28 May 2004
Trish's Surgery.

My wife is having jaw surgery and her Mother flew into town to help take care of her during the recovery.  She's keeping a day-by-day account here.

20 May 2004
World Series of Poker.

Both my Dad and I like to play poker.  So when he heard we were moving to Vegas, my Dad planned a visit.  He spent the better part of a week playing the satellite tournaments at Binion's Horseshoe Casino, trying to raise the $10,000 you need to enter the main event.  Alas, he couldn't quite do it.  He won a few tables, but you have to win a lot to make ten grand.  I came pretty close to winning my table during a tournament, but in the end the big blinds killed me.

Still, we both had a great time.  And we'll both be practicing for next year's World Series.

28 Apr 2004
Air Ground Operations School.

All Predator pilots, as well as forward air controllers, air liaison officers, and many Army artillery guys, are required to attend the Air Force Air Ground Operations School.  Here we learn how to integrate Army and Air Force assets to coordinate close air support in combat.  As part of the class, we have to fight a mock war where we plan and then call in air strikes.

In this photo you may notice a Dutch Artillery Officer and a German Pilot.  Many of our allies are invited to attend the course.

27 Apr 2004
The Threat Training Facility.

At Nellis Air Force Base, we maintain the Threat Training Facility, which is an unclassified collection of all of our enemies weapons.  Here's me in the cockpit of a Soviet Mig-29.

Here's the view from a Soviet Helicopter gunship, like the kind they used in Afghanistan.

And here's what it looks like to command a Soviet T-55 tank, the most popular tank in the world.

The whole line-up of Soviet-made tanks.

The tail end of the SA-2 anti-aircraft missile.  It's a big mother.  This is the one that shot down Francis Power's U-2 during the cold war.  It's still in use by many countries today.

18 Apr 2004
The Venetian.

In our ongoing tour of casinos, we stopped by the Venetian.  Here some poor schmuck is paid peanuts to dress like a statue and stand there all day.  The San Marcos square recreation is pretty remarkable.  And if the real San Marcos square were clean, indoors, commercial, and inhabited by suburbanites, it might look just like this.

17 Apr 2004
Messy Office.

Moving in and organizing all my books is turning out to be a chore.

31 Mar 2004

My new job, flying the RQ-1 Predator UAV, has led us to move to fabulous Las Vegas.  And so we're moving into a new house.

Las Vegas, we are told, is the fastest growing city in America.  There's new construction everywhere.  So the house we're moving into has just been built.  The subdivision is only half-completed.  Here are some pictures:

 

 

 

Suburban and cookie-cutter sure enough.  But it is also the nicest house Trish or I have EVER lived in.  God bless America. 

And now we have not one, but two guest rooms.  In Vegas.  So plan your trip now.  The calendar of visitors is already filling up.

 

28 Mar 2004
Our first trip to the strip.  Fabulous.

 

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