Being thankful, Day #12

Finally, i am thankful for having been a Redleg, a United States Army Artilleryman.  When i finally attended BNCOC i met a recruiter from another state, and learned about the Artillery.  I was intrigued.  one thing led to another and i transferred units once again.  My first drill weekend with them it was pouring down rain, and when i say pouring i mean rivers of water flowed through the firing position.  The ammo team chief joked about expecting to see animals come out of the wood line, "two by two".  But, the first pull of that lanyard... the concussion felt in the chest and the thunder in the ground.  I was hooked.

I worked my way up from assistant gunner, to gunner, to ammo team chief, to section chief, to Smoke of Battery, and finally as acting First Sergeant of my unit.  I served my last decade as a Redleg.  In that time my unit was deployed seven times (at various portions, both Federal and state services, and various durations).  We were a band of misfits, but we always got the job done.  The battery motto was unofficially - Call, "What about Alpha Battery?", response, "F___ Alpha Battery!".  We had the reputation of always being on time, always delivering.  Of all the units i have served in, this was the one i felt the least amount of trepidation of going to where the 'air lead density' was going to be significantly higher.When i was presented a framed Guidon from the Battery, it was the best retirement present i think i could have received.

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Random Dozen - 20100922

Poor Linda over at 2nd Cup of Coffee.  She had a set of questions all ready to do to celebrate the 1st day of Fall, but she misplaced them.  Doh!  So, she has promised that these questions are really, really random!  Enjoy, and you really should go check out her blog.

1. Have you, or has someone close to you, ever won an award for anything?

I have a few trinkets here and there.  Over the years i have come to learn that some are only worth the paper they are printed on, while others only mean something to the recipient/organization that receives/gives it.  I am not sure where the one that means the most to me falls, but the award that means the most to me was the Honorable Order of St. Barbara.  "The Honorable Order of Saint Barbara is awarded to those individuals who have demonstrated the highest standards of integrity and moral character, displayed an outstanding degree of professional competence, served the Artillery with selflessness; and contributed to the promotion of the Artillery branch."  That is a lot of military-ees for thank you for serving faithfully in the Artillery (perhaps), but the Artillery was by far my favorite time of service, and this award means more to me than all of the ribbons and other awards i earned sans the Humanitarian Service Medal.

2. Who is the nearest relative to you who has served in the US Military?

Myself, actually, but stepping aside i would like to honor my brother.  He studied his butt off to graduate High School a semester early so that he could go off and join the Army Airborne Rangers.  While that did not work out immediately for him (long story), he served on active duty for 15 years, being deployed to combat zones multiple times.  He took a break, but is within 90 days of being eligible to retire from the Army National Guard having re-volunteered (and subsequently redeployed to combat zones) to serve.  His brother has never had to deploy into a "bad area", but he has done it several times.  In the end he achieved his dream of becoming an Airborne Ranger, AND an Air Assault Pathfinder (which to me, the latter is a better thing ).

3. Share something that stirs the patriotic spirit in you.

For me it is things like the Pat Tillman story, the one before the friendly fire incident.  Men and women who set aside their personal goals to serve their country, be it in the Armed Services or even the Uniformed Health Services.  From the earliest onset of this country our history is rife with such examples.  What America is most fondly known for is how she comes to the aide of others.  While we should always try and do that in less than heavy handed methods, it may not always be possible.  In any event... when other people set aside their own ambitions and welfare for others... i find that pretty moving.  Even when

4. Where are you in the birth order in your family? Do you think your "placement" made a difference in your personality?

I have never really studied this.  Growing up my brother and i really didn't live a "normal" childhood, so it is hard to tell, and my sister was born 10 years after i was and we only lived together in brief increments on two different occasions.  So... i am not sure.

5. Name one trait you hope you carry that was evidenced in your parents or grandparents.

Well, my beloved has noticed many that i seem to share with my father... but these are not considered "good" things... so... i would rather not stir up the memories... even if she never reads this post.

6. If female, do you prefer wearing a skirt or pants? If male, shirt and tie or polo?

POLO!  I have a "thick" neck in my opinion and i have never been comfortable wearing a tie.  I will, on occasion, wear one... but they are not my preference.  Polo shirts on the other hand...  i have a closet full of them, as well as a dresser drawer.  I wear them year round, even in the winter time.  If it's cold enough i will wear a t-shirt underneath.  One must dress in layers.

7. Approximately how many times do you wake during the night? What do you do to go back to sleep?

I find that i will wake up usually twice a night, and almost always at least once.  Rarely less than that.  Usually i roll over, get re-situated, and close my eyes.  On the more difficult times i will pray.  If that doesn't work, and it almost always does, i will get a half a juice glass of milk and stretch (picture runner's stretches) my legs some.

8. Share a favorite movie quote.

That really depends on my mood and the situation... but being put on the spot... um...

"When some wild-eyed, eight-foot-tall maniac grabs your neck, taps the back of your favorite head up against the barroom wall, and he looks you crooked in the eye and he asks you if ya paid your dues, you just stare that big sucker right back in the eye, and you remember what ol' Jack Burton always says at a time like that: "Have ya paid your dues, Jack?" "Yessir, the check is in the mail."  ~ Jack Burton, Big Trouble in Little China.

9. What is your favorite Fall candle scent?

I absolutely love the smell of a distant fire on a crisp cold evening.  The promise of warmth, the possibility of fellowship with a few friends, maybe a nice meal.  That my idea of a little slice of Heaven.

10. What is one Fall activity you're looking forward to?

Not sure really.  Watching Football is always good.  We have a Saturday planned where several families are going to meet up at one of our houses and spend the day cutting firewood and maybe some chili.  That seems really nice.  My beloved and i will also be celebrating an anniversary.  We won't be doing much just the two of us, but... maybe we can get a nice evening out somewhere in there.

11. Tell us about a pleasant surprise that happened to you recently.

Maybe it's just the late hour and/or the hectic schedule i've been running of late... but i cannot honestly think of anything.  Don't get me wrong... i am blessed with a home, a family and a good job.  We are not in want.  It blends all together, and right now no one thing really jumps off the page of my memory.  Although... my beloved giving her blessing to my upgrading my phone to an Android powered phone was pretty cool.

12. What was it like when you first met your in-laws-to-be?

I still remember meeting my then future father-in-law.  My beloved had brought me home so i could take her to one of her High School reunions.  We came in the front door, and i walked through the kitchen where her father was on the phone.  I was VERY grateful that he was on the phone because he has a presence about him.  Not menacing, but authoritative, if you know what i mean.I was shown into the family room while my beloved went and found her mother.  While i was there alone i had time to compose myself and catch my breath so to speak.  Both my future in-laws were very nice and gracious hosts.

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Random Redleg Ramblin' Rememberings

I came to be a Redleg late in my military career.  I joined the Alpha Gators in the summer of 1999.  I was looking for a new "home" after being bored to tears a second time in the MP Corps.  I have a respect for the MP's, but it just wasn't my cup of tea.  I do know that as soon as i joined up with Alpha i was welcomed.  I had a choice of going into the FDC or out on the gunline.  At the time FDC was at 120% strength and i didn't see any room for advancement (having been an E5 for about ten years at that point it was a concern). 

My first drill with the Gators was a live fire and it was pouring down buckets.  The guys in the section i was assigned to rotated me around to each of the positions so i could get a feel for what they all did.  I was put into a section after that drill as a gunner, which may have irritated some of the other assistant gunners because i stepped right in and some of them had been in the unit for a while.  Since i like the rain i didn't mind, and besides there were plenty of places to get out of the rain under the net.  I still remember Ammo Sergeant talking about how he kept expecting the animals to come out of the woodline two by two. 8)

A little more than two years later came 9-11 and deployments.  While we were never deployed according to our MOS, we always had a good Esprit De Corps. It was while we were on active duty together i finally earned my E6 stripes.  I remember knowing that unless i passed the APFT there was no way i could make E6.  I had not been in very good shape, but i made sure i pushed myself.  When i completed the 2 mile run event i was recycling my "lunch" as i ran the last 100 yards.  But i passed.

When we finished our tour we went through reintegration training.  Meaning we had to "relearn" how to be Artillerymen.  It was my time as a Section Chief.  "STONEY" was assigned my babysitter as i learned the ropes.  The guys made sure i got to keep my first canister - really cool.  It is stored away with my other keepsakes for my future "man cave".  The most memorable part of this training was when i lost it and let fly a string of expletives.  What set me off was the horseplay was beginning to "endanger" (or so i thought at the time) my collimator.  That got everyone's attention.  You see, by now i had earned a reputation as the unofficial Battery "Chaplin", and that sort of thing was not expected out of me.  Some times it still comes out in conversations at our reunions - even seven years later.

After i moved much further away from Armory i chose to stay with them.  You see, in the Guard, if you move over a certain distance away from your unit you are allowed to seek out another unit closer to home.  But by 2004 i had grown quite attached to the camaraderie there.  So, instead of drilling with a unit that was less than ten miles away from my house, i was driving the approximately 80 miles one way to stay with a bunch of guys who all i had in common with (most of) them was we were all Redlegs.  I never regretted it.

One advantage i had, in my opinion, over many of the other Section Chiefs until my promotion to E7 in January of 2006, was that i had the same Gunner the entire time, and my Assitant Gunner almost as long.  Many a time we would be well understaffed (one memorable AT it was just us 3), and yet would could still get rounds downrange faster than most of the other sections, most of the time ALL of the other sections.  It got so that when we went to Section Certification the tester would say begin and i would just stand there and watch too.  Even though i was the one being graded.  I was being tested on how well i trained my section, and since they were already trained i never had to say anything towards the end of my time as a Section Chief.

Two memorable experiences, which is actually what i was going to blog about the whole time but i am just now getting too, were when we had a missfire (we actually had a few over the years, but one is set apart) and when a nearby unit from our division (The 29th Light Infantry) was folding their flag and were looking for other MOS positions to go to.

I will start with the latter.  We were at AT at Fort Pickett, VA.  It was a typical steamy Virginia summer day.  Open field, blazing sun, no breeze, 90+ degrees with a pretty high humidity level.  Anyone who has lived South of the Mason Dixon line, i am pretty sure you know what i am talking about.  In rolls a 5-ton truck with about two dozen "kids".  All of them E5 and below.  Our gunline is "hot" (meaning we were receiving fire missions) and they were all wearing their Kevlar helmets and flak vests.  Top brought a third of them under my net and asked me to "show them what the artillery was all about".  The first thing i did was had them drop the Kevlar and Flak Vest.  One of the guys was visibly nervous.  I kindly informed him that if something went wrong it would not help.  First, the kill radius of the HE round we were firing was 30 meters.  Within that radius i had my current supply of (if memory serves) thirty more rounds of HE.  By the time the chain reaction was done, the helmet and vest would not prevent their deaths and they might as well be comfortable in the Virginia afternoon heat.  We received a few fire missions and were burning up my ammunition at a decent pace and i was able to talk about various duty positions on the gun when the Ammo Section resupplied each gun with one hundred rounds of either HE or HE and ILLUM rounds.  It was then that i got a mischievous grin.  The drop was a good fifty meters behind the my position.  The only way to get them to my ammo pit was to manhandle each and every one of the eighty plus pounds case.  I informed the group that if they learned one thing about artillery it had to be that it was a heavy deal.  We proceeded to move every round and i made sure they participated (and drank plenty of water).  There was not a dry shirt when all was said and done.  I don't think i ever saw anyone of those kids ever again.

The next memory is one that i feel was a major contributor to my eventually being admitted into the Honorable Order of St Barbara (the patron saint of Artillerymen).  We were in the middle of a fire mission when we heard the metallic "tink" of the firing pin impacting the canister's primer.  We followed the misfire procedures to the letter and the round continued to fail to fire.  Finally i sent my section to the rear while my gunner and i (and the Battery's Gunny and Smoke) waited the prescribed amount of time and then began the unloading procedures.  As we removed the canister from the breach a wisp of smoke curled heavenward.  Our SOP indicates that we furl the canister towards the rear to disperse the powder bags, which helps prevent the ignition train from spreading beyond one or two bags (hopefully).  When the bags hit the dirt behind the trails four of the seven bags were smoldering.  Top was johnny on the spot and hit them with the fire extinguisher. I believe someone else also tossed some water on them as well.  Top, Gunny, and Smoke (and Smoke and Top had been in the Artillery for well over ten years each) said they had never seen a misfire where the powder bags were singed like that.  I still have the picture somewhere.  I remember lifting up a prayer to thank God for His protection that day.  You see, powder bags burn very, very hot.  And the flame can reach up several feet at times.  This all occurred underneath my cammo-net, which is known to be flammable.  Under that net was several more pieces of flammable equipment and more HE rounds. There was the potential for a pretty bad chain reaction of events.

In my twenty two years of service the three proudest moments were when i earned the right to fire a live TOW missile, when i was given the Humanitarian Service Medal (for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita), and when i was admitted into the Honorable Order of St Barbara.  All if those things happened while i was performing in a Redleg, or Redleg-like, MOS.  It is why i consider myself a Redleg for life, Field Artillery - KING of the Battlefield.

I am grateful for all of my years of service.  I hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day.  Please take a moment to thank those who serve.

Randomness of the Random Kind

1. What was the last thing about which you procrastinated? ~ Um, getting up this morning.  There are some days i really just want to stay in bed.  I try and allow the bliss of unconsiousness to wash back over me, but then i remember my obligations and responsibilities and i force myself to go ahead and get out of bed.

2. How long does it take you to fall asleep, and do you sleep through the night? ~ That is a multifaceted topic.  There are some days when i am asleep within two minutes of getting horizontal.  Then there are other nights where it can take me an hour or more.  Especially on a night when i might be a slittle tired, but i do not allow myself to just slip off into slumber.  Eventually my body goes into military mode and begins to produce small amounts of adrenaline to keep me alert.  This in turn keeps me awake.  But in either scenario i will usually wake up between two and five times a night.  Most times i can get myself to fall back asleep in a few minutes, but at least once it takes a good 20-45 minutes.  I am not sure why i wake since i do not HAVE to go to the bathroom.  I am not consiously worrying about something.  I try and remember to take these times to go over in my head things that i am thankful for, people to pray for, or i will even read a chapter from the Bible.  I am not always heavenly minded to be honest though, to be completely honest.

3. Which decade would you choose to exemplify your favorite fashion styles? ~ I remember my all time favorite "style" was wearing woodland camoflauge pants, a tee shirt, and an open flannel pattern shirt.  Very comfortable, but not very good at attracting the girls.  I am not a real follower of fashions, or trends.  I could not tell you even when something was in style.  If i am watching a period piece and i do not know in advance what period it is, i could not discern it by what the people are wearing.  I have a hard enough time noticing what the person next to me is wearing on any given day, so... basically i have no clue.

4. What is your personal best dish to feed a crowd? ~ Um... i hope i do not sound sexist... but, that is my Beloved's forté.  If i have to feed more than my family i am more inclind to go to KFC or Sam's or somewhere i can buy prepared meals in bulk.  Preferably a catering service.

5. Are you an impulse shopper? What was the last thing you bought on impulse? ~ I am almost entirely an impulse shopper. 8(  I bought Shadow King by Gav Thorpe in my impulse to learn more about how Elves think.  I have also pre-ordered his book, Path of the Warrior which is due out in late June/early July.

6. What is one wish you have for your own funeral? ~ There is something that has always appealed to me about the Jazz Funeral you typically see in a New Orleans setting.  People are dancing, playing lively music, celebrating life. 

I know people typically experience sadness at the loss of someone in their lives, but i tend to view that as being selfish to some degree.  People are sad because they have lost someone, or something.  But for the Christian it should be a time of celebration.  The Christian who has passed is no longer suffering, no longer feeling pain.  They are now in the presence of God where all their tears are wiped away.  I pray that when it comes time for my own funeral that i have shared my anticipated joy to such an extent that those who come to my funeral will be celebrating with me.

7. If it's true that joy is in found in the simple things in life, what does your joy look like today? ~ Today it is the joy of writing.  I enjoy writing this blog, i enjoy writing stories for my fictious characters.  Sometimes i even enjoy writing at work.  I don't know why i am finding joy in this today... it even caught me by surprise.

8. What is your favorite type of bread? ~ San Franciso Sour Dough Bread.  My mouth is literally watering as i think about it right now.  And there IS a difference between the sour dough breed you can get in the local market versus the stuff you get in San Francisco California.  I say this from personal experience.  The local stuff is good, but the original from the likes of Fisherman's Wharf is so much better.  The crunch, the smell, the taste.  Ok, i have to stop before i impulsively buy a ticket out West...

9. What trait do you fear developing the most? (Laziness, greediness, grumpiness, etc.) ~ Laziness... sadly i have seen this trait creeping in to my daily life.  It has been a life long battle, and i worry about succumbing to it. Laziness, at least for me, is a contributor to other bad traits.  One day, i am lazy and i don't feel like washing the dishes.  The next day i get grumpy because there are no clean glasses to drink out of, etc.  The Bible warns us in several places against "a little slumber, a little folding of the hands" in many places.  We must be diligent.  We must take the extra steps.  It is in the little things that are all too often the first things passed over in laziness, that make the biggest differences.

10. What trait would you like most to develop? ~ Diligence... i would like to develop persistance in following up on the little things i mentioned above.  Not the pursuit of perfection, but the pursuit of doing the things that i can do in order to contribue to the whole.

11. Which room in your house best reflects your personality? Why? ~ Sadly i do not have a room in my own home that reflects my personality.  Why?  Because it would not go with the overall decor of the house.  I desperately need a "man cave" in order to be able to display my retirement present, the canister from my first live fire when i became a Howitzer Section Chief.  I would love a place to build, paint and display my "little army men".  To hang up my Carolina Panthers paraphanalia.  It's not that my Beloved has denied me, it is that i have never exerted myself to stake a claim for my own turf within our home.  Maybe in a decade or so, when the kids are all out of the house and on to college or their own families.

12. How do you maintain balance in your life regarding, work, family, church, other organizations and activities, and blogging? ~ I have a secret weapon that God has graciously provided me.  This awesome gift to me helps me keep my ego and pride in check, it helps me keep straight the events that are coming up, helps me set my priorities in regards to spending and life choices.  This secret weapon is indeed a gift from God.  I am confident that without this gift i would still be working a blue collar job with no real prospects or desire to improve.  I would still be whittling away the precious hours of my life on things that have no real signifigance.  This secret weapon, this incredible gift of God... my Beloved.  The blog is just me rambling and pittering away on trivial things.  8)

Friday the 13th - and other unlucky ramblings

I believe i have mentioned this before, but i don't take stock in a whole lot of superstitions. Breaking a mirror, picking up a tails-up penny, a black cat crossing my path, none of that means anything to me. (I wonder if that is why i am a fan of the Carolina Panthers... now that is a BIG Black Cat!) My mother was VERY superstitious. We once made it halfway back to our car when she walked all the way back to the store front and walked back around a pillar because i refused to say "bread and butter". If that was my only rebellion as a child i probably would not have dropped out of High School. For whatever reason though... i've never researched why people don't like Friday the 13th. DS1 has just completed a Social Studies Fair project where he discusses the Knights Templar. There is a train of thought linking the Friday the 13th superstition to them. Something about them being betrayed and killed or some such thing. I also read somewhere that it may be related to Christ being crucified on a Friday, and when you add in the twelve disciples it equals thirteen. Who knows. In any case it is nonsense. Ultimately the only one that controls our 'fate' is God. We liked to think that we do, i mean Science Fiction has many references (No fate but what we make - Sarah Connor), but even then we do not influence outside sources. While we can put our selves in a position to better, we do not control all of the factors - and to say that just because a cat happened to cross your path you are destined for bad luck... you are more likely to put yourself in a bad position because if a defeatist attitude. I have reached where the Author is talking about Thomas J Jackson's time at VMI in the book, Stonewall Jackson: The Man, the Soldier, the Legend. I am eating this book up. Professor Robertson holds nothing back in filling in the details of the various periods of this man's life, blemishes and all. For example he describes on how fearless he was in battle, but how bad of a teacher he was. I am seeing things that help me understand why he did things like keep subordinates in the dark in regards to his intentions. Why he had a hard time making friends. Maybe it's because i am more sensitive to it, but i think it is possible that the man had Asperger's long before it even had a name. What i am admiring most about the man is his incredible dedication to the things of God. He did not rush to join any one denomination, but read the Bible with a completely open mind and then investigated the churches that he came in contact with to see if they were up to what he was reading about. His faith was very dear and important to him and it affected practically everything he did. As i've mentioned before, he was not a perfect man, nor a perfect Christian. But in regards to being a man of faith, in many ways he is one that can be looked up to. I am also enjoying the fact that he entered into the Army upon graduation from West Point as an Artilleryman. This weekend the Panthers host the Atlanta Falcons, and the Panthers are 2 point underdogs in their own house! Well, to be fair, the panthers have been playing very poorly the first six games this year. The last two i have been very happy with their performance. Very few turnovers, and a great ground game, not to mention the defense has been playing very well. They still haven't been able to get very much production out of the passing game, but that might be because they are a little gun shy of the 13 interceptions Jake has tossed this year. Still - i like Carolina's chances this Sunday. Geaux Panthers!

Ramblings one day at a time

Yesterday, after i already posted for the day... i realized that my ramblings can really get scrambled, and often my random ramblings do not really coincide with each other. Then there are days when i am either too busy, or just out of ideas. This made me think... why am i using up three or more blog thoughts in a single day? Instead try and focus on no more than two thoughts per day, and thus save extra ramblings to post another day. 8) Having said that today will most likely be a cacophony of rambling and random thoughts... so please bear with me. Starting tomorrow i will start new entries and save, but not post them. 8) I felt inclined to check on upcoming concert dates of a few artists and i was wondering why they were all so expensive to go sit in person to listen to them perform. Please don't get me wrong. Music is an art and i completely understand the need of such artists to be able to make a living, etc. so i am not complaining the fact that they charge to go see them, or even that they charge as much as they do. I am merely unsatisfied with the fact that i cannot afford to go see them live. But while i was just skimming over Jethro Tull's page i noticed Ian Anderson had an article up on how and why he picked up the flute in the first place. it's a really good read IMO. For those of you that are interested enough to follow a link, here it is: Ian Anderson's 'How to Play the Flute'. Anyone who 'stumbles' on to this little blog can see my affinity for most things samurai. Those who know me a little better (especially those who know me on facebook) know i really like the Flair application! Recently a friend sent me a new piece of flair (seen on the left here). It of course has been added to my collection. A collection that is now over 450 pieces, 67 of which i have created and shared with other facebookers. The application keeps track of how many 'credits' you have (you cannot add more pieces unless you have credits, which are earned by you sharing with others), but i have no need to worry about running out of those - i have almost 3800 points. Sad, i know. 8) Have any of you all heard of Pandora?!? I LOVE this website. You can stream music to your PC/Laptop/web enabled phone, and customize your very own 'radio station'. Once you create a user account you start by entering in a favorite group. Pandora then scans its own database of music and will play songs not just from the one group you entered, but songs from other groups that have similar play styles. Then, as the music plays you can help it fine tune the station even more by a simple click to tell them if you like, or dislike, and particular song. I've created three stations for whatever mood i might be in and am constantly running out of the free time allotted to me per month. 8) I love bonsai trees. I love how the look. I love the care the person who tends to them takes to not only shape and guide the little trees, but the displays they usually come in too. I think it speaks to a personally desire to shape and guide my own life. Something that is pretty impossible to do completely. In many ways i think humanity's desire to create art - in all forms be it music, painting, drawing, writing, etc. - is directly linked to how God made us. He made us in His own image and He created everything. We share in His ability to love, and create, and redeem. I feel that it is only natural for us to reflect such things, albeit in finite ways. 8) Have any of you ever experienced Deja Vu? I have. Both in the past and just now. I was talking with a friend and it struck me. The words being spoken, the postures, etc. Pretty freaky sometimes. I still remember the first time it happened to me. I was eight and i had just sat down to eat a bowl of Cap'n Crunch cereal and i was reading the back of the box. I remember feeling a little weird but recalling it all very, very clearly. It's both pretty cool, and a little creepy. Of course then there is Vuja De ~ the sensation that you have not experienced it ever before. 8) I have a long term place in my heart for the New Orleans Saints. Maybe it comes from a desire to see the underdog prevail. Even before the Carolina Panthers ever played a game i had a soft spot in my heart for this team. For the past few years they have been pretty consistent in playing well. Especially against the Panthers. Now, i will never root for the Saints when they play the Panthers, but when my cats lose to them it does not sting as bad (like when they lose to the Falcons 8( ). When i was down in Louisiana to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, i made it a point to visit the Superdome. I've never even been to Charlotte and the Panthers' stadium. Drew Brees has been playing very well, and if the Panthers are not able to make a run for the post season i will be cheering on the Saints. Recently i added a lot of flair (yes i'm back on that subject 8) ). I made sure i had one to represent each NFL franchise, and then i added a bunch of pieces of some favorite comic book characters. One has been Kurt Wagner, aka Nightcrawler. I really related to him as a child. He was different, even among his peers within the X-Men. I liked his swashbuckling style, his background of faith - even though i was not a Christian at the time. While i enjoyed several other 'heroes', Kurt was one of my top. Another one i really liked was the Green Arrow. He is not at all like me - i just always liked the Robin Hood story, and he looked the part. 8) I've especially enjoyed his story line once he made Black Canary an honest woman. Two memories of my childhood come to mind. Probably has to do with the season (Halloween). The first one was one i think i nearly gave my mother a heart attack. She was asleep on the couch on Saturday afternoon and for some reason someone had given me a rubber snake as a toy. Now, i knew about my mother's fear of snakes, but i still coiled that thing up right on her chest with the little rubber head inches from her face! Not a nice thing to do to you mother. LOL Years later she still had shivers, but she smiled and we remembered it with smiles... just not at the time. 8) The other was how i went out of my way to annoy my mother when it came to her superstitions. I would walk under ladders deliberately, pick up any penny i saw on the ground. I would always walk on the other side of posts from her, and if i ever saw a black cat i would deliberately walk in such a way that it would have to cross my path. My all time favorite number is 13, and on and on. I am still like that today. For about the past month i have been running on a treadmill (i.e. going nowhere fast) regarding my writing. Writing is therapeutic to me, and most likely my expression of my desire to create things as related above. I've been scribbling notes like made, and i have several ideas of where i will be going in the near future with each of my various threads, i've just not put fingers to keyboard. I've set pretty reasonable goals to move forward with. 100 words a day, and/or 3,000 words a month with the per day number being a guideline. I've often wondered why is it that i seem to enjoy shows that are destined to not last? I really liked Terminator:The Sarah Connor Chronicles. The storyline was getting really good. Canceled after two seasons. The Unit was a really good show. I didn't necessarily like all of the "home front" story lines (especially where one of the wives was having an affair), but i (of course) really liked the mission side of things. Another Sci-Fi one was Space: Above and Beyond. This one was only on one season. Twenty three episodes, but i enjoyed it a lot. The story line was similar to Starship Troopers (not the movie, the book) in regards to the alien aggressors, but instead of following a "grunt" as the main character it is about a bunch of "flyboys" (and girls, if i can use that in a non-derogatory fashion). The last one i will mention here Max Headroom. This one lasted for two seasons, but that's not completely accurate as there were only ever 13 episodes ever aired (14 including one that did not air at the time). Friends of mine have enjoyed series like Firefly. So far i've not seen it. I am too nervous that i will then put myself on a quest to get all of the shows on DVD like i want to for the four i have listed so far. 8) When i was a kid and had just learned how to ride a two-wheeler i used to imagine i was a World War I fighter pilot. I have no idea why really. Jets were always too fast, and i'd not learned about World War II yet. But there was something about the old era Bi-Planes. I especially liked the Fokker DR1 - the German tri-plane. Even before i knew who Manfred Von Richtofen was. He was never a hero of mine, but i grew interested in reading about his flying career. Just like any legend, it is hard to discern the line between truth and embellishment. Another similar character i liked to read about was Carlos Hathcock. Both of these men became supreme in their military careers in time of war. Heroes and Villains in such cases are more often determined by who wins the war than the true character of such men. Have you ever wondered what you would do it you won the Lottery? Those obscenely huge amounts of money? I think about it from time to time (but you have to play to win, so this may never actually happen). First thing - i would find a way to donate a minimum of 10% of it to my local church and other organizations like Habitat for Humanity and The Dave Thomas Foundation. I would pay off the mortgage to my house right after. Before anyone says anything, the tax deduction is not worth getting $0.15 back on the $1. I would already be in a huge tax bracket from the winnings, and the next year i would be right back to being no where near close enough to one of the lines to make it worth it. My dream from there would be to set aside some of the money for my children to go to college and i would like to take my family on one nice vacation. After all of that, and maybe before the vacation part, i would love to establish what i refer to as 'self sustaining giving accounts'. Accounts that i could draw the interest from to give away to friends in need, or needs that i learn about in my local community. I would love to be able to give like that. Year after year. I say all this with confidence because God has not seen t bless me in such a way - and that's probably a good thing. I am not so sure i'd actually follow through with such noble ideals. Maybe someday i will find out...