2,000 Times….

That’s how many time’s I’ve hit the submit button. This post is #2000 that I’ve published. I saw this morning when I went to check on the blog it was sitting at #1999. We’ll there’s a post scheduled for later this morning but I like nice even round numbers.

So here’s a couple Ear Worms to start off your morning:

Make sure you actually let this play at least to 1:30, the rest is an intro. Real song starts @1:48.
(I know not everyone likes heavy metal.)

Beware it might get dusty…

***Tap Tap Tap*** This thing still on?…

Life has been interesting as of late. I started a new gig in June and this one is all sorts of interesting.  Not as much from an engineering stand point but just generally a fun project and I’m getting to teach a lot of people a lot of different things.

But it looks like I’m going to have to find time to get active over the next few months. I’ve been helping by volunteering my time but it ends up things are not as happy as many would like you to think.  This weekend I’m going to write-up what I’ve been able to find thus far, but currently if you’re a gun owner in Washington State, you should be crapping your pants.

Looks like I will be blogging much more again, and I’ll be pinging a buddy of mine to get him writing again as well.

Memorial Day…

Memorial day is upon us once again. Let me start by cheering the mood with a Terminal Lance.

On memorial day.

Now you might want to go over and read his post about it. Honestly his meme nails it. Along with this closing quote:

Whatever you did, I hope you enjoyed your 96 (or 72 for most civilians). If you had a barbecue and enjoyed yourself, more power to you.

For some memorial day is a much heavier time.

Luckily, not everyone has such a burden to bear. It’s part of what makes this country great, the sacrifices made so that others don’t have to. Ultimately though when it comes down to it, when the grinder is actually chewing away many of those sacrifices come about not as much for their loved ones at home but for their brothers and sisters who will gladly answer the call. Examples of this are seen all over, from the well-known Operation Red Wings, to the Battle of Takur Ghar(Roberts Ridge).

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, U.S.C., awards the Air Force Cross to TSgt John Chapman for extraordinary heroism in military operation against an armed enemy of the United States as a 24th Special Tactics Squadron, Combat Controller in the vicinity of Gardez, in the eastern highlands of Afghanistan, on 4 March 2002. On this date, during his helicopter insertion for a reconnaissance and time sensitive targeting close air support mission, Sergeant Chapman’s aircraft came under heavy machine gun fire and received a direct hit from a rocket propelled grenade which caused a United States Navy sea-air-land team member to fall from the aircraft. Though heavily damaged, the aircraft egressed the area and made an emergency landing seven kilometers away. Once on the ground Sergeant Chapman established communication with an AC-130 gunship to insure the area was secure while providing close air support coverage for the entire team. He then directed the gunship to begin the search for the missing team member. He requested, coordinated, and controlled the helicopter that extracted the stranded team and aircrew members. These actions limited the exposure of the aircrew and team to hostile fire. Without regard for his own life Sergeant Chapman volunteered to rescue his missing team member from an enemy strong hold. Shortly after insertion, the team made contact with the enemy. Sergeant Chapman engaged and killed two enemy personnel. He continued to advance reaching the enemy position then engaged a second enemy position, a dug-in machine gun nest. At this time the rescue team came under effective enemy fire from three directions. From close range he exchanged fire with the enemy from minimum personal cover until he succumbed to multiple wounds. His engagement and destruction of the first enemy position and advancement on the second position enabled his team to move to cover and break enemy contact. In his own words, his Navy sea-air-land team leader credits Sergeant Chapman unequivocally with saving the lives of the entire rescue team. Through his extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, aggressiveness in the face of the enemy, and the dedication to the service of his country, Sergeant Chapman reflects the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.

Ahh, but there was more than just Chapman doing things for his brothers on the ridge that day.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Title 10, Section 8742, U.S.C., awards the Air Force Cross to Senior Airman Jason D. Cunningham for extraordinary heroism in military operations against an opposing armed force while serving as a pararescueman near the village of Marzak in the Paktia Province of Afghanistan on 4 March 2002. On that proud day, Airman Cunningham was the primary Air Force Combat Search and Rescue medic assigned to a Quick Reaction Force tasked to recover two American servicemen evading capture in austere terrain occupied by massed Al Qaida and Taliban forces. Shortly before landing, his MH-47E helicopter received accurate rocket-propelled grenade and small arms fire, severely disabling the aircraft and causing it to crash land. The assault force formed a hasty defense and immediately suffered three fatalities and five critical casualties. Despite effective enemy fire, and at great risk to his own life, Airman Cunningham remained in the burning fuselage of the aircraft in order to treat the wounded. As he moved his patients to a more secure location, mortar rounds began to impact within fifty feet of his position. Disregarding this extreme danger, he continued the movement and exposed himself to enemy fire on seven separate occasions. When the second casualty collection point was also compromised, in a display of uncommon valor and gallantry, Airman Cunningham braved an intense small arms and rocket-propelled grenade attack while repositioning the critically wounded to a third collection point. Even after he was mortally wounded and quickly deteriorating, he continued to direct patient movement and transferred care to another medic. In the end, his distinct efforts led to the successful delivery of ten gravely wounded Americans to life-saving medical treatment. Through his extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, aggressiveness in the face of the enemy, and in the dedication of his service to his country, Senior Airman Cunningham reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.

Every man on that mountain was there to find their brother. Many volunteered knowing exactly how bad the situation was. Because they were not going to leave their brother behind. We see it over and over in the citations from SDVT-1.

For extraordinary heroism in actions against the enemy while serving in a four-man Special Reconnaissance element with SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team ONE, Naval Special Warfare Task unit, Afghanistan from 27 to 28 June 2005. Petty Officer Dietz demonstrated extraordinary heroism in the face of grave danger in the vicinity of Asadabad, Konar Province, Afghanistan. Operating in the middle of an enemy-controlled area, in extremely rugged terrain, his Special Reconnaissance element was tasked with locating a high-level Anti-Coalition Militia leader, in support of a follow-on direct action mission to disrupt enemy activity. On 28 June 2005, the element was spotted by Anti-Coalition Militia sympathizers, who immediately revealed their position to the militia fighters. As a result, the element directly encountered the enemy. Demonstrating exceptional resolve and fully understanding the gravity of the situation and his responsibility to his teammates, Petty Officer Dietz fought valiantly against the numerically superior and positionally advantaged enemy force. Remaining behind in a hailstorm of enemy fire, Petty Officer Dietz was wounded by enemy fire. Despite his injuries, he bravely fought on, valiantly defending his teammates and himself in a harrowing gunfight, until he was mortally wounded. By his undaunted courage in the face of heavy enemy fire, and absolute devotion to his teammates, Petty Officer Dietz will long be remembered for the role he played in the Global War on Terrorism. Petty Officer Dietz’ courageous and selfless heroism, exceptional professional skill, and utmost devotion to duty reflected great credit upon him and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for the cause of freedom.

The song sung is not really for the people behind them but for their brothers and sisters on their left and right. That is why they keep going back and will go through hell to get them.

For extraordinary heroism in actions against the enemy while serving in a four-man Special Reconnaissance element with SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team ONE, Naval Special Warfare Task unit, Afghanistan from 27 to 28 June 2005. Petty Officer Axelson demonstrated extraordinary heroism in the face of grave danger in the vicinity of Asadabad, Konar Province, Afghanistan. Operating in the middle of an enemy-controlled area, in extremely rugged terrain, his Special Reconnaissance element was tasked with locating a high-level Anti-Coalition Militia leader, in support of a follow-on direct action mission to disrupt enemy activity. On 28 June 2005, the element was spotted by Anti-Coalition Militia sympathizers, who immediately revealed their position to the militia fighters. As a result, the element directly encountered the enemy. Demonstrating exceptional resolve and fully understanding the gravity of the situation, Petty Officer Axelson’s element bravely engaged the militia, who held both a numerical and positional advantage. The ensuing firefight resulted in numerous enemy personnel killed, with several of the Navy members suffering casualties. Ignoring his injuries and demonstrating exceptional composure, Petty Officer Axelson advised the teammate closest to him to escape while he provided cover fire. With total disregard for his own life and thinking only of his teammate’s survival, he continued to attack the enemy, eliminating additional militia fighters, until he was mortally wounded by enemy fire. A champion of freedom, Petty Officer Axelson will be remembered for his self-sacrificing actions in the continuing Global War on Terrorism. By his undaunted courage, fortitude under fire, and unwavering dedication to duty, Petty Officer Axelson reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for the cause of freedom.

They think not of themselves but of others.

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as the leader of a special reconnaissance element with Naval Special Warfare Task Unit Afghanistan on 27 and 28 June 2005. While leading a mission to locate a high-level anti-coalition militia leader, Lieutenant Murphy demonstrated extraordinary heroism in the face of grave danger in the vicinity of Asadabad, Konar Province, Afghanistan. On 28 June 2005, operating in an extremely rugged enemy-controlled area, Lieutenant Murphy’s team was discovered by anti-coalition militia sympathizers, who revealed their position to Taliban fighters. As a result, between 30 and 40 enemy fighters besieged his four-member team. Demonstrating exceptional resolve, Lieutenant Murphy valiantly led his men in engaging the large enemy force. The ensuing fierce firefight resulted in numerous enemy casualties, as well as the wounding of all four members of the team. Ignoring his own wounds and demonstrating exceptional composure, Lieutenant Murphy continued to lead and encourage his men. When the primary communicator fell mortally wounded, Lieutenant Murphy repeatedly attempted to call for assistance for his beleaguered teammates. Realizing the impossibility of communicating in the extreme terrain, and in the face of almost certain death, he fought his way into open terrain to gain a better position to transmit a call. This deliberate, heroic act deprived him of cover, exposing him to direct enemy fire. Finally achieving contact with his headquarters, Lieutenant Murphy maintained his exposed position while he provided his location and requested immediate support for his team. In his final act of bravery, he continued to engage the enemy until he was mortally wounded, gallantly giving his life for his country and for the cause of freedom. By his selfless leadership, courageous actions, and extraordinary devotion to duty, Lieutenant Murphy reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

They do it without hesitation knowing that their brothers would do the same, and that no matter what their blood and bond will not be broken.

So, this memorial day, have a BBQ, celebrate with friends, and don’t mourn. In the words of George S. Patton,

It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.

A Thought Experiment…

So recently a hateful spiteful old man kicked the bucket.  I think George Takei put it best:

Today, Mr. Phelps may have learned that God, in fact, hates no one. Vicious and hate-filled as he was, may his soul find the kind of peace through death that was so plainly elusive during his life.

One would always hope that the better side of an argument would exhibit self control and “be better” than those who are so angry and spiteful.

Last night though I started thinking about ways you could have fun with this. Again, be the better person but what if you didn’t have to be.  What would you do?

My immediate thought was to get a squadron of Huey’s with loud speakers and buzz the funeral in a fashion much resembling this.

To which my friend Gay Cynic then said we need to go further. That is merely the intro for the “playlist”.  Below is the playlist that was sitting in my inbox this morning.

We intro with my idea as above.

First song in the set:

This is followed with a remake of the following:

A remake with the following lyrics:

Ding Dong! The Bitch is dead. Which old Bitch? The Wicked Bitch!
Ding Dong! The Wicked Bitch is dead.
Wake up – sleepy head, rub your eyes, get out of bed.
Wake up, the Wicked Bitch is dead. He’s gone where the goblins go,
Below – below – below. Yo-ho, let’s open up and sing and ring the bells out.
Ding Dong’ the merry-oh, sing it high, sing it low.
Let them know
The Wicked Bitch is dead!

Third set in the set:

Fourth in the set:

Fifth in the set:

Sixth in the set:

To which we close with the following Postlude:

With the helicopters doing the dance sequence.

That will do quite nicely.  If someone has the resources to make it happen, get video and I’ll edit it into something awesome!  If not, well everyone just take pleasure in the thought exercise, and if it’s a thought exercise close it out with a strafing run as the Huey’s depart.

A Friend Comes Out… Again

First, you can find out in much the same way as many found out from Gay Cynic on Wednesday.

I initially found out the previous Friday.  So when I found out what was happening in Olympia Tuesday and Wednesday and I was advised my help would be appreciated I was more than happy to come along.  It was an opportunity to spend more time and chat with Ray.

Wednesday on the drive down he mentioned that he’d like to rip the emotional crutch out from under people who are abusing it down there.  He felt this was a fitting way and I had to agree.  It had his sense of humor all over it.  If you get handed the short straw, you might as well enjoy it.  As he put it to me afterward, “I’ve come out now three times in my life.  First that I was gay, then as a gun owner, now as a person fighting cancer.”

I couldn’t help but be in awe with the way he is approaching the problem.  It is merely a bump in the road and he’s already gone through and fought a lot worse.

GC has posted the details of the beginning of this journey.  My only request, more of a reminder, is if you call up/email to voice you’re support don’t focus on the topic.  Be an upper not a downer.  Remember he’s fielding lots of questions from a lot of people and if everyone calls up asking about it, well that’s all he’ll be able to think about.  You can ask but limit your time on the topic.

Ultimately though Ray’s going to go all Cave Johnson on this with even more epic results.

Here is what he had planned for his full testimony:

My name is Gay Cynic.  I was recently diagnosed with cancer with an initial prognosis of 6-12 months.  This gives me an unusual level of objectivity regarding I-594 as, barring treatment success I am unlikely to have any personal stake in the game.

As legislators you are called to be objective. To weigh the facts and likely effects – intended and otherwise – of a piece of legislation.

You should not care about my cancer status.

You also should not consider I-594 proponents tragic stories in your deliberations, even if they are cunningly wrapped around carefully crafted Madison Avenue sound bites.

You are called to be objective – to set aside emotionalism, melodrama, spin and the urge to “Do Something, Anything” about the crisis du jour. After all, to an activist *everything* is a crisis.

If passed, I-594 will put Washington law in conflict with Federal law. It will require law abiding gun dealers to choose whether to become federal felons, state felons or simply go out of business. I-594 will eliminate firearms safety training in the state of Washington and entrap thousands of law abiding gun owners into felonies and misdemeanors for things as simple as handing a rifle to a friend at an informal range.

I594 creates no safety benefit. A background check will not save school children from a person that kills a parent and steals their guns to commit an atrocity.

I-594 does not propose an improved background check, it purports to expand the same background check that Jared Loughner passed before he shot Congresswoman Gabby Gifford, killed six and injured 12 others.

It is not enough to “do something.” To claim otherwise is the argument of fools and frauds, and is generally counterproductive to achieving any worthwhile goal.

We must do something worth doing – I-594 is not it.

I ask you to fulfill your responsibilities as committee members and bring I-594 to a vote, and hope that you will vote it down – clearing the table for measures that are actually constructive and not an elaborate scheme to whittle away firearms rights through the death of a thousand cuts.

Thank you.

A Year In Review, Why I’ve Been Quiet…

So I slacked off on blogging this year.  One of the bigger reasons I made quite apparent. There were a couple of other things going on that I kept on the down-low and at this point I will go ahead and let the cats, yes plural, out of the bag.

First up my mom gave me a call last March letting me know she was going to be having surgery later that month.  Why was she going in for surgery?  Well luckily they found the cancer in her breast before it moved past stage two.  They took the surrounding lymph nodes to be safe and all of them came back clear.  She underwent radiation therapy and as of October she’s clear.  All that’s left at this point is six years of pills.

I’ve already had one close run in with cancer and frankly I wasn’t the happiest of campers when my mom told me.  But alas things are better now on that front, now onto the right flank.

About the same time my mom’s ordeal started the father-in-law went in to see a cardiologist.  Initially his heart was out of rhythm (he was in constant A-fib) and no one could figure out why. Not only that but his heart was operating well below normal capacities.

While undergoing one of the tests they shocked his heart and it went back into sinus rhythm.  The heart has continued to improve but they discovered the underlying cause; severe mitral valve prolapse. The good news is we now had the cause and we found out how to treat it.  The bad news is it means messing with his ticker.  Not to mention the loss of his 33-year-old mustache (plus normally he’s had a beard for the past who knows how long).

MadScientist

Last week we were all very happy when it appeared that this was going to be the procedure used(video of the surgery by the surgeon doing the procedure) to repair/replace the valve.  Now for no plan survives first contact with the enemy news.  Surgery started at 0730 this morning and at 0830 we got a call from the MIL.  She informed us that they couldn’t get a solid read on the valve through the TEE.  What this means is that they cannot do the minimal incision and instead will be cracking his chest open.  So thoughts and prayers right now would be appreciated on this front.

So between moving jobs, cancer, and a heart problem I’ve had other things on my mind this year.  The last thing I wanted to think about is how a bunch of busy body assholes dislike how I spend my free time and relieve stress.  How I’m such a horrible person because I want people to have the best tools to fight back.  How I’m a horrible person because going behind a firearm results in something quite a lot like this:

Yeah, I didn’t want to think about that horse crap because frankly there are more important things to worry about.  If something major had happened I probably would have joined the drum beats again but the nice thing is with this crowd is we’re big enough that someone else can and will pick up the slack when you can’t.

Once we can get the move taken care of and settle back in on the other side of the state things should return to normal.  In the mean time I’ll keep blogging here and there and I’m going to work my ass off on making 2014 a hell of a lot better than 2013.

Another Milestone

BB-1So the Earth has traveled around the sun yet another time in my life.  The total number of times I’ve passed through this band of the solar system sitting on this hunk of rock is 30.

The past decade was an eventful one in my life.

I graduated from college getting a degree in electrical engineering.  I got my first full-time job and recently moved on to bigger and better things.  I married the love of my life.  I stared death in the face and didn’t blink.  In that same instant I almost lost that same love.  I learned how corrupt the system really is.  I was declared most offensive and in the same breath became despised by the despicable.  I expanded in a craft achieving a status that not many my age do.  In so doing I helped a brother deal with grief that few really understand.  I met new people and made new friends, many of whom I’ve never actually met.  I learned how to make explosives and have become a henchman for the evil mastermind behind it all.  And probably a whole bunch more that I’m leaving out.

Many would look at turning 30 and see as finally crossing that line and moving towards being old.  You’re no longer in the prime target demographic for most marketing.  Other comments might be made by some young whipper snappers how you could be their dad.  I don’t care.  Wisdom comes with experience and it takes time to gain experience.

Ultimately though, for all intents and purposes, I should be dead.  Even more than that I should have never been born.  My parents both referred to me as their miracle from god.  There’s a reason they adopted my sister before I was born.  They got very lucky and eventually had me.  Some how I escaped being flattened into a pancake.  For that reason alone I should be damn happy to have found the age of 30.  Further there is a long list of men and women who never made it past 19 giving it their all for their country.  Yeah, I think I’m fine with turning 30, not everyone gets that blessing.

Looking back I only really have one regret and it isn’t because of the perspective on life it gave me.  Honestly I wouldn’t trade that perspective for anything.  The problem the consequences still haunt my dreams since it was ultimately my decisions that set off the chain of events.  I have no problem paying for my own mistakes, I don’t like seeing others hurt because of my screw ups.  Again, lesson learned and honestly without it much of my “wisdom” probably wouldn’t be with me yet.  There is however nothing that can be done to change it so I merely embrace it for what it is.

Today the wife and I are going to go out to eat followed by going to see the Nutcracker and basically recreate one of our early dates.  We have a town car and a hotel downtown so we can enjoy the drinks we couldn’t the last time we went.

I’m not sure what the next decade is going to bring exactly, but I have no doubt I will find a way to pack it full of experiences worthy of story telling and create nuggets of wisdom worth sharing.

So I leave you with some wisdom in song form from Hinder.

Random Earworm…

This came across Slacker today while coding…  My immediate thought was both neat and awesome rolled into one:

If you don’t get it, I suggest this for your viewing pleasure.  Oh and in the theme of Deadmau5, here’s a costume a coworker wore for Halloween last Thursday.IMAG0677

I should have taken video too.  The eyes went to the beat of the music and changed  colors.

Deadmau5 – Closer