Vog

Recently, a new vent opened up in Kilauea and new lava has spewed for the first time in like 25 years. That is of little consequence, but the vog that has been venting in addition to what normally vents is pretty intense. Considering how far away Hawai'i is from us in O'ahu, it seems pretty amazing that a (sometimes dense) haze is seen in the sky. I can only imagine the concentration of all that sulfur at the source.

For us it is only mildly irritating. Part of the problem is the lull in Trade Winds that should otherwise remove the vog. Mostly, it is seen up near the mountains, but there still is a considerable amount seen in Pearl City from where we are. I have not been to the Windward side of the island in the past couple weeks, so I am not sure what it is like there. When I was in Diamond Head, you could see a bit of haze when looking off to Honolulu.

New Bicycle

First off, congratulations to LCDR Bush for getting a 300 on the PFA. He not only score 100 points in each of the three categories, but he did so with a comfortable margin in his age group. He ran an 8:38, did 100 sit-ups and 86 push-ups.

He is doing his pack-out and he had a bicycle he has not used much in the past few years. Having heard me talk about getting a bicycle to use, he suggested I get his. I must say, for $50, it is quite a deal. The bike is barely used, 21-speed hybrid mountain bike. I've tested it some this weekend since I have literally not been on a bicycle in almost 10 years. After taking a moment to get used to it, I used the bike to scale Halawa Heights, which is right up the street from where I live. It is a steep-grade hill climbing probably a good 1000 feet up to the Marine installation of Camp Smith. The climb was brutal, but coming down was amazing. I was going as fast as the cars around me suggesting I was traveling at, or in excess of, the 30 mph posted speed limit. Thinking that if I wreck, it is going to really ruin my day, I expect I will wear some kind of protection for such a downgrade in the future.

I will probably use the bike as a means of transportation to work. Quite frankly, depending on when I leave in the afternoon, it will be a much quicker travel by bicycle than car anyway. The traffic here really sucks and even a 4-mile drive can become 45 minutes of pain.

Prince Caspian

This was a little bit of a different mood than the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It was not as kid friendly, but it definitely had its humorous points. Many of the great characters seen in the first film did not make an appearance (chronologically, it is like 13oo years later), but there were many new characters. The film was a lot darker than the first, much in the way of Lord of the Rings. Regardless, it was an enjoyable movie, but there was something about the first one I seemed to like more. It may have been the Witch, as that was a remarkable villain.

I also got my new bicycle. I have yet to test it, but it seems in good order. I suspect I will get some good use out of it; hopefully I don't get run over on some of these crowded streets. I suspect I will mostly take to the backroads and tour the island. The trip to work should not be too difficult either, although I will typically avoid Kam Highway.

Federer vs Nadal in Hamburg. Djokovic fought Nadal mightily in the semifinals, but fell in 3 sets. That match was a chance for Nadal to become the #2 player in the world, but thankfully Nadal will hold onto that for at least 3 more weeks and if he wins the French, at least a few weeks longer. Federer is safe as #1 no matter what happens until at least Wimbledon.

Time to PT.

Quick Update

We moved into our new place on the 7th. I cannot say much about it because my beloved spouse has made zero attempt to unpack, clean, or, well, do anything besides 12+ hours/day dedication to myspace. I've learned just to not bitch about anything. I make sure my quadrant of living space is suitably maintained and since I've basically lived in a hotel since January, I don't care much about the rest of the house, nor do I desire the headaches associated with "encouraging" someone without self-motivation.

The place is perfectly suitable to what we need. It is a two-bedroom with 1 1/2 baths, so we both can get our privacy as desired. The cable guy got sick or something, which is why I have no home internet access and therefore little way to log onto email or blogspot. He should be by this coming Tuesday.

My typical day is to wake up around 0600, go to work by about 0700 as that is when patients start coming in. Depending on what is needed determines my general day. For the next few months, I'm going to have to survey x-ray and dental equipment to verify it is running properly. That generally takes several house for all the tests and manipulations. Other days I have to catch up on administration. One thing we are hurting on is tracking. We have patients we need to track and follow up on their temporary disqualification. As we progress, I need to audit the 2000 or so medical records I am responsible for. That will probably take 6-12 months and BUMED requests I do that annually.

We just go another body for the next couple months to help out. Jennifer will be able to help Linda, who will then be able to help me do some of the things I'd like to do and not be bogged down with micromanagement bullshit. Hopefully before Jennifer leaves, we actually get a permanent body.

As far as FITREP, I am probably going to be like 3/3 no matter how good or bad I do. I am Medical Service Corps, the CO is Nurse Corps and the XO is Medical Corps, so birds of a feather....

Also, I have little face-time with the CO. If I am seeing the CO, it is because equipment is broken or I'm explaining the results of one of my audits. So, good for me means I do not see them, but as with typical ranking, those that are more visible tend to get recognized. Also, the other two LTjgs are hugely into the wardroom, wardroom games, and such, which I am not and will not even try to be. The good news is I don't care, I can retire with or without promotion, so it is irrelevant. I'll get myself another Masters or a PhD, get myself certified for medical or health physics down the line and I'll qualify for my pin when I get on a carrier. Let the chips fall as they may after that, regardless if it is O3-E or O4, I'm done.

Off to work.

The Chronicles of Narnia

I started reading parts of the first (chronological) book while at Borders entertaining Fuss. Right away, I thought it was a brilliant story and I really started to enjoy it. I knew nothing about the story before starting the read, which seems to have made it more enjoyable. After getting into the first book, I decided to rent the movie (again, not knowing anything about it). As I was watching the movie (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe), it became clear what I was watching was not at all similar to what I had been reading. I had understood that the Chronicles of Narnia was a compilation of books (that was only because I read the back cover). I figured that this must be a different book.

I looked it up online and the first movie is based on the second book. The first book is an amazing read (6th one written, prequel to the whole story) and it really introduces how the whole story came to be. After the introduction of the movie got past, the movie quickly went from okay to absolutely amazing. It was similar, in many ways, to the Lord of the Rings. I would recommend anyone watch the movie and/or read the book. Based on what I read in the first story, the movie seemed to play out very well. Both the Witch and the Lion were very much as I had pictured them. It is kind of confusing why when the Lion first crossed paths with the Witch why he simply did not eat her. Instead, she was allowed centuries to build up an army and declare war. Perhaps it was part of a grander scheme; regardless it was quite entertaining and now I am looking forward to seeing the next movie.

First survey

I did my first x-ray survey today. It was on a brand new radiographic x-ray machine used mostly for large body parts. The machine is pretty amazing. The accuracy and repeatability of its measurements were surprising. Typically, values need to be within 5%. These were typically 0.5%. There were a couple issues, but it seems those are more with installation. The beam alignment was a bit off, but it is of note both the table and the collimator were not level by a couple of degrees, which certainly could influence the alignment. The light intensity was an abysmal failure and the engineer has to come back and reinstall the collimator. Because of that, I could not finish my survey, but I came close. Altogether, I was working on it for about 6 hours today up in Kbay. Once proficient, I think a survey like this will take about 3 hours and maybe 4 hours for a branch new machine. I have to input and analyze the data I have collected and then early next week, after the engineer finishes up, I will finish my survey.

I have to admit, although sometimes tedious, I rather enjoyed the survey. The x-ray technician was helpful in analyzing the films and providing me with some technical knowledge on the equipment (as was the engineer). I have several surveys to do in the next few months. That is good because it means I am basically out of the office all day, but it sucks until I get a radiation tech, because then I am not there to work on my program. Regardless, I think this is a good job for me.

Clinton on the Rise

This is starting to become unpleasant for me. Originally, it looked great that McCain and Obama were going to secure their nominations and then those two would fight it out. I am not really partial to conservative vs. liberal. I am more interested that the largest problems in America are addressed and a positive plan is set forth to make that happen. The secondary pissing contests are trivial to me. We are in a war, healthcare is in the shitter, social security is a joke, we give an insane amount of money in foreign aid to countries that hate us, and we have a Congress that doesn't give a damn beyond what it takes to protect their own votes.

In the past few months, both Obama and McCain's stock has dropped in my eyes. I'm not a fan of the idea of fighting in Iraq with no real objective other than being a nuisance to terrorists while simultaneously driving this country into the most horrific level of debt. Obama has made some comments that suggest perhaps he does not give a damn about the struggling American, but to his own ascension. His original attempt to defend himself in this mess with Reverend Wright was quite silly. That guy has made some rather revolting comments, and to initially try and temper that was foolish, I think. It makes me really wonder if there is any credit to the old questions that arose about Obama's loyalty. Clinton, scarily, really seems to have some great ideas. Now, the fact she a political section 8 frightens me deeply.

It is starting to look like 4 years ago when we had a choice between two people that were not appealing. There was Kerry, who would make decisions based on the stench of his most recent fart, and there was the great diplomat and humanitarian, Mr. Bush. Now we have a choice between 3 people that are really creeping me out. About a month ago, I was pulling for McCain, now, I would still pick McCain, but it is getting close to just pulling straws.

I would like this Clinton/Obama thing to end soon. At least then we can get to the meat and potatoes of what each candidate intends to do for the country instead of this nonsensical bullshit that keeps airing. If Obama wins, I want to hear how he plans to invoke his ideas. Clinton seems more realistic with her plans, which makes me wonder if Obama can accomplish anything without taxing the shit out of everybody (say what you want about Bush, he did good with taxes; whether or not that was worth the relative purchasing power we enjoy now is debatable). At least Clinton's plan on taxing would rape the rich. I'm willing to pay a little more if those folks get violated appropriately.

Clinton's interview on O'reilly was amazing, in my opinion. She really built her stock there.