Driving down a lone Texas Highway, Texas Ranger Walker receives a phone call, he listens intently, a smile begins to form on his face. He hangs up the phone without saying a word. “You’ll never guess what I just heard Trivette.” he says to his trusted partner. “Judging from that smile Walker, I imagine that a couple of round house kicks might be in our future.” is the response. “Nope, care to take another guess?” giving Jimmy Trivette a mischievous smile.
Trivette knows the game and has learned over the years. He remains silent knowing that Walker can’t keep the information to himself any longer than a couple of miles. “You know Ranger Shaw from Victoria?” Walker finally asks? “Ranger Shaw, yeah, I remember him, great guy and didn’t he have that son that joined the military?” “Yup, funny you should mention his son, I just got off the phone with Homes for Heroes and he is now part of that great team.” “Hooya!” Trivette exclaims as he smacks his 10 gallon on the dash. “I knew old Shaw’s kid had something going for him!”
Yes that right ladies and gentlemen. Texas Ranger Walker has just announced our newest member to the Homes for Heroes family. Caleb Shaw.
Caleb Shaw
Caleb Shaw is a Native Texan, with TEXAS size ambitions. After graduating from Agua Dulce as an accomplished student and state qualifying athlete, Caleb moved to Victoria where he was recruited to work at JR’s Boot Center. He quickly became a favorite among customers even though he was easily spotted as the only “non-western” employee there. Despite the fact that he loved his job and Victoria, he felt a sense of service, so he joined the United States Air Force. In just seven short years he was able to soar through the ranks, earn honor graduate out of basic training, and earn the top graduate award for nearly every military school he was sent to, including the coveted top spot for Airman Leadership School. He flew on the E-3 Sentry AWACS as an airborne radar technician for four years before cross training into three years of success in military law..
After the military, he worked for three years at Sendero Power Line Construction, Inc. Caleb’s intuitive thinking and work ethic took an already great company to new levels of excellence. Caleb also earned a bachelor’s degree graduating magna cum laude, and two associate degrees. Despite his success and enjoyment, Caleb missed his roots, sales and customer interaction.
Caleb is now a full time member of Redding & Associates, and couldn’t be happier. Caleb brings a passion and excitement that is second to none. Using tomorrow’s technology combined with old fashioned values, Caleb’s goal is to meet the current needs of all his customers and clients. Customer satisfaction is the foundation upon which Redding & Associates was founded, and Caleb strives to help build upon that. Caleb’s customers can reach him at all times, as an unrivaled work ethic insures he will do everything possible to make sure all transactions flow smoothly, efficiently, quickly, and most importantly….ENJOYABLY. Most people have forgotten that buying their first new home is supposed to be an exciting time, and if that went sour, the thought of doing it over again can be downright depressing, Caleb intends to change that perception, one satisfied customer at a time. Care, loyalty, integrity, confidentiality…just a few of the things any client deserves, but with Caleb Shaw will undoubtedly enjoy.
Caleb is a member of the Victoria Board of Realtors, the Texas Association of Realtors, and the National Association of Realtors. Additionally, Caleb is one of only five Victoria, TX Realtors to have earned the Texas Affordable Housing Specialist award, signifying his desire to help more Texans achieve their dreams of homeownership.
Recently Caleb decided to join the Homes for Heroes organization. By becoming an affiliate of this program Caleb is able to bring the excellent benefits to Victoria County Heroes. As a veteran, Caleb knows firsthand the sacrifices made by heroes in all the different career fields. Having two brothers that also served in the military, as well as a Texas Ranger for a father, Caleb is extremely excited to give back to our heroes, and make the pride of home ownership a reality!
So if you live around Victoria Texas and are looking for TEXAS size Service and savings, you can contact Caleb by visiting the Homes for Heroes website.
Want to be part of the Homes for Heroes family? Contact Helen or Ruth at 1-866-443-7637 with any questions or visit our web site at Homes for Heroes. This is a wonderful program helping our Heroes that do so much for our communities.
Did you ever have one of those mornings where when you got up your left hip seems to be out of socket, your right arm is so sore and stiff you can’t move it and your neck is so twisted and sore that you finally get to see how hairy your back is? Well I had that morning this morning. I barely made it into the office at Homes for Heroes. I am not sure why I had to pop my hip into place in order to get down the stairs. Nor did I understand why I could not get the tooth brush in my arm up to my mouth or even move my head enough to meet the arm.
The wife gave a knowing giggle when she heard the loud pop coming from the top of the stairs. I mentioned I don’t understand what happened, how could I sleep so fitfully and yet not be able to get parts moving in the morning. She said it was all part of getting old! Ninjas don’t get old I replied. Then it must have been the Shepherd Pie. Ahhh!!! She’s right.
We had Shepherd pie for the first time last night. I had heard of it before and always thought it something exotic. So I was a little disappointed to find it was not that much different than pot pie and for the money I think you can make a pot pie a little cheaper. Remember, frugality will be with us for awhile.
Speaking of being frugal. Has anyone seen in the produce department lettuce that is sold with the roots still attached? It usually comes in a plastic container similar to the one in the picture and is sold on the premise that it is so fresh it is still growing in your fridge.
It is packages like this and has roots.
Well we get a couple of those in the spring then plant them in the garden. We eat salads 2 to 3 times a week in the warmer season, so we figure we beat the system by purchasing these heads of lettuce and having them in the garden. That way we don’t have to buy lettuce every week at the grocery store. Just make sure to keep the rabbits away. They love the stuff. But I suspect this summer might not be a problem. We will talk about traps and rabbit recipes another time. I have been practicing making my dead weight trap this winter in the office. You would be surprised at how many people try to trip it and come away with sore fingers!
The other thing we just started this winter was growing our own green onions. It was fluke actually. The wife and I have a pet name for our refrigerator, it is called the pre-compost bin. We let all our vegetable matter get really soft and smooshy in the fridge before bringing it out to the compost pile.
These guys grow like crazy.
Can’t seem to eat those darn veggies fast enough. Well we had some green onions sitting in there all wilted and slimy. We hadn’t eaten a one, and I was in a frugal mood and was not going to let a little spoilage wreck my grocery budget. So I cut the wilted tops off leaving about an inch or so of the bottom. I got some potting soil out of the garage and planted those suckers. Put them in the window and now have a constant supply of green onions. I just cut what I need and they keep growing. So it has been about 3 months now and I have not had to dole out the fifty cents it costs to buy them at the store. Huge savings, something like $25 over the course of the a year if you buy them weekly. Okay it might not be huge but I envision my future grand kids having a blast picking lettuce and cutting onions for dinner.
Oh, don’t worry, I will have more of these neat little frugal ideas for your home and office. Tomorrow we will discuss home and office lighting techniques that will save money and look really cool too!
We had an incident the other day in the Homes for Heroes office. No, I was not involved! Even though I kept getting looks from my colleagues while we were watching the event unfold. I tell ya, once you get a reputation…… We heard tires screeching in the parking lot and all of us ran over to the window to see what was happening. A female was backing her car out of the parking spot and a young driver of the bull headed gender was traveling through the parking lot at a rate of speed similar to that of the local freeway. Well these two things by themselves was not really the issue. These two things happening at the same time was the issue. As the lady was backing out the kid saw her with just enough time to skid about 30 feet through the parking lot. No vehicular contact was made and all seemed fine. I let out a sigh and muttered, “Women drivers.” That’s when I noticed the first look.
We waited to see if anything else would happen. It was either that or get back to work. For three full minutes, neither car moved. I think they were both waiting for the other to move first. One would expect the lady to pull back in to the spot and another would expect the young kid to let her go now that he is stopped. Neither was taking place. The young kid honks his horn first and that is immediately followed by the women honking back. This could get good I thought, but the women pulled into the spot and as the kids starts to pass her she puts her car into reverse and starts backing out again! She doesn’t hit him but I think he learned his lesson.
As we all headed back to our desks some one asked me what I meant about women drivers. I said nothing but sent them this video by email. I thought it was funny, but my boss didn’t. How one can get into trouble for stating fact I’ll never know. You watch the video and tell me if I am wrong.
See? It is not me, women can make some bad decisions. Now I am in trouble again. Gotta go talk to my boss about this blog. Talk to you tomorrow.
We all know that Homes for Heroes affiliates with Realtors and lenders throughout the country to offer substantial discounts and rebates on real estate related services. They provide these rebates and discounts to those who serve our country and communities every day and include military personnel, firefighters, police officers and first responders. Homes for Heroes could not reach the number of heroes that it does without their affiliates.
As Homes for Heroes continues to expand we strive to find the best of the best to serve our Heroes. We have found that in our newest affiliates. From the state of Colorado which means “Color Red” and where the Rio Grande originates, Homes for Heroes would like to introduce to you our newest members.
Alisa Lewis (L) Pamela Williams (R)
Meet Alisa Lewis and Pamela Williams. This mother and daughter team are 20 year residents of the Denver area, they have been providing residents top notch Real Estate service for over 6 years. Their unique background of Accounting and Interior design will ensure that whether selling or buying a home they will make it a smooth transition. They pride themselves on being committed to exceeding your expectations through professionalism, integrity, dependability and excellence.
When not providing great customer service you can find this team enjoying the great outdoors, playing golf, biking and spending time with their families. Pam has another role of being the doting grandmother of Alisa’s 13 month old son Bradyn. Her pride and joy.
So if you live in the Denver area and are looking for a team that will put your best interests first and foremost and save you money, you can contact them by visiting the Homes for Heroes website.
Want to be part of the Homes for Heroes family? Contact Helen or Ruth at 1-866-443-7637 with any questions or visit our web site at Homes for Heroes. This is a wonderful program helping our Heroes that do so much for our communities.
With all the panic and hysteria being brought about from our politicians we can’t help but hunker down for a good old fashion depression. I don’t think it will be a shoe boiling depression for a couple of reasons; because when I boiled my shoes at the Homes for Heroes office, no one wanted to share it with me and it would also mean our politicians were capable of doing anything right. But they have enough knowledge to be dangerous. So I suspect things could get bad for a while.
Because we will be forced to save our pennies we get to call it being frugal. Frugal let’s you be proud on how much you save and you won’t be considered a cheap son of a bum. You will soon see a rash of videos and blogs popping up telling you how to cook a healthy meal for four under a dollar a person. Well we are going to be on the forefront of that wave.
Want to be frugal eating healthy? I have a quick recipe and it feeds four. Chicken or beef stew. If you have a pressure cooker, the meal takes about 20 to 30 minutes tops. My wife doesn’t think stew can be made that fast, something about the word stew having something to do with stewing. Her stew cooks all day and is very yummie, but in the morning who wants to be peeling potato’s? The meal is great for any left over meats but if left overs scare you I have something thing to say. GET USED TO IT!!
Peel and cut up two medium size potatoes, then without washing off the knife cut up one or two carrots. Rinsing off the knife would not be frugal. I usually use one big carrot or two small. If you are the adventurous type cut up a celery stalk. Put these into the pressure cooker, or in a pot of water and get them pressuring. While that is going on put about 2 to 3 cups of water, the meat and about 4 appropriate flavored bullion cubes into a pot and get that boiling. So now you have two pots of stuff boiling. I know you are thinking why not just use one pot? You can’t, and that will soon be revealed. Back to watching the pot boil. As they are boiling grab a piece of tupperware and put in 3 table spoons of flour and about 1/2 cup of water. Shake the ever living heck out of it for about a minute. As the meat (which I hope you cubed) is boiling slowly pour in the flour/water mixture constantly stirring until the stuff looks like gravy. When the veggies are done, drain and dump them into the gravy. Add salt, pepper and onion to taste and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Dinner is ready.
Cost of the meal? If you used left over meat, $1.62 if you were a weenie and bought fresh stuff $4.62. And the bonus is you get to feel all outdoorsy like for not cleaning your knife in between cuts. Now some may take being frugal a step to far. This next video is something I would not recommend. I don’t call this being frugal, I call it being a criminal and bum and some one I would not let my daughter marry or even date for that matter.
Since not all of us are willing to live under the neighbors porch, we will move on to a cheapfrugal dessert that the kids will love to make. It only takes about as long as the next video and it is easier to show you than describe it to you. I hope your kids as enthusiastic as these are. Especially when it comes to cleaning up.
As most of you know, Google and I seem to have a tepid relationship. They tolerate me, but just barely. As I was searching You Tube for the cup cake recipe, Google thought they would add a few bonus videos into the fray. They caught my eye (No pun intended as you will soon see.) and being todays blog is about being frugal I will throw them in. For you guys after watching these you will appreciate the softer gender all the more. For you gals all I can say is I am glad I did not have to go through this in boot camp. I might not have made it.
Next blog I will have some neat frugal tips on growing some veggies at home. It is a real cost saver and will provide fun and entertainment for the whole fam damily. But something we have ignored for a couple of weeks. WHAT IS IT?
No, stop putting it in your nose.
This one is bizarre in nature. You must really be dedicated to your loved ones to use it. Brave too. There is a danger to using one of these. Have you figured it out yet? I gave you plenty of hints. Last one, Crest is not recommended. There ya go! They are tooth brushes for your pets. Go figure. I know you can’t wait till tomorrow to find out more so I will leave you with your anticipation.
As you know Homes for Heroes is a Real Estate program so many of its affiliates are realtor’s. One of the many skills they must possess is an eye for space. When most people feel it is time to sell their home they do not think of all the years of clutter they have accumulated. Why would they? They are comfortable enough living there so why would it bother anyone else? The answer is in the question. They are not everyone else. As hard as it is to believe this, people are different and have different tastes. Think of your distant aunt and why your parents would never go to visit her. Something to do with owning 9 cats or some such crazy thing. To poor old aunt Bertha, it would never occur to her that cats leave a smell that most people find stomach turning.
Realtor’s will tell home owners they have to make their home attractive to the largest block of people. They can do this by cleaning, removing clutter, painting and repairing the most obvious things. Who would think it normal to have a teetering toilet? The biggest and easiest thing a home owner can do though is getting rid of clutter.
Can you find the toaster? If you can't how can potential buyers?
Make the counters counters again instead of appliance storage. You know that book shelf that now holds hats, mittens, assorted boxes and empty bottles? Make it a book shelf again. That front closet? Yup, just have a few coats in it and nothing else. This makes the home look tidy and neat and maybe just comfortable enough for some one else.
Most times that works, but there are a few home owners that look the realtor in the eye and say “And just what am I supposed to do with all this S&#@T!” If the realtor is smart they just get up and leave, but if they are like most realtors, (lighten up guys) they will let the home owner know that there are many options out there to deal with the excess clutter. Box it up and put it in the basement in nice neat piles is one way and it shows how much storage is down there. Another is renting a storage pod. A pod is like an empty semi truck that shows up at your door, you put your crap in it and it drives away till you want it back again. The bold realtor suggests renting a dumpster for a week. The smart realtor will show them this neat trick.
Can the kitty litter box go here?
Turning your stairs into storage space. It is not that hard and not that expensive. Just make sure that you don’t leave them open during an open house. The home owner and insurance company may frown on the injury claim.
Another great space saving idea is found in this video. For the Mid West, an in-ground pool does not always help in selling a home and sometimes it can hamper. We can only use them about 2 weeks a year and Dad doesn’t like cleaning them all summer for just two weeks. In the winter they are just a big eye sore in the middle of your back yard. So this video shows what can be done with that pool. Turn it into an outdoor rec room.
Putting in a pool table in a pool is appropriate. I think the one below would be perfect. Easy in and easy out when the home sells.
Another fine example of Recycle, Reuse, Replenish.
Any other ideas on saving space? Let me know and I will get it in the blog. So from yesterday we had heard that one of my buddies in the Marine Corps wanted to marry a local girl while we were on temporary duty in the Philippines. We had tried to talk him out of it, or at least give it some time but instead we were invited to a party. That is where we pick up today.
We entered a neighborhood similar to this video. There were 4 of us including the Groom to Be. We were a little nervous. None of us knew the neighborhood nor any of the people we were visiting. We, okay I and another, were expecting the worse. We would be kidnapped and held for ransom or be forced into some diabolical plot against our country. Nothing like that happened. A lot of people were there and there was lots of beer and lumpia.
After a few hours of great fun and camaraderie, a cheering grew from the party. I scooted over to where the commotion was taking place. I found that the father was bringing a goat into the house. Okay, I thought, what kind of game can be played with a goat. I followed the precession up the stairs and we all crowded around the bathroom door as the goat and the father entered. The father picked up the goat and placed it in the bath tub.
Just to show you how naive I was, I couldn’t figure out why every one wanted to see a goat be given a bath. The father had turned on the water (which was a large bucket mounted on the wall with a water tap) and started to get the goat wet. Then out of the blue some one hand old Dad a large knife. I still didn’t know what was going on. I thought they were going to shave the darn thing. Nope. Next thing I knew, blood was spraying the wall, Dad was holding the goat down and the crowd was cheering like crazy. Naivety was soon replaced with reality at seeing my first slaughter. I did not want to look like a rube so I asked if anyone wanted a beer, took orders, and headed back down stairs. I headed to the cooler outside only to find I was the only male on the ground floor. All the men had gone upstairs to partake in the slaughter of a goat. So feeling like a rube, I grabbed the beers and headed back up the stairs.
Shall I continue? It gets better. I haven’t even got to the cat part yet.
Going through todays feeds there was an article on how the Air Force wanted to cut their dependence on oil. My first thought was “how are aircraft going to fly without oil?” I don’t think it can happen. Even if we made nuclear power plants small enough to put in a fighter jet you still will need oil and grease to keep the thing in the air. Do they think hydraulic fluid is made from corn? So I wrote it off as a PR piece and moved on. Then while at the Homes for Heroesoffice some one was complaining about cold feet and how they needed new boots. I told them they should go to a Army Surplus store and get a pair of Mickey Mouse Boots. Heading over to my desk it hit me like a ton of bricks. “I need recycled tire sandals!” I had a pair as a kid and loved them. I would run around in the sand and mud making that unmistakable rrrrrRRRRRRRRR uh rrrrrrRRRRRRRR uh rrrrrRRRRRRR sound of a car going through gears. With those sandals I was Bobby Issacs racing around the track. I did get some odd looks while I was racing around my desk going rrrrrRRRRRR uh rrrrrrRRRR uh SCREEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!! (Taking corners really fast.)
Keep in mind you will need two buckles. What color straps should I get?
Google did not let me down. A quick search got me what I needed and a bonus too. My family will have the finest home made tire sandals this side of the Mississippi this summer. I will walk through the Mall of America with my shiny new sandals past those expensive Tevas stores. Heck a pair of tire sandals will last 40,000 miles on a car and indefinitely on a persons foot. Think of it. Not only will we be doing our part in keeping the planet from melting, we will save hundreds of dollars in foot wear. Here is the site that will give you step by step instructions. I will post a photo of the family once I get them done. I am too excited to continue. But I am a professional and will maintain. rrrrRRRRR uh rrrrRRRR uh rrrrRRRRRRR……..
All psyched up now thinking of recycling. Since I was looking at tire sandals I took a peek at what else we could do with tires. The outdoor furniture I have now is all rusted and needs repainting. How about if I get an old tractor tire or two I can replace that old wrought iron table. Look at how cool this set is.
This would look perfect in my back yard.
Never wears out, you can spill on it and it won’t rust. You can kick it and it won’t dent or bend. Perfect. I just need to keep the wife out of the garage for a couple of weeks.
If you need some bar stools for either the house or outdoors I think these would do. Get the neighborhood over for a barbecue and when it is time for them to leave just roll the chairs at them. Dual purpose furniture. I am liking this whole recycle thing.
Honey they can even double as a kids playground set.
And doesn’t this next chair seem like an easy build? A sheet of plywood, some dowels, glue, screws and a drill. Voila! Modern furniture for the living room. What? You think it would take craftsman skills to do this?
Just keep this in mind the next time you replace your tires.
But the coolest outdoor furniture is about to be divulged. And if my wife reads this she will know I am dead serious. Making a couch out of your lawn.
I'm thinking dandelions for a nice head rest.
A couple of years ago we had a new neighbor move in across the street. He is a nice guy and is doing his best to get the neighbors all talking to one another. God bless him. One of the things he does is sit out on his new front yard patio and wave and talk to all that walk by. It was catching so I also put in a front yard patio. We are both in the middle of the block so we catch everyone coming and going. But I think I will top him this year with my own dirt/grass couch. For all you others that find this just as exciting I will also provide you with the directions. These are courtesy of Inhabit.com
If yer tryin to figure out what to do with that pile o' dirt by the garage.
Is there more? You bet, but I can’t cover it all in one day. I have to test the shoes and table with the wife first. I love the stuff but sometimes my wife is not so understanding. Something about picking up old tires at the local garage and then having them sit around in the yard doing nothing except making nice mosquito condos. Like I have never finished a project before. I figure I will need about 16 car tires and two tractor tires to get done what I have planned and the Gas station is eager to deliver old used tires for free!!
What? Oh yeah, thanks for getting me back on track. How does goats, cats and a wedding tie in together? It just so happens that this story takes place in the Philippines. Just after Christmas (search the archives for that story) and the whole squadron is there now. A friend of mine, a young Lance Corporal that was about to be promoted had decided to marry one of the locals. Now keep in mind that we had only been there about 3 weeks but he said it was love at first site. He was so set on this he went to his girls parents house and asked their permission.
Needless to say they didn’t help by accepting his offer. So the date was set and we were invited to a party. We had tried to get him to give it some time, but he would not listen. He took her shopping to buy a ring and they were planning two weddings. One for her parents in the Philippines and one for his parents somewhere in Oregon. To here more of this tale you must read tomorrows spot.
Just keep in mind, if you need a bigger place to put all this cool material get a hold of your Homes for Heroes affiliate a let them save you money. I know I keep repeating this but it really is a free and good program. So give us a visit and see if we can’t save you some money.
The big news of the day is the successful water ditching by US Air pilot Chesley B. Sullenberger. To think he dead sticked (no power) that plane in so perfectly as to not even break off a wing is truly amazing. My hats off to his skill, demeanor and cast iron B**ls. The aircraft was an Airbus A320. What is the significance of that you ask? It is a fly by wire aircraft, meaning that there is no cables connecting the pilots control stick to control surfaces. On older aircraft when you pulled the joy stick to go up you would feel the resistance of the wind over your wings. Not with this aircraft. On the A320 the joy stick is a super duper computer mouse. You move the stick and the stick sends a message to the computer, the computer sends a message to the flaps and the aircraft elevates. So to put it in terms of driving your car with the same controls as the A320. When you want to stop you just push a button on the dash and the car comes to a stop. If you want to stop faster you can’t just push the button harder like you could if you were pushing the brake pedal. So Mr. Sullenberger gets a Homes for Heroes huge salute and our thanks for being an American Hero.
Just to give you an idea of what a bird strike can do to an aircraft engine, I have a couple of videos from both inside and outside the cockpit. I have personally witnessed the after effects of a bird strike on an jet engine. In the Philippines a F4 Phantom had hit a turkey buzzard. Those turbines spin so fast they can actually send the flesh through metal. When you watch these two videos pay attention to how calm the pilots are. Training pays off.
This video is a F16 Falcon. You can see the bird suddenly gaining speed as it gets caught in the suction of the intake. Then the pilot tries to go through a restart. Now keep in mind the F16 only has one engine. So when it goes out he has no back up.
This next flame out is on a Boeing 757. Again listen to the calm in the pilots voice. Also you will notice the engine modulator is desperately trying to keep the engine firing but can’t. I have been on an aircraft when this happened. Fortunately the plane was on the ground. We were doing routine maintenance on the plane and some one started the engine. Inside we heard a loud bang and saw a flash. As the engine tried to gain speed the bangs and flashes came faster and faster. They shut down engine and started it again. Problem solved. I was not reassured though and it cost me my favorite pair of skivvies.
400 pounds. If it is made up solely of penny’s. Or 40 lbs. if it is solely made up of quarters. What? You know what I am talking about. Come on! Your memory can’t be that bad. We talked about it the other day. Fine, read this article. Some rube broke into a house and stole $800 worth of change. The police caught him a short distance away desperately lugging buckets of coins. My question was how much does $800 worth of coins weigh? 400 lbs. if penny’s, 200 lbs. if nickels, 40 lbs. if dimes or quarters. I couldn’t talk about it sooner because I had to brush up on my math. I hope your curiosity has now been satiated. If not read on.
We all complain that the younger generations spend too much time on the computer playing games and facebooking. (Is that a word?) Well now those Oxford University people may have stumbled on something that may provide help to our heroes suffering from Post Traumatic Stress. Playing the video game Tetris has shown to dramatically reduce flash backs. Think of that? What does Tetris do to the brain that it can rewire it just by playing? That may explain some things about me. It was my favorite game back in the days of Donkey Kong and Mario Brothers. I would play at least 2 hours a day. From experience I can tell you that you do completely zone out. Check out the article and start playing!
My wife was not impressed with yesterdays motivational picture. She claimed she did not understand the whole aviation thing.
Come on, you know this would freak you out if you had to do it!
I at first became defensive, thinking that this is the ultimate scenario in the sense that everything you thought and dreamed about became second fiddler to the situation at hand. Here you are at 3000 feet in a single seat aircraft, enjoying the solitude, then your only source of survival sputters and quits. Does this photo not explain being between a rock and a hard place? If you are frightened by heights and in a plane and the engine quits and you have to go out and reposition the propeller and you have 20 seconds, what do you do? (I am sorry Keanu, it was too easy)
My wife experiences vertigo when driving over high bridges. So I thought this photo would give her that same sensation. I thought she (and everyone else) would sympathize with the pilots predicament. So let’s use a more feet-on-the-ground approach of what I am trying to point out. When watching this film, and you don’t have to watch all of it, pay attention to the girl walking. I get the eebie-jeebies when I watch it, especially when they have to pass people. This will give the sensation I am looking to induce (I hope), but it does not convey the urgency I want to add. Unless you consider the urgency to get the heck off of there as fast as possible and make it all go away. Basically, heights are scary when flying in an aircraft and you have to exit the aircraft in order to save your life, because this includes the fear of heights with the addition of stress and anxiety that comes with needing to go against nature and fix something in 1 second or less.
I suppose I could have saved a lot of time and effort if I had just thrown this baby out there and kept it simple. But that was from a long time ago and I think today we live a little bit more complicated lives.
This started it all. Sorry.
I am not sure if yesterday I had just said, “Hang in there baby for 2009,” it would have conveyed a positive attitude. I think it would have conveyed a sense of resignation. This is not proper when looking forward to a bright and prosperous year. We all know there will be bumps in the road (or should I say holes?), but if you keep your mind sharp and you’re aware of what is happening and you think on your toes, then those holes will be easily sidestepped in life.
Here is a good example of being aware and thinking on your feet. A man in Florida tried to evade getting a ticket. He saw the cop following him and he was sure he was going to be pulled over. He did not want to be pulled over. The reason was quite simple. He was a felon and sitting on the seat next to him was a handgun. Now you people in law enforcement know that is a no-no.
So how is this an example of thinking on your feet? The felon knew he had to get rid of the cops without bringing any attention to himself. He knew he had only seconds before the lights would go off on the following police car and that would be that.
He looks around in his car desperately looking for something, anything that would divert the police attention. He sees the gun. No, that would not work, that would bring unwanted attention. He had some coins in the ash tray, but it was barely a dollar. Not enough to throw out the window and have a hundred kids clamoring in the streets diving for shiny objects. There was was the fuzzy dice hanging in the windshield. No, not heavy nor big enough to stop a pursuing cop car. How about the air fresheners? They were new, but were they strong enough for the cop to smell and stop to see where the smell was coming from? How about the empty pop cans and bottles sitting in the passenger seat floor pan? No, if he bent over to grab some that would again draw unwanted attention to a situation in which he wanted none. Cellphone? Yeah, cellphone.
He grabs the phone, calls 911 and reports an armed robbery only a few blocks away. He hangs up the phone and looks into his rear view mirror. Nothing yet. Crap, do I panic now and run? Just give it a few more seconds he thinks to himself. He wipes the sweat off his brow and looks up again. His heart sinks. The lights come on. $%@#!!, he yells. Now he is in a deep state of panic. He is reaching for the gun when he glances in the rear view mirror and sees the cop turning off the road in the direction of the armed robbery. “Victory is mine!” He says with a smug confidence.
See? This man was thinking on his feet. He fought the flight or fight instinct, kept his cool and got away clean. . or so he thought. One thing this man did not anticipate was that another police unit in the vicinity picked up his tail and followed him to a parking lot where they arrested him for, yes, you guessed right. A felon with a hand gun. You can read the article here.
The other part of the story that I failed to mention was that this felon was out looking for a home to purchase. His demonstrated ability to think on his feet had also told him that now is a good time to buy. Homes for Heroes will not be providing any assistance to him, but they will to the fine officers that made this guy go away. So pick up the phone and get a hold of your local Homes for Heroes affiliate and find out how much you will save in addition to the great deal you will find in your new home. I can’t repeat enough how good this program is. Get moving now.
We start our second entry with the highly anticipated story of my promotion to Sergeant. Once the stripes were “pinned” on, my buddies thought it appropriate to stay intoxicated for 48 hours. During this time they worked in shifts not allowing me to pass out, fall asleep or become sober. It is harder than you think to stay drunk that long. I was in Iwakuni Japan and during one of the nights the jar heads managed to talk one of the bar owners in town to let us stay the night. They locked up the booze except for what we bought, then turned down the lights and locked us in. Theres not much else I remember except the hang over lasted about 4 days and I went through a whole lot of aspirin.
I know not much of a story but I bet there are not too many of you who can claim to be drunk for 48 hours straight and live to tell about it! Or will I prove to be naive in the world of binge drinking?
Found out some cool things for you vets living in Minnesota. In the last couple of sessions the MN legislation has passed some laws that I think you should take a look at. One BIG items is that if you have been on active duty in the last 24 months, your
hunting and fishing licenses are FREE!! Also if you don’t have a Hunting Safety Certificate, the DNR does not make you go through the course. I suppose they figure you know how to hunt safely.
Okay here is some thing else I thought was cool. The state of MN passed legislation that if you are a disabled vet, starting for the tax year 2008, you have an exemption on homestead property taxes!! It is good to see that politicians can sometimes get stuff done right.
Matters pertaining to Police. I was bouncing around blogs and came across
“The Chiefs Corner” and the Chief was talking about a new software service from the guys at “Omega Group”. It is called “Crimemapping” and it will send the user alerts when a crime is reported within a selected distance of your home. It is not every where in the states but I think all Police Departments should consider this as part of their community service. I would definitely sign up. Make sure to push this on your local PD.
The Homes For Heroes Foundation is starting to brainstorm on ideas on how to get the word out. We would welcome all ideas and opinions. Since we are just starting out and we are of limited manpower, anyone who has been there already I sure would appreciate some advice. You know, to keep us from reinventing the wheel?!
Next in the series of untold stories, “Don’t throw stones at Monkeys!!”
But then who can top getting promoted? Hope to hear some stories soon.
He hangs up the phone without saying a word. “You’ll never guess what I just heard Trivette.” he says to his trusted partner. “Judging from that smile Walker, I imagine that a couple of round house kicks might be in our future.” is the response. “Nope, care to take another guess?” giving Jimmy Trivette a mischievous smile.
Posted by homesforheroes 
office some one was complaining about cold feet and how they needed new boots. I told them they should go to a Army Surplus store and get a pair of 
Mickey Mouse Boots. Heading over to my desk it hit me like a ton of bricks. “I need recycled tire sandals!” I had a pair as a kid and loved them. I would run around in the sand and mud making that unmistakable rrrrrRRRRRRRRR uh rrrrrrRRRRRRRR uh rrrrrRRRRRRR sound of a car going through gears. With those sandals I was Bobby Issacs racing around the track. I did get some odd looks while I was racing around my desk going rrrrrRRRRRR uh rrrrrrRRRR uh SCREEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!! (Taking corners really fast.)
huge salute and our thanks for being an American Hero.
