What a summer!!!
So
here I am, at Florida Tech! I finally
had a chance to sit down and catch up with some of the emails that I have
gotten. Many thanks to all of you who
have been following along with what’s been going on with my life for the past
few months! I really appreciate
it.
I
missed many of you over the summer! My
summer started last May when classes at the Rock finished. Graduation soon followed and I was ready for
my last summer of fun before going away to school. I then got the inclination that an instrument rating would sure
be a nice thing to transfer with...it would put me just where I needed to be in
flight training, just as if I was a four year student at Florida Tech. I began taking instrument instruction with Bill
(the best of the best) at Freedom Air (where I got my license), but things
didn’t work out with time, and I wouldn’t have been able to finish by
August. So I did some research (met a
really cute girl at Caldwell, but their program wasn’t as fly) and came up with
a part 141 school in Morristown, NJ called Century Air.
I
started training on June 1. The course
work took me through the entire text in one month, and I passed the FAA written
with a 98! (Friends helped me study; even though I was a grouch…thanks Toni!).
After that it came to the flight portion where I began flying nothing but a
box! Well, it feels like an airplane.
The box is actually a fully licensed FAA simulator used for instrument flight
training. I finished 16.5 hours in the
sim in less than a week, and begun flight soon after. I graduated the course with all the necessary requirements on
August 3rd. I was at the
airport nearly 8 to 8 everyday, including weekends. If not there, I was home studying for the next stage exam or
watching Jeppesen/King videos. It was
finally over….well not fully…this is the fun part ----> The FAA Check ride!!
I'm
going to keep a long story short and just say this: after getting through four scheduling problems, cancellations for
weather (T-Storms), an oral Q&A, and 3 flights…I FINALLY HAD AN INSTRUMENT
RATING! The one problem was that this
all concluded on August 14th, and yes, I had to leave on August 15th!
I
packed in hours, and was ready to leave the next day. I said as many goodbyes as possible in that short time, and left
for Florida.
I
got my goal, so therefore I'm happy; but I missed the opportunity to hang out
with so many of you, it’s kind-of annoying.
I also missed two months of work and my co-workers, which really sucked
too! (My prodigy peeps are the best!)
I
just want to thank everyone who has been keeping up with me via email, and the
phone! You all are the best! It was
cool to hear about all the parties I missed and (on a serious note), made me
realize how many people cared about me!
Thanks for those who kept asking where I was and how I was doing, and
those who prayed me through it! It was
much needed support! Also, a big thank
you to my co-workers and employers at prodigy for understanding the situation
and why I needed to get the training done!
One
nice thing throughout the summer was getting the (very) occasional chance to
convince myself I needed to get out and do something! I was glad to make the parties and see the people I did when I
could! Believe me! Also, I'm glad I stayed with CAP throughout
it all too, because it was great to go in and update everyone with what was
happening that week, and get a change from the daily routine!
One
other thing that I shouldn’t take for granted is the people, who no matter how
busy I was, were always nuts enough to just come over anyway! Matt, Mark, Felix (of course) Matt, and Kim
were the bunch! Thanks for dragging me
out and making me watch a movie or play Nintendo64 a bit! I needed those breaks more than you may think!
So
thank God, now…I'm instrument rated.
I'm starting a new educational adventure in a state that is
forever-summer, so I don’t feel to bad about missing it in NY, too! Keep me in mind and keep in touch, and Ill
do the same. -JS.
23AUG01