Frozen Tundra

Coming back here after being home for a month has been some-what of a struggle.  I expected to come back to the cold, but after three weeks now I don't think there has been a single day above 10 degrees. Most days are negative with wind chills anywhere from -25 to -50 degrees! I still love the cold...but this is more than that. This is a frozen, barren wasteland. Every time I am outside, my face feels like it is being stabbed by a thousand knives, and there is no way to avoid it while walking to classes.  Everything about this weather is amazing...if only it had about 20 degrees added to it :P  Multiple socks, two sweatshirts/snow coat, beanie, and big snow gloves are a necessity when walking outside. There has been a lot of ice buildup on the sidewalks so walking to classes, on top of staying warm, becomes a maze of finding spots to step so you don't take a tumble. 

On a more positive note, at the same time, walking to classes can be quite enjoyable (so long as you are properly dressed) because you get to see others slip and fall around you. Something about people falling is just extra funny. I do feel bad but it is so hard not to laugh seeing someone go up on all fours and flat on their back. There have been several occasions where I have been so close to going down myself, so it happens to even the best of us. :)  

There was one bad fall I made, my first week back to school. I was walking to the aviation building to catch the shuttle to the airport. I was about 30 steps from the shuttle and I walked right into this huge patch of ice. Out goes my foot, soon comes the other, and before I knew it I was up in the air and moments later, flat on my back. My flight bag, and a lot of the objects in it, went sliding across the ice. I just stayed on the ground for a few seconds, ashamed that I had just done that. Luckily, when I got up and looked around, there was no one around me to see my fall. I picked up all my gear, avoiding another fall, and finished my very short walk.  The only person that saw me was the driver of the shuttle van, he chuckled and said a few words to me as I hopped in.  

What it looks like outside, EVERYDAY 

I know I have been behind on posts, hopefully this will be enough to catch me back up. Like I said before, weather has been the same for all three weeks. I am enjoying a few of my classes, others not so much.  I am taking Spanish 102 this semester after not speaking Spanish since my sophomore year of high school.  When I went into class the first day, I thought I would be in big trouble because I was so rusty on my speaking. But after three weeks I definitely think I can handle it and I just have to push through it. This will be the only semester I have to take a foreign language. 

English 110 is another class I am taking which is not one of my favorites. It has never been a favorite of mine and it continues to be that way.  Wrote my first essay this last week, pretty much everything I learned from high school just goes to waste. The professor isn't looking for structure, foundation, anything like that. While it seems like it may allow more freedom, we still have a topic we have to write about and it makes it rather difficult writing 5-8 pages, free-write, on something you don't care anything about. At least with structure it makes it easier to develop main points and go off of that. So this class with definitely be tough and un-enjoyable.

What I wear when I go fly a plane,
who wants to fly with me? :)

All my Aviation classes are a lot of fun though.  I am learning a lot and continuing to progress with my major. Flying has been a struggle so far this semester. I have been weathered (meaning the weather is too bad to fly) five times now. It is such an inconvenience going all the way out to the airport to figure out that my flight will have to be cancelled for the day.  I just want to keep flying and get done with it for the semester rather than rushing it at the end. 

Well this is what I have been up to these first couple weeks. Just trying to stay warm, keep flying, and push through my not-so-exciting classes. I can't believe it has already been three weeks and how it is already almost February.  Hope family and friends back home are enjoying the 80 degree days in the middle of January.  I don't want to hear any complaining about it being cold there :P

 Counting down the days to come home again!

Cameron

P.S. Sorry for lack of pictures...I have been trying to keep my hands warm while outside so it makes it difficult to take pictures :P  Let me know what you want to see pictures of and I will make it happen!

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Winter Break!

Goodbye home....

I know I'm two weeks behind now but I thought I would talk about how my time back home was before I get moving on with this semester.  I loved being able to see all my family and friends again. It was a much needed visit and it gets me excited to come back for hopefully another amazing summer! The warmer weather was great and it was nice to get out of the negative degree temperatures.  I did not miss the traffic, however, and how busy every place was. That is one thing that I don't think I will ever miss, and I guess I got so used to living here that it was weird being around that again. (Even though I have lived there my whole life :P)

Carpinteria, beach on one side..mountains on the other. :)

While home, I went on a camping trip with my family to Carpinteria beach that we have gone on for the past six or seven years. It is always such an amazing vacation and I think this last year was one of the better ones. Not only did we have great weather but I managed to not get in arguments with anyone from my family! Finally after all these years I realized I just need to enjoy their presence and that there is no need to fight! :) I think being away also helps because when I do come home I am just happy to see everyone and there is no need to get mad at each other.

I have decided that nothing beats the beach...

Along with spending endless amounts of hours with my family, I also was able to catch up and spend time with pretty much every friend that I have had for so many years. It was nice seeing all of them and I hope to always remain in contact with them because there is not a time that we don't have a blast together. I know that there will be one day when we all get busy with careers and our own separate lives but I make the best of the time I still have! I don't look forward to that day.




I think I finally realized over this break as well that growing up really sucks. I was so excited to come to school and move on, don't get me wrong I love being here and flying and new experiences and progressing in my major, but who wouldn't want to always be a kid and enjoy all those fun times you had when you were carefree and could do anything! Each year that goes by, even each semester, continues to get more serious and the fun you used to have slowly fades away. Having to be busy with work, school, and figuring out my future.....makes me really miss the old days.

Overall I had an amazing time back, I'm sure there is more that I am forgetting to talk about but I think I got most of it! I plan on writing each week like I did last semester, but with more creative titles! (One of my New Years resolutions) I also made it easier for people to follow me by entering your email on the right and when I post a new entry each week, you can be notified! Be sure to leave comments and I'm up for suggestions and possible future entries of what you want to hear!

I miss my family more this time around....but I'm already two weeks in and it will be just as fast of a second semester!

-Cameron    (More pictures below too...clicking on them will blow them up!)

I can go to the beach and hike in the mountains the same day!

Pro goalie! Also on the beach in the middle of December!