Night Elf Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 DH works for HP, Inc. He was asked to go to India in February for a 2-week class. He's really excited about the opportunity. I, OTOH, am a little freaked out. The longest we've been separated in our 18 years of marriage was 5 days. The kids (teens) think it means 2 weeks of take-out food. For some bizarre reason, dd15 asked if I would need help remembering to do laundry. Um, I do the laundry already! I'm going to be stressed out. I don't know how couples who are separated regularly do it. I'm going to be a hot mess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 How exciting for him! There was a very short time when my husband traveled for work. You'll be fine. Just make sure that if you trap a mouse in the hall closet for him to take care of when he gets home, that it's near the end of the trip and not near the beginning. If that happens. Because I hear sometimes it .... does .... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted December 19, 2013 Author Share Posted December 19, 2013 How exciting for him! There was a very short time when my husband traveled for work. You'll be fine. Just make sure that if you trap a mouse in the hall closet for him to take care of when he gets home, that it's near the end of the trip and not near the beginning. If that happens. Because I hear sometimes it .... does .... :D Oh my word! You reminded me that my dd21 totally freaks out when she sees a spider. I send DH to deal with it. Ugh. But the mouse would be much worse! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyingiguana Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 I freaked too, the first time my husband took off to teach a 3 week class. And I didn't have teens, but a toddler and an infant. And we had a really bad ice storm followed by 2 weeks of subzero temps (fortunately, we still had power). But we were all just fine. Later, when he took off to teach a 6 week class and the kids were a bit older, we barely noticed he was gone. We were pretty busy with other activities. I did think about re landscaping when he was gone for 6 weeks, but I recovered my sanity before doing it. It will probably seem a lot longer to him than to you. (I was just gone for a week. He was so busy he hardly noticed.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 :grouphug: :grouphug: It happens rarely here, but it is hard for me too. In 2009, dh went to Sierra Leone for 3 weeks. Last September he was gone for three weeks staying at the hospital with his sister til she died and in January he goes back to Sierra Leone for 10 days. We manage, but we miss him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 That will be a great experience for him and will look good on his resume too. A few things regarding his personal security/safety: (1) He needs to *closely* follow current events. There is a very *serious* problem, between the USA and the government of India at this time, because of the arrest in NYC of an Indian Diplomat in the Consulate there. (2) He should, at all times, be aware of current events in India. (3) Before his arrival, or immediately after his arrival, he should register with the ACS (American Citizen Services) in the U.S. Embassy. He can probably do that on their web site. (4) He should keep a very low profile, as he would do in Las Vegas, Chicago, Seattle, Miami, or any U.S. city. (5) He should read the Travel Warning or Travel Advisory on the web site of the U.S. Embassy in India. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 ((HUGS)) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 I know it's hard to believe, but you will get used to it. You will always miss him like crazy, but you'll get used to it. Tony is gone every 2-3 months for a week at a time. It used to be more, at his last company, so I'm grateful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T'smom Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 Try to see the silver lining! Watch chick flicks and eat food he doesn't like. (I take the kids to my parents for a week -10 days every few months by myself.....you should see the junk he eats when I'm gone!) Maybe watch a season of a TV show he doesn't like. Since your kids are old enough to stay by themselves, make some plans to get together with girlfriends. The time will be over before you know it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted December 19, 2013 Author Share Posted December 19, 2013 That will be a great experience for him and will look good on his resume too. A few things regarding his personal security/safety: (1) He needs to *closely* follow current events. There is a very *serious* problem, between the USA and the government of India at this time, because of the arrest in NYC of an Indian Diplomat in the Consulate there. (2) He should, at all times, be aware of current events in India. (3) Before his arrival, or immediately after his arrival, he should register with the ACS (American Citizen Services) in the U.S. Embassy. He can probably do that on their web site. (4) He should keep a very low profile, as he would do in Las Vegas, Chicago, Seattle, Miami, or any U.S. city. (5) He should read the Travel Warning or Travel Advisory on the web site of the U.S. Embassy in India. Thanks, I'll show him this post. I did ask him about safety when he first mentioned it but he said relations were good right now. I'm sure he'll be with coworkers at all times, but we have no details yet about where he is staying and what his itinerary is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom31257 Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 My dh was gone 2 weeks to Israel in September, and it was the longest we'd been apart. The thing I wasn't prepared for was our lack of communication while he was there. We don't have smart phones or anything, so he could only text from someone else's phone a handful of times. The kids and I were fine, though. I tried to keep things as normal as I could because we were doing school during that time. I did eat out a little, and I took them places that were a little pricier because we only had the 3 of us and could eat for the same amount as cheaper places with 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 Thanks, I'll show him this post. I did ask him about safety when he first mentioned it but he said relations were good right now. I'm sure he'll be with coworkers at all times, but we have no details yet about where he is staying and what his itinerary is. Please explain to your DH that relations between the USA and India, at this time, are *extremely* bad. They removed the conrete safety barriers that were protecting the U.S. Embassy and they have taken other measures against employees of the U.S. Embassy. This anti American push by the Indian government could easily result in problems for Americans who are in India. The advice of the U.S. Embassy here in Colombia is to NEVER be near demonstrations. Demonstrations that are begun, with the intention of being completely peaceful, can be taken over, by bad people and can become violent. Hopefully, by the time your DH goes to India, the Indian diplomat involved will have paid a huge fine, or she will be in prison, or deported from the USA and this will have blown over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LMA Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 Yes, be careful with safety. A relative who is an executive with an Indian contingency is canceling his trip to India that was scheduled for Feb. 2014. In fact, his company is monitoring the situation carefully to bring home American employees ASAP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bolt. Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 It's hard emotionally to be apart -- so take it easy on yourself as you cope... But don't sell yourself short either. You are an ordinary, strong, competent, intelligent and capable person. There is nothing about being the only adult in your household for a few days that should be too hard for you. Really. How low of an opinion of humanity do you have if you think 'the average person' would find short term household management by one person more than a slight challenge? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 Follow on: You can keep in touch via Skype. Skype to Skype calls are free. :-) Voice or Video calls are free... :-) We were in Bogota, for 3 nights, 2 weeks ago. We drove by the U.S. Embassy, at least once. Colombia is a very strong ally of the USA, but my wife (she is Colombian) would never want us to stay in a hotel near the U.S. Embassy, even if we had things to do in the Embassy. Your DH should NOT stay near the U.S. Embassy, or a U.S. Consulate, or anything related to a U.S. based company (HP, McDonalds, etc.). He should avoid those places... ETA: Here's the URL for the web site of the U.S. Embassy in India: http://newdelhi.usembassy.gov/ And here's the URL for the ACS (American Citizen Services): http://newdelhi.usembassy.gov/service.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 :grouphug: You prepare yourself as best you can and they you just get through it. I plan lots of things for when we are apart and read a lot at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.