The Sepeda Wedding

So I went to Ft. Worth (WOOO-HOOO back home in TEXAS) this past weekend for one of my best friends weddings. She and her husband have already been married for six years (another JP like me and my hubby), but she wanted to do it right finally and get married in a church. So I trucked it on over to New Orleans at 4 AM to catch my flight to Dallas Love Field at 630 AM. That drive sucked, and I late checked in my bags by THREE minutes thanks to the ridiculously long line at the luggage check in counter. The flight was uneventful, and my brother Galen picked me up at the airport. He is a sophomore at University of North Texas, so Denton is about an hour or so away from Love Field. Anyway, we go to claim my luggage and..... it's not there. It's on the 1145 flight from NO. So I get the pleasure of coming back to pick up my luggage after it arrives on that later flight.

Friday was spent mostly driving around trying to find an Olive Garden with Crystal and Monique, waiting on in-laws and getting feet and nails done at this really nice spa place at a mall in Ft. Worth. Descriptive, I know. That night Monique, Crystal and I went to City Streets and our Bachelorette Party was crashed by the Bachelor Party. I will say that the hubby to be (again) was mighty toasty by the time he rolled into the club. Anyway, we had fun. And 730 the next morning came WAAAAAAAAAAY too soon.

So Saturday we get up and drive on over to this beauty school... OGLE... to get our "hair did". LOL! Crystal (bride), Dawn (bridesmaid), Karolina (bridesmaid) and Celeste's (flower girl) hair looked great. I didn't get mine done, thank the Lord. But ahem, Monique's hair, well she would be the "poodle" that Crystal's mom was referring too. LOL, it was soo bad. So we went to JCP and had her hair redone into the Palin like chingnon. Although I will tell you that is not what I was thinking of when I suggested the hairstyle, but it was funny to see Karolina cringe when they mentioned it looked Sarah Palin's hairstyle.

We rushed back, threw on our dresses, squeezed our feet into those torture devices- ooops, I mean shoes, and rushed to the church. As Kim said, the wedding was short but sweet and the reception was a riot. I though Chris was going to strangle the DJ. I know we are from Seguin, but a little less tejano would've been ok. It was wonderful to see everybody, and I am so glad that we all managed to make it. It's a testament to how true your friends are when they will travel to come share with you one of your most special days.

I am blessed to have my group of best friends. I had a great time this weekend, and hopefully we can all get together a little more often. Easier said than done, I know....

Socialism... does this sound familiar?

Well, it is no secret whom I will be voting for, but I wanted to be objective about the whole presidential race. So as I was doing my 2 miles on the treadmill Wednesday night, I flipped over to CNN's coverage of the final Presidential Debat. Mind you, CNN should really be called "we broadcast nothing but the democratic POV on this here station".... (and yes FOXNEWS is up the GOP's you know what), but I ignored the clearly one sided reaction to the debate and waited patiently for them to replay the actual "main event".

So as I am running, I have a new goal btw, I listen to both sides of the debate. Yes, McCain is a terrible public speaker. He is old, cantankerous, and does not present himself very favorably. Yes Obama is a much better public speaker. He is young, likeable, and has a calm pleasant demeanor. But, the IMPORTANT thing is the issues... and here is where I take issue-no pun intended.


So here's some food for thought...

SOCIALISM:

Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating social or collective ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods, and the creation of an egalitarian society. Modern socialism originated in the late nineteenth-century working class political movement. Karl Marx posited that SOCIALISM would be achieved via class struggle and a proletarian revolution which represents the transitional stage between CAPITALISM and COMMUNISM.
Socialists mainly share the belief that capitalism by nature concentrates power and wealth among a small segment of society that controls capital, and creates an unequal society.

CAPITALISM is usually considered to involve the right of individuals and corporations to trade, incorporate, employ workers, and use money provided by central banks, in goods, services (including finance), labor and land.

Wikipedia: Socialism. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialism. Accessed OCT 2008.
Wikipedia: Capitalism. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism. Accessed OCT 2008.

Just a question then: did we not fight wars to help overthrow communist governments????

The premise of an egalitarian nation sound great, but in practice is it at all practical? Would those that have worked very hard to get an education, and/or worked their way up in their respective career fields be willing to "share the wealth". Just a thought.

My Recruiter...

My recruiter is, in the words of Anthony Bradford, cool as a fan!

I never realized how long he's been doing this, and how well connected he is. Plus, he is a down to earth guy that probably would throw an awesome party. He is terrible about phone calls and emails, and his over the phone people skills suck. But in person he is a totally different guy. Very personable, chatty, overall chill guy- over the phone he just seems uncomfortable.

I owe him a huge thanks for all the help he has given me in getting my package together and on the desks of those Col's that will determine my future.

PHO Candidate Interviews/Finalization of the Application

Okay, so this will be a long one. But I have been too busy/lazy to update as it happens so this is what you get....


So this past Friday Oct 3, I had my Formal Consultant Interview with a Lt. Col out at Randolph. I would say his name, but as this is a public forum I suppose that wouldn't be the best idea. Anyway, the "interview" lasted for about an hour. He was suuuuuuuper nice, and very easy to talk to. No matter what anyone says, if they tell you not to be nervous, you inevitably will be more nervous than you would have initially. He asked me a few general questions, but it was more like an open conversation and he gave me a lot of opportunities to interact, ask questions, etc. The only real specific question that he had, that seemed as though it were an actual assessment of my qualifications was this:

Would you rather be the No. 1. Officer at a small base, or the No. 2. or 3. at a large base?

My answer:

It depends really. If I felt that I would be qualified and enough of a knowledgeable resource to sufficiently lead at a small base then yes, I wouldn't be opposed to being the only or head officer. On the same token, if I didn't feel that I was qualified to do so and would be better off working with other more knowledgeable officers, then I would also have no problem being the second or third in command. I would leave that up to those who are experienced in the field to determine where I would be best suited.

Well, I guess I answered that question right- he seemed very pleased with my overall package, educational background and my "interview". He also informed me that I would need a second informal interview with a PHO at Keesler. It has become a new requirement to have a face to face in person interview in addition to interviews that are conducted over the telephone.

So I had my "interview" with the local PHO yesterday. That lasted a bit longer, and was very informal. The Major I spoke with was also very cool. It was a random collection of thoughts really, not very many questions. Again, very laxed open conversation. We talked about assignments/bases, opportunities, Italy :), school, further education...

Before my last interview I also met with my recruiter and signed and initialed a bunch of forms. So essentially the application is done. We are waiting on a dependency waiver, which I need to fax the forms to my recruiter within the next few days. But we should meet again next week to make any revisions if necessary and do fingerprints for my security clearance. Essentially, the interviews were the last checks in the boxes on that looooong BSC application checklist. It feels great to finally have everything done. Now comes the waiting, but hey- I've waited this long, what's another month in a half....

LOL, if you know me, you realize that's a loaded comment.... I HATE WAITING!!!!