Simpson-ized

This is what Casie and I would look like if we were Simpson characters.

I did this really fast, but you get the idea. I may post a better result later.

See what you’d look like. Upload your picture here.

Currently Obsessed With: ‘The Dark Night’ Teaser Trailer

Currently I am obsessed with the new teaser trailer for the next Batman movie titled “The Dark Knight”. It is slated to come out in July 2008. Below is the trailer I am talking about.

Although it doesn’t show much, the Joker’s cackle is well worth it. Heath Ledger just might pull it off.

Dayton Air Show 2007

Casie and I headed to the Dayton Air Show today. I received two Chalet Tickets, compliments of the Air Force Association (AFA) for my service in Iraq. The Chalet Area is a reserved private area, which provides premier viewing of the show. Chalets include a large air-conditioned tented food serving area, umbrella tables with chairs, and theater seating.

We arrived just as the lunch buffet was beginning to get packed up, but we did manage to grab a hot dog and some chips. Drinks were complimentary all afternoon as well. In the three years Casie and I have been stationed in Ohio we have always managed to miss the air show due to various reasons (deployments, trips, etc). This year we had one of the best seats at the show.

The first show we caught was Jim LeRoy in his Bulldog bi-plane.

It was truly amazing to watch. We also got to see the F-15 Heritage Flight with a P-51 and F-4. The sound those jet engines gave me goose bumps.

I also ran into an old friend's brother, Mark Amnormino, providing security around the F-117.

We also saw a CV-22 Osprey demo.…and then the unthinkable happened.

During a stunt show called Codename: Mary’s Lamb Jim LeRoy, the same gentleman I mentioned earlier, was unable to pull out of a dive and crashed. I am still in disbelief it happened. The Dayton Daily News has plenty of coverage on this horrific accident. Below is a diagram of how the crash happened.

Not much to say after witnessing something like that other than to keep his family in your prayers.

Let's Go to the Mall...TODAY!

Mandy Moore performed a free concert at the outdoor mall, The Greene this evening. I am not a huge Mandy Moore fan, but it isn’t too often you will see ‘free’ and ‘green’ in the same sentence. Everyone within 50 miles was there. I ended up parking across the street (six lanes wide), about a mile away.

Mandy Moore took the stage at about 6:36 PM and played for just over thirty minutes. All of the songs were acoustic cuts off her latest album, A Wild Hope. It was mostly standing room except for a set of bleachers and some lawn seats. These pictures should give you an idea of where we were.

With digital zoom, I was uncomfortably close to Miss Mandy Moore.

Ice Cream at Ritter’s Frozen Custard ended one sweet evening with Casie.

MASSIVE Update!

“I’ve got blisters on my fingers!”

I have just finished entering five new Ben-jam-in entries in an attempt to fill you in on what I’ve been up to this summer. I’ve pre-dated the entries to create somewhat of a timeline.

Enjoy!

And as always, please leave a comment and let me know I still have readers.

Dayton Pub Crawl

Saturday night Baeu, Sarah, Chris, Todd, Casie and I, along with a few others, went crawling (sort of) from bar to bar through Dayton. It sounded like a great idea considering Dayton is a college town.

The first place we stopped only sold 40 oz. bottles. What a way to start the night, eh? We hit about eight places altogether (one place twice), stopping at each for a pint or bottle. We needed it too. It was about a half mile to the first place and a mile to the second place. I was the designated driver, so I drank at about every other one.

Based on my college experience, the bars weren’t too far apart, but then again I went to Michigan Tech. One end of campus to the other took you 15 minutes max to walk.

So you could say the pub crawl was more of a pub walkathon, but it was still fun.

Curling Up with a Butterbeer

My very own copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows has arrived from Amazon.com! I am not a super geek or anything, but I feel I need to read it immediately to avoid accidentally reading any spoilers on the internet. I just hope to finish it in two weeks.

Here is the box it arrived in.

Later Muggles!

PS For those who don’t know what Butterbeer is:

Butterbeer is the drink of choice for younger wizards. Though marketed to children, it contains alcohol: it appears to cause no noticeable drunkenness on a thirteen-year-old humans (though it creates the feeling of "warmth"), but is strong enough to cause drunkenness in a house-elf; presumably, in very large amounts, the same would apply to a human. J. K. Rowling said in her interview to Bon Appetit magazine that she imagines it "to taste a little bit like less-sickly butterscotch". Butterbeer can be served cold or hot but either way it has a warming effect.

Wolak Wedding Shower

Yesterday my Mom threw Casie and me a wedding shower. This is actually the first of two wedding showers Casie will be attending. I wasn’t too thrilled I had to go because I always thought showers were more of a girl thing. My dad came at the beginning to eat the catered food and my brother, John, was there to help my mom set up and tear down the decorations. It ended up being surprisingly a good time. Casie and I received a ton of wonderful gifts from Bed, Bath, & Beyond and Target (the only two stores we registered at). Thank you all.

Later that day Casie’s parents, their friends – The Schichtel, Beck, Becky’s friend – Leann, Casie, and I went the Detroit Tigers baseball game versus the Boston Red Sox. We definitely got our money’s worth. The game went into 13 innings with the Tiger prevailing 3-2. You can read the game summary here and box score here.

[UPDATE]
Here are some pictures from the shower and ball game.

Takes a Hit and Keep on Ticking

All the traveling I’ve been doing since my return home from Iraq has finally caught up with me. While on the way home to my parents house in Michigan I got rear ended by a dump truck pulling a bull dozer. The accident happened on I-70, about two miles from merging onto I-75 (not even 30 minutes from my Ohio apartment). Nobody was injured because my Jeep absorbed most of the impact.

After it occurred Casie pulled over, but the truck continued. My Jeep was still drivable and we followed it to the I-75 northbound ramp where it stopped safely. No damage was done to the truck, but my Jeep had a couple scrapes above the license plate, and bumper took a little damage. The driver offered right away to pay for any damage as long as we didn’t call the police. His reasoning was he was driving with a commercial license with a special caveat. He stated it was very hard to get and very easy to lose. I called my auto insurance to double check, but they insisted I get a police report to record the injuries. So we did.

After waiting for 30 minutes for the Ohio State Police to show up, the cop looked at the little damage I had and made us exchange insurance info, but no report was filed. I was kind of pissed it had to happen after only having the Jeep for less than two months, but my Dad brought up a good point. For has much mileage I’ve put on my vehicles I’ve been lucky have this be my first accident (and with very little damage).

Wicked Fun!

Casie and I received our initial Air Force assignment notification last week. Of course, we were up in Cedarville, MI so we were the last ones to find out. We are both going to Boston, MA (Hanscom AFB)! Our Report No Later Than Date (RNLTD) is 30 November, but we will more than likely begin our travels 15 November.

We are both very excited to move out of the Midwest and see what the East Coast has to offer. Boston has always been an area I’ve wanted to live since I joined the Air Force. I have already been doing some research on their language and Casie has been practicing her pronunciation. I think if we can break the language barrier it will help finding a house (cross your fingers) a little easier.

There is so much to do and think about, but for now I just want to enjoy the great news.

As soon as the wedding planning ends the travel planning begins! Ugh!

Party Like It’s 1776!

Well not literally, Casie and I celebrated our independence from Great Britain with food, friends, lawn games, and of course Starbucks. Katie has already beaten me to the punch with a blog summary of our afternoon, here. Casie’s Apple Crisp was delicious!

Yesterday felt like a Saturday and Sunday wrapped into one. It was nice to spend the day at home. Casie and I have been out of town the last three weekends and will be out again this upcoming weekend. Tuesday night we went to the movies and helped Transformers earn $27.5 million dollars at the box office! It was a great action flick (even Casie thought so). I wanted to go out to the toy store afterwards, but it was too late. [somewhere Casie's breathes a sigh of relief]

Summer Vacation '07

It's that time of year again when Cedarville, Michigan is renamed Bourque-ville, Michigan. The last week in June (23-30 June this year), every year, Casie’s mom’s side has their family reunion. I need a vacation from my vacation, so I will summarize our week in pictures.

Les Cheneaux Landing Resort (AKA "The Cabins")

Oh, the joys of summer living with bug bites and dirty feet.

Croquet and no laundry! :-)

Mackinaw Island

By bike or by stairs! I did survive to type this!

An English telephone booth...too hard to resist.

A little bird on my shoulder.

Casie cooling off during our 8 mile bike around the island.

Detroit Tigers Fans!

Packed up and on the road again. It went by too quick.

Welcome Home Party

This past Saturday Casie and I were in Michigan for a party my parents were having for my return home from Iraq, my brother's graduation from Michigan State, and my sister homecoming from Las Vegas, NV.

It was great to see my sister for the first time in over a year! There was a tent, catered food, party maids, volleyball, Frisbee bowling, soda, a keg, friends, and family.

I didn't manage to take many pictures, but here is my brother, John, my sister, Jen, and Me!

And my buddy Steve enjoying a Bass.

It was a great party, thanks Mom and Dad!

Meet the Jeep

One of my first orders of business when I returned home from Iraq was to purchase a vehicle. Just before I left for Iraq, the lease on my 2004 Jeep Liberty was up, which couldn’t have worked out better. I had no car payments or auto insurance while I was deployed. While I was on Rest and Recuperation (R&R) I made a weekend trip to Detroit, MI to pick up my “dream vehicle”, a Jeep Green 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited with a HEMI engine.

I have wanted a Jeep Grand Cherokee since I was 16 years old. My dad had one back then. I love the way the body looks, but the interior always came off as old fashioned to me. Chrysler finally remodeled the Jeep Grand Cherokee’s interior in 2006. I actually purchased it instead of leasing, since it is my "dream vehicle". I got all the goodies; 4x4, sun roof, leather bucket seats, fog lights, trailer tow package, upgraded speakers, and MP3-CD changer/satellite radio.

It isn’t as bad on gas as people seem to think. It costs me about $52 to fill up the 21.1 gallon tank about every 10 days. My Jeep Liberty costs me about $38 bucks every week (when gas was $2.19/gal) to fill up a 19.5 gallon tank. I love the hum the engine makes, but Casie insists it is the HEMI gargling the gasoline. WHATEVER!

I’ve been meaning to post these pictures for a while.

Yeah, it’s got a HEMI. :-)

Back by Popular Demand!

BEN-JAM-IN Returns!

After taking a much needed break, I am back. I’ve been busy tasting wedding cake, looking at flowers, registering for gifts, and trimming guest lists. I have thought long and hard about the direction I want to take my blog. There is no way I can be as creative as my previous entries from Iraq, but I still want to keep my family and friends in-the-loop with what I am up to. Plus, I miss your comments.

You can still expect journal-type entries from me (a little less often), but I may post about less personal topics if I deem my life is too boring that day! I have some cool ideas, but you have to be patient and provide me feedback via leaving me a comment. Who knows, I may actually listen to it!

Stay tuned…

All Accounted For

Sorry I've been bad about this blog thing since I've returned to the states. I've been enjoying the good life; eating Moe's burritos, pizza, and drinking beer!

After completing inventory of all my Superman statues, I deemed something was different. All of them were accounted for, but they weren't in the same condition I left them. Casie and her friends decided to get silly. I didn't notice until the next morning, but in my defense I did get in late and was tired. This is what I'm talking about:

They got every statue and framed picture, but they missed the cookie jar. Some welcome home, eh? Thanks Casie, Chris, Jacob, and Todd! I will never look at them again in the same light as I once did.

I am sure this wasn't what Todd wanted to portray. It looks just wrong.

I am still evaluating the "scotch tape damage"...just kidding! :-)

Homeward Bound

The past week has been a blur. As I am sure you've probably guessed I did catch my third rescheduled flight out of Mosul. I woke up at 0345 on Friday morning to make it to the airport by 0500. I flew in a C-130 to Ali Al Salem Air Base (Kuwait), not Al Udeid (Qatar). From there I waited until 1730 (5:30 pm) to check in to my next flight. I killed most of my time in the MWR watching TV and taking pictures of some of the base.

Checking out of Kuwait (pictured below) was a project. My actual flight didn't leave until 0330 on Saturday (the next morning) but you have to go through customs. I had to empty all three of my packed bags completely so U.S. custom officials could make sure I was trying to take back war souvenirs, such as weapon parts.

I had a three hour layover in Germany. It was so nice to breath in the crisp, cool air. I knew I was on my way home. Doesn't the picture even look crisper?

First stop in the states was Baltimore. I arrived at 2:25 pm, but my flight back home was not until 11:00 am the next day. Of course I asked to see if there was anything earlier. I didn't feel like spending the night at the airport for another night. They did have a flight leaving at 4:45 pm, but it had a three hour layover in Charlotte, NC. It was a small layover in comparison to spending another night in an airport. I made it back to Dayton, OH at 11:00 pm.

Then I was home. I still can't believe it!

Black Hole

According to Merriam-Websters:

Main Entry: black hole
Function: noun
Date: 1968
1: a celestial object that has a gravitational field so strong that light cannot escape it and that is believed to be created especially in the collapse of a very massive star
2: something resembling a black hole: as a: something that consumes a resource continually (a financial black hole) b: an empty space : void

I'm still stuck in Mosul, or as I like to call it, the black hole. My rescheduled flight, for this morning, was cancelled late last night. No flights support my destination today, so I am working on a flight for Friday (tomorrow).

I am still optimistic I'll be able to get out of here tomorrow, but cross your fingers. If I don't leave Mosul tomorrow, I won't be home Sunday.

Cancelled

After waiting at the passenger terminal for two hours they announced my flight was cancelled. And I was just starting to believe I was actually leaving Mosul. The cancellation doesn't affect my return date because I have built in time for things like this that come up.

Before I left the JDEC folks had a meeting that really was a going away presentation for me. I received a rug embroidered with the time I spent in Mosul. It was a great parting gift. I would post a picture, but my camera cable is packed away. I also received a couple cards with many nice parting words. As cool/important as this job was, I will miss the people the most. I almost feel bad leaving, but then I think of the life (Casie) I have waiting for me at home.

Tomorrow I will try again to leave the black hole that is called Mosul.

It’s in the Hole

My deployment is good as over. Many times I felt like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. I have not had a day off, or slept-in past 0630, since 26 September. The 13-15 hours days, "the walk" to the showers, 21-day chow hall menu, tripping over everything in my path, and falling asleep with generators buzzing in the background are all coming to an end.

Each day is new again. One day may be training, the next packing, the next cleaning, and tomorrow the traveling begins. When I am at work, I pretty much sit around waiting for "the new guy" to ask questions. I play more of an advisor role. I am packed up for the most part. I dropped off my last load of laundry this morning.

Tomorrow I leave Mosul (Iraq) to my next stop in Al Udeid (Qatar). I'll be in Qatar for about two days before I take the 18 hour flight back to the United States of America. So I will probably drop off the radar for a few days. But I will make sure to take plenty of pictures to show you next week.

Dare I say, "See you soon."

Waiting is the Hardest Part

Yesterday I received my commercial/stateside travel plans! I also updated my deployment countdown for the final time! It looks like I'll be back in good ole Ohio next Sunday. It seems like a dream.

I am still in shock from my replacement, Shawn, arriving Thursday night. I have been enthusiastically training him the past two days. I'm still in disbelief that this deployment is actually (finally) coming to an end. Now I am consistently thinking of how each day of the week is my last in Mosul. It's hard not to smile (just a little). I may even be smiling in my sleep.

Next, I wait for my travel itinerary out of Mosul, Iraq, and AOR.

I think Tom Petty said it best, "waiting is the hardest part". (video)

I Gotta Wear Shades

It's extremely bright outside today. It is so bright, if you close your eyes, you can see the shadows of objects through your eye lids. Well, maybe it's not that bright, but very close.

Currently, 2:10 pm local, it is 77 degrees and rising. My knees are sweating as I type. People told me it would get hot fast, "like someone flipped a switch," and it's true! Just last week it was 67 degrees, now we are in the low 80s!

I was hoping to be out of here by the time things started to heat up, but it looks like I'll be sweating my butt off while I drag my 200 lbs of gear next week. Still I won't complain, I am heading home!

"The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades"

Tray Wars, Part 2

This is a continuing story from a week ago, about leaving your tray unattended in the chow hall.

This morning it was my unattended tray an Army soldier sat next to. Chris (the victim last time) was grabbing some juice, but saw where I sat. When Chris sat down, the Army guy looked surprised that Chris sat down next to him (and what he thought was his other Army buddy's tray). The Army soldier looked at Chris like, "what are you doing?"

Chris looked back with the same expression, but he knew he was sitting next to the right tray. A few moments later, the soldier realized his friend was sitting the table next to us and scurried away. Chris said the look on his face was priceless.

What would've been better is if I walked back to my tray before he realized. Then he would have been out numbered too. Just goes to show...

...a lot can happen when you walk away from your tray!

Run Around in Circles

Sorry I've been away from the blog for a few days. I haven't had anything significant to talk about. I ran around with my Air Force boss (a Lieutenant Colonel) and his assistant (a Chief Master Sergent). They arrived Friday night and left Saturday, late morning. I didn't have to play tour guide again, so it was short and sweet. Work is, well, work.

Other random things I did this week:
I worked out a few times this week (Su, M, F, Su). I played basketball for the first time since I sprained my ankle, four weeks ago. I wrapped it of course.

I watched TMNT which had a pretty descent plot. It was more believable than the movies from the early 90s.

Lastly, I finished packing my last footlocker for the post office.

Do Not Adjust Your Screen

That was the sun yesterday afternoon. When I went to lunch everything was normal, sunny with some clouds. At about four o'clock I took a break and everything was sepia. I thought I walked outside into a Clint Eastwood western.

The dust swept in like a thick fog. That is the only way I can think of describing it. My eyes didn't dry out, nor did I sneeze. You couldn't touch it or feel it, but you could see it.

I wasn't the "wall of dust" I wanted to see, but close enough.