I told you it was a hit and miss blog...

So we're back off vacation and I'm at home and surprisingly happy about it. Pot of coffee at the ready, I'm back to the grind this morning and wanted to start my day off right. Lot's of coffee, a work-out and a blog entry!

I love visiting relatives and I actually enjoy road trips, but I do get excited rounding the final corner on the street where I live. Ah...home sweet home.

We went to Portales, NM to visit family. You may recognize the name of the little town from my dad's blog, Exile in Portales.

It was great to spend one particularly good night knocking back a few of my favorite beverages with my dad and my wife. We didn't solve world hunger but we sure did have some great discussion. Lots of ranting about the loonies on the left (mostly by my dad and me), discussions about the health and well being of our children, my two younger brothers and pondering retirement options (mine is about 14 years away, while Dad lives that wonderful life!)

It was a late, great night and one of the type that happens much too infrequently these days. As I get older I'm starting to recognize how fast time flies. Time spent with those you love is such a gift...one you can give to yourself...don't put it off, Nike (Just do it!).

Anyway...the coffee has finally had the FULL intended effect...and my new weight bench is calling!

A Public Service Announcement...

As I believe military officers should abstain from public expressions of opinion I will offer up this choice tid-bit I found via Dad's link: to Carnival of the Insanities, as a PSA only:

• James Taranto, on why military people tend to vote Republican:
  Reader Evan Slatis writes: “I wholeheartedly agree with the general. Perhaps if the Democrats had more to say than the military is broken, a bunch of failures destined to lose, and terrorizing Iraqis, they might be more inclined not to be aligned with only one political party.”
  It also might help if the Dems didn’t try to disfranchise servicemen and wage war on military recruitment and ROTC, if they nominated someone who didn’t rise to fame by slandering veterans, and if those of them who have military experience refrained from invoking their own service in opportunistic attempts to silence political disagreement.
  We’re not holding our breath, though.
  -- PoliPundit

Not that I'm publicly disclosing my own simple Capt opinion (see the disclaimer in my second post ever, below...) but the man does strike a chord with one Capt I know very well...

I'm just saying...

So...I love Christmas!

This is the time of year when I enjoy shopping. I don't normally enjoy shopping, but I like giving things to people...and sometimes I buy myself an early Christmas present...like this one:

If you look up the Gold's gym GB 2000 you'll find it listed for about 349...

I found it on sale for 166!!

I also got 300 lbs of weight for only 85$!! Normally you'd be lucky to find weight for about 50 cents a pound. This was just an incredible deal and I've already spent a day re-arranging my basement to accomodate it.

I love early Christmas presents! I tried to give my wife and kids at least one early present each, but the wife said no...making me feel just a little bit selfish...but I've gotten over that. After the first work-out this morning, all guilt left me...

I love this time of year!

So busy...

Things have conspired against me to keep me away...at least for a little while. So for those of you keeping score at home (4 is my count of the number of people I've confirmed having read my little hit and miss blog)...this is day 4 after the last entry. I told you it would be hit and miss. But I've got a plan. Tonight will feature a new post about how much I love Christmas time. Until then...

Hope it's a happy holiday season.

Sunrise in Utah

Sunrise in Utah…

Had an absolutely great morning…

Coffee in hand I went to the living room to check on the serenity of the neighborhood and was immediately awed by the sunrise over the Wasatch. Now for some strange reason it was a particularly stunning morning: clear, cold and breathtakingly beautiful. As I sat on my couch and soaked up the moment it dawned on me (no pun intended…well, ok, maybe a little pun)…

I know why baby colors are what they are…the absolutely beautiful pinks of a perfect sunrise against the spectacular blue sky are the purest of beginnings…just like an infant.

Only took me 39 years to figure that one out…

But I’m a MX officer. I need pictures for just about any concept to take root in my head…

Christmas Party season...

Just back from the first Christmas party of the season. 3 more on tap at this point, and I'm sure they'll be just great, and these parties don't fall into that oh-so-military category lovingly referred to as MANDATORY FUN!

Not sure if this is the same as it is on the outside, but officers and senior non-commissioned officers are expected to attend all organization functions.

Don't get me wrong, I support my organizations,rarely miss a function, and I enjoy doing it. But I'm also an AF geek. I like occaisions that allow me to surround myself with my AF family.

I won't try to convince you that I enjoy every function, but I enjoy most.

My brother is an officer in the Navy and seems to be saddled with more of this type of stuff than I've encountered.

Anyway...

Tonight was a great time, my son enjoyed it, and I had a chance to talk with my classmates about stuff...all in all a very worthwhile evening.

Hoping you have a great holiday season as well!

It's cold and there's snow on the ground...

2 inches of snow this afternoon. My first chance to start up my new snowblower (or is it a snowthrower?).

This is the first time in my life I've ever had a snowblower and I mistakenly thought by purchasing one, I'd ensure a mild winter, especially with respect to the snowfall.

Oops...

One minor note on snowblowers:

Buy one with an electric starter.

I got lucky in this respect as I purchased a used one having never even seriously considered buying one until I arrived in Northern Utah. I didn't even realize just how lucky I was unil I noticed it on the side of my machine. Turn key, prime with gas, push a button! Isn't technology wonderful??

I have to admit I felt like a kid with a new toy...I almost removed the snow from both neighbors sidewalks, but thought better of it...

I finally ended my snow-throwing fun and put it up in the garage. There's another storm coming this weekend...

I hope!

It is that time of year again...

So today was just a little bit of a waste. The tree is only half-way up. The Christmas lights are still in the garage (although I have purchased the requisite clips, so as not to damage the rental house), and my Christmas shopping is far from over. My to-do list is a page long and the end is nowhere in sight. My normally hyperactive, tree up before Thanksgiving, wife is less energetic this year, though it isn't her fault, and I should be picking up the slack...and I haven't.

So the answer to my current situation can only be...

COFFEE!!

I'm that guy. No coffee in the morning and I don't function. At all. I'm sure it's hereditary as my father drinks a full pot every morning. My habit is about 1/2 to 3/4 of a pot each day, but more often lately I've been having a large cuppa joe from one of the local shops...

It wasn't always this way...

In the middle of Gulf War I, it became my job to ensure the leadership chain above me (which, at that time, was everybody), was kept in coffee. We worked 12 hour shifts and had one day off every 6-7 days after working the first 45 days in country straight. About 10 days after arriving we started to run low on the shop's supply of coffee. I was sent to scavenge and/or "procure" using any tactics required, a suitable supply. After all, everyone knows the military runs on three things: Gas, bombs or bullets, and coffee!

After making friends with a supply troop I secured a reliable source of the "elixir of life" as I was fond of calling it back in the day, and secured myself an AF medal for contributing greatly to the war effort. My brother, if he ever happens to read this will probably think I was serious...at least for a second.

Time for a tangent...

You see, the AF is somewhat freer with the awarding of pretty colored ribbons for the troops than the Navy. My brother loves to rant about how we get ribbons for proper performance of a bowel movement in basic training. I've told him it wasn't quite that easy...I actually had to fill out a form to join the "Ribbon of the Month Club" and somehow I let my membership lapse...
Honestly, we do award a lot of ribbons. I personally have almost twice the number of ribbons my father received after his 21+ years of dedicated service. Most of them are of the right place at the right time variety. Not to say I haven't earned a few of those, I have, but the more they are given, the less they mean. Just my silly capt opinion.

Back to the original idea...

I'm behind the power curve for this holiday season and it is time for me to get off my ass and get to work.

So no more blogging tonight!

By the way...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I believe in saying Merry Christmas as well as Happy Holidays, Season's Greetings, etc. Apparently there are those that don't...more's the pity...

This is my son Sean with me and the STANLEY CUP!!
How cool is that? We had to wait in line for over an hour, miss the majority of the first and second periods of the game...and didn't mind a bit! Shortly after this picture was taken, Sean hugged the Cup tightly and said "I don't want to leave you!"

The making of a hockey fan...

A little about myself...

As you've probably figured out by now I'm a Captain in the US Air Force. This blog is completely written from my silly capt perspective and should no way be interpreted as anything remotely resembling an official USAF point of view.

Whew!...now that the disclaimer's in place...

I love my job. I'm an aircraft maintenance officer. If you know anything about the AF you know that means I'm responsible for making airplanes fit to fly. I love working long hours with the dedicated young men and women of our great nation to ensure our ability to defend our national interests. I love being part of an organization that prides itself on Integrity, Service and Excellence. In short, I, like the overwhelming majority of those in uniform, am a patriotic guy!

I don't personally perform maintenance (MX for short) anymore, but I used to, back when I worked for a living as an avionics sensor systems technician. My particular job as a young enlisted troop was to fix target designation systems. The same systems you saw video from in Desert Storm (yes, I was there) and our latest conflicts in southwest asia and other various garden spots across the globe (yes, I've been to some of those too). After working in that career field for over 10 years I decided to cross over to the officer corps. I did it partly for my family (officers make more money than enlisted troops), but mostly I did it because of my desire to try and make my own contribution to our national defense. Don't think for a second that means I wasn't already doing that as a young Staff Sergeant (SSgt for short). I was. I crossed over because of my desire to impact the mission and our AF people in a bigger way and sooner.

A young SSgt has a lot of responsibility in our AF, but a young Lieutenant (Lt for short) has even more (especially in MX). As an officer you are immediately thrust into a position of leadership and responsibility. Again, don't misunderstand, don't equate the position of leadership and responsibility with the ability to lead or be responsible. I know a lot of SSgts with more natural leadership abilities than some Lts...but I digress...

I've been a MX officer for over 5 years now and haven't grown the least bit tired of it. I've been assigned to flying training units, operational flying units and am currently assigned to an Air Logistics Center focused on supporting entire weapons systems across the AF.

This is a particularly interesting tour as I'm not directly responsible for making aircraft fly, but helping to ensure long-term sustainment.

This assignment also has great hours (family time!), a prime location (a nice change from the desert of NM!) and the opportunity to learn the wholesale logistics side of our business.

So...that's my professional life...and all I'm going to write for now.

Capt B

Let's get this started...