Thanks, Major.

We Spartans have descended from Hercules himself. Taught never to retreat, never to surrender. Taught that death in the battlefield is the greatest glory he could achieve in his life. Spartans: the finest soldiers the world has ever known.

King Leonidas, from the movie, 300

Really, all I have to say is this:



Get your own countdown at BlingyBlob.com

20070426. Ship date. Army. 37F. 5 years. Hooah.

Year in Review

"Here we are in a month named after the Roman god Janus, an appropriate personification of the start of the new year. This particular Roman god had two faces so that he could look ahead toward the future and back at the past at the same time. As we get rid of an old year and look forward to a new one, we all try to be a little like Janus. We know through experience what we did wrong and what we did right, and hope to do better this year. Some people make ambitious new year’s resolutions; others just take a deep breath and hope for the best..."

Complete Speaker's Almanac

New Year's was a good one. Best New Year's EVER!! Why?? Here's why:

My friend Dan finally took me to a Chris Cagle concert, after two previous attempts to do so. I owe him big time. That seriously was the best night ever!! I love Chris Cagle. And we were RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE STAGE! Like, I was touching the stage. Dan even grabbed me the playlist that was taped on the stage that Cagle sweated all over. Hehe...anyway. I hope having a good new year's celebration is an indication of the year to come. With that said...I think it's time for me to reflect on the year I left behind...

High points
1. Duh. Last night. Seeing Chris Cagle. That was great.
2. Seeing the Avalanche play at the Pepsi Center. That, too, was fuckin' awesome.
3. Finally getting out of Michigan. I needed to, and I've made some great friends down here...I think it's changed me a lot, and it's a welcome change. The southern attitude is a lot more laidback, and that's what I need. I don't stress as much as I used to.
4. I had a great birthday. First one in a while. I owe my friends back in Michigan for that. Sure, I got completely shitfaced and had the worst hangover ever, but it was fun...what I can remember of it.

Low points
1. Leaving Michigan. I know, I know. I put it as a high point, but it was also a low point. I miss my family and my friends that are up there...
2. Fuckin' getting RBJ'd again. Seriously. That kinda pissed me off, especially if you know the back story behind it.
...that's really kinda it. I mean, it hasn't been a bad year, but it hasn't necessarily been a good year either. Just another year. So what's to come???

My New Year's Resolutions
1. Fuckin' leave for basic training already.
2. Be able to do multiple pullups.
3. Complete a couple 5ks and 10ks.
4. Be abe to do 50 pushups/80-100 situps in two minutes.
5. Get down to between 15-17% body fat. Currently at 19%.
6. Drop 20 lbs.

That's it. Just wanted to post a blog for the new year.

Like Being Home...

“The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior is that a warrior takes everything as a challenge, while an ordinary man takes everything as a blessing or a curse.”
Carlos Castaneda

Okay, so I know it's been a longggg time since I last wrote, and since I have the opportunity to do so now, I will.

First off, since when does it snow in TEXAS!?! Okay, it's not 'snow' by Michigan standards, but by Texas standards, you'd think it was a goddamn blizzard!! Granted, it's not the best driving weather, which is why I'm here instead of at work, where I'm supposed to be. Oh well!

Okay, since I've been down here, I've had two jobs. When I was in Michigan, I held the same job for two years. It's kinda cool to be able to have the availability to work different jobs, but I like stability in my life. I'm looking at getting a new job as we speak. Ya see, when I first moved out here, I was living in Grand Prairie, which is between Irving and Arlington (basically, smack dab in the middle of Dallas and Fort Worth). I worked first in Irving and my current job is in Arlington. However, I moved. Out to Watauga (or, as I like to call it, Wataugwah). It's a good 30-45 minute drive to work, in good conditions (today, it probably would have taken me an hour-plus to get to work). So I'm looking for a job closer to my new home. What else...been dating some guys. Texas boys are cute and they have that cute-ass southern accent. Nothing serious, though. Just being young and having fun. OH! I also have a new nickname at work. Minnesota. Everyone says I sound like I'm from Minnesota. I can here the accent in some things (like, for example, when I say "Minnesota") and I do say "Eh"...But I also say "y'all" (said it since I was in Michigan!). I just have a fucked up accent, apparently. It adds to my charm. Haha...

On to the good stuff. I'm sure some of my loyal readers, whom I've probably lost in my absence, are wondering, still not in the military. Haha...boy has it been a long ride down here...Found an Army recruiter in Irving. Was working with him (still am)...found out the standards changed. So, I got to where I needed to be and was sent to MEPS. They projected me on Wednesday to floor on the following Tuesday. I get there, stand in line, the guy asks for my social and tells me they don't have my physical. See, they had to get my physical sent down from the Chicago MEPS...Apparently, Chicago didn't process the request until that Friday. So, they were like, "Well, come back later in the week." On the ride home from MEPS, my recruiter gets a phone call from the Station Commander that says they have my physical. WHAT THE HELL!? So, they project me for Thursday. Repeat the process. Still don't have my physical. What happened, apparently, was that my scores showed up on the computer, but they didn't have the paper copy of my physical. They spent the whole day trying to get Chicago to fax my physical down. Find out, my physical was in MILWAUKEE...and they LOST it. So at about 3pm (yes, after I sat at MEPS the whole time doing nothing), they tell me I'm just going to have to re-phys. Fine. Whatever. My recruiter projects me for the next Tuesday. At this point, the whole MEPS front desk staff knows me by name. First name. Which is weird. Anyway...go to get measured...the women didn't know how to tape using the Army standards. They sat there arguing over it. Me and this other girl were like, "Oh, this is great." Anyway. They ended up measuring me wrong...and put me 1% over. My Station Commander threw a fit. So they had a female recruiter re-measure me and she got me under. (This is sounding a lot like my first MEPS trip in Chicago, isn't it?) Then, they had a med staffer who was still there (the rest had gone home) tape me. She got me wayyy under. The Army decided to hold me over to the next day. I was like, "Okay, sure." So I get there Wednesday and they tell me they aren't going to anymore. I guess there was an Army guy who just thought it was suspicious that the whole MEPS staff knew me. DUH! I've been there FOUR TIMES in a WEEK! They didn't want to raise any flags or anything on my case, so they sent me home. RBJ'd until 20070202. Currently, they're working on getting my RBJ cleared since there was such problems with my tape readings. Apparently, the company commander is working on it right now. I dunno. I'll still try because this is what I want to do. I mean, seriously, it seems like maybe all the hassle I've gone through should be a sign that I'm not meant to go Army, but at the same time, I know that nothing worthwhile in life comes easy. So for now, I'm working, trying to find a new job, and just enjoying the Texas life. It's good. I'm not as bitter as I have been...not as dramatic as I normally am. The southern lifestyle has mellowed me out. I mean, there have been things that have royally sucked...like that Air Force job that I was so excited about? Yeah, they wanted me to come interview. But I decided my heart is with being in military as a member, not a civie. It took a lot, but I gave that opportunity up to follow my dreams and my heart. And I'm okay with that. Yay! Haha...anyway...that's really all for now. This blog has gone on for far too long. See y'all!

Momma, I'm Coming Homeeeee...

"Getting strong is not an easy process and no one ever said it would be. You are going to have to do things that take you out of your comfort zone, pretty much every session. So realize it or get out. If you can’t handle the fact that you need to strain hard then there is a place for you called the 'cardio room'."
Dave Tate

Okay, only for the weekend, but still...

Things in Texas have been a mixed bag...mostly good, except for the missing my friends back home part...been steadily losing weight each week, which is good...getting my ass kicked 4-5 days a week by my trainer...seeing muscles I haven't seen in a while...it's cool...except he just informed me last night that starting Friday (until Monday), I will be taking in NO carbs...or as close to zero as I can get...this means no fruit or veggies, too...basically, I'll be living off of protein shakes, chicken, and cottage cheese...mm...there's a reason for this, and you'll find out below...

Had a full-time job, but quit it...not good at it, didn't want to waste my time in a miserable job...had an interview yesterday for a part-time retail position and the manager was like, "Well, we have this assistant manager position open if you're interested..." I find out in a few days whether I got either position...would like the AM position because it's got more money and hours, but I'll be happy with either...actually, I'm waiting to hear from two other places that I applied at...just part-time stuff...nothing big, no huge career moves or anything...

What elseee...oh...yeah. When I go home this weekend, I'm supposed to be enlisting...my recruiter back home and I have been faxing and emailing shit back and forth to put my packet together...hopefully it'll go well and I won't have to worry about any P/T job...we'll see...

That's really all I can think of writing for now...felt compelled to update this, but I'm not sure why...may add more later if I'm feeling bored enough...

Thank You!

I'll update y'all later but I just wanted to say thank you to my recent anonymous poster, Sue...new spring in my step...if you can, please get ahold of me!

Long Overdue

"We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another; unevenly. We grow partially. We are relative. We are mature in one realm, childish in another. The past, present, and future mingle and pull us backward, forward, or fix us in the present. We are made up of layers, cells, constellations."
Anais Nin

Okay...here we go...as from my last post, y'all may know that I'm sitting down in Dallas right now. Let me just say it's a complete 180 from Midland, MI. I mean, the area of Dallas I'm in is kinda similiar to Midland, but not too much. It's suburban, so that's about it. Temps are in the 90s - 100s...which is about 20-30 degrees more than in Michigan. A lot more people, that's for sure. For the suburban area I'm in, there's about 110,000 people (according to my uncle)...in Midland, there's 40,000, maybe 50,000 people. A lot more diverse, too. Midland is very much a white city. I mean, there are other races, but definitely not a lot. Here, the diversity is very noticable. I like it. There's probably as many Spanish radio/TV channels as there are English channels. The only thing I'm not too fond of yet is the driving. Texans will drive for miles with their blinkers on...and the traffic!! I was not born a city girl, that's for sure. Went to Fort Worth the other day...cowboys all around. I could get used to that. And the accent is cute as hell! I love southern accents!! So what am I doing here? Well, my uncle knew I needed to get out of Michigan before I drove myself crazy, so he invited me down here to stay for a bit. Best part is that I get to drive a loud-ass (modified) Dodge Ram - my favorite kinda truck!!!

Other than that, not really a lot has been going on. I celebrated my birthday two weeks ago. I got shitfaced. And that's an understatement. I don't remember much from that night. In fact, there's a point that I don't remember anything after it. Apparently, people kept putting shots in front of me, and I just kept taking 'em like a champ. Granted, by the end of the night, apparently I was throwing up all over the parking lot. It was good to have all my friends around, but watching them made me realize how ecclectic I am. There was a noticable disconnect between my pierced/tattooed friends and all my gym friends. I wish I could remember the night, but I really don't...it was at that point that I decided I'm seriously done drinking. For real. I mean it this time, dammit. I did feel guilty for celebrating my birthday after finding out only a few days before that my friend had been killed. It still gets to me when I think about it. And I'd say that I just don't think about it, but that's a lie. *sigh*

Hmmm...I really don't think there's that much else going on right now...I might try and find a recruiter down here (know any good ones??)...I'm probably going to go up to Sheppard AFB to visit my ex (Shut up, Randy!) and then down to Ft. Hood next weekend to visit a friend of mine. I need to find people around here...my days consist of: wake up, gym, come home, shower, sit around for a bit, eat, head back to the gym...OHH!! Speaking of the gym...found a Bally's nearby...It's no Smitty's, but it works. I ended up walking out of there with a free month membership...they had an online thing for a two-week trial...on it, there was some fine print that said if I didn't win a year membership and brought the pass in within 48 hrs of getting it, that my trial got extended for 30 days...the guy was like, "Damn. I've never noticed that." Pays to read the fine print...thank you Contract Law. Anyway...one of the trainers offered me a free session...he's in the National Guard down here and knew I wanted to join. He was impressed with my PU ability (and I was, too!)...but he took my body fat percentage with one of those hand-held bio-electrical impedence devices. Lemme tell you, those things are about as accurate as the Army tape test. And I swear everyone except the Bally's trainers know this. Your body fat readings on those things can be affected by a lot of different factors, including hydration levels. See...

The use of bioelectrical impedance measurements of the body to assess the fat and fat-free components of an individual is increasing. Before this method can gain widespread application, it is necessary to evaluate the variability of the measurements. A group of 80 men and 83 women was measured in three separate trials of two times per day for two nonconsecutive days. Statistical analyses indicated that determination of a representative value for an individual can be achieved if measurements are made on two days rather than on one day. This finding indicates that the influence of uncontrolled factors, including skin-electrode interactions and body water distribution, impact the measured impedance variables. Knowledge of the need for duplicate measurements to assure representative impedance measurements will assist epidemiologists who seek to use the impedance method for national nutritional surveys and researchers who use this method for monitoring nutritional status of patients.
From: "AN EXAMINATION OF BIO-ELECTRICAL IMPEDANCE ERRORS USING GENERALIZABILITY THEORY"


The trainer swore it was 97% accurate and wouldn't do a caliper reading because apparently the caliper is less accurate than the bio-electrical impedence method. Whatever. Anyway...I wasn't happy with the reading. Oh well. Army doesn't use that method either, so it doesn't matter what my caliper reading or bio-electrical impedence reading is...just the tape. Which is another reason why I wanna find a recruiter down here...

...okay, I'm done babbling for now. Y'all have a good day now, ya'hear? =)

COWBOY ZAMBONI!!!

...just an FYI...I'm in Texas now. Dallas area. Currently watchin' some 18-wheeler get chased by cops...

Anyway...went to Billy Bob's last night...caught a rodeo...found what I coined a Cowboy Zamboni:



...for those of you not familiar with the game of hockey (*cough*SFC B*cough*) a Zamboni is the machine thingy they use to clear the ice off with between periods.

I'll write more later. Just thought I'd letch'all know I'm not in Michigan now.