It's Official: Christmas Is Around the Corner!

What's going on readers? To get your holiday juices flowing, I've posted some cartoons and funnies for your enjoyment:












Hope you enjoyed that. Until then, later!

A Thanksgiving Story By Yours-Truely

In order to keep to my aviation passion and blogging, my Thanksgiving story will be found on my aviaion blog.

Click here to read.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy (Turkey Day!) Thanksgiving!

The following funnies are for your enjoyment:







Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Remember to be thankful for your friends, family and the other good things in your life! Be sure to count your blessings as well! Until next time, later!

War Of The Oregonians!

So just recently, I got this Fan Page invite on Facebook from a friend attending school at the University of Oregon in the city of Eugene, Oregon. The page was in support of none other than the Oregon Ducks for the upcoming annual 'Civil War' football (American) game against the Oregon State University Beavers. Before you say anything, yes, I know both the Oregon State University Beavers and the Oregon Ducks have a lot at stake for this upcoming game; the winner gets to go to the Rose Bowl and all that good crap... Well I just don't give a d@*n!

If any of you Duck or Beaver fans are reading this blog (bless your hearts!), I have just one thing to say: I AM NOT A NATIVE OREGONIAN! I DON'T LIKE EITHER COLLEGE TEAMS! AND I'LL NEVER SUPPORT EITHER TEAMS FULLY ANY TIME SOON! Man! That felt good! But you know what? I like both of their marching bands. Every year I hear them, they always have good music.

If I WAS forced to choose, I'd root for the Beavers (sorry Duck fans!). I personally don't like the Ducks. The only thing about 'Civil War' I get enjoyment out of is the intense rivalry. I enjoy watching my best friends arguing and debating on which side is better or who's going to win. I enjoy it when my best friends are not making eye contact with each other or speaking to each other all because they support either the Ducks or the Beavers. It really drives my point home.

So all of you Ducks and Beavers fans: Have a good "epic" 'Civil War' game and may the best team win.

Questions? Comments? Hate mail??? Save it for the comments section!

Oh! And by the way, I wasn't serious about rooting more for the Beavers over the Ducks! I REALLY JUST DON'T CARE WHO WINS BECAUSE FOOTBALL ISN'T REALLY MY FORTE! (There! I said it! Now I'll just move on with my life!)

Cleaning Out The Rain Gutters: It's A Dirty Job!

Now before you say anything, I would like to point out to the fact that what Mike Rowe does for Discovery Channel's reality show 'Dirty Jobs' is something way out of my league compared to what I get down and dirty for...

So for those of you that didn't know, I live in Salem, Oregon, smack-dab in the middle of the Willamette Valley region. It has a climate that gets 5o inches of rain a year, dry and somewhat warm summers, very wet between the months of November and April of next year, and rare snow; an average of 1-3 light falls a year and a major snowstorm only a couple times a decade. Look it up for further details if needed:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willamette_Valley

"Now, get ready to get dirty."
-Mike Rowe

Now that you've got that information in mind, I'd like to turn your attention to the season of Autumn (or Fall). Normally to me, it is supposed to be a beautiful season with many colors in the changing leaves and a brisk, coolness in the air. But living in the Willamette Valley is anything but. Depending on where your house may be, the Fall season could be nightmare. Raking dirty, wet leaves, cleaning out rain gutters or their dirty and wet leaves is something to expect, especially if your home is around trees that WILL lose their leaves in the Fall. That's what I've been doing for the past couple weeks whenever I was stuck at home, and it's not raining (yet)and it's dry, and I've got nothing really better to do...

So do I like yard work? Not really...

Will I do yard work if I get paid? Sure.

Do I like raking dry leaves just to jump into later on? Sure. Especially if I'm jumping in with a girl that I (may) like.

Do I like raking wet leaves? No!

Do I like climbing ladders to clean the rain gutters? NO!!!

Do I hate Oregon because of this? Well, it adds a reason to the other 10 or 11 reasons why I hate living in Salem, Oregon. Maybe the valley isn't really the best place for me live in for the rest of my life...

I can only image Mike Rowe in my shoes... You gotta give him credit for doing the job that was "the best thing to ever happen to me." You gotta give him credit for "looking for people who aren't afraid to get dirty—hard-working men and women who earn an honest living doing the kinds of jobs that make civilized life possible for the rest of us." As for me, all I can say is, "Cleaning out the rain gutters: it's a dirty job!"

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Sympathy? Hate mail? I await to hear them in the comments section.

Go Ahead! Laugh! Winter Is Around the Corner!

Well my fellow readers, the winter season is just around the corner with a follow-up of the various December holidays. The following pictures below are meant for your enjoyment. Enjoy!










Please check back when it's the month December. I'll have some Christmas-themed funny's for you! Until then, later!

A Lack Of Commitment...

Like the picture? Wondering where the banana went? Well I hate to say that I don't know. Instead, I'm gonna rant about the lack of commitment, the laziness, and possibly the Homer Simpson-like personality in some high school students I may know... Only, not stupid with the crayon lodged in the brain.

So on the 'Status Updates' page of Facebook, I've taken notice of some things written by my former classmates and/or upcoming students: They're complaining. You heard me. To get an idea, they may complain about the following:

Homework
College Applications
Work/Employment
Marching Band
Sports
Graduation Requirements

The list goes on and on... Complaining only shows one characteristic: A lack of commitment. For those of you that didn't know, I am a former high school marching band member. I've got 2 seasons under my belt and I enjoyed every minute of it. Taking the marching band example further, I've noticed on facebook that the students I know that are/were participating complained, A LOT. Now that marching band season is over for the year 2009, I'm hearing rumors of first-timers are planning to quit in the upcoming year. It just goes to show that the younger and upcoming students aren't nearly as committed as the older students. And it's not just the newbies. I'm hearing complaints from veteran members as well.

As a former band member and high school student, I just have a few things to say:

1.) If you can't handle it, don't bother. Otherwise, you knew what you signed up for and what to expect. In the words of Captain Sig Hansen, "If you don't like it, get the hell off!"

2.) It's life. If you wanna be successful in life, you gotta face difficulties that may stress you out. There is no such thing as an 'easy way'. It's only gonna get harder.

3.) Since life is only gonna get harder, don't grow up too fast.

4.) Have fun. Grasp the opportunities place before you and use for your enjoyment.

5.) Just don't grow up too fast!

Don't be a Homer Simpson. Homer Simpson is only good for the laughing out of the guts. Homer Simpson is nothing more than a cartoon character to laugh at when he's in pain or doing stupid things. You are NOT a Homersapien!

Questions? Comments? Hate mail? Comments are most certainly welcome.

Furry Little Bandits...

Remember that episode of 'The Simpsons' (entitled Smoke on the Daughter) where one of the sub-plots was when Homer and Bart are at war with the raccoons only to befriend them because the they resembled their own family? Remember when Homer used the father raccoon that looked just like him to get all the cigarettes out of the ballet dancers' locker room?? Remember when he put a black eye-mask to "protect his identity" only that it didn't really make a difference??? Well this late night post has got nothing to do with 'The Simpsons' or that particular episode. Instead, I'm gonna rant about those furry little bandits we call raccoons.

So several days ago, I was watching TV in the living room and I heard the familiar sound of the pet door we installed for my two cats to use to go in and out of the house. It wasn't windy outside (A strong enough wind can actually make door flap around since it is made out of a rubbery plastic) and I was wondering 'How long does it take to push in the pet door and come into the house?!' Then, I remembered that one cat was sleeping on the downstairs sofa and the other was sleeping in my sister's room. So my next thought was, 'What is out there?'

I got up to check out the pet door and I was like, 'That's no cat. That's a raccoon!' I banged on the sliding glass door and that furball was on the run. I turned on the outdoor lights, grabbed my airsoft guns and cautiously went outside, ready to fire if that furry little bandit was still around. Luckily, or unluckily for him, the raccoon got spooked as it made it's way upstream on the creek next to my house. I was able to get off three shots before he disappeared into the darkness. I remember last winter, a raccoon tried to pull the same stunt before I saw him and scared him away with similar tactics.

So at this point, my goal was clear: I was at war with a raccoon or two and I had to make sure that they know that they are not welcome around the house. For you animal lovers out there, don't take this the wrong way. I don't have any problems or any kind of grudge against raccoons. I do have a problem with them trying to get into the house. Especially with two pet cats, we don't want a bloody animal skirmish of any kind real soon. Like the Korean War, this personal war is limited and will only end when the opposite side stops "invading our territory".

Questions? Comments? Protests? Similar stories? Hate mail? I'd like to hear it!

Airsofting: Cleaner Than Paintball, But Still Hurts Like...

Airsofting: There's nothing SOFT about it!

About five years ago, my former next door neighbor got me hooked on airsofting. For those of you that don't know what that is, well it involves guns, ranging from pistols to battery powered semi-automatics to shotguns and even guns that look like AK-47s. The ammo is hard plastic pellets or BBs. And when you get hit, well you'll know all about it. And unless you stupidly shoot yourself at point-blank-range, the fired ammo will only leave little red welts that will disappear in a day or two. And before you ask, shooting yourself at point-blank-range will do enough damage to break the inner layer of skin to create a blood blister. I know what that's like; don't ask!
This is one of the few recreational things I like to do. Whenever I airsofted, I only did it for target practice, scaring away critters such as raccoons (That will be another story. I promise!), and on the rare occasion, shoot-outs with my friends. I wasn't the type of person that actively ran around and hunted down my friends participating in the skirmish. Instead, I'd hide out in a bush or take cover behind a tree or other forms of protection from flying BBs and wait for the target objectives to come to me. So in short, I was a guerrilla warfare type of marksman. What I like about airsofting with my friends is that safety was always number one: Everyone had to wear eye-protection (The flying BBs CAN potentially blind you if it hits your unprotected eye. So kids, don't do this at home unless you've got the proper equipment to make this safe!). Another thing is that we fought in teams so there was no odd man out at ANY time.
When airsofting, it's best to do so when there's a lot of space AND where there's no concerns of possibly angry neighbors. I remember one time I airsofted with two other friends in a friend's back yard IN a residential neighborhood. One of the neighbors almost called the cops for the noise we were making. I've airsofted in three separate occasions:
1.) A wooded area with lots of cover.
2.) A friends backyard in the evening hours (not really a good idea!)
3.) A friends backyard with 5 acres of land with little to no ideal cover.
One of the most memorable airsofting experiences I had was my second time in my friend's backyard. There was this scenario called "The Rogue". Basically there was an odd man out considering that there was only three of us. The rogue was given eye-protection, a plastic sword and shield and no gun. I mean how fair is that?! Once they flank you, you're as good as dead! So when I became the rogue, I was able to evade my friends for a good amount of time by hiding out in a bush in the front yard. When I realized that I had to make my move sooner or later, I just figured I might as well end it by letting one of my friends finish me off. But before you start saying anything, yes, I wasn't going without a fight. But I ended up being chased back into the backyard and faced down the barrels of two pistols, one from the front and one from behind. And this is where my friends got all cold-hearted: They got trigger happy!!! I felt one shot get me square on the back, one from the front hit me in the left shoulder, another from behind hit me in the back of my left leg! The final two shot just topped off the epicness of my samurai-style downfall: A shot from the front hit me in the left arm and my friend from behind shot me just feet away from me in the butt!!! He shot me in the butt!!!!! Never in my airsofting career, I had that many bullets hit me in just one skirmish. So you could say I was brutally massacred! But we had fun anyways.
Got questions? Got comments? Got sympathy for me? You know the drill! I am all ears for your comments!

The First Post!!

Welcome to my general blog! I hope you will enjoy some of the material I will be providing. My purpose of creating THIS blog is to humor or inspire you, the reader. I have a second blog page created for the specific use of displaying my passion for aviation. Here's the address if you are interested: http://mwithakaviation.blogspot.com/.

Allow me to introduce myself: You may address me as Michael with a "K" (Actual spelling is Mikel; pronounced as Michael). I've recently graduated from high school and I am actually preparing to go on a mission on behalf of the LDS church. As you may already know, I really love aviation with a passion. It's been my childhood dream to have career in the field of aviation.

If you're wondering how I came to be Michael with a "K", well you are in for a story: I was a junior in high school. It was the second semester, and it started in my Algebra 2 class (Yes, I was in Algebra 2 junior year. I wasn't really good at math until I got the hang of it in middle school. By then, it was kinda too late to really excel and I was basically stuck taking the basic high school level classes. But that was okay because it was easier credits towards graduation!) My first semester Algebra 2 teacher handed the reins to her student-teacher to teach my class for the rest of the year. In order to remember the names of the students she was in charge of teaching, the student-teacher addressed us by nicknames or catchphrases to get to know us better. She addressed me as Michael with a "K" and I decided to stick with it when I realized it was catchy. It was certainly better than Mike then add and an "L" or Mike + "L".

Thanks for reading the introductory post and hope you continue to follow along!

Got questions or suggestions for future posts? Feel free to speak out in the comments section and I'll consider them!