He's very interested in pursuing jets. Yes, for me it's a scary thought because it's my husband and I don't want anything bad to happen to him, but the thrill and excitement is what makes me happy for him. I told him long, long ago that no matter what he decides I will always support him 100%.
I don't want my husband choosing an aircraft that he'd consider boring, or not as fun to fly as an option. He has a commitment to this country, and while he's committed to doing whatever this country needs, I hope he gets to enjoy his time and fly something that will knock his socks off.
With jets in mind, we could get stationed at a few different places including Whidbey Island, Washington, Lemoore, California and Oceana, Virginia. Personally, I don't want to live in Lemoore, So I'm rooting for Whidbey Island or Oceana. If he changes his mind to P3's there's always Jacksonville, Florida, again, a place I hope to not live.
Everyone chooses a station based off of different criteria. For me, I like to live in an area where there is a lot to do and offer for residents. I truly enjoyed my time in Maryland and miss it there because 1. the east coast is beautiful, 2. there was always something going on/to do, 3. the employment opportunities and finally 4. my friends. Living in Pensacola, Florida may sound exciting, but truly it's a big bore. I can't wait to get out of here and hopefully experience a new and great place to live. When I'm researching the *potential* places that we could end up getting stationed at, I'm looking for climate, population and things to do as well as job opportunities. Oh, and most importantly, I'm checking to see how far from home (Illinois) we'd be.
It stinks being so far from home (Illinois), and only being able to see family once, maybe twice a year. I'd prefer to live somewhere that is semi-close (less than 1,000 miles away) so that I can drive there if need be. Unfortunately most of the bases that are *potential* to us, aren't close to home at all.
LEMOORE, CALIFORNIA
24,513 residents
rainfall- 8 inches
snowfall- 0 inches
precipitation days- 38 days
sunny days- 264 days
average July highs- 97 degrees
average January lows- 35 degrees
distance from Illinois- 2,095 miles (31 hours driving)
I really am not interested in Lemoore, California. No particular reason, I'm just not interested.
OCEANA, VIRGINIA
431,155 residents (Virginia Beach, Va)
rainfall- 48 inches
snowfall- 7 inches
precipitation days- 102 days
sunny days-213 days
average July highs- 83 degrees
average January lows- 31 degrees
distance from Illinois-938 miles (15.5 hours driving)
To be perfectly honest, this is my number one choice. It would allow me to live back on the east coast, be close to all my friends that I left, have hope in finding a job and we would be right by my husband's brother and family that live in Virginia. Also, it's the closet distance to home which is very important to me.
WHIDBEY ISLAND, WASHINGTON
22,293 residents
rainfall- 21 inches
snowfall- 6 inches
precipitation days- 137 days
sunny days- 159 days
average July highs- 72 degrees
average January lows- 34 degrees
distance from Illinois- 2,125 miles (32 hours driving)
The farthest from home, but my second choice pick. I would love to live near Seattle (can someone say coffee?), and be able to look out to the mountains and water. I feel like I'd be relaxed living here and although there's not too many residents, at least Seattle is nearby (hope in job opportunities?).
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA
848,867 residents
rainfall- 52 inches
snowfall- 0 inches
precipitation days- 114days
sunny days- 221 days
average July highs- 92 degrees
average January lows- 42 degrees
distance from Illinois- 1,100 miles (17.5 hours driving)
Again, another place where I'd rather not have to live. I live in northern Florida right now, and I'm just not impressed. If I'm going to live in Florida, I want to live further south where it's warm(er), more palm trees, better beaches, and MUCH MORE TO DO.
I know being a Navy wife that I don't have much say in the decision, but I at least want to be informed of the different naval air stations and have a better idea of what to expect of each base location. Only time will tell where we will get to move to next, I'm just hoping it's somewhere great that we'll love and look forward to.
Washington is BEAUTIFUL, if you can get past the gloomy weather, there's definitely so many scenic places to see over there. And COFFEE is a must, so many great cafes, Starbucks should be last on your list if you ever get stationed there.
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