...even if it's only to see the date change!
Actually, I have a couple of stories in my head but don't feel the urge to get them on paper just yet. Living like I do where my job can call at the drop of a hat, I am pushing these stories to the back burner. Why? Because once I get rolling it's hard to stop.
One of the stories is a refining of a story I wrote several years ago. I was trying for a "To Catch A Thief"/"The Italian Job" sort of feel but felt my characters were too flat, the story line didn't play out but the conclusion was great! Again, I had a good idea, a good beginning, lousy middle and killer ending. I just need to work on the middle.
Hopefully, there will be a day in the near future where when I'm off, I'm off. Don't call 'cause I ain't answerin'! Oh well, those were the days.
Thinking about moving to SoCal. Don't know.
Eric
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Monday, January 09, 2006
A Little Bit About Me!
(From Birthday Calculator
You entered: 7/22/1965
Your date of conception was on or about 29 October 1964 which was a Thursday.
You were born on a Thursday
under the astrological sign Cancer.
Your Life path number is 5.
The Julian calendar date of your birth is 2438963.5.
The golden number for 1965 is 9.
The epact number for 1965 is 27.
The year 1965 was not a leap year.
The date of Easter on your birth year was Sunday, 18 April 1965.
The date of Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent) on your birth year was Wednesday 3 March 1965.
The date of Whitsun (Pentecost Sunday) in the year of your birth was Sunday 6 June 1965.
The date of Whisuntide in the year of your birth was Sunday 13 June 1965.
As of 1/9/2006 10:00:32 PM EST
You are 40 years old.
You are 486 months old.
You are 2,112 weeks old.
You are 14,781 days old.
You are 354,766 hours old.
You are 21,285,960 minutes old.
You are 1,277,157,632 seconds old.
Your age is the equivalent of a dog that is 5.78512720156556 years old. (You're still chasing cats!)
There are 194 days till your next birthday
on which your cake will have 41 candles
Those 41 candles produce 41 BTUs,
or 10,332 calories of heat (that's only 10.3320 food Calories!) .
You can boil 4.69 US ounces of water with that many candles.
In 1965 there were approximately 3.7 million births in the US.
In 1965 the US population was approximately 179,323,175 people, 50.6 persons per square mile.
In 1965 in the US there were approximately 1,800,000 marriages (9.3%) and 479,000 divorces (2.5%)
In 1965 in the US there were approximately 1,712,000 deaths (9.5 per 1000)
Your birthstone is Ruby
The Mystical properties of Ruby
Ruby is said to open one's heart to love.
Some lists consider these stones to be your birthstone. (Birthstone lists come from Jewelers, Tibet, Ayurvedic Indian medicine, and other sources)
Carnelian
Your birth tree is
Elm Tree, the noble-mindedness
Pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, tends to a know-all-attitude and making decisions for others, noble-minded, generous, good sense of humour, practical.
There are 350 days till Christmas 2006!
There are 363 days till Orthodox Christmas!
The moon's phase on the day you were
born was waning crescent.
Eric
You entered: 7/22/1965
Your date of conception was on or about 29 October 1964 which was a Thursday.
You were born on a Thursday
under the astrological sign Cancer.
Your Life path number is 5.
The Julian calendar date of your birth is 2438963.5.
The golden number for 1965 is 9.
The epact number for 1965 is 27.
The year 1965 was not a leap year.
The date of Easter on your birth year was Sunday, 18 April 1965.
The date of Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent) on your birth year was Wednesday 3 March 1965.
The date of Whitsun (Pentecost Sunday) in the year of your birth was Sunday 6 June 1965.
The date of Whisuntide in the year of your birth was Sunday 13 June 1965.
As of 1/9/2006 10:00:32 PM EST
You are 40 years old.
You are 486 months old.
You are 2,112 weeks old.
You are 14,781 days old.
You are 354,766 hours old.
You are 21,285,960 minutes old.
You are 1,277,157,632 seconds old.
Your age is the equivalent of a dog that is 5.78512720156556 years old. (You're still chasing cats!)
There are 194 days till your next birthday
on which your cake will have 41 candles
Those 41 candles produce 41 BTUs,
or 10,332 calories of heat (that's only 10.3320 food Calories!) .
You can boil 4.69 US ounces of water with that many candles.
In 1965 there were approximately 3.7 million births in the US.
In 1965 the US population was approximately 179,323,175 people, 50.6 persons per square mile.
In 1965 in the US there were approximately 1,800,000 marriages (9.3%) and 479,000 divorces (2.5%)
In 1965 in the US there were approximately 1,712,000 deaths (9.5 per 1000)
Your birthstone is Ruby
The Mystical properties of Ruby
Ruby is said to open one's heart to love.
Some lists consider these stones to be your birthstone. (Birthstone lists come from Jewelers, Tibet, Ayurvedic Indian medicine, and other sources)
Carnelian
Your birth tree is
Elm Tree, the noble-mindedness
Pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, tends to a know-all-attitude and making decisions for others, noble-minded, generous, good sense of humour, practical.
There are 350 days till Christmas 2006!
There are 363 days till Orthodox Christmas!
The moon's phase on the day you were
born was waning crescent.
Eric
Friday, January 06, 2006
I'm Not Going...
...to SimCom.
Too many things in the "Con" column that out-weighed the "Pro" column chiefly, giving up flying airplanes. I think someplace like SimCom would be good for me in about 5-10 years.
So...I'm still at the job I have...waiting on King Air's and such. Did speak with DynCorp about OV-10 flying this summer. They may have a couple positions open and I'm by far one of the best qualified of any rookie out there.
We'll see...
Eric
Too many things in the "Con" column that out-weighed the "Pro" column chiefly, giving up flying airplanes. I think someplace like SimCom would be good for me in about 5-10 years.
So...I'm still at the job I have...waiting on King Air's and such. Did speak with DynCorp about OV-10 flying this summer. They may have a couple positions open and I'm by far one of the best qualified of any rookie out there.
We'll see...
Eric
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
That is the question.
I'm looking for a new job. Not that I don't appreciate my current one but it has it's limits and it's not what I want to do with my career. I have a semi-offer from SimCom in Scottsdale, Az. It pays well, good place to work, good bennies, nice area. But it means moving away from Redding. We've been here 15 years. Know a lot of people. Our kids were born here. Good quality of life. Comfortable. We know where everything is in Costco and FoodMaxx! And if we left then decided to move back, we couldn't afford the house we currently live in. We'd probably wind up with a 50-year mortgage just to move back in! (Our kids would be paying our mortgage after we became fertilizer!)
But then there's the possibility of working for the California Department of Forestry's contractor, DynCorp. I could be flying an OV-10 around in circles over fires for about the same pay as SimCom is offering. I would be living somewhere away from home for about 6 months out of they year (summertime when the kids are off!) but I'd make in 6 months what some make in 12. I'd have time in the off-season to do what I wanted to do and I'd still get to keep my family in Redding. I'd be gone more during the summer but home (and under foot) during the winter.
What to do?
I'll sit the wife and kids down and get a feeling from them. Both jobs are exciting opportunities. One is to teach others how to fly; give them the benefit of my experience. The other is just plain old flying in a fire environment; using my skills and abilities to better aid someone else.
Both offer something I need...stability. Set hours and expectations. At this point in my life, the ebb and flow of on-call charter, not knowing when or where you'll be, not being able to plan to do anything, is just not for me anymore. Too much stress and right now, I don't need anymore stress.
So my prayer is....where do I go? What should I do? What's the best for me AND my family? Would appreciate some prayer help on this one.
Eric
I'm looking for a new job. Not that I don't appreciate my current one but it has it's limits and it's not what I want to do with my career. I have a semi-offer from SimCom in Scottsdale, Az. It pays well, good place to work, good bennies, nice area. But it means moving away from Redding. We've been here 15 years. Know a lot of people. Our kids were born here. Good quality of life. Comfortable. We know where everything is in Costco and FoodMaxx! And if we left then decided to move back, we couldn't afford the house we currently live in. We'd probably wind up with a 50-year mortgage just to move back in! (Our kids would be paying our mortgage after we became fertilizer!)
But then there's the possibility of working for the California Department of Forestry's contractor, DynCorp. I could be flying an OV-10 around in circles over fires for about the same pay as SimCom is offering. I would be living somewhere away from home for about 6 months out of they year (summertime when the kids are off!) but I'd make in 6 months what some make in 12. I'd have time in the off-season to do what I wanted to do and I'd still get to keep my family in Redding. I'd be gone more during the summer but home (and under foot) during the winter.
What to do?
I'll sit the wife and kids down and get a feeling from them. Both jobs are exciting opportunities. One is to teach others how to fly; give them the benefit of my experience. The other is just plain old flying in a fire environment; using my skills and abilities to better aid someone else.
Both offer something I need...stability. Set hours and expectations. At this point in my life, the ebb and flow of on-call charter, not knowing when or where you'll be, not being able to plan to do anything, is just not for me anymore. Too much stress and right now, I don't need anymore stress.
So my prayer is....where do I go? What should I do? What's the best for me AND my family? Would appreciate some prayer help on this one.
Eric
Monday, January 02, 2006
Thots...
(HT to Mikey's Funnies. Mikey's Funnies )
~ A backward poet writes inverse.
~ A bad Scrabble player: Inconsonant with bad vowel movement.
~ A bicycle can't stand on its own because it is two tired.
~ A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.
~ A Christmas sign from a department store: "Big pre-Christmas sale. Come in and mangle with the crowd."
~ A Christmas sign in a bridal boutique: "Marry Christmas."
~ A Christmas sign in a stationery store: "For the man who has everything: A calendar to remind him when payments are due."
~ A Christmas sign on a reducing salon: "24 Shaping Days until Christmas."
~ A Christmas sign on a toy store: "Ho, ho, ho spoken here."
~ A Christmas sign outside a church: "The original Christmas Club."
~ A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
~ A laugh is a smile that bursts.
~ A lot of money is tainted - It 'taint yours and it 'taint mine.
~ A man's home is his castle, in a manor of speaking.
~ A midget fortune-teller who escapes from prison is a small medium at large.
~ A plateau is a high form of flattery.
~ Acupuncture is a jab well done.
~ After a certain age, if you don't wake up aching in every joint, you are probably dead.
~ Anyone can give advice, but a real friend will lend a helping hand.
~ Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead-to-know basis.
~ Bibles coming apart are owned by people who are not.
~ Children and dogs are good judges of character.
~ Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said.
~ Children will soon forget your presents; they will always remember your presence.
~ Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like shoveling the driveway before it has stopped snowing.
~ Did you ever notice when you blow in a dog's face he gets mad at you? But when you take him in a car he sticks his head out the window!
~ Dijon vu - the same mustard as before.
~ Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?
~ Does your life shed light or cast a shadow?
~ Don't let school interfere with your education.
~ Don't let the diapers fool you. I'm the boss around here!
~ Don't make fun of children or the elderly - they are your past and future.
~ Don't think of it as getting hot flashes. Think of it as your inner child playing with matches.
~ Eventually you will reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it.
~ Ever wonder why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed?
~ Ever wonder why you don't ever see the headline "Psychic Wins Lottery"?
~ Familiarity breeds children.
~ Give God what is right, not what is left.
~ God loves us not according to how we do but according to who God is.
~ He who dies with the most toys is nonetheless dead.
~ He who has no Christmas in his heart will never find Christmas under a tree.
~ Honor is a gift a man gives himself. (A woman, too, of course...)
~ How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?
~ I considered atheism, but there weren't enough holidays.
~ I know that there are people in this world who do not love their fellow man, and I just HATE people like that.
~ I must have money...I still have checks in my checkbook.
~ I want my children to have all the things I couldn't afford. Then I want to move in with them.
~ I wonder if Dracula ever had ticks.
~ I worry that the person who thought up Muzak may be thinking up something else.
~ I Xeroxed a mirror. Now I have an extra Xerox machine.
~ I'd explain it to you, but your brain would explode.
~ If brains were taxed, she'd get a rebate.
~ If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of Progress?
~ If corn oil comes from corn, where does baby oil come from?
~ If he says that you are too good for him, believe it.
~ If I melted dry ice, could I swim in it and not get wet?
~ If I wanted to hear the pitter-patter of little feet, I'd put shoes on my cat.
~ "If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have stopped eating vegetables."
~ If knees were backwards, what would chairs look like?
~ If white wine goes with fish, do white grapes go with sushi?
~ If you don't have a sense of humor, you probably don't have any sense at all.
~ If you don't pay your exorcist, you get repossessed.
~ If you're in a car going the speed of light, what happens when you turn on the headlights?
~ In democracy your vote counts. In feudalism your count votes.
~ It makes me mad when people say I turned and ran like a scared rabbit. Maybe it was like an angry rabbit, who was running to go fight in another fight, away from the first fight.
~ It's scary when you start making the same noises as your coffee maker.
~ Jesus paid the price. You get to keep the change.
~ Just BEFORE someone gets nervous, do they experience cocoons in their stomach?
~ Know how to prevent sagging? Just eat till the wrinkles fill out.
~ Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.
~ Man's way leads to a hopeless end...God's way leads to an endless hope.
~ Many girls like to marry a military man...he can cook, sew, and make beds and is in good health, and he's already used to taking orders.
~ My memory's not as sharp as it used to be. Also, my memory's not as sharp as it used to be.
~ Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.
~ On anniversaries, the wise husband always forgets the past - but never the present.
~ On your mark...get set...go away!
~ Once you've seen one shopping center, you've seen a mall.
~ Opportunity knocks but once; temptation leans on the doorbell.
~ Our days are happier when we give people a bit of our heart rather than a piece of our mind.
~ Procrastinate Now!
~ Reading while sunbathing makes you well red.
~ She was engaged to a boyfriend with a wooden leg but broke it off.
~ Shotgun wedding: A case of wife or death.
~ Stop telling God how big your storm is. Instead, tell your storm how big your God is.
~ Tell me, where is this "bright side" that you speak of?
~ The distance between the ticket counter and your plane is directly proportional to the weight of what you are carrying and inversely proportional to the time remaining before takeoff.
~ The man who fell into an upholstery machine is fully recovered.
~ The nicest thing about the future is that it always starts tomorrow.
~ The reason most people play golf is to wear clothes they would not be caught dead in otherwise.
~ The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up.
~ The task ahead of us is never as great as the Power behind us.
~ The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket.
~ The grace of God is the mending glue for broken hearts.
~ There are only two kinds of people in the world: Those who wake up in the morning and say, "Good morning, Lord," and those who wake up in the morning and say, "Good Lord, it's morning."
~ There's always a lot to be thankful for, if you take time to look for it. For example, I am sitting here thinking how nice it is that wrinkles don't hurt.
~ These days about half the stuff in my shopping cart says, "For fast relief."
~ Things today are a lot like they used to be back in the day when things were different than they are now.
~ Those who get too big for their breeches will be exposed in the end.
~ Trouble in marriage often starts when a man gets so busy earnin' his salt that he forgets his sugar.
~ What did Adam say on the day before Christmas? It's Christmas, Eve
~ What level of importance must a person have, before they are considered assassinated instead of just murdered?
~ When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds.
~ When a man marries a woman, they become one; but the trouble starts when they try to decide which one.
~ When sign makers go on strike, is anything written on their picket signs?
~ When two egotists meet, it's an I for an I.
~ When you open a new bag of cotton balls, do you throw the top one away?
~ Where there's a will, there's a lawsuit.
~ Which is worse: Ignorance or apathy? Who knows? Who cares?
~ Who sings "Love Me Tender" and makes Christmas toys? Santa's little Elvis
~ Would the person who took the step ladder yesterday please bring it back or further steps will be taken.
~ Wrinkled was not one of the things i wanted to be when I grew up.
~ You don't stop laughing because you grow old; you grow old because you stop laughing.
~ You know you're getting old when you stop buying green bananas.
~ You know you're into middle age when you realize that caution is the only thing you care to exercise.
~ You may be addicted to Narnia if you randomly knock on the backs of closets...just in case.
~ You stop believing in Santa Claus when you start getting clothes for Christmas.
~ You're slower than a herd of turtles stampeding through peanut butter.
~ A backward poet writes inverse.
~ A bad Scrabble player: Inconsonant with bad vowel movement.
~ A bicycle can't stand on its own because it is two tired.
~ A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.
~ A Christmas sign from a department store: "Big pre-Christmas sale. Come in and mangle with the crowd."
~ A Christmas sign in a bridal boutique: "Marry Christmas."
~ A Christmas sign in a stationery store: "For the man who has everything: A calendar to remind him when payments are due."
~ A Christmas sign on a reducing salon: "24 Shaping Days until Christmas."
~ A Christmas sign on a toy store: "Ho, ho, ho spoken here."
~ A Christmas sign outside a church: "The original Christmas Club."
~ A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
~ A laugh is a smile that bursts.
~ A lot of money is tainted - It 'taint yours and it 'taint mine.
~ A man's home is his castle, in a manor of speaking.
~ A midget fortune-teller who escapes from prison is a small medium at large.
~ A plateau is a high form of flattery.
~ Acupuncture is a jab well done.
~ After a certain age, if you don't wake up aching in every joint, you are probably dead.
~ Anyone can give advice, but a real friend will lend a helping hand.
~ Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead-to-know basis.
~ Bibles coming apart are owned by people who are not.
~ Children and dogs are good judges of character.
~ Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said.
~ Children will soon forget your presents; they will always remember your presence.
~ Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like shoveling the driveway before it has stopped snowing.
~ Did you ever notice when you blow in a dog's face he gets mad at you? But when you take him in a car he sticks his head out the window!
~ Dijon vu - the same mustard as before.
~ Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?
~ Does your life shed light or cast a shadow?
~ Don't let school interfere with your education.
~ Don't let the diapers fool you. I'm the boss around here!
~ Don't make fun of children or the elderly - they are your past and future.
~ Don't think of it as getting hot flashes. Think of it as your inner child playing with matches.
~ Eventually you will reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it.
~ Ever wonder why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed?
~ Ever wonder why you don't ever see the headline "Psychic Wins Lottery"?
~ Familiarity breeds children.
~ Give God what is right, not what is left.
~ God loves us not according to how we do but according to who God is.
~ He who dies with the most toys is nonetheless dead.
~ He who has no Christmas in his heart will never find Christmas under a tree.
~ Honor is a gift a man gives himself. (A woman, too, of course...)
~ How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?
~ I considered atheism, but there weren't enough holidays.
~ I know that there are people in this world who do not love their fellow man, and I just HATE people like that.
~ I must have money...I still have checks in my checkbook.
~ I want my children to have all the things I couldn't afford. Then I want to move in with them.
~ I wonder if Dracula ever had ticks.
~ I worry that the person who thought up Muzak may be thinking up something else.
~ I Xeroxed a mirror. Now I have an extra Xerox machine.
~ I'd explain it to you, but your brain would explode.
~ If brains were taxed, she'd get a rebate.
~ If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of Progress?
~ If corn oil comes from corn, where does baby oil come from?
~ If he says that you are too good for him, believe it.
~ If I melted dry ice, could I swim in it and not get wet?
~ If I wanted to hear the pitter-patter of little feet, I'd put shoes on my cat.
~ "If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have stopped eating vegetables."
~ If knees were backwards, what would chairs look like?
~ If white wine goes with fish, do white grapes go with sushi?
~ If you don't have a sense of humor, you probably don't have any sense at all.
~ If you don't pay your exorcist, you get repossessed.
~ If you're in a car going the speed of light, what happens when you turn on the headlights?
~ In democracy your vote counts. In feudalism your count votes.
~ It makes me mad when people say I turned and ran like a scared rabbit. Maybe it was like an angry rabbit, who was running to go fight in another fight, away from the first fight.
~ It's scary when you start making the same noises as your coffee maker.
~ Jesus paid the price. You get to keep the change.
~ Just BEFORE someone gets nervous, do they experience cocoons in their stomach?
~ Know how to prevent sagging? Just eat till the wrinkles fill out.
~ Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.
~ Man's way leads to a hopeless end...God's way leads to an endless hope.
~ Many girls like to marry a military man...he can cook, sew, and make beds and is in good health, and he's already used to taking orders.
~ My memory's not as sharp as it used to be. Also, my memory's not as sharp as it used to be.
~ Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.
~ On anniversaries, the wise husband always forgets the past - but never the present.
~ On your mark...get set...go away!
~ Once you've seen one shopping center, you've seen a mall.
~ Opportunity knocks but once; temptation leans on the doorbell.
~ Our days are happier when we give people a bit of our heart rather than a piece of our mind.
~ Procrastinate Now!
~ Reading while sunbathing makes you well red.
~ She was engaged to a boyfriend with a wooden leg but broke it off.
~ Shotgun wedding: A case of wife or death.
~ Stop telling God how big your storm is. Instead, tell your storm how big your God is.
~ Tell me, where is this "bright side" that you speak of?
~ The distance between the ticket counter and your plane is directly proportional to the weight of what you are carrying and inversely proportional to the time remaining before takeoff.
~ The man who fell into an upholstery machine is fully recovered.
~ The nicest thing about the future is that it always starts tomorrow.
~ The reason most people play golf is to wear clothes they would not be caught dead in otherwise.
~ The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up.
~ The task ahead of us is never as great as the Power behind us.
~ The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket.
~ The grace of God is the mending glue for broken hearts.
~ There are only two kinds of people in the world: Those who wake up in the morning and say, "Good morning, Lord," and those who wake up in the morning and say, "Good Lord, it's morning."
~ There's always a lot to be thankful for, if you take time to look for it. For example, I am sitting here thinking how nice it is that wrinkles don't hurt.
~ These days about half the stuff in my shopping cart says, "For fast relief."
~ Things today are a lot like they used to be back in the day when things were different than they are now.
~ Those who get too big for their breeches will be exposed in the end.
~ Trouble in marriage often starts when a man gets so busy earnin' his salt that he forgets his sugar.
~ What did Adam say on the day before Christmas? It's Christmas, Eve
~ What level of importance must a person have, before they are considered assassinated instead of just murdered?
~ When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds.
~ When a man marries a woman, they become one; but the trouble starts when they try to decide which one.
~ When sign makers go on strike, is anything written on their picket signs?
~ When two egotists meet, it's an I for an I.
~ When you open a new bag of cotton balls, do you throw the top one away?
~ Where there's a will, there's a lawsuit.
~ Which is worse: Ignorance or apathy? Who knows? Who cares?
~ Who sings "Love Me Tender" and makes Christmas toys? Santa's little Elvis
~ Would the person who took the step ladder yesterday please bring it back or further steps will be taken.
~ Wrinkled was not one of the things i wanted to be when I grew up.
~ You don't stop laughing because you grow old; you grow old because you stop laughing.
~ You know you're getting old when you stop buying green bananas.
~ You know you're into middle age when you realize that caution is the only thing you care to exercise.
~ You may be addicted to Narnia if you randomly knock on the backs of closets...just in case.
~ You stop believing in Santa Claus when you start getting clothes for Christmas.
~ You're slower than a herd of turtles stampeding through peanut butter.
Monday, December 26, 2005
The Year In Review...
Every year, almost without fail, I include in our Christmas cards a little letter of what has gone on during the year in our family. This year I didn't. Like I told my wife, I didn't want to depress anyone!
This was a year of very big changes.
My wife turned 40 in January. She wasn't looking forward to it and forbade we to give her a suprise party. (She gave me one on my 30th...she's getting one on her 50th!). I spent 2 weeks in Boise, ID at USFS meetings. It was then, as I look back now, that I realized I wouldn't last at the Forest Service much longer. Grown people, some with a little power, some with a lot, fighting and whining like 3rd graders arguing who gets to pitch first in kick-ball.
My wife's father passed away in March. It was tough on her even though she didn't have that close of a relationship with him over the last 20 years. Her sister flat out hated her dad and her brother worshipped the ground he walked on. The stress of her father passing away took the life of her paternal grandmother about 2 months later. My wife was become very emotional and depressed. Add to that, I was getting some strange signals at work and I was becoming moody as well.
In June, I ran into no little difficulty with the USFS. I had to work on my day off so it was an overtime day. I got back 30 minutes late from a flight and came in a few minutes early the next day to take another flight to pick up the Regional Forester. I had asked a couple of other pilots if they would take it but both turned me down. One of them has a bad habit of whining about not getting enough flight time then when offered a flight, turns it down because he has something better to do. Go figure. Needless to say, I only got about 9 hours of duty rest instead of 10.
I took the second flight, no problem. I was rested, the flight went well. All was good. I thought I'd do the government a favor and not charge them for the extra hour so on my official government time sheet I put down I got off at 11:00p and came on at 9:00a. It also made the paperwork look good.
According to the USFS, this is fraud. Yes I know. Fraud in their favor. Fraud that save them and the US taxpayer a few bucks. Fraud that carries with it punishment up to and including termination. To compound matters, two weeks later I had a hot start on our leased aircraft. Long day, confused on abnormal start procedures and I caused 60-thousand dollars worth of damage to the engine. Now the USFS was very unhappy with me.
Long story short, the powers that be made a list of all the things I had done wrong in June and charged me with them. We (my Union Rep and I) explained my side of the story, and rebutted the charge of lying during an official investigation. (I was asked on the phone what time I had returned from my late flight and I said around 11. I honestly didn't remember and hadn't written it down. When I was told dispatch said I got back at 11:45 I knew it wasn't that late. I said 11:30 at the latest. They considered that "lying during an official investigation". It's on my permanent government record.) I offered to resign if they'd clear my record. They not only said no but hell no. So on October 1, 2005, almost 5 years from the time I started, I left a good paying gov't job.
From around the first of July through November I wound up in a therapists office. Since June I have had 3 anxiety/panic attacks. Never had one of those before. Between July and November I admitted I had and worked through having ADHD. Add to this I turned 40 in July and for some reason this bothered me more than I thought it would. Maybe it had to do with who I was and where I was at in life not matching up with what I thought I should be and where I ought to be.
We also changed churches and the kids school. I had, for some time, grown uncomfortable with the direction our church was going. The leadership was not dealing with some serious issues in the church. My wife and I were sensing it was time to leave. I was running sound and loved working with the worship team. Great group of people, great musicians, great fun. But it was the only thing I was there for. My personal growth was moving in a different direction. The seeker-sensitive/wishy-washy way of bending to every whim just didn't jive with me anymore.
Unfortunately I did some confessional blogging about it and the pastoral staff and board found out, read it and then confronted me with it. I never mentioned anyone by name nor the name of the church but still, I was accused of poking my finger in God's eye. Now it's true, I have railed at God in the past, shaken my fist at him and, like Lt. Dan in "Forrest Gump", challenged God to come get me. (Personal note: Don't try this at home kids....God has a tendency to take you up on your challenges...you've been warned!)
Needless to say...it was ugly. Feelings got hurt but the leaders still didn't see what many were telling them. We are now in a church that my wife truly enjoys, I'm learning a lot, my daughter loves (her best friend is there and she's learning a lot). My son misses the social aspect and on Wednesday nights, he's elsewhere. This won't last long. My belief, the family stays together and worships at the same church. He's not gonna like that.
The kids were moved out of their school to a charter school that is a lot tougher. My daughter blossomed. She really loves school. My son, who still maintains staright A's, hates it because he can't coast through school anymore. But he's becoming much smarter. Probably going to be much smarter than I am. They are studying stuff I didn't get until college.
My wife was not only dealing with mourning her father, her turning 40, her husband falling apart, her oldest son turning 13, new church, new school...
This was not a good year for her!
So...two deaths, three milestone birthdays, family members mentally falling apart, income cut in half, new church, new school...a stressful year.
And yet in all of this God never let us down. I know that sounds like a cliche' but it is true. I have grown, personally, in the last six months. My kids have too. My wife as well. All of our bills are paid, no one got deathly ill, we even managed to take a quick vacation to Disneyland on Thanksgiving break. I'm working. She's working. The dogs are okay and the house doesn't need any major repairs this year. (Last year we racked up over 20-thousand dollars in home improvements/repairs. God was good and supplied the money.)
What will 2006 bring? Hell if I know. I'm not a prophet endowed with foresight. Unlike Isaiah, I cannot predict what will happen 600 years into the future. I do know this, one does not "arrive" in this life. One does not get to a point where it is all settled. There will always be change, always be growth, always be challenges. Never will you be "set". I first figured this out about 5 years ago. It's taken me this long to accept it.
I have to let go and not worry so much about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself. Kind of hard for someone who has control issues, who's ADD has forced him into a routine just to manage on a day-to-day basis. The future is scary as it is without having to worry about it. This is hard for me. Pray I learn to deal with it !
Happy New Year!
Eric
This was a year of very big changes.
My wife turned 40 in January. She wasn't looking forward to it and forbade we to give her a suprise party. (She gave me one on my 30th...she's getting one on her 50th!). I spent 2 weeks in Boise, ID at USFS meetings. It was then, as I look back now, that I realized I wouldn't last at the Forest Service much longer. Grown people, some with a little power, some with a lot, fighting and whining like 3rd graders arguing who gets to pitch first in kick-ball.
My wife's father passed away in March. It was tough on her even though she didn't have that close of a relationship with him over the last 20 years. Her sister flat out hated her dad and her brother worshipped the ground he walked on. The stress of her father passing away took the life of her paternal grandmother about 2 months later. My wife was become very emotional and depressed. Add to that, I was getting some strange signals at work and I was becoming moody as well.
In June, I ran into no little difficulty with the USFS. I had to work on my day off so it was an overtime day. I got back 30 minutes late from a flight and came in a few minutes early the next day to take another flight to pick up the Regional Forester. I had asked a couple of other pilots if they would take it but both turned me down. One of them has a bad habit of whining about not getting enough flight time then when offered a flight, turns it down because he has something better to do. Go figure. Needless to say, I only got about 9 hours of duty rest instead of 10.
I took the second flight, no problem. I was rested, the flight went well. All was good. I thought I'd do the government a favor and not charge them for the extra hour so on my official government time sheet I put down I got off at 11:00p and came on at 9:00a. It also made the paperwork look good.
According to the USFS, this is fraud. Yes I know. Fraud in their favor. Fraud that save them and the US taxpayer a few bucks. Fraud that carries with it punishment up to and including termination. To compound matters, two weeks later I had a hot start on our leased aircraft. Long day, confused on abnormal start procedures and I caused 60-thousand dollars worth of damage to the engine. Now the USFS was very unhappy with me.
Long story short, the powers that be made a list of all the things I had done wrong in June and charged me with them. We (my Union Rep and I) explained my side of the story, and rebutted the charge of lying during an official investigation. (I was asked on the phone what time I had returned from my late flight and I said around 11. I honestly didn't remember and hadn't written it down. When I was told dispatch said I got back at 11:45 I knew it wasn't that late. I said 11:30 at the latest. They considered that "lying during an official investigation". It's on my permanent government record.) I offered to resign if they'd clear my record. They not only said no but hell no. So on October 1, 2005, almost 5 years from the time I started, I left a good paying gov't job.
From around the first of July through November I wound up in a therapists office. Since June I have had 3 anxiety/panic attacks. Never had one of those before. Between July and November I admitted I had and worked through having ADHD. Add to this I turned 40 in July and for some reason this bothered me more than I thought it would. Maybe it had to do with who I was and where I was at in life not matching up with what I thought I should be and where I ought to be.
We also changed churches and the kids school. I had, for some time, grown uncomfortable with the direction our church was going. The leadership was not dealing with some serious issues in the church. My wife and I were sensing it was time to leave. I was running sound and loved working with the worship team. Great group of people, great musicians, great fun. But it was the only thing I was there for. My personal growth was moving in a different direction. The seeker-sensitive/wishy-washy way of bending to every whim just didn't jive with me anymore.
Unfortunately I did some confessional blogging about it and the pastoral staff and board found out, read it and then confronted me with it. I never mentioned anyone by name nor the name of the church but still, I was accused of poking my finger in God's eye. Now it's true, I have railed at God in the past, shaken my fist at him and, like Lt. Dan in "Forrest Gump", challenged God to come get me. (Personal note: Don't try this at home kids....God has a tendency to take you up on your challenges...you've been warned!)
Needless to say...it was ugly. Feelings got hurt but the leaders still didn't see what many were telling them. We are now in a church that my wife truly enjoys, I'm learning a lot, my daughter loves (her best friend is there and she's learning a lot). My son misses the social aspect and on Wednesday nights, he's elsewhere. This won't last long. My belief, the family stays together and worships at the same church. He's not gonna like that.
The kids were moved out of their school to a charter school that is a lot tougher. My daughter blossomed. She really loves school. My son, who still maintains staright A's, hates it because he can't coast through school anymore. But he's becoming much smarter. Probably going to be much smarter than I am. They are studying stuff I didn't get until college.
My wife was not only dealing with mourning her father, her turning 40, her husband falling apart, her oldest son turning 13, new church, new school...
This was not a good year for her!
So...two deaths, three milestone birthdays, family members mentally falling apart, income cut in half, new church, new school...a stressful year.
And yet in all of this God never let us down. I know that sounds like a cliche' but it is true. I have grown, personally, in the last six months. My kids have too. My wife as well. All of our bills are paid, no one got deathly ill, we even managed to take a quick vacation to Disneyland on Thanksgiving break. I'm working. She's working. The dogs are okay and the house doesn't need any major repairs this year. (Last year we racked up over 20-thousand dollars in home improvements/repairs. God was good and supplied the money.)
What will 2006 bring? Hell if I know. I'm not a prophet endowed with foresight. Unlike Isaiah, I cannot predict what will happen 600 years into the future. I do know this, one does not "arrive" in this life. One does not get to a point where it is all settled. There will always be change, always be growth, always be challenges. Never will you be "set". I first figured this out about 5 years ago. It's taken me this long to accept it.
I have to let go and not worry so much about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself. Kind of hard for someone who has control issues, who's ADD has forced him into a routine just to manage on a day-to-day basis. The future is scary as it is without having to worry about it. This is hard for me. Pray I learn to deal with it !
Happy New Year!
Eric
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Not Much...
...going on.
Feeling a bit bummed...must be the rain.
Oh well...life goes on...Christmas is 5 days away so if I don't see ya by then...
Merry Christmas one and all!
Eric
Feeling a bit bummed...must be the rain.
Oh well...life goes on...Christmas is 5 days away so if I don't see ya by then...
Merry Christmas one and all!
Eric
Sunday, December 11, 2005
My Son Turns Thirteen Today...
...he is officially a teenager.
His mother doesn't like to be reminded.
I wrote him a letter explaining why I'm proud of him. I give him a nickels worth of free advice about life at 13; you know...girls, parents, school, etc. I think I'll write another one when he's 16 and again at 18 and 21. Those are the milestone ages. I wanted to tell him the things that no one told me that I wish I knew at 13, 16, 18 and 21. My parents weren't the touchy-feely type.
And while I'm a little uncomfortable talking I am pretty good at writing. So I wrote. Maybe I should have sat him down but my mind wanders some and writing it down and letting him read it is better.
Happy Birthday Matthew!
Eric
His mother doesn't like to be reminded.
I wrote him a letter explaining why I'm proud of him. I give him a nickels worth of free advice about life at 13; you know...girls, parents, school, etc. I think I'll write another one when he's 16 and again at 18 and 21. Those are the milestone ages. I wanted to tell him the things that no one told me that I wish I knew at 13, 16, 18 and 21. My parents weren't the touchy-feely type.
And while I'm a little uncomfortable talking I am pretty good at writing. So I wrote. Maybe I should have sat him down but my mind wanders some and writing it down and letting him read it is better.
Happy Birthday Matthew!
Eric
Saturday, December 10, 2005
Movies...
I like movies. Wish I could afford to see all the ones I want on the big screen but I can't so I have to pick and choose.
This week...I'm chosing Narnia on Sunday and Aeon Flux on Monday.
I'll review them on Wed or Thurs...
BTW...Narnia books are not CHRISTIAN books. They are allegory. They are fantasy. They are Lewis' imagination gone wild.
Deal with it.
Eric
This week...I'm chosing Narnia on Sunday and Aeon Flux on Monday.
I'll review them on Wed or Thurs...
BTW...Narnia books are not CHRISTIAN books. They are allegory. They are fantasy. They are Lewis' imagination gone wild.
Deal with it.
Eric
Saturday, December 03, 2005
I Knew This Would Happen...
...someday.
(Pilot/aviation geek stuff ahead!)
I have never had to do a missed approach for real (only in training) and the other night I almost broke that 20 year record. ATC dumped me on to the approach at 6000 feet...4000 higher than I needed to be. And 7 miles closer than I needed to be. I lucked out...the ceiling came up and I made it in.
BUT...I did have to do something I have never had to do for real (only done it in training). I had to use an emergency gear extension procedure on the C-421 on Friday at Portland. Damn thing froze in the wheel well and, after cycling the gear three times, I committed to nearly staying in Portland until Monday. I pulled the emergency gear handle, rammed hundreds of psi of nitrogen through the system, and slammed the nose gear down.
To take off again, the plane has to be jacked up, the circuit breaker reset, the nitro bottle refilled and the gear inspected. No one could do it on Friday...but Monday was just fine! Yeah.
So, my 2:50 flight out of PDX to RDD left at 4:30. I read nearly half of my 400 page book.
Spent my last 6 bucks on lunch. (Half a pastrami on light rye and a Mr. Pibb!)
What pisses me off the most is this happened once before in this airplane to another pilot and, even after the shop trouble-shot it and made some repairs...it happened again. Now I'll probably have to airline it up to PDX on Monday and pick up the plane and fly it home. Oh well...at least I'm getting paid!
Eric
(Pilot/aviation geek stuff ahead!)
I have never had to do a missed approach for real (only in training) and the other night I almost broke that 20 year record. ATC dumped me on to the approach at 6000 feet...4000 higher than I needed to be. And 7 miles closer than I needed to be. I lucked out...the ceiling came up and I made it in.
BUT...I did have to do something I have never had to do for real (only done it in training). I had to use an emergency gear extension procedure on the C-421 on Friday at Portland. Damn thing froze in the wheel well and, after cycling the gear three times, I committed to nearly staying in Portland until Monday. I pulled the emergency gear handle, rammed hundreds of psi of nitrogen through the system, and slammed the nose gear down.
To take off again, the plane has to be jacked up, the circuit breaker reset, the nitro bottle refilled and the gear inspected. No one could do it on Friday...but Monday was just fine! Yeah.
So, my 2:50 flight out of PDX to RDD left at 4:30. I read nearly half of my 400 page book.
Spent my last 6 bucks on lunch. (Half a pastrami on light rye and a Mr. Pibb!)
What pisses me off the most is this happened once before in this airplane to another pilot and, even after the shop trouble-shot it and made some repairs...it happened again. Now I'll probably have to airline it up to PDX on Monday and pick up the plane and fly it home. Oh well...at least I'm getting paid!
Eric
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