I am Chris M. Day, and I live in Homestead Florida – about halfway between Miami and Key Largo (actually a little closer to Key Largo). I’ve lived in (or near) Homestead for over 34 years (since December 01ST 1987). That’s over 60% of my life ! Although I’m originally from the #DMV – the Washington D.C. area (Prince Georges County Maryland and Fairfax County Virginia) I consider Homestead to be my hometown.
I’ve worked at the air base in Homestead for over 34 years (aside from about 19 months immediately after Hurricane Andrew on August 24TH 1992). During those 19 months that the base was being cleaned-up and partially rebuilt I worked at Andrews AFB Maryland (near Washington D.C.) and MacDill AFB Florida (near Tampa).
I’ve had 3 main jobs working for the United States Air Force over the past 37 years. I’m currently an Accountable Officer / Financial Manager for a major facility maintenance and repair contract on base. I’ve also been a Computer Systems Administrator, and a Fighter Jet (F-16) and Tanker Aircraft (KC-135A) Maintenance Systems Analyst / Statistician. When I was considering joining the USAF during my Senior year in High School in 1984 I really wanted to be a Meteorologist – or a radio deejay – or both !
Although the USAF selected a different career path for me I consider myself to be very knowledgeable in the field of Weather. I’m an Amateur Meteorologist. One of my lifelong hobbies (since I was a teen) continues to be the further study and analysis of weather forecasting. I’m the most accurate and dependable weather forecaster I know. I’m fortunate to live in such a subtropical paradise as South Florida which can stake its claim as having some of the nicest weather in North America – at least from the end of October through the start of May (our 7-month dry season).
In addition to Selma Alabama (where I was born in 1967), the Maryland and Virginia suburbs of the Washington D.C. area, Central Florida, and South Florida I have also lived in the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia.
I lived in the U.K. for 2 years and 1 week from November 1985 to November 1987. I was stationed at my first official USAF duty station – RAF Fairford – located in the scenic Cotswolds of Gloucestershire – just up the hill from the village of Fairford. Swindon (to the south) and Cirencester (to the west) were the nearby cities.
I lived in Saudi Arabia at Al Kharj Air Base (‘Tent City’) for a little over 2 months from January 1991 to March 1991 during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. I was sent to war as “punishment” by my supervisors at the time, but it became a major turning point in my military career at the time. It began the greatest 2 years (of 8) of my Active Duty Air Force career. It would also be the final 2 years of the Active Duty chapter of my Air Force career.
I’ve been working as an Air Force Civilian (GS-employee) since the Summer of 1993. I plan to retire at my minimum retirement age of 56 years and 6 months in December 2023. After retiring I plan to move away from Homestead, but not too far away – only about 3 hours away. I plan to work a part-time job somewhere fun (just to stay busy), volunteer my time somewhere else fun, go in to full-time ministry, and travel to places in America I’ve never seen before. (My retirement plans are quite ambitious.)
Until then (and possibly after then) I’ll continue to blog my life and times on here 4 times per week. I hope that you’ll be a part of it as I continue to move forward from the past and into the future.
All rights reserved (c) 2022 Christopher M. Day, CountUp
CountUp 