Waxing Poetic

Poetry is normally not my thing. It is not that I do not like it. I've just never been very good at writing it. Every now and again though, I'll have a nugget or two that will escape the gray matter rattling around in my skull (see post entitled, A Couple of Poems).

Yesterday was one of those rare moments. I was having lunch with Kristin at The Bakery in Farmville, VA when I snapped the photo below.



While thinking of a title for the photo, a thought came to me of someone walking into restaurant and asking for "a table for none" and then walking out. It was at that moment that the poem came to me...

A table for none
No reservation needed
The time has come to be gone
The traveler's call must be heeded

Experience sustains me
Knowledge quenches my thirst
I await the next sight I'll see
But I must arrive there first

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

6 Years On The Job

Today marks 6 years since I completed rookie school with the Sumter Fire Department and embarked on one of the greatest ventures of my life. On October 26, 2006 I received my certificate of completion for rookie school and raised my right hand to be sworn into the fire service. I look back, and it is hard to believe that it has been that long. It seems like it was just yesterday. Like the military, it did not take very long for me to figure out that it was indeed a calling for me, and now that I've been doing it for this long I cannot imagine myself not doing it. Lord knows it was very frustrating for the last 6 months to be off the job while recovering from shoulder surgery.

Me learning how to put up ladders.

A big part of my love for this job comes from the Brotherhood that exists within the fire service. No matter where I go in this country, wherever I find a firehouse it feels like home. Check out my post, Virginia Visit Recap from earlier this year for an example of what this Brotherhood means. My two Brothers from Roanoke that are mentioned in the post, Rhett Fleitz and Willie Wines, Jr have written extensively on the Brotherhood and I definitely recommend checking out their sites. The fire service practically became my second family overnight. From my brothers at Station 13 in Sumter, SC, to my new family in Odenton, it continues to be that way. In fact, I find no more fitting way to celebrate my 7 years of service, than to be on shift tonight with my crew at the Two-Eight.

I absolutely love doing this job, and feel fortunate to be able to. While the adrenaline rush is still there somewhat, this job for me is about helping the public and being there for the guy or girl next to me. Lord-willing, I hope to continue doing this for a long time, whether I stay a volunteer or get paid for it after the Air Force. It has been a great 6 years and I look forward to what the next 6 years will bring.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Me after completing the final certification burn for the basic firefighter course.

On The Path To Home Ownership

The words in the title of this post are ones that I always hoped to use together one day, but was never quite sure if I actually would. As of today though, we officially started down that path with our offer on a house being accepted. As I'm sure anyone who has ever purchased a house probably knows, this is a huge milestone in the my life and the life of my family.

In reality, the process actually began about a month ago or so. We were informed by our landlord that he would need his house back by 1 November. We briefly toyed with the idea of looking for another rental, but quickly abandoned that for several reasons:

1. We plan on finishing out the last 6 1/2 years of my Air Force career here (there's a good chance we can do that in this day and age). We might as well put down some roots for awhile.

2. If we're going to shell out big money, we should be putting it towards our well-being and not someone else's.

3. The third, and definitely one of the most important factors behind it was a recent ruling by Maryland's highest court listing pit bulls as inherently dangerous and putting greater liability upon landlords. I love my Layla, and I'll be damned if I'm giving her up.

Purchasing a home, allows us to take care of all three factors. There's still some things to be done before it is actually ours, but at least we're moving in that direction. I couldn't be happier!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Perfect Placement

Perfect Placement, originally uploaded by T-3 Photography.

Never before had I seen a sign so appropriately placed.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

A Couple of Poems

This post is my effort to start updating my blog regularly again. After January, I haven't been the greatest about posting. My aim is to turn that around.

With that in mind, I've actually written a couple of small poems lately. I present them here for your reading pleasure.

---

Half & Half

Half light
Half dark
Half crazy
Half sane
Mind racing
Ever chasing
That elusive dream

To be who I could
To be what I was
Senses collide
As emotion departs
I am at once here
Then altogether gone

---

Conforming Individually

All for one
And one for all
All the same
A part of the game

Marching to the beat
Of their own drum
While subconsciously submitting
To the collective’s chosen path

The reach for individuality
Becomes the new conformity
All look the same
In the quest to be different

---

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

They Climbed...We Climb

The title comes from an interview with an unknown firefighter that participated in the 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb at the Firehouse Expo in Baltimore this past Thursday. It sums up well why those of us who participate climb: to remember our fallen Brothers from the New York City Fire Department and symbolically complete the climb up the stairs of the World Trade Center that they could not.

This is the third such stair climb that I have participated in, but it was every bit as meaningful as the other two. As I have in the past, I once again climbed in honor of Firefighter Thomas Sabella from Ladder 13. As FF Sabella was the uncle of my best friend Jason, I climb to help keep his memory alive. While I never had the honor to meet him, through Jason I definitely have come to know the husband, father, brother and firefighter that he was. I do this to help to keep the memory of all our FDNY Brothers alive. It is just something that I feel I have to do. We get to go home after our climb. They never got that chance.



It is certainly not an easy venture. Particularly for those of us that choose to climb in full protective gear, it get’s hot and tiresome real quick. Even with ventilation fans blowing air into the stairwells it gets really hot as you get near the top. With all of that said, it is child’s play compared to the hell our FDNY Brothers had to endure as they made their ascent. As in past stair climbs, there are certain times where the urge to quit becomes strong. Whenever these urges come though, I remind myself at Thomas Sabella never quit so neither can I. I had to complete that climb for him and his Brothers.

Special for me this year also was being able to climb with brothers and sisters from the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company. We were able to field a whole team of 7 from the company and I was extremely proud to climb with such a great group of people. I’d like to think that we all became a little closer in the stairwell that day.



This was my third climb, but certainly not my last. As long as my body lets me, I will continue to climb for Jason’s uncle at least once a year. I will do my small part to ensure his memory never fades.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Double Anniversary Weekend

This weekend marks two very important milestones in my life. The first comes tomorrow when I will officially reach 13 years of service in the United States Air Force. It seems like just yesterday I was stepping off the plane in San Antonio for basic training and now here I am, rapidly becoming one of those crusty guys I used to joke about when I was an Airman. Indeed, the last few years have left my very frustrated and burnt out with the Air Force. Yet, I cannot help still being proud of these last 13 years. 13 years is a long damn time to be doing one thing. There are times I still have a sense of wonderment that I've been doing it this long. Tomorrow also means that I've got 7 years left until I'm retirement eligible. While the Air Force has been good to me, I'm starting to concentrate more now on getting my ducks in a row for what I'm going to do post-Air Force. This doesn't mean I'm giving up with the Air Force and won't bust my behind as I always have. It just means I'm done doing it for my career. My only hope now is to set as many Airmen and junior NCOs on the right path as possible so that they can do my job long after my crusty self is gone. Still...13 is my lucky number, so who knows. Maybe this year will be better than the last few. We shall see.

Even more important than my Air Force anniversary date however, is Sunday. This will mark 6 years of marriage to Kristin (the story of how we met can be found here). Just like my years of service in the Air Force, I look back and can't helping wondering where time has gone. I guess the saying is true that time flies when you're having fun. That's not to say that our marriage has always been a bed of roses. Honestly though, who's ever is 100%? I don't think I've met a couple yet who has. It is certainly true though that I grow more fond of her with every day, week, month and year. When you first meet someone and fall in love with them, you think that is the ultimate level of relationship. As the years go on though you learn that you can indeed grow even closer. I was definitely blessed that Kristin came my way. Her more laid back demeanor has always been the perfect compliment to my...well...less than laid back demeanor. Every day is a new adventure and I could never imagine (not that I would honestly try) life being any other way. There are so many things to do and adventures to have with her and I can't wait to do it all.

I love you Kristin. I look forward to many more years with you!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Virginia Visit Recap

Last week, I had the chance to spend some time in rural Keysville, Virginia by myself. While I definitely missed my wife and daughter, it was good to be out on my own for a little while. This is particularly true since I had been laid up in the house most of the two weeks before due to my surgery. My main reason for heading down there was to visit with my mom. While her and my stepfather have been married for the past 26 years, his declining mental state has left only a shell of a marriage for the last 8 years or so. My mom has tried a million different ways to deal with and accomodate him, but a person can only take so much. To that end he moved out a few weeks back. Now, there are still some bumps in the road ahead as they move from separation to divorce, but I have to say that I have not seen my mom as happy as she was that week in a very long time. She had so much energy and was constantly smiling. It was great to spend a lot of time talking with her and catching up. Something that we have not been able to do without distraction in a long time. We hung out, we listened to music and enjoyed many meals together. It was a lot of fun and I'm glad to see my mom happy again after so long.


Normally having to do the convincing, mom actually asked me to take pictures of her after her haircut.

While I was staying in Virginia, I received an e-mail from some great flickr friends, Todd and Bill stating that they were traveling to Florida for the funeral of Bill's dad and were wondering if they could stop in on me and the family in Maryland. Before I even had a chance to respond back and tell them I was in VA, my mom said, "Tell them they can come stay here." I'm so very glad that she did. I've known Todd and Bill through flickr since 2007, but we had never met in person before. When they arrived at my mom's one evening, I have to say that we all sat around and talked as if we had known each other all our lives. We talked about photos, music and the pending trip of my family up to Rochester to visit the pair at their home. I'm really looking forward to them meeting Kristin and Katrina as well as seeing them both again.


Todd giving some attention to my mom's pit bull Shiloh, while Bill talks with my mom.


A shot that Todd took of me the morning that he and Bill left to finish their journey to Florida.

Another big highlight of my trip was heading west to Roanoke for the day to hang out with Roanoke firefighters, Lieutenant Rhett Flietz and Captain Willie Wines, Jr. Rhett runs the sites VA Fire News and The Fire Critic, while Willie runs the site, Wooden Ladders and Iron Firemen. I've followed Rhett and Willie's sites for a few years now starting out with VA Fire News back around 2007. I had the chance to meet them in person during the 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb at the Firehouse Expo this past June in Baltimore. Later on September 11th, I had the chance to actually climb with them at the Greenbelt, MD event. Since I began following their blogs, Rhett and Willie have been a big source of inspiration when it comes to being the sort of firefighter I want to be. Not that they are the be-all or end-all in firefighting, but when it comes to tradition and the true meaning of Brotherhood, I feel that they really get it.

Anyway, these two guys both had a lot going on. Rhett had just got back from Aruba and Willie as always had farm stuff to take care of. On top of everything, both of them were gearing up to head to the Fire Department Instructor's Conference in Indianapolis, IN. Despite that they had all of this going on, they both took the time to show me around Roanoke Fire-EMS stations both old and new. We even made a trip to the Virginia Museum of Transportation where I had not been since I was 17. Later that evening, Rhett grilled some steaks for us back at his house and the three of us stayed up until the wee hours talking about anything and everything. It was truly an awesome day.


Willie wearing Rhett's old leather helmet while Rhett wears my Irish flat cap.


A shot of the Roanoke Fallen Firefighter Memorial in front of the Virginia Museum of Transportation.


Willie's office at Roanoke Fire-EMS Station 13.

Last, but not least, I did find the time to do a little exploring around my home turf. In all the years since my parents moved us to Virginia, I've been to the tiny town of Victoria many times. I had always known it was a railroad town, but didn't realize just how much of a railroad town until last week. While exploring the park where the Virginian Railway mainline used to run, I discovered a restored Virginian gondola sitting in the middle of a field. As I got closer to photograph it, I realized that what I though was a field was actually the old foundation for the roundhouse that used to reside there, and that the gondola was sitting on the concrete pad that used to be one of the engine bays. The foundation of the turntable is still there as well. It turns out that town was actually created by the railroad to house offices and housing for the families of railroad employees. Unfortunately, when the Norfolk & Western acquired the Virginian, the mainline through Victoria was considered to be redundant and ultimately it was abandoned. This definitely froze Victoria in time.


A restored gondola sits on the site of the former Virginian roundhouse in Victoria, VA.

All in all it was a great trip back to my home state. Until next time...

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.