Crossroads Goes Private

Well guys, I had hoped the day would never come. I had hoped that my thoughts and pictures could be shared with anyone interested in hearing and viewing them but I've been getting too many warnings and wake up calls lately. While nothing has happened to jeopardize my career or identity at the moment, I've been getting a lot of anonymous queries and warnings from my closest friends that have raised some red flags and made me become a little more cautious. Moreover, I'm starting to get tired of using gender neutral pronouns and constantly sensoring what I say in my blog "just in case" Big Brother is watching. I mean, I should be able to say I'm gay in my own freakin' journal if I want to, right?

So here's how this will work. Everytime I update my blog you'll get an e-mail from me just as before. Only when you try to access the blog it'll say "this blog is invited to readers only". At that point, you'll need to sign in with a Google or G-mail account. If you don't have one, you'll need to create one if you haven't done so already. Here's how:

1. Go to www.google.com
2. Click on "Sign In" on the top right corner of the window
3. Under the area where you would normally sign in, there's a link that says "Create an account now", click on it and follow the instructions.

I know this is some extra work, but until 01 January 2009, this is what it's come down to.

Please leave a comment on my blog after you've read an entry. And please sign your name at the end so I know who it's from, unless you wish to post an anonymous comment.

I have more to post this week, so keep an eye out, and now that we're private, I'm done holding back...

-RJ

The BHR Chronicles Chapter 2

Been working out 2 hrs a day, lifting weights and running, eating a healthy diet - protein bars, egg whites, carbs, low fat items, hell even tuna salad (the smell of which repulses me), but last night in the Mess Deck they served one of my vices...SHRIMP! I tried to walk past them but turned back and ended up eating about 20 fried shrimp!



This morning I woke up at 0600 to the usual morning whistles and decided to PT (exercise) on the Flight Deck. There ended up being a group of sailors jogging in cadence that I joined. Seeing the sunrise over the island of Kauai was indescribeable. The top of a submerged submarine to my left and a few smaller boats to my right. Way cool.

Yesterday my corpsman and I got a tour of the bowels of the ship. All in all there are 9 decks beginning with the Flight Deck. We made our way all the way to the lowest deck. I got a tour of the engine room and the actual engines and drive shafts themselves. Pictured below is the Engine Room (an unclassified picture as I was told).




When the bridge signals down to the Engine Room to speed up, they turn the black wheel on the right which opens up pressure as a result of the engines producing more heat and boiling more water. This pressure increase causes the drive shaft to rotate faster and ultimately causes the propellers to turn more rapidly, moving the boat forward faster. (This of course is the dummed down version of it). It's much more complicated than that actually. (Mike I could have used you on my tour!) The pictures are of me climbing over the drive shaft, and of the actual engines themselves.




All in all, I was impressed at the complexity of how the ship runs. But I can only imagine what it must have been like prior to using electricity when Sailors had to manually shovel coal into the engines. During my tour they told me we were burning approx. 350 gallons of fuel an hour at approx. 3.15 a gallon! And get this - all in all the ship can hold 6 million gallons of fuel at once. (Angelina was intimidated when I told her.)

Been getting settled in a lot more. Treating some head lacerations - people running into hatches and such. One of my Marines had a really bad sprained ankle yesterday from a Flight Deck injury, but all in all the Uglies are doing well.

Last night at about 1900 it came on the PA "Hot Dog Eating Contest will commence in the Mess Deck at 2000". I thought to myself "I have got to see this"...


Rows of Sailors lined up and when the MC said "Go!", they stuffed their faces with weiners! I think the winner had eaten 10 weiners in 3 minutes. That's a lot of weiners!!! (and these things weren't Oscar Meyer, they were like grade F meat lol)



It's been a somewhat slow day today, and playing Spades (a card game) seems to be a common past time with my Marines. We had a couple of drills the past few days - Man Overboard Drills, Missle Attack Drills, General Quarters/Man Your Battlestations, that kind of thing. It's been a great experience thus far. To answer my roomate's question, "I haven't gotten sea legs yet".



I leave you with a picture I took this morning from the Hangar Deck of Kauai. In the back is the PMRF (Pacific Missle Range Facility) and Barking Sands. More stories to follow. While this entry wasn't so colorful, I wanted to give you a little insight into the day to day life aboard...

The BHR Chronicles Chapter 1

DAY 1: EMBARK

After a short 20 minute ride aboard one of our squadron's CH-53D Sea Stallion Helicopters from Kaneohe to the USS "BHR", I disembarked and stepped foot onto the Flight Deck. When several Flight Deck personnel offered to assist me with my gear, they picked up my 3 filled-to-the-brim bags and gave me a look as if to say "What the hell did you pack? Why do all the Marines have just 1 bag and you have 3?" I only packed the bare essentials though - Bose noise cancelling headphones and earbuds, my personal computer loaded with unwatched episodes of Desperate Housewives, 4 Puma gym shirts, shorts and sneakers, a memory foam egg crate to go under the new 600 count Egyptian Cotton sheets that I purchased for my rack, a down feather pillow, a jar of creatine, vitamins, lots of protein bars, sleepware, loungeware and...oh yeah, all of my military gear and uniforms. Just the necessities!
Although when I had to lug my 3 bags up 3 decks to the Berthing Area named "Officer Country" (where we sleep), I wished I would have packed a bit lighter.

I was impressed at the sheer size of this ship, it was immense. As I made my way to my quarters (pictured below), I was greeted by Sailors saying "Welcome Aboard Shipmate!" I wasn't sure what to say in return (I'm sure you recall the conundrum I blogged about when arriving in Iraq concerning the Marine lingo). So a simple "Thank You Shipmate" would have to do for the moment.



My quarters were more than sufficient. Each Officer "Berthing Area" had 2 bunk beds (to fit 4), closets, even a sink and vanity area. On average we had 2 Officers to a room. The enlisted quarters (not pictured), were much more crowded. Rows and rows of 3 bunk beds all right next to each other with very little privacy all placed in one large common area of the ship.

A few first impressions on Days 1 and 2:
So many hatches (doors). To walk one deck from forward to aft you need to open and close about 10 hatches, some of which are air tight locks (i.e. you have to open one door, step into the airlock, close it, then open the door on the other side of the lock. Of course the pressure change forces you to clear your ears every time you do this - which is about 25 times a day). It gets annoying really fast.

Everything looks the same. Every bulkhead, every hatch, every hallway looks identical. How the hell are you supposed to find your way around here when everything looks identical and nothing is labeled? (see pictures below) Why don't they put a sign on the wall or have an Information Kiosk like they do in malls that states "You are here", with everything labeled?




Every minute there's a loud pitched deafening, shrieking whistle which preceds some announcement over the intercom which you have to be a professional linguist to interpret. And when these announcements occur, everyone moves about 10 times as fast as before, like someone just yelled "Iceberg Right Ahead!!!" or something. The only announcements I have thus far been able to decipher are "This is a man overboard drill" and "Flight Deck Operations In Progress". (I think they contracted out the intercoms from the Burger King drive through windows and installed them here)

The rocking is non-stop. I lie in bed at night and sometimes my body rolls slightly to the left, then slightly to the right. Luckily I haven't gotten sea sick yet (only 1 of my Marines has), but the seas are expected to pick up. So we'll see.

The Wardroom Galley (aka Officer Chow Hall) serves Starbucks Coffee, so that's a big plus. It's not exactly the Caramel Machiatto that I'd normally order, but all in all I can't complain. The food is pretty decent too. You're typical Navy Standard I suppose. Today I had grilled chicken breast (and mom I thought of you because I put some Italian Dressing on it for flavor), with vegetables and for dessert a slice of Pecan Pie.


So tomorrow my Corpsman and I are going to try to get a tour of the "Bowels of the Ship", the Decks way below where the boiler and engine rooms are. We'll need a tour guide so we don't kill ourselves accidentally and special permission from the Ombudsmen or some other guy with a fancy Navy name that no one seems to understand, but it should be interesting to experience what it's like to work in 150 degree conditions and not see the light of day for days on end. Already there aren't any windows as it is and it's kind of like being in an Atlantic City or Vegas casino. But I can't imagine working down below.

So FYI my e-mail address on board is:
matyasrj@lhd6.navy.mil



I have been unable to access any other e-mail account, so if you've sent me something since last Thursday, I probably haven't gotten it.

More to follow on Chapter 2 in the next few days...

Ahoy Mate! (I don't think they say that here though)

Dov'é L'amore? Dov'é amore mio?

I’m not so sure where to begin with this one. I’ve been at a loss for words for the last 3 days trying to figure out how to express what I’ve been feeling, ever since I returned from San Francisco. I’ve been walking around lonely, took myself out to dinner the last 2 nights, sat alone, I even treated myself to Cold Stone Ice Cream…nothing worked. Then finally, last night, I broke down. I needed to. I went out and tied quite a few back. (Thank you Victor for your text message - “That’s really healthy, isn’t it RJ?”) Worse, my choice of time and place for the breakdown was less than appropriate – drunk at 1 am on my ex’s balcony. This happened to be the ex who I hurt because I was in love with someone else (not the Hawaiian). I cried, sobbed, tears streaming down my eyes falling 18 floors to some unsuspecting Chinese tourists who thought it was some “Mauka” island showers. But I woke up this morning feeling fantastic. Guess I needed to get it out…

To be in love is an amazing thing. If you have to ask yourself if you’re in love, then you’re probably not. Trust me; you’ll know it when you are. It’s overwhelming, it’s consuming, and it makes you do crazy things. It makes you smile at the end of your day before bed when you think about that person. But when it’s taken away, when love isn’t permissible, it can be the worst low you’ll ever experience…

I’m not used to not getting want I want. Besides being a very lucky person (my sister Kelly can attest to this), I have a great attitude and always tell myself that anything is possible. There’s nothing I can’t do, can’t have or can’t figure out. There’s always a positive solution. But life threw me a curve ball 2 months ago in the shape of a beautiful Italian who we’ll call “M”. We me in Cancun and I would have sworn that it would have ended there. What was intended to be a one night stand, turned into an amazing week of companionship, hook-ups, friendship, laughter and ultimately love. You never know where you’re going to meet someone – but to all the single people out there I’ll tell you this – it’s when you least expect it!

When I watched M drive off that last day in Cancun, a tear fell down my face. I wondered how I could have gotten so emotionally involved in someone in 1 week, and I also wondered if it was one sided. Was I being silly? I mean, M has a boyfriend of 7 years – they own a business together, they want to have kids together, they’ve built a life together, and while I don’t fully understand their “open” relationship – i.e. – either can go out and have hook ups just to get their rocks off – it seems to have worked without repercussion, up until now that is. Enter RJ.

So with an ocean between us, I wasn’t worried. It was a vacation crush, nothing more. I mean, when would I be going back to San Fran anyway? But as I returned from Cancun I received a voicemail from my friend Josh, “Hey, hope you had fun in Cancun, don’t forget to book your ticket to San Fran for my birthday weekend on the 4th of July”. Suddenly there was hope again, hope of what I don’t know. A wise Lieutenant once told me “Without hope there’s no disappointment”. (Actually I think that was LT Paris from Star Trek Voyger, but anyway…) It’s true.

So in the interim between Cancun and San Fran I grew closer and closer with M. Eventually we were calling each other every day, texting 10+ times a day – I mean, M became a part of my daily routine, my life. I stayed guarded, but was looking forward to San Fran, not just for Josh’s birthday, but to see M again. Then the day arrived…

Trying to go to bed the night before leaving for San Francisco was worse than being ten years old and trying to go to bed the night before my family would take their annual trip to the Jersey Shore (the last week in July every summer). I laid there with a huge smile on my face, excited, my entire body buzzing with anticipation. The next day on the plane I could hardly keep in my seat. And when the flight attendant said “We’ll be landing in 15 minutes”, I started smiling and laughing, envisioning what it would be like to see M again. I wasn’t even supposed to see M until the next day, but as I left the gate and walked towards baggage claim, there M was – standing with a huge smile on face. From that moment I could tell it was mutual. We couldn’t even wait to get to the baggage claim before we were in each other’s arms in the airport, kissing, hugging. A second tear filled my eye – so happy and excited. It was the best feeling in the world. I can’t describe how good I felt in that moment. It was like Christmas morning, like the first bite of Mrs. Cleaver’s homemade Peach Crumb Pie, like blowing out the candles on your 21st birthday cake, - better than passing my Medical Boards, better even than stepping off the plane from Iraq and having all our friends and family greet us with flags, banners and cheer. It was amazing!

The weekend progressed and we spent the entire day together Friday. We held hands, horsed around, kissed every other minute (in pubic none the less, but hey, it was San Fran), smiled at each other non-stop. And every time we looked into each other’s eyes, our gaze grew deeper and deeper. By the end of the day we knew what was happening. When the last day came, M looked at me and said “I’m totally in love with you, I don’t know how this happened”. I said the same. How did it happen? And what we were going to do about it?

The solution: no contact for one month. No calls, e-mails, text messages, letters, nothing. We needed to get over each other and this was the only way we knew how. Seeing as how I’m leaving tomorrow for a military deployment for a few weeks and I’ll be on a ship in the middle of the Pacific, I thought this would be feasible, maybe even easy, but it hasn’t been. When M left that night, I didn’t even make it all the way back to my hotel room before the tears started streaming down my face, and by the time I was back in the room, I was balling like a little girl. I grabbed a pillow and just laid there, crying on the couch. My friend Kathryn, the only girl in all the pictures I posted, came up to console me. When she knocked on the door I answered and said, “I’m warning you, it’s a pretty ugly scene in here”. She said “GAY DOWN!”

The last 3 days I tried to distract myself, tried to focus on this upcoming deployment, how much fun I’ll be having – this will be the first time on a ship in the entire 7 years of my Navy Career! I’ll get to do some flying, can focus on the gym, work off the incredible food I had in San Francisco, it would be great – but I couldn’t convince myself. I locked myself in the bedroom, ignored my roommate, took long baths, and slept a lot – jeez, I was a mess….until the e-mail came…

It was M. “So I know I’m breaking the rules, but I feel like our ban is very Carrie Bradshaw – and I’m worried that in a month, not only will our feelings be gone (which is the goal), but our need for a friendship will wane as well. I don’t want that to happen…so –I’m just saying hey”. It was Christmas Morning again. But last night, I still lost in, on my ex’s balcony. I’ve always said that bottling up your emotions is never a good thing, and last night, I got them all out.

So where do M and I stand now? What should I do now? Well, what would Karen Yamada say about all this? I mean, after almost a year, she and I finally met for lunch my first day in San Fran (it was one of the highlights of the trip and the food and wine we had – OMG!). But I digress. I think Karen would tell me to be careful. Keep in touch with M, but maybe lighten it all up a bit. But I also think there’s a part of her that would say “You never know when the love bug is going to strike”. 

So here I am, the night before leaving. To M – you’ve changed my life more than you’ll ever know. I think I’ve only ever felt so crazy about someone once before (and I’m fresh out of Aloha with that one.) I feel like you’re going to be a part of my life forever (in some way). “You’re on my heart just like a tattoo, I’ll always have you”. Thanks for breaking the ban. It WAS very Carrie Bradshaw. Lol. Let’s just be careful though, ok? To Josh – thanks for an amazing weekend brother! I can’t wait to be your roommate again! I’ll never forget the Limmo ride, Sam, “the ugly bars of San Fran bar crawl”, the bowl of crème (Kathryn, it DID change my life), the jazz festival, dinner, the balloon release, “T minus 5 minutes”, the “C” rings, and of course – Crossroads (where it all began).

I’ll catch everyone on the flipside at the end of July. I won’t have my phone on and will have limited e-mail access, but you can send e-mail to matyasrj@lhd6.navy.mil (this is my e-mail account while on board) and I might be able to get it.

Aloha!

Happy Father's Day...

For the last 25 years or so Father's Day has been my least favorite holiday because it has very little meaning to me and serves only as a reminder that I don't have anyone in my life that I can call "dad". Granted, I have a living father, but for the past ten years he hasn't contributed anything to my life other than his feeble attempts at trying to make me feel bad about myself for not being a better son. So every year, the "Father's Day Sale" commercials come on t.v. showing dads and their sons hugging and playing, the Hallmark stores hang their signs advertising special cards for dad, and the restaurants prepare for what will likely be a busy day as children enjoy the company of their father and express their gratitude and appreciation for everything he has done for them,...me?...well for the past ten years I have looked sadly upon the holiday, but that ends this year, TODAY.

Reflecting on what my father has done for me... well, he's made me become a stronger man because when I was 14 and going through my most difficult years of puberty, feeling ugly without any self worth, he looked at me when I could've used his encouragement the most and he said "Robert, you're too damn skinny! You need to put some meat on your bones!" Since that day I made it my mission to gain weight, work out and get the best body I ever could have. Thanks dad! I'm hot now because of you!

...He showed me first hand what's it's like to be in an abusive relationship because I witnessed as a child how he treated the ones he loved. I looked at how he acted and I swore that I would never treat my partner that way. As a result, I treat everyone I date with love, respect and manners. I am the most non-abusive individual you'd ever want to meet, and when I fell into that kind of abuse with a certain recent 14 month relationship here in Hawaii, I recognized it and my gut told me it was wrong and that I needed to break away. If not for my dad, I never would have been taught that valuable lesson.

...My dad showed me the importance of having hobbies and interests that were identical to his, and taught me that "real men hunt and fish", and if they didn't, they must be a "sissy". It must have been tough on him checking the mailbox to find letters from both the NRA (for him) and from Animal Rights Organizations (for me). Even tougher to be so disappointed to learn that your son had different interests.

My dad taught me that everyone has a breaking point. It's important to stand up for what you believe in. I can remember the day I came home from school and had it with his shit and when I stood up to him, he cracked me. The look on his face was priceless when after he slapped my ass I looked at him and said "Oooh, that felt good, do it again!" When he did it again, I dropped my drawers laughing, threw my bare ass in his face and said, "Again, but this time on my bare ass!" And when he reached for the piece of wood instead of his open hand, I wasn't afraid, I laughed. Seeing him lose control provided me with some sort of twisted satisfaction.

My dad taught me that everyone has their price - even the church. I mean, he paid one heck of a fee to get his annulment without my mom's consent. Doesn't that mean the marriage technically never existed in "God's eyes"? But if that were true, where did my sister Kelly and I come from? I mean, sometimes I know I have an ego, but I won't pretend to assume that I was immaculately conceived!

Well this year, I decided Fathers Day was going to be about me, not him. I woke up and the first thing I did was dial home. His line picked up, then hung up right away. Resisting the urge to take it as a sign, I did it again and this time he answered. The next 45 minutes was spent talking all about him...his pending hunting trips, his encounters with Lehigh Valley's finest women, his experiences with his brothers and sisters, the party he threw...yada yada yada. And yes, while technically this day is about him, this phone call was only the second time talking to him in about 10 years. I only started corresponding with him last year, 3 months into my Iraq deployment (that was the first time in 10 years). And I've only had 5 actual communications with him since then, a simple "How are you? How is Hawaii RJ? What are you doing with yourself? It's good to hear your voice..." would have made me as happy as a pig in shit. But hey, I called him because I wanted him to know that despite everything, I was thinking about him on this day, and I wanted to wish him well. After hanging up with him today, I felt like I did something good. Because after all is said and done, without your father (and mother), you wouldn't be on this earth and you wouldn't be living the life you are. And as much as we may hate to admit it, we have characteristics and tendancies of our parents. You can learn a lot about yourself from your folks. And looking back, I'm proud of the man I've become and I'm proud that I became the person I am because of myself (and of course my mom).

There's a lot of dysfunction out there in families, and there can be a lot to stay angry about, but its not healthy to hold on to hate. It eats you up inside. So today and every Father's Day forward, I'm letting go of all the hate I ever had for my pop. And while he's something of a crazy man, even he has his good moments. So I will honor him by thinking not of the bad times, the hurt or the pain, but the times where he made me feel good about myself - like in Iraq, when he wrote me a letter and told me he was proud of me. I think that was the first time I can remember him telling me that.

So to all the dad's out there, mine included - Happy Father's Day! Be sure to treat your sons right and appreciate them. As I go to sleep tonight, I know that my dad appreciated the phone call, and while I may not be the son he hoped for, and while he may not be the father I could hope for, I will respect him and love him just the same.

**********************************************

I enclosed a few pictures from last night's Navy Corpsman Ball. My date Courtney and I had a blast! But don't get your hopes up mom, she's just a friend!!!

Soulmate

It's 9:58 pm on this Tuesday night. I'm sitting alone in my dining room. The lights are out, and I feel compelled to get this thought off my chest. Recent events have gotten me to think somewhat introspectively. I'm both a little nervous and a little excited about where I'll be in a year and where my life will take me next. But moreover, I'm interested to know who I'm going to spend my upcoming years with...

When I was a kid, I didn't know too much about how important it was to find your soulmate. I knew that I had Jan and that we would be best friends for the rest of our lives, and that was enough for me. It was a comfort for me just to know that there was one person out there in the world that I could trust - someone that I could share my innermost secrets with, someone that I could confess to, play with, cry on and grow with. But when I became a teenager, I realized that (contrary to some of our friends and family's predictions) we weren't betrothed to be married. So at about 22 I found out who I was and what I wanted. I knew that being RJ meant being a little different and that was ok by me. I still looked towards a dream that has been pretty steadfast since I was a child.

I love going to weddings. It's a pretty amazing thing to see two people commit to each other for the rest of their lives. I also love watching natural disaster movies (E.G., Cloverfield, The Day After Tomorrow, etc.) because inevitably there is a man and a woman who grow close together throughout the movie and they realize that no matter what the world dishes out to them - monsters, tornados, killers - in the end, as long as they have each other, they'll both be at peace. Everytime I watch one of those movies I think about who I'd want to be with in the end. That one person that if I met death, I could face it knowing I had their love and companionship. For many of you, you've found that person and my hats go off to you - don't ever take it for granted. You're truly lucky.

I know who my soulmate is. That person and I will be able to communicate without words. We'll be able to finish each other's sentences. We'll be able to look into each other's eyes and think that we're one in the same person. Yeah, we'll have our differences, but overall, it'll be like we're two pieces of a puzzle that just fit together. There may be disagreements, but there'll be compromise. There won't be drama. There won't be arguments. Bad times will be met together, hand in hand, like at the end of one of those movies. Distance won't be able to draw us apart. I firmly believe once you've met that person, it doesn't matter where they live. You will be drawn back to that person. That person lives inside your heart, and will live there forever, even if days, weeks, months or even years pass apart from one another.

The love that your soulmate brings is stronger than you've ever known, so it becomes very self evident. You wake up in the morning and they're the first person on your mind. When you go to bed at night, you lie in your bed with a smile on your face knowing that someone, perhaps even halfway around the world, is thinking of you. Stress and difficult times throughout the day are met with the comfort of knowing that in a few hours you'll get to talk to him/her and tell them what's been going on in your day - and you'll be just as excited to hear about how they are doing. When they're sick you want to take care of them. When you leave and they're still asleep you stop and just look at them still for a minute and smile. And for that moment you remind yourself about how lucky you are, and how happy you are. When your phone gets a text message you get giddy and excited thinking that it might be them checking in on you. Your soulmate appreciates you, accepts you and is proud of who you are - your faults and all.

So to everyone that has found their soulmate - don't ever take them for granted, and make sure they don't take you for granted either.

Alright, I'm going to bed.

Happy 65th Birthday Mom!

[First, I'd like to take this opportunity to correct a mistake that my sister so kindly pointed out to my mother after reading my last blog entry. When speaking about my sunglasses I wrote "Channel" and not "Chanel". This was an oversite on my part, please make a note of it.] :)

Next order of business - HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! My mother is an amazing woman who has inspired me in many ways. I have often noted her compassion for others and her willingness to 'give the shirt off her back' for anyone that needed it. As a nurse, she inspired me to enter the medical field, as a mother she showed me support and gave me encouragement whenever I needed it and as a friend she has been there for me when I've needed her most. She has taught me how to be the man I am today and some of my proudest attributes I owe to my mother. Thanks mom! I love you.
I had a great 4 day Memorial Day weekend. I went to Kailua beach with some friends on Saturday, went to a picnic yesterday (and treated myself to some Cold Stone Creamery ice cream afterwards). All in all it's been very relaxing.

I'm going to start shooting some footage for my next movie in a few weeks: "Halloween II", but I'm even more excited about being asked to be the Videographer for my friends Joe and Jackie and their upcoming wedding in August. This will be my first time as a wedding Videographer and I'm pumped to put together a movie surrounding a wedding. And who knows, if it works out well, maybe others will ask me to do their weddings.

I'm also very excited about the 20th edition of my CD Series "Crossroads". I bought special software and for those of you who know or own any of my CDs, this edition is going to be a greatest hits from Discs 11-19, but a continuous mix! It should be my best release yet and I'm pretty stoked about it!

I also began the process for Residency Applications last week. Although this is an incredibly long and arduous task, I'm encouraged because I finally feel like I'm going to start a new chapter of my life. The exciting part is that I don't know where I'm going to be next year - San Diego? San Francisco? Hawaii? Phoenix? Miami? Atlanta? My prediction is that I'm going to end up in San Diego - let's see if that comes true. Josh (my roomate from last year) is going to move in with me as my roomate again wherever I end up - and I'm extremely excited about that. He's a great guy and I feel like Residency might actually be bearable if I'm living with him again.

And I'm looking forward to a visit to San Fran July 4th for Josh's birthday!

That's about it. Oh, one small favor. If you want to write a response, I respectfully ask that you please do it in the form of a comment on this blog, and not by e-mail. I love hearing from everyone month to month but my e-mail gets so overloaded and I don't have access to it at work anyway, so I don't check it as often as I'd like. Sorry if this is an inconvenience. I DO love hearing from everybody month to month though!

Once again, Happy Birthday Mom!

KEY TO PHOTOS:
Mom and I during Flight Surgery School

Mom and I last Christmas after mass

Mom and I after medical school graduation

Camping last weekend. I asked my friends to buy stuff I could play with (aka a frisbee or a ball) and they got me a toy bat and a Princess paddle ball! Thanks guys!

Yes, Chanel is spelled with only 1 N Kelly, thanks!