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September 21, 2007
Our Future
Eric's commitment to the Air Force will be complete on June 10, 2008. As that date approaches we are trying to figure out what we will do, where we will go.
Our first choice is to stay in the Air Force for another 3 or 4 years for an assignment at Yokota Air Force Base, which is on the outskirts of Tokyo, Japan. This was offered to us and we accepted. Orders were cut about a month ago, having us leave for Japan next June. Having an overseas assignment would be pretty much the only thing keeping us in the Air Force
However since then, the plan has hit a snag. Eric has had a couple of surgeries in the past year, which we recently learned may make him medically ineligible for an overseas assignment. His ability to do his job as a dentist has in no way been impaired. He just cannot fully participate in his Squadron's physical training.
Under normal circumstances, we would chalk it up as a minor disappointment and then move on, figure out where we would go next. When you are in the military it is never "normal circumstances." They (whoever THEY are) will probably take a long time to decide if Eric will be medically boarded.
Who knows? It could be next March and then we are left with just a couple of months to decide where we will go next. Do we pick someplace and settle? Does he enter into private practice? There are many other federal options through the National Health Service that sound really interesting. Do we go back to New England? Do we go back to Kansas? When he needs to renew his dental license, which state should he pick?
As for now, we're just going to wait and see what happens. We're not going to make too many plans and just let things fall into place.
Posted by Julee at 08:26 AM