One day in the books, 13 left to go. My first 24 hours in China have been mediocre like I expected. I predicted that I'd be very lonely in this country save for the company of my sister. Talking to her is going to be the only verbal usage of the English language I'll have. At least I can still think to myself in English and of course, I've been ( Read more... )

I have very high expectations for next quarter. Winter is the season for Mock Trial tournaments and the National Drill Competition in New Orleans. I might find it very hectic the first seven weeks but I wouldn't change a thing on my tentative schedule. I love competing; I feel that it might be one of my defining traits. And I've certainly put in ( Read more... )

Who thinks I should pay $999 for nine sky dives? It's a lot of money but a friend of mine made a pretty good pitch. Right now I'm thinking I should do all the crazy stuff I can while I'm still young. And after completing these jumps, I'll apparently become a certified jumper and a member of the USPA. MMMMM....so tempting... Give me feedback on this

I've been entertaining some thoughts about quitting this whole ROTC thing before it's too late. There was once a time when I was very motivated and gung-ho about this program and my prospective future with the military, but lately I've been getting sick of it all. I don't even know where to begin. I could write about all my problems with this ( Read more... )

The most aggravating thing in my life right now is the military drill team I'm involved in. I volunteered to be a part of it for a second year because my experience with it last year felt so incomplete (bad weather in Virginia prevented us from ever competing). This year, ROTC freshman are not required to be on drill team and so few joined and ( Read more... )

Some people are freaking idiots. If you're waiting at the bus stop for my bus to come, why the heck would you stand at the very edge of the curb? Don't you see those HUGE mirrors sticking out of the side of my bus. I swear, there have been several incidents where I've almost smacked a pedestrian with my mirrors as I approached the curb!

and that's the end of that chapter ( Read more... )

They let me shoot a machine gun....didn't satisfy me though as I shot into a canyon instead of at a target...only gave me about 20 rounds ( Read more... )

Cruising 4500 feet above San Diego in a T-34, my pilot, a Navy Lieutenant, allows me to do something I've been wanting to do all my life. The conversation went something like this ( Read more... )

It took me all three tries but I finally passed my bus driving permit tests with passenger and air brake endorsements. Now if only they would give me my permit. Because of a stray mark on my medical report form (all commercial drivers need to be medically qualified), they refused to give me a permit. So now I have to go to my family doctor again ( Read more... )