2007 In Review, 2008 In Planning

So this is the New Year. 2007 is past and 2008 is still ahead – all 365 days, 22 hours, and 50 minutes of it as I write this. 2007 was a heck of a ride and I’m hoping to make 2008 my best year yet !

So much happened in 2007, both good and bad. Hit the jump for a very long list

My old highschool friend Kerry finally got back in touch with me after about 13 years and MADE MY YEAR :thumb: !!! Yes, I will always remember her as the gorgeous blonde-haired, green-eyed, South African surfer chick with a killer accent who was one helluva great kisser :inlove: She’s off in Europe right now visiting with a promising romantic interest and while I confess I’m just a bit jealous , I do wish them both all the best Kerry, thank you for everything and just remember that I’m always here 24/7 if you ever need anything You’re a wonderful friend and I never want to lose track of you again !

Another friend from high school, Skids, still hasn’t seemed to figure out just what causes it, but I’m sure in time that will change ! In all seriousness, Skids has been a great friend to talk to when I need it and can’t thank her enough, either I’m glad she’s got a great husband and family backing her up, too! Skids, I can’t tell you enough just how great it is to get all those phone calls – they really do help keep my spirits up !

Another one of my buddies that I met online, JR, has had his own ups and downs with work and other endevours, but seems to be getting through everything pretty well JR knows the ins and outs of aviation in ways I wish I did and has been a great source of advice, direction, and knowledge of alcoholic beverages over the years since we began corresponding One of these days I just know that JR will make it out to Vegas (or I’ll make it out to Florida) and we’ll have a grand old time :thumb: !!! According to Cindy, this will be a near Apocalyptic event for which bomb shelters and bunkers will be highly desirable Now if we ever get an airshow team together … Big time thanks for everything and being a truly outstanding friend in 2007, JR :thumb: !

I even got a visit from one of my old San Diego friends and her boyfriend – Kristen and Mike ! I think Mike knows he’s got someone special in Kristen. Aside from being a Parrothead (always a plus!), Kristen is just great all around and I wish both of them well for 2008. I’m hoping to go get together with them sometime this year down in SoCal – that would be GREAT! Kristen and Mike – if you’re reading this, gimme a call, OK ?

Adrienne and Jose – two of the best friends anyone could have Yeah, they’ve been busy and we haven’t talked or visited nearly as much as I’d like to, but hopefully that’ll change in 2008. I could also use a ride in Adrienne’s ’75 Stingray roadster Adrienne, make sure you send everyone my best wishes, OK ? Make sure to pet Jimbo, Toto, and Lucy too !

I made a great friend online this year – David Kervinen, owner of Team Turbine Toucan has been a great new friend in 2007 :thumb: ! David has truly gone out of his way to be accessible in the run-up to the Turbine Toucan’s first show season and I really can’t properly put into words my thanks for everything he’s done this past year I can say thanks for the Birthday present T-shirt he sent me which I will wear with immense pride once I can fit into it ! To David and Team Toucan – here’s hoping 2008 finds you with excellent sponsorship, many broken records, huge throngs of airshow fans, blue skies, and tailwinds :thumb: !

Another couple of fun times with friends this year were the Road Runners Internationale reunion and Aviation Nation 2007 ! I got to see TD Barnes and Connie Pardew at both events – great people and incredibly generous .

The reunion was an absolute blast :thumb: ! I got to meet and chat with such people as Dennis Sullivan, Ken Collins, Jim Eastham, and a whole bunch of other guys who flew the mighty A-12, YF-12, SR-71, and U-2 out of Groom Lake ! Aside from the pilots, I also got to meet and get to know quite a few former CIA guys and contractors who made it all happen as well – I couldn’t have asked for a better time Of course, T.D. managing to get the CIA headquarters gift shop to show up and sell to us Road Runners was pretty darn cool, too…

Aviation Nation was a blast, too, but I swear I’m getting a press pass this year – it’s a pain to carry 40 pounds of camera gear on the charter bus to and from the flightline! I only volunteered one day – Friday, but I still somehow managed to get a ticket into the VIP Airpower Chalet on Saturday and Sunday . Kicking back with Connie, TD, and several other Road Runners and friends while watching the airshow made it just that much better

My aplogies to anyone I should have mentioned but didn’t – it’s getting awefully late here and my brain is not quite up to 100% Feel free to let me have it in the comments section!

Cindy and my family have been a bit mixed the last year.

Cindy is my ex-girlfriend and current roommate (yeah, everyone says it’s strange, but it works for us ) who has been a great companion, confidant, and support for me ever since I met her way back when I worked at Captain’s Cove and she was the manager Cindy changed jobs this year, developed a bit of a medical problem and has seen to her father in the hospital for the past several months. I’ve got to hand it to her, though, she’s been a whole lot stronger than I think I could have been in her place. I really hope 2008 goes much better for her and her family ! I’m also glad we managed to go to our fifth Jimmy Buffett concert together, too.

My family has been dealing with my mother’s cancer diagnosis and treatment for the past few months as well. The good news is that she’s done with chemo now and everything seems to be going great I managed to make it down to Prescott to visit them in 2007, even got to see my sister, nephews and niece! I have a feeling I’ll be making that trip a bit more often in 2008.

Aside from family and friends, life has been pretty good to me in 2007 – a trend which I hope to continue in 2008. I managed to get out of working weekends, gained much more experience in Tier 2, enjoyed the lack of a car payment, and managed to take up both fishing and geocaching. I’ve increased my photo and video gear loadout, and I can finally get my old slides and negatives scanned onto my computer – WOO HOO !!! Oh yeah, I also started blogging, too

So what are the plans for 2008? Good question – I’m still working them out

Main plan item number 1 priority is to lose a whole bunch of weight! For some reason I can’t seem to lose my ass no matter how many casinos I visit I won’t say what I weigh right now, but let’s just say that the weight loss goal for the next year is 100 pounds minimum.

Other goals for the new year include actually flying my R/C plane after I finally get it balanced and the engine broken in, fishing a whole lot more, sleeping a whle lot more, saving $$$ for flight training, seeing more of my friends, and blogging at least one post per day. I will finally get the video from the Road Runners’ reunion and Aviation Nation 2007 edited and uploaded for viewing on this site. I will also take more pictures and sharpen my skills there as well.

I hope to get even more comments than I did last year on this blog – so help me out! Let me know what you think of this blog, my ideas, your ideas for how I can reach my goals, etc.

In keeping with my goal to sleep more, I’m off to get some sleep right now as I only have about 5.5 hours left until I get to start work tomorrow which I wouldn’t miss for anything as the pay is 2.5 times my normal pay :thumb: !

Here’s hoping everyone has a safe, happy, and prosperous new year ! May the best of 2007 be the worst of 2008 for you :thumb: !!!

Jeff