Duckie Murder

Yes...
My dog likes Duckies.
He went and got the Duckie out of my suitcase.
We found the body this morning.
My Duckie is no longer with us.

Family

The military truly is one gigantic family.
I was at the gym this morning,
The same one my parents workout at,
And this lady comes up to me and gives me a Christmas present.
I’ve seen her maybe once before in my life.
(At the gym last Spring Break)
Apparently,
She has a son that joined the military the same day I did.
He’s in Iraq right now.
So,
Even though I’ve seen her only once before,
She still thought of bringing me something.
I thought that was really cool.

Princes & Frogs

I found this on my computer.
My sis put it there.
Good stuff.
Princes & Frogs

Merry Christmas Y'all

Hope y'all had as good a time as I did.
I got a blanket and pajamas.
And books.
Books are abad idea to get me,
Becasue I don't even read the ones I pay for.
I haven't got enough time.

And I finally found out what the dog was trying to get at.
It's a Rubber Duckie.
An AF Blue Rubber Ducky.

Rockin Around The Christmas Tree

Holiday Greetings

For My Democrat Friends:
"Please accept with no obligation,
Implied or implicit,
Our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible,
Low-stress,
Non-addictive,
Gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday,
Practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice,
Or secular practices of your choice,
With respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others,
Or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.
We also wish youa fiscally successful,
Personally fulfilling,
And medically uncomplicated recognition of the generally accepted calendar year 2007,
But not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures
Whose contributions to society have helped make America great.
Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country
Nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere.
And without regard to the race,
Creed,
Color,
Age,
Physical ability,
Religious faith,
Or sexual preference of thewishes.
By accepting these greetings you are accepting these terms.
This greetingis subject to clarification or withdrawal.
It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting.
It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for herself or himself or others,
And is void where prohibited by law
And is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher.
This wish is warranted to perform as expected
Within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year
Or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting,
Whichever comes first,
And warranty is limited to replacement of this wish
Or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher."

For My Republican Friends:
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Hiding Spot

Apparently…
The kids hid something for me in the cabinet.
They moved it because the dog kept trying to get it.
But the dog smells the residue of whatever it was.
So he destroyed the cabinet trying to get it.
I doubt it’s food because they It wasn’t in the fridge.
So needless to say.
If the dog likes it that much…
I’m more than a little concerned.

Academy Ball

Last night was the North Texas Uniformed Service Academy Ball.
Good times.
The food was good,
And the decorations were nice.
The speaker was good too.
They had a live band this time,
Which was nice.
Last year they just had a DJ.
And they had dancing contests too.
I won first place in the Swing contest with a girl I had just met that night.
The prize was two two-way tickets to anywhere in the continental US.
That was really cool.
I wonder if they’ll be doing that again next year.

The Weather, In CO

Well...
All that snow we were supposed to get?
Never happened.
Not a single flake.

So...
My flight left as scheduled,
At 0630 this morning.
I slept the whole way.
Didn’t wake up until the pilot put the brakes on.

This afternoon I was shopping,
And I saw on the news,
Every airport in CO is closed.
They got 2 feet of snow between when I left and about 2 this afternoon.

German

Current Score

Dean: 0 Earth: 6

English

Shakspeare is dead.
But then again,
So are puppets.
They seem alive enough.

Current Score

Dean: 0 Earth: 5

Coffe Shop

I'm sitting in the Cadet Coffe Shop,
Cafinating my body for my next final this afternoon.
Trina, the lady that runs the shop,
Has a CD playing.
It has alot of older songs on it.
Alot of them are songs I swing to.
So I'll pipe up every now and then saying,
"That's a good song"
"I like that one"
All with in the first couple of notes.
I think she thinks it's weird that a cadet knows all these old songs.

Weather = Snow: Not Cool

So...
There is a massive snow storm headed towards this area.
It's gonna park here for about three days

This means there's a good chance of delays,
Or cancelations,
At the airport.

They had better not cancel my flight.
Cadets have a tendency to get violent when people mess with their breaks.

If it comes down to it,
I will shovel the entire runway,
Then fly the jet myself.

Math

Woo hoo.
That was fun.
After comparing this final to Physics,
I think something is backwards.
All of Physics was cruching numbers,
While all of math was solveing real world problems.
Shouldn't it be the other way around?

Current Score

Dean: 0 Earth: 4

The UnFunny Truth

Sent to me by a freind.
Link

The Earth CAN Be Moved

It appears I've finally found my arch-nemisis.
One who beleives that the earth cannot be moved,
and he has a website about it.

According to him...
"The Earth is not rotating...nor is it going around the sun."

Now...
THos of you who have read my "research" paper on physics,
KNOW that the Earth can indeed be moved.
I have no idea what is wrong with this guy...

Physics

That went ALOT better than I expected.

Current Score

Dean: 0 Earth: 3

Law

So...
I definitely just rewrote the Constitution and every other important document.
But I think they were pretty close to the original.

Current Score

Dean: 0 Earth: 2

Behavioral Science

It's that time again.
Time to put up the old finals scoreboard.
Yeah, I know I need to update the picture.

Current Score

Dean: 0 Earth: 1

Fabric and Courage

This was written by a classmate of mine

Joseph R. Tomczak, Class of 2009

United States Air Force Academy

If you like this Essay,

Pleasr vote for Essay 1 at

WantsCheck

A flag is usually made from tightly woven, high-quality cotton. Its corners are carefully double stitched to prevent fraying. It has brass rings on the corners and dark, bold colors stained into the fabric. It’s the kind of flag you put out in front of your house on Memorial Day. But not this flag. This flag is made of one-hundred percent nylon because it is easier to pack. This flag was probably stitched together somewhere in a warehouse in the middle of Tennessee by a sowing machine operator paid slightly higher than the minimum wage. Then it was packaged and shipped to a USO in Germany where flags were being given out to deploying Marines and that’s how it ended up in the back of a humvee on a street corner in southern Iraq.

So when a captain crawled into the back of the abandoned vehicle to retrieve medical supplies for his Marines he also grabbed the tightly folded flag as bullets ricocheted off the humvee’s armor. He ran back to his wounded comrades taking cover across the street while other Marines were repelling the ambush with the sound of hundreds of brass casings hitting the ground. Later the captain will recall that he didn’t even feel the bullet wound in his leg as he called in an air strike against the enemy sniper position just a few blocks away. All he remembered was the sound of the fighter pilot’s voice over the radio as she confirmed the target and put a laser guided bomb through the sniper’s window.

Having fought their way through the last remaining enemy holdout in the small port city, the Marines took down the old Iraqi flag which bore the words “God is great” inscribed from Saddam’s own handwriting. It was promptly replaced it with that nylon American flag atop one of the tallest buildings. The creases in the material were still visible as it flew in the breeze that day and the colors of the flag flew in stark contrast with the brown buildings and dust covered streets. Later, the media-conscience commanders would decide that the flag had to come down, and the Marines would take it down – but they would never forget the sacrifice and the courage it took to raise it.

It is clear why there is such opposition to the desecration of the American flag. Millions of Americans have worn the uniform of the United States and served under the flag. We have shed countless tears and beads of sweat under the flag; many have bled under it – thousands have died under it. For America’s uniformed men and women, and the veterans who came before us, the flag embodies more than just the ideals of freedom and human liberty that most citizens love and cherish… the flag is a part of who we have become. For us, the flag represents a higher cause and purpose than one’s self. For soldiers like us, the flag is the sum of all of our experiences – both the pride and the pain, both the service and the sacrifice, both the courage and the cost. As college professor Michael Geisler describes it, the flag is a “metaphor to die for.”1 More appropriately still, the flag is a metaphor worth dying for.

Furthermore, we as military members have pledged to defend the United States against “all enemies, foreign and domestic.” Some see those who would desecrate the flag as domestic enemies who threaten the rights of others when they propagate anti-American sentiment so publicly. It is true that when military members and their families see the flag disgraced by citizens of their own country, it has a weakening affect on the morale and sense of purpose that every soldier carries into combat. It is true when a citizen burns the flag, he or she is disgracing the sacrifice and contributions of millions of Americans to the cause of freedom around the world.

Desecration of the flag is a senseless act, born out of ignorance and perceived injustice. The action itself accomplishes very little, with much more attention placed on the act of desecration than on the political message an individual is attempting to convey to the public. When a citizen burns the flag, they also incinerate their legitimacy, their credibility, and their perceived moral high-ground.

I have never witnessed an American flag set on fire, and I hope I never will. But if I were to imagine for a moment what it would feel like, I imagine it would be like standing in New Jersey on the bank of the Hudson River on a warm late-summer morning. It would feel like standing on that bank and watching Lower Manhattan engulfed in smoke and flames, and waiting for tugboats to bring the first wave of casualties across the river… a feeling of violation, of vulnerability, of helplessness.

Yet despite all of this, we must protect a citizen’s right to burn the flag. The reason for this originates from the very fundamental principle the American military stands for, the protection of the freedom the United States provides. We cannot allow ourselves to become complacent with the concept of limiting the rights of others, regardless of how shameful and contemptible that right may be. Our task, and ultimately our calling, is to defend the Constitution of the United States, which protects the rights of all citizens as long as their actions do not infringe on the rights of others. As members of the military we must remember that we are fighting not only for those citizens who hold our same political views – we serve every citizen and protect their rights to express themselves however they wish, even if it means the degradation of the very symbol we hold dear.

So, an American flag is made from tightly woven fabric, double stitched seams, and the hopes and dreams of millions of free people across the globe. Despite the shame of flag burning, as citizens who wear the uniform we must be prepared to defend the right of expression and degradation of our symbol of freedom… We may not agree with everything that our citizens do, but we must be prepared to fight and even die to defend their right to do it.

We cannot allow for the limitation of the rights of the American people. We cannot join the ranks of those countries that jail or punish their citizens for speaking out against the government. Dissent, whether it is verbal, written, or demonstrated must be protected. It is fundamental to our society as a beacon and example for free expression and human liberty. It is the essential difference between America and her enemies who have no regard for such principles. It is what separates us… from them.

You're thoughts?

Little _______ Boy

Come they told me, pa rum pum pum pum
A new born King to see, pa rum pum pum pum
Our finest gifts we bring, pa rum pum pum pum
To lay before the King, pa rum pum pum
pum, rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum,

So to honor Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
When we come.

Little Baby, pa rum pum pum pum
I am a poor boy too, pa rum pum pum pum
I have no gift to bring, pa rum pum pum pum
That's fit to give the King, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum,

Shall I study for you, pa rum pum pum pum,
On my books?

Mary nodded, pa rum pum pum pum
The ox and lamb kept time, pa rum pum pum pum
I studied my books for Him, pa rum pum pum pum
I studied my best for Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum,

Then He smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum
Me and my books.

Guess What!!!

I just realized something,
10 days til I get to go back home for Christmas.

EMail Updates

I set up a Google Group to allow y'all to receive EMail updates.
Just incase checking the blog was just to much effort for any of you.
Now you can get an EMail of my new posts.
The subscribe box to the right will always be there,
Or you can use this one.

Subscribe EMail Updates

Email:

Peppermint Cheese Cake

I put out that peppermint cheese cake out at the CQ desk.
Someone just took the last piece.
That didn’t take very long.
I sent out an Email,
And instantly there were people running down the hall fighting over their spots in line.
Most came back for seconds.
I’ll have to keep this in mind for squadron parties.

OCF Christmas Party

Yesterday was the OCF Christmas Party.
We had it at one of the civilian girls, Sarah, house.
But her dad doesn’t like to pay a lot for decorations.
So,
While she was at work yesterday,
A group of us went to WalMart and bought some lights and such.

The girl that was organizing the whole thing, Erika, had never hung lights before,
So she decided that I should design the decorations.
I’m not too familiar with the house.
I’ve only been there twice before,
And it was dark,
So I had no idea what it looked like.
She drew me a rough
(very rough)
Sketch and that’s all I had to go on.
I made a few estimations and began picking out boxes of lights.

So we finally got back to the house and began applying the lights.
The neighbors were very appreciative of us.
They said it had been eight years since that house had lights on it.
The stringing was most eventful.
The Andrea, Erika, and Jessica, took on a supervisory role and told Doug, Rus, and myself exactly how they wanted the lights.
My estimates came out dead on.
To the inch.
The end of the lights reached the end of the roof exactly.
That worked out well.

While we were trying to find out which bulb was dead,
Sarah’s mom returned from shopping.
She invited us to stay for dinner.
Since there were three of us on the roof,
And only one working,
I decided to go down and help prepare dinner.
I ended up making cookies too.
That was fun.

After giving up on the lights,
Russ came in to see if he could help.
While wondering through the freezer,
He found a carton of A&W Root Beer Ice Cream.
Apparently intended for root beer floats,
Sarah’s family hated it.
So Russ took it upon himself to liberate the cubic foot of space it occupied,
And ate the remaining three quarters of a gallon that was left.
Needless to say,
He didn’t stay for dinner.

After dinner we went to OCF and then returned for the Christmas party.
I had brought two cheesecakes I had made,
One of my traditional Mochas,
As well as a new experimental peppermint.
I’ve never heard of or seen a recipe for peppermint cheese cake,
So I was somewhat concerned as to how it would come out.
Turns out,
Not many people ate much of anything.
A quarter of the Mocha was eaten and no one touched that peppermint.
Maybe it was because of the color.
I’ll have to work on that.

I got a chance to catch up with a friend I have unfortunately gotten the chance to talk with much in a long while.
In the middle of the conversation,
Someone started a limbo competition.
She said she was good at that and had to go do it.
I figured,
“Meh, It’s been forever,
But what do I have to loose?”
So I went to try.
After a decently long and difficult process,
The last round included her and myself,
And ended as a tie.
I should not have gotten that far,
Being a guy,
I am infinitely less flexible.
I still hurt from that.

Blood Drive

We had a Blood Drive today.
As usual,
They ran out of bags.
Cadets are always willing to give blood.
We’re patriotic down to the core.
(Actually, its because we’re not allowed to do training for 24 hours afterwards)

I feel sorry for whoever gets given this cadet blood.
Seeing as how it’s the week before finals,
Everyone has more caffeine in them than normal.
(normal amounts are around 600 mg in the blood stream
I think 800 mg is supposed to be lethal to most people.)
Whoever gets this blood is going to be wired for about a week.
And then their livers will fail.

I got there in time for the most intense blood race all day.
Two freshmen had gotten hooked up about the same time.
The one who got plugged in two minutes after the other,
Had only half his bag filled while the other cadet had his about three quarters full.
Everyone was rooting for the guy with half a bag.
We were coaching him on how to squeeze the ball,
And cheering,
And everything.
He filled his bag about ten seconds before the other cadet.

Yeah,
We’re weird.

We're Going To The Moon!!!

It's about time we went back.

CNN hasn't provided the greatest details here,
But from what I'm able to piece together,
We're actually gonna try to build a research base up there.
Apparently they're looking at using the lunar poles so they can use solar energy.
Should be fully operational by 2024.

It said we're going to try to use the natural resources to get a mars mission going.
I assume that means a mining operation.
I also assume this will use strip mining techniques.
I hope they try to localize it as best they can.

NASA is designing a new launch vehicle for this operation.
So far,
It looks a lot like the Apollo Command Module.
It’s supposed to be bigger though,
And not require someone to stay in orbit will the Lunar Lander goes down to the surface.
And apparently this thing is designed to return on land and not at sea.
Probably a good idea since it looks like we plan on doing this a lot.

CNN didn’t say this,
But I think it looks like they’re planning on two launch’s per mission.
One to get the equipment to the International Space Station,
And one to get the crew up there.
Then the crew get’s in the craft,
And goes to the moon.

Here are some computer generated images,
Courtesy of NASA.
(Do keep in mind,
These are likely to change,
Hence the lower quality of the graphics.)

EDIT:
It looks like I was right,
Judging by this image from NASA,
There are indeed two seperate launches.

Mountain Lions

Prayer Request

Hey y'all,
I'm in need of some prayer right now.
I can't exactly elaborate on this due to the varied audience,
For now I'll just say I have some emotional scaring that is in need of removal and healing.
If you really want more info,
You can EMail me.

Snow

It's snowing,
yet again.
I didn't realize how deep the snow had gotten
Until I dropped my soup in it,
And saw the hole it made.

AWANA MIT

I just watched the report we gave at headquarters fo the LA MIT trip.
I want to go cry now.
Unfortunatly,
That's not an option here.

I had forgotten about alot of what happened on that trip.
(Mainly how young and ... I looked)
There was such a need there,
And we didn't even have to leave the country to find it like we thought we would.
And then we still got to go to Brazil like we planned.
I have to find my Brazil DVD when I go home for Christmas.

Pray

I need all of you to pray NOW for a freind of mine.
HARD.
I don't have any details,
(And when I get them they won't be posted with out permission)
But I get the feeling this is VERY ugent.

For those of you who've been here before.
You know I rarley use Italics.
That means I'm serious here.

Thanks,
Jason

UPDATE:
I talked to him.
He seems to be doing well,
But I feel he still need prayer.