I've Dreamed Many Dreams

~Author Uknown

I've dreamed many dreams that never came true
I've seen them vanish at dawn;
But I've realized enough of my dreams, thank God,
To make me want to dream on.

I've prayed many prayers, when no answer came
Tho' I've waited patiently and long,
But the answers have come to enough prayers
To keep me praying on.

I've sown many seed that fell by the way
For the birds to feed upon;
But I've held enough golden sheaves in my hand
To keep sowing on.

I've drained the cup of disappointment and pain
And gone many days without song,
But I've sipped enough nectar from the roses of life;
To make me want to live on.

Corps Day

Bob had invited me to join her and her father for Corps Day at the Citadel.

In its Vision Statement, the Citadel Board of Visitors identifies the following as the school's "core values:"

Academics: We produce graduates who have insight into the issues, ideas and values that are important to society and possess the skills necessary to deal with them successfully.

Duty: We emphasize the importance of individual accountability and the moral obligation of responsibility for the welfare of others.

Honor: We adhere to a code which teaches that uncompromising personal integrity is the primary guide in all situations. "A cadet does not lie, cheat, or steal, nor tolerate those that do."

Morality: We believe that an individual's character is of utmost importance and, therefore, we provide training which emphasizes ethical principles and core values.

Discipline: We operate a leadership laboratory which emphasizes a structured environment, acceptance of responsibility, self-confidence and service to others.

Diversity: We promote diversity in all segments of our campus community and college life.

The Citadel Pipe Band started the day.

Inside the Quad

The drummers were so awesome! They performed in the Quad a few songs and it was amazing just watching their fingers and wrist moving so quickly.

The Summerall Guards
Per wikipedia:
Named after General Charles P. Summerall, former Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army and Citadel president from 1931 until 1953, The Summerall Guards was founded in 1932 and remains The Citadel's silent drill platoon. The Guards have amazed audiences for more than seventy years with their unique combination of Prussian high-step and German close-order drill. This drill, known as the "Citadel Series", is passed down from class to class in a highly competitive and vigorous selection process from which only the most committed individuals emerge as the succeeding year's Guards. Guards tradition states that the "series" has never been written down and has remained virtually unchanged since 1932.

The following are pictures of the Parade.

Charleston Weekend

Charleston was so much fun! Bob and I met up at the airport in Atlanta and flew to Charleston together. The first thing I noticed was the humidity. It hit me so hard I felt like I was in the Philippines again. I had arranged the week before, with Mike Munn, to meet up with some of the guys I knew from the science building who are now going to MUSC. It was great seeing Quan and his wife, Caryn, Aaron and his wife, Amanda, Mike and his girfriend Emily. I couldn't believe that it has been five years since we all saw each other. Dinner was fun! Reminiscing about the good o'le BJU days and talking about our various experience. Then just catching up and seeing what everyone was up to these days. My face is hidden but I'm sure you can tell its me since I'm the only one tanned in the group. =)


The wonderful old houses in Charleston with their brightly colored facade on Rainbow Row.

The Pineapple Fountain

The houses on Battery row


The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge

On the go again

I'm going on a weekend trip to Charleston, South Carolina. Woke up this morning and took my friend, Anne, to the airport where she will go to Ohio for two days and then it is off to Greece. The lucky duck! I had to stop at work to drop off some paperwork and one of the girls tried to convince me to stay but I refused. It actually felt good to say "no thanks, I have to go pack".
I like the sense of adventure when you have that plane ticket or paper with the confirmation number for your flight. Then you have the frenzy of packing and trying to make sure you haven't forgotten anything, yet at the same time the butterfilies in your stomach begin to take off. I found this quote from one of the travel books I read, "The trick is not to rid your stomach of butterflies, but to make them fly in formation".
One of the best advice I have read about travelling is "bring one totaly impractical thing that makes you feel at home" and that is what my bear is. Sebastien is not practical, but he reminds me of home and comforts me by giving hugs back when I start feeling homesick. For this trip I have him dressed in his casual golf outfit but with out the spikey shoes, instead it is the Build-A-Bear-Workshop converse style sneakers. I've decided that if I'm going to be an old maid instead of havinge the dozens of cats, I will be the 'travel lady with the teddy bear'. Eccentric and unique, plus by the time I'm sixty Sebastien should have his own photo album! =)
Well I need to so some research on what is there to see and do in Charleston, besides those nice looking men in uniform at the Citadel. LOL That is an enjoyable view I'm sure, but my attention span tends to wander.

Take kids to Jail!

No I am not being facetious. Let me explain my headline. Last night I took my trainee on a field trip to the Main Jail. Every day after work I pass this tall, imposing structure and when I used to work dayshift I could hear the inmates yelling and playing baskteball but I had never gone to jail to visit the facilities. Now I'm sure we all have our images of what the Jail is like inside. Well it was much worse in reality! It was smelly and stinky and the holding cells were dirty. Also I was wearing my uniform so I got stared at which totally made me uncomfortable and a little paranoid. Fortunately we visited late at night and so most of the inmates were asleep and the only people awake were those who were down on the main floor and were getting booked into jail. It is not a pretty place and I think that kids should at least go and visit it once in their life, preferably during their formative year around 8y-13y. Then they can see the reality of what they will end up in if they don't keep to the straight and narrow path. Yes it will scare the kids but in this case I think it is a good scare. Reality at its purest form.

Relaxing and Bread making

I took two days off from work this weekend so I could relax and spend some quality time with family. In the past four years since I've started working for 'the Department' I have missed having dinner on my mom's birthday because of work. We took the "clan" to this Chinese food place where they served fried chicken with the chicken head (it was fried too). The food was decent but the service was lousy, they didn't do a good job and messed up our drinks order. Then on Monday I headed down to Modest to visit Anne. It was raining when I left Sacramento but it cleared up a little when I got south of Stockton. The Almond trees were in bloom and created a picturesque drive out to the Boonies where Anne lives. =) For dinner Anne's friend from work, Sue (who is from New Zealand) invited is over and while dinner was cooking we played Apples to Apples and a card game which was like 'war' but invovled 3 or more people. The card game's objective was to get rid of your cards first and the last person to lose their cards was called "the Village Idiot". Sue's daughter, Ella, was rather disappointed when on the second game she was "the villiage Idiot". But the night was fun and full of laugh. Ella and her brother Sam are very funny together and they would tell jokes during dinner.
Then on Tuesday Anne taught me how to make bread from scratch. I had trouble making the bread rise the last time I attempted this feat and Anne had some good recipes. I made this white bread with a hint of honey in it and it actually turned out well. Also I figured out what I had done wrong the last time, which was to kill the yeast by putting it in hot water instead of the lukewarm water required to activate the yeast. Plus I found out how kneading bread is a good stress reliever!