New Shoes for the Blues

I had a wonderful Christmas with my family and friends.  It was difficult to come back to Asilomar.  The plane ride home was long, my flight was delayed an hour and a half and my motivation to jump back into a fish bowl(academy) was low.  When I finally landed into San Jose I took a small transfer bus into Monterey.  It was an uncomfortable ride, at one of the stops a women came on and she stood in the middle of the bus looking around for a seat,we made eye contact so, I offered the seat next to me. There were probably eight open seats on the bus and she happily excepted my offer. Funny thing is I had the small seat where the floor is raised because below there's a tire. I sat a hour with my legs up to my chest and behind me were eight large open seats. The lady even looked at me and said, "it's kinda tight." I just smiled and nodded.  The bus dropped me off downtown Monterey where I transfered to a bus that would take me back to my temporary home.  Now, Monterey is real nice, but the central bus station was a bit shady.  I had been there a few times before but this particular afternoon I felt a bit suspicious.  I waited 40 minutes for a crime to happen before I got onto my transfer bus which smelled like body oder.  I paid my two bucks and read my book. At the third bus stop an old man was waiting, when the bus doors open the man yelled and waved his cane at the driver, "don't talk to me!"   It appeared to me that this old man was a regular because the driver just laughed.  The old man plotted down in a seat next to me and said to the bus driver, "Get me home so I can drink!"  I couldn't help to giggle and think to myself I'm the one who needs a drink. 

This week is only a three day week.  It's been a low week for me.  I don't know why, I just feel a little down and overwhelmed.  We've also been learning about domestic violence which isn't a cheerful topic.  I hate to be negative in my blog but it's just how I feel, I know the feeling will pass, it's just a natural emotion I know we all experience at some time or another.  I have to keep reminding myself of the reward at the end.  I had a plan to go to San Francisco for New Years but I caught a little flu and felt it be smarter to stay here. I also have a few big test and scenarios next week so this four day weekend I'll spend time to study. Im just hoping that someone is around for new years eve. Most people I know are going home. I might have to go buy some canned oysters (mom's tradition) and other fun goodies and watch Dick Clark on my own. 

Tomorrow I get out of class at noon!  I plan on going shopping to find myself some new shoes.

Fully Loaded

This week the class was split up into two groups. Half the class had self-defense tactics and the other half went to the range. I got to go to the range! The week was information overload but a ton of fun. Here are a few highlights of the week... 

Monday was the first day on the range in Hollister, it's about 45 minutes away from Asilimar. When we arrived we unloaded all our gear and holstered up our Smith & Wesson 4006 handgun. The moment we got out on the range a large dark cloud came across and it started to pour down rain. Most of us didn't have on our rain gear because it was clear outside before we went out. We stood in the rain laughing at the perfect timing. After two minutes of rain it started to hail!!! The hail was the size of small pellets used in a BB-Gun. During the hail storm the instructors sent us back into the classroom to get our jackets. Once we put the jackets on the skies cleared up again. The picture above was taken after the rain and hail. 

My shooting wasn't too bad. Unfortunately, I am left eye dominant and I can't wink with my left eye.  My instructor put tape over the left side of my  glasses and it seems as though I shoot better with one eye. So, my homework is to learn how to wink with my left eye. 

Tuesday morning I woke up to find a little bit of snow outside. It was a cold day shooting our Remington 870 shotgun. Lots of kick in this gun. My shoulder is a little sore from the recoil.  My eye disability was a huge issue with the shotgun and it became a laughable topic amongst my classmates. 

Wednesday was a warmer day and we spent it to re-cap on all the techniques we learned on Monday and Tuesday. I brought a small lifeguard patch and used it to cover-up my left eye. I got a good laugh from all the instructors and my classmates. I was the lifeguard pirate. 

Today, we played with the handgun and shotgun again. We also learned how to use our Colt AR-15. It was so much fun, a little complicated at the beginning but fun! 

Overall it's been a great week. The days were long and at times frustrating but I was real impressed with the instructors. We basically got one on one training because there were so many instructors. This was the first week of four that I get to train with firearms. The next three weeks are spread throughout the next four months. Hopefully I'll be able to wink by the end ;) 

On the left is the Colt AR-15 and the right is the Remington 870 and my Smith and Wesson 40

Jingle Bells

I bought bells for my regular shoes and wondered what would happen if I put bells on my work boots. I have class on Christmas Eve and thought it would be funny to wear the bells out to formation that morning. I'm curious if I would get in trouble. I think the laugh I'd get from my instructors would be worth any form of discipline. Take a vote on the left... should I wear bells? Or an even better idea, I can pass out one bell to every cadet and we can all wear them Christmas Eve morning in formation and all take the blame. 

The Moon

Shoot the Dog

Today we had a test on "Use of Force." At line up this morning, before the test, it was negotiated that for every person who didn't get %100 we would have to do a push up. The test was a 50 question test. I felt good throughout the whole test. I read the questions carefully and found my little happy place and breathed. The test was the type that if you thought to much about the answer or over analyzed the question you would get it wrong. The question that got me went like this, 

An officer responds to a small neighborhood for a report of an aggressive dog. When the officer arrives to the house the dog owner releases the dog. The dog charges the officer, the officer draws his weapon and shoots the dog, killing it. 

Was the use of force reasonable? 

Yes or No

I spent way to much time thinking about the answer. I read and re-read that question a dozen times. I thought it would be unreasonable to shoot the dog. Although it would be legal to shoot it, I didn't feel it was reasonable to kill the dog. I thought using my baton would be a better use of force. I was wrong. I was supposed to shoot the dog. Another reason I choose not to shoot was because when an officer decides to draw his weapon it's done out of fear for his or another's life. I didn't think the dog was life threatening.  

That was the only question I missed. I'm real upset about it. I was so close to getting %100. Ten of the cadets got %100's. So we did 31 push-ups this afternoon. 

Shoot the Dog!

 

Black Powder

The last two days we've been going over Crime Scenes, Evidence and Forensics. It's been kinda fun. The class broke up into groups and we spent a lot of time  investigating mock crime scenes. 

The best part of the last two days was the fingerprinting. We played with black powder and made finger prints, 

Lots of fun, but very messy, 

Point Lobos

Today I went to Point Lobos with two of the guards. We were planning on diving the area but found out you have to make reservations to dive there. We were pretty bummed and decided to hike around the area and make reservations for next weekend. Here are a few pictures from our hike. 

Long Days

It was a long week... we learned about, Use of Force, Cultural Diversity/Discrimination and Sexual Harassment. Here are a few highlights of the week that come to mind, 

We had 4 exams! I passed all...yahhhh!

We received a 200 page booklet on the California State Policies regarding the "Use of Force." I found section B particularly interesting, 

Section B states that we can discharge our firearm and kill an animal if it "poses an immediate or continuing threat to public safety and welfare, or to wildlife at the unit." When I read this section I raised my hand and seriously asked, "Sir, does this mean that if there is an aggressive animal, such as a seal, I can pull out my gun and shoot it?"  Everyone started laughing hysterically. I don't remember getting a straight answer out of the instructor. I'm looking forward to shooting my first seal! (sorry PETA.) Can you imagine, me, while on patrol, shooting an aggressive seal? 

Since we are going over "Use of Force" the cadets get to wear belts.  

The other side of my belt is my baton. When the cadets do push-ups we have to hold the baton in our hands and the baton can NOT hit the ground. Funny story about the batons and push-ups, when we had finished a round of push-ups and were asked to put the baton back into it's holder one of the cadets missed the loop the baton sits in and the baton fell to the ground. Our training officer asked who's baton fell and when he confessed we all had to do 25 jumping jacks. The person that dropped the baton ran to the front of the group to lead the whole group in jumping jacks, the funny thing is, when we completed the jumping jacks and he ran back into line he accidently hit the instructors car with his baton. The instructor didn't say anything about it but I almost died laughing. I wonder if that was subconsciously done.  

We also got to wear a bullet proof vest. Ladies, how to gain 10 pounds in five minutes, put on a bullet proof vest. Not only does it make you feel fat but it smashes down the boobs. Luckily the vest we're wearing are only temporary. We got sized this week for the vest we will be wearing in the field.  

Christmas Spirit at Asilomar, my roommate and I,

All the cadets are broken up into squads. I am in squad 1 and had the privilege of being the squad leader this week. Here is my mighty squad from my perspective, 

Lastly, I got my Hep B shoot, and did not pass out!

Arts and Crafts

Remember in elementary school when we had arts and crafts? On Monday we had our own arts and crafts for cops! We drew pictures and made bendels. The new instructor we had this week is a D.A for Monterey and is hysterical. I feel like I've been at a comedy show all week. It's been an entertaining and fun week learning about the law. 

Here are the arts and crafts from class:

I didn't draw the picture on the board, but it's a chart explaining the steps of force when you're in contact with someone. It starts with happy people to sad people in jail.

It's hard to see the pictures above, but we were assigned to draw pictures of our other instructor, which is also a D.A for Monterey and a good friend with the new instructor. 

Here is the bendel I made! I didn't know what a bendel was till Monday afternoon.  Bendel's are little bags druggies make to store their drugs (mom, it's not real). They're easy to make, all you need is a plastic bag and a lighter. If you would like more instructions on how to store your drugs just let me know.

Discipline builds Character

Today was a rough day. Actually it's been a rough 48 hours. I didn't mention on my last blog that Monday morning the class was brought to the attention that something of a confidential nature had occurred last weekend. A few individuals were called out of class to discuss the manner. This morning the class was informed that two of the cadets were sent home. An explanation was never given, all we found out was that the dismissal had something to do with alcohol. Because of the actions of the individuals the class had painful consequences. We spent 30 minutes out on the grinder doing push-ups, burpies, sit-ups, jumping jack, leg lifts and flutter kicks in the air. When we did push-up's we had to say "Alcohol is not my friend" and were lectured and verbally abused the whole time. The unfortunate part of all this is the two people dismissed were lifeguards, so guess who was getting picked on, yup, lifeguards. We were all interrogated about our consumption of alcohol. It was not fun and I was in so much physical pain at the end that my whole body was shaking. After the torture the instructors searched all the cadets rooms and after lunch we were tortured again for another 30 minutes. The instructor took out a bag of items that were found in the searched rooms. We had to physically work off the items. One item was hot sauce (don't know who's) and the Special Guest Training Officer says, 

"BRAY, DO YOU LIKE HOT SAUCE?"

Me, "Sir, yes, sir."

"BRAY, HOW MANY PUSH UPS WOULD YOU GIVE FOR THIS HOT SAUCE."

At this point I didn't really know what to say, I thought for a moment...

"BRAY, WHAT ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT? IT'S NOT A TRICK QUESTION. YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO STUDY FOR THIS ANSWER."

The reason I was thinking about it was because the hot sauce wasn't that good of a hot sauce so I was trying to place a push-up value to the cruddy hot sauce he had, I didn't want to do any, but thought if I said zero I'd get in trouble, so, I answer, "Sir, 20 sir."

"20? BRAY, IS THAT ALL YOU CAN DO?"

me, "Sir, yes, sir"

"ANYONE ELSE? CAN ANYONE GIVE ME MORE THAN 20?"

He bugged me a couple more time for some other reasons I don't recall. One thing I do remember is he said I had "pretty blue eyes." He said it in a negative, jerky way, but I took it as a complement anyways. 

At our first break after the afternoon torture we had to go back out to the grinder. Once again we were tortured. This time we got in trouble because a few cadets were overheard talking negatively about a conference group that is on the Asilimar grounds. The group is called "Silence." They are here for meditation purposes. The torture lasted only about 15 minutes this time. 

It's kinda a bummer that the two guys that got sent home were lifeguards. It doesn't look good and I can tell that the lifeguard reputation just went down the tube. Lifeguards now have to try to redeem ourselves. 

At the end of class this evening we were assigned three papers as more punishment. A four-page paper on the last paragraph of the code of ethics, three-pages on why I am here and two-pages on why alcohol is not my friend. 

I do have good news though, the special guest went home! 

Bad news, he will come back, probably sooner than later.

More bad news, my body hurts. 

Special Guest Appearance

Today we had an instructor from Ben Clark Academy in Riverside visit. The Riverside Academy is a high stress academy, where the instructors are up in your face yelling and making you do push ups all day. I was fortunate enough today to experience what that was like. While in formation the instructor walked around belittling a few of the cadets. The following script is a small piece of what happened this morning (the capital text is the instructor yelling)...

To the person next me, "WHAT IS THAT ON YOUR CHEST? DO YOU THINK THATS CUTE (points to guys chest hair)? YOU BETTER SHAVE THAT."

Person next to me, "Sir, Yes, Sir."

"YOU BETTER HAVE IT DONE BY TOMORROW, NO, HAVE IT DONE BY LUNCH."

Person next to me, "Sir, Yes, Sir."

Instructor walks in front of me, "WHAT IS THAT? (pointing to my hat and some visible hair)"

Looking straight ahead I didn't answer

"YOU BETTER ANSWER  ME."

Me, "Sir, Yes, Sir."

"YOU ANSWER WHEN I SPEAK TO YOU. YOU BETTER PULL THAT HAIR BACK."

Me, "Sir, Yes, Sir."

"WHAT? I DIDN'T HEAR YOU. SOUND OFF BRAY."

shouting louder, "Sir, Yes, Sir."

"I SAID SOUND OFF BRAY! USE YOUR BIG GIRL VOICE."

Louder, "Sir, Yes, Sir."

He walks away, to another victim, "HOW MUCH YOU WIEGH?"

Victim, "Sir, 190, sir."

"YOU'RE FAT... YOU BETTER LAY OFF THE DESERTS."

Instructor comes back to me, "BRAY, WHATS THE CODE OF ETHICS?"

I start the code...

"BRAY. YOU'RE ALL MESSED UP, I CAN'T HEAR YOU, WHY ARE YOU BATTING YOUR EYES AT ME? WHATS THE CODE OF ETHICS."

(The code of ethics that we have learned is different from what cadets learn in Riverside, so, I started off the code wrong to his standards.)

"WHAT IS THAT YOU SAY, THATS NOT THE CODE OF ETHICS, IS THAT THE CODE OF ETHICS? THE LAW ENFORCEMENT CODE OF ETHICS IS THE BIBLE. YOU ARE CHANGING THE CODE TO FIT YOU. YOU CAN'T CHANGE THE CODE. GET ON THE GROUND AND START PUSHING. DOWN! (I count out and did 20 push-ups). STAND UP, RUN IN PLACE, PUT YOUR HANDS UP. WHAT'S THE CODE? SAY THE CODE. KEEP GOING AND GET IT DONE. (He walks away.)

I continue with the code, and went completely blank.

"BRAY! I CAN'T HEAR YOU." He walks back over to me, "WHAT IS THE CODE?"

I close my eyes to recite again,

"WHY ARE YOU CLOSING YOUR EYES, YOU CAN'T HAVE YOUR EYES CLOSED WHEN YOUR AN OFFICER. OPEN YOUR EYES. THEY CAN ATTACK YOU. YOU NEED TO GET SQUARED AWAY. OPEN YOUR EYES. DON'T LOOK AT ME."

"Sir, Yes, Sir."

"WHAT?"

louder, "Sir, Yes, Sir."

This is just a small part of what happened this morning. He came to me several times to hassle me, what I wrote above is all I can remember. It was myself and one other guy the instructor picked on the most. I have never been yelled at like that before, it was hard for me not to crack a smile. Afterwards, many of my wonderful classmates came up to me and asked, "are you okay?" Several of the guys said they wanted to jump out at the instructor to defend me, they wanted to tell him not to talk to me that way. Everyone felt so bad, they wanted to back me up. One guy even said he wanted to cry for me. It was sweet that everyone was supportive and feeling for me. It was a rough morning, and the instructor will be here all week!  

anxiety+dyslexia=problem

If you've been keeping up with my blog you would know that I had three test this week. I studied hard for all and felt great on two out of three. My first test was on Monday and I completely froze up and blanked. When I finished the test I was certain I failed. The last two test I felt great about. Three long days later I got pulled into the office and was notified that I failed my first test! It was the worst feeling, and a scary one, I only had one chance to re-take the test. If I failed than I would be out of the whole academy. After my depressing news I did the natural thing, I went to my room cried for about 3-5 minutes and than took my book and began to study again. The cadets were amazing! They all encouraged me and spent a good amount of hours helping me study. My instructors also helped me study and scheduled my re-take test for this morning (Friday). And I past! I am so relieved! I only missed one question. In case you were wondering about the two other test I only missed one question on each. Three test down 25 more to go. I hope failing never happens again. 

Where I study

Its a wonderful rainy day here in Pacific Grove! I went for a nice long run in the rain this morning, had breakfast, studied, went into town with one of the girls for lunch and a pedicure, went back to the lodge to study, had dinner and then studied a little more. All the lodges on the Asilomar grounds has a fireplace and it's well used in my lodge. Every evening after class and on the weekends the fire is burning. The fire gives the lodge a real homey feel to it and it make studying a little bit more relaxing. 

Next week I have three test, I have to pass with an %80. Also, I have to have the second part of the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics memorized. The Code of Ethics is four paragraphs long and I'll eventually have to have it all memorized. 

Tactical Communication

What would you rate the world if it were a movie? G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17, X or XXX? This was how my class was started today. It's sad that the majority of the class voted "R" and unfortunate that we think so poorly about the world. But, its true, evil is out there, contaminating the minds of humanity. I think at times we choose what type of rating we live in by the choice of our lifestyle. One of the instructors gave a great example, he said, at home with his kids it's "G", but at work its "X". I picked "X" for the world, mainly because of the lack of morals, values, discipline, responsibility and unhappiness people display. It was an interesting discussion that led into how to communicate with people. 

The fun part of the class was getting to practice our communication skills on pulling someone over. I learned a few fun ways to persuade people. It's all about what you say and how you say it. Fun times!

Good Furtune

Long day today. Woke up at 5:30AM for physical training and had lecture from 9:00AM-6:00Pm. The instructor giving the lecture was so monotone, it was hard to look interested, let alone stay awake. I lost count the amount of coffee I drank. Later in the afternoon, when the tired eyed class got a little break, I went to refill my coffee mug and someone was kind enough to set out some fortune cookies. My fortune, just what I needed,

"Learning to shrug is the beginning of wisdom."

Oh, how simple life would be if wisdom was gained by a shrug!

The real deal

I woke up this morning at 5:30AM for the first P.T (physical training). All the cadets met at the grinder to line up. The grinder is a small parking lot that hasn't been repaved in 30-40 years. Every morning and afternoon the cadets meet at the grinder for line-up where we do 20 push-ups (morning and afternoon). The lot is so torn up that when we complete push-ups everyones hands have impressions of large pebbles on the palms of their hands. Hence the name the "grinder." I have a sneaky plan to go to Home Depot to buy a large broom to discreetly brush away all the rubble. For P.T this morning we took a small field trip to Monterey Peninsula College. We did some stretching, took our first look at the weight room and then did a timed mile and a half run. I felt pretty good on the run, I went a 10:13! 

We got back to the Asilomar Mott training grounds at 8:30AM.  9:45AM we were back at the grinder for the first uniform exception and recital of the States Mission Statement and the first part of the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics. I had a perfecto uniform but a not so perfect Mission Statement. I some how managed to repeat myself, don't ask how, I said the right thing twice and didn't notice. All the cadets have ten green cards and when you do something wrong you get a card pulled. Well, I had a card pulled, for the not so perfect Mission. I was so upset about not getting the Mission right that it took quit a while for me to gather my thoughts for the Code of Ethics. I had the longest pauses while reciting the Code that I didn't think I'd ever get through it... but I did! Ehhh!

one more thing

I forgot to mention on my last blog that last week the cadets were given an assignment to think of a motto for our group. The motto will be said after class everyday and be put on a t-shirt. On Thursday we turned in our ideas and they were written up on the black board and voted on. And guess what... mine won. So the new motto for my class is:

"Heart of Gold, Strength of a Bear"

The Beginning

I made it through the first week. It wasn't bad, just a lot of sitting and filling out paper work. Such as health benefits, retirement, joining the union and many other tedious forms. The instructors are all helpful and have positive attitudes. Their not yelling in our faces or belittling anyone. They want to see everyone succeed. Of course they have high expectations and there are some structured rules all the cadets need to follow. The cadets in my training group are great! Everyone has some amazing talent to bring to the group. It's been a thrill getting to know each person. There are 42 of us. 8 of those Lifeguards and the rest Rangers. Out of those 42 three of them are women. My room-mate is a sweet mother of three. She could probably kick the governors buns. She does some sort of mixed marshal arts and is fantastic at it. This week I also found out that I will be working in Huntington Beach! So when I graduate I'll be going back home with the family! 

It's been a little surreal. It is gorgeous here. Lots of trees and wild life. I was actually close to hitting a deer on Tuesday. The ocean is walkable distance and is beautiful. The food is delicious, I've had to start cutting the meals in half and skip out on desert, just to avoid gaining 20 pounds in 6 months. 

Overall the week has been smooth. Only 27 more weeks to go!

It took balls...

and a whole lot of humiliation. I finally purchased the last part of my uniform. A jock strap. Yup, you read right, I need one of those things for something I don't have. I uncomfortably spent about 15 minutes in an athletic store staring at all the different types of jocks. When I picked out what I thought was right I went to the register and the sales associate (which I was acquaintances with) said no returns. I nodded understandably but was hesitant to buy because I didn't know if it was the right one. Bashfully, I told her it was for me and showed her the description of what I needed

She laughed and said "you really have to wear one of those?" 

"Yeah" I replied.

Like myself she didn't know too much about jock straps either so she asked another female worker who also didn't know much. The only guy who new what I needed was on lunch break so she took the jock strap description to the guy and he told her I  had the wrong one andhe explained what I needed. When she came back from the break room she walked me back to the jock wall and grabbed what I needed. 

Belt Loop Bloop

Yesterday, while admiring my belt I had the urge to try it on. Why I didn't try it on earlier I don't know. As I tightened the belt to the last hole I found the belt to be to big. Not just I little big, about five inches between my bellybutton and the belt big! Oh no. I ordered the belt online so it would be impossible to exchange the belt before I leave. Panicked I  looked for a leather repair shop. Luckily I found one about two miles from my house. The hole in the wall store was dark inside with an aroma of cigarette smoke and leather. I set my belt on the counter and mercifully asked the man with the stained black hands and missing finger nails if he could fix my belt without it looking altered. The Leather Man took my measurements and evaluated the belt. Because the belt has wording that is supposed to be centered on the back it took a while for him to calculate where to cut. Once the Leather Man figured it out he told me it could be done and added "don't lose any weight or you'll have to buy a new belt." I pick up my belt on friday. I sure hope it turns out. 

Where to work?

In the mail today came the available spots for me to work. 

There is one spot in Ventura, one in Monterey, four in Huntington and two in Santa Cruz. 

I have to choose 1-8, one being my first option. All spots sound desirable to me. What do you think? Place your vote on the right.

And the grand total is...

$988.81. Yup, I almost spent a grand on my uniforms. Reimbursement you ask? A little, I'll get $600 from the state. But, I still need to buy my class "A's" which will cost about $600.

I bought four shirts, three pairs of pants, boots, a jacket and a belt.

You might find me wearing this belt off duty because it's the best part of the uniform. It has the state bear and poppies on it and says "State of California".

It's About Time!

17 months ago I had applied to become a full time California State Lifeguard. The long process began with a general written exam. After passing the exam there was an interview. Following the interview, a physical agility consisting of 6 test, a step test, weight carry, 500 yard run, dummy drag, 100 yard sprint and a swim test. In completion to the physical came the background investigation. Patiently, I got through the background and moved on to the last parts of the process, the medical and the psychological evaluation. Thankfully, I am both healthy and sane! One last minor hurdle, I had to complete states lifeguard cadet training since I was a guard coming from an outside agency. The cadet training was a week long and both mentally and physically demanding. 

Just to give you a rough time line, my initial application was submitted in the beginning of May 2007. My written exam was a month later, June 2, 2007. It took about 4 weeks to get my exam results and an interview date. The interview was somewhere in the second week of July 2007 and my results were mailed to me 5 weeks later. In the first week of September 2007 I was notified to report for my physical agility test on October 6, 2007. I was also mailed a 45-page background packet that had to be turned in the day of testing. Approximately 8 weeks after the physical agility I heard from a background investigator, it took him about 3-4 months to complete the background. April, 2008 I had my medical exam and in June I had a 500 question psych screening. It was June that I also completed the week long state lifeguard cadet training. Finally, August 5th, 2008, I had my last step, the psychological interview with a psychologist. 

Five weeks later I FINALY received the long awaiting phone call. I was officially accepted into a police academy offered by California State to become a full time State Lifeguard. Crazy thing is I leave in 5 weeks to Monterey, CA for 25 weeks. 

I am going to attempt to update this blog once a week to share my exciting journey to my future career.