Mini Road Trip

After all the testing and stress of last week I decided to take a break from Monterey and go up into the city of San Francisco. It was a last minute decision and I have a friend that lives downtown that let me use her couch. I had never been to San Fran and I haven't picked up my camera in months. My plan was to walk the streets and get some pictures. San Francisco was not a disappointment. Everywhere I went it smelled like a mixture of marijuana and a dirty homeless man. The people there are trendy and beautiful (besides those on the streets). I saw some very attractive men (I could  live in San Fran)! The roads were confusing and I didn't care for the tourist. The shopping was excellent and I loved all the art. 

Friday night my friend took me into Oakland to a hip, artistic warehouse to see her friend sing. The place was a hidden joint behind a dark trashy alley. It was an odd place and I was a little concerned about where she was taking me. Inside the warehouse there was weird psychedelic music playing and art was hung on the walls. The whole place was it's own culture. There were about 40-50 people there and I was introduced to most. The warehouse had a second story. Upstairs there was a living room, a kitchen and more art hanging on the walls.  I later learned that this warehouse was someone's home. It was a lot of fun and very interesting. Later that night we met up with some other people at a small dive bar. You couldn't see a thing in the bar because it only had red lights. It was a entertaining night and the people I met were real nice and fun to talk with. 

The rest of the weekend I got lost in San Fran. It was so much fun. I got around by bus and never really knew where I was. I did some vintage shopping, went to the California Academy of Science, the Fisherman's Wharf and of course I saw the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a fun weekend and I can't wait to go back. Sunday I took my time driving back to Monterey and made a few stops off  Highway 1. 

I may try to go back to San Fran next weekend to take some more pictures and do some more vintage shopping! I great weekend that was well deserved. 

Only six more weeks! 

Scenario Test are Done!

Finally, all my scenario test are done. 

I had four test today and was real nervous about all of them. I had Ambush, Mentally Disabled, Building Search and Use of Force. Another nerve racking day is over. 

The best part, I was one of seven cadets to get %100 on all my scenarios! I'm so glad it's over. 

Simunitions

Last week we also had Simunitions. The Simunitions were set up scenarios of a person pulling a gun out at you. It was kind of like paint balling only we used the same guns we carry out in the field. The rounds in the guns were little pellets with paint and they hurt when they hit. I ended the day with a few bruises. 

All the cadets put in some cash to have a BBQ for lunch. I introduced the cadets and instructors to the famous Hookha-pa-luka! Most of the cadets and instructors tried it and those who did loved it.  

Remember the protection cup I had to buy? Fortunately I didn't have to wear it. The ladies got a flattering "eve-leaf" for protection. Thank God I had one on....

All I see are Orange Cones

I was really looking forward to EVOC week. I thought to myself, "how hard could it be to drive a car?" Let me tell you, it's hard when you are taking turns at unbelievable speeds, have other cars coming at you and the big scary word "test" is on your mind. Also, cones are everywhere, all you see are cones, it's difficult to figure out what is and isn't the course. If you hit a cone, it's a fail. Fear, fear, fear lingered on all week and you only get two shots to pass a test. If you don't pass you're packing up your bags. Driving the car fast was a whole lot of fun. But passing the test were a bit challenging.

The first day was the most stressful. There were four different courses. The first one was driving foward and backwards with small sharp angles I had to maneuver in and out of. The second course was a small narrow course with drive-ways I had to drive in, out and around in. Both the courses had a certain amount of time I had to complete it in. The third test was parallel parking. I couldn't believe this was the test I had to remediate! I'm good at parallel parking, during practice I nailed it every time. When it was time to test I ended up being to f

ar from the curb or "cones." It was embarrassing because I'm an experienced parallel parker. My remediation went well, but it caused nerves for the rest of the week. The last test was the skid-car test. We had a skid car, which is a vehicle with training wheels. It took me awhile to figure out the skid-car. It was fun because you get to skid all around an empty parking lot. The way it skids is the instructor in the car is able to control the front and back tire positioning. He is able to get the car to fishtail and I have to be able to gain control of the car. 

The hard part of the week were remediation. Remediation is not fun and they're difficult to watch. It's hard on all the cadets when someone has to remediate and unfortunately there were quite a few. I can't watch people remediating because the moment someone fails I would just start crying. We have all come so far and to lose someone this far in the game would be awful. 

The next two days weren't as difficult as I thought. Stressful for sure but not as difficult. There was a large course set up for us to maneuver around in. One of the test was code three driving and the other high pursuit. It was fun driving fast and I am relieved I passed all my test and the week is over.

This isn't me driving, but it's a non testing course we got to have some fun with...
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This is me backing up. I got up to 51mph in reverse...
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I wish I took more video during EVOC. There were a lot of stuff I would had liked to share but I was just too busy. I had a lot to take care of being C.I.C and trying to stay focus on passing.

The EVOC training was at the Marina Airport. At the airport there is a skydiving school. On Friday the pilot and some other guy from the school came down to watch all the cadets race and speed around. They both started placing bets on the cadets. It was so much fun racing! I spun out once right at the end of one of the races I was winning. When we were done racing the pilot mentioned we should skydive sometime. I thought that would be fun so, one of the other cadets and I spontaneously went skydiving today. It was my second time diving and my buddies first. It was so much fun. My instructor and I did a couple back flips when we jumped out of the plane. Seeing all of Monterey and all across the valley was awesome. Scary thing while we were there was one guy broke his leg and another person made it to the ground with the reserve parachute. It was crazy, a few of us saw in the far distance a loose parachute slowly floating down from the sky, scary thing to see when know bodies are connected. As a beginner diver you tandem with someone else. The girl that came down with a reserve chute said she had know idea that her chute didn't open. Luckily she got filmed during her jump. It'll be a great video. The video will be her instructor pulling the cord to release the chute and nothing coming out and she'll be there happy as a clam. 

Short Friday

Finally another week done. This morning I only had one written test and enjoyed the rainy afternoon. In two weeks I will complete my last three scenario test.

Next week I have EVOC (emergency vehicle operator course), basically, I get to speed around and play in a patrol car! Also, I am the C.I.C (cadet in charge) this week. It should be a fun week. 

Happy Friday!

thursday: the real test

Scenario test today. Domestic Violence, Robbery, Use of Deadly Force, Pedestrian Stop and Suspicious Person.

Class started at 8am and we didn't get done testing till 6:30pm. It was a long quite day. All the cadets sat in a room unable to talk for 10 hours. 

The worst part of the day was waiting around to find out if you had to remediate a test. The saying "no news is good news" applied for the day. All the cadets anxiously waited hoping for no new. The bad thing about remediating is you only get one more shot. If you fail you're packing up your bags. 

I don't know how I got through all the test without having to remediate. Toward the end of the day the only thoughts going through my head were the mistakes I made. I was tired, anxious and the constant doubt and uncertainty laid on my mind all day long. 

Thank God, I passed all five scenarios on the first try. Only three more big scenarios to go!

tuesday: high risk vehicle pullover

It rained most the day today for testing and I forgot my camera.  I passed the test fine and felt pretty good about it. 

The highlight of the day for me was at the end of the day. One of the instructors I have a lot of respect for came up and talked to me. He said something along the lines of  "be more confident in the knowledge you know." He also wished me good luck in the field and mentioned a few other things to motivate me. It meant a lot when he talked to me, he is the type of person you want to impress. He saw my weakness and straight up told me to work on it. He did it in a way where it pushed my desire. I know I am confident, but there is a fear I have of whether or not I am right. I want to be right and I want to be good in what I do. I had an opportunity to do practice scenarios with this guy yesterday. I loved his style of teaching. He used to work in Huntington and he had a lot of personality traits that reminded me of some other people I admire most. He is an inspirational person and I will probably never forget the day he took me aside and said "good luck." 

monday:night time vehicle pull over

Four hours we spent practicing night time vehicle pull overs and high risk stops. It rained most the morning and was expected all day. Thankfully, by the afternoon the weather calmed and the sky's cleared. The wind was stormy and strong but it was nice not standing in the rain all day. Mid afternoon I saw a beautiful rainbow which put a smile on my face. It reminded me of my parents because they're enjoying hawaii this week. They have been kind enough to text me pictures of the beautiful island. In fact, when I got home this evening, I had FIVE text messages of pictures with my parents holding up snow cones and standing in front of waterfalls. I'm not sure if they're trying to hint that they're having a better time then me.  Or, maybe the envious pictures they're sending are ways of  encouragement, they're just reminding me of what my future will look like. It would be nice to be in Hawaii this week, but I'm here. Im here so in the future I can travel where ever I want. I just have to get through the testing. I did okay on my test this evening. We practiced for four hours doing vehicle stops. You would think I would be almost perfect with all the practice we had. I wish I could say it was so. I passed alright, but forgot some minor things. It was a bit stressful, all the evaluator wear bright yellow shirts, quietly take notes and stare at you. Before I started my test my instructor went over the patrol vehicle with me because I hadn't been in the one I was testing in. He showed me all the lights and explained that the spot light was on top of the car and not on the side of the doors. I thought it was so cool to have the spot light on the top and we talked about it for a little while. Guess what I forgot to turn on during my scenario... the spot light. Besides the light I felt okay about my performance.  It was a bit nerve racking because there were two other yellow shirts watching. At the end of my test I went back into the patrol unit and the yellow shirts all stood outside at the hood of the car looking down and writing. Sometimes they would look up at me and shake their head or smile. When they were done scoring one of the evaluators came back into the car and we drove back to the post in silence. The silence brought on the doubt and question of whether or not I passed. I waited two hours stressing.  Success...I passed. 

March Maiku

This blog entry is dedicated to my Uncle Mike. The haiku master. 

March Maiku

Testing all month long

No more Weekends to stay calm

Can't wait to be done