Who I am

 

- I am unapologetically a Christian. As either controversial or equivocal as that may sound, it means that I try and do stuff like Jesus wants me to do. You know, love others, not judge, help people in need, etc. Basically, the love God, love thy neighbor, and thyself type stuff.

- I served 10 years active duty military as an Officer in a combat arms branch; serving twice in Afghanistan and finishing my time as a promotable Captain to pursue other career goals.

- I have a family and a job, way too many common hobbies (music, sports, volunteering), and have escaped disaster more times than I can count (next part).

- I like to dance and sing like no one is around (sometimes in public), and make people laugh

- I have a bit of a wannabe hero complex (stray animals, stuck cars, or people who need help in any way) that usually ends up in a good story and even better friendship (usually).

- I take my job very serious, but not myself.

 

Why I do this

 

There are things about my life you may not believe. I've been struck by lightning, I've wrestled a shark, I've been blown up, been shot at, climbed ancient Mayan ruins, busted through more than 100lbs of concrete with my head and walked away, you name it. Each experience comes with it's own beer and peanuts type story. For all of that, I'm pretty normal (by some standards). But through my experiences in life (both as a man in modern society and as a military servicemember), I've bared witness to a lot of experiences first hand. It's afforded me an opportunity to learn from some pretty smart people as well as my own stupidity, and I want to share bits of that with you, the reader.

 

What I can do for you

 

Well for one, I want to make you laugh, or at least shake your head in disbelief. Two, I want you to see that you're probably normal, no matter how odd you think you are. My opinion pieces and parenting sections will help aide in that. And three, I want you to know that you're not alone. Whether you're leaving the military, starting a new job, getting married, or overcoming addiction, getting a divorce, recovering from abuse, or going through Chemo. There isn't much left out there that someone hasn't been through. Even some of the weird stuff that I've undergone, it's happened before, it will happen again. Those things can be intense though. Getting married should be one of the heaviest decisions you ever make. Changing careers can feel like closing your eyes while you drive just to see what happens, and things like PTSD, abuse, and cancer can be a really lonely road if you don't have someone you can relate to or talk with. So I'm writing this blog. Because although I can't relate to everyone or everything, there is a lot of commonality in experiences (good and bad) that often go unaddressed. And in this digital age, we are more disconnected from one another than ever. So read, enjoy, be encouraged, and relax. This will be fun, I promise.