at the moment”. I’m sure that if I just delayed hitting the "Buy Now" button that the impulse would soon pass and I’d be on to the next thing, only to have to repeat the delaying process again.

I’m happy to report that having been in Iraq for almost a month I haven’t hit the big “Purchase” button once yet. I’m sure that my wife is waiting for the other shoe to drop, she knows me too well. The only thing I really need when I get back is a couple of warm hugs and a smile.