Monday, March 10, 2008

Same 'Ol Monday

Well today for another work week that started out busy for both of us and, of course, the boys are back in school. Although next week is Spring Break for the kids, I have the next 2 weeks off from college.

Not too much went today, again, just another day at work and school.

I am definitely going to get the leak fixed in our motorhome this weekend. I know I have some water damage to the ceiling material, I'll have to see if I can fix that.

All of our RV friends stay safe on the road!

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Joey's NJROTC Competition!

Joey and his NJROTC Armed Drill Platoon had their annual SECA Competition at Sanger High School on Saturday. Maria, Kay (my Mother) and I all went to the competition. They did OUTSTANDING and placed SECOND! I wish I would have stayed to watch the entire competition because I would have liked to see the JROTC Unit that beat them.

CONGRATULATIONS HANFORD WEST NJROTC ARMED DRILL UNIT!!

We left after Joey performed and yes, of course, we went to our favorite Mexican Food restaurant, La Fiesta. Another great meal at La Fiesta!!

Thomas stayed home and finished his English homework because he wanted to go to with his friends and do his skateboarding. He is doing homework on Romeo and Juliet and is writing about different scenes.

After lunch, Maria brought me home and her and Kay went to the Commissary and I went to Hollywood Video to get some movies for Saturday night. I did get the movies I wanted; Into the Wild, Rendition and Freedom Writers. I watched Rendition and Freedome Writers (which I've seen before) and had an entertaining afternoon.

I know, I know....I should have been sealing the leak in our RV. I won't bore you with my excuses.......I just didn't do it. But will this next week.

I finished my Business Management class with Columbia and got an "A"! The final was a bear, but plunged through it. My next class is International Business, and yes I'm looking forward to that.

As promised in an earlier post, here is another picture of the magnificent island of Iceland. If you remember I referred to the Blue Lagoon in Iceland and also provided a link ---- well here is a picture of the Blue Lagoon on a beautiful COLD winter day. One of my favorite places in the world!!


Quote of the day: I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it. ~Thomas Jefferson

Friday, March 7, 2008

Happy Birthday Maria!

Today is Maria's birthday....I don't think she cares I say her age, 38! Two more years to the big FOUR ZERO!!

Maria and I met when she was 18, 2 months before she was 19. I remember very clearly just how beautiful she was when I first layed eyes on her......WOW----what a sight!!

Well I haven't blogged in a few days. This last week was very hectic and my WiFi while I was on travel wasn't cooperating.

So I finished my travel on Wednesday night and got home around 1930. I left San Diego at 1400 and made it in 5 1/2 hours and that was with moderate traffic through LA. I probably drove a little fast...I passed many RV's, and they were probably saying...look at the crazy driver! But hey, I was driving my Honda Accord, not my motorhome. I'm a careful driver and when I can put the petal to the metal I will, but very safe and I don't weave in and out of traffic---that's just crazy.

So for Maria's birthday we are not going out to dinner. Maria wants to cook tonight----can you believe that! I wanted to take her out, but she wanted to make tri-tip and all the fixin's. So that's what we're doing. We'll go out to dinner and movie on Sunday. That's the way she wants it.

So off to go upstairs with Maria while we have the house to ourselves! SSSSHHHHH!!!

Monday, March 3, 2008

Travel Day; But not in our RV!

Sunday was a travel day for me. I was driving from our home in Hanford, CA to San Diego, CA -- 350 miles. Now that's really not very far, but add going through the heart of LA....and it's a long drive. I came to a complete stop twice. Once a complete dead-still stop for about 5 minutes, then we inched for about the next 2 miles for a total of about 30 minutes. It was an accident, and of course; the proverbial Lookie-Lou's!

I left at 1400 and arrived San Diego at 2000. Not bad considering I had to go to the base first to get my ID Card (I left it there Friday in my work computer) and pick up a point paper for this conference I'm attending this week.

The boys were out doing their weekend activities; Thomas was skateboarding with his friends and Joseph was at the Gym with his friend Nick. I told them to be home at 1530 so they could get ready for this week. They don't understand why they need to be home so early. Basically, it's because "I CAN!" (LOL!) Isn't that the way we were all raised? Our parents put these crazy limitations on us and of course, we never understood WHY? I would ask my Mom when I was a teenager WHY??? She would...because I SAY SO ---- OR Because I can! So my kids have to go through it to.

Maria and I had lunch at, of course....our favorite Mexican food restaurant, La Fiesta. I have to go there AT LEAST once a week. I love it, and they know us. It's nice to walk in and someone say HI...want your usual? That's cool.

Well Monday will be busy for me. I need to go to the bank for my command's MWR, go see a few friends in San Diego that I haven't seen in about 2 years and do LOTS reading gearing up for the conference tomorrow and Wednesday.

I don't have any pics of Iceland today. But when I post later I will.

Saturday, March 1, 2008

Neat Surpise.....and cool story to go with it!

Well before I get to my surprise and cool story I have to say that my work day yesterday (Friday) was another day of craziness. Since I had Thursday off, I walked into many taskers that needed my attention and quickly. So I handled all those and moved onto the routine issues that come up on a daily basis. I didn't leave work until 1800! Got to work at 0645, 45 minutes shy of a 12 hour work day---without even lunch! Straight through and hectic minute after minute.

Now the reason I prefaced with that was because for me my surprise was so awesome and just really realaxed me and got me calm down from that hectic day. So here it is.

I got home around 1815 and Maria was up in our bedroom waiting for me. (NO....this is a clean story....). Well we talked for a few minutes about our days and our kids' day, etc. and then I took my uniform off and went to reach under my bed pillow for my favorite t-shirt and.....there was an envelope and a bag of M&M's (my favorite candy). I opened the card and it was from Maria. The card was a poem about love and the years couples spend together and their love seems to grow and get stronger...and you become soul mates. Well, inside the card she handwrote: I can't wait for our life together living side-by-side in our RV and enjoying eachother...making great memories." She signed it "Dagny, Your Navigator". (Dagny is her Icelandic given name. You say it "DINEE"). Her appointed job in our RV life is the Navigator.

Well I'm not a very emotional person in front of people, yes that includes my wife, but that really got me. It just solidified that we're synced in our dream and our love of RVing.

That just really made my day.....my week....heck MY LIFE!!

I say this to all our FTing friends.......we're on our way soon--so save some of the road tar for us to burn up!

Well after that we had our usual pizza for dinner. We were up in our room watching a few TV shows and the boys were downstairs watching The Matrix. I can't believe it, they actually didn't stay the night over one of their friends' house. This must go down in the books. LOL! They usually stay one night of a weekend over one of their friends' house. They have different friends and so far we haven't had any issues, so as long as they keep up their good behavior and don't do something wrong, we'll allow it.

I can't believe I forgot to say this; Maria received an important phone call Friday morning from her sister Olof that lives in Jacksonville, FL. She is coming out here on 23 March for a week. That is so awesome. We haven't seen Olof for about 14 years. We've had her 3 kids stay a summer with us about 3 years ago, but they flew out here to us and then flew home. So this time Olof is coming by herself and the kids are staying in Flordia with their dad. I'm glad for Maria, she's very excited!

So as I promised, here's another picture of the land of Fire and Ice (Iceland):

Jökulsárlón (Glacier Bay). You can see the largest glacier in Europe: Vatnajokull in the back of the picture. This is the most majestic place I think I have ever visited anywhere in the world! You don't hear a sound, the water is peaceful and the iceburgs are HUGE.

Thought of the Day: The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart. ~Helen Keller