Category: Travel

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Career History Life Music Travel

Saturday Night Retro

TODAY – the fifth of June of 2010 – is my 43RD birthday. You know you try to keep these events a secret from everyone, and yet word still manages to leak out about it. Go figure. LOL !

Perhaps the most memorable birthday of my entire lifetime was exactly 25 years ago on this date in 1985. It’s when I turned 18-years-old. Back then I knew what I was going to do on the following day. I was going to graduate from high school and receive my diploma. And so I did – on June 06TH 1985 at historic DAR Constitution Hall in Washington D.C.

On my 18TH birthday I also knew what I was going to do exactly a week later. I was going to leave home, make my way from suburban Northern Virginia to San Antonio Texas via planes, trains, shuttles, and automobiles, and enter a whole new world. And so I did – on June 12TH 1985 when I arrived at Lackland Air Force Base for Air Force Basic Military Training. It was the most hectic week of my lifetime – turning 18, graduating from high school, and joining the Air Force.

I never imagined 25 years ago that I’d be celebrating my 25TH anniversary with the Air Force this week in 2010, but here I am. I served 8 years on active duty (1985-1993), 2 years on active reserves (1993-1995), 4 years on inactive reserves (1995-1999), and 17 years as a Department Of Defense civilian working for the USAF (1993-now). It’s been a great and rewarding career, and retirement is about 15 years away. I can almost see it from here !

Back during that hectic second week of June of 1985 this memorable song from Tears For Fears was the # 1 pop and rock smash all across the free nation. It’s “Everybody Wants To Rule The World”, and I present it as my 25TH anniversary ‘Retro’ classic flashback:

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Blogging Career History Holidays Life Music Travel

Saturday Night Retro

The long Memorial Day holiday weekend is here all across our 50 states, and it’s the unofficial start of the 101 days of Summer from now through the Labor Day holiday weekend at the start of September. It’s when schools let out, vacations begin, and schedules change for Americans everywhere. It’s where we go out and enjoy the world around us while the weather is warm and the days are long visiting new and different places nearby and far away.

I’ve enjoyed many memorable Summers over the past 43 years of my lifetime. Some were memorable for bad events (such as Hurricane Andrew in 1992), and some for good (such as Panama City Beach in 1990). Many I can’t remember at all, so they were clearly forgettable. Looking back I regret not making some type of a memorable impact during those past unremarkable Summers. Of course some of those Summers were forgettable because I’ve chosen to forget about them over time because they were too traumatic for me.

Two Summers in a row were quite memorable for me in a favourable way because I was living them in a foreign land. I was living on an American Air Force Base near Fairford Gloucestershire England in 1986 and 1987. It was an enjoyable, exciting, and ecstatic experience abroad with friends, co-workers, and natives of the land. I was very honoured to be able to live such a rewarding life back then as an 18, 19, and 20-year-old USAF Airman serving my country in another country. I was thankful to be able to return back home again with all of those awesome memories.

This Memorial Day Monday here on my blog I’ll be posting a very special entry to honour those who served before, alongside, and after me – but never made it back home again. They died fighting for freedom while serving their country. Just like this soldier that everyone knew as “Camoulflage”:

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Blogging God History Life Television Travel Weather

Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

Looking Back At This Blog – ‘The Major’s Life Blog’ marks its 3RD anniversary in existence this week going back to the ancient history days of Myspace. (They seem so long ago.) The blog has developed and evolved greatly over the past 3 years, and although it’s not nearly as popular as it once was back in its hectic heyday (2008) it is still very relevant. It keeps me accountable to those of you within my church family that love and care for me on this fantastic journey. I’m celebrating my second chance at Life, so what better way to do so than to share it with those of you who are rooting for me to succeed. God is using me and this blog to minister to the world. Based on personal feedback over the past 3 years lives are being saved out there because of this blog’s existence. The Truth is I am not saving lives. This blog is not saving lives. God is saving lives. He is my Almighty Leader, and I am just one of His millions of Disciples here on His land – His creation. My words are really His words when I minister His Good News. I take no credit at all. It is all because of Jesus.

Looking Ahead At Summer Television – The 2009-2010 television season officially comes to a close tomorrow night (the 26TH of May), and then summer reruns and new and returning series take over from there. I always look forward to Summer television. Three of my favourite broadcast network prime time shows air solely in the summer – “America’s Got Talent” (returning June 01ST), “Hell’s Kitchen” (returning June 01ST), and “Big Brother” (returning July 08TH). Summertime is a fun time to watch my favourite shows as well as catch-up on those that I missed during the regular season but managed to preserve on DVR. I’ve got some CBS sitcom marathons to watch soon !

Looking Out At 40,000 Feet – On a recent flight aboard a Boeing 777 from Miami to Dallas cruising altitude was at 40,000 feet. That’s probably the highest above the Earth that I have ever been in my entire lifetime. Although it appears to be peaceful and quiet outside at 40,000 feet – 7½ miles above sea level – the weather is harsh, fierce, and unlike anything we’ve ever seen here on earth. Oh sure the sun is out and shining brightly against a crystal clear deep blue sky with all of the clouds way down below, but air temperatures are about -60°F to -80°F. That’s a full 130° to 150° colder outside than it is inside the cabin. Oh yeah let’s not forget about those ferocious winds that are blowing up to 250 MPH. That outrageously cold air from the outside is essentially cooked by the engines of the jet aircraft, and then it is cooled back down by the air conditioners so that it feels comfortable to our human skin. How dry is that cooked then cooled air that touches our skin ?  It’s as dry as it can possibly be – there’s only a trace amount of water in that air. It’s less than 2% water, so that explains why we’re always thirsty inflight and our skin seems to dry up. It doesn’t really explain though why some of us (me included) have to take Dramamine in order not to get sick inflight and embarrass ourselves. Well that’s because the barometric pressure inflight is much lower than we’re used to – unless of course you live on a mountaintop that’s at least 7,500 feet above sea level. You crave oxygen ?  Well there’s much less of it inflight. Happy Flying This Summer !

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Annoyances Food Home Travel Weather

Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

Weather Delay – My return trip back home from North Texas to South Florida via American Airlines was just about as crazy and unpredictable as it was going there. My round trip flights last Thursday night and this past Monday night can be summed up in three words – ‘two-hour-delay’. My 4:20 PM CDT flight back home to the land of the ‘305’ was already delayed by 45 minutes several hours before the actual departure time. Then it was delayed by another 25 minutes. It ended up taking off into the wild blue yonder 2 hours and 15 minutes late due to thunderstorm activity all around DFW. MIA also had its fair share of thunderstorms, so while we touched down 1 hour and 40 minutes late it took another 30 minutes just to get to our assigned gate. Long story short I walked in to my front door just a few minutes before Midnight. It was another long day (and night) of travel. I was happy to be home sweet home.

Collared Way – This past Sunday night at Dinner me and my brother were required to put on (what resembled) generic bowling shirts that were provided by the wait staff of the neighbourhood clubhouse restaurant because we came in wearing non-collared tee-shirts. It became a running gag throughout the entire dinner. We pledged to ‘accidentally’ drop as much food as we possibly could on our collared shirts, and then play a round of bowling a la Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble. Here’s what I think about the collared policy. A restaurant should be more concerned about upgrading their food, service, cleanliness, decor, and atmosphere before they worry so much about what someone is wearing to the table. I had issues with all five of those aspects. Here’s what else I think. If you’ve got such a policy then clearly and visibly state so at the front entrance of your joint. And this is the most important thing of them all. Don’t discriminate. Enforce your policy to all of your customers – not just the ones that look young. If you’re old(er) and you’re wearing a tee-shirt then you too should have to put on a bowling shirt in order to eat dinner. You should also have to put on long pants and socks. It makes no sense to me to wear a collared shirt with short pants and no socks to the dinner table. I’m just sayin’.

Taylor Lesley Day – My lovable little niece turned 4-weeks-old today. I met her for the very first time last week when I arrived at DFW. This much is certain. She’s even more adorable LIVE and in person than she is in pictures. She doesn’t eat any food yet, but she drinks a lot of warm milk. She totally digs her Binky. She can’t go very long without it.  Her favourite pastime is clearly sleeping. She gets about 22 hours of it per day. I’ve been told that she won’t get nearly that much when I get to visit her again in about six weeks. Quite a few pictures were taken of the two of us. I’ve got a few on my phone. My sister-in-law specializes in scrapbooking. She’s very good at it. I actually think that she could even do it professionally. I can’t wait to see that first photo album of Taylor chock-full of all of her latest snapshots. Knowing my sister-in-law that first photo album should be filled and completed by the time that I return. I’m counting on it !