I need to give some *MAJOR* props to the hubby. While he didn't seem to know what to do with himself as we headed out on our roadtrip to Louisiana last Thursday (although I suspected XBox, followed by studies), but it seems to have been filled with studies, followed by pet time, instead! :o)
Petunia did not have any wetting accidents in the house when we were gone, only one BM in each bedroom, plus one in the bathroom--which is expected as that is her main MO in terms of expressing anxiety related to change. The most impressive examples of his deepened relationship with the critters are:
1) Normally, Kumi's nocturnal activities (noisy spinning...hedgehogs apparently can cover 5-8mi/night) drive Matt insane--to the point where we had to move the Kumster to the laundry room and keep the light on all night/off all day (hedgehogs are very sensitive to light and their prey instincts cause them to hide and only wheel-run/eat under the cover of darkness) to get him on a more sleep-friendly schedule. Our first night back, after Kumi was already ready-to-roll for a night of sleep, Matt mentioned, blushing a little (underscoring his affection), that it would be alright for Kumi to move back to his normal schedule so he could enjoy himself more! :o) xo
2) Normally, it is like pulling teeth to get Matt to take Tunia out to potty (although he is also normally the most grouchy if she accidents). When he lets me "sleep in" on the weekends, my time is always cut short when I hear Tunia's pitter-pattering feet across the floor, because I know he will not walk her. However, I was out for a walk with the girls this evening, when--lo and behold--strolling our way was a very handsome young man with a very trim middle-aged dachshund. I was beside myself with pleasure when Matt nonchalantly stated, "Taking Petunia out is part of my afternoon routine now. It's just what I do. Petunia even slept with me last night."
So happy to see him bonding with the pets, and I know they must have helped a lot with stress relief when we were not around for distraction this weekend! :o)
Showing posts with label studying. Show all posts
Showing posts with label studying. Show all posts
Monday, October 17, 2011
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Study strategies
Matt has been coming up with some study strategies lately that I can only describe as...weird...
This past weekend, he was sprawled out in his recliner, hitting the books--and out of the blue asked me where his beauty mask was (he uses one regularly to keep out the light when he sleeps). It was, of course, in the wash--but, of course, he has about 3 or 4 of them, so he went and snagged another. He proceeded to wear it for the rest of the afternoon, pirate-style, over his right eye, citing the need to strengthen his already-dominant left eye. (??) Unfortunately, I missed a picture of this one. I was thinking that maybe the unusual activity helps makes his studies a bit more interesting? (Some of the material is a little dry.)
This afternoon, he headed out with his backpack, presumably toward the mancave. However, when I looked up from our sink window as I was prepping for dinner, I noticed him sitting in our Toyota, parked across the street. Windows down, car running, music on, and even seatbelt on (despite car being parked). A little nervous about excessive CO inhalation, despite the car's outdoor location, and also curious as to why he was doing this, I went outside to check. He actually had a logical explanation: he enjoys listening to satellite radio while he studies. We have an indoor satellite radio, but it needs a wireless internet signal to pick up channels, and Suddenlink's signal strength does not reach the mancave. He didn't want to study inside the house d/t obvious distractions: kids, TV, Xbox, kids begging to play Mario with him, etc. And he didn't want to leave just the car accessories on d/t the potential for battery drain. He did turn the car off for a bit after our chat, though.
After dinner, the girls spent about an hour in the yard before winding down for their bedtime routine (typical afternoon/evening here) and took a walk across the street to visit with their dad. They got a huge kick out of his study setup!
In this pic, Matt and our oldest pay tribute to his "pirate eye" homework look!
Whatever works! :o)
This past weekend, he was sprawled out in his recliner, hitting the books--and out of the blue asked me where his beauty mask was (he uses one regularly to keep out the light when he sleeps). It was, of course, in the wash--but, of course, he has about 3 or 4 of them, so he went and snagged another. He proceeded to wear it for the rest of the afternoon, pirate-style, over his right eye, citing the need to strengthen his already-dominant left eye. (??) Unfortunately, I missed a picture of this one. I was thinking that maybe the unusual activity helps makes his studies a bit more interesting? (Some of the material is a little dry.)
This afternoon, he headed out with his backpack, presumably toward the mancave. However, when I looked up from our sink window as I was prepping for dinner, I noticed him sitting in our Toyota, parked across the street. Windows down, car running, music on, and even seatbelt on (despite car being parked). A little nervous about excessive CO inhalation, despite the car's outdoor location, and also curious as to why he was doing this, I went outside to check. He actually had a logical explanation: he enjoys listening to satellite radio while he studies. We have an indoor satellite radio, but it needs a wireless internet signal to pick up channels, and Suddenlink's signal strength does not reach the mancave. He didn't want to study inside the house d/t obvious distractions: kids, TV, Xbox, kids begging to play Mario with him, etc. And he didn't want to leave just the car accessories on d/t the potential for battery drain. He did turn the car off for a bit after our chat, though.
After dinner, the girls spent about an hour in the yard before winding down for their bedtime routine (typical afternoon/evening here) and took a walk across the street to visit with their dad. They got a huge kick out of his study setup!
In this pic, Matt and our oldest pay tribute to his "pirate eye" homework look!
Whatever works! :o)
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Evolving decor
Matt had his first [simulated] flight today, and it sounds like he did very well, receiving a "score" of average/above average from one of the tougher IPs (instructor pilots). This is particularly great, as he is in the minority of pilot students here in that he entered IFS with zero flying hours. Many students are private/commercial pilots on the outside or at least have taken some lessons. Matt has his second simulation tomorrow and is seriously cracking down.
While it is scarily customary for him to mark any sort of career/education/life transition with a large, related expenditure, today's $50 blowup of his cockpit handout (formerly so small he needed a magnifying glass to read) is apparently commonplace/necessary--and is now a part of our bedroom decor. It was first destined for the mancave, however, when I opted to take Petunia for an after-dark stroll, necessitating Matt to study in the house while the kids slept, it became affixed to his closet. He uses this printout to help memorize a variety of different flight maneuvers.
It is right next to this picture of passenger and cargo planes (I think???), which are exactly the sort of aircraft he is interested in flying.
This picture always makes us chuckle. It is his largest item of enlisted memorabilia (from his 7yr stint), and over the past two years, when he was in the reserve/a full-time student/otherwise unemployed, I would display it prominently in each of our residences to reinforce to the casual--and perhaps suspicious--bystander, that, yes, in fact, we do have a legitimate military affiliation and that Matt had a great job/opportunity merely months away. Those were perhaps the two longest--yet busiest--years of our lives. Many moments were unbelievably stress-ridden--but now, in wonderful hindesight--make for some of our best memories and biggest laughs. :o)
While it is scarily customary for him to mark any sort of career/education/life transition with a large, related expenditure, today's $50 blowup of his cockpit handout (formerly so small he needed a magnifying glass to read) is apparently commonplace/necessary--and is now a part of our bedroom decor. It was first destined for the mancave, however, when I opted to take Petunia for an after-dark stroll, necessitating Matt to study in the house while the kids slept, it became affixed to his closet. He uses this printout to help memorize a variety of different flight maneuvers.
It is right next to this picture of passenger and cargo planes (I think???), which are exactly the sort of aircraft he is interested in flying.
This picture always makes us chuckle. It is his largest item of enlisted memorabilia (from his 7yr stint), and over the past two years, when he was in the reserve/a full-time student/otherwise unemployed, I would display it prominently in each of our residences to reinforce to the casual--and perhaps suspicious--bystander, that, yes, in fact, we do have a legitimate military affiliation and that Matt had a great job/opportunity merely months away. Those were perhaps the two longest--yet busiest--years of our lives. Many moments were unbelievably stress-ridden--but now, in wonderful hindesight--make for some of our best memories and biggest laughs. :o)
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Independent studies
I am often surprised by Matt's academic hours thus far into UPT. Most days he does not report in until at least 8-8:30, and there have been many where he has not been due in until well after lunch and/or has been released substantially before the duty day ends (5pm, marked by the afternoon retreat ceremony). He is alloted an unprecedented amount of unsupervised study and exercise. (Of course, he will be starting 12-hour days in less than a month, when his flying phase begins.) As enlisted airmen, our on-duty study and exercise time was fiercely monitored--and usually conducted in the shop or with the shop. There were many days when we would just sit around the shop table with our foreman and literally wait for the day to end because we were not trusted to, for instance, not be caught at the mall or BX prior to retreat. It is definitely nice to see that the officers, even the fresh ones, get to enjoy being treated like adults--however it makes the amazingly stark contrast between enlisted and officer life that much more apparent.
The stakes are also very high for pilot trainees. They are required to meet rigorous physical standards (by passing the toughest physical the Air Force has to offer, every 6 months). Many of the trainees come from a family of pilots, and Matt has informed me that on three separate occasions during the past calendar year, pilot Air Force Officer parents were given a prestigious position as a graduation speaker, only to see their son/daughter fail the final PT test--after passing all other training--and being denied a graduation slot (of course, the parent still spoke at graduation, though...gotta feel for those guys!). Matt says he is always amazed at how few students he sees during his regular workouts at the gym. Many may feel too overwhelmed with studies. I can certainly relate, considering all the weight my peers and I packed on during nursing school!
Additionally, trainees are allowed to fail a maximum of three academic tests before being washed out of the program and reclassified into a different career specialty. This may sound like a lot, but not so much after you take into consideration that Matt has taken at least one exam per week since September 8th, and there are hundreds of pages of information presented in multiple choice format on each exam. While he probably takes a little more R&R time than I would, he is studying way way more than I have ever seen him. He is really taking advantage of Quizlet.com to make verbal flashcards, and thus far has been doing excellent in the program, nearly acing his first "major" exam last week! Hopefully I will be as fortunate when I take the NCLEX-PN...if I ever get board permission to take it!
The stakes are also very high for pilot trainees. They are required to meet rigorous physical standards (by passing the toughest physical the Air Force has to offer, every 6 months). Many of the trainees come from a family of pilots, and Matt has informed me that on three separate occasions during the past calendar year, pilot Air Force Officer parents were given a prestigious position as a graduation speaker, only to see their son/daughter fail the final PT test--after passing all other training--and being denied a graduation slot (of course, the parent still spoke at graduation, though...gotta feel for those guys!). Matt says he is always amazed at how few students he sees during his regular workouts at the gym. Many may feel too overwhelmed with studies. I can certainly relate, considering all the weight my peers and I packed on during nursing school!
Additionally, trainees are allowed to fail a maximum of three academic tests before being washed out of the program and reclassified into a different career specialty. This may sound like a lot, but not so much after you take into consideration that Matt has taken at least one exam per week since September 8th, and there are hundreds of pages of information presented in multiple choice format on each exam. While he probably takes a little more R&R time than I would, he is studying way way more than I have ever seen him. He is really taking advantage of Quizlet.com to make verbal flashcards, and thus far has been doing excellent in the program, nearly acing his first "major" exam last week! Hopefully I will be as fortunate when I take the NCLEX-PN...if I ever get board permission to take it!
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Mancave: under construction
The hubby's current project is renovating our 1-car garage into a "mancave", with the intent of using it for uninterrupted study sessions, "chair flying", time on his desk-mount flight sim, and (I am sure) fantasy football and ESPN.com away from my nosy eyes. At first I was unsure about the idea of permanently relinquishing the garage, given the intermittent hailstorms and tornadoes prone to this area, but trying to cram all of his gear into our 3bd/1ba house is a scarier proposition, and I look forward to the day when he does not drop his [germy] backpack and laptop atop my primary cooking counter as soon as he walks in the door. ;o)
Other positives are that we have a ridiculous amount of accessories to make his mancave more habitable: many portable fans, a small heater, a window A/C unit, an air purifier, electric blankets, and more. And it makes our already-spacious 3bdrm home feel like a wonderful 4-bedroom house. Too bad we can't up the bathroom qty, but I must say that having 1 toilet for the 4 of us is working out waaay better than it usually does. At our last home (a 50+ yr old rental), the plumbing was awful and root-ridden, so frequent toilet problems had us using the yard and the neighboring McDonald's more than we care to admit. Also, with Matt out of the house so much for pilot training, the bathroom is almost always free. Prior to his busy schedule, it was not uncommon to see him head to the john with a laptop and candle several times a day. ;o)
Here are some "before" pix (estimated date of completion--in terms of study area setup, not box removal: this weekend).
And yes, I more than realize that we have a ridiculous amount of boxes left to unpack. Couple that with the fact that we've been living here for nearly a month and are not really missing/searching for any of our "necessities", and I am forced to admit that we have *waaay* too much stuff!!
Other positives are that we have a ridiculous amount of accessories to make his mancave more habitable: many portable fans, a small heater, a window A/C unit, an air purifier, electric blankets, and more. And it makes our already-spacious 3bdrm home feel like a wonderful 4-bedroom house. Too bad we can't up the bathroom qty, but I must say that having 1 toilet for the 4 of us is working out waaay better than it usually does. At our last home (a 50+ yr old rental), the plumbing was awful and root-ridden, so frequent toilet problems had us using the yard and the neighboring McDonald's more than we care to admit. Also, with Matt out of the house so much for pilot training, the bathroom is almost always free. Prior to his busy schedule, it was not uncommon to see him head to the john with a laptop and candle several times a day. ;o)
Here are some "before" pix (estimated date of completion--in terms of study area setup, not box removal: this weekend).
And yes, I more than realize that we have a ridiculous amount of boxes left to unpack. Couple that with the fact that we've been living here for nearly a month and are not really missing/searching for any of our "necessities", and I am forced to admit that we have *waaay* too much stuff!!
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