Trigger pulled...

I have finally pulled the trigger and dropped my paperwork.

I will be getting out of the Active Duty Air Force.  I go on terminal leave the end of next month.

Why? well... to be honest, it is mostly about time.  I have a lot of things I want to do with my time and putting projects on hold every few months for a few months, then being gone when I am home, and longish hours at work.  I guess I could re arrange my career so that I had more time to myself... but maybe I just wanted a big change.  So here it is, the big change. 

I do understand I am making probably the worst financial decision of my life.  Well, shit... OK… Noted.

As part of separating from the Air Force, congress has mandated that I  get some civilian world training. My guess they are trying to reduce the number of us that end up living under overpasses with paper bags of Mad Dog.

As a part of this class, they make you turn in a sort of life plan and budget to show you are not about to do something stupid… They look at your budget and plan, try and find holes, and then help you fix any holes in your plan.

My Plan so far:

1. Go canoeing

2. Build a flying motorcycle and start a flying motorcycle gang.

3. I do like the taste of purple MD 20/20. It has always been successful in the past.

So, for the purposes of discussion, lets talk about steps one and two.  Step one, is build a boat and float down the Missouri River from the head waters all the way to St Louis.  Should be fairly straight forward.  Doubt I'll get lost... I should just be able to let the current take me downstream as I watch out for rattle snakes.  I have the boat mostly complete, I am building the sailing rig for it right now.  As you can see, my folks were just in town and we went out and sort of tested it a little more.  I think 90% of taking it out was my dad checking if I really had built a boat that can do this trip.  After rowing it around he seems much more excited about the trip!

This isn’t meant to be some sort of exclusive trip, so if anyone reads this and wants to play galley slave for a week or two… just let me know when and I’ll let you know what city to hang out in to join the expedition.  Some flexibility required.  (Though after a week or two on the river, I should have a much better sense of how long things will take.  Most reasonable and external estimates are between 3 - 4 months on the river to make the entire trip. Will be on the water from the second week of June through the last week of September. (2016)

Step #2.  Flying Motorcycle.  This has been in development for a few years, but basically got put on hold for the entire time I have been living in Florida.  This October I’ll be somewhere that I can freely weld again and with the power of the god Vulcan back on my side I expect that to progress fairly rapidly.  Ideally I’ll be flying some sort of flying motorcycle to the 2018 Daytona beach bike week… maybe Sturgis too. 

Step #3.  Self explanatory. 

Also… incase canoeing and flying motorcycle building don’t pan out as lucrative endeavors that I can support myself with… I am also joining the New Mexico Air National Guard in Albuquerque.  I’ll still be flying Osprey only it will be more instructing noobs and less eating MRE’s.  So, those of you that still have your instructor upgrades or your Kirtland assignments ahead of you, I’ll see you out there!

Also recently, the old school jeep went to a Land Rover rally. 

My jeep even ended up on the feed of River Ridge 4x4. Gratuitous pics of Willys MB and Ford GPW HERE

She was the bell of the ball and saw two of her sisters there.  Though, overall results were typical and as expected.  

(Notice the line of irritated women standing on the side of the road)

The more things change the more they stay the same... so I have been told.