Update

I realize that it has been a while since I've posted anything. I'm planning on posting a few informative items regarding moving stuff overseas (furniture, dog, etc.), but, right now, I am studying for the first JASOC exam. After that, I will describe the process of moving things overseas. Our household goods are gone and my wife is now living in our apartment with only an air mattress, 2 tailgating chairs, a small TV, a dog, and a cat. What a life! Anyway, more to come on this. Right now, I have to get back to the UCMJ. The coffee is brewin'.

"Downtown"

I have another little tidbit that probably is not all that useful, but may save you a few nanoseconds. When a JAG uses the term "downtown," he or she is referring to any nonmilitary authority and/or lawyer. For example, when a military is being prosecuted "downtown," that means that local civilian authorities are handling the member's criminal case in their courts, whether or not there's a downtown area in the local community. (Like I said, this isn't that complicated.) Another example is when a JAG asks whether a legal assistance client has seen another attorney "downtown." That means, "Have you consulted with a nonmilitary civilian attorney?" Reading this may be a waste of your time because it's a very simple concept that takes no time to pick up. If that is the case, rest assured that you have wasted less time reading this post than I did writing it. Ciao!

Small But Useful Tidbit

Having just worked at a job where I used WordPerfect exclusively, I couldn't figure out how to make hard spaces in Word. An internet search revealed that rather than Ctrl + Spacebar, as it is in WordPerfect, you must push Ctrl + Shift + Spacebar to make a hard space in Word. Not a very exciting post, but perhaps a useful one.

Florida Trip

We just returned from our Florida trip. It rained the entire time we were there. Notwithstanding the rain, it was a good trip. The billeting at Hurlburt Field was really nice. On the first day, we toured an MH-53 helicopter (sample picture below).

On the second day, we went to a Navy facility that dealt with various explosives. I'm not going to say anything about it, but it was pretty interesting. We also toured the Air Force's confinement facility. I took a few pictures, but I only can post a few. The first picture is a doughnut that Security Forces -- the Air Force's military police -- planted in order to conform to stereotype.

JASOC PT

It's week 2 here at JASOC and we're preparing for a trip to Eglin AFB in Florida. It should be a good trip. We'll be seeing some operational stuff as well as enjoying ourselves a bit in Florida. Anyway, I just wanted to comment on the JASOC PT. In my brief experience, the PT at JASOC is slightly more intense than COT, if only because there are fewer people involved, so you can't really fade into the background. It is, however, less frequent. We do PT 3 times a week, while at COT it was 5 times a week. In any event, it's still intense, so don't drink lots of wine and eat lots of pizza in between COT and JASOC -- believe me.

Drive Through Sacile

Here's a video that I found of a drive through Sacile. Complete with Euro-musak.

Dining Out Photos

I had a request from on of my COT and JASOC classmates to post any dining out pictures that I have. Honestly, I didn't take that many pictures during the COT dining out, but here are a few:

Bravo Flight:

The Grog Bowl:

Coincidence

I found out that my base sponsor was at Game 1 of the 2005 World Series in Chicago and sat a few rows above me. He, however, was rooting for the Astros. In honor of this coincidence, I'm posting a video of the Sox winning the game. I'm also testing the YouTube embedding feature to save some space on blogger.

Italy Flash

Here's a link to a flash video that they showed us in the "Right Start" program at Aviano. It's funny cause it's true. Click here.

Have a Merry Freakin' Christmas

They showed us a pretty funny video in JASOC today. There's not much of a point to this post except to link to the video. To see it, click here.

JASOC -- Day 2

It's 6:20 a.m. and I'm just about to head outside for my PT test. That's right -- another PT test. If you have some time between COT and JASOC, don't slack off -- you'll be doing a PT test right away. That's especially tough if you've been in Italy for 2 weeks eating delicious pasta and pizza. We'll see how I do this morning. I'm lucky that there is no waist measurement involved in this PT test -- just the running, sit-ups, and push-ups. The jet lag is getting a bit better. I had a little trouble sleeping last night, but I feel fairly well-rested -- my body thinks it's 1:20 in the afternoon right now. But it's not. It's time for PT!

Aviano Area Pictures

Here are some pictures of the local area around Aviano.

Sacile:

"Dogy Box" in Sacile:

Cafe in the Sacile Piazza:

Sacile Campanile:

Sacile Piazza during a Festival (which occur frequently):

Pordenone Architecture:

In the Pordenone Bell Tower (Campanile):

Pordenone:

Italian Wine-Maker and Wine:

Sacile at Night:

Mountains from the Base:

Storm on the Flightline:

Porcia Market:

Back at Maxwell

I'm back at Maxwell AFB for the Judge Advocate Staff Officer Course (JASOC). I can't say that I'm excited about being back here. I also can't say that I have much of a choice -- it is the military after all. Anyway, the first day was fine. This is more like a normal academic course than COT. Nobody yelled at me today. On the other hand, COT was interesting to me because of the variety of people that were there -- doctors, dentists, nurses, and chaplains, among others. Here, it's just a bunch of lawyers.

The room is adequate. It could be worse. It could be better. We get our own rooms in the base lodging. It's like a mediocre hotel room. It has a refrigerator, microwave, toaster, and coffee maker. I would recommend bringing a set of dishes, a can opener, and a few utensils with you. They are not provided in the room.

The JAG building is very nice. Also, we will be doing some exciting things during the course, including a trip to Florida (Eglin AFB), a ride on a Blackhawk Helicopter, and a trip to Washington, D.C.

The food was better in Italy.

Sponsor's Blog

I just wanted to mention that my sponsor in Aviano, who also is a relatively new JAG, has a blog of his own called "Lowly Maggot." His blog also has some details about COT, Italy, and the JAG life. You can access it by clicking here.

Back in the USA

I'm back from my 2-week exploratory trip to Italy. I had a great time and I think I accomplished quite a bit. Not the least of my accomplishments was finding housing . . . probably -- the details still need to be ironed out. In any event, I have better internet access now. Therefore, I can post some pictures and videos. To start here are two videos. The first is of a gondola in Venice. The second is of a festival in Sacile, my future home. That's pronounced Sahh-CHEE-lay.

Venice to Venezia

I took my first trip to Venice this weekend. It was beautiful and wonderful and took my mind off the in-processing pains here at Aviano. I took the train from Pordenone, but wasn't able to get on the express train (it didn't show up). The slow train took a little longer, but it was worth it. As you step out of the Venice train station, you get your first look at the Grand Canal -- and it is breathtaking. I wandered down to the first stop of Vaporetto No. 1, and took the vaporetto down the Grand Canal under the Rialto Bridge and I disembarked just before the Piazza San Marco. I walked into St. Mark's Square and took in the sights. While the square was beautiful, it also was very crowded. The best part of Venice was getting away from the square and getting lost in the streets. I wandered upon Basilica S. Maria Gloriosa Dei Frari, a 14th century Italian Gothic church which housed several Titian and Bellini paintings and a Donatello sculpture. The building itself was awe-inspiring and the fantastic works within were an unbelievable bonus.

I was able to order a pastry and a coffee in Italian without any English. I even exchanged the nessary pleasantries in Italian.

The internet connection here is spotty, but I was able to upload the pictures to a web album. To see them, click here.