wedding pictures

So, after three long months of waiting, the photographer finally decided that she would put our pictures up on the webpage. They are at: http://onlocationphotog.com/Harris%20+%20Winfield%20Wedding/index.html. I am not going to lie, I look pretty good. I never really had trouble with that though...

just another day in paradise

Another week down, only 48 left to go. This week we had our aerodynamics class/test and then we started on flying fundamentals and local procedures. we also had our first real simulators even though we really werent even flying. The aero test went alright. I didnt make a 100 but at least i made a 97. They should really start putting our tests on friday and then not teach us stuff because it just makes it that much harder to sit through instead of testing on thursday and then having to do stuff on friday. The aero stuff was actually pretty difficult, but i know what i need and now i can pretty much brain dump the rest of that crap. we started our basic level simulators where they teach us how to do the checklists in a timely manner. we also practiced responding to basic emergencies and using our cockpit resources effectively. I did pretty well on the sims (they really arent that hard). I managed to get my checklist time down from 25 minutes to almost under ten. We also got our flight assignments this week. I am going to be in T-Bolt flight with half of my class. The other half of the class is going to be in Lightning flight. We are all in the 37th FTS. Rachael and I are having a pretty good time with the people in our class. We spend a lot of time with the other married couples. Rachael is going to start golf lessens this week because she really needs them. we are also in major house decorating mode because rachael doesnt like the idea of having our style be "early college". Well, i guess that that is it for now.

why rachael owes rick a disc

Just an early morning update for those of you that actually check this......

Rachael and I went out with a couple of friends to play some disc golf this weekend. Rachael is not the best player, but she seems to have some fun while we are out there. We had a good time, but little did we know that I would get to attempt some "fishing" while we were out there. Maybe one day she will learn to throw over the narrow part of the water and we can avoid situations like this:

This is one of those moments where you know you really love someone. At the point in the picture above, the water is actually ony about a foot deep. The mud, however, is up to my thighs. For the record, we never found the disc. Now to be fair, I actually ended up in the water a couple of holes later, but it is all about LOCATION. Overall we had a pretty good time. I just wish that the only course around here wasn't thirty minutes away.

Here are a couple more action shots.

Rick with another tree hit

Rachael and her disc prowess


Ryan's wife Julia

more pics of the things we have been up to

This is Rachael beeing a trooper and riding her bike all around Bainbridge Island, WA. She rode 15 miles in one day!

This is Rachael and her best friends from ASMS the day after the wedding.

This is the official wedding party. The best man Seth, Rick, Rachael, and the MOH Abbey

This is a pic of me getting ready to start my first triathalon. I actually did pretty well. I finished 37th out of 270.

another on bites the dust

so we are now officially done with systems. we took our fourth test of upt and i managed to once again make a 100 on it. i am the only person in my class to get a 100 on all four tests. i guess that it is just good luck, but i have been studying really hard. i just hope that i can keep my streak alive. i doubt that i will because our next section is aerodynamics. this is one of those completely foreign subjects to me. i have never liked anything physics or physics related. we are also starting our simulators this week. we actually have to wear the full get up (helmet, mask, and harness) just to sit in the cockpit and do checklists. we also are going to get split up into flights this next week. it doesn't mean much until we hit the flight line but it will be interesting to see how we get split up.

on other notes, Rachael and i are having a great time. we usually have people over for dinner a couple nights a week and we hang out with all kinds of people on the weekends. it is definitely a big adjustment getting back into all the studying (for both of us) but we are doing pretty well so far. well i guess that is it for now!

first few weeks of UPT

So the first two weeks of UPT are officially over. We have finished Aerospace physiology and Systems 1 and we have started systems 2. I have taken three tests and so far i have managed to not miss a single question. There is a lot of material that they are forcing down our throats, but things are not so bad....yet. Once we hit the flight line things will get a lot faster. This is pretty much our only chance to try and get a good base of knowledge before we have to start drinking from a fire hydrant. I am really excited to get closer to getting on the flight line because that just means that we get to fly again. Well, thats all for now...two more tests this week. woo hoo!

These are just a few pics of what we have been up to for the last few months or so.

This is us at Fay Bainbridge state park on our honeymoon.

This is me showing Rachael how to use a water filter on our backcountry canoe trip.

This is Molly the water dog relaxing with a little breeze created by our super fast paddling.

Finally started

After many years of waiting, I have finally started UPT. We started on the 14th of August with some basic intro stuff and then we moved on to Aerospace Physiology for the last week and one day. Phase 1(the first six weeks) is dedicated to academics and getting to know your flight. We are doing pretty well with that aspect. We have had people over several times, including the entire flight last weekend. The info that we are learning in class is pretty basic, but it is still pretty useful. We spent a day just doing classroom lectures on what to expect from our oxygen system, ejection seat, and parachute. We got to go on a "chamber flight" where they put us in a pressure chamber and took us up to 35,000 feet. Then we had to take off our masks so that we could learn what our symptoms of hypoxia were, in case it ever happens in the aircraft. We also spent half a day learning how to land with our parachutes. That was fun, but it was pretty embarrassing doing PT in our flight suits out in the middle of the base.
Our class has some pretty interesting dynamics. We are pretty well spread across the age and background spectrum. We range from 23 to 30, 10 married, 4 guard, 2 reserves, 1/3 ROTC, 1/3 AFA, and 1/3 OTS and AMS. We also have two international students from Japan. It is pretty interesting getting to see the backgrounds where everyone is coming from. Rachael and I are meeting and getting to hang out with some pretty interesting people.
This coming week we are starting the rest of our academic program. We are getting into T-6A systems and some other basic lessons about the aircraft. We also spend a lot of the time getting the traditional "hazes". We have to put the flags out in the morning, keep the POW/MIA table looking nice, drive people out on the flight line, serve beer at the graduating class's assignment night, and a lot of other little stuff. But all said, it is really not that bad. We only have to do this kind of stuff for 2 more weeks, and then we have another class come in and take over the work.
We hit the flight line in about 5 weeks and that is when the stuff is really going to get difficult.

Columbus

We finally made it to Columbus, Mississippi, found a house, got our furniture and are settling down from a crazy crazy month. Rick is estatic to be starting Undergraduate Pilot Training after almost 9 months as a casual LT (in other words: coffee maker and secretary). He's been reporting in for almost two weeks now but is usally home in an hour or two. It's been really nice to have him home helping get settled.

We found a house on base but it took a week until we were able to move in. It's decent for base housing. Three bedrooms, 1.5 bath, hardwood floors (just ignore the fact that there is probably 50 years of wax and polish on them and they've never been stripped). We're most excited about the fact we now have a dishwasher and central heat and air. The ghetto house in Altus didn't have either. I also am able to put the dryer inside the house. Another big bonus.

They moved our furniture in a week after we got the house so we spent a few days sleeping on an air mattress with two lawn chairs and a rubbermaid box for a dining set. I'm learning a lot on this move and the next one will definitely go smoother. As much as we'll be moving in the next two years, I'm sure I'll become an expert. We're still working on unpacking. Most of the problem is that we have an extreme amount of junk and random pieces of furniture that don't really go together. No surprise there since it is all from college or family members. We'll get there eventually. We did buy a dining set and received it today. Rick looked at me and said, "You're an actual wife now." I think it just hit him that we since we had nice furniture (one piece of nice furniture) we were actually married. It is an awesome table though. Counter hieght with a butterfly leaf so we can sit 6 or 8. It does have white cushions though. We'll have to be careful.

We also bought a patio set on clearance to go with our Christmas grill. (Thanks, Kathi!!) Hopefully, we'll have his training class over this weekend now that we have places for people to sit and eat.

Once we get the house settled I'm going to get more serious about this job hunt. Actually I'll probably go and apply to be a sub tomorrow. Just bite the bullet. It's going to be difficult to get up in the morning after such a long vacation. But, hey, somebody has to bring home the bacon!;)

Seattle!

Hello from Seattle! We have had a great time these last few days up
here in the northwest. We got to do some really neat stuff. We went up
the space needle, went to the Pike Market and lots of other cool
stuff. We didn't even rent a car! We spent the entire week on bikes
and other forms of public transportation. The weather was absolutely
amazing. It was in the mid-70s everyday. We are definitely going to
come back here again. Next time we are going to fish and kayak to the
extreme.

Rick and I are sitting in the Seattle airport and apparently both updating AT THE SAME TIME. I'll wait though so Ican have the last word.

Wedding Party

We just got through with the wedding party that my sister threw us
back in Texas for my friends and family that couldn't drive to
Arkansas. It was really good to see the side of my family that I
haven't seen in six or more years. We also got to see some friends
that I haven't kept up very well with; but I am going to make a better
effort to do so in the future. It was a really good party and it was
fun to see the video of out wedding. Pictures to come later.

So Rick and I are stuck in VOQ (base hotel) for another day but we are finally out of the nasty ghetto house with the teeny tiny kitchen. I"m really excited about that. Tomorrow we leave for Dallas for the post wedding shower (thanks,Courtney!!) and I'm won't be coming back to Altus for a long long time if ever. Rick will be back on Monday, but just for the day. Then we have errands to run in Texas and it's off to Seattle for us. Yahhhh, honeymoon!!!!

moving

Its that time of year again. That wonderful time of the year where we have to move across the country. You think that as many times as the AF does this that life would be really easy, but man is this a really difficult process. We have spent the last two days just trying to get stuff organized so the movers and packers can come and mess it up. At least we had a long weekend. We went down to Cousin Dave's house and really had a good time. We played on the lake and did all that crazy stuff until we were too tired to move at the end of every day. We also got to see some family that I havent seen in a long time, and Rachael had only met once (or never!). The other sad part about this moving thing is that the bikes have to be stored away in the truck for the next few weeks. I just got a new seat for the road bike and now i dont even have a chance to try it out until we get to Mississippi! Speaking of the new seat, it is absolutely amazing if anyone who reads this has problems with numbness on long rides. I havent been out for a long ride yet but just the few test rides were noticebly different. Since the wedding, we havent done much other than just get ready to leave. Rachael is now officialy my wife, according to the AF and now I dont have to babysit her while she is on base. I am starting to get really excited about starting UPT. I keep talking to Seth and hearing about all of the stuff he is up to and it makes me extremely jealous. Only 4 more weeks until the year+ journey begins.

Peace out!

Married!

We were married Saturday in Arkansas on Mt Nebo. Of course it was the first time in years it rained on that date. And it rained all day long. But our pictures turned out wonderful and everything probably worked out for the best. We danced, we visited, had two bites of food and now we aren't heathens living together in sin. We are legit. I even have a military ID now. Granted the picture isn't the best but when are they? Now if only we could rein in the chaos that is our house and start getting things ready to move. The packers are coming on the 8th, the movers on the 9th, and then we are out of this house on the 10th. Goodbye falling apart house, crappy stove, ghetto neighborhood and drug dealer neighbor. Hello central heat and air. We are a little too excited to be moving to Mississippi in July but going from no a/c to a/c will do that to you.