Attending Classes, While Ranching

It's been a long while since I've actually blogged.  Not having a computer is challenging and stressful.  Especially, when I'm dependent on using the internet as my primary means of communication between my wife and I.  Skype and Yahoo are really cheap compared to the phone cards that I've been using.   Since my primary PC went down due to a blown power module. 

I'm still not out of the woods, yet.  I'm temporarily using a used PC tower for the mean time.  I need to start saving to invest in a new tower in the next couple of months.   

Since, I last blogged in June.  I'm no longer with the construction company that I was working with.  I resigned.  I have moved forward going back to school at the Trades Academy taking Safety courses to become a Safety Officer.  I started taking my first safety class this past Saturday.  Safety Technology is normally the second course to take when I start the skills portion of my course schedule.  But there happened to be a mix-up with the class scheduling.  I was supposed to take Field Safety, first, then Safety Technology.  It's okay.  I'll just back track after I complete Safety Technology. 

I'm all most done with my Core Requirements at the Trades Academy.  I just passed my Material's Handling exam on Saturday.  I have a Basic Rigging exam on Wednesday.  I'll have to take time off my Organic Inspector Class at the University to take the exam.  Which will not be hard.  It's all basic anyway.  Been through that already.  To bad, they don't give us the opportunity to test out at the beginning of the class. 

I'll be taking the Organic Inspector Course at the University of Guam this week.  It's been planned for a while.  I've already invested a lot of time in researching the opportunity and committed to the seminar before I started attending the Guam Trades Academy.  It's funny though.  I was the first one to sign up for the course a couple of months ago.  Yet, I was the last one to receive the packet.  Two days before the pre-course assignments were due to the instructor via email.  That was a lot of reading in a very short amount of time.  I completed most of the assignments except for the last one.  I had trouble accessing the website. 

Yeah, I know what you're thinking.  Classes for Safety Officer, Organic Inspector...How about my ranch?  I'm still working on it.  Well, working on what's left of it.  Since I began working construction in March.  The ranch started falling to the wayside.  Trying to do ranch work after I've been working construction the whole day is not easy.  Especially, when a lot of the work is manual labor.  But, now that's behind me.  I'm working on the ranch on days that I don't have classes or before going to class.  It's challenging.  But, a whole lot better than working construction.  At least, I can pace myself with my ranch work. 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and enjoy the wonderful weekend coming up, where ever you are at. 

I am blessed with a wonderful family.  My beautiful wife, Rhoda; two beautiful children, Larraine and Fren; wonderful friends and close relatives, and a great church family. 

I am thankful for all that God has provided.  Yes, the Blessings and Challenges this past year.  I am praying for more Blessings and hopefully, less challenges for the future. 

TSA and National Opt-out Day.

National Opt-Out Day was to take effect in the U.S. mainland today.  It was a bust.  What a joke!  Travelers, especially seasoned travelers, won't risk their flights to make a point.  It's to much invested time and money to take a risk like that. 

I've traveled so much during my time in the military.  Every chance I get, I'll catch a flight to anywhere in the U.S.A or in Europe to see the region. Why in the world would I risk my flight for a moronic move like opt-out day.  Even now when I fly back and forth to the Philippines.  I will not risk my flight and miss seeing my family. 

Yes, it seems that TSA dumped this whole scanner and invasive pat down on the traveling public.  You can't blame the TSA agents doing the work.  It's their management.  But, also on the other hand, some of those agents really have to use some common sense. 

With today's technology.  Any inappropriate pat down will become viral on the internet.  Soldiers coming back from Afghanistan shouldn't be held up for a nail clipper.  Especially when that soldier and many behind him are carrying rifles, pistols, and/or bayonets.  A rifle is just as deadly without bullets.  Try being on a receiving end on a butt-stroke to the head. 

Toddlers, elderly, or disabled getting patted down is above the norm.  Most terrorists are middle eastern and males.  TSA needs to start profiling. 

There needs to be a compromise between security and common sense. 


ESTA...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I'm currently taking Basic Rigging Class at the Guam Trades Academy. I don't understand why. We're unable to rig loads to any type of crane system. Only certified Riggers, which is a different construction skill in itself, are allowed to do that. Basic Safety nullifies this class.

North Korea and START.

People are so funny at times.  Yeah, North Korea shelled a South Korean Island close to a disputed border.  So what is new?  It seemed after the attack was aired on CNN and Fox News.  People thought of the end of the world.  "We're at War!".  Really?! 

For those who don't have a clue.  These types of events have been going on at the Korean Peninsula since the cease fire.  There is no Peace Treaty signed.  It's been going on for so long that the elitist MSM stopped reporting it, except for "big" stories like this.  When American Soldiers patrolled the DMZ before the ROK soldiers took over.  Our soldiers were getting Hazardous Duty Pay.  It's no big news. 

Here on Guahan, we have lots of Chicken Little's sqawking, "That we're a target!".  Let me clue them in.  We've been a target since the Cold War.  Tell me something that I don't know.  If you're that worried.  Then relocate to Australia. 

I'm not going to worry and stress myself on what I can't control.  If North Korea wants to really test the resolve of the USA.  Then they should bring it on.  I'm confident that our military assets will send North Korea back into the dark ages. 

As for the START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty), I hope our Congress refuses to ratify it.  Why tie our hands when there are countries like Iran, North Korea, Cuba who don't follow United Nation (UN) policies or the Geneva Convention.  Don't get me started on the UN.  I think that institution is a joke and a big waste to US taxpayer monies.  Let's keep our weapons available to use if we ever get attacked by so called rogue nations. 

ESTA...

Wierd...

I know I posted a blog earlier this afternoon.  I even proofed it after I posted it.  So I know it was posted.  But, it's missing now.  Second time this happened here on Multiply. 


Hmmmm. 

ISOM class tonight was definitely for me to see. Lots of confirmations during the presentations.

Highs and Lows.

What an emotional stressful roller coaster ride of a weekend.  Went from riding the clouds, after acing my test.  Then down in the valley trying to figure out, how to get out.  I'm just glad things worked out the way it did.  I'm especially glad for those who helped me out.  Well not exactly me, but mainly my children.  They needed the help more than me. 

A lot of it was due to an unexpected outcome of a couple of my sales.  The buyers didn't pull through or wanted extensions.  Or, in the case of one buyer, who never showed up, even though he kept telling me that he would buy one of my female goats, yesterday.  It was like getting the rug pulled from under you. 

Part of it was my fault. I should have demanded a non-refundable deposit.  Which would have been half the value of the doe.  If I had done that, maybe yesterday would have at least been uneventful. 

I also have to force myself to stay within my monthly budget.  But that's hard to do when unexpected things happens that I have no control over.  I just have to learn from this weekend, like any other. 

A lot has happened in the last 48 hours, especially the last 10 hours.  I was able to buy off some time that my family in the Philippines needed.  That was due to great people from my church family.  My Children will get their meds and food.  That was my biggest concern.  I have to start saving for their medications.  Especially, when the unexpected happens.  You just never know.   I am grateful that it worked out the way it did today. 

PTL <><

ESTA...

Keeping Myself in Check.

At class today, I would have gotten a perfect score on my homework on the Review Test and Trade Terms Quiz for Construction Drawing.  BUT, I got two wrong on each.  My instructor was not collecting the assignments.  He was just asking us what we got.  After we went over both in class to correct it.  So it would have been easy to just say I got 37/37 and 10/10.  He would have never known or would the rest of my classmates.

However, I would know.  And God doesn't sleep. 

So I was honest and gave my reply; 35/37 for the Trade Terms, and 7/10 for the Chapter Review Test.  My instructor was surprised that I did what I did.  While everyone else claimed perfect on both assignments. 

It's not about me anymore...But who I represent, Him. 

It's no longer a label.  It's a lifestyle. 


ESTA


P.S.
I aced my final test later in the class. 

Oldest Ranch Dog -- Lucky, now in K9 heaven.

Lucky, our old ranch dog passed away sometime after morning checks, today.  We had her since 1997.  Her territory was wide, beyond the ranch.  She helped train our current dogs: Stormie and Duchess.  Great guard dog to the goat herd and our poultry.  Gonna miss that old dog. 

Came back from my morning ranch check. Dang, brown tree snake killed 5 of my Guinea keets. 2 of the small ones are missing, 3 of the big ones were laying on the ground of their pen. Not a good way to start my day.

Okay, done catching up on most of my sites. Forgot most of my passwords...had to request for it, then change it after I got back onto each of the sites or accounts. Everything looks good now. Sorry if any of you received some bogus emails from my yahoo account. Hopefully, the new PW will stop that. Have a good one...

Talk About Timing.

I got my computer tower back this evening.  It's working alright. I wouldn't be posting this if I didn't get it back today.  I'm sorry if you sent me emails or messages since I was last online.  I had to dump over 5000 emails on both my accounts to clean out my inboxes. Sorry about that.

As I've posted in my earlier post.  I'm a full time student at the Guam Trades Academy.  I'm taking the Construction Safety Officer course there.  I'm currently working on my Core Subjects than moving over to my skill courses soon thereafter.  I should be finished up with my core subjects by January 2011.  I'm doubling up my courses to finish faster. 

Starting in January 2011, I'll be  back at the University of Guam as a full time student.  I'm going to finish up my degree in Tropical Agriculture, emphasis in Animal Science.  I only have a year and a half left to get my degree.  Might as well do it and get it over with.  I've been on the long term graduation plan for way to long now. 

I'm also waiting for the upgrade to my VA disability rating.  I'm really surprised on the new pension rates for 2011.  It's about time...is all I can say.  I'm glad that were finally getting what we deserve, after what we did during our time in service for our country.  I'm hoping the VA finds my paperwork that was misplaced in Seattle.  Had to do all my physical evaluations out here on the island, again.  But, it's finally looking better.

I'm not working for IAN's Construction anymore.  I resigned last October.  I got tired of being placed on Standby, one to many times.  There were to many reasons to leave.  Main reason was lack of leadership, or none at all.  Other reason was trying to work a major project with lack of materials or equipments.  Then the boss ask why we're not on schedule.  Poor planning on managements part.  To bad, we don't have a Construction Union on Guam. 

I'll be posting more.  I've been writing a journal again since I wasn't able to post blogs. 

Laters...

Still Here, will be checking back once in awhile when I get a computer to use.

Computer Still Down, checking in, when I get a chance.

I'm curently at the University of Guam, College of Natural and Applied Sciences doing my precourse homework for Organic Inspector Class in two weeks.  Taking a break, I know I'll be here tomorrow to finish it off and then faxing it to the instructor. 

Lots going on with me.  I'm currently a full time student at the Guam Trades Academy taking the Safety Officer course.  I'll also be back here at UOG finishing up my degree in Agriculture in January 2011.  The VA will be paying for it. 

Hoping my PC is repaired soon so that I can get back online soon.  Have to catch you all later. 

ESTA