FULL SCHOLARSHIP!!!!!!!!!

That's right! The title is CORRECT! On Christmas Eve, two days ago, I received a letter in the mail from the Department of the Navy, congratulating me on my selection for a FOUR-YEAR NROTC SCHOLARSHIP AT THE CITADEL!! Nothing could be better, I am so blessed, everything has turned out so perfectly. I am really overwhelmed at receiving this. I was starting to get doubts about it because of my average SAT/ACT scores and my choice of a non-technical major, along with my not-so-great Math scores... I was thinking maybe I'd received a two.. three year scholarship.. but no, FOUR YEARS! 100% Tuition to the Citadel paid in full.. which will amount to nearly $100,000 dollars worth of scholarship money. The Citadel costs $27,000 for the first year and $23,000 the other three years. This is the best Christmas present I could have asked for. God is so good, even when I am so undeserving fo any of these blessings. I have been praying that God would show me that this is truly what He wants me to do... I think getting accepted to the Citadel in just 5 weeks, and receiving an unbelievable four scholarship three months later is a pretty good sign. I am just so blessed. All my thanks goes to God who has given me two parents who have impacted my life in indescrible, uncountable ways, and my family, a family where I draw alot of my strength from. My brothers, David and Matt, who ultimately inspiring me to join the Navy when they enlisted back in '94 and '96. I can still remember when I was 7 years old, wearin' a Dixie Cup, with my blue dress shirt on my with iron-on sleeve patches.. standing out by the road saluting every car that passed. Last year, when my brother was commissioned as a United States Naval Officer, I knew I would soon be following that same path. David, who now has a a wife and two children, was the one who convinced me earlier this year to apply for the Naval Academy and for an NROTC Scholarship. I then began thinking and thinking. Before I had kind of drifted away from my childhood dreams of serving my country in the Navy, and had started thinking about going to college and getting involved in politics. One day I received a phone call from David, and he said some things to me that really got me thinking. He just asked me to ask myself honestly, after you go to college, get a BA Degree, and go to find a job, what are you going to do? It's not often you see a 22 year old running for political office. And so I thought and prayed, and I finally realized, that my entire life, the Navy was what I'd always felt called to do. And so, here I am 10 months later, accepted to the Citadel and getting it paid for in-full. I just can't figure out why God would love and bless a person as undeserving as I am. But that is the God I serve, as it says in I Timothy, "When we are faithless, He is faithful." He has always been there, He has always looked after my family and my life. I just hope that I will never take that for granted and never forget to give him all the praise and all the glory.

THE CITADEL ALMA MATER

Oh Citadel we sing thy fame

For all the world to hear,

And in the paths our fathers showed us

Follow without fear.

Peace and Honor, God and Country,

We will fight for thee.

Oh Citadel, we praise thee now

And in Eternity.

Oh Citadel, though strife surrounds us,

We will ever be

Full conscious of the benefits

That we derive from thee.

Stand forever, yielding never

To the tyrant's Hell

We'll never cease our struggles for

Our mighty Citadel.

Citadel... check, VMI.. CHECK!

I just got my letter of academic accpetance to Virginia Military Institute! I am so pleased to be accepted into an institution with so much pride and history. I'm still 100% set on The Citadel, but in case my NROTC Scholarship places me at the VMI Unit, I won't have any problem. Speaking of that scholarship.. I'm still waitin', hopin', and prayin' that I'll receive a full, if not 2-year scholarship. That is really quite a huge deal that I'm waiting on, it's going to leave alot of unknowns if I don't get it.. but I'm ready and prepared for whatever the outcome. I've pretty much decided that with a scholarship or not, I'm going to The Citadel, I believe that this is the place God wants me to be, no matter how much financial help I get. There's no reason for me to worry or fret, if God wants me at the Citadel then I know he'll provide a way.

Citadel, VMI... Two of the best schools in the country. Still waiting on Norwich University and Virginia Tech.. I'm pretty sure I'll get accepted to Norwich, not sure and really don't care if I get accepted to VT... Top Choices are: 1. Citadel 2. VMI 3. Norwich 4. Virginia Tech. Anyway, I'm gonna go on a hike in this beautiful weather.

Laziness, Legally Blonde, and the Sunshine State

I've been lazy this entire week... it's been terrible. Sleeping in, staying up late, doing nothing productive, watching movies. I've been house-sitting at a friends house and they have this collosal movie selection. The past few days I've watched "K-19 The Widowmaker," "Spy Game," and *gulp* "Legally Blonde II." Just please forget that you ever read that last one... Being as politically minded as I am.. I was surprised at how pointedly biased it was against conservative Republicans in LB2.. although I guess when the movie is based around saving a dog's mother, you almost have to be anti-conservative.. we generally focus our attention on more importannt issues. I prefer PETA to stand for: "People For The Edible Treatment of Animals." Anyway, while I was lazy this week, I did enjoy K-19 and especially Spy Game. Tonight I think I'm gonna watch "The Great Raid" which I think is gonna be really good.

I got done with house-sitting this afternoon, thank God, so I think that I'll start anew tomorrow. Back to waking up at 0500 and goin' to breakfast. I might try running again tomorrow, I've had a sore throat this past week that's kept me from my daily routine. It's starting to stay cold every day now here in Florida, it had been off and on with hot/cold days, but it's pretty much staying cold now. "Cold" as in 40's at night and 60's in the daytime. My best friend is goin' to college up in Western Pennsylvania, it's been a high of like 25 degrees for the past week.. so yeah, thank God I live in Florida, the SUNshine state.

Justice is served! Germans Free Terrorist Scum

Today the terrorist scum Mohammed Ali Hamadi was freed from German custody after serving 19 years in prison. During the hijacking of a TWA plane in 1985, Hamadi murdered Robert Dean Stethem, a 23 year old Navy Diver, and dumped his body on the tarmac at the Beirut airport. What in the hell are these Germans thinking? Already, his whereabouts are unknown, although many are speculating that he is currently en route to Lebanon, where God only knows what he'll do next. After the hijacking he was caught bragging about brutally beating and murdering Stethem; and now the German "Justice" system has released him on parole. The United States needs to immediately call for his extradition to the States, where Justice can truly be served. So far, no request has been made, although State department spokesperson Sean McCormack said, "At this point I think what I can assure anybody who's listening, including Mr. Hamadi, is that we will track him down. We will find him. And we will bring him to justice in the United States for what he's done." This entire situation is just appalling. Hamadi should have been executed the day after his capture. There should be no parole, no sympathy, no mercy for these animals. Justice must be served, yet everywhere we look now-a-days, the institution of Justice is getting shoved to the side. Compromises are undermining principles, and sooner or later you will see that people will forget principles all together, they will only live for the moment, following every fleeting passion and obeying any and every human instinct. It sounds like I'm off subject, but compromising on delivering the principle of Justice to a murderer and compromising on the principles in other aspects of life are just the same. Here in America, we compromise the Justice system every day. There is no reason why the death penalty should not be used in every single state in this country. There is no way around it, if you murder and end someone's life, your own life is to be taken as well. Germany, along with countless other spineless European Justice systems , do not have the Death Penalty. Even so, there is no way this terrorist Muhammed Hamadi should have ever been let out of prison, let him rot away in that cell and never see the light of day again.

FIRST Post

I'm a little tired tonight, just thought I'd start up a blog to record my thoughts, but I'm too tired to write anything much tonight. I was inspired to start this blog after reading several Military Blogs that were referred to by the NavyTimes Website. It's fascinating to read what the guys serving on the front lines are thinking and doing on a day to day basis. I wish I could join them over there right now. But my time will come, college first! Anyway I'm hittin' the sack, g'night.

"Remember now your creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, 'I have no pleasure in them.'" --Ecclesiastes 12:1