I know it's been a long time...

OK OK I know it has been forever since we have put anything up. Alright since I’m the one who has been writing it’s all Dales fault…

A lot has happened since the last post. Winter has come and gone. The winters down here aren’t the same as back home. Not as cold though you add a lot of moisture in the air and makes up the difference. It’s also windy most of the time. I don’t mean a slight breeze either. 20-30 mile an hour winds most of the time. The locals don’t even notice it until it gets around 40mph. Though when I tell them that “just talked with the folks and they just got 10” of snow and it’s 12 below” they don’t think that is so great… Well I guess to each their own. Branden and I really like the spring so far. While everyone back home is still either getting snow or freezing we have been bouncing in the mid 70’s to mid 80’s. Until last week, here we are cruising along in the mid 80’s and them within 15 minutes it drops 25 degrees. I was outside when that happened it was crazy. It seemed like one minute I was planting grass in the back yard and the next I was turning the furnace back on.

Other than that things have been just great. I got a part time job selling for a recycle company. That didn’t last long we found out the community isn’t ready for the plan we had. Though I am very happy they are still going forward just in a different direction. Branden is getting along with her job very well. Of course whenever you work with the government things are done that don’t make a lot of sense but what can you do… She spent a week back in Salt Lake for training. I’m sure she was thinking “I’m so close to home but so far away”.

We were able to make it back home for a couple weeks in Feb for Christmas. It was great we got see family and get a couple days of snowboarding in. 14 days of vacation sounds like a lot of time until you start trying to figure out how to fit everything you want to in it. Also the drive time kills ya. Luckily we had a couple days when we got back to rest. You know it was a great vacation when you have to rest from it.

Another thing that we are not used to is tick season starting so early. We went over to the stray facility yesterday to get some pics for the website and the dogs were covered in ticks. I mean big fat bloated ticks. I have been around ticks but this was nasty. Every time I think about it I get the creepy crawlies… That is why our animals get the monthly treatment weather they need it or not. I’m just happy the back yard doesn’t have any chiggers yet. Man I hate those things. Everyone who has spent any time in the mid west or down south told me about them. Of course I was like yeah I get you they are bad. Well I get it they are bad and a pain in my ASS. Well only if you sit in the grass. If not then a pain in my ANKLES.

Since it’s 12:30 in the morning and I’m finally getting sleepy. I promise though there will be more to come.

One Crazy Cat

So many know that we have two cats, Sy and Echo. Echo is the newest addition to our family added last October and let me tell you, her name fits her well. We have decided that she is a cat hooked on crack cocaine plus having ADD with the lack of both long and short term memories all at the same time. She will be going 90 miles an hour around the house and get all excited over a box that has been there all day long which is the same box she explored the previous 3 days before. This all leads up to her latest and most nerve racking adventures yet. And when I say nerve racking, I mean my nerves. Our yard here in Lawton is completely fenced in which is nice so I can let the cats out into the yard and periodically check on them with out them running away or getting hit by cars. When we first moved in, our house had a foundation access opening, a hole under our house, that Echo found to be the most entertaining to play in. Basically, she was running around under the house for hours on end only to come out no longer white and covered in spider webs. Well in the same corner of the yard is our air conditioner and a tree. Since her hole was blocked ever so convienently by a board, placed by Dale, she found a new interest in that corner.
She found that she could climb the tree. That was all fine and dandy until her ADD kicked in and she had to explore every branch the tree had and as you can see, it was not a small tree. Half way through exploring the tree, Echo soon realized that the tree was fun but there was something even better.

She found she could get on the roof of the house when she climbed the tree. So there Echo was, on the roof and loving every minute of it. She found she could run from one part of the house to the other, onto the garage and onto the car port in only a matter of seconds, chasing leaves along the way.

That left me, worried "mom" about my cat being on the roof. Dale just laughed. So I did what any person would do, try to talk my cat off the roof. And let me say trying to bribe with both food and her toy, nothing worked.
Eventually, Echo made her way back to the tree. But do to her lack of memory she had to once again explore the entire tree. I soon was able to convince her mostly down the tree but she stopped just out of reach. Since I did not want her climbing back onto the roof and it would be dark soon, I climbed into the tree and grabbed my cat. Needless to say, we are working on something to put in that corner to prevent her from climbing that tree. Crazy cats anyways!

Under one roof...

Well it's taken many years and we are now all under one roof. I (Dale) moved down on the 2nd of November. Fairwell Idaho I will miss you but never forget you:) No we will be back as soon as life lets us.

The move down was interesting. I had a car full of animals and Uhaul trailer full of stuff. I didn't realize how much stuff I still had until I started packing it. Thanks to Chad (old roomate) I still have a few things that need to make it down sometime. I guess that's why we kept our storage unit. OK OK I'm a bit of a pack rat but you never know when you are going to need some of that stuff:)

The trailer didn't pack right so it was a bit tail heavy and bounced the entire way down. On top of that the receiver hitch didn't fit right and so it banged evertime the trailer bounded. Man that was a long 28 hours. I didn't make it all the way without taking a bit of a nap. Other than the trailer being a pain the trip was very uneventful. Being that I was pulling a trailer I was very happy that the gas prices were coming down at the same time.

Since I have been down in Lawton I have been getting some of the house put together and lawn picked up. That is one thing we have 4 nice big trees though they shed a ton of freakin leaves. That now I have to pick up. Didn't have to deal with that back home. OH WELL...

I just started getting back to work. My phone has been down since I moved down and found my back up. That made it a bit hard to keep in touch with people and find out about business oportunities. I just had my first networking lunch and it went great... Everyone was very interested in what I do and how I do it. I have several meetings over the next couple weeks and so I am hoping this will be a nice start to my business.

I will have some pics to put up as soon as I get my camera from Branden. She took my car today and the camera is in there. I will also have her write a bit about how her work has been and what it is like at the Vet clinic on base.

Talk to ya soon...

Dale

Physical Fitness Test

So when you enter the military, any branch, you must meet a certain physical fitness criteria. The army is tough, not as much as the Marines but tough. The Army measures your physical fitness level with a test known as PT Test. To pass this test, you must meet minimum criteria in 3 categories: situps, pushups, 2 mile run. Situp and pushup section is how many of each can you do in 2 mintues each and the 2mile run is how fast can you do 2 miles in. Well of course the Army has PT minimums that you must meet in order to pass. These minimums are based on your age and gender. So for me, 27 and female, I must do at minimum: 45 situps, 17 pushups and run 2 miles in 20 minutes and 30 seconds (20:30). The test also has maximums that if you meet means you max that category. The maxes are: 82 situps, 50 pushups, 15:48 2 mile run. This all seems rather easy but let me tell you it is not. Trying to do 45 situps in 2 minutes without having your abs and legs cramp is challenging. You are given a score based on the number of repetitions or time of each event you do. The lowest score you couldget is 180 points: 60 for each event. The maximum for each is 100 or 300 for all three combines.

So on Oct. 22, my vet track group for OBLC had to take a PT test for our 6 weeks down here. We could take the test as either diagnostic, no score taken, or for record meaning the results will go into your file. I knew I could pass it so I took it for record. Then I wouldn't have to take it when I first got back to Oklahoma. So on that Oct. 22 wednesday morning, we met on the PT field to take the test. I had previsouly taken two tests and scored a 245 and 254. My goal was to try to max the test or get close to doing so. We took the test and boy was I excited with my results. I ended up doing: 51 pushups in two minutes, 74 situps in two minutes and running 2 miles in 15:37. The end result was a score of 291 points. I miss maxing by 8 situps. I was estatic. I had been working out my normal routine until that point and it paid off. I had just scored probably the best score of my unit back in Oklahoma. I just set the bar/standard very high. The only way to go. HOOAH!!!!

Bar Run

So today I did something I had never done before. I had heard of a similar version of this activity but never partaked. This activity is called a bar run. Now I have heard of bar golf where there are so many "holes" and you have to take a drink at each bar. I have also heard of type of bar run where you go from bar to bar just hopping around, typically walking where you went. Well tonights Bar run was exactlly what that says. We started at bar #1 where you had a drink of your choice and literally ran, at times a sprint, to the next bar where you consumed any number and types of drinks until the time frame was up. In the end, we went to 8 different bars and ran a total of 4 miles. Thus the attire for this activity was work out clothes, tank top, shorts and tennis shoes. Now imagine a group of 30 people running down the downtown streets of San Antonio and running into a bar, drinking and running to the next bar. That is what we did. The best part was when we went into a somewhat fancy bar looking like a gathering of college kids craving beer. No real pictures were taken to document this as trying to run with a camera was difficult but you can believe me, it was very fun. I am now very tired and I only had a drink at every other bar.

OBLC part 2

OBLC
Well it is now the 3rd of October. For most of the OBLC students of the 08-805 that means they are on their way homes or enroute to their first duty stations. For some of us, the vets, we are here for another 3 weeks. I am very sad at this point in this OBLC schooling. For the last 9 weeks I have gotten to know an amazing group of individuals, who we called ourselves "Freaken 5th!!" This group clicked from the start and made me feel included and part of a team. We got to enjoy some awesome experiences together. Some of us became very close good friends. This makes this weekend hard as there is no definiate end when people leave. Some have already left a few days prior which not knowing this made for no good byes. We know that we all won't keep up the emails and phone calls but I know we all left with some great memories and some well that we hope were not documented via pictures. For me though, this was a life changing experience that helped me in more ways than I would ever have expected and I leave with no regrets. Other than that, I would not have changed or traded these past 9 weeks for anything.
Go FREAKEN 5th!!!By the way, who has the OCONUS list?

San Antonio, Texas

After the general portion of OBLC, there was a small graduation that lead our way into our tracks. The graduation was nothing special just an hour ceremony with generals talking and us (students) reciting the soldier's creed. The picture below shows a portion of the 350 students in the general section just prior to graduation.

Well Dale wanted to be at this ceremony so he flew out for that weekend. He arrived on THursday night and stayed until Monday morning. We had not seen each other since I came down to Texas so it had been almost 2 months. It was great seeing him, giving me a sense of home and normalcy.

The Friday night of graduation, my platoon was having a party at a bar called Howl at the Moon down on the Riverwalk in downtown San Antonio. This bar was cool because it was a dueling piano bar, something that neither Dale nor I had been to in a while. The performers were great and we had a great time. I did get alittle drunk but it was a celebration. The piano bar had what was called the phrase of the night and high roller phrase. Basically you paid either progressive dollar amounts to have some phrase written on a mirror for everyone to see. It was a great evening. We will definately return to this bar when in San Antonio again.