Happy Halloween!

Back in the woods...

Boomer and I went in the nature preserve behind the house this afternoon. Been awhile since we did that. A few photos...

On the way in...

Leaves on the path

A happy boy!

The road home

That sign is also about the 1.5 mile mark for my Koppernick Loop. All in all, a great afternoon in the woods. Boomer is whipped and sleeping soundly on his bed, we just ordered Mexican Fiesta carry-out... Life is Good!

In my travels (part 3,895... or so)

This house just "screamed" fall to me today. It is on one of my favorite roads to travel near Milford. The leaves, the color of the house, the lighting just all begged to be photographed.

A postcard...

with a soldier wearing a gasmask on the front of it (wonder who THAT'S from)! Postmarked 24 October:

Everyone!
HAHA! I forgot I had this. This is pretty much what I looked like when I went to the NBC chamber. Only without the hood, LOL. It totally sucked (like I said), but it was also "hella fun!" (haha Jen). Anyways, I have letters to write and SO DO ALL OF YOU! Seriously, write me like EVERY DAY! WOO!!!!
Love,
Lindsay
p.s. Send me lots of fun and pretty dollar store stickers. I need pretty stickers!

It's dark at 5am

Went for an early morning run with fellow PFDC parent Al today. I knew he was a runner and thought maybe we'd be able to hook up occasionally. What I wasn't expecting was that he runs early in the morning. Really early. So... I got up at 4:45am and high-tailed it over to his place. We got out around 5:15am and did a four mile O&B into downtown Plymouth and back. He graciously adjusted his pace to match mine since I've only been back out on the roads for about six weeks. Going to try to fit in a long run on Saturday morning with him. Did I mention it's dark at 5am? Well, it is.

Cough drops are on their way!!!

Letter dated 22 October, postmarked 24 October:

Everyone,
Hey! This will be a short one. I don't have much time. Today was really fun, but we all got banged up pretty bad. I have bruises all over my body & I'm still REALLY sick! I can't swallow because my throat hurts so bad. But I'll tell you what, I own running now. Just an FYI, we ran a mile and a half in 14 minutes the other day and I am sweet, lol. We did our confidence course today. Wooooo. Oh yeah. MRE's are GOOD. I like them a lot. OH, SEND COUGH DROPS/THROAT DROPS. Like three bags worth. Seriously. I need themmmmmmm. Okay, gotta go. It's almost lights out. I have fire guard today. Woo, HATE! I have to wake up at a random time and do guard duty for an hour. Tonight it's from 2-3am. Joy.
Love you guys,
Lindsay
p.s. Write/send pictures!

[if anyone is wondering, three bags of cough/throat drops are going out in a package tomorrow morning, JN]

She's doing fine...

Another letter... dated 20 October 2005, postmarked the 21st:

Everybody,
Hey guys! Well, I'm on personal time right now. I just got out of the shower, so sorry if I get water drops from my hair on the paper. I had to write because I just realized that I haven't really written telling you what I've done.

Let's see... two days ago we did the water training course. They had you stand in full military gear (M-16 and all) on a 10/15ft. high diving board with a hat over your face and pushed you off AFTER spinning you around five times! I was so scared. We also made a flotation device our of our pants. That was fun, haha. A couple days before that we went on the Warrior Tower. It was SO FUN! I repelled off a 45 ft. high wall. I loved it! I can't wait to go again.

After the swimming course (the next day), we went into THE GAS CHAMBER!!!!! HAHA, IT WAS AWESOME! I gagged, coughed, snotted and almost hyperventilated, but it was so sweet! They had us in there doing the stupidest stuff. Kind of like left faces, clapping, yelling, running in place for 20 seconds. Dude, I was in there for six minutes or more. They said my squad (15 people, third group in) were the most motivated group in there. We were all yelling and screaming "HECK YES WARRIORS!!! WE OWN LIFE!!!" I was putting up a "rock on" hand sign and coughing and snotting all over the place, haha. They said we were liking it too much so they put seven cans of CS gas in there instead of the regular four, haha! It was nasty. I literally had a HUGE SNOT going from my nose to my stomach, HAHA! GROSS!

I ordered a video DVD of the whole Boot Camp thing, a graduation cycle book with everyone's picture in it and a platoon picture. Yeah, I know it's a little bit of money, but how many times do you get to go through BASIC TRAINING?! LOL. Hopefully only ONCE.

We're starting combative training soon. My drill sgts. keep telling all the males that the females will totally kick their butts because we have more heart & motivation than they do combined. We had our second PT test today. I ran my mile in 8:52 but it's a resistance track, so I really ran it in like seven something.

Dang, the lights just went out. Sorry if my handwriting is hard to read. It's supposed to be around 30 degrees tomorrow. Mom (or dad) print off as many pictures as you can send to me from the website. All us girls want to see how SWEET we look, lol. Print off the ones with girls in it. We're better! Keep sending letters every day. I get in a sad/bad mood when I don't get one. I mean, it's easier for me to get sad if I don't have any encouragement. If you can, send cough drops. Like three packs worth. I'm really sick. Some of the guys have pneumonia or whatever, and that sucks.

We start shooting our weapons soon. I can take apart and put together an M-16 rifle in like five minutes. It's awesome! Tomorrow is the first day of our 3rd week in basic. Woooooo! Hopefully we'll advance to white phase. The drill sgts. decide if we're ready to go or not. They've kept people in red phase for the whole nine weeks before. Hopefully we get it together.

I gotta go. Sleep time. Don't stop sending letters. I love you guys. Send more pictures!

Love,
Lindsay

p.s. Mary/Jennifer, I got your letters!

Family OUTing.... Brrrr........

Today's Natiw family activity was a night out. No, I mean really out. Like outside! We decided to show our support for the PCEP Marching Band and their Great Lakes Invitational. Truth is, we all miss marching band days since Jen decided to get out. We know so many students in the band it was easy to sit in the freezing cold for a few hours to see them perform. Rachael managed to con me into getting some cotton candy. My fav bands from the show were South Lyon and, of course, PCEP. Also noticed PFDC's sweet full page ad featuring the corps members who do both fife & drum and marching band. They deserve the credit as hard as they work. Good job PCEP! Good luck with the rest of your season!
Got in a nice long fall run today. Been trying to get at least one hour long run in each week. Today was my Newburgh Lake Loop. The weather was perfect. Have that "pleasantly fatigued" thing going. Been thinking about some goal setting for my running. Right now I'm just gonna try to keep it consistent. I'd like to be able to do Dexter/Ann Arbor Half next summer along with the Plymouth Father's Day 5k. We'll see. In the meantime, I'll just keep running.

I need some jello...

7B Rocks South Lyon

Seven Bridges rocked South Lyon and the Brew Waters Coffee House again tonight. This time we played for two hours instead of three. We played quite a few songs that we haven't done in awhile. Didn't look like anyone from our side of town came out. More from the SL area maybe. We have another show coming up in November (the 11th I think) at Foggy Bottom Coffee House in Dexter. Looks like we're going to take a break from gigs for awhile to allow us to concentrate on getting our first CD recorded. Hope to have it ready in a few months. Oh, and Jen took that photo of me with her new camera! Nice one!

Sent Lindsay a larger package of stuff this morning. Letters from various folks plus I bought a few things at Walgreens before I sent it out. Got her a Sharpie (in case she has to label anything or sign autographs), a mini sewing kit (for those emergency repairs), Burt's Bees lip balm ('cause she likes it), and a coloring book ('cause coloring is sweet). Hope she likes it all.

Off to bed...

We have a natural leader!

This letter is dated October 17 and postmarked the 18th:

Everyone,
Hey! Well, it's about 9:50am right now. Which probably means it's 10:50am over there. I'm sitting outside waiting to be picked up from the doctor's office. I've been here since about 7:00am. It sucks! There are so many people here. Everyone is sick with the same thing. I have a nasty flem cough, runny nose and a pulled groin in my right leg, and in inflamed muscle on the bottome of my neck. Yeah, I'm having fun! I'm hoping I don't get banged up too bad so I can still train and graduate on time. If I keep getting hurt, they'll keep me here and restart me from day zero in another company. So, trust me, I'm trying my hardest and to get better and do what I have to do, but it's really hard. The road march is gonna kill. I just want to graduate and see you guys already.

I've been talking to all the week 7's and 8's and 4's and they all cringe when I tell them I'm only in week two, haha. I just wanna get this over with. I repelled down a 45 foot high tower the other day. It was so fun. I had to tie the harness myself. I also am on weapons detail, meaning I hand out all the M-16's. And I'm in charge of restocking the bathroom supplies. Oh yeah, and I was a suicide babysitter. A girl threatened to commit suicide if she didn't get to to home, so I had to follow her around everywhere she went. Yeah, I've been having lots of responsibilities lately. I don't mind. I actually kind of like the "leader position."

Every day I go to eat lunch chow I always see graduated soldiers with their families and I keep thinking/hoping that will be me in about seven weeks or so. Did you get the typed graduation letter yet? Tell me what it said. I wasn't allowed to open it.

I went to Church yesterday. I have to say, I was REALLY glad when I went because I saw it was right CoC. Meaning we sang songs (out of the same book!), took the Lord's Supper, got a lesson and sang more! Woo! Some songs we sang yesterday were:

Sing to Me of Heaven
Sing and Be Happy
Anywhere with Jesus
Our God, He is Alive
Lord, I'm coming Home

I was even more glad when we sang the ones I knew. But yeah, it's getting to be where I'm out of room (on the page) and I gotta get going. I love you guys and I'll hopefully see you around December 9th or so. Keep sending mail! I'd rather do 100 pushups for getting letters than no pushups and no mail! Write back!

Love,
Lindsay

p.s. Jen - send me my friends page!
Mary and Rachael - draw me pictures!
Mom and dad - I love you!

Everyone into the pool (don't forget your M-16)!

Checked Lindsay's company's web site tonight and viola! Lots of new photos! There are photos from the Water Safety Survival Training, Nuclear Biological Chemicals, First Aid and Leaders Reaction Course. There are about five that you can see Lindsay real well in. The one above is her coming out of the WSST pool. She looks pretty hilarious if you ask me.

There are a few of her and a few soldiers on the wall in the LRC section (like this one).

Also, there is this one of her going out of the NBC chamber from behind. It's kinda funny, she looks like she's not having too bad a time in some of the photos. Glad they posted them!

A letter from Lindsay to the Church...

Postmarked Monday, October 17:

Dear everyone,
Hey! It's Lindsay! I just wanted to write and let you all know how I'm doing. First of all, let me apologize for my handwriting. I did push-ups all day and I'm in my bunk writing by flashlight. Haha. Now, on to the good stuff.

I am now in my second week of Basic Training. Ooh, scary! Just to let you know, it IS as scary as it is in the movies only it's REAL so it's 10 times worse! I want you all to know how much I miss each and every one of you. I do go to Church and it's 100% correct in its teachings. It's in the Fort and it's called the "Fort Leonard Wood Church of Christ." Every week we have communion and sing songs. To tell you the truth, it felt like a huge burden was lifted off my shoulders when I walked out the doors. I don't think I've missed my Church so much! On my first day here, another soldier wrote this scripture in my mini-Bible:

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them for the Lord your God goes with you. He will never leave you or forsake you." Deut. 31:6

When I read that, I had to laugh because it's so true. I never read that before and now it's on of the things that keep me going. And, of course, the "them" is the DRILL SERGEANTS!!! Ooh, scary.

Anyways, I just want to thank everyone for supporting me in my decision to join the army and love you all very much. I don't usually have time to write letters, so you won't see too many from me. At least, not right now anyways. Although I do ask that you send me letters because I need all the encouragement I can get. The Sgts. said it's okay to send packages as long as it's not food/candy/pop, etc. They're picky about that stuff, haha. If I don't get a chance to write back to you I'm sorry. I'll try my best, but I only get one hour of personal time a day, which means shower, wash clothes, work out, clean, etc. If you write a letter, you're lucky! Anyways, thank you everyone (again) and I miss you VERY much and hopefully see y'all soon.

Love,
Lindsay

p.s. Send me any pictures of Church get togethers! I'm missing Halloween and I'm sad! It's my favorite holiday ever!

"I can put together an M-16 in less than four minutes!"

Postmarked Monday, October 17...


Dad,
Hi!!!! I got your two letters. I was so excited to get them too. I miss everyone so much. I don't have time to respond to all your questions now, but yes, keep the blog stuff up. I like it. Did Mary get my b-day card I sent? I hope so. Anyways, I wrote a letter to everyone at Church and put it in here. Please give it to Mel or Jim to read to everyone. I want to let them know how I'm doing. Tell everyone I said hi and I miss them a LOT. I'll call and write when I can/have time.
I love you,
Lindsay

p.s. I can put together an M-16 in less than four minutes... TAKE THAT! BOO YAH!

p.s.s. I see Cara a lot! So we're awesome! lol!

"The guys don't listen at all..."

Another letter from Leonard Wood (postmarked Monday, October 17)...

Hey everyone!
Well, today was a pretty crappy day. Definitely not the worst, but it sucked. It was totally cool of my drill sgt. to let me use the phone. I was really surprised he did (he is the meaner of the three I have. Yep, I have three drill sgts.) FUN! Not. lol.

Anyways, they can be pretty cool/funny when they want to be. They're threatening to keep us in red phase for nine weeks. My platoon sucks. All the guys don't listen at all. "Stuped males." Yes, I spelled stupid "stuped." We get our phone calls taken away if we misbehave, so I might not call home for a long time.

I expect lots of letters. Send me packages of stuff. I'll ask about my fife. I really want to finish this stupid basic training and come home already. Gotta go though. Tomorrow is a day closer to graduation and seeing all of you!

Love,
Lindsay

{cough}Gas{cough}Chamber{cough}

Lindsay called this morning! She got permission for an early morning call to get information on the passing of Karen's great uncle Herc. She seems to be doing well. She ran her mile in under seven minutes! Also, she said she went through the gas chamber the other day. Not too many details about that yet. Short phone calls are no good. I'm looking forward to seeing if they post photos of the gas chamber day on the web site.

We sent her out a big packet of stuff Monday morning, so she should get it today or tomorrow. We sent the Paul McCartney program and a section of newspaper that was all about him. Also stuck a couple letters in there for good measure.

Welcome Fall

It's not really fall until the trees explode with color. Sort of like God's fireworks display at the end of the Summer Festival. I'm noticing quite a few more areas in my travels where the colors are nearing peak. Still lots more to look forward to though.

I need to get up and do some hunting. Just get up in my tree and take it all in. I love the way I can notice the smallest movements and sounds when I'm out there. Normally, there is so much sound and movement around me I don't notice much. Yeah, I need to go north.

What a Night!

I remember back in August, sitting on the ground at Ft. Ticonderoga about 5:30pm on Saturday, and thinking "man, it just can't get any better than this." And then the drum major from Old Guard came over and asked our fife solo to perform for them. It did get better. And it kept getting better all year. We've been so blessed this year as a group.

Tonight I had the same thought. It was so good and it kept getting better as it went on. First, Lindsay called during dinner!!! She had been given TEN MINUTES to talk to people at the banquet. She was in great spirits. I put the phone up to the microphone and she was able to talk to all of us. People kept shouting out questions and comments and she was able to respond. She got pretty worked up (in a good way) so I gave the phone to Karen, and a bunch of people went out in the hallway to talk to her for the rest of the remaining time. Lindsay says she is doing well. She has a pulled groin muscle and is taking a few days to heal. She is still with her company and on schedule. I was so relieved to hear her in better spirits tonight. She was even joking around with Jen on the phone.

Jessie called too! She was the other senior that was missing. She is in Kentucky going to school and I did the same thing for her. It was awesome. Then for the senior section, Dasha did her speech (very nice) and I had Jen come up and read a few of Lindsay's letters in place of her speech.

And... we got it all done by 9pm!!! Woop! Oh, and the presentation was a big success. What a night... Did I mention that Lindsay called? ;o)

Ok, so about this address...

Got another "official" looking letter from Fort Leonard Wood today. This one deals mainly with procedures over the next few weeks and, specifically, with graduation procedures. It also has directions for mailing our soldier. Looks like the old address may be the one they want after all. So..... here it is again:

SPC Lindsay Natiw
Company A, 2-10 INF
495 Iowa Avenue, Unit 12
Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri 65473-8958

That's the one we're going with from now on. I think both will work, but I'm being sure by going with the one I've seen in two official looking thingies.

Lindsay should have gotten some mail for the first time last night. Hoping it gave her a big smile... or two. Also, as a reminder, there is a link to photos from week one of basic training on the Fort Leonard Wood web site. She is in the background in a few of the photos. Good luck finding her!

More big news!!!

Her company has finally revised its website! They have posted photos from week one (reception and integration). It takes awhile to go through all the photos, but you can see her in the background on about three or four if you look real close. I mean REAL CLOSE. In this photo, she is in the background, just to the left of the guy getting yelled at. Click on the photo above to get a better look. Looks like a good time, no?

She misses us... I think

Dear everyone,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,
I miss you, I miss you, I (heart) U,
Lindsay

WRITE BACK WHEN YOU GET THIS!

This one is postmarked this Tuesday, October 11, after the "phone call." She should be getting any letters that were mailed out Monday or Tuesday this week. Should be a big boost for her.

Too warm for fall...

Another lake photo. This one from the south shore of Belleville Lake. Day was overcast, but warm for a fall day. Trees have not really started to change yet. I'm ready for cooler temps.

Haven't run since last Saturday. Think I'll head out this afternoon. Been busy with the PFDC PowerPoint presentation for banquet this Sunday. It's coming together nicely. Added a few nice touches to it this week. Finally got all the Senior's information. Looks good. Visited the banquet facility yesterday. It's going to work out great! May even get out of bringing audio equipment. They have mic jacks and speakers all built into the room!

Nothing new from Lindsay. With Columbus Day messing with the mail schedule it's likely that neither of us will get any mail until tomorrow.

Paul McCartney at the Palace tomorrow night.... Woop!

Word from Ft. Lost in the woods...

Got another really nice letter today. This one was postmarked October 8, so it would have been before the "rough phone call." Seems like her state of mind was pretty positive when she wrote it. She also included her address in this one. It is just slightly different from what I posted the other day, but if you sent any letters, they should get there no problem. Here is the address (updated) and the letter:

SPC Natiw
A-2-10 INF 2nd PLT
3rd TNG BDE Unit 12
FLW, MO 65473

Don't forget to write the number 2 on the back of the envelope! On to the letter...

Dear everyone,
Hey guys! Well, it's official. You now have a kid in boot camp. Haha. You all should see these drill sergeants. They get so mad, it's ridiculous. Wanna know what else is ridiculous? These stupid glasses I have to wear. Yeah, that's a pleasant sight, lol. But, yeah, I got my address so WRITE ME AS SOON AS YOU GET THIS. SERIOUSLY. Dad, send G-mamma the address and tell everyone in fife & drum to WRITE ME OR I'LL DIE. I can't wait to hear from you all. My first letter will be really exciting. I'll tear it open faster than Mary turns the TV on. Haha. Lame, I know, but I'm like living the Amish life here, lol. I saw a car today and forgot that I knew how to drive.

I'm really excited about boot camp though. Every day there is a graduation. I always see civilians walking around in normal clothes and graduated soldiers with their families and all I think is "that's gonna be me in a couple months, keep your head up and you'll see everyone in awhile." It sucks but I gotta get over it. I deal with the pain by screaming "YES DRILL SGT.!!!"

The first day I got here they made us pick up our 90-100lb. duffle bags and hold them over our heads. It was PAINFUL! I seriously can't even describe the pain. I almost broke my neck. The straps fell around my neck under my chin, but I threw it and flipped it over so it didn't do anything. I'm really sore now though. Anyways, 10 minutes till lights out. I gotta go. I love you guys. Write me and send me a crap load of photos. I'm tryin' hard!

Love,
Lindsay

Hoping that any letters sent after Sunday's phone call reach her quickly. Given that Monday was Columbus Day, I'm thinking she should have some by Friday!

A very hard phone call, but an address...

This is hard. Lindsay just called. That was one of the hardest phone calls I've ever had. She was in really rough shape (emotionally). When I first heard her voice, I thought she was done or had been hurt or something. My heart just sank. After calming her down a bit, I managed to get her address from her. She needs letters.... alot of letters... and she needs them ASAP. It had been a week since she had any contact with us (three minute phone call last Sunday). Here is the address:

SPC Natiw, M. Lindsay
Company A, 2-10 Infantry
495 Iowa Avenue, Unit 12
Fort Leonardwood, Missouri 65473-8958

***Note: you must also write the following on the reverse side of the envelope:
2nd Plt.

That was really hard. She needs letters. Also, that address is probably correct, but I may update it soon. She was so distraught during the three minutes that I could only get her to somewhat calm down to give me the address. I'm hoping I got it all right. I compared it with what the web site says, and it looks ok.

It's Over!!!

It's over! Caro, the last event of the 2005 PFDC season was today! The kids did a great job as always. We got underway around 8:45am and arrived about 11am. After a "cool" lunch (it was pretty chilly), the corps did their traditional reverse march to the start of the parade route. Then it was a long wait 'till our number (90) came up. Grandma Ruth was there, too! Got in around 6:30pm and went out to dinner at Max & Erma's with the Hendrians. A magician came over to the tables and did some pretty cool stuff. All the kids got a balloon animal. Oh, and the guys wallet was on fire. Looking foward to the PFDC banquet a week from today! Better get crackin' on that presentation...

Apparently Johnny Depp is still hot

New letter... on very official looking US Army stationary...

Dear everyone,
Hey. I'm sitting in the general hall right now. We're waiting to do... something. haha. I think we're going to the PX (store) to get anything we forgot or lost. I mailed a postcard to you all today. I don't know when you get it. Probably in 2 or 3 days. bah - I need to know my address soon. I really want a letter already. I need one. So, as soon as you get the letter with my address, you HAVE to write me back the minute you read it. Send me pictures too. And pictures of Halloween too. Make sure you tell everyone in fife & drum to WRITE ME or I'll die. Anyways, how is Boomer? Aww... I miss my puppy. I've been having fun & stuff, but I have my moments (duh). We watched a movie yesterday because we had nothing else better to do. lol. It had JOHNNY DEPP in it! It's called "Platoon" or whatever. Soooo hotttttt. (haha, sorry, but he is). Wooooo.. So How are you all doing? Make sure to answer my questions in your letters back. I want one from everyone, not just one from everyone as a whole. It'll give me something to do during personal time. Woo! I need letters! ;o) How is school going guys? Hope you're having fun! Everyone is pretty cool over here. Sorry if you can't read my writing too well. I'm writing on my Smart Book. I'm supposed to be studying. Oops. lol... So, I'm gonna go. Hope to hear from you soon! Love you all!
Love,
Lindsay

Stay tuned... as soon as we have it, you'll have it!

How much is that doggie...

As I stopped at a store this afternoon, I about ran my truck into a light pole when I saw this. Clearly, here was a dog who couldn't wait 'till his/her master returned... but was good with it. LOL...

Another letter, but no address yet...

Here it is...

Hey everyone,
I'm sitting in my barracks right now. It's shower time then formation at 8:15 (20:15). I'm on an extreme emotional rollercoaster right now. Today was a pretty good day. I'm having fun with all the girls I met. I laughed so hard I cried almost. lol. I love you all lots and miss you too. When I get my address I'll write & tell you. I'm trying my best over here and I really think Old Guard is worth it.
Love,
Lindsay

All Backed Up

Mary got a letter from Lindsay today. It was a very nice "birthday letter." She said she was writing the letter by the light of her flashlight at night. It looks like we're still waiting for her address. Hopefully it will come tomorrow. Her return address only said "somewhere in Ft. Leonard Wood."

Didn't get a run in today. It was a great day for it. On the upside, I've been doing really well at limiting my calories. Sugar-free jello to the rescue!

Also, feeling pretty relieved that I finally got a new external hard drive. Got everything all backed up this afternoon. After losing the laptop hard drive earlier this year, I can't believe it took me this long.

Finally, I managed to do a bit of writing tonight. There may be a song in there somewhere, but I haven't messed with it yet. Anyway, it's over on my poetry blog Words on Parade if you want to take a look see.

Sugar-free Jello...

may well be the secret to life. As I posted previously, I'm reducing my caloric intake a bit (actually, more than a bit) to lose a few pounds. My running is just horrible carrying all this extra weight. Anyway, I am a huge cookie guy. I usually have three chocolate chip cookies (630 calories) with lunch and have been known to snack on one or two at night. I have a hard time just going "cold turkey" on the snacking, so the last time I tried to lose a bit (and did so successfully) I employed the "sugar-free jello tactic." Tonight was lime flavored. Made up a big bowl of it and put some Cool Whip Lite on it and "voila!" - Instant guilt free snack! Probably less than 50 calories and I can go to bed happy!

Funny story about the chocolate chip cookies. The people at Subway know me so well that today, even though I only ordered a sub, chips and a drink, they included and charged me for the three cookies. I didn't want to cause a delay, so I took them. After I ate my lunch, I actually unwrapped one of the cookies and stared at it. It was whispering "c'mon John, you know you wanna cookie." I am pleased to say that I won the battle of wills this day.

As my online running log will attest, I had a pretty lousy run today. This is actually fine, because I know that I'm being hard on my body with the extra weight. In addition, the heat was pretty bad here today. As I said yesterday, I'm celebrating that the highest forcast temperature for the next ten days is 72. WOOP! C'mon fall!

No news from Lindsay again today. She should've mailed her address on Monday (according to our phone conversation Sunday). Hopefully we'll get it by Friday. Right now she should be assigned to her basic training unit where she will spend the next nine weeks. Looks like graduation will be sometime around December 9.

Another Day, Another Lake

Another lake photo from my travels. There are so many lakes around the northern suburbs. This one is taken from a boardwalk off the northern shore of Loon Lake. The company I work for did quite a bit of work in this area a few years ago. Since then, they've built a "boardwalk/dock" out into the lake. The boardwalk goes out through a bunch of reeds and cattails until you're right out in the lake. Nice place to take a few photos.

Happy Birthday Mary!

Family tradition dictates that on the evening of your birthday you get to choose where the family will go out to eat. Each member of the family seems to have their favorites. Tonight was the Central City Diner. Although Mary's birthday isn't until tomorrow, we decided to go out early (church tomorrow) and celebrate. It was a little strange, what with Lindsay being gone and Jen working. Jen brought me home two cookies from work! So, we invited Mary's best buddy Brooke to go with us. I cannot believe I got another strawberry shake to go tonight. I'm gonna out weigh my truck pretty soon.

Got in a nice six miler this afternoon (in my brand spanking new running shoes). Did the Newburgh Lake loop. Weather was a bit warm for me, but I got through it. I said "hello" to about six people during my run today and only one said "hello" back. Very strange. I must've looked uncharacteristically mean or threatening today.

Buying running shoes is so easy for me. I just go see Laura at Running Fit in Northville and tell her I need another pair and she goes and gets two pair of shoes and lets me try them both. She is uncanny at picking exactly which pair I need to get. Todays new shoes are the same as last time: Mizuno Wave Inspire's (size 11). Also got my Sorbothane heel inserts which I had been missing dearly. Had no weirdness in my feet or lower legs during the run today.

Tomorrow is supposed to be the last day over 80 degrees this week! Yes! And only eight months until the Dexter to Ann Abor Half. Been too long.

Photos on the Run

This is another one of those "photos on the run" that I managed to take this morning while at work. Just starting to realize how many lakes I drive by every day. This one was taken from the west shore of Union Lake. It was a beautiful morning with mist all across the lake.

One Last Time...

Tonight was the last PFDC practice of the year. Traditionally it is a fun time as corps members exchange places. You're likely to see a bass drummer playing (used loosely) a fife, or a guard member on snare. If I'm not mistaken, I think I even saw our drum instructor Brad on bass drum... using snare sticks. *shudder*

We have one more event left on the schedule. One of my favorites... Caro. I always look foward to this parade. Usually I am up at the property hunting that weekend so I just meet the corps downtown after church and then take one of the girls hunting afterwards. This year, I'll be leading the group up and back, so hunting will have to take a back seat. Somewhere, deep in the deer woods of Tuscola County Michigan, Bambi is celebrating.

After practice, a bunch of us went to Zach's one last time. Onion rings and a strawberry shake for me. Mark's dad and I sat together and talked a bit about the corps, church, our kids and, of course, Lindsay. One of the best things about this group is the parents I get to work with. Truly wonderful people who understand the dynamics and benefit of the corps for their kids as well as their families.

Here's to another great season! *clinks strawberry shake glass into monitor*

Dear _____________

Well, we got a post card from Lindsay today (sort of). It's actually a form letter of sorts. She filled in only two parts of it (in yellow text). The rest, the military wrote for her. Check this out:

Dear mom, dad & rest of the family,
I have arrived safely at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. I am undergoing my intitial processing at 43rd AG Bn (RCPT) prior to being assigned to a unit for training. I will only be here 4 or 5 days, and then I will ship to a training company. Do not write to me at the address on this card or to the 43rd AG Bn (RCPT). I shall send you my mailing address within the next week when I am assigned to a training company. Also, I will inform you as to the date that I am graduating.

If I should be needed at home because of serious sickness or death of a member of our immediate family, contact the Red Cross Chapter nearest home, explain the emergency and give them my name, rank, social security number, and military address. They will contact the Red Cross Field Director here and the Director will inform my Commanding Officer and me. This is the only way I can get an emergency leave.

Lindsay

We are expecting a real letter in the next few days (hopefully by the end of the week). She told us yesterday that she would be given her mailing address today and that she would write us immediately.

Three Minutes

Just got another phone call from Lindsay. Apparently things are going well. "Rise and shine" is at 4am every day but Sunday, when they "get to sleep in" until 6am. She said she will be getting her address tomorrow and will send it right away. Wednesday her company leaves to the basic training site where she will be spending all her time until graduation. And then.... she had to go. Three minutes... just not enough time.

7B Rocks... and a Phone Call (finally)!

Today was a good, but very challenging day for our band Seven Bridges. We had a great gig at the Annual South Lyon Pumpkin Festival. The crowd was good sized and very enthusiastic. It was also nice to not have to run our own sound for this show. Everyone said we sounded very good (not a guarantee when someone else runs the board for you). Also, the weather was just fantastic. About 70 degrees with nothing but sunshine.

The challenging part stemmed from the fact that two of our band members had their older brother pass away Friday evening. They talked about it before the show and decided to go through with it. It had to be a very difficult decision.

Right before the show (during sound check, actually) my phone rang. I answered it and it was Lindsay!!! She wondered what all the sound was, so I told her. She only had about three minutes to talk so I handed the phone over to Karen. She got to talk to her for a bit before we started to play. Seems she is actually "enjoying" boot camp so far. I think this validates my idea that the "drill sergeant in your face" phase has not started yet. Anyway, she said she was in good spirits and she seemed to really like the other girls she was with. She did not have an address yet, so she promised to send a postcard ASAP with the info.

After we played, a band made up of three young guys (probably high school aged) played. They were more in the punk genre, but they seemed to be pretty good musicians. Kinda fun. A few of us sat on hay bales for a bit and watched.

Before we left we had our obligatory "funnel cakes." Yummy... Unfortunately, all the food I ate kinda killed my desire to go for a run this evening. Wonder what the weather will be like tomorrow...