Where Has The Time Gone?! (Part I)

Wow!  It has been over a month since I last posted.  I can't figure out where the time has gone!  I've definitely been keeping busy around here, seeing new sites, doing a little bit of traveling.  I have a lot to cover so it may take a couple of posts to catch everyone up on the last month.  I'll begin with my trip to the Joint Services Open House and Air Show at Andrew's Air Force Base with my friend Amber.  Amber and I went to MSOE together and her husband is in the Air Force and stationed at Andrew's.  They actually live just down the road from me but we aren't able to together very often.  There were tons of awesome aircraft to tour and to watch in flight.  Below are a few choice pics!

 (This is the Super Guppy, used by NASA to transport shuttles and other space aircraft)

(This is a T-6 Texan)

(Boeing V-22 Osprey, the rotors drop down in mid-flight and this helicoptor is transformed into a plane!)

(SB2C Helldiver)

(US Army Golden Knights parachute team)

(AV 8B Harrier Jet)

(Northrop Grumman B2 Spirit Bomber, rarely seen in flight)

(The show ended with a performace by the Navy Blue Angels)

It was such a fantastic day!  The last couple of pictures I have are blurry because my camera battery died and I had to use my cell phone.  Unfortunately, because of cost issues, this was the last annual air show.  They have no decided to hold the event every other year so I guess if I'm still out here in May of 2014, I can't wait to go back!

Lets switch gears to a few people that have come to visit our Wounded Warriors at the hospital in the past month...

(This is a really poor picture with the Washington Nationals, the lady I gave my phone to apparently has never used an iphone camera before and didn't understand the concept of holding it still while taking the photo...she also didn't understand the concept of turning the camer for a landscape shot and I had to stitch together the three photos she took)

(This is Joe Mantegna, he plays Agent De Rossi on the TV show, Criminal Minds, other popular movies are The Godfather and Airheads!)

(The lady from the New York Mets was much better at taking photos!)

(Governor Scott Walker came one day, I couldn't believe it!  I was the only person there who knew who he was but it was pretty cool that he came.  We had quite the chat too)

(This is Boyd Tinsley, the violinist from Dave Matthews Band)

(WWE Superstar John Cena was on the unit but we didn't get a picture with him)

Saving the best for last....

(NEIL DIAMOND!!!  Neil even tweeted about his visit, he was so nice!  Check out the tweet:

http://twitter.com/#!/NeilDiamond/media/slideshow?url=pic.twitter.com%2FAsCn7zYI )

A couple of other people we had visit but don't have pictures of include the Deputy Secretary of Defense, Ashton Carter, and just yesterday, the Sergeant Major of the Army, Raymond F. Chandler III.  He is the  most senior ranking enlisted member of the Army.  Ben Stein and the Baltimore Orioles were also there but came on days I wasn't working.     

Going back in time a few weeks, Memorial Day, my friend Julie and her boyfriend, Tim, and I went to Ellicott City to meet up with a couple of their friends for a day of fun in the sun.  We headed out to a quarry nearby for some fishing and kayaking.  The fishing was pretty dismal but the kayaking was a lot of fun, we even got Julie's dog, Roxy in the boat.  She didn't really want to come along but once we put her in she was a pretty good boater!

(Roxy and I on the water)

Julie, Roxy, and I also went on an adventure to Great Falls National Park.  It's in Virginia, along the Potomac. 

 (This is just beyond the Great Falls, looking at the Maryland side)

 (Great Falls National Park, the Potomac, from the Virginia side)

(Roxy is checking out the stream that we found when we were hiking through the woods along the Great Falls)

This will be it for this post, much more in the next one though!