Happy February! Hope wherever you are it is cold, because here in Florida there was a high of 85 the other day! Yeah! 85!!! If that sounds good to you . . . you might be crazy or you might just be freezing cold in a place that gets way too cold. Either way, if 85 sounds good, you have something to look forward to! Anyway, other than sweating a lot, I am doing good. I’ve had a busy two weeks, and I have some big plans coming up… more on that later . . . now, some classes!!!
MWF 10:30am-11:30am – Air Traffic Management III – Well, we have taken our first test and both my friend Aaron and I got a 98! Definitely a good way to start off the year. Our second test is scheduled for this coming Wednesday and then after that we’ll be in the labs! I have gotten 6 practice hours in the lab so far and I’m pretty excited that our class will start to consist of only the labs. I’ll try to take some pictures of the labs the next time I’m in there and post them online.
TTH 8:15am-9:30am – Aviation Legislation – We had our first test in here last Thursday and I still don’t know what I got. The test was different than what I am usually used to. Usually, all other tests in my different classes have consisted of multiple choice questions; however, in this class there are only 10 MC questions and we had to write an essay. I’m not a big fan of writing essays, but I think I did alright. The subject seems pretty interesting, so all in all, it’s not too bad.
TTH 9:45am-11:00am – Aerodynamics – This class is starting to kick it up a notch. We are already jumping into some pretty wicked stuff, and now I’m realizing that I am going to need to study for quite some time before my test. The test should be sometime next week, which is good because I have some other tests coming up this week. The professor for this class is definitely pretty cool; he just goes off on tangents a lot, so sometimes it’s hard to learn for the whole hour and fifteen minutes. The class is fun though, so I’ll just need to do some extra work outside of class to make sure I get a good grade.
TTH 11:15am-12:30pm – Commercial Pilot Ops. – This is one of my classes that I will be having a test in soon, and I’m kind of nervous. I have (for the most part) always done good on tests since I’ve been here at Riddle, but in my past two classes that dealt with flying (instrument and private) I didn’t do the best. I ended up with an A last semester, but my entire first year I got B’s. And I’m not one of those people that freaks out if I don’t get straight A’s. I can handle B’s and C’s, but I always try to get A’s. Anyway, the only B’s I’ve gotten at Riddle were the ones in those classes and I really had to work to get an A last semester, so I’m expecting a lot of work this semester so I can keep my GPA up.
TTH 3:45pm-5:00pm – Aircraft Engines – Oh yes, I am way over my head in this class. I am starting to grasp some concepts in this class, but after looking at all these formulas I need to know how to use, I begin to feel like a physicist! I’ll take a picture of the formula sheet and post it online, it’s pretty wicked. Anyway, I’m pushing my way through the class and trying to get ready for the test that is approaching ever so fast. I’ll let you know how that goes when I take it.
TTHS 7:45pm-12:00am – Flight – Well, I am finishing up my instrument rating and I actually got done with everything I was suppose to do, but I didn’t meet the minimum number of hours required. So basically, that means I need to do a few more activities, which is a good thing because some more practice would definitely give me some more confidence. So I’ll be doing some more training over the next two weeks or so, and then I’ll start my final tests! I actually just took my written test the other day and I passed with an 83!!! I am definitely stoked about that because now there is one less thing I have to worry about. I’ll be sure to let you know how the last few activities go!
Other than the school stuff, I have definitely been keeping pretty busy. I’ll start by talking about the Rolex 24. For those of you unfamiliar with the race that is known as the Rolex 24, go here to find out more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24_Hours_of_Daytona
Anyway, in a nutshell, it is a 24 hour race in Daytona and I went with a bunch of friends to go see it! We got out the racetrack at around 9 or so and pulled into a huge grass lot and backed up all our cars and cooked out. We had cheeseburgers and hotdogs and just kind of hung out for a while. I mean there wasn’t really any rush; the race is 24 hours long. After a while we bought tickets and started walking around on the infield area. We went to one of the hair-pin turns and got pretty close to see the race. After a while we stumbled around in different areas and then the next thing we knew, we were in the pit area. You had to pay to get a special pass, but somehow we happened to get in! We were walking down the main road in between all the tents for the racers and we heard a car behind us, so we all jumped out of the way. It ended up pulling into the tent next to us and the driver was yelling to his crew about something and they started working on the car! We were like 15 ft away! I took pictures with my phone so I don’t know how’ll they’ll look on-line, but I’ll put them on the site. After that we ended up going to Waffle House at like 3 in the morning. All in all, it was a pretty fun experience.
I mentioned last journal about my roommate’s aerobatic adventures, but I didn’t really tell you all about it. Basically, he is getting a “tail wheel endorsement” which is done in an aerobatic plane. The planes we train in at Riddle don’t have a tail wheel, so you need special training to fly those types of planes. So my roommate is getting that training, and since it is done in an aerobatic plane he gets to do flips, go inverted, and do high G turns! I want him to finish up everything so he can take me up for a ride! I think that sometime next semester I will try to get the tail wheel endorsement, but I’m not sure though. I’ll just have to see where I’m at then.
So the super bowl was intense! Sorry to all you Pat fans, and congrats to all you Manning fans! Also, just some FYI, favorite commercial was the Doritos one with the mouse trap and then the giant mouse jumps on him. If you didn’t catch it, you can watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5lBdLEi3ns
Anyway, me and my roommate had some friends over to watch the game and we made some delicious burgers and a new dish: cheeseburger pizza, which was pretty good. I’m looking forward to the next time we have an excuse to cook that again!
As I said last journal I applied to become a member of AOA (an Aeronautical Honor Society) and I just found out that I was accepted!!! I’ll go more into the club itself later, but basically there is a meeting every week and there are activities that we will do through out the year. I’m very excited about being apart of AOA and I look forward to telling you guys about some fun stuff that is going to happen!
Well, as you loyal readers know, my sister goes to school in New York and I am going to go visit her in less than two weeks!!! I went up in October and it was so nice to see her in the city, and I am definitely looking forward to seeing her again! I’ll be sure to take lots of pictures and tell you all about it next journal. Also, I have a little something planned for spring break coming up in March. It’s a little trip with some of my friends, but I don’t want to give too much away now. You’ll have to wait until next time to see what it is! (if you even care!!!)
On another note, my mom came over to my apartment and cooked dinner for me and some friends. We made garlic chicken which is a recipe that my grandmother use to make all the time and now my mom gave it to me! It’s by far my favorite meal and I can’t wait to make it on my own, although it probably won’t be as good! Anyway, it was nice to see my mom and hang out with her and my friends. We ended up watching American Gladiator afterwards which was a blast too!
I promise that I will upload some pictures and videos soon, but I’ve been wicked busy lately. Check up on that sometime within the week and there will be some new stuff. Also, thanks to everyone who is sending e-mails with questions and comments. I have responded to a lot of them and I should be almost caught up with everyone. As always, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to send me an e-mail. Well, I’ve got a lot of tests to study for, so the journal ends here. I’ll see you in two weeks!!!! Adios…
-Blake
email: wasteofsoap@yahoo.com
