You know what looks out of place in Korea? A guy wearing a camo hat, Carhartt camo jacket, Wranglers fastened with a big belt buckle, and cowboy boots carrying a case of Shiner Bock.
I was with Holly when I spotted the "Which One of These is Not Like the Other" sight and just busted out laughing. Holly asked me what I was laughing about and I told her I was "Just Tickled" Confused she then said, "but I didn't tickle you mommy."
By the time we got to the car I was giggling so bad I was crying....
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Friday, January 29, 2010
Biggest Loser Challenge
As I reported last month, I've signed up for the Biggest Loser challenge on base. It's been kind of nice that someone is holding me accountable for my workouts. We even have a great team name - the Fat Ass-Am Draggins (if you don't get it, see the PILSUNG! post).
We had our first team challenge this week and it consisted of lunges, squats and mountain climbers. Well, I didn't win. Unfortunately, I was "racing" when I should have focused on form, because form determined the winner. My heart rate was too high, and slowing down to a near crawl didn't bring it down, so I ran out of gas for the overtime exercises. But it was great to participate in and see that my training held up.
We're also eating healthier around here. Not that we ate a lot of crap to begin with, but we're focusing on eating a balanced meal for each meal. Enter my new cookbook "Glorious One-Pot Meals" and the beautiful red Le Creuset Dutch Oven my husband bought me for Christmas. This was our dinner the other night, and I thought I would share as it was a HIT! Of course, if there are any peanut allergies in the family, steer clear. But seriously, the rice becomes peanut butter rice - DELISH!
http://www.gloriouspotmeal.com/recipes/index.htm
We had our first team challenge this week and it consisted of lunges, squats and mountain climbers. Well, I didn't win. Unfortunately, I was "racing" when I should have focused on form, because form determined the winner. My heart rate was too high, and slowing down to a near crawl didn't bring it down, so I ran out of gas for the overtime exercises. But it was great to participate in and see that my training held up.
We're also eating healthier around here. Not that we ate a lot of crap to begin with, but we're focusing on eating a balanced meal for each meal. Enter my new cookbook "Glorious One-Pot Meals" and the beautiful red Le Creuset Dutch Oven my husband bought me for Christmas. This was our dinner the other night, and I thought I would share as it was a HIT! Of course, if there are any peanut allergies in the family, steer clear. But seriously, the rice becomes peanut butter rice - DELISH!
http://www.gloriouspotmeal.com/recipes/index.htm
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Dan is here!
I could probably have a blog completely dedicated to Ronnie and Dan Patak. Dan is our dear friend who has been with the Oliver clan through thick and thin.
I'm not kidding - Ronnie's entire military career has involved Dan in some way, shape, or form. Ronnie and Dan met at the centrifuge back in 2001 and, through some stroke of genius, we have been stationed together since then. They were in Iraq together, Dan and his better half, Allison, were some of the first people to hold Holly and Sarah, and now we are stationed together in Korea.
Thus, the adventures (or misadventures) of Dan and Ronnie continue. Our recent chapter unfolds at the base gym, where Dan and Ronnie decided to go for their workout. My understanding from Ronnie is that Dan wanted to run on the indoor track, rather than a treadmill (Dan feel free to chime in here...).
It's worth mentioning here that the indoor track is in the ceiling of the basketball courts. They have a double court and it's a 1/9 mile track.
As they were heading into the gym, an airman with a yellow armband tells them "No matter what happens, just go on and act normal." The guys didn't think much about it as they passed several others with yellow armbands on.
So there Dan and Ronnie were, running on the indoor track at the gym, when all of a sudden, a gunman rushes into the courts and starts shooting at everyone. He shot everyone on the courts, and turned and shot everyone running on the tracks. Finally, the MPs rushed in and subdued the shooter.
What Dan and Ronnie failed to note was that they were running an exercise at the base gym, and the airmen with yellow armbands aren't "playing" and are there to observe the exercise.
Granted they were blanks, but for some reason, Dan and Ronnie just kept on running and watching the show unfold below. When they were done running, they headed back downstairs, where they were issued cards that said they were dead.
Seriously, only Dan and Ronnie.....
I'm not kidding - Ronnie's entire military career has involved Dan in some way, shape, or form. Ronnie and Dan met at the centrifuge back in 2001 and, through some stroke of genius, we have been stationed together since then. They were in Iraq together, Dan and his better half, Allison, were some of the first people to hold Holly and Sarah, and now we are stationed together in Korea.
Thus, the adventures (or misadventures) of Dan and Ronnie continue. Our recent chapter unfolds at the base gym, where Dan and Ronnie decided to go for their workout. My understanding from Ronnie is that Dan wanted to run on the indoor track, rather than a treadmill (Dan feel free to chime in here...).
It's worth mentioning here that the indoor track is in the ceiling of the basketball courts. They have a double court and it's a 1/9 mile track.
As they were heading into the gym, an airman with a yellow armband tells them "No matter what happens, just go on and act normal." The guys didn't think much about it as they passed several others with yellow armbands on.
So there Dan and Ronnie were, running on the indoor track at the gym, when all of a sudden, a gunman rushes into the courts and starts shooting at everyone. He shot everyone on the courts, and turned and shot everyone running on the tracks. Finally, the MPs rushed in and subdued the shooter.
What Dan and Ronnie failed to note was that they were running an exercise at the base gym, and the airmen with yellow armbands aren't "playing" and are there to observe the exercise.
Granted they were blanks, but for some reason, Dan and Ronnie just kept on running and watching the show unfold below. When they were done running, they headed back downstairs, where they were issued cards that said they were dead.
Seriously, only Dan and Ronnie.....
Monday, January 25, 2010
PILSUNG!
After our night out on the town on Friday, I posted PILSUNG! on my Facebook status update. There were a few folks who asked what the heck that was/meant, and surprised that folks answered PILSUNG in return. Obviously, it's a military thing.....
We are honored to be a part of the 25th Fighter Squadron "Assam Draggins." The official motto of the 25th FS is "PILSUNG!" meaning certain victory in Hangul. It is customary/mandatory that any time the number 25 or any variation of 25 (2.5, .25, etc) is said, every pilot will shout a hearty "PILSUNG!" under any circumstance, regardless of who said it or who was briefing.
As with all of our squadrons, the 25th has a rich history that started during WWII. They also fought in the Korean War and Vietnam War. These guys have not only proved what CAS is over and over again, they've also shot down MiGs. Sorry, I'm a kid who grew up at the tail end of the Cold War; MiG killers get big thumbs up in my book.
I won't bore you with any of the other cool stuff they've done, but Google them if you have the time. Their resume is pretty impressive and is a vital part of our American history.
We are honored to be a part of the 25th Fighter Squadron "Assam Draggins." The official motto of the 25th FS is "PILSUNG!" meaning certain victory in Hangul. It is customary/mandatory that any time the number 25 or any variation of 25 (2.5, .25, etc) is said, every pilot will shout a hearty "PILSUNG!" under any circumstance, regardless of who said it or who was briefing.
As with all of our squadrons, the 25th has a rich history that started during WWII. They also fought in the Korean War and Vietnam War. These guys have not only proved what CAS is over and over again, they've also shot down MiGs. Sorry, I'm a kid who grew up at the tail end of the Cold War; MiG killers get big thumbs up in my book.
I won't bore you with any of the other cool stuff they've done, but Google them if you have the time. Their resume is pretty impressive and is a vital part of our American history.
PILSUNG!
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Would You Like To Buy Some Girl Scout Cookies, PUH-LEEEAZZZEEE?
Since Holly is a Daisy scout, that means we have Girl Scout cookies to sell this year. Of course, I volunteered to be the Cookie Mom for our troop. Pretty sure all my years of selling cookies should someway help the troop this year.
But the girls are doing so well. We've had two booths so far, and the girls have some individual boxes to sell on their own to give them a taste of selling. Holly was a little reserved at first, verging on the shy side. But she warmed right up to selling once a few folks said yes.
But seriously, how could you tell these precious faces no???
But the girls are doing so well. We've had two booths so far, and the girls have some individual boxes to sell on their own to give them a taste of selling. Holly was a little reserved at first, verging on the shy side. But she warmed right up to selling once a few folks said yes.
But seriously, how could you tell these precious faces no???
Under 100cm Not Allowed
Hope everyone had a great MLK holiday. We decided to take the girls to our favorite Korean theme park for sledding and whatever else we could get into.
Going to theme parks is a lot of fun, but also really frustrating. The girls are different heights, so there are some rides that Sarah can't go on, but Holly can. Leaving us with a 3 year old who insists that she's a big girl, not a baby. You can see where I'm headed with this situation if you've ever had that child.
But not anymore - we have now entered the realm of we don't have to ride with them! By some miracle, Sarah has magically grown 5 cm in 3 months. We didn't realize this until we went back to the sledding hill where Sarah was measured last time and they let her through to the "big" hill. I read the sign this time and we figured out that she was hitting that 100cm mark finally. Really, we think it's a combination of her shoes and her hat, but we'll take what we can get.
We tested our theory with the Merlin's Magic Carpet ride. The girl working the ride took out the stick and even had Sarah take her hat off and - TADAA!!!! she was "tall enough." Sarah was so excited; unfortunately I didn't get my camera out in time to video the cheer she gave out. But she jumped in the air, waved her arms and said, "Hurray, I'm big enough. I can ride with Holly now!" It was a good ride for her too - kind of like a pirate ship back and forth, but it spins too, goes fast enough that you know you're moving, but not too fast that it's scary.
Then, we let the girls loose on the Flash Pang Pang and the Pirate Ride to ride by themselves. I'll tell ya', this watching from the side thing is great!
Going to theme parks is a lot of fun, but also really frustrating. The girls are different heights, so there are some rides that Sarah can't go on, but Holly can. Leaving us with a 3 year old who insists that she's a big girl, not a baby. You can see where I'm headed with this situation if you've ever had that child.
But not anymore - we have now entered the realm of we don't have to ride with them! By some miracle, Sarah has magically grown 5 cm in 3 months. We didn't realize this until we went back to the sledding hill where Sarah was measured last time and they let her through to the "big" hill. I read the sign this time and we figured out that she was hitting that 100cm mark finally. Really, we think it's a combination of her shoes and her hat, but we'll take what we can get.
We tested our theory with the Merlin's Magic Carpet ride. The girl working the ride took out the stick and even had Sarah take her hat off and - TADAA!!!! she was "tall enough." Sarah was so excited; unfortunately I didn't get my camera out in time to video the cheer she gave out. But she jumped in the air, waved her arms and said, "Hurray, I'm big enough. I can ride with Holly now!" It was a good ride for her too - kind of like a pirate ship back and forth, but it spins too, goes fast enough that you know you're moving, but not too fast that it's scary.
Then, we let the girls loose on the Flash Pang Pang and the Pirate Ride to ride by themselves. I'll tell ya', this watching from the side thing is great!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Watts a Volt? And Watts the matter with that joke?
It's math and science time with your friend, Chris, the ditsy American living in Korea:
Well, I think I've officially overdrawn on one of my transformers. I was ironing today and after about 20 minutes the transformer started smoking. Luckily, the curtains where mostly done being ironed, but my room stinks. The transformer is out on the porch and hopefully will recover to see another day.
Yet again, something I know but have filed deep in my brain would have come in handy. My transformer is a 220V to 110V transformer at 5 Amps. My iron is 110V, 1700 Watts. TOO MUCH DRAW!
For you non-physics geeks, a quick lesson that I learned long ago from Lance Hoffman, Physics teacher extraordinaire at Stanton. It's all about electric potential, current and work. By the definitions of electric potential (which is voltage) and current (Amperes), work is done at a rate of one watt when one ampere flows through a potential difference of one volt. Which is expressed as such: 1 W = 1 V * 1 A
Meaning that my little transformer should have the potential output of 550W. Yet, I was drawing 1700W. Jeez o'Pete!
Thank goodness I smelled it before I did any damage to the house and hopefully the little transformer that could can make a full recovery.
Well, I think I've officially overdrawn on one of my transformers. I was ironing today and after about 20 minutes the transformer started smoking. Luckily, the curtains where mostly done being ironed, but my room stinks. The transformer is out on the porch and hopefully will recover to see another day.
Yet again, something I know but have filed deep in my brain would have come in handy. My transformer is a 220V to 110V transformer at 5 Amps. My iron is 110V, 1700 Watts. TOO MUCH DRAW!
For you non-physics geeks, a quick lesson that I learned long ago from Lance Hoffman, Physics teacher extraordinaire at Stanton. It's all about electric potential, current and work. By the definitions of electric potential (which is voltage) and current (Amperes), work is done at a rate of one watt when one ampere flows through a potential difference of one volt. Which is expressed as such: 1 W = 1 V * 1 A
Meaning that my little transformer should have the potential output of 550W. Yet, I was drawing 1700W. Jeez o'Pete!
Thank goodness I smelled it before I did any damage to the house and hopefully the little transformer that could can make a full recovery.
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