It's Alive!

It's been too damn quiet over here lately, so I will post some drivel for those that actually read this blog. Stuman has been away to Italy as part of his US Army Reserves duty, but is due home any day now. Though, he may prefer to stay there.... makes me wonder if it is cold there this time of year, too....

Anyways, look forward to hearing everything he can tell us about his trip. All that boring stuff that he tells his wife. Not that good stuff that happened, because he would probably get in trouble if she knew.

The past couple years or so, Stuman has been to Germany a few times, and usually brings me back a nice authentic stein. He called me up about a day before leaving for Italy, asking what I would like. I told him a few times, he doesn't have to get me anything, but he kept demanding he wants to get something. He felt Italy probably would not have steins. I mentioned more than likely not, as they are a wine country, and whatever you get, don't make it wine or wine-type glasses. I can't stand that stuff. I think it came down to whatever he wanted to get that he thought I would like.

Last year (well, I think it was last year - maybe the one before) it was from Germany, and was a stein, plus a nice bright orange shirt that read something about Oktoberfest (where 125,000 barrels of beer are drank) or something like that. I am too lazy to go to the dresser and look. Sis got a belt, like a shotgun shell one, that instead of shells, held the airline-sized bottles of German liquors. It was empty shortly through the year.

Welp, I should mosey back over to my place. Like I said, he'll be home anytime now, and will hopefully have pictures too.

PeacE

yet another hurdle...

Don't know what it is, but I am sure it is coming. I had my credit pulled and found out I am only 3 points away from qualifying for a house. So I am working with a credit clean up business to improve it drastically as the higher my score is, the less I pay for interest. Finished my last class with a C. It was math. It wasn't hard, but the hard part was trying to focus on the class while my wife was hospitalized the whole time. I could have had an A if I did the four papers that were due, but I didn't do them. I guess I did just enough to pass it so I wouldn't have to withdraw or pay the money back. There goes that good GPA. Oh, well, I can always opt to retake it at my own expense before I graduate, but the GPA really doesn't matter to me as much as the actual diploma.

Getting ready for my trip to Italy coming up real soon. Getting pretty excited about it as well. Work has been going well and there has been a lot of improvement with the wife since she has been out. The oldest is doing better as well and is currently being home schooled. We are heading up to the FIL's for Thanksgiving, but it will be a short trip. Enough to get out of the city and maybe see some snow.

Somehow we have another dog. It looks to be a 3-4 month old golden retriever. My wife went to get my daughter at the bus stop and found it. No collar or anything. So they posted found dog posters around the neighborhood, but heard nothing yet. Hoping we don't get stuck with it. Gotta have the family stop picking up strays...lol.

Watched The Christmas Blessing which is the sequel to Christmas Shoes. It was pretty good. Also watched Woke Up Dead with John Heder...not that good. Charlie St. Cloud with Zac Efron was pretty good. Scott Pilgrim VS. The World looked like someone was on acid when they made the movie. That's what I have been watching this weekend. Still have The Last Airbender to watch. Blockbuster has changed their policy from 5 to 3 days, but not their price. Wondering if I should still continue to go there. I hate red box because sometimes I get a movie and don't watch it for a few days. I don't like Netflix or Blockbuster online because I don't like automatic withdrawals from my account. I know, nothing makes me happy. Well, that's all I got for now.

Yes, I am still alive

This has been the worst month this year (October). As my wife was in and out of the hospital from 30 Sep up until last Friday. She is doing better since she has been out. Took the oldest to the psychiatrist and we are still waiting on a FINAL DIAGNOSIS, but it is believed that he has Autism, maybe even Aspergers. He is currently on medication which actually has helped his behavior quite a bit.

This Thanksgiving, we will be going up North to the FIL's as we normally do from time to time. Looking forward to getting out of town and hopefully relaxing a bit. My math class will end next Monday, but don't think I will finish as well as all my other classes. I have 4 assignments I am behind on since I haven't had time to do them with everything going on this past month. He is giving me until Monday night to turn them in with no deductions and they are only about 1-2 pages each, so it is not that overwhelming, but still.

Medical bills over these last couple of months have me overwhelmed. We applied for SSI for my wife and was denied. They say I make $400 too much per month, but they go by gross income and do not include bills. Still waiting on a determination from ahccs. My personal medical sucks as it is a $3000 deductible. I am in the process of trying to change it right now to benefit us later. The medication and doctor visits alone cost me over $1000 a month for both the wife and the oldest. I just need to win the lottery.

Next month, I head off to Italy for two weeks. It is a much needed vacation even though it is still a work trip. Don't know what we are doing for New Years yet, but I am debating on heading out of town just to get away and not be around a bunch of drunk and crazy people. Just don't know what I am going to do over the next couple of months, but hopefully, everything will work out.

Friday?...where did my days go?

I can't believe it is already Friday. I just lost track of days this week with everything going on. Took Monday off because the kids were out of school. tuesday wife was supposed to get out, but didn't get out until Wednesday. Thursday morning, 2am took her to er because she had some bacterial infection in the intestines. Took her to the dr later that evening for her appointment after being released from the hospital. Her meds from the last two days have totaled over $300 dollars. The new medication she is on is expensive and she is court ordered to take for a year. I think i need to change my insurance company next month.

The oldest had a visit from the school psychologist yesterday and was evaluated. The pshycologist was impressed and stated that he was above average for his age and didn't understand why he wasn't applying himself and going to school. So we are going to try to work on doing homeschool for him for a little bit and maybe get him into going back to school. We're still not sure what his problem is, but at least now I know it's not that he doesn't understand it or have a learning disability. It seems to me it is either anxiety or behavioral.

This math class I am in now, when I looked at the book before it started looked hard, but as I am in week 2, it's not so bad. I guess I will have to see as it continues. 3 more weeks to go and then I have a long break. i was supposed to start my next class Nov 16, but I asked to put it off until Jan because the last couple of weeks of that class, I will be out of the country and no internet access. So, might as well start over in Jan. It will of course push back my graduation date, but I want to apply myself and get good grades and not settle for a grade just to graduate faster. That is why I am only taking one class at a time instead of more.

Well, I reckon that is it for now.

Hopefully, the end is near

So, today is Day 19 of my wife being hospitalized and me playing all the roles in the household. Playing my usual roles of the father, the provider, the disciplinarian, I have also added mother, launderer, cook, taxi driver, maid, servant, etc...I am waiting to hear back from the hospital today, but she may be released tomorrow or Wednesday and I am so looking forward to it. These last three weeks have just torn me apart. I had gone 10 days without drinking until I cracked and that was 6 days after she was hospitalized. I am currently on Day 2 now. My birthday was last Saturday and the last night I drank. I am just getting too old to do it anymore.

School is still going well even with my new involvement with Facebook and especially Farmville. I finished up my History class last week with another A and began a math class. I have no idea what this class is, but it does involve numbers and letters and symbols I have never seen before. I finished all the way up to pre-calculus/trigonometry in high School and have never seen this stuff. So we will see how it goes. Today finishes week 1 and I should have the first week's grades in a few days.

Well, that is all I have been occupied with over the last 3 weeks. Don't have much else to talk about in my non-exciting life. I know a few years ago, it used to be more exciting, but then I moved and got away from a lot of people. Now I have been settling down over the last two years.

some good news

Even though I have been going through over a week and a half of hell, I did have some good news this week. First, I found out I made the Dean's list again for the summer. I currently have a GPA of 3.97 and 40 credits to go. Next, I was accepted into the Golden Key International Honor Society at my university's chapter, which is only offered to the top 15% of the students. I guess it is a big deal, but whatever. Last, I went in front of the first of two boards yesterday for Direct Commission. Found out today, I passed and will be going to the next board in Feb. If I pass that one, I will be an officer by summer time next year.

My Bad

So I have been neglecting this page a bit. Not like what I write should be of that much importance to people. Everyone should have a life and only a few people know about this page and check on it. This is just a place for me to vent.

So the wife ended up in the hospital last thursday as she went into psychosis again. It was about due as she usually goes about every 2-3 years. My oldest son has been giving me problems as well since the beginning of the school year. He has been refusing to go to school, threatening to run away, harm himself, harm others. He has had the police called on him twice, sent to the hospital twice, and is currently seing a behavioral health doctor to determine if he has mental issues.

This morning, he again refused to attend school and threatened to kill the Principal and Vice Principal. They informed me to take him and get him help or they would call the police. My first instinct was to take him to the hospital and have him admitted. However, I feel at this time, he does not need to be medicated. So I called the crisis line instead and they sent some people over. They agreed that the hospital was not a good idea as it should only be used if he actually attempted to harm himself or others. Instead, they suggested we invest in a in-home behavioral coach. I don't know what I am going to do at this point. I just need to get him to go to school, do his work, and be a kid. Is that too much to ask for?

And to top it all off, i leave for two weeks in about a week and a half. Still trying to figure out what i am going to do about that.

What a weekend

So, I had drill this past weekend which consisted of getting to the unit at 3am to prepare to bus out to CA to go to the range. my armor goes into the arms room to get our weapons and his passcode to turn off the alarm was not working. He called higher up to see what the problem was to find out he was removed from having access. he was told to lock up and get out or they will send the police. So we did not remove any weapons. i called the 1SG to let him know we were not bringing weapons. An hour and a half later, the police showed up. Luckily we were able to notify the police before they arrived of the situation, which was good because they had already alerted the SWAT team and canines to come out. By us calling, they just sent two patrol cars.

We then get to the range to qualify without weapons. We were told to use other Soldiers weapons to qualify. The problem? The Soldiers had already zeroed, but had not qualified yet so we were told to zero with their weapons without making adjustments to them and then qualify with them. You can not qualify with a weapon that is not zeroed for yourself. Needless to say, half my Soldiers don't know how to do "Kentucky windage" and did not qualify. I did, not as good as I usually do, but I still qualified.

So, that was my weekend. Oh, and then to find out when we go out to the range in March, the 1SG will not be there. So he informed me this past weekend, I will be the acting 1SG for March's drill. Gee, thanks. I hope I am commissioned by then.

What am I going to do?

I know I haven't been on here in quite a while. Between Facebook and daily life, things have to make room. I have been enjoying Facebook a lot as it is a way to communicate with friends and family that I haven't connected with in years. The downside to it is sometimes I am drinking while I am on it and have to go in the next morning to delete some things. School has been keeping me busy as well. Last week I finished Introduction to Film with an A and began my next class I am currently in: American History since 1865. It is interesting so far.

Ahh, the other big thing going on in my life right now: my oldest son. He is 11 years old and just started 6th grade. The school he goes to now, they changed it into a 6-8th grade middle school. So now he cahnges classes and teachers for every class. He also has to change in front of other students for gym class. To some, this never effected you, but I thought that may be what is effecting him. Ever since school started the first week of August, at least twice a week he refuses to go to school. I have been dragging him myself to the school, dropping him off in the Principa'ls office where he continues to throw a tantrum and try to run away for at least two hours. After he is calmed down, they usually have to carry him to his class. Then he is fine the rest of the day.

I took him a few weeks ago to school because he refused to go, where he did end up running away. After searching for him for 30 minutes, I went back to the school and we called the police to report him as a runaway. I then searched another half hour for him. Found him in the backyard and called the police. They showed up and talked to him. Because he admitted to them that he said he wanted to hurt himself, they had to call an ambulance to take him to a hospital to get evaluated. That did no help except increase pay for them. He would not talk to the counselor that showed up and they couldn't determine anything. So we called to set up an appointment with a mental health place. When that day arrived, I get there to check him in and they tell me, 'oh we were just about to call you, the Dr. called out sick today'. Great, now I have to schedule again and wait.

In the mean time, the following week he does the same tantrum thing. Drag him to the school where they call a crisis team. Next thing I know, the mental health place suddenly has him scheduled for two appointments the next two days. Took him to both of those where he would not talk to them. i gave them all the information of what he is doing, saying, when, where, what, family history, etc. All they told me is they don't want to classify him as anything just yet, but they are leaning towards Adjusted Disruptive Behavior Disorder.

I tried googling it and couldn't find it. The closest I came to thinking what it might be is ODD, which I forget what it stands for now. I am even at the point of thinking about putting him in a boarding school. I don't know, I just know I can't afford it. He doesn't have another follow up counselling until November, so I am just hoping this starts to phase out. I don't know what I am going to do.

Dear MySpace,

I have been cheating on you with your sister, Facebook. I know I haven't been on here for quite awhile, but once I got onto Facebook, I was addicted. Like a crackhead willing to do anything for another hit. These last few days I think I have began to control my habitual use of Facebook. Yeah, I still log on at work just to see what people are saying. At night, I used to be on it from the time I got home until I went to bed. The tv or movies would be playing in the background as I focus on Facebook. Now, I have decided when I come home, I just log on to play my games, browse a bit, and then shut it off to watch the news or the movie I chose for that night. Maybe jump on one more time before bed. I don't even remember the last time I was on MySpace.

Tomorrow, I take the oldest son to get evaluated for the things he has being doing lately. My college course on Introduction to Film ends next Monday and then it is on to History or something like that. Only 13 more classes to go for my degree. I believe I am set to graduate in Dec 2011 right now. I leave in October for two weeks to go to Wisconsin for job training. Leave again for two weeks in December for my Annual Training...in Italy. Yeah, just a little excited. Other than that, everything has been the same. Going to work and everything else. My bro, Ralphd00d, has his birthday coming up and we will be celebrating on Monday, Labor Day, as we normally do. Well, that is about it for now.

Horrible Day

Today is one of the worst days I have had ever. My oldest was refusing to go to school and threatened to run away or hurt himself. I finally had to get him in the vehicle, struggling with him the entire time. I get to the school and he refuses to get out. I go inside the school to get help when I hear my alarm going off. He jumped out of the car and took of running, but I had no idea in Which direction. So after 30 minutes of driving around the heighborhood I return to the school. They decided to call the police. After 30 min of talking with the police, I continue to drive around the neighborhood. After returning home, I find him in our backyard. I call the police to let them know I found him and they were coming over to talk to him. While talking to them, he admitted he said he wanted to hurt himself. Because of that, by law, they had to call anambulance to take him to the hospital to get evaluated. We sta there for a few hours just for the counselor to say he can not determine anything because my son would not talk to him. So now I have to schedule him for a psyche eval at an outpatient behavioral health center. To top it all off, he didn't want to go toschool because of schoolwork. Today was a half day. He would have already been home while we were at the hospital if he had just gone to school. Wish me luck tomorrow morning.

And the school season starts...

Well, all three of my kids started school yesterday. It seems the only one to have a good first day was the middle child, who just started 3rd grade. The oldest, 6th grade, apparently has an a$$hole for a social studies teacher. I briefly heard him talking to other parents last week when we went to the school to take the kids through their rounds. I figured he would be a problem. If he goes off on my son for anything other than school work, I will take this matter to the school and then the district. He seems to a verbally abusive person. My daughter didn't have a good day as she started kindergarten. Apparently the teacher wrote something and wanted her to read it, which she is not able to read just yet except for a few words.

I'm still doing well after finishing week one of my Introduction to Film class. My graduation date just updated again and I am slotted to graduate in December 2011. Other than all that, still working, still living, still surviving.

Hello, old friend

It seems I haven't been getting on here as much as I used to. Ever since I joined facebook a few weeks ago, I seem to spend a lot of time on that catching up with old friends and family members that live far away. The only downside to facebook is everyone you add as a friend can view what you say. True, here as well, but only a few people know of this site.

Went and registered the kids for school Thursday night and meet the teacher kind of thing. My oldest will be going to middle school as they changed middle school to 6th-8th grade. He goes earlier than my other two kids, and gets out later. The other actually will be riding a bus. Yeah, no more wasting gas.

Just finished my last class of Business Ethics and received another A. I am already in my next class, Introduction to Film. Only 14 more classes to go get my degree.

Have drill this upcoming weekend, so another 12 day work week. Been watching a few movies, but nothing to really write about. Until next time.

nice small getaway

Well, I just made it back from a nice small getaway. I saw I had some money coming in from my school so I took the family to CA. I needed to make the trip anyways as I needed to go to my Battalion (BN), to gain access to one of the systems for the Army. I also had to go and pick up a laptop as my work computers are outdated and I was locked out of them for reasons I am sure I have explained before. So, we left Thursday night and headed to Riverside. Got there about 11pm. Found where my BN was and looked for the closest hotel. It was a mom and pop motel called MOTEL 7. It seemed it was in a corporate/industrial area as I had not seen any houses in the neighborhood, just businesses. I went to check in and it was only $55, not bad for the first night. As I drove around, I saw that there were maybe three other cars in the parking lot. Well, it is a Thursday night, I figured. Went into the room and it was really small. Kind of like a spare bedroom size with two beds in it and a tv mounted on the wall that really didn't work so well. Oh, well, we were only there to sleep for the night as I had to be ready early the next morning. We walked in and unloaded our vehicle. The room smelled like mold. I went to the front desk and informed them and they switched rooms. I had them go in the first room to smell it as well. Anyways, we get into the second room and the kids start saying they want to go home, they miss the dogs. Finally after getting them settled down I tried to go to sleep. I say try because this room sucked. The pillows felt like pillow cases inside a pillow case. No cushioning. The beds were hard. I started thinking about the Bates Motel. My wife couldn't sleep and mainly hung out in the vehicle listening to the radio as the kids and I slept. She did tell me she saw a few african american teenagers walking through the parking lot looking at vehicles, but they didn't cause her any trouble. Maybe her being out there kept them from doing anything. Not stereotyping, but this motel was not in a neighborhood, it was in a corporate/industrial area and it was between 2-3am.

The next morning, we checked out and I took the family with me. I was not about to leave them there. So I went to my BN, did my stuff to get access, talked to a few key personnel in BN and introduced myself to those that I have spoken with on the phone, but have not met in person, and spoke with the BN Commander, who again says what a great job I am doing and to keep it up. After that, we went to Bell to where my Headquarters is located. Talked to the leadership there, got my laptop and took care of a few other things. After that, we proceeded to Santa Paula where one of my wife's friends live. She was still working and couldn't find a decent hotel in that town, so we continued another 20 miles to Ventura. I ended up booking a room at the Marriot in Ventura, less than a 1/4 mile from the state beach. Took the kids down to the beach just to walk it and chase the waves, not swimming. We then went to my wife's friend's house later that evening as she was hosting a birthday party for another friend, but wanted to see us. We stayed for a little while then headed back to the hotel.

We woke up a little later than we wanted and decided to check out instead of swimming at the beach in Ventura. It was like in the 60's, overcast, and the water was cold the night before. So we began to head south. Ended up going to Seal Beach to go swimming and the kids had fun. Walked the pier and everything as well. We then proceeded to San Diego and went to Seaworld. Since I am in the military, my family and I get in free. Let me rephrase that. Me and three of my family members get in free. I had to pay for my 5 yr old daughter....$50 to get in. Geez, I may have saved $200 getting four of us in, but $50 for a 5 yr old? That is ridiculous. So we stayed there for about 3 hours and decided to head home instead of wasting money on another hotel. We got back around 4am this morning. It seemed busy and a lot of driving, but it was also relaxing and nice to get out of AZ. Oh, and it finally rained at our house. The whole time we were gone.

What a week

Whew...what a week. I lost computer access here at workon Monday because I didn't reimage the computer to Vista. Found a way around it, just unplug the thernet cable, sign in, and plug it back in. It works. On Wednesday I went to get a new ID Card because mine was going to expire Thursday and I would be locked out. Came back and can't log on. Was without internet access until yesterday afternoon. Came to find out all 3 of the computers that we own are too old to re-image...great, now I need more computers. I am borrowing a laptop from another unit just to get my work done. Finally figured out how to add a printer this morning as the printer in my office is a parallel port and can not connect to the laptop without a parallel to USB cable. I'll figure it out.

I have drill this weekend, so Another two days to add to my workload. School is still going good. Received an e-mail yesterday I have been approved for the Pell grant again. Woohoo, more money to come back to me within the next few months. Still waiting to find out the confirmed list for our overseas missions. Still hoping I get the Italy mission as I requested. Hopefully find out within the next few weeks. That just about sums up my week...been pretty busy.

Monday again

Well, the weekend is over. Just watched movies on Saturday...nothing too entertaining or worth commenting on. I did watch BOUNTY HUNTER last night and thought it was ok. Dropped the kids off at the MIL's for a few days...they come back tomorrow. Took the wife to go see ECLIPSE since we aren't able to go out much just the two of us. It was a pretty good movie. I hear there will be two more movies, one of them being a part 1 of 2, so three more movies to come. I also saw the trailers for the new HARRY POTTER movie and the new NARNIA movie. I can't wait to see the NARNIA movie. I believe they will also be making two more after this one.

I just joined Facebook last week, finally. It has been addicting, but I have had to try to pull myself away from it. It was starting to interefere with my schoolwork and my work. So I am trying to stay off it until in the evenings after everything else is done. I remember I was the same way when I first did Myspace, but I hardly do that anymore. Nothing really planned for tonight. Just go home and try to relax with no kids present. Have drill this weekend so I am trying to relax while I can since this will be another weekend I do not have open. Already did the back to school shopping for the kids. I hope I got everything, but we will see. They start back in a few weeks.

Still house hunting, but waiting to see my current credit report. I found one house I fell in love with from the pictures. Went to see it a couple of days ago and it was missing the light fixtures, the ceiling fans, the faucets, the shower heads and more. I was like if they drop the cost $40,000, I may consider it. So I am now trying to look at different houses. I will probably be pulling my credit report sometime soon and see where I am at. Until then, I don't know.

Boycott B of A

I hate Bank of America. If I didn't have my auto loan through them I would close my account and go somewhere else. The other day, the orthodontist place accidentally deposited my postdated check three days early. B of A cashed it that day, causing an overdraft and six other charges to go in overdraft, thus creating 7 overdraft charges at $35.00 a pop. So now my account is negative $600+. I went to the orthodontists yesterday and calmly explained to them what happened. They were real apologetic and felt bad when they realized they deposited it too early. They did appreciate me being calm about it and I explained there was no use in getting angry, accidents happen. They asked if they could do anything and I asked if they could call the bank and explain it. Needless to say after an hour on the phone with B of A between me and her, B of A was trying to tell the merchant it was their mistake and they should deposit money into my account to cover their mistake or issue me a check. B of A was not responsible and they would not retract the overdraft charges due to someone else's mistake.

On top of that, a B of A representative tried telling me that post dating checks are illegal. oh, really, so when B of A calls me about my van payment and asks me to do a check over the phone for a specific date is not post dating? Shut the F up you bimbo. Anyway, long story short, B of A won't do a dang thing. I don't feel it is right for the orthodontist to pay me or put money in my account, even though it was their mistake. We did work out a deal that they will not charge me for my August and September payments. This was all for my son's braces and the check was for three months worth. This is the second time I have had this situation with B of A and all they care about is getting money any way they can to pay back their bail out money by stealing from their customers.

Ho-hum

Well, I received a picture mail today on my phone from my brother, Ralphd00d, and he was obviously in Frankfort. He sent me a picture of Dad's grave. He is back in Indy right know for Dad's side family reunion. I was unable to attend this year. I watched a movie last night called DON MCKAY. It starred Thomas Haden Church-the mechanic from the tv show WINGS and also played Sandman in SPIDERMAN 3. It was a b rated movie, but it was actually pretty good.

No real plans this weekend. Just working, schoolwork, and stuff. Well, short post, but oh well. I am busy today.

Oh, yeah...movie reviews

Forgot to add it to my long post yesterday, but I did watch a few movies over the weekend. First was PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: THE LIGHTNING THIEF. It was a pretty good movie and was obviously made for kids, but I liked it. I also saw THE CRAZIES, which turned out to be pretty boring. Lastly, I watched a hysterical movie. HOT TUB TIME MACHINE. It is not RM approved and does contain breif nudity, language, drug use, and sexual innuendos. It cracked me up.

I picked up 4 other movies yesterday and will start watching them tonight. I will post how those are after I watch them.

Not too much going on today. Just working like usual. It was nice to have the little time off I had this past weekend, but it still feels like I was too busy to relax. I just need to have an actual weekend to relax, but I do not foresee that happening anytime soon.

Survived the 4th

Whew, it was a long weekend. We left Thursday after i got off work an headed to the FIL's in Northern AZ. About 5 hours to get there. Took all four dogs with us. Thankfully came home with three. I left my beagle with the FIL. Friday we drove to New Mexico to buy cigarettes and fireworks. It was worth it. I spend $50 on a carton here and in New Mexico, i found a place that sold cartons for $18. So I picked up 5 cartons. Should last for a while.

The sister-in-law stopped by on Saturday and brought her nuisance son. i say nuisance because I can not stand him...ever. We have had the pleasure of watching him in the past for a week at a time and he does nothing but start fights with my kids and say he is bored expecting us to entertain him the whole time. Anyways, my boys and him were walking around the 40 acres my FIL owns. My boys were walking through a ravine and n uisance was on top. Apparantly he thought it would be a great idea to try to start a landslide. The rock he threw ended up hitting my oldest in the head and cut it pretty good. no stitches needed, but we took care of it. I told nuisance's mother what happened and his father and they were like 'don't worry about it, it will be ok'. I was furious. I told the FIL what happened and he took nuisance for a walk and he came back crying. I did everything I could not to put my hands around his neck. If my kids had done something like that, their asses would be tanned.

Then, the SIL tries to make my oldest accept nuisances apology. I'm like heck no. You don't do something and be forced to apologize and expect the other person to accept it. Nuisance was supposed to stay two weeks at the FIL but I said if he stays, we leave. So he sent him home and said he could come back when we leave. I tell you what, I do not plan on going up there for any other holidays unless I know for sure that other family members will not be there. I don't go up there to hang out with other family members or babysit someone else's kids to give them a break, I go up there to get away and relax and spend time with the FIL.

I finally got my grade for my Literature class. I received a 98.52% overall for the class. I am now in a business ethics class and it seems to be going well, so far. Well, that wraps up my busy weekend. Now it is back to the daily grind.

Excited...oh, yeah

Yeah, I am excited. Yesterday I just received all of the dates and locations for our annual training for the military. We picked up Italy this year and I know I will be going. I guess it is in Northern Italy (darn, too far from Rome), but it is close to Venice. I just can't wait. The good thing also is that it is in December when I have a break from school so I will not be putting any classes off to go. I am just so darn excited. I've been to Germany a few times, have no desire to go to Japan or Korea, so this will definitely be a good vacation...I mean mission.

Haven't watched any new movies yet. Probably pick some up tonight or tomorrow to take with us when we leave tomorrow evening to head to the FIL's for the 4th. It'll be fun, I am sure. Nothing else more exciting than finding out about Italy. Still waiting on my final grade for my Literature class. I am currently taking Business Ethics. It seems ok so far. At least the book is nowhere as thick as my Literature book was.

Remember Me

What a great title. Better yet, what a great movie. REMEMBER ME stars Robert Pattinson from TWILIGHT and Pierce Brosnan. I don't want to go into too much detail about the movie, but everyone should watch it. I took it to my sister's house and watched it Saturday. I came home Sunday night and watched it again with my wife. It is a tear jerker near the end, but over all is a great movie. I also watched THE VISITOR and SHE'S OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE. The latter one was pretty good, the first was a little slow.

Stayed at the sis's house this weekend. We took the kids to an aquatic park and had a good time. It was nice as it was like a smaller version of a water park and easier to keep track of the kids. Plus the cost, although the sister paid, was more reasonable than what waterparks want. Stayed Saturday night and returned Sunday afternoon. Came home to a check in the mail, which was good because I was expecting it last week (must have came on Saturday) and I was able to pay electric and water bill so I wouldn't get shut off today.

I'll be leaving Thursday night after work to head up to the FIL's for the 4th of July weekend. I will be returning on Monday the 5th. We'll see if I can survive that many days up there. We will be doing fireworks and stuff. Although it is illegal in the state of Arizona, he somehow gets away with it. I don't mean firecrackers and sparklers, i'm talking the big fireworks up in the sky. It is kind of funny because people in town usually say his firework display is better than the one the town does.

I finish up my Literature class today. Still have 5 more pages to write on my final paper. Right now I have a 98%, so I am sure I will finish this class with another good grade. I thought I only had 9 classes to go, but I rechecked and realized I have 16 classes to go so that is about another 80 weeks to go which is almost another year and a half. So I will probably graduate in early 2012. We'll see if all of this actually pays off in the end.

OMG...Am I stupid or intelligent?

So....I received my SAT scores today. Yeah, my niece did better on hers. And rightly so as she just completed High School. I went into this test without studying, without practicing, without anything. I just figured that either you know it or you don't and went in and took it. Now that I have justified myself enough and made myself feel a little better, here is what you want to know...1480. . Oh, well, the only reason I took this test was for Direct Commission, which I only needed 850. That is the only reason I took this test. I didn't need it for college as I am already in and only need 46 credits to finish my Bachelor's Degree. (Still trying to convince myself I am not stupid). So here is the breakdown in the scores:

Reading-500-49%
Math-440-26%
Writing-540-66%

Now, let me also explain the reason for the low scores. For every question you answer correctly, you get one point. If you leave a question blank, you do not get a point or a point taken away. However, for every question you answer incorrectly, you are deducted .25. I answered everything. Here was my philosophy on it. If I guessed on 20 and got 12 wrong, that is -3 points meaning I recieved 5 points for guessing. Maybe I shouldn't have convinced myself of this after looking at my math score. Well, enough about the SAT's. Go ahead and laugh and make fun, but I got out of it what I needed.

Watched GREEN ZONE last night with Matt Damon. It was ok, but not spectacular. I also have REMEMBER ME to watch. I was upset they didn't have SHE'S OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE at Blockbuster at all. It was just released Tuesday. They informed me they have 177 copies they are still waiting to receive. I guess I'll try again next week. I'll be going to the Sis's this weekend as my wife will be staying with her mother, so it will be just me and the kids. Well, that's all I got today.

Father's Day weekend

Well, this holiday weekend is over now. Rented some movies and watched them over the weekend. Saw WHEN IN ROME, which was a pretty good movie. THE STOLEN which was different, but interesting. YOUTH IN REVOLT which was hilarious, but is not recommended for children or those adults with virgin ears. THE SHUTTER. Wow, this movie was really good and I was not able to predict what was happening. It was definately a good thriller movie.

Saturday morning, I got up and took my boys on a hike on the mountains by our house. After that they said they did not want to do that again. I guess because it was not paved and it was extremely steep in some areas. It was probably about 2-2.5 mile hike. Not too hot as early as we went. I then went to Phoenix to drop one of their friends off at home that stayed with us all week. Then I took my kids to my Sis's house to have her watch them while I went to a wedding for a Soldier. It was supposed to start at 5, but ended up starting at 6 as we had to first wait for the bride and groom to show up, which they did at about 5:15-5:20, we then had to wait for the best man and another groomsman to show up, which they did at about 5:45-not yet dressed. So after the wedding, my parents married them by the way, we did not stay for the reception as it was sandwiches and chips. So the parents, wife and I went out for dinner. We went to Lonestar where we received terrible service.

First, it took 45 minutes to receive our order. There were two tables that came in after us and had already eaten and left before we were given our food and/or bill. The steak tasted like it had already been cooked and then thrown back on the grill to be reheated. We had emptied our glasses three times without them coming to refill in time. When we were getting ready to pay the bill I asked about military discount-no. Senior citizen discount-no. Then my parents asked what about a discount for bringing our meal to us 45 minutes after ordering-no. The waitress then proceeded to tell us they do not do any type of discounts. I asked 'Oh, so no employee discount?' she responded saying oh yes we do, thank goodness and walks away. Yeah, I don't think I will go to Lonestar ever again. And yeah, it was at I-17 and Peoria in Phoenix, AZ.

So we ended up asking the Sis if the kids could stay the night Saturday night so i didn't have to drive to her house and then back to mine. We still had to pack the boys clothes as they were staying with their grandmother (MIL) from Sunday-Wednesday. So the wife and I went home. Sunday morning we head to the Sis's for Father's Day and had some pretty good and thick Porterhouse steaks. The Sis bet I couldn't eat all of it, which I am sure I could have. The BIL shared some of his with his son. The Stepfather shared with my mother. I ate about 3/4 of mine and couldn't eat anymore. So I told them to wrap it up and gave it to my mother to take to my Brother since he couldn't be there. Just wanted to let him know what he missed out on. They do plan on making it a tradition now to have Porterhouse steaks for the Fathers on Father's Day.

So we now begin a new week and the next holiday is 04 July. I will be heading to the FIL's so we will see how that turns out.

Still waiting...

Still waiting for my SAT scores. I believe I am supposed to get them around Jun 24. Called my school today to see when they were going to disperse the remainder of my Pell grant. I was kind of disappointed when they told me only half would be dispersed, the other half would come to me when the next TA is paid. It is frustrating because the TA still needs to pay for three classes, which means I have to wait for those payments to be made before they are sent out to me. So instead of counting on the full amount, I only get half when they send the check out. The good news out of all that is at least I know I'll have money coming every now and then.

I may go pick up movies tonight to watch this weekend. Not sure what is out right now that I haven't seen yet. I hate this time of the year after all of the season finales and waiting for new seasons to start. Plan on going shopping tonight to pick up groceries and then I have to get back home and finish some homework that is due today.

Nothing going on since the last time I blogged. Still have Father's Day coming up. Still have bills to pay.

Derka Derka Jihad

What? Just in that kind of mood. Been busy for the past couple of weeks, but I finally told full time staff in CA to stop calling me and doing their jobs, send it to the person that is supposed to do it. Yes, when someone is gone, I am more than happy to assist them, but my job is to take care of the Soldiers at my location. So since then, I have realized I have less to do now than I have for the past 4-5 weeks. I am not complaining, it gives me time to focus on taking care of my Soldiers as well as taking care of school work.

Ah, school. Just finished week 3 of this Literature class and I still have a 98%. 2 more weeks to go. I received an e-mail today that I made the Dean's List for Spring 2010. I looked at the requisites and you have to have a GPA of 3.5 or higher. I am currently at a 3.95 GPA and I only have 49 credits to go for my degree. The main thing I am happy about, none of this is coming out of my pocket. With the military paying the Tuition Assistance, which is the exact amount for each class, and I receive the GIBILL chapter 1607, I am actually getting paid to go to school. On top of that, I am also receiving the PELL grant. So all of this has actually been helping as far as bills as well.

Haven't watched any movies recently. Will be going to the Sis' house on Sunday for Father's Day, then I will be dropping off my boys at the MIL's to stay with her for a few days. She will then drive out to drop them off and pick up my daughter, then we will have to go out there to pick her up. After I pick her up, my wife will be staying the weekend with her mother and I will take the kids and stay the night at the Sis' house.

Plans for the 4th are to go up to the FIL's for the celebration. Probably have some fireworks to set off and eat plenty of steak. That's about all that is going on right now.

Another June day

It is hard to believe that we are two weeks into June and it has not been too bad as far as heat. Yeah, we have had a few days of over 100, but it has not been as bad as in the past several years...so far. Tomorrow it is supposed to be a high of 90. That is a good thing as we have drill this weekend and I will be taking a PT test tomorrow and after that we are doing a 5 mile road march.

Watched a couple of movies over the past couple of days. First I watched THE 41 YEAR OLD VIRGIN THAT KNOCKED UP SARAH MARSHALL AND FELT SUPERBAD ABOUT IT. It was a hilarious movie, but it is not for RM or kids to watch. There is plenty of foul language and nudity in the movie with a lot of adult humor. I also watched ALICE IN WONDERLAND and was actually surprised that it was a pretty good movie.

School is still going well and I only have 2 1/2 weeks left for this class. The way things are going, I am scheduled to complete my degree by March 2012, but it could be a couple of months early after speaking with my academic advisor. I'll have to wait and see. That's all I have for now.

Where did all the cowboys go?

I know, not a title meaning anything, but that is how my day is going. It is like I know I am supposed to do something and then random things just come to mind. It has been a slow day today compared to the last several weeks. Had the FIL stay last night since he had to pick up his stepdaughter from the airport and he headed back up North today. Been at work all day twiddling my thumbs. I did check out IMDB and looked up Will Smith. He has 28 possible upcoming movies to include I AM LEGEND prequel, I, ROBOT 2, INDEPENDENCE DAY 2, INDEPENDENCE DAY 3, and HANCOCK 2, among many others. I also see they will be remaking THE NEVERENDING STORY and Leonardo Dicaprio is in talks on that as well as in AQUAMAN. Ryan Reynolds will be playing in another X-men movie titled DEADPOOL as well as play GREEN LANTERN. I know, busy day.

Got my grades back for week 2 and I am still at a 98% for this Literature class. 3 more weeks to go. I am just hoping I can keep up all this school stuff as my personal and work life are busy and then slow, busy and then slow. It is kind of starting to burn me out. I found out that I won't get the results from my SATs until near the end of the month. If I post it, I feel I did good enough. If I don't, oh, well, it was just a test. I tell you what, though, I don't feel like going through that again. I was the oldest person there. Even older than the administrator that gave the exam. Should have done this years ago, but who would have thought I would have needed it back then. Heck, I never even planned on going back to school years ago.

Watched THE WOLFMAN last night. Wasn't really too interested in it. Maybe pick up some more movies tonight and maybe I can get ALICE IN WONDERLAND. Nothing big planned for the week except for drill this weekend. I will be getting up at 2am Saturday morning to head in and take a PT test. I should pass. We are only required to take 2 a year, but this will be my 4th. After that, we will be doing a roadmarch, which is more like a hike on a trail in the mountains, so I will be getting plenty of exercise on Saturday.

What to do

Yeah, I am bored. It just seems like I have been so busy for so long, that all of a sudden I actually have a day with nothing to do. Yesterday I went and took my SATs. Don't know how long it takes to get the results back. We also were given a new bed frame from one of our neighbors that were moving, so I could put that together today. I have a few movies to watch as well, but nothing worth talking about now. Tomorrow my FIL will be here staying the night with us. His wife's daughter is flying in tomorrow night so he is coming down to pick her up and then they will stay the night with us. I am looking at going up to his place for the 4th of July. Probably will spend 4 days up there and come back.

Well, I ain't got nothing else to write about right now.

Another Day

Well Memorial Day has came and gone. We had fun at the Sister's place. They all got started eating before we got there, but I was running a little late. Watched VALENTINE'S DAY and DEAR JOHN while we were there. Over the weekend, I watched STATEN ISLAND which really wasn't that good. Also watched THE SPY NEXT DOOR, which was similar to THE PACIFIER, but with a twist and was a good family film. I also rented TAKING CHANCE since my brother and sister said it was a great movie and I would cry. I didn't. Not even get teary eyed. The movie is based on actual events of a Marine LTCOL that asks to escort a Marine PFC's body home from Dover to Wyoming. It was an educational movie that shows the whole process from the time it arrives in the states to the funeral. I believe the movie was more focused on how the LTCOL's eyes were opened and saw that there were many civilians that pay their respects for the military along the way. It was a great movie, don't get me wrong, but I didn't shed any tears.

Not too much else is going on. Trying to get my car taken care of. Just extended my registration for 30 days so I can get that dang check engine light turned off and get it into emissions so I can renew it. I finally got my grade back for my last class and got a 98%. After finishing week one in this class, it's not as bad as I thought it would be, so far anyways. Well, that's all I got for today.

I survived

It turned out to not really be too bad with the sleepover. It turned out only two kids were allowed to stay the night, so overall it went well. I did watch DEAR JOHN which was a great movie. I was able to figure out the movie pretty much from the middle to end. Also wathed THE MESSENGER with Woody Harrelson. It is about a Staff Sergeant that returns from the war and is reassigned as a casulty notification officer. These are the Soldiers that show up on class A's to notify the next of kin of someone's death. Not a good movie for RM to watch. Just finished watching VALENTINE'S DAY. That was a great movie with a lot of stars. I'm not going to ruin it for anyone, but it is a great movie to watch for anyone. Still have two more movies to watch before I return them tomorrow evening.

Tomorrow we go to the Sis's house for the family get together and the celebration of 3 birthdays, my son's, my niece, and my nephew's. They all have birthdays within a 30 day period and about a week or two apart in between, so Memorail Day is usually the day we can all get together to celebrate their birthdays as well.

I am getting ready to finish up my first week of Literature. The sight of the book when I received it scared me, but this first week has not been too bad. I am still waiting on the final grade for my last class. Can't remember what my next class is right now, but I have 4 weeks to worry about that.

Lord, help me through the night

Yesterday was my oldest son's birthday and tonight we allowed him to have some friends over to stay the night. So I have my three kids and 4 additional 10-11 year olds staying the night. You'd think I would have learned my lesson by now.

Nothing planned for the weekend. Have one of my Soldier's coming over to help me out with my car. He came over a few days ago and the problem was because the coolant was low. However, it is still smoking, but not over heating. He thinks it is because when I had an oil change done that they over filled it and there is excess oil on the pan. If so, I will never take my vehicles to Fletchers. When I took it in to them, it cost me $50 for diagnostics and then they wanted to charge me over $900 for the water pump and timing belt. I priced the water pump and it is only $70. My buddy said if that was the problem, all I had to do was buy the part and he would take care of the rest. I understand the economy is bad and everything, but don't try to lie and rip your customers off.

On Monday, Memorial Day, we go to the Sister's house for the family get together and the combination of three kids birthdays. We'll see how everything else goes. The other night I watched LEGION. It was pretty good. Last night I watched DEAR JOHN. Excellent movie, and yes, I did have a tear. We'll see what I watch tomorrow night and this weekend.

Whew!

So I went to court this morning for that tail light incident a month ago. I got there at 7 am and was out by 7:10. I went to a window, showed my ticket, proof of insurance, and reciept for the part that was purchased the same day as the ticket and was told I was good to go. At least that didn't cost me anything except for the gas to get there as the court was over 30 miles from my home. Now I just need to get my other vehicle through emissions and renew my tags before the end of the month. I may have to try to get an extension on it since the car is not really running too well right now. But I have someone coming over Saturday to take a look at it.

Seems I have been pretty busy this month. Those full time people are finally back to work now which has lightened my workload a bit, but I still have people expecting me to do their jobs. I'm like heck no, that is so and so's job I have things I need to get done here. I guess that is what happens when someone finds out you are better at doing someone else's job. Haven't watched any new movies lately, but I may be picking some up in the next few days to watch over the weekend. I know VALENTINE'S DAY came out last week, so I do want to get that one.

Kids have been out of school since last week. No real problems at home as of yet. I am sure my wife is still going to enjoy it though. Yeah, right. Well that's all I have for now.

What began as 4, is now 3

Well, I had 4 dogs and will be down to three today. I am getting rid of our beagle as she is a nuisance. She growls when she is in trouble, overprotective of her food, gets angry at the other dogs if their playing, and I am tired of her getting on my bed in the middle of the night and taking my side of the bed. I took her from my friends because they couldn't handle her when they got a new dog and they became frightened of her as well. They were going to give her to a rescue, but I said I would take it and if I couldn't handle her, I would give her to a good home. Well, one of my Soldiers used to have a beagle until he had to have it put down about a year ago. I told him about the beagle I had and that I wanted to get rid of her. I explained all of her actions and he said it sounds just like the one he had. So I am dropping her off today at his house on my way out to Phoenix today. Dropping the kids off at the mother-in-laws and going to a friend's going away party since he is deploying.

Monday is my last day for my college class and I have a 97% right now. Again the final paper is worth 25% of my grade, which is due tomorrow. It will be a week before I get my final grade. My next class that begins Tuesday already frightens me. I received the book two weeks ago and it is like 2-3 inches thick. I am not that much of a reader, especially for a class that is five weeks long. The class is Literature. Wish me luck.

The lord shall giveth and taketh away

Well, you see, my favorite breed of dog and one I have always wanted is a pug. Everytime I looked at getting one, it always cost money I didn't have. Friday, my oldest son was out with his friend and they found a pug and brought it home asking if we could keep it because it didn't have a collar. I looked at my wife with a look 'can we, can we?'. Well, of course I told my son we will hold on to it, but if someone is looking for it, we will have to return it. The pug got along well with the other dogs and it seemed she was fitting in. The next day, I was at drill and apparantly my oldest came home from staying the night at his friends and saw a lost dog poster with a picture of it. So while I was at drill, he came home, grabbed the pug and returned it to the owners. They gave him and his friend $50 for returning him. My son kept $30 and his friend got $20. Seemed fair as they both found it, but it stayed at my house. I was happy when they came home with the dog because I thought it was a small reward from God. Then the next day, it was gone.

Oh, well. Drill was long all weekend. We did have a family day and everyone had a good time. Come back to work this morning and I am of course bogged down with everything the Soldiers decide to drop on us over the weekend instead of calling us during the week to take care of something. I didn't even have time to check my school work today. I need this to slow down soon. Well, that's how busy I have been these past few days.

Wassup

Tomorrow one of my Soldiers, and one of my friends that has been in the military with me since the beginning, is getting commissioned as an officer after completing ROTC and his degree at ASU. So I will be going to his Commissioning Ceremony tomorrow afternoon in my Class A's. I don't get to wear it that often so it pretty much still looks new. I just always have to update my uniform when I wear it like adding ribbons or changing ranks. Yeah, that is how often I wear it.

Watched NCIS last night and it was good. I know the season finale is coming up soon and it will be interesting how things play out. Nothing really on tv tonight, but I plan on grilling dinner. I have been on work overload again all day today. It's nice to know that at least my higher ups know how much work has been dumped on me these past couple of weeks, but I am still hanging in there. Only a couple of more weeks to go.

I have drill this weekend so of course I have added work as well. Sometimes I wonder what I got myself into by taking on all of these leadership responsibilities, but I guess being paid is worth it in itself. That's all I got today.

Adrenaline

It is sometimes a good thing. It seems the more work I have, the more my adrenaline starts kicking in. However, this makes everyday turn into a stressful day even though I get everything accomplished. I have just been beat by the time it is for me to leave for the day.

I did watch THE LOVELY BONES on Sunday. It was a great movie and is RM approved. It is a suspenseful film, but I really liked it.

Last week, I finally went to Toby Keith's I Love This Bar and Grill. Apparently, if you are in the military, you get the American Soldier meal for free, which is like a quarter pound cheeseburger and fries. I noticed on the menu they had something called the 100ozer and called my brother later that evening telling him when I have money, I want to take him there to see if he could eat it. There is no time limit, but it costs like $30 and if you eat it all, you get a $15 coupon for your next visit. It consists of 32oz hamburger patty, 10oz bun, 32oz drink, 16oz fries, 4oz of cheese, and 6oz of fixings (lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles). They say to allow 30 minutes for cook time. Can you imagine seeing anyone eat all that? So I want to see if my bro can do it and I plan on taking a before and after picture.

School is going ok, just finished my third week of this class and got a perfect score on last week's paper. Only 2 more weeks to go. That's all I got today.

Still surviving

Well, it has been a hectic week and a busy weekend as well. I was able to watch a few movies this weekend. FLICKA 2, don't waste your money. The first one was awesome and this is nowhere close to being a good movie. The storyline sucked, Clint Black wasn't all that great. The only thing worth watching this movie is the acting from Patrick Warburton. I also watched LEAP YEAR, which was pretty good. It is RM approved and is a sappy love story. I also watched NINE, which is a musical, and like CHICAGO, I was easily bored with it. I know it is a movie not worth watching if I get up to go smoke and let it continue playing because I am not going to miss anything, but want the movie to play all the way through so I can think I got my money's worth. I still have THE LOVELY BONES to watch, which I will probably be watching today.

I had to go into work earlier today. It seems we had a Soldier heading somewhere today and the place where they were going needed information before a specific time. So I had to go in today to take care of all that. Just finished taking a test for my college course to end week 3. Still have an A. Two more weeks of this class left.

Found out on a conference call last week that our unit was able to pick up a new location for our overseas annual trainings. We now are able to do Italy. I hope I can get on that first rotation, but it depends on when it is. School is more important to me right now and I do not want to have to put it off. That's all I got today.

I quit

At least that is what I have been saying to all the people I work with this past week. No, I am not quitting. It just frustrates me that there are 8 full time personnel at my headquarters in CA and I am the only one in my location. 2 of those people are out for the time being and apparantly I am the only one besides them that have complete access to the systems. So instead of just taking care of two platoons, I am taking care of hundreds of Soldiers. I still have 3 more weeks of this too. Some may say I am complaining because I actually have work to do now, and yes, I am. Work that I shouldn't have to be doing just because I learned the systems so i didn't have to rely on them to take care of my people. Talk about backfire.

I watched TOOTH FAIRY last night starring Dwayne Johnson, "The Rock". It was a pretty good movie. I have a few more to watch and will probably do so over the weekend. In my third week of my 6th college course, still an A. School work hasn't bothered me as much as my real work, but it is easy for me to do schoolwork at work than at home. So it is a matter of being able to do both work and schoolwork at work than it is to go home and do it. Being home is like work in itself, even though when I get home I just sit in front of the tv. However, it is also doing the grocery shopping, paying the bills, handling the kids, etc. My life is never dull and boring. If anyone wins the lottery, let me know. I need some.

Oh, my head is spinning

And it has been since Friday. It seems the main person we have that submits pay for Soldiers is currently elsewhere on orders and everything has dropped in my lap. It appears that out of all the full time staff, there are only 3 individuals that can access the pay to ensure Soldiers get paid. Two of them are gone on orders, which leaves me. Not a big deal if they had given me all of the information. For this past weekend, there 12 Soldiers that needed to be paid, but I was only sent 6 orders. I had to research the other 6. I do not know who else needs to be paid at this time because no one is giving me any information. I mean, I can't pay some one if I don't have the information. Yeah, so my job will be interesting for the next couple of weeks until they return.

This weekend was more of a time to relax. Didn't do anything and didn't go anywhere. Just sat at home and watched tv. Not that anything was good on, just didn't feel like doing anything. Just wrapping up my second week of this college course and I am still sitting at an A. 3 more weeks to go. They originally gave me a month long break in September, but I called my Academic Advisor and asked them to put a class in there. I don't want to take any unnecessary breaks, i just want to get it done and over with and keep the momentum up. I will be getting ready for my SAT test in June. I have to pay by 05 May, which I will to lock it in. After I take the test and get over a certain score, I will be submitting my direct commission packet. It may take 6 months to a year, but it will be well worth it.

That's about all I got going on now. Maybe later this week I will be able to go pick up some movies to watch. My oldest wants to see IRON MAN 2 in theaters, which comes out Friday. Don't know if I'll be able to do that or not just yet. We'll see.

Don't get me started

Well, AZ has attempted to take illegal immigration into their own hands. My take on it...do it. I am sick of hearing the government saying it is unconstitutional and other states saying it is racial profiling. Prove it. I mean how is it unconstitutional to an illegal immigrant when they have no rights as they are not U.S. citizens? As far as racial profiling, that would not happen as any person stopped for any reason is always asked for their ID and if you are a U.S. citizen, you will have a state issued ID. No matter what color you are. These people are making it sound like if you are brown, you will be stopped for no other reason than to check your citizen status. That is not what it is about. Other states that are trying to boycott AZ have said that what we are doing is wrong. When asked if we could ship the illegal immigrants to their states and cities, no one would respond. Hmmm, it is not a problem in your state right now, but you wouldn't want to be put in that situation, huh? Don't get me started.

Watched CRAZY HEART the other night. It was kind of slow, but was ok. I think the D00d would like it. Also watched CRAZY ON THE OUTSIDE starring Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, and Kelsey Grammar. That was pretty funny. TOOTH FAIRY comes out Tuesday so I will try to get that one and I am still trying to get LOVELY BONES, but Blockbuster has been out of it the last few times I went in.

The other night, my oldest was riding his bike and fell. He came home with his glasses in his hand (thankfully they were not broken) and blood dripping down his face. Took him to the doctor only because he had a knot on the side of his head almost the size of a golf ball. The cut wasn't really deep enough for stitiches. The doctor said he was lucky it wasn't a lttle further back, but no CT scans or xrays were needed. The next morning the swelling was gone. He also got part of his braces put in yesterday on the top four teeth. Still waiting for his baby molars to come out.

Everyone and everything else on the homefront is fine. Yesterday's day off was enjoyable even though I was running around to different appointments. I came into work today and have a lot to do. I can't wait for the day to be over with.

Another Hump Day

Here it is the middle of the week and it feels like I haven't had a day off in a month. With drill and traveling to schools and such, it has been hectic. Tomorrow I am taking a sick day. My oldest has an orthodontics appointment in the morning and my wife has a Dr. appointment in the afternoon, so I figured I'll just take the day off and save some gas.

Watched CHUCK Monday night. It just keeps getting better and better. I have also started watching OPERATION REPO MAN and SOUTHERN FRIED STINGS on Monday night as well. Last night I tried watching NCIS and NCIS LOS ANGELES. I say tried because people kept calling and I tried to get off the phone. I guess that would be a good reason to upgrade to TIVO, but I don't make enough to pay for it. Tonight will be a slow night, so hopefully I will be able to watch the movies I picked up on Sunday.

Not much planned for the rest of the week. I did finally get my taillight fixed last night. I ordered the part on Monday and picked it up yesterday and installed it. So I will just take the receipt to court and tell them I did get it repaired as soon as I could. Hopefully they'll drop any charges. May has come up fast. My oldest will turn 11 next month and the kids all get out of school. Well, that is all I got today.

What a day

Well, I survived being sick last week. Only lasted a day and a half. Then I walked 5 miles to find a liqour store as when I drink, I stop being sick. I left Wisconsin on Friday and got home after midnight. Went to a party Saturday night for one of my Soldiers who is deploying. It was alright. I ended up leaving there shortly after midnight and went and got a hotel room for the night. Sunday, came home and relaxed. Today, came back to work. Had a few errands to run and while I was out, got pulled over. Got cited. My bad.

A few weeks ago, my passenger tail leght cover had been removed or fell off or whatever. I noticed it and the next day looked online to price them. $50 no problem. Went to Checker and they wanted to charge me like $100. I didn't have that much at the time so I had to hold off. Well, I just got paid last Thursday, but I have been out of town. The officer said he pulled me over for my taillight, but then started questioning my insurance. I gave him my card (which expired in Feb and I didn't know it). He said he was keeping the card. As he came back with the ticket, he gave me the card back and was saying it was a different insurance that was cancelled, but because I had an expired card, I had to show up to court with a current one. No problem, that one will drop. I asked him how much for the other citation for the taillight and he said it would be cheap. I'm thinking $40-50. He tells me more like $100-150. Dang. He did suggest I get it replaced and bring the receipt to court so that they may lower it once I explain the situation and show proof that it has been fixed.

Well, that's about all I got to catch everyone up since the last time.

I'm sick

Wouldn't you know it, I usually don't get sick and if I do it is not for that long. I guess from going from 90 degree weather to in the 60's caused me to catch something. I am sitting here in Wisconsin now and started having a stuffy nose and runny nose earlier today. Then it stopped...and started...and stopped...and started. I hope I am feeling better in the morning. I have 2 days left until I return home.

I am barely hanging on to an A in my college class. It ended Monday, but I am waiting for my final paper to be graded, which I am told it will take a week to get the final grade. This last paper is worth 25% of the grade. I hope I scored high enough to keep my A and my 4.0 average. I just started my next class yesterday which is Sociology/Ethical Issues or something like that.

Tomorrow I take a test for this class I am here for. All week it has seemed pretty easy and simple. All I need is to score a minimum of 70% to pass, which I don't see will be a problem. That's all I got for tonight. Maybe more before I leave to return home.

Whew...I am beat

That was one long flight on Sunday. Not to mention I didn't eat all day. I thought I would at least get dinner, but nope, sure didn't. So I walked over to the gas station and put my account into overdraft so I could get some food. Oh, well, I am sure it was worth it.

So here I am in Wisconsin doing my school for my job. It has been pretty easy so far. I am 2 days into it and have 2 full days left. Friday I graduate and head home, but don't get back until after midnight. Then I have a party to go to Saturday night for one of my Soldiers that is deploying.

Other than that, not much to write about. Waiting on my scores from my last college class, but was told it will be about a week for them to post. Today starts my next class in Sociology. Maybe I will write more later this week if there is anything to write about.

Getting ready to go

Well, I am heading out Sunday morning for a school for my civilian job. I will only be gone for 6 days. WooHoo. Been real busy these last couple of days with work. I have a paper due on Monday to finish my college class, but I really need to complete it and submit it by tomorrow to ensure it is in on time. I know I will have internet access during class, but I need access in my room while I am there as my next class begins on Tuesday. I won't know until I get there though.

Everything else is going as usual. Nothing new on the homefront. I did call the school about the money they still need to send to me. It appears they will not send it out until June. That kind of ticks me off because the TA through the military pays for the class about 30 days after I complete it. So the money I have there now, they will take out of that the first day of the class. Which means I will not get the full amount, I will get what is left after they deduct the new classes. Then I have to wait for the TA's to come in and then receive those later. I know I end up getting the same amount in the end, but I would rather have it all at once instead of a little at a time. Oh, well, what can you do?

Well that is about it for today. I need to start wrapping things up to head home.

Kids are sometimes dangerous

Yes, sometimes those little rugrats can be dangerous. You see, my kids like to play with toys in the bathtub and the showers. This morning, I get up to take a shower and see a few toys in there, so I just push them out of the way with my foot. While showering, I am turning around and stepped on something. Apparently, there was a hot wheel car in the shower that had lost a wheel. I found it. Yes, the tire was broke off the car, face down with the metal rod pointing straight up going into the bottom of my foot. So, yes, sometimes kids are dangerous.

Didn't really do much yesterday. Took my youngest son to a dental appointment yesterday. No cavities, so we are good there. I am trying to get a hold of my school today to see when they are going to send out the money they have for my Pell grant and TA. I kind of need it soon, hopefully before I leave on Sunday.

Not too much work today so far, so maybe I will be able to work on my research paper. I need to turn it in before I leave on Sunday, just in case I do not have internet access at my military school. Oh, geez, I just realized I am pretty much working 4 weeks straight. Man, I need a raise.

Nothing planned for tonight other than watching my regular Tuesday night shows. That is all I got today.

Ouch

I got sunburned this weekend. So it took us about 9-10 hours to bus to CA for our drill this past weekend for weapons qualification. Not too bad. I zeroed right away Friday afternoon when we got there and got a little sunburned on the bag of the neck. Saturday morning I put on Sunblock on my neck and face. Didn't help my neck or the back of my head. So, it hurts a bit right now. Saturday morning I was on the first rotation and qualified right away, so the rest of the day was busy work helping other Soldiers out. We came back Sunday and got back around two, but I am still beat from the getting up early, meetings all night, and long bus rides.

I am still waiting on my school to cut me a check of the money they have to send me. It is a little over $2500 now. So hopefully they send that soon. I leave Sunday for a week for my job. I did talk to our Batallion Commander this past weekend and he told me what an outstanding job I have been doing and i have the best run platoons out of the whole company. Well, I don't hear that from the Company leadership so if the Batallion Commander is saying it, it means so much more. I don't know how it is different than the rest of the company as I do what I am told and put out information as it comes in. So the only thing I can think of is that the other platoons do not communicate to their Soldiers.

So, my weekend had been pretty busy, but it was a good thing I guess. Just trying to pay some bills on time to get everything up to date so I don't fall behind. Hopefully soon I get a raise as I am due one in June.

A Long Weekend Ahead

Well, here I sit wrapping things up for the week as I have a long weekend ahead of me. I have to get up at 2am tomorrow to be here at work getting things ready to head out to California for drill this weekend. Going to the range to qualify on our M-16's. Will be returning late Sunday night. I spent most of the day taking care of some errands and knocking out my school work for the weekend so I can just rest when I get back.

We were supposed to have the visit with CPS again today. However, my wife called me and told me the lady had to cancel again. Seems she has cancer and was undergoing chemo. So instead of an onsite visit, she just did a phone interview with my wife. No big deal, just a bunch of questions and then the case was closed. I knew there was nothing to worry about, but when you hear of things like this you start second guessing yourself. I remember one time I received a call from CID for the Army. I had to go to their office to answer some questions about something that had happened during our deployment. I know I did nothing wrong, but the whole authority thing got to me. And when I did show up, they had me spread my feet and put my hands on the wall to pat me down. They then put me in a room, shut and locked the door and I could see two cameras in there and a one way mirror. They then came and took me out and fingerprinted me. Not just the fingers, but the sides of the hand and the whole palm of the hand. Everything turned out to be fine, but it was just the whole thought running through my mind of "what did I do that I don't remember".

So, as I am out firing my weapon, you all have a fun weekend.

Whew, I am beat

I don't know what happened this past weekend, but I am wore out. The last two nights I haven't been able to get to sleep until after midnight at least. Then, I still have to get up early and get the kids ready for school and head to work. I just feel so drained and tired. On top of that, yesterday and today, I have been so swamped with work and schoolwork, especially with drill coming up this weekend.

Easter went ok. Of course I gave my kids their Easter baskets a week before. I don't like the fact of all this gift stuff, unless it is for their birthday, to give it to them on that particular day. Christmas and Easter should not be about gifts or anything, they are religous holidays and should be treated as such.

This current administration just seems to tick me off more and more everyday. I saw how Obama threw out the first pitch at a game. I know other Presidents have done it in the past, but that is different. They didn't have all of the stuff on their plate that he does. They also didn't do all of these "publicity" stunts every chance they got. I don't recall seeing any President in office on Late Night shows or Talk Shows while they were in office. I am guessing he is trying to get it all done while he can before the American Public step in and impeach him. That or he somehow fails to complete his term. I just don't think we can hold on for two more years of all this.

We have a new addition to our family now. Chanel is a beagle, probably a couple of years old. One of my friends had gotten a new dog and they couldn't handle both, so I said I would take it. That makes four dogs now. Chanel is testing me right now, but I am sure in a few days, she will know that she can dominate the other dogs, but she won't dominate me.

I saw this morning that the other part of my Pell Grant has been received by my school. So, I am hoping they send that to me soon as I definately could use it right now. The school is also still waiting on Tuition Assistance form the military for two classes I have already completed. Once they receive that, it will come back to me as well since my last Pell Grant covered those classes. I hate the waiting game.

I am in my last two weeks of this current course and I am still clinging on to an A. My last assignment is the one I worry about as it is 25% of my total grade. I need to ace that one. After this class, I move on to Sociology. Another class that has nothing to do with my degree. Oh, well, everyone has to make money somehow.

That is all I got today. Maybe I'll be able to post again before I leave this weekend.

I'm Bored

Did not watch SHERLOCK HOLMES last night. Instead I watched an episode of BONES and FRINGE since the new episodes are back on and the reruns are over for now. Tonight I will be watching SMALLVILLE as well as KITCHEN NIGHTMARES, so I probably won't watch it until tomorrow.

I have been bored all day as it is slow. I was told yesterday that even though there is a Holiday on Sunday, we still had to work today. However, more than half the building is empty at my location and I wonder if anyone in CA is working as no one responds to e-mails or answers the phone. Sometimes, I think they do this to me because they are jealous I am the only full time person at a separate location. I love it, though, no one to report to or overlook my work. I still get stuff done and have plenty of spare time. Heck, half the times they call me on how to do their jobs. Oh, well, it is what it is.

School is still going fine. Only two and a half more weeks to go. Finally paid some of my rent today, but have to wait until next week to finish paying it. I feel like just leaving work. There is no time clock to punch in and out of and no one is responding to me. I feel all alone.....NOT!

My middle child played a good April's Fool joke on my wife and I yesterday. My wife and I took my daughter with us to the store leaving the two older boys at home. We were gone maybe an hour. When we got home, our younger son told us the older had gotten ticked off and ran away. Well, it is believable as over the last several months when he gets upset, he tries running out the front door or says he is running away. So first thing I said was this had better be a joke. I went to the garage...ok, his bike is still here, he's probably hiding. After two minutes of searching the house for him, my wife went out in the backyard where he was hiding. It was a little upsetting, but after an hour, it was a pretty good prank.

Another thing that happened about a week ago. My wife and I were going somewhere with our daughter, I forget where, not important. My daughter was saying that when she grows up she wants to be big like Mommy. My wife said "you want to be big like me, huh?" My daughter answers back "not fat, Mommy, tall". Wow, that was not nice. Sometimes, my kids say the darndest thing. Every now and then when I tease my oldest son about something, he always responds back "5 more years, Dad, 5 more years". To most people, that really doesn't mean anything. However, I am 35 years old. Most men know what happens at age 40 when you schedule an appointment with the Dr.

Well, that's all I got today. I'm still bored.

Just another day

Today is just that. Another ordinary day. I have some schoolwork to do that is due today, but I have plenty of time to do it. After two weeks in this class, I have been able to bring my grade back up to an A. We'll see how this week goes. Even the Instructor informed all of us at the beginning of this course that this will be the hardest class we take at this school. I believe it, or at least so far. I'll determine if that is true after I get to my future classes.

I watched ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: THE SQUEEKAL last night. It was a great movie. Still have SHERLOCK HOLMES to watch. I enrolled my daughter into kindergarten the other night so that is all set up now. Got back school pictures of all the kids, so now it is just coming up with the money to pay for them by next week.

Still trying to come up with my rent money for this month as well. I will have it covered as I get paid next week, but just seeing if I can get it done sooner. Oh, well. Sunday will be going to the older sister's house for Easter family get together. Have a test due that day, maybe I'll just do it there. I finally have my travel arrangements made for my next school which is only for 5 days in Wisconsin. Just waiting on my orders now. That's all I got today.

200

Wow, my 200th post in what, two years-3 years, don't really remember. Big deal.

Today has been surprisingly overwhelming with everything. I have had a lot of work to do to pick up the slack from the rest of my "co-workers". Not that they were on vacation or anything, but they are supposed to be doing things for all locations and they aren't. So I am learning to do their jobs to take care of my location, which is stuff they should be doing. Long story, not going to put you through it. However, I should ask for a raise.

Tonight I go to enroll my daughter for kindergarten next year. Yes, I am excited as I have been paying for her to go to pre-school all this year. Kindergarten will be free and....it is still full day in our district. I am excited about that. So does that mean extra money in my pocket since I won't have to pay? No, apparantly the IRS says I owe them money so what was going to pre-school, will now be going to the IRS. Greedy Obama lovers.

My car gets paid off next month and then all I have is another year and a half payments on my van. Do I get to save that extra money? No, put my oldest into braces. Greedy orthodontists.

I need to win the lottery. Or find the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine. Or, well, anyways I can get money legally. I am sure you are all in the same boat, if not worse. Greedy Obama lovers. They did this to us.

Yes, I am a bit upset. It seems a lot of people have been brainwashed into believing that George H. W. Bush was a bad President and everything is his fault. Take a look at History you stupid hypocrits. Every President can not please everyone all the time. But listening to the current administration saying everything is his fault is ridiculous. He didn't do trillions in bailout money causing the bankruptcies, crashing of the home mortgages, etc. He did not put people in his cabinets or other federal jobs that were criminals such as the current administration has. He is not and has never denounced us as a non-christian country. You don't like it, get the Hell out of my country.

Another Monday

Well, at least I did better on my test for school yesterday than I did last week. I also had a paper due today, which I already turned in, so I am caught up for the moment. In between doing work and school stuff, it gets kind of hard. I have stuff for my job that needs done right away, but I also had stuff for school that was due. In the end, they both get done in time.

Watched MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS this weekend. It was alright, but not great. Also watched BROTHERS and thought it could have been done better. The first half of the money was just too slow. Also saw BANDSLAM, which actually was a prety good movie. I know SHERLOCK HOLMES is released tomorrow, but I may have to wait to get that one.

Nothing else to write for today. Kids are back in school, so that is a blessing in itself. However in two months they will be out for the summer.

Why me?

Sometimes that is how I feel. It seems like after doing everything I need to do to get ahead in life, something pushes me down. It's not necessarily a cost thing, but it is just the fact of something happening. For example, yesterday was just a tough day. I had two assignments to do that were due by midnight last night. No problem, I usually do it at work because I can not concentrate on school work at home due to the kids. Well, yesterday I actually was swamped with work I had to do for work. No problem. So I stay late to complete my school work. I go home, return movies to Blockbuster, pick up a few more and we head to Wal-Mart to do a little shopping. I return to my van and start putting the bags away when I notice I am missing the cover for my rear brake light (or whatever it is called). I didn't see any pieces so it is not like someone broke it. It looks like someone just came up and pried it off. So now I am driving around without this cover worrying if I might get pulled over. I now have to start looking for a replacement part and how much it will cost. Needless to say, I still need to come up with money to fix my car (water pump and timing belt) and the money for my wife's root canal that she needs done.

Anyways, i picked up BROTHERS last night with Jake Gyllenhal and Toby McGuire. I might watch it tonight or tomorrow, haven't decided yet. Also picked up MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS and something else I can't remember right now. So I should post about them next week. I was wanting to go search for the lost dutchman's gold this weekend, but don't really have the gas right now. So I will hold off for a bit. It's not like it is going anywhere as it has been hidden for over 120 years, but I have a good idea where it is anyways. Yes, I am still crazy. I need to just go out there, prove myself wrong, and stop thinking about it.

Kids go back to school next week (YAY!!). They didn't really bother me as I am at work when they are at school or home, but it does affect the wife quite a bit. So, if she's happy, I don't get yelled at. That's the way it works I guess. I am also going to start making the kids do chores and earn an allowance. Maybe this will enable them to keep the house clean and earn money for things they want. We'll see.

I must be crazy

Well, the MIL has been over since Monday since the kids are on spring break this week. She finally left earlier today after I had already left for work. Monday night, I came home to my usual routine. Turn on the news, watch a few shows, watch TMZ, and watch CHUCK. The whole time she is sitting there wanting to watch a movie or something. I'm thinking to myself she has all day to do that while I am at work. I pay the rent, this my house, I'll watch TV if I want to. I thought it, didn't say it. So she told me Monday night she likes to watch AMERICAN IDOL. So, last night, I get off of work and go home. I go straight to my room and watch TV. I let her stay out in the living room to do whatever. The kids and wife continued coming into the room and I told them to go out and spend time with their grandmother/mother. Otherwise she'll wonder why she is even there if we are all in my bedroom. Oh, well, she finally left today and life can return to normal.

So yesterday, I started thinking I may be starting to go crazy. For about the past week, I have been thinking about something and researching it...a lot. I began thinking I must sound crazy...even to myself. The "something" is The Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine. I don't know how I started thinking about it, but I started researching it and writing down certain clues and stuff. I mean, heck, I live close enough, maybe I can go hiking on the weekend and stumble across it. Who knows. Too many people have searched over the last 120 years, what makes me think I could find it. I think it is just the excitement of trying to find it. Although mining is forbidden since 1984, I am not looking at digging or anything. Supposedly, in some places it is seen by the visible eye in plain sight. It is just a matter of where. So, yes, I may be starting to go crazy.

Other than all that, nothing new. I finally received my final grade for my last English class. I received an A. After freaking out about that test I took last Sunday, I realized it seemed worse than it really is. I can still finish with an A. I just have to stay on top of it.

Disappointed

That is how I felt for this whole past weekend. After finishing working for 12 days straight, I was looking forward to relaxing for the weekend. On Saturday, I did watch SHORTS. It was pretty good for a kids movie. I also watched EVERYBODY'S FINE. That movie made me ball my eyes out. I had to even stop it a couple of times just to regain my composure. Of course it didn't help that I did drink this past weekend. I also watched the new TWILIGHT: NEW MOON movie. I thought it was better than the first one. I like Jacob better than Edward anyways. I am already predicting how the next one will go. No, I will not read the book. I am not my brother, I do not like to read. Also watched NINJA ASSASSIN. It was pretty slow, but it did have great action scenes and a good story.

I am currently in my first week of a new class for school. Introduction to Cultural Anthropolgy. I thought I was getting a pretty good understanding of the subject. I did the required readings and the required discussion posts. However, yesterday I had to take a quiz on it. That's cool, because you can use the book on the quiz. I found almost nearly every answer in the text. However, once I submitted it, I was dumbfounded. I got 11/20 correct. Hmmm, hopefully that doesn't hurt too much for the rest of the class. So all in all, this past weekend has been a big disappoint to me.

My kids are on spring break this week. Joy joy. Hopefully this week and next weekend will show some improvement.

Settling Down

Whew, I tell you what. On the drive into work this morning, I was fuming and thinking about what I would rant about on my blog today. It all started last night when I was doing my schoolwork. I am taking this class called introduction to cultural anthropology. After reading other classmates posts, I couldn't believe how many ignorant people there are in the United States. Seriously. There were people making comments like we force our beliefs on other countries and talk about how welfare should be increased because people need help and everything else. I just couldn't respond to any of them last night because I probably would have been kicked out of the class for telling them how stupid and ignorant they are and how they need to stop watching and believing the news and get off their @$$ and work. And then, this morning I was following my kids to school. This past week I have allowed them to ride their scooters to school and I follow them to make sure they get there safe and look out for cars when crossing the street. As my oldest is in the crosswalk and the crossing guard is in the strret with the sign, a car kept driving right through without stopping. If I had reacted a little faster I would have pulled in front of the car, stopped him, and beat his @$$. Not just because it was my kid, but because the driver was a freaking idiot and not paying attention. Oh, I am just fuming today.

Last night I watched WRONG TURN 3: LEFT FOR DEAD. It was pretty good for the series. It definately was nowhere near as bad as CABIN FEVER 2. It was your basic thriller/horror movie. I still have two more movies to watch and then I have to return them on Saturday. I still have EVERYBODY'S FINE and SHORTS to watch.

No big plans for this weekend. Don't have money to do anything and don't really know what we would be able to do. I guess it will just be another lazy weekend.

Just another day

Ahhh...where to start. Nothing new to write about, just don't know what to type. I came into work today with a lot to do to include some homework that is due today. I am all caught up with everything now. I have to take the wife to an appointment later this afternoon, but nothing really planned tonight. Maybe watch another movie.

Last night we watched OLD DOGS with Robin Williams and John Travolta. It is a Disney movie and it is Reverand Mother approved. Which means it is safe to watch. It was pretty funny and worth a watch. Still have a few more to watch before I turn them back in on Saturday.

Nothing new has been coming up. Still waiting to hear back from the VA and waiting for the bill the IRS is supposed to send me. Other than that, I am still caught up on bills and still surviving. I go to CA next month for drill for weapons qualification. After I return from that, I head out to Wisconsin for a week. Hopefully it will be warm there by then. Other than that, the only training I have scheduled is for two weeks in Wisconsin in August. No word on next year's missions yet, so I don't know if I'll be heading back to Germany or maybe even Korea this time. Japan already came up and I turned that down. I don't mind pulling my weight and working, but the Japan missions are always 16 hours a day, 7 days a week. If I am going to go somewhere, I want a chance to have time off to go see some sights.

Well, that's all I got today. Until tomorrow.

Happy St Patrick's Day

Really doesn't mean much to me except it is my little sister's birthday. Not too much going on lately. I did contact the IRS about the amount I owe them and I set up a payment plan. It should be paid off by tax season next year. I also sent a letter to the VA department about their supposedly overpaying me. I have to wait back to hear about that, but I am sure they will see they were wrong as I submitted all documentation that they owed me.

Tonight I figure I'll cook steaks on the grill and watch a movie or two. Not sure which ones yet as I picked up 4 the other day. Finally caught up with all my work from this past weekend and everything that came up since then. Just finished my last class on Monday, but I am still waiting for the final grades to come out. I am sure I still got an A.

I also started my next class yesterday. Introduction to Cultural Anthropology. Kind of worried, it looks hard. Won't know really until after I finish the first week. Maybe it is just my fears. I still need to set up when to take my SAT as well so I can get the ball rolling for my Direct Commission. I still don't expect to get everything done for that and pinned until sometime next year, but we will see.

Busy Monday...again

It's always busy after drill weekend. I had so much stuff to be done and only one computer. But we did get everything done. I was so beat when I got home both Saturday and Sunday.

Watched BOONDOCK SAINTS II: ALL SAINTS DAY last night. It was awesome. The only bad thing about it was this actress in the movie, she kind of ruined it because she wasn't that great. Other than that, it was a great follow up to the first one.

Too busy to really write too much right now. Still have a paper to finish as today is my last day for this class. Tomorrow starts the next class and it already sounds difficult. We will see. Maybe post more tomorrow.