Thanksgiving break is over :-(…but Christmas break is almost here. I drove back to Jersey with some of my friends from here (Thanks, Joe!) and it was a very long trip. What should have taken about 14 hours ended up taking about 20 after traffic and stops. We drove all through the night and I ended up only sleeping for about two hours– we were supposed to take turns keeping the driver awake but everyone else passed out a few hours into it. So that was interesting… It was the first time I’d been back since school started and it was really good to see my friends. I was kinda worried that everything would change and it would be a little awkward but that wasn’t the case. Hopefully, I’ll get to spend a little time there over break.. Senses Fail and my Chemical Romance both have shows..

Finals start next week. The work load hasn’t really lightened and I’ve been running on empty and no sleep for a week or so. My UNIV101 class ended and I just gave my last speech in COM219 so that’s been winding down, but my other classes are definitely making up for it. Going straight through from 6:30 AM to 4:30 PM on M/W/F has been killing me but at least on Tues/Thurs I get to sleep in a little bit and take it easy. I partied especially hard this weekend for the new S.O. commander’s 21st birthday, and I’ve been sick, so the past few days have been a little rough, and now we have PIR and finals review. We don’t have PT this week though, so that makes it a bit better.

We have our last practice of the semester for Special Ops on Weds. Sounds like it’s going to be a fun one. Then we have a couple of colorguards and camp-out left. It kinda sucks though, because we have to start all over again next semester, which looks like it’ll be a lot harder. Two semesters on team though and we’re eligible for staff, so we’re half-way through. We did color-guard on ice last weekend at the hockey game. It was interesting to say the least, but it went pretty well all things considered.

The guys in my hall woke me up in the middle of the night right before break after they broke the sprinkler system in the hallway, which ended up making a huge mess and flooding all the rooms in the area, so I wouldn’t recommend testing out the validity of your RA’s warnings about it next year. I’m going through the process to try to become an RA for next year, so if all goes well, maybe some of you will get lucky enough to be one of my residents.

It’s time now for me to go find a 30 min block in which to take a nap today between ROTC, class, and ROTC..and then some more ROTC.

7th Inning Stretch! Well gang, semester’s up. It’s easy to say that this upcoming break is more than welcome. I know on my side I’m eager to see home again; it’s been two years now since I’ve been back west. After spending Thanksgiving some 400 miles from here and seeing the effects of that brief intermission, winter should definitely bring about a good chance to refocus and remind myself of my few, though important priorities.

This is the last week for classes, and the stress is beginning to show in many of them. My Aeronautics Basics class is really beginning to cram in the last bits of lesson that it can. Flight Physiology is likewise squeezing in a third exam this week, just before finals – though that’s mostly because most of the other students need the points. Most all of my classes had some sort of project due within the past week, including presentations and research projects. I was able to knock out those quite easily thanks in part to my old political science studies.

On the NROTC front, the Battalion just finished their physical examinations for the semester and I, because of my bum knee (an academic injury, oddly enough), will get to run out the last bits of stability in it on Wednesday during the make-up run. We’ve also been preparing for our semester award ceremony, where I hope to earn ribbons recognizing my participation in color guard, drill team, and community service. Some of my friends secured awards for physical fitness achievement, academic achievement, and even an exemplary overall service award. I’ve also started a self-devised project that will catalogue the leadership of the Unit for future reference and, more importantly, will give current midshipmen the opportunity to learn about their current seniors and possibly be able to draw some connection with them because of it. The idea came from my former AFROTC Detachment at CSU/UNC. My associates and I have merely expanded the task.

Otherwise, things are just in their usual wind-down phase, with added focus on moving out of my room into another hall. Some buddies of mine and I are working on fitting a room together for next semester in order to relieve us all of certain roommate headaches and aid in our NROTC efforts, since we’re all working on the aforementioned project and some other postulated projects together. Not too sure what all to throw in here. I know there’s been some mention about people wanting more “personal life” in this, so I again invite you to write personally for such questions or even if there’s anything you care to know over the break. zivnu70f@erau.edu And, to the friend of my friend at Colorado School of Mines, that means you too J!

Have a grand winter vacation everyone. Enjoy the snow, those of you who have it. I know I will!

Onwards and upwards, David

Hey everyone! Whoa I am so excited that everyone is back from Thanksgiving Break! I was left here at school in like a totally deserted hall and it was so lonely. My boyfriend Mike went home to Connecticut and I missed him very very much! He called me every day and checked up on me. I remember just beginning to cry on the phone, not just because I missed him, but how much I truly valued every second that I would spend with him. I mean I would get excited everytime he would call me on the phone!

My friend Melinda who lives down the hall from me was one of the people that stayed here. She and I had hung out a lot during that time and just got to know one another even more. We worked on homework together and watched T.V. Basically we just enjoyed the quietness of the hall. Melinda went home for Thanksgiving day and I ate dinner by myself (which the Turkey Dinner in the cafeteria was so awesome that I haven’t gotten that full on such a great home-cooked meal like that in a while), but she came back the next day so it was all good!

Well even though I didn’t get all my homework done, I did get slightly caught up on my work. I don’t have too much to do, but I think I am just ready for finals to get here and be over with!

When everyone got back, my friend Tamara who also lives down the hall from me had a big Turkey Dinner for all of us in the hall. Her mother had supplied us with some turkey, sweet potatoes, and rum cake that all tasted really good and I especially appreciated it because in the end I got to spend Thanksgiving with my friends after all!

Mike said next year that I am going to Connecticut with him and yeah I surely am! There is no way I am staying here in the dorms all by myself ever again!

Ok, I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving Holiday and I will talk to you all very very soon! Adios!

Hello again. How is everyone? (I ask as if anyone would let me know, haha). Anyways, Thanksgiving came and passed. I stayed down here like most everyone else. My parents made the near 700 mile trip down here and chilled at my apartment for the holiday. We didn’t do a whole lot. After all, it’s still a small town atmosphere here. I haven’t done anything this past week really. I finally got cable service in my apartment so I just sat around. Monday I’m going to Disney. More than likely we will go to EPCOT, but we’ve got hopper passes that are good for all four parks, so we’ll see. Another good thing about going to school in Florida, you’re automatically considered a Florida resident. This gives you great discounts to lots of places, including the theme parks. So anyways, we’ll check out the Christmas scenes over there and of course have fun doing it.

On the home front I have to have maintenance come and fix the water in my apartment. All the faucets are backwards and the toilet flushes hot water!??!? Crazy huh?! And before you ask how I know that it uses hot water, I’ll just let you know that sometimes it steams after you flush it!! It cracks me up. That’s for sure. Man! Finals, booo. Anyways, I’ve got three finals on Monday the 13th and one on the 16th. Isn’t that always fun. At least the final I have on the 16th is my hardest class, so I’ll have a few days to study for that one. It is kinda crazy that the semester is almost over. It doesn’t feel like a full semester, I guess those hurricanes just screw everything up. Well, I am off to go cruise around. It’s one thing to do when there is nothing else to do. See you guys later.

Hello Readers, hope things are going well. This has been, by far, my laziest two weeks at Embry Riddle since I got here, four months ago. I don’t know what it can be; it seems like the more I sleep the more tired I get. I have not done a tap of work in a fortnight. I thought that after the soccer season finished I would have an abundance of energy to carry me through my finals. It has turned out to be the opposite. I have absolutely no desire to do anything but sleep.

I think that the more pressure I am under, the better I work. Knowing that I have not got training after classes every day, I assume I have an age to every task set by a lecturer, and then I leave it until the last minute. Where as, when I had only a couple of hours to spare per night for homework and stuff, and I had been working all day I did not mind putting in another few hours of high quality work. I suppose it has a lot to do with the frame of mind you are in. For instance I sat in front of the computer last week for seriously, three hours, and I managed a mere paragraph. Partially it had to do with some time spent on emails, of course the compulsory food and drinks breaks, time spent sorting out the most trivial things, and then there is always someone to talk to, but mostly it was down to pure unadulterated laziness. As long as I get through these next few weeks and I can keep the grades that I have at the minute I will go home to Ireland at Christmas a happy man.

I went out on Friday to Coyote’s for the free drink from nine to ten but didn’t hang about for long, went on to Mai Tai’s after that. A quiet enough night by all accounts but I have a feeling that there are a few big nights coming up, to celebrate the end of the semester. A lot of lads off the team are heading home to do internships next semester so it might be the best part of a year before we see them again, so it is a worthy reason for a few beers.

I haven’t been on a night out where we have ventured further than Mai Tai’s, Coyote’s, or Razzles’ (which I vowed never to go back to again) and would appreciate if someone could tell me if there is any good spots to frequent in the Daytona area. A few lads went to Orlando on Saturday night past and apparently had their best night of the year, which I feel proves my point about the lack of night life in Daytona Beach. I find this very surprising as it is not at all what I expected, as a foreigner here for the first time. I am not mad about going clubbing or anything like that, but all I want is a nice bar to have a few drinks in a nice atmosphere. I don’t think that this is too much to ask, from a place which has a worldwide reputation for good night life, or so I thought.

I think that this is my penultimate entry and I hope that for the last one that I will have some eventful nights to tell you all about, but until then, good bye for now.

P.S. If I could just say hello to Elisabeth, Ursula, Big Phil and E.D.

Hey everybody. Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving break. Though I spent my Thanksgiving break at Riddle, it was quite boring since no one was here, I did get lots of work accomplished as well as some flying. I have acquired over 20 flight hours here and am 2 flights away from my solo.

Flying has been fun so far. Daytona is a great place to fly because I have had the opportunity to fly along the beach, up the coast, in the fields, over lakes, and just over some great scenery. Flying is one of those professions where you know, by some instinctive feeling, that this is the job and profession for you. Luckily, my flying hasn’t been filled with many problems or delays, I have been lucky to go through my flying quite rapidly.

As the semester is slowly winding towards an end, as is my total amount of work. I have had to do so many research papers and group projects that were quite overwhelming, but luckily, all but one are completed. I was looking through our message board and came up with a few answers for some frequently asked questions.

Weather: The weather in Daytona is quite moderate. Temperatures here have been quite warm lately with cool, but not necessarily cold nights. Honestly, the only day I have worn a sweater in the day was last Saturday. The first and only day I actually felt like I needed to wear a sweater. It is very rainy no matter what season, but the rain here goes by quickly. In the summer it is very hot and humid, so bring shorts and t-shirts because they are necessary and vital.

AE and Flight Training: I know someone who is doing that right now, so it is a possibility. It would actually be a plus because not only do you understand systems from an engineering level, but also from a pilot’s perspectives. I’ll let you in on a little secret, you can actually get your ratings and certifications, all of them, off campus and get credit for a minor in flight if you take the only required ground courses here. I think there is only one or two of them, so if you can take those here, go home and fly in the summer, being in AE and having a minor in Flight would be viable and an option.

Bike on Campus: It isn’t necessary to have a car while on campus here at Riddle, but since the surrounding areas have a lot to offer (Orlando, Jacksonville, Miami), I would recommend a car. I don’t think you would want to ride your bike to Miami. You could hitch a ride with a group of friends while you’re here, but remember, driver chooses the destination, and if his thought of fun is Orlando, while yours is Miami, you’re going to be missing your car.

Flight: It is expensive. Bring lots of money, don’t spend it, put into the flight account you will have when you have your Eagle Card and be prepared to be paying close to $400 at times for flights.

That covered some of the latest topics that have been popping up in the message board lately. As for some random stuff, while you are here look into the “Touch N Go” movie showings every Thursday. It is nice to have a movie to watch every Thursday that hasn’t even been released on DVD. For example, this Thursday, TNG will be showing “Collateral.” I also learned that “Firehouse Subs” makes some good subs. If you’re from the West Coast, there is nothing here that compares to In N Out Burgers. No matter how much you may hate home-cooked food at times, you’ll miss it when you have to eat away from home for months at a time. The morning flight block, 5:30-10:30AM can cause you to miss classes in the morning, not because it overlaps, just because you end up coming back to your dorm and sleeping. If you are one who needs his or her sleep, I recommend you fly in the evening hours.

Lastly, there is a guy who lives about 4 rooms down in the dorms here who was telling me about why he looked at these journals while he was in high school. As he said, he just wanted to know that he wasn’t going to a school where no one resembled him in any way. Well, I hope I haven’t scared any of you from coming here, trust me, I don’t resemble many of the people here. I don’t know if it is a good thing or a bad thing, but if any of you have any specific questions, post them on the message board and you can get opinions other than mine.

Well, have a good one everybody, Later!

Hello, I’ve just had another mixed couple of weeks. Last weekend we won the regional tournament held here at Riddle. It all started last Friday night (11/12) when we beat St. Thomas 3-0 in the semi-final and then we went on to beat Northwood in the finals on Saturday. This victory was sweetened by the fact that they were the only team to beat us in the conference during the season; and sweetened further more because they are the only team in the Conference without any sportsmanship what so ever. In the three games we played against them throughout the season, they had a man sent off in every game, including three sent off in the final.

So it was off to Kansas for Nationals, Olathe, to be more exact. It has never been one of my life long dreams to go to Kansas, and I found out why this week. It is in the middle of nowhere, it is freezing, and more importantly it is very boring. I hope I am not offending anyone, that’s not my intention. But if you are from Olathe, I am sure that you are aware of this already. And if you aren’t, you are kidding no one but yourself. I suppose that this is not a bad place to hold the national finals as there are sure to be no distractions for the athletes as the night life in Kansas seems to be non- existent, as well as any sort of crowd at the games. I think I am just bitter because I am back so soon. And the reason that I am back so soon is because we got beat in our first game. I won’t bore you with the in’s and out’s of the game but I will give you a brief outline of how our season came to an abrupt end on Wednesday.

We started off brightly, and were in a commanding position at the half time interval, yet the score board did not reflect this fact, as it was still 0-0. When we came out for the second half, we conceded an early goal just 5 minutes after the break. A bad decision by the referee, but I am getting used to bad referees over here as it is the norm. Then, deservedly so, we equalized with about twenty minutes to go and were in the ascendancy, and I felt we would go on to win the game from here. But football being the cruel game it is, it wasn’t to be. We conceded a goal, not for the first time, with a mere 10 minutes to go. We did not stop battling right up until the last whistle, all in vain none the less, and just like that our season was ended. A hard one to swallow, purely because of the fact that they were not a good side by any stretch of the imagination, and 9 times out of ten we would have beaten them. Knock out tournaments are funny like that.

Anyway, still tired from a long days traveling yesterday, I had my first day back in class today. The disappointment of losing was worsened when I was informed of how much work I have to catch up on for Monday. Overall it has not been a bad season, I mean we won the conference pretty comfortably and we came through the Regional as well. You cannot rest on your laurels, and I think that we have established ourselves as a very good team over the past few seasons. I say this because of the reputation that I heard about before I came here, but I think that next season we will take that next step and win a national title. It would be great to win it next year, especially as they are going to be held at Riddle next year.

It is going to be a grim month now without any football. I have finals to look forward, but then it is home for Christmas, thank God. To finish this entry I would like to wish our seniors the best of luck with whatever they decide to do and say thanks to them for a good season. They are a good bunch of lads, Justin Crawford (JCA), Phil Murray (Muz), Clifton Phillips W, and last, but definitely not least, Christian (In The Lead) Masson.

Hello to all the journal readers out there. Well, I guess you can say my journal hasn’t been the most exciting lately, if ever, but the truth is that, more often than not, I tend to devote more time to school and studies rather than fun. I’ll try to remember all that I did because I’ll be honest, there is a lot of stuff that happens around here that I just forget to talk about; but on with the journal, exciting, boring, or what not, I’ll try to tend to your interests as best I can.

For the boring school stuff first, it continues to take its toll. I’m not doing too well in the same classes I was struggling in before and it might be lack of interest or something, but I just can’t find the way to raise my grade. We got a few more weeks, three and a half to be exact, so I’m going into overdrive to try and finish up on a strong note. I’ve had five research papers to do and two group projects, so the professors around here really know how to keep us busy. I’ll be honest, I never did like group projects because it puts you at the helm of others, if I could say, it leaves you to either follow or lead. Honestly, group projects are something I always hated because those who were willing to work actually did, while those who never did anything were given the same grade as the rest of the group due to it being a ‘group’ project. I guess that probably didn’t make much sense, but yeah, point is, I hate group projects.

On another note, I am happy that there are only about three and a half weeks left. Slowly but surely, I will get to go back home to California, hang out with friends, family, and others. I will not be going back home for Thanksgiving due to a lack of money. Believe me, lack of money is something I’ve experienced more than ever here at Riddle. If I was to make a recommendation, it would be to buy all airline tickets early. I actually got a good deal to fly back before next semester: One way ticket from Los Angeles to Daytona Beach for $120. I don’t know about you guys, but that to me was a hell of a deal. The longer you are at Riddle, the more frugal you will get. I remember when I would be willing to pay the $300 for a nice flight in a 767 from Los Angeles to Orlando. Well, those days are quickly fading away, now I am forced to look for cheaper things as I realize money ‘doesn’t grow on trees.’ There will be a tuition increase for Riddle next year, as most of the US colleges are doing, but from what I saw it wasn’t going to be too large. We already pay a lot to begin with so most were not happy with the change. I’ll be honest with you in saying that much that is either incurred upon us here and even certain rules and regulations, such as fines for certain things that one does, I don’t really agree with. I think some of the stuff that goes on around here is unnecessary, but I’m here for an education and that is pretty much all I’m doing here.

Flight time has been increasing for me. I will be finishing up within the next few weeks with my first part of the Private Pilot course, and in doing so, I will be pushing my schedule and wallet to the limit. I haven’t had too many problems with flying, minus my horrible crosswind landings, but everything else has been a piece of cake. I look forward to getting my Private Pilot License when I return in the spring. I will then go into the multi-engine course and get my multi-engine rating.

I haven’t been to many parties while I’ve been here. I was never too much of a party guy to begin with, but most of the stuff that goes on around here, ‘party-wise,’ I tend not to attend. I have been out by and to the beach, which is fairly fun, but since I don’t have a car, I feel deprived. Back home I had a car and a car makes life much simpler. I could actually go anywhere at anytime without worrying about others. Now I have to tag along and go along with others, believe me, at times it makes it much harder to even go to the store for something you need. If you have a car, try to bring it, parking isn’t the greatest here, but you’ll be thankful you have a car. You’ll be able to get away when you need to. Like I’ve said before, I look forward to heading to Orlando, Jacksonville, etc. when I can. We also fly on the weekends here, so at times it’s impossible to go somewhere because we have to go flying. With life going on around you, sometimes it is hard to go out, have fun, even relax, but I’ll have that all back again once December 17 rolls around (day I go back home).

Well, as I bring this journal to an end and if you are still reading, have a happy Thanksgiving and what not. Someone did write in the forums that we needed to talk about parties more and the college life. Well, as for me, I am getting my you know what kicked in a few of my classes, if you were in my spot, would you go out and party? I know some people would answer yes without hesitation, but I’m on the other side of that one. Unfortunately, this has been my worst semester academically since I could ever remember. The last thing on my mind is partying. Sorry for not being able to share that with you, but I am sure other journal writers could give you some aspect on that. If anyone has any other types of questions or concerns, feel free to write in the forums. Happy Thanksgiving!

Hey everyone! Well this has yet again been a crazy time for me! School is just crazy. Sometimes I feel like I just want to just say I quit. I mean I love it here at Embry-Riddle. I love the fact that I get to wake up every morning and realize that I am here at the school instead of being back in Ohio. I mean around now I am starting to somewhat miss home. There are just so many things that are going on right now back at home that it seems like I should be there helping.

I have talked to my friends less now since I have been so busy with school work. I miss them so much because they understand me and just know how I am. But I really love my new friends here at Embry-Riddle. They are now like my first family here and I love being around them. I mean some of my friends here seem like I have known them since like elementary school because I know them so well!

Like I said the work is becoming a bit much. I came to college with the mindset of doing well, yet still having a social life. It seems really hard now to balance the two with the homework and tests piling up. All I need to do is make it through this week and I can finally relax. I will more than likely be here for Thanksgiving Break doing make up homework and studying for exams. I have learned now to not wait until the last minute to finish things that need to be completed…I also know that I want to make Exam Week as simple as possible! Wish me luck everyone and have a great Thanksgiving Holiday! Talk to you all soon! ‘Adios!’

Hey guys!!! How’s it going out there in Journal land? Well, it’s that time of year again. Thanksgiving time. Time for turkey and sleep (you know that’s all you’re going to do, hehe). We’re all finishing up some work before we go on break. Not that we aren’t going to have anything to do over break, because I have two fairly decent projects and LOTS of homework. I’m not kidding, hours upon hours of homework. Maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad if we didn’t have those blasted hurricanes to begin the semester with. But, then again it probably would be just as bad, haha. We’ve all been registering for classes also. I always feel like the semester is a long way from being over until you have to register for the next semester, then you know there’s not much more left. It’s definitely a good feeling.

Well we only have a little less than a month left of classes. Which means it’s that last push for the end. There’s plenty of stuff to do around here, that’s for sure. I’m looking forward to next semester. I’ve only been in Florida during spring semester months once for Spring Break. I’m hoping that it stays warm here in Daytona. It has been about 75-80 during the days and chilly, 50-60, at night. Kinda stinks because when you’re out late you don’t want to have to wear a jacket, but it’s a good idea. I am so not used to being in FL still. I keep thinking, it’s late November, it should be a lot colder than this. Where are the 30 degree mornings?? Where are the leaves blowing around on the roadways?? Tennessee is very different. I’m staying in Daytona for Thanksgiving, but at least I’ll get that good ole feeling of wintertime back in Knoxville when I go home for Christmas. My friends and I haven’t been doing much around here. Once it gets too cold to go to the beach, we can’t find a whole lot to do that doesn’t take money. After all, we’re all broke college students. I blame the tuition! But, ERAU is pretty much the best place to get a high paying job from, and after all, isn’t that why we’re going to college anyways?! Anyways guys, I’m outta here for now. I’ll talk to you all before Christmas. Later folks.