Ah, Christmas Eve, a time for reflection, celebration, and work. I started out the morning with a nice jog around the airfield. It was a coordinated 5k run called the Jingle Bell Jog. Proceeds benefit the Wounded Warrior Foundation. It was the first time I have run not on a treadmill since my arrival to this foreign country. 5K is equivalent to 3.1 miles and I completed this run in 27 minutes. I am just happy I finished.
People dressed up for this run in Santa outfits, elf hats, and lighted Santa hats. My roommate wore a Happy Holidays Santa hat over her issued fleece cap. My other roommate attached lights and ornaments to her fleece cap that glowed and flashed at the push of a button. She also carried an Elmo doll stocking and a big smile.
It was funny to see the serious runners mixed in with everyone that was there to simply have fun for a good cause. The winner was wearing spandex from head to toe with a specially made water bottle belt that serious marathon runners wear. 
I re-enlisted my first Soldier today with an hour’s notice! I was so nervous and I wasn’t even the one re-enlisting! I was hoping for just a small crowd, but we were using the re-enlistment to kick off our Holiday party. Therefore an e-mail was sent out announcing the event prior to the festivities. Focused on this Soldier’s shoulder, ensuring volume, articulation, and precise wording, I managed to re-enlist this Soldier flawlessly! Smiles all around because I was proud, he was happy, and now the celebration begins! 
Next was the gift exchange. I got a small pillow from an NCO from the personnel section. She and I know each other well, so I was grateful for the new pillow seeing as my current one is flat and lacking in the comfort region. There was a raffle to pass out Texas University sweatshirts. Then we were invited to play games and each delicious food. There was pie, veggies, melon, and sandwiches. For drinks we had a couple bottles of fizzy grape juice, non-alcoholic beer, and soda pop.
Once the main activity of gift exchanging was complete and everyone had collected their stockings neatly hanging in the main gathering area, my office closed the door and held an office counsel. This consisted of sock puppets, a hammer, and a mallet. This was our first office counsel. The sock puppets are the judges, the Soldiers not on trial are peers that ask questions and are ultimately used as jury. The people attached to the sock puppets are the defense attorney and the prosecutor. I am not going to go into details, but it was quite hilarious. I will post pictures as soon as I am able!
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