Year in Review

I just sat down and thought about what, by God's grace, He allowed me to accomplish this year:

Read:
Stepping Heavenward - Elizabeth Prentiss
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis
Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia - CS Lewis
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - CS Lewis
The Silver Chair - CS Lewis
The Horse and His Boy - CS Lewis
The Magician's Nephew - CS Lewis
The Last Battle - CS Lewis
The Importance of Being Earnest - Oscar Wilde
Till We Have Faces - CS Lewis
Mere Christianity - CS Lewis
The Four Loves - CS Lewis
Do Hard Things - Alex and Brett Harris
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
When Every Moment Counts - Senator Bill Frist

Traveled to:
Virginia (3x)
Minnesota (1x)
San Diego (3x)

Recreated by:
Going snowboarding for the first time (w/ Aimee)
Going fishing for the first time since I was a kid (w/ Nick)
Going to my first Dodger game (w/ Aimee and Tara)
Going to a UCLA Softball game (w/ Aimee)
Seeing: The Dark Knight, Fireproof, Valkyrie and a few others (I forget)

Trained over 26 employees (including driver training, remedial training, evaluations, etc)

Passed the GED (huh, what? I know...its long story)

Failed the Glendale Fire Department written test (shoulda got the study guide!)

Got hired by the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department (FxCoFRD)

Completed the hiring process for the Los Angeles Fire Department

Got hired by LAFD 12/31/08

Lost a grandparent

Had my little sister visit for a month (She was promoted to Jr. EMT Skills Instructor at UCLA)

Had two of my brothers in CA at the same time (John and Joe)

Ran a lot (mostly w/ John K.)

Did a lot of pushups (not enough though)

Finally conquered the pullup (still have a long way to go)

Made a lot of new friends

Got closer to a lot of friends

Learned a lot about people in general

Bought a new (used) car...(mine died)(thanks Kenn!!!)

Started to journal...occasionally

Recertified as an EMT

Took (and passed) PHTLS (Prehospital Trauma Life Support) (thanks for taking it with me Nick)

Learned to like sushi (thanks Kenn, Jess, Nick, Kyle and Anthony)

Went to my first FD funeral (w/ Jon, Tyler and Eddie)

Went to my first FD graduation (w/ Tyler, Eddie and Matt)

Lost my favorite partner to the USFS (still miss ya John)

Got a new great partner (thanks Eddie Ed)

Had lots of friends go to and graduate from paramedic school (Jon, Tyler, Trevor, and Ben to name a few)

And our safety record is...

We pulled up onscene to an "Auto vs. Structure" call to find this:



It's impossible to see, but on the whiteboard on the wall behind the car reads this statement:

"Our current safety record is: 348 days without an injury."

Way to go guys! Keep up the good work!

Practice what you preach!

I have come up to some delays in the process with the LAFD. I really don't have anything to worry about, but the busyness of the last few weeks have caught up with me and the volume on my frustration seems to have been turned up. I was venting to a friend of mine who is in basically the same position...but has a better chance of being turned down than myself...and is someone who I have attempted to encourage to be patient with what the Lord has planned. As he returned the encouragement...he said "do everything you told me to do." Practice is much harder than preaching...but so much more necessary, especially when coming to being the effective salt and light spoken of in Matthew 5. So even when I'm tired and my frustrations seem to be heavier than usual, I am thankful for the patience God has shown me, and His gentle way of reminding me through a friend and the support of family to practice the faith I "preach".

Week in Pictures

Chief complaint of the month

I got this call at 02:11 yesterday morning...when we were initially dispatched, this is the information we received (word for word).

"F/20 - feet hurt from walking all day @ Universal Studios"

I got to hang out with three of my best friends and 6 of these adorable little critters this weekend. Sick!!!!

Reading this letter tonight brought tears to my eyes. Not just happy that I received it, but an overwhelming sense of gratitude and appreciation to everyone who helped me get here. Most importantly I am thankful to the one who designed me and created me and placed the desire in my heart to do this work. My #1 goal is to honor Him in the completion.