Oh, yeah...

Today is my birthday. The big 30.

Seems kind of appropriate to turn 30 on a Wednesday. A blah day for a blah birthday. It was a good birthday, but 30...not bad, but not really an exciting, great kind of birthday. 16, you looked forward to. 18 was cool. 19, 21, 25 was good--cheaper insurance is nice. 30? Nothing to really get excited about.

Eh, at least there was no zombie apocalypse today.

Finally an update

Well, it's been a while. Finally got settled in, we bought a home, and we have internet access again.


I need to get a newer picture, but here we are. :)

We had a fun July 4th, with one exception.

Currently, my wife and I are staying with her parents as we are getting ready to buy our first home. We had some family over (2 of her older sisters, their husbands and kids), and Saturday morning, we were going to head over to take a tour of some of the local caves when my sister-in-law had a close encounter with this guy on her way to the car:

He was within 10 feet of the house, about 5-6 feet from one of the cars, and fortunately, the kids were all playing on the other side of the house. I don't even want to think about what could've happened if they had decided to run around the house.

At this point, my father in law started looking for some snake shot he has for his single-shot .22 rifle. I went to grab my 22 (Remington 597), because I was concerned that 7.62x39 or .45acp would run a greater risk of ricochet, and causing more harm to people or property than good. My mother-in-law made sure that the kids stayed far, far away, and everyone else was basically keeping a respectful distance from the snake (which made no attempt to head for the hills).

I could not find the .22 ammo I usually keep with the rifle, and my magazines were empty. I thought the ammo might be out in the trunk (and it was, but I could not find it), so I ran out to look for it, unsuccessfully, and my father-in-law could not find his snakeshot.Fortunately, about this time, my brother-in-law demonstrated that he could pitch large rocks with sufficient force and accuracy to kill the snake.

The snake, by the way, was approximately 4 feet, 9 inches long, and had 11 fully formed rattles, and was starting on #12.

Here's what I learned:

1. A rifle without ammunition on hand is virtually useless.

2. "Plinking" rifles are not exempt from the above.

3. A good rifle, while versatile, may not be the best tool for every situation.

4. While I kept my cool, and did not panic, or act like a complete idiot, I was not using all available resources--large rocks, in this case.

5. Until yesterday, I had never really been able to justify the extra expense of owning a shotgun, which probably would have been the best weapon to quickly dispatch the snake. My wife doesn't have a problem with my guns, she just doesn't necessarily think that I need as many as I think I do , but she agreed that it might be time to go ahead and get a shotgun. So here's my new Maverick 88.

Nothing fancy, 12 gauge, 3" chamber, 28" barrel, 6 shot magazine.

Oh, and Paul: seriously, nice job with the rocks!

Finally, an update...

Well, where should I start--

1. I left active duty in April, and Emily and I moved out to Arizona.

2. I got a job working for L3 communications (and I'm liking it)!

3. I am in the AZ National Guard, with an Aviation Battalion. I'm liking that, too. Entirely different mindset than a Mechanized Infantry Brigade.

4. Emily and I are looking for a new house.

5. We got a new (used) car. A 95 Corolla. It had about 3/8 of a tank of gas, and it took about 5 1/2 gallons (about $13) to fill it up. It's not as cool as the Charger, but it should make getting back and forth to work a little more economical.

6. I am going to flip out if another idiot tries to run into me or run me off the road. Some of the drivers out here need coloring books, not drivers licenses.

Shameless advertising

http://www.armygear.net/ag/store/00231.html

TWO CASES of MRE's for a total of 24 meals, for $89.98 (about $30 for shipping).

Unless you're doing some really strenuous physical activity, you DON'T need to eat 3 of these a day. (Each meal contains around 1200 calories.) So this would last longer than you might think.

Flu

One of the reasons I started this blog in the first place (aside from a convenient excuse to ramble on about whatever I feel like at the moment) was to post information about emergency preparedness, and that sort of thing.

I don't want to come across as some sort of panic-mongering Chicken Little prophet of doom and gloom or anything, but I've been reading about this new Swine Flu and possible linkages to avian and other influenza viruses (virii?), and it's...a little disconcerting, at least. Probably didn't help that I was up until about 2am last night reading this stuff...

Here's the tip of the iceberg:


WHO's Chan says swine flu has pandemic potential
25 Apr 2009 13:46:19 GMT
Source: Reuters

GENEVA, April 25 (Reuters) - Outbreaks of swine flu in Mexico and the United States have the potential to cause a worldwide pandemic but it is too early to say whether they will, the head of the World Health Organisation said on Saturday.
"It has pandemic potential because it is infecting people," WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said.
The new flu strain -- a mixture of swine, human and avian flu viruses which has killed up to 68 people among 1,004 suspected cases in Mexico and infected eight in the United States -- is still poorly understood and the situation is evolving quickly, Chan said on a teleconference. (Reporting by Jonathan Lynn and Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Jon Boyle)
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LP275715.htm

Possible Swine Flu Outbreak At NYC Prep School
Department Of Health Officials Testing 75 Students At St. Francis Preparatory School In Queens
http://wcbstv.com/health/swine.flu.nyc.2.994071.html


Again, I don't want to sound like Chicken Little, but this has potential to be ugly. The cases identified so far in the US have not been fatal, but that is a mixed blessing. A rapidly fatal virus has less risk of spreading, if it kills the host too quickly. If a virus evolves/mutates/adapts to become a little less lethal, it has a better chance of infecting more people, some of whom may likely die from the infection. But possibly not before spreading it.

Anyone who doesn't understand why a flu pandemic is a big deal should read about the Spanish Influenza of 1918
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1918_flu_pandemic

If this thing does get out of hand, a good supply of clean water is essential! We need to keep clean, and hydrated!

Well, Emily and I made it to Arizona

It's good to be here. I don't have much to say right now, but if anybody in the area wants to hire me ;)