Can’t believe how fast the last three weeks have gone…lots of life stuff going on. Russell has wanted a pickup truck for as long as I can remember, and now, he has one. You know those used car guys that tell you they have a car that was owned by one little old lady who drove it to the grocery store and church…well that’s my Dad. He bought his truck, a Dodge Dakota, in 1997 and it has just a little over 50,000 miles on it. We needed a third vehicle and my Dad wasn’t driving his truck anymore…it needed new tires and some work done, but we ended up with a really good deal and a reliable truck to get Russell to and from work. (If you’re in the Portland/Gresham area and need a good mechanic, we highly recommend USA Auto Performance – they are awesome and totally honest).
Speaking of Russell and work, he injured his lower back last Tuesday and is now on what UPS calls “TOW” (time off work), but it really isn’t. He has been going in every day to the chiropractor for treatments and then he goes to UPS and helps out in the office answering phones, doing computer work, etc. He’s in quite a bit of pain but my sweetie isn’t a complainer. You know when someone is really hurt when they are willing to ice their back every hour!
It seems as if the hot days of summer are over. Russell and I were spontaneous and went to the State Fair two weekends ago. We packed a picnic supper and headed down mid-afternoon with the intention of working on our photography skills, especially night-time lighting. We had a lovely day together, took a ton of pictures and walked our legs off. At the last minute I decided to throw in our coats and a turtleneck for me (since I get cold so easily). We were so glad to have the extra layers as it got really chilly after the sun went down. I’m always amazed at how much money people spend on stupid (in my opinion) stuff. The world’s largest pig and the biggest alligator both had lines of people willing to plunk down $1.50 per person for 30 seconds. We lost count of the number of mostly young couples who were walking around with 5 foot stuffed animals which I imagine cost way more than they were worth. We learned our lesson last year after spending a small fortune on hamburgers, fries and drinks for five of us for what was at best mediocre food…thus the picnic supper.
We've been praying for awhile that God would point Shanna in the right direction. She's been "directionless" for awhile...undecided about what to do for her future. She wants to be in law enforcement but has to take some college courses to begin and she is too late to get into the program at MHCC. Shanna asked me a couple weeks ago to go with her to talk with military recruiters. After lots of conversations, research and prayer, she has decided to pursue a career in the Marines.
We are very supportive of this decision and believe the Marines will give her direction, grow her up and provide the foundation for a solid future. No, the military is not for everyone and we realize not everyone will be supportive of her choice, but Shanna is very excited and determined to do this. She understands that boot camp is 13 weeks of hell but will also prepare her for a permanent job, which in this economy isn't easy. Women in the Marines aren't on the front line of battle, although because of 6 years of training from my brothers, she already is a great "rifleman" and was invited last year to be on the Junior Rifle Team for the US. She will be an even better “riflewoman” after 13 weeks at boot camp on Parris Island, South Carolina.
The original plan was for her to take the necessary tests and ship out in November for boot camp. However, there’s been a hitch in the plan. Shanna has a small tattoo on her inside right wrist...it's the Chinese symbol for blessed. The Marines won't allow her to keep it and it has to be removed before she can move forward in the process. Shanna and her Grandma (Russell's mom) both got small tattoos done on their inside right wrists last year. They both wanted tattoos and although we were against it, they went together and Grandma treated Shanna to a tattoo. Much like the dog she bought for Shanna which is now one of her pets, it wasn't a well-thought out decision. Now, Shanna is paying for that decision...because it is her saluting hand (right wrist facing outward), she has to have the tattoo removed. It will take five to eight laser treatments, four weeks apart at $200 per treatment to have it removed so that has moved her previous ship out date into 2011. She’ll have to get a job to pay for her gas and incidentals because we can’t afford it.
The only upside to the delay is that she has more time to study for the ASVAB test, which is used by all branches of the military. It's a 2.5 hour test that covers 9 different subjects including General Science, Arithmetic Reasoning, Word Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension, Mathematics Knowledge, Electronics Information, Auto Information, Shop Information, Mechanical Comprehension and Assembling Objects. It's a hard test to pass and her score will determine what her starting pay would be and what jobs in the military she would be eligible for. We bought a study guide and flash cards for her to use and if she scores high enough, she will be able to audition for the Marine Band.
After our first meeting with the recruiter, they had her do a practice test just to see where she was at and she scored 23. She has to score 31 or higher on the real test in order to move forward in the process. If she fails the test (gets less than 31) or takes it and doesn't get as high of a score as she and her recruiter would like, she can take it again in 30 days. Last week her recruiter, Sergeant Marsh had her re-take the test and she had raised her score to 36, so she’s improving! One of her friend’s boyfriends is taking college trigonometry and has been helping her study math (we’re not blessed with math genes in our family!). Please pray for her as she studies and prepares her mind and body for what's ahead. She is working out at 24-hour Fitness and has is also working out in the mornings (playing basketball and running) with the other marine recruits (so far, she’s the only female, but she seems to be doing okay).
Russell and I are very proud that she would choose to do this and while the Mother in me cries that she will be far away and we would likely not see a lot of her for several years, we also know that God is in control of her life and that this could very possibly be the best choice that she has ever made.
Happy Friday! Russell took the photo below at the State Fair.
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