great googly moogly
I have the greatest job ever. It’s hard to believe that I almost did not apply for this job. Thank you Jen for pushing me to apply. Not only do I play with AutoCAD but I also play with the latest software version of it. I’m talking stuff in Alpha and Beta phases. I’m free to make my own schedule most of the time and I get paid pretty good as well as compensated in other ways.
But this just takes the cake. Jen and I have debating about what to do with a laptop and me deploying. We have a laptop currently at home, but it’s not really meant to be used as a laptop. Giant 17″ screen, full keyboard, and heaven forbid you keep it on your lap because I’m pretty sure I could back brownies with the amount of heat it gives off. About 2 weeks ago I was talking to my boss about this situation and that I have been looking at the Dell Outlet store and that I’ve been watching the prices on there. We chit-chatted about the deals there and that was that, nothing more. Flash forward to today and my boss I asked me if I found anything yet for a laptop and I told him we’re still debating it and we also need to budget for it. Well out of nowhere he told me to go ahead and find one that I like and the company would purchase it for me. I say company like we’re a big firm, but he is the owner of the company.
Talk about a huge blessing from the Lord. Thank you Jesus!!
In the Army Now
In the future there will be more and more post regarding my deployment and instead of talking about it in a cryptic way I figure I’ll just go head and say it. I found out last month at drill that I was being involuntary transferred to another unit being deployed. What that means is I am being transferred from the unit I am in now to another unit so they can meet their numbers…essentially I was resigned to another unit. Since I’ve told people of my deployment some have felt sorry for me. I ask please do not feel sorry for me. Jen and I knew of this when I re-enlisted and I’m excited to go. This is why I joined the Guard so I can serve. Before I was involuntary assigned to go I was in the middle of deciding if I should volunteer to go or just wait to see what happens. For those who signed up for free college they are in for a big surprise when they have to fulfill what they signed up for and I have no sympathy for those. If they do not want to defend their country that’s fine, but don’t expect a free ride to college.
Last weekend was a weekend full of cleaning weapons and working on my promotion packet at drill and I also found a bit more information on my deployment. I found out my school dates for my job reclassification and I also found out which unit I am going with. However, nobody knows for sure where this unit is. I have been given 5 or 6 different cities where this unit is. I also got my orders for my SRP (Solider Readiness Process), which is in three weeks. For those who do not know what an SRP is, it’s a week long 11+ hour days of doing paper work, getting shots, and equipment. We need to make sure we have our will’s and power of attorneys are in order, are pay in straight, and all other necessary paper work. Every solider who is going to deploy has to go through this lovely experience.
This morning I was doing research for things that I may need while deployed (items that the Army does not issue) and I realized that I will have no need to buy any regular clothes at least for a year. Plus I have all my stuff (tools, my mountain bike L, paintball gun) at home that won’t be used for over a year and I need to figure out what I’m going to do with it. By the way, for those who come across this if you’ve been deployed before your suggestions for things to bring to Iraq would be greatly appreciated.
Some other news, Friday night we got a dog and no I did nothing to persuade Jen into it. We’re not sure what he is and either does the adaptation agency. We think he has yellow lab and basenji, which is kinda like dingo. Looking at the picture he really does look like a dingo or basenji. He has really taken to Jen and as for me he’s scared. We believe that whoever owned him before that a man used to hit him, whenever I try to pet him he cowers. He’s about 2 years old and is very friendly not a mean bone in his body. The cats get along with him fine mainly because he’s afraid of them.
That’s all for now.
Pictures
A few pictures I found on my camera this morning.
It maybe hard to tell, but this is a license plate. On my way to work I stop and get coffee because the community coffee at work is, well, horrible. Anyways when I saw this I just couldn’t pass up a picture. I just wish I would have thought of it first.
The house of course. More pictures to come.
Come on Spring
So we are moved out of the apartment and into the house. I took a few pictures of the new place but I don’t have them on me right now and will get them up soon. We still have a little unpacking to be done, but it is minimal.Spring is approaching here in NC and I cannot wait. I am tired of this winter stuff. It was fun at first, but seriously 5 months of the cold gets old. At least we could have gotten a bit more snow then a few inches. Then again I could be shoveling 26″ of it.
Found out I’ll be going to New York for work mid April for about a week. My boss and I will be doing training in Poughkeepsie. I’m looking forward to it. While we’re there my boss is going to try and get either Yankees or Mets tickets….come on Yankee tickets. Also found out that next year I maybe doing some international traveling. My boss asked me what my two preferences would be and I told him Australia and Brazil. Brazil because I love the Brazilian people and the country and then Australia…well how often does one get a chance to go to Australia. The international stuff is still a year away so we shall see.
I finished my first half semester of class and finished with an A and B. This week starts my second half of the semester. I’m taking another Theology class and also a Church History class. I have a feeling this is going to be my most demanding semester yet. I have a paper due just about every week either for my theology class of my church history class. Plus I have quizzes at the end of each week and my normal lectures that I need to watch.
I haven’t really mentioned this at all and not sure why, but this week is our Easter Drama.We Followed Follow the Man is the Title and I will be playing Jesus. A woman in our church wrote it and Jen is helping direct it and Jen even has some stage time. Jen is the actor and I am no actor…how I got to be the main character is beyond me. So unlike typical Easter dramas where it ends at the Resurrection we are going to continue pass that and describe what happens with each of the disciples after the death of Jesus and after His return to the Father. I’m sure we will have a video of it and I will get copies out to everyone.
I did a little bit of 3D work on the side this past week. The pictures that look like they are hand drawn is a program (AutoDESK Impression) that will take the rendered drawings and convert them into hand drawings. I wish I could take credit for 100% of the work, but I can take credit for about 95%. The chairs and the speaker cones I found online. But the speaker casing/frame, curtains, door, the screen and projector, wall scones and room layout I did.
Until next time folks….
Moving Weekend
It’s been awhile since I’ve updated the blog. For the most part I am feeling better. I still have a small cough but nothing serious. Work has slowed down a little bit for the time, but will be picking up again soon. Sometime in April or May (dates have not been confirmed) I am supposed to be doing some traveling for work. We (my boss and I) will be training IBM in one of our software products and then I believe next year we will be doing some more traveling.
Last weekend was my first weekend back in drill (National Guard). There were some issues in whether I actually had slot/job there and I can’t say I am surprised. One, It is a brand new unit so they’re still getting their stuff together and second it’s the Army. Next month’s drill they’re supposed to have everything together in regards for a job for me. We shall see.
This week was my last week of my first 8 week classes. I’m guessing I’ll finish my Theology class with an A and my youth class with a B. This weekend is the big move out of the apartment and into the house. We were going to work a half day today and move the other half, but thanks to the rain we may have to postpone it until tomorrow. Which really stinks because we were hoping that Saturday afternoon we could be setting up the house and unpacking. Once we get setup in the new house I will get some pictures posted. Quick bio of the house: a 3/2.5 bath, brand new home, never lived in, two story house.
Besides that not a whole lot going on. I guess you could say that I live a pretty unexciting life.
Till next time folks…
Giants Win
First things first way to go Giants. What a game that was.
It was a pretty busy weekend. Saturday I worked a few hours at the office, got new tires, bought a new desk because our old one just could not handle my school stuff and Jen’s stuff, and helped the in-laws buy a new dryer.
Interesting story while I was helping the in-laws pickup the new dryer. So I was waiting around for the owner of the vehicle I scuffed up while parking when I noticed that someone stole my Yankees license plate. I could not believe it. On the bright side they were kind thieves because they did leave me the screws that was holding on the license plate. So at least I don’t need to buy new screws.
Sunday we went over to the in-laws to watch the Super Bowl. By the way Patriots in case you didn’t know you needed to win the Super Bowl for the undefeated season to mean anything. What a game that was. Seriously I was at the edge of my seat for the last 5 minutes of the game. I loved seeing Tom Brady get knocked around and I loved even more we made a touchdown with 59 seconds left on the clock for the win.
There were only a few commercials that really stood out. This one and the Iron Man preview. After seeing that preview for new the Iron Man movies I’m even more excited.
I mentioned sometime ago about thinking of going into business on my own doing AutoCAD consulting and it’s really something that I’m thinking about. Jen said she would quit her job and would come work for me. That would be exciting for a husband and wife company. If this is a venture we would do I guess I would need to figure out where I would get starting client base and I would need to save for business expenses. Oh and learn how to run a business. But anyways I’ll just see what happens. If it’s meant to be, the Lord will make a way for it to happen.
By the way Jen is getting sick so if you could keep her in your prayers that would be great.
Quick Post
This past weekend we went to the Creeper Trail with the youth group from our church. Totally different from the last time we went…mainly because it was between the 50’s and 60’s.
Got word today that the tenants are looking to move out because we decided to put the house back on the market. They want to be out mid December before Wal-Mart goes on a hiring freeze and they’re not able to transfer. So we have three options: option A this guy who is coming to look at the house this weekend buys it, option B the We Buy Ugly Houses people buy it, or option C we foreclose on it.
Thanksgiving is coming up and I am really looking forward to the long weekend. My mother and brother will be leaving Wednesday morning to come up for Thanksgiving and I can’t wait for that. One day we hope to get back down to Florida to see everyone else.
Till next time kids.
I leave you with this scene from The Office. Bears beat Battlestar Galactic…I told you they were dangerous.
Updates
Boy it has been awhile since I’ve updated this beast. What has been happening lately, well I found out bears can climb trees faster then they can run and they can swim. So just by those two facts alone if you see a bear you’re done for. Go get’em tiger.
Last weekend we went to the renaissance festival. Fun time that was…really it was. We saw jousting, a guy with a cup over his you know what, a fire breathing guy, oh and we saw jousting. Overall it was a good day although next time we go I will need to make sure I have a 5 months savings. Once you pay to get in most of everything inside cost money as well…lots of money.
Tuesday was the most important day ever…actually, the most important day after the death and resurrection of Christ. Anyways it mine and Jen’s anniversary. Three years we’ve been married. Hard to believe that it’s been three years all ready, but it has. We weren’t really able to do anything really special like last year because of the ol’ mighty dollar. We did though go out for sushi. I’ve been really craving sushi for awhile and she found a nice little restaurant that has it. Two thumbs up for Jen.
This weekend we are going back to the creeper trail, but with the youth group. It’s been getting into the high 30’s lows 40’s. I can only imagine what it’ll be like in Virginia. My guess cold. Speaking of cold the first morning we woke up with frost we realized we had nothing to scrap it off with and the only thing I could find was an empty water bottle. I would like to say that I melted the plastic bottle down to a solid sheet of plastic and used that to scrap it, but we are under a burn ban. So I used the bottle cap.
I started my introductory to the Gospel of John class three weeks ago. One of the easiest gospels to read, but as the teacher say’s “it’s also the deepest gospel of them all”. This semester has really been kicking my butt though. On top of my lectures, I have my quizzes, my discussion board stuff, and I also need to write two papers. One of them I am working on now is the eight miracles performed by Jesus in the book of John. Did mention I also have my math class lectures. Believe it or not, I had to limit my riding to only weekends.
A couple days ago Jen put the house back on the market with BuyOwner and believe it or not we had a call tonight. He is interested in moving here from Ohio and wants his son to go and look at the house not this weekend, but next weekend. So we shall see where this goes. Sell house sell!
By the way because of this stupid Hollywood strike the new season 24 has been delayed. Stupid writers strike. Did I mention the writers strike is stupid.
warm and fuzzy feelings
I remember when the biggest thing I needed to worry about was whether I was going to be able to reign champion in R.B.I. Baseball for Nintendo. Now I need to worry about sub-primes, primes, and prime time….whatever that means. Jen sent me in article the other day about how the foreclosures nationwide are up 115% from last August. I did not think there was anything over 100%! I called Bank of America the other day to see what they could to help with our 2nd mortgage (line of credit). I asked if they could forgive us of that loan which she promptly said no. I ask then what else can we do because we are really struggling to keep our heads above water? She said well I could give you an increase in the line of credit and then refinance the loan. I said, “I’m trying to get less money lady not more”. Finally, she said well the national percent rate drop by .5 or 1 % I do not remember what she said. She did whatever she needed to do and said “well we could drop your monthly payments by roughly four dollars”. Woo Hoo! Sign me up. It would have worked out to like saving 35-40 dollars a year….big difference.
So for those keeping score at home these are the options: continue paying on the house and maybe one day, maybe before the return of Christ, the market will turn around. On the other hand, we can do a short sell of the house, which means we sell the house for whatever we can and the bank turns the remainder into a 10-year loan. For this to work though houses would need to be selling, which they are not, and it’s not even guaranteed the bank will accept the offer. Finally, we could just file for bankruptcy…ugh.
I asked the bank woman what are you guys doing to help with this national crisis and she could not give me an answer. I finally just gave up. I called trying to proactive looking for assistance and in the end all I get from the woman was “you can continue to pay or you can begin the foreclosure process”. Hmm thank you Bank of America I never thought of it that way. So right now, I’m hoping that one day Jen will tell me “honey we just got 75,000 dollars in the mail”! Until then I’m going to be working Saturday’s morning to bring in some extra money.
I haven’t updated in awhile and that’s because I’ve been lazy. The mountain biking bug is still going around. Quentin, the youth pastor, went and bought a bike because he’s hooked. Also, I think the Brian the music minister is hooked. Travis and I took Brian and Quentin to the White Water Center Sunday and they loved it. I told Travis it won’t be long until we have a mountain bike ministry.
I leave you with this:
Sweet is not just a rock band.
Since moving up to North Carolina I’m finding I’m we’re home a lot less. Not that it’s a bad thing I just wish it was like this back when we lived in Florida. Saturday we went back to Turtleback Falls with youth group. You can really tell we’re going through a drought right now. The water was not nearly as strong as before and water was lower. I could tell the water was lower mostly by the fact that you could touch some of the rocks coming off the falls. We’ll probably wait for a good rain before we go back again. It was a great time for us though because we were able to build our relationship with not only Quentin and Marie (youth pastor and his wife), but with the youth group also. Taylor, who is a riot by the way, reminds me and Jen of our friend Gab back home. There was one of the youth I really hit it off with, Ryan. I’m hoping we can get together a bit more. We talked a bit about going backpacking or doing some hiking together so we’ll see. Sunday we had home fellowship group and that was just a sweet time together. Let me explain something real quick up until now I never really use the word “sweet” unless I was referring to maybe a chocolate cake or a cheesecake, now I use way to much I think. Honestly though, that is the best word I could use to describe the time we had together.
On our way to the Falls Quentin and I got on the subject of missionaries somehow and I think I made a comment about Ryan and Lisa. He was telling me that when he and his wife lay there daughter down to bed Melanie will tell them “mommy you pray for the mommy, daddy you pray for the daddy, and I’ll pray for the kids.” Referring to Ryan and Lisa our missionary friends…see post below this one. I thought that was the coolest thing. She’s 3 and has no idea what missionaries do, but she knows that they are far away with things we don’t have doing things for Jesus.
Classes started today for me…yay. Honestly I’m pretty excited about it I just forgot how it felt not to be in school.
Tomorrow is Jen’s birthday and I have set something up for her, nothing like last year though…sorry Jen.
