Well here it is at the end of the semester and I still can’t believe that I am at Riddle and done with one semester. I have officially finished all my classes and I am pretty sure I got all As and one B, which I am very happy with.

I found that Riddle is a challenging school, but it is something that I have great interest in so I found it pretty easy to do well. I picked my classes for next semester and I am pretty happy with the schedule. I’ll tell you what it is and all that next journal, but for now I’ll talk about the past two weeks and what not.

So, I guess we’ll do something different and start with classes . . . Speech- I am now able to speak in front of large groups because I am a master speaker. Well, not really, but I can prepare a speech about skydiving and be somewhat entertaining. I finished everything I was assigned and I got an A in the class. All in all, I don’t know if I would want to do it again, but I am glad I took the class and I think it will help me sometime in the future. Oh, and since my group debate was my final, I don’t have any other test, so that’s a plus.

Physics- We have been reviewing for our final this past two weeks, and that’s pretty much it. I will take the final on the 12th and then I will be done. Not only with physics, but all my classes. So that is something to look forward to.

Business- My group that I was in had to do a presentation about what we learned in the class and it was more or less an excuse for me to go up in front of 40 other people and make an idiot of myself. I find it hard to do an entire presentation without any laughing, so I always try to make it interesting. We did a skit that showed the difference between manipulation and influence and I was the crazy person who manipulated people. It was fun and I am pretty sure our professor liked it, which is usually a good thing. We have a final on the 10th and it is the type of final that you can’t study for so I’m not stressed about it.

Basic Aeronautics- We took our 3rd exam last week, which was kinda like our final. We only had 3 exams and we aren’t scheduled for a final which is good, kind of. My first two exams weren’t bad, but I could have done better. And since they weren’t the best, it was really hard to get an A in the class so I ended up with a high B. It’s definitely not the end of the world by any means, just next time I will make a little more effort.

College Success- Haven’t had this class since Thanksgiving, so nothing really new. There is one thing though . . . I used to go to Einstein’s before class and get a delicious turkey and cheese sandwich on a bagel, but since I don’t have that class anymore, I don’t go there anymore. I think I might go grab one for lunch soon though. MMmmmmmmmmhhhhhh, delicious turkey cheese bagel treat. . . . . . . . . .

Meteorology- We took our 3rd exam in this class as well and we also have an optional final. But unfortunately, I don’t need a final in meteorology; I need one in basic aeronautics. I have an A in the class and I got a 94 on the last test, so I won’t be taking the final, unless I get really bored. But even then, probably won’t.

Flight- I have been progressing along in a reasonable fashion and I have been enjoying every second of it. It is frustrating at times, but it is so much fun. I have been building up to my solo and every lesson I get a little bit closer. Well I have reached a big point recently, which is my check ride. A check ride is a flight right before you solo that is with an instructor that is certified by the FAA to determine if you as a pilot are capable of flying alone. Well, I just had my check ride and it went alright. It wasn’t too good, but not too bad either. I made some mistakes but I definitely learned from them and overall it went pretty good. I ended up passing which means I am almost going to do a solo flight! I have one more activity where I review some basic things before I solo. So, I should solo in the next week or so!!! I still can’t believe that I am going to solo soon, but it will hit me soon enough.

I have been pretty busy with classes lately, but they are winding down and finals are approaching fast. A lot of my friends have early finals and they are already on their way home. As for me, I should be here until the 14th. Even though finals are coming up and last-minute projects are trying to get down, my friends and I still try to have fun.

In other news, one of my friends has been playing the lottery a lot. He would always go to the 7-11 and spend any where from $10 to $50 on scratch-offs. He usually never wins, and if by the off chance he does, he just spends the money on more scratch-offs. At first it was kind of funny watching him walk around saying “I’m gonna go play the lottery, anyone wanna come?” He would get so happy but never win. Well eventually, some of my other friends and me told him he needed to stop wasting money and if he was going to waste money, waste it on something entertaining. So with that in mind, we decided to go to the local dog track and waste some money there.

All in all, we had a nice dinner and lost $5-$10 a piece and had fun. The way I look at it, we could have seen a movie, but instead we saw dogs run around a track. So I guess the lesson learned is that there is always a funner way to lose money than you are currently wasting it. And I was going to say “more fun” but “funner” just works better. After our fun time at the dog track, myself and two of my friends headed up and over to Gainesville to visit some friends that attend the University of Florida.

I don’t know how many people are into sports, but the Gators are going against Ohio State in football in January and the entire city of Gainesville went crazy when they found out. We were visiting and just checking out the huge campus of UF and everyone was going crazy about their football team. At Riddle, I don’t really feel a sense of strong school pride when it comes to sports, but we do have some good teams. But the Gators worship their football team and they were very excited when they found out they were going against the Buckeyes. My friends were probably the most ecstatic and even a week after the news they are still talking about it nonstop. Anyways, we had fun in Gainesville and it’s always cool to see other college campuses and there are a lot around Florida.

On another totally random topic, I went with my step-brother to see George Carlin perform in Clearwater (right outside of Tampa). If you don’t know who George Carlin is, I suggest you stop reading this and go Goggle George Carlin and read everything you can about him. He is a comedian in his late 60s and has been in the industry for nearly 50 years. He has always been one of my favorite comedians and I am so glad that I got to see him. Although his comedy isn’t for everyone, I think he is very insightful, thought provoking, and downright hilarious. Also, it was nice getting to see my step-brother who is also a freshman and attends UCF in Orlando.

Overall it was a lot of fun and I look forward to February when I will go see Ron White with my step-brothers and family. I don’t know if there are any Ron White fans out there, but I am a huge one and you will definitely hear about the show come February.

A couple days ago I got an e-mail asking about meal plans, roommates, and stuff to bring to Riddle. I thought I’d go ahead and just post it in my journal in case anyone else was curious.

Meal Plans: As a freshman, you are automatically enrolled for 14 meals per week. This means that you can use your card at various locations to get a meal which can be big or small depending on where you go. Once you have used all your meals for any given week (Sunday through Saturday) you have $100 in Riddle Bucks which is just like cash at any food location. So if you use all your meals you can still buy food with Riddle Bucks. From my own experience, I have found that 14 meals per week is too many for me. I personally don’t eat breakfast all the time and some times I will go out to eat with my parents or friends, which means at the end of the week I have extra meal plans that I can’t save. So if you think that you will eat breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday at Riddle, you might want to get 19 meals per week, but I personally wouldn’t get the unlimited one, because the unlimited one is only unlimited at the buffet style place. Pretty much you can go there all you want and eat all you want, but I can use 1 of my 14 meal plans and go inside and eat all I want anyway. I’m not sure if that makes sense but the buffet is all you can eat no matter what, you just have to stay inside the dining area, once you leave you will have to use another meal to get in anyway. So in conclusion, I think that 14 meals is plenty because I don’t know anyone that uses all of them. Also, you can always upgrade once you get here to anything. If anything is still unclear, just let me know or go here . . . http://www.erau.edu/db/dining/meal_plans.html

Stuff to bring: First off, I would highly recommend bringing a computer. Although there are several different places around campus to use a computer, having your own is the best. Other than a computer, I have some small storage bins in my room along with some small little bins. I find out that these come in handy when you are organizing stuff and they are good storage under your bed. I bought these from the Target up the road for a couple bucks, so no need to bring them down unless you really want to. You do have a desk with drawers and a dresser that can store a lot. Also, there is some room in the closest for storage bins and stuff. A list of common things can be found here http://www.erau.edu/db/dorms/housingfaq.html. I have a laundry hamper thing that helps with keeping my clothes off the ground and helps when I go do laundry.

In terms of dorms, I personally wanted to live in Doolittle and it just so happens that’s where I am. I’m not sure if I requested it or not, but you could call housing and ask them. (386) 323-8000 or at dbhousng@erau.edu. If you want an ROTC roommate, you will probably have to request it, but I’m not sure. Just contact housing because they will know better.

Hopefully that will answer anyone’s questions about meal plans or stuff to bring. Once again, if anything is unclear, feel free to shoot me an e-mail and I will do my best to answer any questions.

You won’t be hearing from me until early next year, but feel free to e-mail me at any time. I check it daily and will try to write you back as soon as I get the e-mail. As for the next couple weeks, I plan on working a little bit to get some money saved, going on my solo, spending Christmas with my family, snowboarding in New Hampshire with my friend, and going to Los Angeles to see Bob Barker and the Price Is Right!!!

I should be busy, but I will try to write down everything that happens so I can post it next Journal! I hope everyone has a wonderful, safe holiday season and I will see you guys next year!!!! Adios!!! -Blake

e-mail: wasteofsoap@yahoo.com aim: wasteofsoap