Hey everyone! Wow…I was so glad that spring break finally came when it did! I so needed to get away from the stress that school was causing and to just clear my head from this place!

I went to Simsbury, Connecticut to meet Mike’s family! I had been excited since Mike and his family wanted to come up there and meet them! But I was nervous too; this was the first time that I had ever done this sort of thing before. Mike naturally calmed me down and I was ok after that.

The airplane ride was pretty good. The first thing I noticed was the snow! I was just not used to seeing snow at this time of year since I have been in Florida. There were rivers and lakes that were still frozen over and such, so I was still excited.

When we go off the plane I finally got to meet Mike’s mom and I gave her a hug! She was so nice. Mr. Krug was cool as well…We all went out for my ultimate favorite: hot fudge brownie sundae!!!!! And I tell you it was the best that I ever had! Mike and his parents took me on a tour of Simsbury and that was cool. It is like a quiet town and I loved that feeling of seclusion that you normally don’t feel in the city.

The next day I got to meet many people from Mike’s family…they were all so very nice and I felt at ease with all of them, as if I had known them for more than a day! I saw how happy Mike was to be at home and I hadn’t really seen him that happy in a while. It was a wonderful sight to see him with his brother and mom and dad. I knew that he missed them all and I was happy that he at least got to be there for a week…

My favorite part had to be when Mike took me on my hike to see this beautiful waterfall! I mean there was still some snow on this mountain that we were hiking down to get to, but after sliding and me freaking out for a bit, all was well! All the sliding was worth it in the end, because the waterfall was so very relaxing!!!!!

Well after being in Connecticut for a week, it was time to come back to Daytona. I was sad that I had to leave. I felt like if I could have had just one more week to just relax that would have been fine with me. But I was fortunate to have this week off to relax, seeing that in the Embry-Riddle past, there has only been like Good Friday and the Monday after Easter off, that’s it! So on Saturday we came back to me needing to complete all the assignments that I didn’t do! Got them mostly done by today, but still have some lab and humanities homework to still do!

I would like to thank again Mr. and Mrs. Krug and Zach for letting me come into their home and having the opportunity to get to know them and feed me wonderful food and giving me much love and comfort for the entire week! I cannot thank you enough for your hospitality! You guys all take care and I’ll be sure to take good care of your son for the remainder of the school year until he comes home again!

Ok everyone, I hope you all had a wonderful spring break and keep those grades up because crunch time is coming! Take care and I will talk to you all very soon!

*~Terryel~*

Hey all. Let me apologize in advance for being a little out of it..while spring break was amazing, it was definitely very draining. I think I need another spring break just to recover from this one, but Riddle isn’t very sympathetic to such things. I drove up to Jersey again with some friends and this trip was much more eventful than Thanksgiving or Christmas. We had a lot of fun, but we were always on the go so there was no time to kick back and take a breather. I did enjoy getting to experience some ‘real’ weather, eating a cheese steak, and heading back up to NYC again. All in all, very fun. Except for the drive home. To make a long story short, a drive that should have taken us about 14-16 hrs (which is quite long enough to begin with), took 26 hrs. We left at 7 pm and got in at 9 pm, just in time for me to drive to Orlando and back to pick up a friend at the airport. Anticlimactic endings suck. And here I am..running on empty.

I’m not very excited for classes to pick up again, but we only have a month left in the semester, which is a beautiful thing to think about. I got lucky in that I had absolutely no homework over break, but I’m paying for it now with a test nearly every day this week. I also still have a lot of catch up work to do in statistics, which is no fun at all. I just received a tentative schedule for my Summer B study abroad in London/Paris, so I’m getting excited about the trip. There are so many field trips that we spend very few days in actual class, but we often have class for 9 hours a day and we have a 20 page paper due at the end, so that accounts for all the fun we’ll be having on the other days.

I don’t think I ever mentioned it, but my old roomie transfered out last January and I got a new one a month or so ago. Her name is Libby and we get along pretty well, but neither of us are every really in the room. I always feel bad though because I have to wake up early for ROTC and such and usually end up making noise, so my advice is: if you’re in ROTC, room with another ROTC kid..and if not, avoid it at all costs.

Not much news, as I haven’t actually been on campus, but feel free to ask any questions or say hi!

Melanie

Hello everyone, I hope you all had a great spring break! I did too, but the weather didn’t work along with me I guess.

When the break started most of my friends left for back home and only a couple of us were left here, but that didn’t bring me down. Friday night we went to watch the movie Hostage, great movie. Bruce Willis was great performing as a hostage negotiator and later on, police chief. Thumbs up for Bruce Willis!!

Later in the week we went to beach, and it was great. A1A was overflowing with people and it was easy to spot spring breakers. I think hanging out with friends on A1A is the best thing to do during spring break. It was more like Mardi Grass kind of atmosphere and slow traffic moving along A1A and other stuff you all know what I mean. Once we went there in the evening and stayed there till two in the morning, it was simply amazing, actually it was more fun because for some reason A1A comes to life late night. There is a lot to do – especially in spring break, make new friends, go to the beach, go to clubs and much more. I didn’t get a chance to go to the beach a lot because of muggy weather later in the week. But that’s fine I will make it up in summer. Oh I watched the movie BE COOL, and I am sad to say it but I wasted my six dollars.

Back to school – The school is almost coming to an end now, one more month and then I will be free for only a week until the summer A starts. I have a long year to go until Christmas. From fall I will be taking my engineering level classes, commonly known as AE-level courses and I am so glad that I will be done with all of the prerequisite courses and then ready to dive into actual engineering science. I am desperately waiting for it because that is the stuff that interests me more. I have heard it from some seniors that the labs for engineering science are awesome and I am really looking forward to it, especially wind tunnel lab, in other universities one can see those lab in graduate studies, but at Riddle, I will be able to have hands on experience during undergraduate studies.

The elections for Indian Student Association, YUVA are next week and I am running for treasurer. I am suppose to give a speech but at this point I have not prepared anything and to be honest I don’t believe in preparing speeches for any kind of election. God knows if I will win or not, YUVA really needs some good executive board members if not then the chances are the club will close soon.

Right now, it’s 2:12 am on Monday the 28th and I have to get up at 7 to attend my EGR 115 class so I better get going. For those who have some questions and wondering how to contact me, my email is vyas85a@erau.edu and you can also buzz me on AIM at m100584m.

So until next time, chillax!! (chill + relax)

OVER & OUT!!!

Hello readers, Happy Easter everybody, I’m right in the middle of spring break and the weather hasn’t picked up yet, but I have been told that I do too much complaining in my articles, so I am not going to talk about the bad things. On a brighter note, before my girlfriend went home yesterday we went to St. Augustine for a couple of days, because a few people told us that it was worthwhile going to visit.

The first day we went there was the only good day for the whole two weeks that she was in America. It was lucky, because we had planned on going to the beach, which was a lot nicer and quieter than Daytona Beach. Then we went into the city itself, which feels like a small town somewhere in Europe. Everything is small and quaint and it didn’t feel like anywhere else that I have been in the U.S. (as of yet). It’s hard for me to say that, as it is where Flagler University hales from, but still it was a nice way to end her visit. The two weeks she was here seemed to fly by, just the same as this semester. Not long left now, just finals to get over. For the past two weeks, I’ve been staying at one of the boy’s apartment, which was class (cheers Besty). I’m back in the dorms now, and feeling thoroughly depressed about it. It was great to have a bit of freedom, and a car to drive. I think I will enjoy next semester a lot more, I will be moving into a house or apartment, and I’ll be getting myself a car.

I’ve started making my plans for this summer; Elisabeth and myself are going away to Cuba for three weeks. As much as I love Razzles, bikers with mullets, and pilots, it will be great to get away for awhile and just relax. I heard that it isn’t the safest place for you Americans to travel to. I have a few months of hard labor to do before I can afford this, but it will be worth it when I get to take it easy for a few weeks. I think that I will probably fly straight back here after the holiday. I can’t wait to get home for the summer, all this talk of finals and projects has killed my good form, and now the summer is the only thing that I have to look forward to. Oh, actually I am turning 21 this Thursday, so I have the weekend to look forward to. It should be a mad one.

Anyway that is the extent of my spring break, but hopefully by my next entry I should have a few good stories from my first weekend as a twenty-one year old. Take it easy.

Well, the great glorious spring break is over. I officially did not do one single bit of homework while I was off. It was wonderful, haha. So what else did I do you might ask? I sat in front of the TV, worked some here and there, and just chilled too. After working so hard so far this semester I just needed to relax for a little while. Plus, it either rained a bunch or it was just generally overcast most of Spring Break in Daytona. This past Sunday was the only day that was actually warm and sunny. I went out in the garage and worked on my car a little bit. Went out and washed it, then it rained later that day. Oh well, it happens.

Of course, this past week went by so fast it didn’t even feel like it was a week off. Soon school will totally be out and then summer will be filled with working and relaxing. I’m hoping I can work this summer enough to pay some on my mounting student debt, or just use the money to pay some of the tuition for next semester. I think I could work for a year and never make enough money to pay for all of tuition, haha. Anyways, that’s what happens when you go to a good school I guess.

So, this semester is about half or so over, but it feels like it’s almost totally over. I’m ready for it to be, that’s for sure. Our official last day of classes is in about a month. YEAH! I’m so excited. Thank goodness it’s almost here. This summer will be fun, it has to be. Last summer working at Disney was a blast. This summer has to top that. I don’t know how it can though, working at Disney was the most fun place to work EVER!

Well, I’ll have to stew about where to work this summer and for now do some homework while I’m at it. I’ll talk to yall later.

-Darryl

Hello to all you journal readers. I am writing this journal after quite an eventful day that took me from Los Angeles to Daytona Beach in a span of 12 hours (a mixture of cancelled and delayed flights). Spring Break was a well deserved break for many of us and as I previously stated, I went against what most would have done —  stayed here — and opted to go home instead for Spring Break. I was given the opportunity to see my family and friends. After being away from home for a while, it was a welcome sight for sore eyes.

Well, as I write this journal, I find myself stuck in a situation which most of us hate to be in. I have a lot of homework and would rather pretend that such a thing doesn’t exist. Lucky for us, we have about 5 full weeks of school remaining until we all are given the opportunity to go home for the summer.

I did not have the time to finish flying and get my private before I left to go back home, but with 5 weeks remaining, I have more than enough time to complete my last 2 flights. Once I complete the last two flights, I will then go up for my Oral and Checkride. I have been studying for that oral and somehow many details are still slipping my mind at times.

When I went home a friend of mine who still happens to be in high school asked me how college truly is. Well, as I told her and will tell all of you, it is all about knowing how to read, understand, and comprehend books of different subject matter. One thing that has always been a weakness of mine is my inability to comprehend what it is I read. I will find myself sitting there asking myself what it is that I have just finished reading. To my dismay, I seldom remember what it is I read even after just browsing over it.

I strongly recommend for those of you going to any college next year to really learn how to read well. I wish someone could have stressed how important reading truly is in a college education. Don’t get me wrong, I still pass my classes with a weakness in reading, but I tend to learn well from lectures and notes, so I am still able to learn what is taught.

Spring Break back home was fun but most of you are probably interested in what Daytona Beach has to offer. From what I have seen and heard, the beaches have had some great turnouts and there are events all along the beach that allow for spring breakers to relax and have some fun. Hopefully other journal writers can offer a perspective as to how it was last week.

Well, off I go to finish homework and get ready to restart classes ( I already missed a day). Keep the questions coming on the message board. I, as well as the other journal writers, will be more than willing to offer you our assistance.

The time has finally come for mid-semester reflection and refreshment. Mid-term examinations are done and over with after an intense final two weeks of studies. After chalking off the first few weeks to a significant drop in energy and drive, things have finally picked back up and are well on their way to mimicking things last semester. Not a moment too soon at that; the success of those exams helped me to solidify that I am likely able to bring all my grades back from borderline to acceptable with the few weeks remaining.

Some of you have expressed a solid interest in the Navy ROTC program, how it is structured and what it’s all about in recent weeks, so I felt that this would be an excellent opportunity to help spell things out as best I can in the hopes that many questions can be answered outright. It should be added that if there are any other questions or concerns, I am still more than happy to address them or forward you to someone who’s better suited for the job in question.

The Navy ROTC scholarship covers all tuition, $300 for books per semester, your monthly stipend ($250 – $400 per month, depending on class), and flight so long as it is a part of your major. This also includes approved extra credit hours (the university charges for more than 16 credit hours per semester). Housing is not covered, but ERAU provides some sort of incentive scholarship for housing – $3000 for the year is currently under review.

Life in the Unit basically consists of three mandatory PT sessions per week (four morning and one afternoon are offered, Thursday mornings mandatory for all). If you take things low-key, then there’s not much else but uniform day on Tuesday, plus Drill that afternoon, the Naval Science classes, and any other extra activities you may perform with the Unit – anything from Color Guard to lunches with the Navy League to helping volunteer for certain events.

The more you can do to be active, the better off you’ll be in the long run. There’s a club for each of the warfare communities (Aviation, Submarine, Surface, and Special Warfare), as well as Color Guard and Drill Team, a budding Rifle and Pistol Team to name a few.

Furthermore, should anyone have more questions or merely an interest in reviewing the Unit’s Web site, I recommend looking towards http://embryriddlenavymarinesrotc.org/ where you’ll find photos, a wealth of information, as well as our semiannual newsletter, Eagles and Anchors, for your pleasure and review.

Onward + Upward

Hey guys- I can count the days left until spring break on one hand, and that excites me to no end. It looks like I’m headed back to Jersey, once again. My best friend Katie and I are going to hang out a bit and hopefully get up to NYC for a few days since our trip didn’t work out over Christmas break. We hoped to go to California over break, but we procrastinated too much and we’ll just go over summer. I’ve been a little stressed lately and I’m in need of a few days off. I was sick all last week with the flu. I didn’t even get out of bed for a few days, so I get to play catch-up this week in all my classes which isn’t fun when I’m still feeling a bit under the weather. I’m not all that thrilled that my parents decided to move so close, but it was nice when my mom drove out here to bring me soup and medicine…

ROTC has been a little hectic lately. We had another beach run last Friday. They’re a little early but a nice change of pace to regular PT. Usually, SO goes into the water afterwards for some static PT, but I think we’re going to wait until the second one. That works for me because the water was freezing and I was sick anyway. Monday’s LLAB was what we call “big week”. It happens every year before spring break..all the sophomores find out who is going to field training and all the juniors find out who gets pilot/nav/abm slots. Congrats to all those who got good news! Freshmen were supposed ot find out about PDTs, which are various summer programs that we can get selected for. I applied for a couple different options and my class ranking is pretty good, so I’m hoping that works out. The catch is, that we don’t get to pick when or where we go..and if we get selected, we have to attend. I got in to the summer abroad program for summer B in London/Paris, so I’m hoping I find out about PDTs soon and hoping it doesn’t conflict with Europe. I also passed my PFT this morning and improved upon all my scores, which means I get to activate my scholarship in the fall 🙂 I was a little worried about it.. I passed last fall, but they changed the tests and it screwed me up a bit, but all is good now.

As for Special Operations, we have once again earned the right to be called “team”, and we went through a lot to get there so it feels pretty good to have it back. If there’s any kind of miracle to be had, I’ll make staff next semester and won’t ever have to do this again, but I’ve got to get my act together and work harder if I want to have any sort of chance at that.

If you’re coming here in the fall [or summer], get on the discussion boards and meet some people before you get here. I felt a lot better coming here when I was able to put names and faces to “all the new people I’m going to meet”. You’ll also find out that everyone is in the same position as you and eager/anxious all at the same time.

Lunch time. Take it easy.

Melanie

Hello everyone, I hope you all are doing great! So, where should I start…uummm?

Alright, last night (3/13) I went to a concert at the House of Blues, Orlando. It was my friends and I and let me tell you we had a blast. It was Strata, Future Leaders of World, Crossfade, Helmet and Chevelle. They all were good but Crossfade was one of the best and Chevelle was simply amazing. To give you all the basic idea; at the end of the concert I was soaking wet from head to toe, just think about the kind of fun we had.

Since I don’t have a car we hired one from those cheap rental places and we were on road at around three. We got there in approximately one hour and after a long wait in the line the show started at around six, by the time we got out it was midnight. Chevelle was the last one to play and he rocked the place.

The day before (3/12), I went skydiving with the club called AIAA, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, usually it costs $ 169 but because I was a member of AIAA it cost me $ 90. This is for everyone, try it, it is very addicting. The feeling of falling 110 miles/hour is amazing. We jumped from 13,000 feet and we were down on the ground in less than six minutes; the free fall for first minute was just breathtaking. Even though I was really nervous about the whole thing, I think I will do the course and get my license.

And the day before (3/11, the Friday of the bike week), my friends and I went to check out bikes. The atmosphere in the downtown was simply amazing; bikes were lined up on the both curbs, open bars, clubs were packed. It was girls and bikes everywhere. Bikers came from all over the country and they put on a good show.

On the school front I have three tests this week, one on Thursday (EGR 120) and two on Friday (ES 201 & SS 325). It is rough but in a way it is nice, I will be able to enjoy the spring break to its full content. Although I am doing really well in all my class, the EGR 115, C programming class is giving me some trouble but I know that if I spent some time reading then I will get it surely.

EGR 120 class is getting really interesting as we are learning more new techniques to make our engineering drawings precise. The key to that class is a skill of visualizing objects in a definitive manner. In yesterday’s class our teacher had brought in a blue print of a rocket and I was amazed with the precise graphical design (blue print); it was scaled to fit on one sheet but every single detail was taken in account while making that blue print.

The spring break starts at the end of this week, most of my friends are going out but some of us are staying back. I can’t comprehend the fact that people come to Daytona Beach from all over the country for spring break and some ‘Riddleians’ leave Daytona for spring break. I just can’t get it. But before the break starts I have to make sure that I do well in my three exams…so with that hope. I will write back later; you all have a wonderful spring break.

OVER & OUT!!!

Hey! It’s journal time again, hehe. Well, let’s see what all has happened around here the past few days. First of all, BIKE WEEK! Ahhhh (That’s all I can say). Loud motorcycles zooming all over the place all crazy like. Thankfully it’s over now, but man they were insane this past week or so. I don’t mind the fact that they are motorcycles; it’s just that they are so DANG LOUD. Never mind trying to go anywhere north or east of Riddle. You pretty much are confined by traffic to South Daytona or Port Orange to actually get anything done. Riddle seemed to be the borderline between the motorcycles and the rest of the world. So that all happened, plus my parents came down for a couple days. We went to check out the Ponce Inlet Lighthouse. Let me tell ya. If anyone tries to get you to go up that blasted lighthouse, FORGET IT! 200+ spiraling steps that go 175 feet up I think. It’s not the height or anything that’s the problem. It’s the fact that the steps go nearly straight up, which is a pain in the butt when you try to go back down. Better start working out if you ever plan on going up that thing.

It’s starting to warm up again and get all up in the 80’s. But, it’s almost spring so it had better get warmer. Other than that, there’s not much going on this week. Spring Break is pretty close, can’t wait. It’s gonna be nothing but sitting around here watching tv. Loads of fun. Anyways, I’ll check yall later.