Just came from my class... we worked our way through 1 & 2 Corinthians tonight, while we talked about other things like scripture translations, sanctification again (as the Corinthian Church was struggling with sin and someone in class didn't understand how they could be saved), the importance and sacredness of communion (at a level I hadn't considered before), and like every week, we talked about how the spiritual and material realms combine in Christ as he is Heaven come to Earth. I need to know scripture more... My head is swimming, thinking of all the things I want to do more. There needs to be a real effort made on my part to work at knowing the Bible better. That way I'll get to know Christ better; and what could be better?
I don't know how recently this was adopted, but the current Sailor's Creed (that I memorized on Sunday - on orders) is:
I am a United States Sailor.
I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America and I will obey the orders of those appointed over me.
I represent the fighting spirit of the Navy and those who have gone before me to defend democracy and freedom around the world.
I am proud to serve my country's Navy combat team
with Honor, Courage and Commitment.
I am committed to excellence and the fair treatment of all.
Now I'm really goin' swimmin'.
Jp
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Another Day or Two
Sunday was so relaxing, it was quite an odd feeling. I woke up around 10, went to late service, got back around 12:45, had lunch with the family, sat down and talked, ate a big piece of both the Apple and Pumpkin pies that Mom made (YUM!), took a huge nap, woke up around 7:30 as the family was leaving, watched the end of the NY Giants & Yankee's games with Dad, then watched "The Naked Spur" (Jimmy Stewart - 1953) that I had never seen before (that Meg owns) with Mom & Dad. I had a bit of trouble with sleeping since I had overslept in my nap, but nothing much to write about.
Yesterday was a crazy Monday. I spent the entire morning wishing it was September, next year. People were freaking out about my data books that are required to be sent to our customer this week, and that was pretty much it. Things calmed down by the afternoon, but by then I was really close to sleeping with my head on my desk. It was generally a hard day. Going home was a great relief. We had leftovers for dinner and watched the next installment of Foyle's War. But the greatest encouragement was talking to my friend who is going to school in Florida. She had just finished her mid-terms and wanted to catch up... we hadn't talked since May! It was only a brief 45 minute conversation, but it was just what we needed. Lots of things had happened since then! :) No problem sleeping last night! But it sure was cold... 41 degrees outside this morning. It took effort and a half to get out of bed.
Jp
Yesterday was a crazy Monday. I spent the entire morning wishing it was September, next year. People were freaking out about my data books that are required to be sent to our customer this week, and that was pretty much it. Things calmed down by the afternoon, but by then I was really close to sleeping with my head on my desk. It was generally a hard day. Going home was a great relief. We had leftovers for dinner and watched the next installment of Foyle's War. But the greatest encouragement was talking to my friend who is going to school in Florida. She had just finished her mid-terms and wanted to catch up... we hadn't talked since May! It was only a brief 45 minute conversation, but it was just what we needed. Lots of things had happened since then! :) No problem sleeping last night! But it sure was cold... 41 degrees outside this morning. It took effort and a half to get out of bed.
Jp
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Yay!
This is Seaman Recruit Payne reporting... for the first time.
My height was off one inch, so I was under the maximum limit by the three pounds I lost this week. How glad I am that today is over!
Yesterday at the hotel I had lots of time to myself. They said I'd have a roommate, but she never showed up. I read a lot and watched odd things on TV, like the Arts channel. It was pleasant to close my eyes listening to a European orchestra, and just rest on the double bed. I finished my quick read through the Gospel of John and the letter of Ephesians and started Bridge to Terabithia. For dinner, Uncle Sam treated me to the hotel restaurant, where I feasted on tender, grilled chicken with rice and veggies and a small cup of delicious clam chowder. As I walked to dinner, I paused by the third-floor windows to watch the thousands of little birds gallivanting about outside against a brilliant sunset over the Seatac Airport (I could see the airplanes from my room).
I was able to watch Monk, and I was very pleased with the episode... especially that they picked it up right where they left it off five years ago... very pleased. Thanks! Also, a female in the room next to me, that was joining the Marines, watched it with me. That was also nice, as I was feeling rather alone all of a sudden, and realized how I missed those who were familiar to me.
This morning I fell asleep after my alarm when off, and I never heard a snooze... I did hear a wake-up phone call at 4:45 though, and my heart went from 0 to 60, figuratively speaking, when I thought for a second that I was late (bus left at 5:30). I had a dash of eggs and water for breakfast, as I thought I was right on the weight limit. I needn't have worried! :)
At the processing station, we first had a long medical briefing, then a breath test (for drugs? - they were quite worried about drugs), then an interview with a doctor (going over all those things I already said "no" to on the forms), then a blood pressure, blood draw, vision test, hearing test, urinalysis test, then the dreaded height, weight & movement test. We arrived at 6am and we were done with this part by 11am. Lunch felt really good! I had a burger with Swiss cheese!
The rest of the day (my recruiter and I left at 2pm) was taken up with paperwork and electronic fingerprinting. The boss of the Navy office was a nice lady who knew my grad assistant conductor from the Husky Band from being stationed with her... in the Navy Band... small world! At this point, I can leave the program without a discharge... but I did raise my right hand. I am set to join as an Electronics Technician for 6 years as an E-4 if I graduate from my school after boot. I can still change my mind on the job up to about a month before I go in September of next year. Ooh-rah! :) Oh, dear.
Jp
My height was off one inch, so I was under the maximum limit by the three pounds I lost this week. How glad I am that today is over!
Yesterday at the hotel I had lots of time to myself. They said I'd have a roommate, but she never showed up. I read a lot and watched odd things on TV, like the Arts channel. It was pleasant to close my eyes listening to a European orchestra, and just rest on the double bed. I finished my quick read through the Gospel of John and the letter of Ephesians and started Bridge to Terabithia. For dinner, Uncle Sam treated me to the hotel restaurant, where I feasted on tender, grilled chicken with rice and veggies and a small cup of delicious clam chowder. As I walked to dinner, I paused by the third-floor windows to watch the thousands of little birds gallivanting about outside against a brilliant sunset over the Seatac Airport (I could see the airplanes from my room).
I was able to watch Monk, and I was very pleased with the episode... especially that they picked it up right where they left it off five years ago... very pleased. Thanks! Also, a female in the room next to me, that was joining the Marines, watched it with me. That was also nice, as I was feeling rather alone all of a sudden, and realized how I missed those who were familiar to me.
This morning I fell asleep after my alarm when off, and I never heard a snooze... I did hear a wake-up phone call at 4:45 though, and my heart went from 0 to 60, figuratively speaking, when I thought for a second that I was late (bus left at 5:30). I had a dash of eggs and water for breakfast, as I thought I was right on the weight limit. I needn't have worried! :)
At the processing station, we first had a long medical briefing, then a breath test (for drugs? - they were quite worried about drugs), then an interview with a doctor (going over all those things I already said "no" to on the forms), then a blood pressure, blood draw, vision test, hearing test, urinalysis test, then the dreaded height, weight & movement test. We arrived at 6am and we were done with this part by 11am. Lunch felt really good! I had a burger with Swiss cheese!
The rest of the day (my recruiter and I left at 2pm) was taken up with paperwork and electronic fingerprinting. The boss of the Navy office was a nice lady who knew my grad assistant conductor from the Husky Band from being stationed with her... in the Navy Band... small world! At this point, I can leave the program without a discharge... but I did raise my right hand. I am set to join as an Electronics Technician for 6 years as an E-4 if I graduate from my school after boot. I can still change my mind on the job up to about a month before I go in September of next year. Ooh-rah! :) Oh, dear.
Jp
Friday, October 23, 2009
Until We Meet Again
I think this is the only time today I get access to a computer... right after work today, I'm heading over to my recruiter's and then we go on to Seattle where I stay the night. It'll be an adventure though, as I've never stayed overnight in downtown before :) I hope I'll get to see Monk on a hotel TV! That's something to look forward to at least. I'm bringing about four small books with me for tonight's stay and tomorrow morning's Physical. I'm not sure when I get done on Saturday, but I'll make sure to post yay or nay right away.
This week has been good. I was a little disheartened early on about my weight, so I spent a lot of time doing cardio workouts: there was Monday's run in the morning, and Wednesday I did Jazzercise, Thursday I did another mile in the morning as well as an eight-mile bike ride after work. I did Jazzercize again today and I've been keeping the meals to a minimum. For instance, I just had cucumber for breakfast. We'll see how it goes tomorrow!
Tuesday's class interfered with my workouts, but it was good for my heart in a different way :) We talked a lot about theology... in fact, some people who came early had asked questions about salvation, so when I arrived, the teacher was already teaching. The overview is sort of a backdrop as we talk about important doctrine, such as justification, sanctification and glorification. Gosh, I have read Romans lots of times, but I never stopped and thought about the implications of these things and what they specifically mean. Good to do! Good to be able to describe what it is you are reading! Duh!
On Netflix this week we had the first disc of 'Reilly: Ace of Spies' and I enjoyed it. Dude, that guy gets himself in sticky situations! My parents remember watching this on TV back when I was very little, so they are enjoying watching some of it for the first time. When we started the first one, I was surprised that it was set in 1901... not much done about that time period! So far it's covered oil in Russia, the Russo-Japanese War and the naval arms race with Germany in 1905... neat-o!
So, until Saturday afternoon, adieu! And although I won't be able to go to homecoming... Go Huskies!
Jp
This week has been good. I was a little disheartened early on about my weight, so I spent a lot of time doing cardio workouts: there was Monday's run in the morning, and Wednesday I did Jazzercise, Thursday I did another mile in the morning as well as an eight-mile bike ride after work. I did Jazzercize again today and I've been keeping the meals to a minimum. For instance, I just had cucumber for breakfast. We'll see how it goes tomorrow!
Tuesday's class interfered with my workouts, but it was good for my heart in a different way :) We talked a lot about theology... in fact, some people who came early had asked questions about salvation, so when I arrived, the teacher was already teaching. The overview is sort of a backdrop as we talk about important doctrine, such as justification, sanctification and glorification. Gosh, I have read Romans lots of times, but I never stopped and thought about the implications of these things and what they specifically mean. Good to do! Good to be able to describe what it is you are reading! Duh!
On Netflix this week we had the first disc of 'Reilly: Ace of Spies' and I enjoyed it. Dude, that guy gets himself in sticky situations! My parents remember watching this on TV back when I was very little, so they are enjoying watching some of it for the first time. When we started the first one, I was surprised that it was set in 1901... not much done about that time period! So far it's covered oil in Russia, the Russo-Japanese War and the naval arms race with Germany in 1905... neat-o!
So, until Saturday afternoon, adieu! And although I won't be able to go to homecoming... Go Huskies!
Jp
Monday, October 19, 2009
In the Good 'ol Fall
Well, 5 AM came and went. I woke up briefly to hear the end of my alarm going off... and then I returned to slumber. The point is to work out every day this week... so when I woke up at 5:56 again (this time really awake), I realized that I had missed my first shot at Jazzercise. Wasn't too surprised though, as I had a long, busy day yesterday. So to make up for it, I got up and out and ran twice around our block for another mile run. This time I wasn't wasted (out of breath) at the end and I did it in roughly nine minutes.
Today was the first day I went to work when it was still dark out. :( Soon the light will leave before I'm done. That's the one thing I don't especially look forward to this time of year... feeling like I'm some sort of strange creature that rises at sunset and sleeps at dawn. :) Work was work. Ho-Hum. At least I didn't have my normal post-Sunday-trip letdown. I suppose it did help that we went out to lunch at our favorite place... so between the boat-loads of work, I had a really lovely lunch: shrimp tacos and a simply heavenly seafood bisque. Yes, that helped the day a lot.
And just finished: a Facebook Album from Puget Sound and from 132nd Square Park, full of Fall.
Jp
Today was the first day I went to work when it was still dark out. :( Soon the light will leave before I'm done. That's the one thing I don't especially look forward to this time of year... feeling like I'm some sort of strange creature that rises at sunset and sleeps at dawn. :) Work was work. Ho-Hum. At least I didn't have my normal post-Sunday-trip letdown. I suppose it did help that we went out to lunch at our favorite place... so between the boat-loads of work, I had a really lovely lunch: shrimp tacos and a simply heavenly seafood bisque. Yes, that helped the day a lot.
And just finished: a Facebook Album from Puget Sound and from 132nd Square Park, full of Fall.
Jp
To Be More Specific
There are a couple things I didn't have the patience or memory to mention last night... Another name for Puget Sound yesterday could have been the Enormous Lake of Shining Waters. We didn't have direct sunlight right away, but for at least 5 out of the 6+ hours the sun came out and blinded us on our port side, causing the waves to sparkle as far as you could see... on that note, if it wasn't for the tops of the Olympic mountains floating above a massive cloud-bank over the peninsula, you could think that you were in the middle of the ocean, the water spread out so far.
And what I forgot to mention about the service in Ballard, is that the overall message talking about the attributes of God was for us not to worry about our lives. He used Mary's attitude (vs. 46-55) about God during a tough circumstance to show that if we have the same attitude about him we shouldn't worry either, because we know that God will take care of us as he has always done. What a perfect time for me to be reminded of this as I go into a weekend that is likely to change the course of my life.
A little song I learned as a kid:
"Cheer up, ye saints of God, there's nothing to worry about, nothing to make you feel afraid, nothing to make you doubt. Remember Jesus never fails, so why not trust him and shout? You'll be sorry you worried at all tomorrow morning." :)
Jp
And what I forgot to mention about the service in Ballard, is that the overall message talking about the attributes of God was for us not to worry about our lives. He used Mary's attitude (vs. 46-55) about God during a tough circumstance to show that if we have the same attitude about him we shouldn't worry either, because we know that God will take care of us as he has always done. What a perfect time for me to be reminded of this as I go into a weekend that is likely to change the course of my life.
A little song I learned as a kid:
"Cheer up, ye saints of God, there's nothing to worry about, nothing to make you feel afraid, nothing to make you doubt. Remember Jesus never fails, so why not trust him and shout? You'll be sorry you worried at all tomorrow morning." :)
Jp
Sunday, October 18, 2009
A Modern Whaling Story
All of a sudden, my friend that went with me on the Aquarium Adventure to Oregon in March, invited me to go whale watching out on the Puget Sound today. Now yesterday was pelting rain for most of the daylight hours, but all of a sudden, today was perfect skies and calm out on the Sound! A perfect day for a boat ride!
I woke up a little late, but made it out the door and to her house in Bothell fast enough (say, 15 minutes), lol, and we absolutely cruised up I-5 all the way to Anacortes, WA, where we sailed with Island Adventure Tours... and ended up going out 100 miles into the Straight of Juan de Fuca (between Port Angeles and Victoria, BC) where we feasted our eyes on a real, live cousin of George and Gracie. :) Yes, a Humpback whale! It dove at least three times while we were watching from a respectful distance and showed us his tail! The last time he came up before we had to head for shore, he rose not even 40 yds from the boat! So cool! And on the way out to this spot, we saw a Steller sea lion feeding on fish, two bald eagles, several harbor seals and a pair of harbor porpoises along with hundreds of sea birds...
...all I can say is I have a lot of picture processing to do... tomorrow... that, and I didn't need a life jacket (because there were railings all around the boat up to my waist :)
On the way home, we went to my friend's church in Ballard (north Seattle), where the pastor taught about God's attributes using Mary's song in the first part of Luke. Very nice indeed! I really like that church.
Unfortunately, it's 11 pm, it's 11 pm, it's barely enough time to sleep before 5 am... and I think I'm still swaying from the rocking of the boat... or is that... go to sleep, go to sleep... zzzzz
Night, night.
Jp
I woke up a little late, but made it out the door and to her house in Bothell fast enough (say, 15 minutes), lol, and we absolutely cruised up I-5 all the way to Anacortes, WA, where we sailed with Island Adventure Tours... and ended up going out 100 miles into the Straight of Juan de Fuca (between Port Angeles and Victoria, BC) where we feasted our eyes on a real, live cousin of George and Gracie. :) Yes, a Humpback whale! It dove at least three times while we were watching from a respectful distance and showed us his tail! The last time he came up before we had to head for shore, he rose not even 40 yds from the boat! So cool! And on the way out to this spot, we saw a Steller sea lion feeding on fish, two bald eagles, several harbor seals and a pair of harbor porpoises along with hundreds of sea birds...
...all I can say is I have a lot of picture processing to do... tomorrow... that, and I didn't need a life jacket (because there were railings all around the boat up to my waist :)
On the way home, we went to my friend's church in Ballard (north Seattle), where the pastor taught about God's attributes using Mary's song in the first part of Luke. Very nice indeed! I really like that church.
Unfortunately, it's 11 pm, it's 11 pm, it's barely enough time to sleep before 5 am... and I think I'm still swaying from the rocking of the boat... or is that... go to sleep, go to sleep... zzzzz
Night, night.
Jp
Saturday, October 17, 2009
And Now...
This morning started off quick; I went to Jazzercise for the first time this week... and then got some new athletic shoes and gas for the car on the way home. But after breakfast at home, I was pretty uninspired to do anything else, but after doing a little more cleaning I somehow managed to psych myself up for a mile run outside (after our torrential downpour ended). I really don't like running! It took my breath away...
For fun, I drove down to 132nd square and took pictures of fall foliage for about an hour or so. After that I was much happier with the day! It was beautiful blue skies after our downpour, so the colors were very vivid.
We had a makeshift dinner... and Mom made a little more veggie soup, which was really good because it was fresh! This might help me lose whatever I can before next Saturday.
Monk was good these last two weeks! And next week is the long-awaited return of Sharona! And I must spend it in a hotel in Seattle, before the long-awaited physical. :( At least hotels have TV's...
Jp
For fun, I drove down to 132nd square and took pictures of fall foliage for about an hour or so. After that I was much happier with the day! It was beautiful blue skies after our downpour, so the colors were very vivid.
We had a makeshift dinner... and Mom made a little more veggie soup, which was really good because it was fresh! This might help me lose whatever I can before next Saturday.
Monk was good these last two weeks! And next week is the long-awaited return of Sharona! And I must spend it in a hotel in Seattle, before the long-awaited physical. :( At least hotels have TV's...
Jp
Friday, October 16, 2009
And Again, Since Monday
Well, it finally decided to start steadily raining. I even got caught in it as I went to pick up data books in the next building this morning. But I could see bright sunshine over the Cascades... a beautiful sight despite the rain (which I don't mind too much in the first place). And now we're completely engulfed in dull, heavy clouds.
Not much has gone on this week. We watched a wonderful episode of Foyle's War on Monday night... a good story with lots of character development.
The story of this week is really just feeling frustrated and frayed at work. Ever since Monday afternoon I've had piles of work to do in all my departments. I came into work on Thursday morning after dreaming about chasing down traveling papers while trying to catch a plane and found that I couldn't find an MO that one of the Quality Engineers was hot for. Spent about an hour or more looking all over the place and asking a few people before my boss found it on my desk in my error pile, under a tool drawing. Sigh.
And with my check-in with my recruiter this afternoon, I found out that my net weight loss from two weeks ago is only 2 pounds... and I found out in order to do Electrical Tech, you need to sign for 6 years. Sigh... Next Saturday is the Physical, where I try to enter the Delayed Entry Program. I will talk to a detailer about my options as far as jobs go if I pass (which I'm pretty sure I will). I think I'll not worry about this now.
You should have heard the birds when I got home from work! Everywhere you looked there was a couple of them flying around. The whole world was full of singing... in the rain. :) I love all those little birdies.
Jp
Not much has gone on this week. We watched a wonderful episode of Foyle's War on Monday night... a good story with lots of character development.
The story of this week is really just feeling frustrated and frayed at work. Ever since Monday afternoon I've had piles of work to do in all my departments. I came into work on Thursday morning after dreaming about chasing down traveling papers while trying to catch a plane and found that I couldn't find an MO that one of the Quality Engineers was hot for. Spent about an hour or more looking all over the place and asking a few people before my boss found it on my desk in my error pile, under a tool drawing. Sigh.
And with my check-in with my recruiter this afternoon, I found out that my net weight loss from two weeks ago is only 2 pounds... and I found out in order to do Electrical Tech, you need to sign for 6 years. Sigh... Next Saturday is the Physical, where I try to enter the Delayed Entry Program. I will talk to a detailer about my options as far as jobs go if I pass (which I'm pretty sure I will). I think I'll not worry about this now.
You should have heard the birds when I got home from work! Everywhere you looked there was a couple of them flying around. The whole world was full of singing... in the rain. :) I love all those little birdies.
Jp
Monday, October 12, 2009
Hello Again
And Happy Columbus Day!
Well, this was a rather unusual weekend.
Friday after work (and after lunch - which was steak! boy did that taste good!) I went and got my bike pumped up (and bought a bike pump - so I don't have to do this again) at a bike shop in Redmond. Previously I only had my little hand pump, and that really doesn't work on a regular basis. It's really only supposed to be for emergencies. So sometime soon I can go biking again! Yay!
Just a block away from the bike shop is a neat little store that I hadn't been to in a long time... McDonald's Books. I was really there only to poke around and look, but I ended up taking a couple paperbacks home with me. :)
But the odd part was this conference that my parents are involved with. It has to do with promoting Creation science... it's something that I believe in and agree with, but also something I am not all that interested in. I prefer history and philosophy to geology and biology. My parents are science folks though. They like that sort of thing. I remember once doing science in grade school and getting frustrated at studying "how the weather works" again. I remember I told my Dad, "I understand how clouds are made... but why are there clouds?" It must have been fun to raise me.
After helping Mom set up the snacks she brought, I raced outside to go look at the glorious sunset. I drove a ways in order to see if I could get a glimpse of Puget Sound (this was near Everett). After making a few turns I landed in a pretty swank neighborhood and gasped as I saw the Sound. It was all lit up in rosy pink from the magnificent reflection from the acres of layered clouds of the same color. The dark purple Olympic mountains were jagged against the bright orange sky. I stayed there for 15 minutes watching as the colors quickly faded to lighter pinks and yellows before they disappeared all together.
SATURDAY, October 10:
After sleeping in a good deal, I spent the day at home all alone. I thought of cleaning the house, but I never did get further than cleaning out my own room. :) Got rid of some stuff I never use, moved stuff around so it's more accessible, and most importantly, vacuumed. I almost ran out of time to eat before heading to the U for the football game, but I did get a bowl of soup down along with some cut up portions of steak leftover from Friday - veggie soup is greatly improved with steak - and I made it there just in time for the first of the four places we play for fans before the game. The game itself started badly, quickly recovered well, then went to pieces in the third quarter and then miraculously finished with a totally unexpected win. From my position in the west end zone seating I could see the whole stadium jumping wildly in ripples down the rows, accompanied by the deafening roar from all sides. I've seen games like this one was turning out to be for six years now. We knew the drill... another humiliating, deflating defeat. But all of a sudden, we scored and then we intercepted; and we won. What?! What a night.
SUNDAY, October 11: "One Weed Too Many"
Now this was really odd... I set my alarm and got up early to go with my parents and the Fun Couple down to our friend's little visitor center/museum down by Mt. St. Helens. They are an elderly couple, and they needed some gardening help. Meg was busy with grading homework, so Jason and I had a lot of time to talk as we pulled up weeds. We did this pretty much all afternoon with a break for lunch (I brought the last of the soup!) and again for dinner... it was then that I finally gave up the diet for lack of soup. I slept off and on all the way back home (2+ hours) and I think I must have slept funny on my right wrist... it was either that or the weeding or both that caused my wrist to still hurt a little today.
Monday, Today:
Busy, busy, busy at work, and generally pretty happy. I dreamt about Remember WENN last night (for no particular reason), about Betty telling Celia about Victor during the 3rd season, and I spent the morning being very, very glad that I am friends with you folks that read this. I feel fortunate and blessed to know you.
Jp
Well, this was a rather unusual weekend.
Friday after work (and after lunch - which was steak! boy did that taste good!) I went and got my bike pumped up (and bought a bike pump - so I don't have to do this again) at a bike shop in Redmond. Previously I only had my little hand pump, and that really doesn't work on a regular basis. It's really only supposed to be for emergencies. So sometime soon I can go biking again! Yay!
Just a block away from the bike shop is a neat little store that I hadn't been to in a long time... McDonald's Books. I was really there only to poke around and look, but I ended up taking a couple paperbacks home with me. :)
But the odd part was this conference that my parents are involved with. It has to do with promoting Creation science... it's something that I believe in and agree with, but also something I am not all that interested in. I prefer history and philosophy to geology and biology. My parents are science folks though. They like that sort of thing. I remember once doing science in grade school and getting frustrated at studying "how the weather works" again. I remember I told my Dad, "I understand how clouds are made... but why are there clouds?" It must have been fun to raise me.
After helping Mom set up the snacks she brought, I raced outside to go look at the glorious sunset. I drove a ways in order to see if I could get a glimpse of Puget Sound (this was near Everett). After making a few turns I landed in a pretty swank neighborhood and gasped as I saw the Sound. It was all lit up in rosy pink from the magnificent reflection from the acres of layered clouds of the same color. The dark purple Olympic mountains were jagged against the bright orange sky. I stayed there for 15 minutes watching as the colors quickly faded to lighter pinks and yellows before they disappeared all together.
SATURDAY, October 10:
After sleeping in a good deal, I spent the day at home all alone. I thought of cleaning the house, but I never did get further than cleaning out my own room. :) Got rid of some stuff I never use, moved stuff around so it's more accessible, and most importantly, vacuumed. I almost ran out of time to eat before heading to the U for the football game, but I did get a bowl of soup down along with some cut up portions of steak leftover from Friday - veggie soup is greatly improved with steak - and I made it there just in time for the first of the four places we play for fans before the game. The game itself started badly, quickly recovered well, then went to pieces in the third quarter and then miraculously finished with a totally unexpected win. From my position in the west end zone seating I could see the whole stadium jumping wildly in ripples down the rows, accompanied by the deafening roar from all sides. I've seen games like this one was turning out to be for six years now. We knew the drill... another humiliating, deflating defeat. But all of a sudden, we scored and then we intercepted; and we won. What?! What a night.
SUNDAY, October 11: "One Weed Too Many"
Now this was really odd... I set my alarm and got up early to go with my parents and the Fun Couple down to our friend's little visitor center/museum down by Mt. St. Helens. They are an elderly couple, and they needed some gardening help. Meg was busy with grading homework, so Jason and I had a lot of time to talk as we pulled up weeds. We did this pretty much all afternoon with a break for lunch (I brought the last of the soup!) and again for dinner... it was then that I finally gave up the diet for lack of soup. I slept off and on all the way back home (2+ hours) and I think I must have slept funny on my right wrist... it was either that or the weeding or both that caused my wrist to still hurt a little today.
Monday, Today:
Busy, busy, busy at work, and generally pretty happy. I dreamt about Remember WENN last night (for no particular reason), about Betty telling Celia about Victor during the 3rd season, and I spent the morning being very, very glad that I am friends with you folks that read this. I feel fortunate and blessed to know you.
Jp
Friday, October 9, 2009
Overboard
Here I am catching up with the week again... I never do post at night.
Both Wednesday night and Thursday night I read chapters in the B-J's manual... all about ship nomenclature, design, types, functions and personnel assignments. And ever since Monday, I've started this diet that my brother used before he went in the Marines. So far it's just veggies (mostly made into a very healthy soup - that needs lots of spices) and fruits, besides Tuesday night with a baked potato and tonight and tomorrow, where it finally allows for beef. Last night after going through half of my bowl of soup and a bit of brussel sprouts, zucchini and avocado, I just stared at my bowl and put it in the fridge for today. Yikes! That's a lot of veggies. I've been doing mostly alright though because I only have one bowl at meals, and I don't eat breakfast. Others I know who have done this eat way too much of that soup! Goodness, it's been hard! My coworkers just got out my favorite fall candy on Monday... candy corn. And mom has been baking cookies all week long for the conference tonight and tomorrow. It's a darned good thing I can feel the results. I weighed myself on our extremely unreliable scale, and it looks like I've already lost 5 lbs. - we'll see how it goes. I'm feeling much thinner, that's for sure.
But along with all this, I have my doubts about the future. How dumb is it to quit your job in the middle of a recession? I have zero guarantees of finding one after the service, but a lot of the point of all this is to use the GI bill for either a master's degree in library science or (how 'bout this for random?) a band instrument repair tech. school. Maybe both? They pay for school and living costs for several years, and both of these are short programs. Okay, I'm going to stop second-guessing myself, trust in the Lord for all providence, serve the country and change my profession. Enough with being scared!
This was all running through my mind as I got up and did Jazzercise this morning and then came home and took a shower before work. I snacked on leftover zucchini for a post-workout snack on the way here. LOL
Wow, (rumble) I'm hungry!
Jp
Both Wednesday night and Thursday night I read chapters in the B-J's manual... all about ship nomenclature, design, types, functions and personnel assignments. And ever since Monday, I've started this diet that my brother used before he went in the Marines. So far it's just veggies (mostly made into a very healthy soup - that needs lots of spices) and fruits, besides Tuesday night with a baked potato and tonight and tomorrow, where it finally allows for beef. Last night after going through half of my bowl of soup and a bit of brussel sprouts, zucchini and avocado, I just stared at my bowl and put it in the fridge for today. Yikes! That's a lot of veggies. I've been doing mostly alright though because I only have one bowl at meals, and I don't eat breakfast. Others I know who have done this eat way too much of that soup! Goodness, it's been hard! My coworkers just got out my favorite fall candy on Monday... candy corn. And mom has been baking cookies all week long for the conference tonight and tomorrow. It's a darned good thing I can feel the results. I weighed myself on our extremely unreliable scale, and it looks like I've already lost 5 lbs. - we'll see how it goes. I'm feeling much thinner, that's for sure.
But along with all this, I have my doubts about the future. How dumb is it to quit your job in the middle of a recession? I have zero guarantees of finding one after the service, but a lot of the point of all this is to use the GI bill for either a master's degree in library science or (how 'bout this for random?) a band instrument repair tech. school. Maybe both? They pay for school and living costs for several years, and both of these are short programs. Okay, I'm going to stop second-guessing myself, trust in the Lord for all providence, serve the country and change my profession. Enough with being scared!
This was all running through my mind as I got up and did Jazzercise this morning and then came home and took a shower before work. I snacked on leftover zucchini for a post-workout snack on the way here. LOL
Wow, (rumble) I'm hungry!
Jp
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Back To School
Last night I went to the first session of a seven-week class that my church is offering on a "Survey of the New Testament". I couldn't bear to have an October where I wasn't studying anything... :) Anyway, I've never been taught about any part of the Bible like this, and I thought I might give it a try. We did an introduction last night, a quick overview covering the history, writing style, and the authors of the New Testament. We also talked about theories in general, like Sola Scriptura and how that differs from the Catholic Church and how most of the New Testament was written to answer all sorts of questions about other religious thought that crept into the early church at the time, as it still does today.
In the following weeks, we are going to go through about 4 books each session, looking at the author, time it was written, how and why it was written, the basic message of it, and so on. I'm really looking forward to it. It's only on Tuesdays until the middle of November, so it isn't even a huge commitment. The pastor who is teaching it isn't from our church, but he is very knowledgeable, and very easy to listen to. Our own pastor is sitting in on the class as well; I think they are good friends. The class only has about twenty people in it, and of course, I am the only young person. I am beginning to think that I don't share much of anything in common with people my own age.
[forgot to mention... on the way to the class at church, a bald eagle flew right over my car (coming right at me) as I was stuck in I-405 North traffic! Gosh, that was neat!]
On Monday night after dinner, I sat down and watched the first episode of "The National Parks" online. I really enjoyed it, but along with all the history and the beautiful landscapes and old photographs (it only covered the story up to 1890), there was a lot of meaty philosophy in there about how we should think about nature and our beautiful wild places. I learned a lot about John Muir, which my Christian homeschool history textbooks seemed to skip over. I think that's a real shame, although he presented his ideas in a rather controversial manner, so I understand why they did. I liked some of the things he said, although he was a little over the top at times. He was an extremist, and I like balance. We'll see if I can cram five more episodes in before Friday night... I suppose there's always Netflix if I can't.
Oh, and big, big news! Well, I'm excited at least... Mom and I are going to visit my brother in Arizona the weekend of Halloween. He's stationed at the Marine Air Base in Yuma. We're going to fly down to San Diego on Friday morning, drive just over 2 hours to Yuma, spend the rest of Friday and all of Saturday and Sunday with him, go back to San Diego Sunday night and stay there for an early Monday morning flight back to Seattle. With that deal I got from American Express and Delta earlier this year, I got a free companion ticket. Delta doesn't fly to Yuma, so that's why we have to do SD again. I'm becoming a regular visitor!
Jp
In the following weeks, we are going to go through about 4 books each session, looking at the author, time it was written, how and why it was written, the basic message of it, and so on. I'm really looking forward to it. It's only on Tuesdays until the middle of November, so it isn't even a huge commitment. The pastor who is teaching it isn't from our church, but he is very knowledgeable, and very easy to listen to. Our own pastor is sitting in on the class as well; I think they are good friends. The class only has about twenty people in it, and of course, I am the only young person. I am beginning to think that I don't share much of anything in common with people my own age.
[forgot to mention... on the way to the class at church, a bald eagle flew right over my car (coming right at me) as I was stuck in I-405 North traffic! Gosh, that was neat!]
On Monday night after dinner, I sat down and watched the first episode of "The National Parks" online. I really enjoyed it, but along with all the history and the beautiful landscapes and old photographs (it only covered the story up to 1890), there was a lot of meaty philosophy in there about how we should think about nature and our beautiful wild places. I learned a lot about John Muir, which my Christian homeschool history textbooks seemed to skip over. I think that's a real shame, although he presented his ideas in a rather controversial manner, so I understand why they did. I liked some of the things he said, although he was a little over the top at times. He was an extremist, and I like balance. We'll see if I can cram five more episodes in before Friday night... I suppose there's always Netflix if I can't.
Oh, and big, big news! Well, I'm excited at least... Mom and I are going to visit my brother in Arizona the weekend of Halloween. He's stationed at the Marine Air Base in Yuma. We're going to fly down to San Diego on Friday morning, drive just over 2 hours to Yuma, spend the rest of Friday and all of Saturday and Sunday with him, go back to San Diego Sunday night and stay there for an early Monday morning flight back to Seattle. With that deal I got from American Express and Delta earlier this year, I got a free companion ticket. Delta doesn't fly to Yuma, so that's why we have to do SD again. I'm becoming a regular visitor!
Jp
Monday, October 5, 2009
I Shouldn't Be So Surprised
Geeze... it's been a whole year since I first saw San Diego? How time does fly. How things have changed! I was just looking back at old posts today. Photography class, sorry excuses for football games, lots of references to WENN... and it turns out right around now last year was when I got my new car (Oh, and Mike: also the first time I thought of this. Except maybe switch Jeff and Victor... LOL).
This year the Huskies are doing so much better. It's like night and day! After the game I went to, where we lost against LSU, we pounded on Idaho and gloriously upset dumb 'ol USC. We've since crashed and burned against Stanford and this weekend our win was stolen away by the stupid Refs instead of by Notre Dame. I'm planning on going to the game this Saturday against Arizona... it's been a while since the first one. I remember I got burned out quickly last year, because I went to the first three in a row. Unfortunately, it's another late 7PM kickoff in order to fulfill a dumb 'ol TV time-slot on FSN. Darn.
Jp
This year the Huskies are doing so much better. It's like night and day! After the game I went to, where we lost against LSU, we pounded on Idaho and gloriously upset dumb 'ol USC. We've since crashed and burned against Stanford and this weekend our win was stolen away by the stupid Refs instead of by Notre Dame. I'm planning on going to the game this Saturday against Arizona... it's been a while since the first one. I remember I got burned out quickly last year, because I went to the first three in a row. Unfortunately, it's another late 7PM kickoff in order to fulfill a dumb 'ol TV time-slot on FSN. Darn.
Jp
Sunday, October 4, 2009
From the Halls of Montezuma... or Meany
Back to brilliant sunshine today! Gone were our clouds! It was a little chilly though with stiff, refreshing autumn breezes all day. There's something in hearing the wind rustle through leaves and knock hanging chimes singing that makes me heave in a deep breath and sigh.
Today after lunch, Mom and I headed out to the University of Washington to a performance of the "President's Own" U.S. Marine Band in Meany Hall on campus (where I performed with the University Concert Band). They are on a west coast tour until November, and we were their second performance. The band does not charge admittance, and doesn't even offer CD's for sale. I hear they are available for download from itunes or from your local library. A friend of mine from photography class told me about this event, and he even met us there and sat with us. The doors didn't open until 2:20, but Mom and I arrived about 5 til 2. And it was a good thing! The line was soon dozens of yards behind us and the seats were first come, first served. We were able to get center of the row at stage level, so we had great seats.
When we first arrived, many musicians were on stage, warming up... and in business suits. I was disappointed for a moment, before I realized that that was their travelling attire. They left the stage a quarter hour before the performance started (at 3) and arrived back in time in their famous red coats and blue trousers (long blue skirts for the 14 women of the 57 member ensemble).
After the National Anthem was played, they began with a Sousa piece that I don't recall hearing before, but greatly enjoyed, "March; 'The Glory of the Yankee Navy'." They then played a piece by an American composer about Autumn, and then part of the Clarinet Concerto by Artie Shaw, with a soloist that hails from Seattle (there were four members of the band from Washington State!). The band then did a new composition of an accompaniment to a dramatic reading of the Gettysburg Address, and then a Percy Grainger piece before they concluded the first half with Semper Fidelis, with a line of cornets, trumpets, trombones and euphoniums out in front at the end. Absolutely unforgettable.
They opened the next half with George Gershwin's 'Allegro from Concerto in F', which featured a pianist. The vocalist then returned with an accompanied set of Irish songs ending with 'Oh Danny Boy'. They finished with 'Stars and Stripes' (goodness - I've never heard the piccolo part quite so clear - and played by four flautists standing up front!) and finally the Armed Forces medley. Due to the enormous amount of applause, they had God Bless America ready for us, and we were encouraged to sing along.
I'm not sure I could ever forget today.
Jp
Today after lunch, Mom and I headed out to the University of Washington to a performance of the "President's Own" U.S. Marine Band in Meany Hall on campus (where I performed with the University Concert Band). They are on a west coast tour until November, and we were their second performance. The band does not charge admittance, and doesn't even offer CD's for sale. I hear they are available for download from itunes or from your local library. A friend of mine from photography class told me about this event, and he even met us there and sat with us. The doors didn't open until 2:20, but Mom and I arrived about 5 til 2. And it was a good thing! The line was soon dozens of yards behind us and the seats were first come, first served. We were able to get center of the row at stage level, so we had great seats.
When we first arrived, many musicians were on stage, warming up... and in business suits. I was disappointed for a moment, before I realized that that was their travelling attire. They left the stage a quarter hour before the performance started (at 3) and arrived back in time in their famous red coats and blue trousers (long blue skirts for the 14 women of the 57 member ensemble).
After the National Anthem was played, they began with a Sousa piece that I don't recall hearing before, but greatly enjoyed, "March; 'The Glory of the Yankee Navy'." They then played a piece by an American composer about Autumn, and then part of the Clarinet Concerto by Artie Shaw, with a soloist that hails from Seattle (there were four members of the band from Washington State!). The band then did a new composition of an accompaniment to a dramatic reading of the Gettysburg Address, and then a Percy Grainger piece before they concluded the first half with Semper Fidelis, with a line of cornets, trumpets, trombones and euphoniums out in front at the end. Absolutely unforgettable.
They opened the next half with George Gershwin's 'Allegro from Concerto in F', which featured a pianist. The vocalist then returned with an accompanied set of Irish songs ending with 'Oh Danny Boy'. They finished with 'Stars and Stripes' (goodness - I've never heard the piccolo part quite so clear - and played by four flautists standing up front!) and finally the Armed Forces medley. Due to the enormous amount of applause, they had God Bless America ready for us, and we were encouraged to sing along.
I'm not sure I could ever forget today.
Jp
A Little Too Temporary
Poor Robbie didn't make it. He died between 8 and 9 this morning, according to my parents. Dad was the last to see him, and he said he looked fine, standing up. When I peeked in this morning around 10, it looked like he had simply fallen over. He must have been pretty sick or something. At least it looks like it happened peacefully.
:(
Jp
:(
Jp
Saturday, October 3, 2009
A Temporary Addition To The Family
This morning on a walk with the dog, I noticed a bird flapping around in our flower bed... and by the time we returned, it was still there, so I knew there was something wrong. Went and got my camera and took a couple pictures of it before trying to feed it and ending up just scaring the poor thing. It ran across the driveway and tripped all over itself. The right wing was hanging limp.
So I tried giving it some food (I couldn't quite tell that it was a juvenile robin), but it just sat still. I was pretty worried that some cat would just kill it, so Jason and Mom and I went out and caught it carefully with a hand towel while Meg cleaned out her poor little hamster's cage. It was pretty wild at first, so we put a towel over the cage it to make it understand that it was safe. Jason went out and got earthworms from our compost, and we put in a little water dish. I really hope the wing can heal.
So I tried giving it some food (I couldn't quite tell that it was a juvenile robin), but it just sat still. I was pretty worried that some cat would just kill it, so Jason and Mom and I went out and caught it carefully with a hand towel while Meg cleaned out her poor little hamster's cage. It was pretty wild at first, so we put a towel over the cage it to make it understand that it was safe. Jason went out and got earthworms from our compost, and we put in a little water dish. I really hope the wing can heal.
Friday, October 2, 2009
A Whole New World...
And a new, fabulous point of view.
Right after work I went down to the Navy office to finally get measured "the Navy way" for them to tell what they believe my BMI is (I had a real one a couple months ago; the kind where you hold the little gadget and it scores that somehow with your height & weight... and that said it was 27% or so). So we went next door to the dry cleaning place for the lady to do it there (male recruiters aren't allowed to measure female recruits). Unfortunately, she didn't do it very accurately, and the calculator said my BMI was 44% (lol - the maximum is 33%). This is all because I am 6 lbs. over the weight limit. If you make that mark, they don't care about the BMI.
While we were figuring out when to schedule the physical, we talked a bit about the rate I want again. The RP thing is pretty full up, so it would be really difficult to get it in the first place and advance once I got there (that's being a Chaplain's Assistant). So when asked about why I wanted it again, I talked about how I wanted to informally be available for people to talk to if they were interested in Christianity or faith, or had questions about Jesus. The library thing they do was a cool extra feature of the job (I thought). They say an RP isn't allowed to counsel at all, and my recruiters said I'd have better luck talking about faith the way I want to if I wasn't under any kind of "official" capacity... I guess that makes sense, once you consider it.
Last week, the lead from this office drove me down to MEPS, and on the way he talked about his job, before he was a recruiter. He was an Electrical Technician, repairing all kinds of communication equipment. He said he would help sailors with their personal electronics on the side... and that's when I thought... "that would be neat!" So, yes, believe it or not, I want to be an ET! With my ASVAB score, I qualify, and they say there are not overcrowded with females in that rate, so it's more likely I would get what I want. What an opportunity! Learn a whole new set of skills that would be very useful and readily transferable to lots of regular jobs, including Library Science nowadays. I have done nothing but clerical jobs so far, so this would really be stepping out on a limb for me. To top it off, upon completion of the A school, they give you E-4, which comes along with some other benefits, like being allowed to live on a base instead of on the ship when at port. Whoa! What a different idea all of a sudden!
After this long discussion, on my way out the door, I noticed the female Army recruiter was there! So I went back in, found my recruiter, and I got measured correctly! They say I'm at a 33.5% BMI... which sounds much better.
In fact, EVERYTHING sounds much better.
Jp
Right after work I went down to the Navy office to finally get measured "the Navy way" for them to tell what they believe my BMI is (I had a real one a couple months ago; the kind where you hold the little gadget and it scores that somehow with your height & weight... and that said it was 27% or so). So we went next door to the dry cleaning place for the lady to do it there (male recruiters aren't allowed to measure female recruits). Unfortunately, she didn't do it very accurately, and the calculator said my BMI was 44% (lol - the maximum is 33%). This is all because I am 6 lbs. over the weight limit. If you make that mark, they don't care about the BMI.
While we were figuring out when to schedule the physical, we talked a bit about the rate I want again. The RP thing is pretty full up, so it would be really difficult to get it in the first place and advance once I got there (that's being a Chaplain's Assistant). So when asked about why I wanted it again, I talked about how I wanted to informally be available for people to talk to if they were interested in Christianity or faith, or had questions about Jesus. The library thing they do was a cool extra feature of the job (I thought). They say an RP isn't allowed to counsel at all, and my recruiters said I'd have better luck talking about faith the way I want to if I wasn't under any kind of "official" capacity... I guess that makes sense, once you consider it.
Last week, the lead from this office drove me down to MEPS, and on the way he talked about his job, before he was a recruiter. He was an Electrical Technician, repairing all kinds of communication equipment. He said he would help sailors with their personal electronics on the side... and that's when I thought... "that would be neat!" So, yes, believe it or not, I want to be an ET! With my ASVAB score, I qualify, and they say there are not overcrowded with females in that rate, so it's more likely I would get what I want. What an opportunity! Learn a whole new set of skills that would be very useful and readily transferable to lots of regular jobs, including Library Science nowadays. I have done nothing but clerical jobs so far, so this would really be stepping out on a limb for me. To top it off, upon completion of the A school, they give you E-4, which comes along with some other benefits, like being allowed to live on a base instead of on the ship when at port. Whoa! What a different idea all of a sudden!
After this long discussion, on my way out the door, I noticed the female Army recruiter was there! So I went back in, found my recruiter, and I got measured correctly! They say I'm at a 33.5% BMI... which sounds much better.
In fact, EVERYTHING sounds much better.
Jp
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Do I Say Welcome, or Do I Say "Maaahhh!"?
The days this week have been rather similar, but not that I minded: every night we've watched movies after dinner: Love Crazy, Since You Went Away, The Shaggy DA, and tonight, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House. Also, in the last four days, the rain has returned... in force! I think it was Tuesday, late afternoon at work, when we all suddenly heard rain (and some say hail) pounding outside. We've just had an incredibly long dry spell, so I enjoyed the noise. We had some more rain today, and there has been nothing but clouds all week. I did get a peek at the moon last night though as I walked Spiffy around our half-mile block.
Work has been so, um, continual. Geesh! Last night I even dreamed about work... not the people, or anything interesting like that, but the actual job I had to do. Like I don't do that enough in the first place!
I think I feel rather restless right now. But it's time to take the flag down and retire for the evening. Ah... tomorrow is Friday.
Jp
Work has been so, um, continual. Geesh! Last night I even dreamed about work... not the people, or anything interesting like that, but the actual job I had to do. Like I don't do that enough in the first place!
I think I feel rather restless right now. But it's time to take the flag down and retire for the evening. Ah... tomorrow is Friday.
Jp
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