Computer is back...

But the data is not. Somehow, the hard drive fragged itself to the point that no data was recoverable. Thankfully, a bunch of my pictures and such are still on the desktop, but I still lost a lot of stuff. Also thankfully, the computer shop gave me a bit of a discount on the work, so I didn't end up paying as much as I thought I would.

Right now, next to me, I have sitting a small external hard drive. I'm going to do backups from now on...

Not the greatest news

I was going to be putting up a normal post today, but it didn't work out. My computer has temporarily but effectively given up the ghost. Thankfully, the warranty was still in effect, or I'd be buying a brand-new hard drive out of pocket. Hopefully, the computer will be back up early next week. :)

My interactive post is over

But if you wish to comment on it, you still may. Hey, if you wanna comment anywhere, do so. :D

Well, since last post, I've mowed yards, gotten sick, gotten better (mostly), gone to some friends' house for a movie and fighting on their trampoline ( :D ), gone to church twice, and been stung by a bee. There really hasn't been anything much exciting going on.

Tonight was the weekly meeting for my venture crew. Venturing is a program put on by BSA (Boy Scouts of America) for older kids (14-20) who would be interested in higher adventure. Unlike Boy Scout troops, Venture crews are co-ed. We have about 10 dedicated members right now, a few potentials, and a few people that come sometimes, and sometimes not. I'm not in any official leadership role, but I am unofficially assisting the Advisor, whose position is analogous to the Scoutmaster for a Boy Scout troop.

Tonight's meeting was the first that we've done according to an actual agenda... yay! :D Since we only formally started about a month and a half ago, things aren't totally fallen into place yet, but they're getting closer. We discussed the calendar for the crew, addressed a couple issues, and played this really challenging mind game. Not exactly high adventure yet, but we'll get there. :P

There really isn't a ton that's coming to mind to post about. So, with that, I'll get going. Bye!

An interactive post...

Just this morning, Mom and I were discussing pop-tarts. Mainly, we were discussing disgusting ideas for pop-tarts. Such as tuna, or banana and mayonnaise. Anyone else have any ideas for what would make a horrible pop-tart? Leave your ideas in a comment... :D

I am sometimes greatly impressed with what people will do for fame...

I'm not always favorably impressed. Check out this video, for example.



Well, the campout went quite well. The food was scrumptious (thanks, Sean!), the weather was perfect, and the company was excellent. I enjoy being in a Christian scout troop so much. Compared to what it could be, it's great. There was only one problem. The wood for the great campfire we made was... green. We didn't notice. Unfortunately, we also didn't quite have enough of little stuff in there, so that combination means the main campfire we made for the program with the entire camporee there... well, it flamed up spectacularly (partly thanks to the cordite we used :D) for a few minutes, then dyed back to smoking like crazy. It was particularly well-suited for sending smoke signals, had we so desired. We didn't desire. Oh well.

The checkride, as I mentioned in my previous post, went well. Thankfully, the oral exam was much easier than I had expected. I had been cramming like crazy for it. However, most of the stuff she (the examiner) asked me was a lot easier than the questions I had been covering. So, that was a blessing. Since she was satisfied with the knowledge I had, we went to the flying portion. That went well, other than two things. One was that she was having me do some rather complicated maneuvering with some of my main instruments failed, and I didn't level off at the correct altitude. The other was that Toledo Approach cleared us for the wrong instrument approach into the wrong airport, confusing us with another plane. Other than those two things, the flying portion went really well. I even greased the landing back at Bluffton. :D She was pretty happy with it, and so was I.

Well, that's about all of significance that happened lately, other than drowning a lot last night. :P My scout troop had a meeting at the local YMCA's swimming pool, where, among other things, some of the younger guys got some basic water rescue requirements done. They had to have someone for a "victim." The older guys volunteered. The younger guys started up a chant when I was being dragged back in: "Save the helpless Eagle Scout!" After that, I pretended to be in a slightly bad mood. :D They didn't buy it. Oh well.

Since I'm about to leave on a campout...

I'll make this quick. Did want to let everyone know I'm happy because I'm now an FAA licensed Private Pilot with an Instrument Rating. :D

It did go really well. I'll update more tomorrow evening or the next day, depending on how tired I am. Thanks to all for praying and one for commenting. :)

Just a quick one.

Having completed the planning for a cross-country trip to Rockford, IL, I've been taking a small break. The flight plan is not going to be flown tomorrow, since its main purpose is to simply verify that I know how to properly plan a flight. I have to study a little more tonight, maybe pack a little for a campout tomorrow, get a shower, finish getting ready for tomorrow... I think I'm going to stop this post now and get back to work. I'm getting up pretty early to get to the airport in time to be up at Bluffton, OH, by 9 AM for my checkride and oral exam. Please, if you see this, be praying that things will go well!