On the road again

I'm en route back to Santa Fe - right now sitting in the Houston airport waiting to head off to Albuquerque. I originally was ticketed for a flight that would just now be boarding in San Antonio; instead a very helpful Continental employee cheerfully got me a seat on an earlier flight to Houston and then a more timely connection through to Albuquerque. I've had good experiences with Continental's customer service in the past, but I'm pretty sure being in my spiffy dress uniform helped.

I cannot begin to express how happy I am to be:
1) On leave. For the two weeks I can go to bed whenever I want, get up whenever I want, eat whenever and wherever I want, and don't need to answer to a single NCO. The last day I had like that, free of any sort of obligation to the Army, was January 30.
2) Out of San Antonio. Current weather in San Antonio: 105º, "feels like" 108º and according to weather.com is so hot that outdoor activity should be avoided. This is unremarkable weather there; it was the same weather, for example, for our two-week field exercise. Current weather in Santa Fe: 83º, "feels like" 81º, temperatures gently falling to 57º this evening. Most places in the industrialized world have more pleasant weather than San Antonio.
3) Away from Ft. Sam Houston. There's a good chance in my career that I'll end up back there for further training. But for sixteen weeks one of the strictest training companies there. A few hours each weekend off post (assuming you want to pay for the cab ride) is not sufficient.
4) An adult again. Things I can now do now that Army training no longer owns me: go places on my own without a "battle buddy". Stay out past 8:30 PM on a weeknight or 10:00 on a weekend. Skip breakfast if I so desire. Skip lunch if I so desire. Drive. Sleep in past 6:30 on a weekend. Carry my cell phone on me during the day. Carry a book on me during the day. Walk around in civilian clothes without a bit of paper on my person indicating that I have permission to do so. Wear tank tops with nothing over them, with my shoulders and armpits exposed for the world to see.
5) On my way to see mountains. Northern New Mexico spoils you and you truly don't realize how lucky you are to be there - until you're not. There's nowhere in the world like it: the way the mountains just glow around sunset, the smell of chiles roasting in August, the sudden downpours of monsoon season, the art and food and bustle of tourists and thrum of day-to-day life all blending together with the incredible natural beauty everywhere you look. Then after a few days in the Land of Enchantment I'm off back to my original home in New Jersey, where there's good pizza and perhaps a trip down the shore, definitely a trip to one of Philadelphia's museums, and most importantly, the comforting familiarity of the house where I grew up, my parents, their delightfully goofy dog.
6) On the cusp of another adventure. I'll be spending the next 24 months stationed in Germany, which means I get to live in Europe! For two years! With a steady, decent paycheck! There'll be lots of trips to Fun Places in Europe (first up: London, of course), good German beer, a fantastic opportunity to learn a fascinating language, and hopefully two years of learning more about medicine.

Life, right now, is *good*.