Chapter 6, Verse1: Finacial Planning

Good evening Space Travelers. I'm in San Ramon California, a outer community of the greater metropolitan area of San Fransisco. I'm staying with my Uncle Stephen. He's not my uncle by blood, but instead a long time family friend.

Stephen and my father grew up down the street from each other in San Diego. They quickly became good friends. Stephan and my dad were big time surfers in the San Diego Area and would surf everyday before and after school.

Being that I'm here, it was cool to get to talk to Stephan and learn some cool things about my Pops that I didn't know. You see, from sometime around the age of 16 until the age of 26 my father never seemed to walk in front of a camera. I've been since my 16th birthday looking for photos to see how much my father and I resemble each other. However, as I stated before, this was no easy task as few pictures existed. Fortunate for me, Stephan had some. It's odd seeing my dad at such a young age. I'll say this though, he has aged well. Once he grew his mustache, he doesn't look like he has aged at all.

I'll post a picture soon.

Stephan works as a financial planner. One of the things I've been curious about is how to plan out the next few years post grad, and finances are something that always are on my mind. At time of graduation, I will have about $25,000 in college loans. Uncle Stephen gave me some good tips on how to manage that debt over the following 5 years. I also learned about stock options and taxes on capitol gain.

Wait a second.

Yep, this is seriously the most boring post ever.

Hmmm.... Well other than that, I got in touch with my friend William Li. He went to UMR as well and graduated in 2005. I decided to go visit him the next day.

Chapter 4, Verse 5: Cars, Copters, and California Pie.

Hey Space Travelers, here's the scoop! I am going to be hard pressed to beat this adventure, so listen up. My Cousin Christa works for a company that used to be a part of the government and now is privatized. She basically is an investigator and does critical background checks on all sorts of people in the government. If you are receiving a large military promotion in the Navy, or if you are getting a higher grade security clearance of any sort she'll check you out and by the end, she may know whether you have stripes or hearts on your underwear. Anyway, she got this brand new Dodge Charger as a company car, to which I say... dude. Awesome.

This Morning in particular we, being my Aunt and my Cousin and I, were going to go hiking in the Torrey Pines area. However when I woke, I learned that plans had changed and that My uncle Gary's Friend Lyle had offered to take us all on a helicopter ride. This is excellent news to wake up to; news being on par with waking up to find you had superpowers. For me, a pretty big deal.The Helicopter that we would be flying in was a Robinson 44, or R44 for short. A small personal aircraft with seating for 4 people. When we arrived and I first saw the helicopter, I was irrationally excited. Honestly, it was a struggle to contain myself. The worst part was that I had to just look at it for so long. As you can see above, the morning fog had yet to burn off and visibility was low. We were grounded for some time.Today I would be riding shotgun. I'm not sure if it's still called shotgun in aircraft, but what is known is how awesome it felt to be up near the controls. I should tell you about Lyle. Lyle is a retired Electrical Engineer. He worked many years for several companies in the aerospace industry, the most recognizable being General Dynamics. He also worked on the Voyager space probe, so needless to say, this guy has done and seen some really amazing things in his life time. Today he was treating us to the helicopter ride because he loves any excuse to fly and he wanted to show me, and aspiring young aerospace engineer, a fun time. I hope I will be able to offer this kind of experience to someone like me in my later years.

Now that the fog had gone away, we did all final checks and took off. Our first destination was the beach. We flew low and the surfers almost always waved at us. From the air you can see all sorts of fish under the water that you would never be able to see from the shore. Most notable was the gigantic school of leopard sharks near La Jolla shores. We few over the seal beach too. You can see many of the seals just lying down in the sun. As we flew inland, we came across a large dam. What might not be terribly obvious is that this dam is actually located at a really high elevation. The water does not naturally arrive here from run-off, it is actually pumped up to it.Aviator sun glasses actually make aircraft fly better, who knew? I may be one of a very limited population who has taken a my-space-at-arms-length-self-portrait-with-your-own-camera-shot from the cockpit of a helicopter. Hardly relevant I know, but then again, what is these days?

Hey Space Travelers, here's the useless thing I photographed for the post today! This is the Governator's house in San Diego county! It's best described as fucking redundantly huge! Out of frame is the hot tub, which is on the other side of the mountain this is built on top. The noteworthy thing about the hot tub is that there is a 30ft water slide into it. Can you imagine the potential?Eat some soap Space Travelers, and while your at it clean behind your ears! We flew up a mountain later and got something to eat. No, I didn't eat soap. I got baked goods! Baked goods...on a mountain...helicopter ride...you dig? Is this setting in yet?The mountain had really funny cars. JFK would have kicked this cars ass in a machine fight!
After retrieving our mountain prize we flew back over great metropolitan San Diego and guess what? We saw our house from up high! Johnny Freedom Car must have heard the helicopter and came running outside! My uncle was elated to see the overhead photo of the neighborhood because his pool was the cleanest. This reminded me of my own father and how he has become strangely obsessed with our lawn since moving to the suburbs. Honestly, I think moving the lawn is the way suburbanites exercise their aggression or competitive nature towards each other. Vicious devils.All jokes aside, it was an awesome day, and perhaps the biggest adventure thus far in my journey. I am so fortunate to constantly meet so many extraordinary people in my lives (I'm already on my 3rd by my count). Days like today make me excited for the future.

Post Script Space Travelers - I learned my camera can do some video, so I may be able to put some video up soon, assuming ti doesn't just drain my batteries.

Chapter 4, Verse 4: Midway Home

Salutations Space Travelers! I'm a bit behind in my posts I know, but I've had lots on my schedule.

Right now in San Diego, they have what they call "June Gloom." Before the emo kids stick a flag in the ground and claim SD for the nation of Sadness Forever, I should tell you that "June Gloom" is really not that bad when compared to the mind-altering heat and humidity of the Midwest. Humorously enough though, my Aunt keeps apologizing for the weather.My Uncle was really excited when I told him, that I'd go kayaking with him in the bay, so we woke up unnaturally early and drove to Coronado Island. We put the boat in on the bay side of the island, and at that time, the fog still had yet to burn off.At first we paddled around the sheltered side of the island, but then we crossed over to the city side and maneuvered about the Maritime Museum. Above you will note your favorite Space traveller in awe of the famous USS Midway, which is mothballed here in the the San Diego Bay. It has been converted into a museum since it was decommissioned in 1992, but more about that later.I wanted to stick around the Midway longer, but it was awkward. Their were giants making out on shore.The "Star of India" is a old ship here in the bay. It is actually fully functional, and once a year, they sail it, to keep it certified. Barely out of frame on the left is another ship. The ship that you can't see very well is actually owned by Fox studios, and is the ship from "Master and Commander." I decided that I would claim both boats for the Ninjas of the world, just to enrage the Pirates that are land locked. Also out of frame is a old Russian Submarine that is being repaired and turned into a museum. I claimed that one too, but for other reasons.My Uncle took me under several piers in the kayak. I played it cool, but secretly I am terrified of anything I see underwater. The notion of tipping the kayak while under these creepy piers made me sweat pure terror. Every time we would pass a old wooden pillar under the water, I would imagine every type of horrifying creature crawling up it with malicous intent for yours truly. Magnificently creepy says me.Later after the bay, I connected with my long time San Diego friend Drew. Drew and I were introduced as children by my Aunt and his Mother. Every time I come out to San Diego, I connect with Drew, and we hang out. Today, we went to a Padres baseball game.A padre, for those who don't know is a friar. San Diego is home to several missions that predate the city. they were built by the Spanish in early colonial times. I learned a few things about the padres mascot.

1) He sometimes wears a Pope costume, complete with hat.

2) No matter what direction the mascot is facing, the eyes seem to look at you.

3) Mascots are creepier than underwater spooks.

I thought that he was going to start pulling children into the field and start baptizing them with Powerade. I stayed clear of the wall during batting practice.It was a day game, and the sun was wicked intense. By the 5th inning the shade had finally blessed us. Being that I went to my first professional baseball game last summer, I now have seen two stadiums: Busch Stadium ("Baseball Heaven") and PetCo Park. Not that I'm really into sports but I'm going to comfortably say that the Cardinals have a MUCH better stadium.

I begrudgingly report however that I am slowly becoming a fan of a sport. I know. I'm betraying all that is being a nerd, but going to a baseball game is enjoyable on many levels. It's a interesting place where people interact. It's very exciting and wherever I end up post grad, I hope they have a baseball team. My apologies.Like any downtown stadium, as you leave you are immersed in the oddest of characters. Seeing the man above, I had to remember that JFK doesn't actually eat bicyclists for energy, that JFK like 87 octane unleaded fuel.

I was however inspired to join Drew on his 4th of July plans. As we were leaving the downtown area we stopped and bought tickets for a 4th of July celebration on the USS Midway. I found it to be a delightful coincidence that I had been to the ship twice in one day and it seemed like a very unique opportunity to take advantage of. The coolest thing about the event is that I will be on the actual flight deck of the Midway during the fireworks and I'll get the chance to touch several Naval Aircraft that are on display there. Too cool right?

Well Space travellers, It's been a long day, and I still have another day's post to get you all caught up on my adventures. Stay strong, and wash your hands frequently.