Car Repair Blues pt. 3

Now that I won't be headed off for processing, I've got to go about finding a vehicle so I can get back to Grand Rapids. My old Ford Probe is still there, but the transmission cost more than the car did itself, so I'm going to be getting a new used car. I want a truck this time, I wanted a truck last time, but ended up with the probe. The one thing I know for sure is that I want an American car, I don't buy foriegn cars. What I'd really like is a Harley, but I think I'm going to have to wait on that one. Atleast until I move back down south so it can be my primary vehicle all year round. For now, I'm willing to settle for a truck.

My Recruiter Will Be Ticked

I find it to be understandable as to the reason why as well. Obviously, since I'm posting, I didn't ship today. I didn't make weight. I find this strange because I made weight the night before, and hadn't eaten anything at all that day, or this morning before weigh in.

I'm at the point now where I have decided that there are more important things that I need to focus on right now. Unfortunately, my recruiter didn't see it my way, and wants me to come in to the office to talk about it further. I think that I should finish my law enforcement degree and then decide if the USMC is still for me. If giving it up now means that I can't go at all (which I doubt) then I will have to accept the fact that I lost a large opportunity. I need to figure things out, and I can't do that if I'm constantly being pressured to do something I'm no longer sure of.

I'm sorry if this disapoints anyone, but it's something I have got to work through. If I make the wrong decision, then people could end up hurt, and that's the exact opposite of what I want.

DON'T PANIC

The past few days have been interesting. There were two storms this past week. Well, actually, there were more than two storms this past week, but these two are the only worth mentioning as it is not my intent to talk about the weather but to talk about what resulted from the weather which is to say that twice in the same week we experienced power outages. The didn't really affect me, as I was driving at the time and didn't get back to the house in Grand Rapids until about 22:00. Twelve hours after I arrived, the power came back on and so I was able to get a shower before I met someone at Dairy Queen to hang out before I shipped out to processing.

The second power outage is notable in that the only tree to get knocked down, that I could see, during the course of the storm's passing just happened to be the very same tree which, if it fell, would completely sever the connecting wire from the power lines (and cable) to the house. It also managed to rip the metal pipe that the wires run through off of the house, as well as damaging the pole the helped guide the wires to the house from the power poles across the street. So for the greater part of Wednesday we had no power, and Thursday and Friday we had power but no cable. Friday I left to visit with my family.

And thus it is that I can update my blog and read my favorite blogs. I won't name my favorite bloggers because I don't want to make anyone feel bad, because I know that my opinion of you means quite a bit to you all, despite the fact that I don't even know you in person (two exceptions being the two who help contribute to Custos Honor). However, my favorite bloggers are, after myself and in no particular order, Harvey of Bad Example, Sissy of And What Next, and Boudicca of Boudicca's Voice. But like I said, I don't want to name any of my favorite bloggers because I don't want anyone to feel badly about me not mentioning them. Likely I just haven't gotten around to reading your blog if you aren't my one of my favorite bloggers. :)

Okay, it is planned that I leave for processing on Monday. I have no injuries, I'm at my desired weight, I'm up to five pull ups and fifty crunches (this from one of the first and 18 of the second). I have no traffic tickets, I haven't been arrested recently, and I won't be drinking alcohol again until after I graduate. So things look well that I will actually leave on Monday. For some reason I'm actually nervous about it this time, but I'm sure it will pass.

I promised an excerpt from The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy or one of its sequels, though it actually reads like one book, and I have chosen The Restaurant At The End Of The Universe. It can be found in Chapter 19 page 243 of The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. By doing this I hope to get those who haven't read this series to do so, and those who have to go and read it again.

"The Universe--some information to help you live in it.

1 AREA: Infinite.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy offers this definition of the word "Infinite."

Infinite: Bigger than the biggest thing ever and then some. Much bigger than that in fact, really amazingly immense, a totally stunning size, real "wow, that's big," time. Infinity is just so big that, by comparison, bigness itself looks really titchy. Gigantic multiplied by colossal multiplied by staggeringly huge is the sort of concept we're trying to get across here.

2 IMPORTS: None.

It is impossible to import things into an infinite area, there being no outside to import things from.

3 EXPORTS: None

See Imports

4 POPULATION: None.

It is known that there are an infinite number of worlds, simply because there is an infinite amount of space for them to be in. However, not every one of them is inhabited. Therefore, there must be a finite number of inhabited worlds. Any finite number divided by infinity is as near to nothing as makes no odds, so the average population of all the planets of the whole Universe is also zero, and that any people you may meet from time to time are merely the products of a deranged imagination.

5 MONETARY UNITS: None.

In fact there are three freely convertible currencies in the Galaxy, but none of them count. The Altairian Dollar has recently collapsed, the Flainian Pobble Bead is only exchangeable for other Flainian Pobble Beads, and the Triganic Pu has its own very special problems. Its exchange rate of eight Ningis to one Pu is simple enough, but since a Ningi is a triangular rubber coin six thousand eight hundred miles along each side, no one has ever collected enough to own one Pu. Ningis are not negotiable currency, because the Galactibanks refuse to deal in fiddling small change. From this basic premise it is very simple to prove that the Galactibanks are also the product of a deranged imagination.

6 ART: None

The function of art is to hold the mirror up to nature, and there simply isn’t a mirror big enough--see point one.

7 SEX: None.

Well, in fact there is an awful lot of this, largely because of the total lack of money, trade, banks, art or anything else that might keep all the nonexistent people of the Universe occupied.

However, it is not worth embarking on a long discussion of it now because it really is terribly complicated. For further information see Guide Chapters seven, nine, ten, eleven, fourteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-one to eighty-four inclusive, and in fact most of the rest of the Guide.”

Okay, so that was the excerpt. If it doesn’t spark your interest in reading the actual series then you are a Vogan. If you don’t know what a Vogan is, then read the series or watch the movie or BBC television series to find out.

yet another short appearance

ok, back again for a quick appearance.
as I have already been informed, my first post sucked and I'll just assume that this one will follow the same path. ;)
and also as Andrew has noted, I do actually have a life that doesn't involve having my face glued to a computer monitor, so some of my appearances will be short and sweet.
you'll hear more from me (unfortunately) as time wears on, but for now I have places to be and people to annoy. ;)
oh yeah, and if anyone knows how to make lots of money without having to actually work for it, please let me know!
so for now, I've paused long enough to laugh at the illustrious Lord Salens. conquer the world........yeah, right.

Monthly Horoscope

Madame Ellen's Horrorscopes


AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18)
What’s all the rage this summer? Popping bubble gum. Have a contest with your brother or sister to see who can blow the biggest bubble. The winner is whoever has to cut the most gum out of their hair.

PISCES (February 19-March 20)
Popsicles make great snacks, and they also make great stains on your aunt's white linen tablecloth.


ARIES (March 21-April 19)
So your original plan to get someone’s attention didn’t quite work out. Don’t fret — you couldn’t have known they wouldn’t take the term "mud pie" literally.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)
Accepting change is half the battle. Spending it on rope to tie up your brother is the other half.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21)
(written by Shelley, age 15)
Don’t let your mind wander — or is it too late?

CANCER (June 22-July 22)
You’ll want to concentrate on rebuilding your body’s natural defenses this month. But finishing up that moat couldn’t hurt either.

LEO (July 23-August 22)
This holiday season you feel abandoned by those who are supposed to love you most — finally some peace and quiet.

VIRGO (August 23-September 22)
You are run out of town due to a slight misinterpretation of your artistic vision when you make your directorial debut in this year's school play.

LIBRA (September 23-October 21)
You’re feeling much more confident about yourself this month. You know what they say, ignorance is bliss.

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21)
This is the month to sweep that special someone off their feet. Slippery floor wax makes it a lot easier.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21)
Your big dilemma this month: falling asleep in the middle of summer school. Don’t you think that's a little boring? If you want interesting advice, I suggest you get some interesting problems.

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19)
You’re a very peculiar one, Capricorn. Have you ever considered knitting yourself a cute little lilac cap and a matching sweater? You have? You're even more hopeless than I thought.

Humor

A college professor, an avowed Atheist, was teaching his class. He
shocked several of his students when he flatly stated he was going to
prove there was no God. Addressing the ceiling he shouted: "God, if you
are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I'll give you
15 minutes!"

The lecture room fell silent. You could have heard a pin fall. Ten
minutes went by. Again he taunted God, saying, "Here I am, God. I'm
still waiting."
His countdown got down to the last couple of minutes when a Marine -
just released from active duty and newly registered in the class -
walked up to the professor, hit him full force in the face, and sent
him tumbling from his lofty platform. The professor was out cold!
At first, the students were shocked and babbled in confusion The young
Marine took a seat in the front row and sat silent. The class fell
silent...waiting.

Eventually, the professor came to, shaken. He looked at the young
Marine in the front row. When the professor regained his senses and
could speak he asked: "What's the matter with you? Why did you do
that?"

The Marine answered, "God was busy. He sent me."

Contrary To My Ambitious Subordinate's Claims

I am still very much here and watchful of the blog-o-sphere. Nothing is done on this blog without my say so, at least to the point where I'll delete it if I don't want it there. However I haven't had need to do so thus far, and I don't anticipate such a need in the future.

I haven't been posting much lately because I've been working on something secretly for Harvey that not even he was aware of. (Though he may have been given a hint when I asked him an important question to completing the project, though it was sort of a vague question, so if he didn't know it then, that's okay because it was a very vague question which only an all-knowing being [or myself] would have known the true reason behind it.

Now the project is complete, and if Harvey deems it worthy of posting, I'm sure he will do so, but for now I'm going to take some much needed rest from the computer, and will maybe possibly post something in the not-so-far-away-future which will involve possibly something to do with the Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, or one of its later sequals. To that end I bid you a fond farewell for now, and Don't Panic.

You may address me as...

So Andrew is going away to boot camp and asked if I could fill in some posts while he is gone. I dutifully agreed, and here I am with my first post. Now as my first act on this blog, may I welcome you all as my humble subjects. You may address me as Your Majesty, His Majesty, The All-Knowing Seer, M'Lord, any other royal title, or Reverend, Lord Salens.

You might now be wondering who I am, and want a little background. Well that's just too bad. How dare you address your new overlord with such a tone in your pompous response.

So as I said, I'll be posting some miscellanious things here until Rev. Andrew figures out that I've destroyed his blog, alienated his readers and set a fire on the web so large that Detroit will have to burn itself and it's suburbs down just to keep up.

Until then my loyal subject, remember this: the all-seeing eye on your dollar bill is a secret listening device planted by the Masonic-Illuminati-NWO-Etc Order and you should send them all to me for proper disposal.

Another Joins The Ranks

Later today you will be blessed with a post from a friend of mine. I was introduced to him after going to visit R.R. for a weekend during the summer of 2004. R.R. will still be posting letters from boot camp, however, as R.R. has a life and no home internet access, I have decided to ask another to help contribute to the blog who also has a busy life, but has internet access at home. The thinking being that between the two of them, the blog will still alive while I am gone. Also, I have taken care to only invite those who are s-m-r-t.

Kids and the Media pt. 1

Boudicah is concerned that she's sheltering her kids too much. I sent her an email as my reply was too long for the comments, and was asked to post my email to her here.


I'm twenty-two and I don't think that I'm old enough to watch South Park. I wasn't allowed to watch the Simpson's until I moved out of the house.
Kids today are confronted with a lot of things that I never had to deal with. I didn't even know the concept of homosexuality until I got to middle school. Now kids in Kindergarten are being taught that two moms or two dads is perfectly acceptable.

I think its one thing to understand that kids today are going to come into contact with shows like these, or games like Grand Theft Auto, whether it be through other kids at school or commercials on television. But by letting them watch these shows or play these games, we are sending our kids a message that at some level, these things are okay. There are fifteen year olds (heck, there are even a few of the college age) who can't discern these things properly, and as a result they become pretty messed up.

If your kids are in the public school system, then I would say that you don't need to worry about sheltering your kids, they are going to come into contact with it anyway. I think this means that if you find something to be inappropriate for your kids, then you have a duty as a parent to let your kids know, and to remain consistent with what you are saying by not allowing them to come into contact with it at home.

I think this in turn gives the child assurance that their home is a safe place and that if they need help they would feel comfortable coming to you with their problem. I realize that I'm not a parent, but I am a kid who was raised by great parents and looking back I can see the affect that that parenting had on me.

Hell's Kitchen

Okay, so Fox has a new TV show Monday nights at 21:00(9:00pm) Hell's Kitchen.

When I first saw the previews for the show, the only things I could think was: "I want to be on that show!" "I must get on to that show!"

After seeing the first episode, seeing just what its like to work under him on the show, my thoughts are same. I want to go on to that show and learn to cook from Gordon Ramsay.

While I may comment on the show every now and again, I'm not going to do a week by week synopsis on each contestant. The reason is that I won't be here, so there's no point (maybe RR could do it if she has free time. . . hint)

I'm not going to pick a favorite to win and thus give them a kiss of death. I will state this though: There are two groups of people that will be eliminated quickly from that type of situation.

The first group is the group that can't realize that when Ramsay is yelling at them in the kitchen, it's only business. I believe that every contestant took what Ramsay had to say personally when he yelled at him. They need to realize that he has a job to do, that they all have a job to do. He's putting his reputation on the line by doing this, so he wants to be sure that he has the best candidate at the end.

The second group of people are the knowitalls. This is the group that came into this with a lot of experiance. This is a blurse if ever I saw one. They are going to have to unlearn everything they learned so that they can become great chefs. Those that can't adapt will fall out quickly.

They contestants had 45 minutes to prepare a meal before Ramsay arrived, so that they could prepare a dish for him. The two contestants that made simple dishes did the best, the first he said was "Not bad." The second dish he liked he actually complimented (though she's out because she wasn't a team player which I guess would be a third group of people that will leave quickly)

He and I agree on two things: presentation is nothing if the food tastes like shit, and the second is that you shouldn't add inedible things to a dish just to make it look better. Taste is what's important!

I want to go on that show.

My Roommate is obsessed with LoTR. . .

While I'm greatful to Tolkien for creating Lord of the Rings, if only for the fact that Dungeons and Dragons resulted from it, it isn't a series that I find particularly good. Quite frankly, I've tried reading the books, I had thirty pages left in the first book, and finally decided that I was done forcing myself to read it. Those who don't know me have claimed that I don't like the series because I'm uneducated and don't know good reading when I come to it. I find this quite funny, as while growing up, reading was what I used to escape from reality. I was reading books for teenagers when I was in Elementary school, and by the time I made it to middleschool, I was reading books suited for the adult reading level.

I didn't like the LoTR series for the sole reason that there was too much description, I just found it to be boring. I'd usually last about five minutes before falling asleep. I have found the movies to be tolerable, though I still fell asleep in the theatre for all three films. The landscape they used was beautiful. However, I found that they cut Tom Bombadil from the movie, and he was my favorite charactor in the first book. Cutting him out is in my mind akin to cutting Fizban out of a Dragonlance movie if they make one. (They had better make a Dragonlance movie!)

While my roommate has found his obsession in LoTR, I have found mine in Harry Potter. I find that the books are much more suited to my style of fantasy. The preview for the fourth movie is out, and you can view it here. The forth movie looks great thus far, and even better, I should be finished with all my basic training by the time it comes out in theater. I'm definately going to catch the IMAX of it if they put it in that format.

What's Your EQ?

Your EQ is

147 50 or less: Thanks for answering honestly. Now get yourself a shrink, quick! 51-70: When it comes to understanding human emotions, you'd have better luck understanding Chinese. 71-90: You've got more emotional intelligence than the average frat boy. Barely. 91-110: You're average. It's easy to predict how you'll react to things. But anyone could have guessed that. 111-130: You usually have it going on emotionally, but roadblocks tend to land you on your butt. 131-150: You are remarkable when it comes to relating with others. Only the biggest losers get under your skin. 150+: Two possibilities - you've either out "Dr. Phil-ed" Dr. Phil... or you're a dirty liar.

What's Your EQ (Emotional Intelligence Quotient)?

okay, I scored a little lower than I thought, but hey, when you've only got two choices, you have to go with the one that's closer to how you would react. I'd have to say its pretty close to accurate though.

Life Happens

I arrived at MEPS today, and I got my pull ups in, I got my crunches in. I even made weight. However, on Saturday I managed to get a nice sized blister on my left big toe. It didn't hurt at the time, so I really didn't think much of it. On Sunday, it started to hurt but I could still walk normally so I mentioned it to my recruiter, but he didn't think it was a problem, so I didn't either. That night I ran three miles at the hotel and afterwards it started to hurt and some of the fluid had leaked out, it was swollen and discolored. I showed it to the Marines stationed at MEPS, as it hurt constantly and hurt more to put weight on it, and they told me to show it to the doctor. I showed it to her and she pushed me back another week. However, since no one is shipping next week, its going to be two to three weeks before I can head down to basic training.

I have decided to use this time to get better on my pull ups and crunches, as well as to lose a little more weight, which should give me a cushion for when I go back to MEPS.

- Andrew Aris (Ravencroft)

update: got my foot looked at and they lanced it and drained it, I'll be getting a pumas stone to take care of some caluses, and I should be back at MEPS in no time at all.

Today's the day

Well, today's the day I've been preparing for these past couple of months. I'm off to MEPS (Military Enlistment Processing Station) tonight. Tomorrow is the final weigh in, I should make it no problem. I should have an easier time adjusting to the sleep schedule there, as I'll be three hours ahead of pacific time. I've enjoyed the brief time I've had blogging on here, and will miss my blog family. I suck at saying goodbye, even if its only a temporary one. I'll have R.R. post my boot camp address on here for anyone that's interested. Well, so long for now.

Semper Fi

A Great Adventure pt. 4

Shadow arrived at his destination quickly, but was surprised to see that the female was already there, aparantly waiting for him.

"Thanotoas will be here within the hour," she told him. "Mind you, be respectful to your employer."

"Of course m'lady, I always show respect to those who pay me," Shadow replied. Unknown to either of them, the two guards had caught up to them, and were now on foot approaching silently.

Jael looked up suddenly and saw Leo.

"You're supposed to be dead," she told him. "I'll fix that now."
"I was dead, but within minutes, Astea brought myself and Tiny back to life," Leo replied evenly. "I do not think I shall let you win again, last time you had surprise on your side. This time you do not. I urge you both to surrender."

"I will never surrender to a stupid male," she spat, and lunged foreword with her sword. Leo parried the thrust easily with his bastard sword. The two continued to exchange thrusts and parries, while Tiny and Shadow watched the hypnotic dance of death. Leo was obviously the soupier swordsman, when suddenly there was a bright flash, and Thanotoas appeared in the midst of it. Both stopped fighting to look at the newcomer.

Easily towering over Tiny by around four feet, Thanotoas was intimidating to say the least. His greenish black hair fell to his shoulders. His eyes were crimson, and in them, darkness so deep that to stare into them caused regular men to go insane. He grinned wickedly as he looked upon the four. His helmet covered most of his face, making it hard to see anything else, and over that he had a cloak, masking most of his body as well. He turned his gaze upon Jael.

"I told thee to eliminate all of the royal family," Thanotoas scolded her. "Thou shalt pay a large price for failing in thy duty."

"My lord, there is not a member of the royal family left alive," Jael told him. "I killed each one myself except for the king, and saw him die at the young assassin's hands."

"The young prince was away, thou merely killed the prince's double," Thanotoas said evenly. "Thou should have made sure it was the prince by the birth mark on his left arm. But thou were sloppy, and for that you shall be punished severely."

"No my lord Thanotoas," Jael pleaded. "Please, don't!" Thanotoas muttered a few inaudible words, and flames sprang up and consumed Jael. She screamed in pain as they licked at her flesh. Shadow watched in shock as the woman who saved his life was reduced to ashes. The smell of burnt meat filled the air.

"I don't care if she killed the queen . . ." Tiny began evenly. "YOU NEVER, HURT A WOMAN!" Tiny rushed at Thanotoas, drawing his sword and hacking at Thanotoas with amazing speed, like none he had ever shown before. Fire surrounded Tiny's body as his rage increased, giving him power like none he'd ever experienced. His blade became white hot, but did not melt in the heat. Thanotoas, amazed at such a change, lost his left arm before he began to dodge the wild thrusts. He drew his sword with his other arm, and with one fast swipe, disarmed Tiny completely. He then swung with all his might at Tiny's skull, using the flat side of the blade. Tiny flew backwards a hundred feet, crashed into a tree, his body wrapped completely around it on impact, and the fell to the ground. He lay there in a crumpled heap, unconscious and dying. Thanotoas reached down and picked up his arm. He then promptly re-attached it. His arm healed as if it had never been removed in the first place. He then gestured with his left arm newly re-attached, and Jael's body was completely restored, with the exception of one new addition, a black outline of an eye was now visible on her forehead.

Seeing Tiny thrown back, Shadow came out of his shock enough to move. Without a word, he drew Alchaizer, and threw it straight at Thanotoas' heart. Thanotoas caught the blade and threw it back, the blade cut threw Shadows chest, stopping only because the hilt prevented it from going farther. The force caused shadow to fly backwards, impaling him against a tree. With the last of his strength, Shadow removed the blade, it had pierced a lung, and he was slowly suffocating.
"Dost thou also wish to go against me?" Thanotoas said, looking at Leo. "Dost wish to join thy friends?"

"As much as I would like to," Leo states, feeling no fear. "I will not throw my life away in vain after getting it back so soon. I have a feeling we shall meet again, and then I shall be strong enough to completely destroy you."

"I am gladdened to see that there are still wise people left. As far as the girl is concerned, she is still alive. She belongs to me now," Thanotoas said, and with that, he and Jael vanished without a trace.

Leo rushed over to Tiny, to see if how he was.

"Leo . . . my . . . brother," Tiny started. "Do . . . you . . . think that . . . Astea will restore . . . me . . . again?" Tiny lost consciousness before he could reply.

Anger and grief welled up inside of Leo. It grew to where he could hold it in no more. It filled his being. Leo looked up into the sky and yelled. As he did so, energy was released his body, and entered both Tiny and Shadow. All three fell into a deep sleep as the healing process takes place, Leo was completely unaware of the power he just unleashed from his body.


* * *


Leo woke with a pounding headache. When he opened his eyes, what he saw surprised him.

"Kit!" Leo smiled at the site of his love. "What are you doing here?"

"Leo, I sensed that you were in trouble, and knew that I had to come to your side," Kit explained. "Remember, we promised that we would be there for each other if the other had need, so I came." Friends since childhood, it was only natural for the two to fall in love. They had gone everywhere together, and had even trained together. Kit was the only one who could match Leo in speed, and Leo always said that she was much faster, but held back to give him a chance. Kit always denied that she held any thing back in their training together. A very athletic body type, Kit favored light chain mail to the plate mail that Leo wore. She stood only a foot shorter than Raven, very tall for a woman. Strapped to her back she had a four foot single handed sword with a silver hilt, engraved upon it was the same image as on Leo's blade. The blade itself was made of the titanium as well, and it was said that Astea had Flint, god of the forge, make these two weapons from the same block of titanium, which was why they could sense when the other had need them. A raven flew from the branch of a tree nearby and landed on Leo.

"Tika, I'm glad to see you are well," Leo said to her. "Have you been watching over Kitiara for me?" Tika cawed in affirmation. "Thank you; you are a great friend to me." Tika gave Leo an affectionate peck with her beak.

"It's great to see you again my love," Leo smiled softly. "But Tiny . . ."

"Is doing just fine," Tiny called over to him. You've been asleep for the last five hours."

"And the assassin?" Leo asked. "What about him?"

"He disappeared before I could gather the wits to stop him," Tiny looked down at his feet, embarrassed.

"Don't worry my friend, though it seems Astea has a plan for him as well, if he is alive and well, after so grievous a wound as the one dealt him by Thanotoas. We shall go back to the castle, and prepare for a way to destroy this new evil."

"Sounds like an adventure, I think I'll be coming with you Leo," Kit told him.

"Kit. . . I don't know, this guy is pretty dangerous and . . . ," Leo started.

"You know full well that I'm as fast as you are, and that I would be a great asset to your team. I'm going and that's final!" Kit said crossly, but with a faint twinkle in her eye.

"Kit you never let me finish," Leo said hastily. "I was going to say it's dangerous, and so I was going to suggest that we needed as much help as we can get." Tiny laughed at the way Kit had manipulated Leo. Leo stood, and Tika took a perch on his left shoulder. The three mounted their horses, and headed back to the castle, not knowing that Shadow was following them from behind, on his own horse. He didn't forget that he owed Jael his life, and he meant to pay her back for that kindness, knowing somehow, that she was still alive.

First Post......

we'll see how this goes. I don't currently have my own blog as I'm still a bit old fashioned in the sense that I still keep a notebook with my journaled thoughts. that and I'm lazy enough that my blog would probably only be updated when some earth shattering event happened in my life.......which thankfully, isn't all that often.
anyway, Andrew has asked me to keep his blog up to date while he's gone for training. I'm really excited about this and hopefully won't bore anyone to death while he's gone..........and try your worst, I don't I'll be scared away that easily. :)
whether I continue my own blog after this......who knows. maybe I'll actually be motivated enough at some point to get my home computer finished. ;)

Repair Blues pt. 2

Well, I got a call from my father today that my car was all fixed up and ready to go. Apparantly, there was a hole in the transmission. How it got there, I'm not sure. Well, the hole got patched, so I and a roommate drove the fifty minutes to an hour down 96 to go and get it. We get there, and I drive it back with him behind me, just in case.

Everything's going fine until we get to Meijer, because I need to get some things from the store. I put it in park, and there's smoke coming out from under my hood, and it smells of burning transmission fluid, which doesn't smell good. My dad had told me there might be some excess leaked fluid that needs to burn off, so I didn't think too much of it, but decided I should check the fluid level just in case. I pull out the dipstick, and wipe it off, and then stick it back in and pull it back out to check the level, and see nothing on the stick.

My roommate grabs his flashlight, and we try again just in case it was too dark to see anything with the first check. Sure enough, there's a small bit at the very bottom of the stick. Not good. He hands me the flashlight, and I get down on the ground and point the light under the car, sure enough, there's red fluid on the ground, and as I watch, more of it drips to the ground.

So once more I'm rendered car-less, (similar to care-less, but there's no 'e,' and in this case I'm missing an automobile as opposed to emotion.) However, this time the car is, for me, running distance away, so if it gets fixed tomorrow, I can just run to it rather than recruit a roommate to be my chauffer.

The Start of A Great Adventure pt. 3

okay, I lied, there's still some parts left to post after this one, I'll post the next part just before I pack up my computer for storage.
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Unknown to either Assassin, two of the guards were still very much alive. They both stood up cautiously, somewhat unsteady after being knocked out. The larger of the two goes and checks the other guards for signs of life, while the other locates the tracks that the assassins left. He found them, at the base of the wall of the castle right outside the window to the king's room. Both of them headed south.
"Tiny, get over here fast!" he yelled to his partner. "The tracks are still fresh enough that neither has much of a lead on us."

"Sure thing Leo," Tiny called back, as he leapt out the window, falling thirty five feet, and landing lightly, a foot away from the smaller guard. At eight feet, he was the tallest guard in the king's service, and quickly gained respect from the other guards. His short hair had the effect of making his head seem on fire, and it didn't help that it was yellowish orange, and for some strange reason, was near blue at the base of the hair. He had light green eyes that glowed with an inner flame. He had a dark allover tan, even though his armor covered most all his body. He had a handsome face, but was extremely modest and unsure around women. A former mercenary, he was quite skilled with every blade known at that time, but favored a large two handed cleaver, made with him in mind, the blade was six feet long, and a foot wide along its length, a single sided blade that ended in a point. He had ended his mercenary career for a steady paying position. There was not much need for a mercenary in these times of peace.

"Tiny, you really need to stop doing that," Leo scolded him, though his slight smile gave him away. Being seven feet tall, Leo was the only guard able to give Tiny a good match, the others being to short to be much of a challenge, because even though tall and strong, Tiny was also extremely fast. Leo was the only guard that was faster than Tiny and that only by a small degree. The two had become like brothers over the years they worked together. He had long, icy blue hair down to his middle back. His eyes were like that of gold spun with silver, and they showed wisdom beyond they're years. Unlike his human friend, his pupils were like those of a cat's. His ears were pointed as an elf's, but were slightly longer. Of his ancestry, he knew that he was half-elf, and part human, but he didn't know how much was human, nor what the rest of his heritage was. Leo's sword was a hand and a half bastard sword, its blade was made of titanium, a very rare metal in his day, lined with diamond along the blade edges it was quite sharp. Engraved upon the blade was an emblem of a raven holding a rose. Personally charged by Astea, goddess of wisdom and goodness, in a dream sent to him at a young age, he became a paladin to the last king of Crecinia, the nation they were now in, and served faithfully at the king's side to his death. Both Tiny and Leo were known for their honor and their chivalry.
A guard rushed up to Leo.

"Sir, it has been reported that the entire royal family was slain," the young man said.

"Not entirely. The prince has been away studying afar for the past few months. His double was the one slain," Leo reported. "Send a messenger and five score of guards to Panax. He shall have to return and take the thrown."
The Guard rushed of to do as he was told.

"Leo, why is it everyone else died except for we two?" Tiny asked him. "By all rights, we should be dead."

"Tiny, that is a question that we may never know the answer to," Leo replied. "It may have been that Astea interceded at our deaths and healed us. This would mean that we have some destiny yet to fulfill."

"Astea is mighty indeed then, to be able to reverse death," Tiny observed. Leo nodded in agreement, then put two fingers to his mouth and whistled long and hard. When his whistle died down, the galloping of horse could be heard not far off.
"Come, we must follow quickly, before the trail gets too cold to follow," Leo told him. Two horses arrived, somehow already knowing that there would be excitement tonight, and both were eager for it as they pranced up to the two soldiers. Without another word, they both mounted, and were off with a flash. They would catch up to the two assassins within the hour.

As I'm leaving Monday . . .

Be looking for a post from my temporary replacement sometime soon. She's a good friend of mine from the east side of the state. As to if she continues with a blog after I get back, I don't know. It will be up to her, so be nice to her and try not to scare her off.

Today or Saturday I will post part 3 of the story, which will be the last part I post until after I get back from processing.