Another Day, Another Dollar (ride)

So I know I've promised to have Eric write soon. And I'm hoping that will still happen...eventually. I have asked him to keep the blog in mind when he needs a study break--we'll see what happens. Until then, you'll just have to continue to put up with my updates :)

Eric successfully completed his Dollar Ride!!! (and I was almost successful in losing my fingers to frostbite while watching). Just kidding. Kinda. Yes, Murphy's Law joined us on Dollar Ride day; it was the ONE day that Mother Nature decided to bless Del Rio with weather reminiscent of a Michigan fall day. We had 40ish degree temps, blowing winds and sprinkling rain on and off. Naturally, my friends and I didn't expect this weather and our choice in clothing showed it. As we walked out to the flightline (having no clue where to go and already freezing our butts off) we took shelter in one of those bus stop thingys that the guys use while they wait to get taken out to their jets. A Colonel came out, saw three girls huddled together, and asked us if we were waiting for a bus. (It's a joke. There are no buses anywhere near there, or on base at all...) He brought us inside, and according to our husbands, went to their flight room and said, "um, gentlemen, I just rescued three lost wives from the cold--they say they belong to three of you?" Eric replied with, "yessir, we know who they are. But we don't feel bad. One is from Michigan, one is from Ohio, and one is from Alaska. There's no reason for them not being prepared for this weather--they know what weather-appropriate clothing looks like!"

I've only included a few pictures in this post, but if you want to see lots more of the Dollar Ride experience: Click here for Dollar Ride pictures

Eric enjoyed his dollar ride, but definitely realized just how much is going on in the cockpit at one time. In the days since that first ride he's flown a couple more times and gotten much more comfortable. At first, he was saying, "wow, 12 rides till I have to fly this thing alone?! That's crazy!" Only a few rides later, he's now saying, "eh, it's overwhelming at first, but I can definitely be ready by the time I reach 12 flights". Whew! I hope so! It's AMAZING how fast this program moves, and how much these guys are taking in all at once both on the ground and in the air. I can't say enough how impressed I am with Eric's performance so far, but even more so with his enthusiasm and dedication. He's working so, so hard, and I'm having so much fun supporting him and watching him achieve this dream, one day at a time.  It's also such a blessing for us both to have some GREAT people around us to share our experiences with, whether UPT-related or not.

I've continued the subbing gig, and well, it's not really blowin' my socks off. In fact, I could think of lots of other things I'd rather do, but it's okay for now, and it is most definitely an experience. I've been in high school and middle school English classes, special ed, elementary, phys. ed., you name it.  #1 thing I've learned so far: when students see that you are oh-so-very-white and ask "Miss, do you know Spanish?" the very second you step in the door (because they do, every time, without fail), SAY YES or lose total control of the classroom for the rest of the day. When students see that you're young and ask, "Miss how old are you?!", LIE or prepare to be hit on for the rest of the day. My favorite comeback so far? "I'm 45, I've just had a LOT of plastic surgery." This is a very difficult school district in many ways, and my limited experience, so far, reaffirms my beliefs about our public education system and its many flaws. (I've got a lot to say about it--I'll spare you here, but if you're interested feel free to ask!)

As far as non-work related life--it's fun! We dressed up and handed out candy to trick-or-treaters together, which was so cool. This is my first time living in a neighborhood and I LOVED seeing all the cute little kids and meeting more of our neighbors.

We also had a Halloween party with Eric's classmates the night before Halloween, which was also a good time. Eric was Hugh Hefner and I was Kendra Wilkinson. Now that the weather is a bearable 75-80 degrees, we're looking forward to having picnics in the park nearby and spending more time outside on the weekends. It's a little weird to see Christmas stuff popping up when it feels like summer, but I'm sure I'll get used to it. I can't think of any other exciting details--we've been so busy though, I'm sure I'm missing something! I need to start taking notes!