Yesterday was a "good news, bad news" kind of day. The good news is that I received an e-mail from the contact for our adopted platoon, and he is back home in the USA. The rest of the platoon is due back home within the next few days or so. I thought it was especially nice of him to e-mail me considering he's only been home a matter of days after being in the Middle East for about 10 months, and in the hospital overseas with a broken leg. If I'm glad he's home, I can only imagine how his wife must be feeling!

Now for the bad news. My landlord is going to be raising my rent by $50/month starting next month, and then another $50/month in January. This sounds like a lot, but he hasn't raised my rent in the last 4 years. I've only had one rent increase, and that was back in 1999. Besides, the guy deserves it. He's a great landlord, and I love my apartment. Even with the rent increase, it's still a bargain. I have the whole first floor of a renovated house that was built around 1911, eight windows, three of which are southern exposure, high ceilings and four rooms. I also get pretty much sole use of the porch, since my upstairs neighbor never uses it. So, while the increase may be a bit of a stretch, I'm happy here and don't think I would find anything even remotely comparable for less.