%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 A blog of no uncertain musings. What goes on in my mind is often a source of wonder to me. |
|
My mind and my life are wonderous things ... as are yours, I'm sure. I have more slips of paper and pages of notebooks with musings and thoughts than I really know what to do with. Someone, actually several someones, have suggested I start a blog ... or a journal as a means of focusing some of this mental energy. To be honest, I don't even know what the difference between a 'journal' and 'blog' is--or if there even is a difference. Read on, my friends, and you can judge for yourself whether it even matters. And so....  I'm JACE. Yep ... that's me! And somewhere in all my writings my last name may be posted. But I'll just leave it at Jace for right now. I'm 70 years old and heading full tilt to 71. It's strange that while I'm going through some rather serious medical issues, I still consider myself to be in the prime of my life--pretty good shape physically AND mentally, though I don't run for competition anymore  . I love to ... dang, if I put this stuff here, I won't have anything for my blog.Guess you just have to be patient until such stuff leaks out.  Perhaps 2025, having embraced my retirement, will see more participation in my journaling efforts. Well, one can hope.... |
| One great thing about all the festivities during the past week: I didn't think too much about my upcoming scans for any potential issues regarding my cancer diagnosis earlier this year. I'll be having two CT's--one abdomen/pelvis and one chest--on 10 Sep. This will be the second set of scans since my surgery. I'm supposed to have these every three months for a year. Perhaps it's normal to ascribe every little pain or change in my body to these past issues, even knowing that the surgery removed all the cancer the surgeon could find. But, the one thing I can't quite put my finger on is that I feel different. I guess such thoughts will be my new norm. I'm a little concerned about some weight gain. Backstory: I got out of the Army in Aug 1992 weighing 161 lbs at my exit physical. Until my surgery in Apr this year, I never weighed more than 165 or less than 160 at any official exam. It was a big joke that my bowling average over 12 years was the same as my weight. About two weeks after my surgery I began tracking my weight at home, which was 156 plus or minus two pounds until about 22 Aug. Over the past two weeks I'm up about six pounds. For me, that's significant. Guess I'll find out something after the 10th. On the positive side, I had loads of fun with all the Birthday celebrations. My biggest worry was figuring out in which event to participate.  |
An essay in response to a prompt, General Merit Badges-#1, for "Earn the Badge - Open"  My writing journey didn't start when I learned my first letters. It didn't startwith the papers I had to write in school. It certainly didn't start from all the adventures I had with my friends. It started when I was dragged kicking and screaming into an English class that I required to graduate--one that had been overlooked during each of my four years of college, possible because of the numerous academic advisors over four disciplines because I changed majors a number of times. Well, they caught that oversight about three weeks from graduation. I didn't walk that stage. Of course, by the time I was told about the snafu, all available English summer courses were filled. I would have to come back in the Fall. I decided to work and earn some extra money for my final semester, which turned out to be the Spring semester. That creative writing course, which satisfied my English requirement, turned me onto writing. That's where my love for writing and reading essays happened. I learned about the four major types of essays--argumentative, expository, narrative (or personal), and descriptive. There are many variations, of course. I went into the US Army straight from graduation, and learned a lot of writing operations orders and standing operating procedures (SOPs). Though my personal writing journey was tamped down, I could effectively communicate through the written word. Even as I started and grew my woodworking business after the army, writing was more of a by-product. But as my business became established, I was able to begin writing about things that interested me. The stories were there; but where was I to post them? In the early days of the internet, there were few sites for my work. Sites came, and sites disappeared. I wish I knew what I was doing when WDC first appeared. It took me eight years to discover Writing.Com I wonder, can a person have a regret over not doing something he never knew existed? I do wish I'd found WDC earlier. But, I do what I can do now. And to those joining now, I say--better now than never. Welcome aboard! |
The prompt for Day 4 in "Writing.Com in Wonderland" is:Let us know at least 15 places youâd love to visit if you have the opportunity to do so. Please give brief reasons--one sentence or less--of why these places are on your bucket list. This is rather complicated as several places that were on my bucket list to visit have been fulfilled courtesy of my second marriage in 2013. My wife and I have already visited: The western Carribean, including Cozumel, via cruise. The eastern Carribean, including Bermuda, via cruise. Alaska, including Juneau and Denali, via cruise and rail. The Great Lakes, all but Superior, via cruise through Canada and the US. The eastern Mediterranean, including Italy, Greece, and other Balkan countries, via cruise. And so many more places. The Bucket Travel List: 1. Crater of Diamonds State Park, in Arkansas, just to say we dug for diamonds. 2. The Pacific Coast Highway Trip (minus San Diego and LA), for the scenery and serenity. 3. The Badlands National Park, because we missed them on our RV trip west because my wife was sick. 4. Fall Foliage cruise from Quebec City through the Canadian Maritime provinces to Portland, Maine, via cruise. We did a drive through New England in Fall some years back and want to compare with the coast in Fall. 5. Washington DC in the Spring during the cherry blossom blooms. Also, I wish to see the Smithsonian Museum. 6. Ireland and Scotland, for the people, the scenery and the food. 7. Iceland, for the scenery. 8. Germany via a Rhine River cruise, because we both love the food and the scenery. 9. Chicago, because my wife wants to visit the city. Oh well ... at least it's not New York City. 10. New Orleans, for the culture, ambiance and food. 11. Trans-Canada via rail from Toronto to Vancouver because we've never been on a major rail trip. 12. Any Winter Olympics because I've always wanted to attend one. 13. Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, TN because my family stopped there on a trip from San Antonio to Maine when I was six. 14. A two-week drive through the Blue Ridge Mountains staying at B&B's and hiking. 15. Finally, an RV trip to any National Parks in Colorado, Utah, and surrounding states. I suspect my recent retirement has given my wife far too many ideas for traveling. It's not dull around here.  |
The prompt for Day 4 in "Earn the Badge - Open" is:We all started somewhere. What's one of the first things you posted to your portfolio? How did you feel about it then? What would you change now or do differently? Is it hidden in your port? Showcase this gem on the newsfeed. I wrote the following story while on another social internet site. But that site closed and I was left adrift. A search of Google led me to Writing.Com. This story was one of my first stories posted on WDC; I received my first review for this offering as well.
The story was based on a conversation I had with another member of that first social site. We were talking about lighthouses, a phenomenon that has piqued my interest for many years. She mentioned a haunted lighthouse in Minnesota, and my imagination was off and running. I received some pretty positive comments from people on that site about my story. When I joined WDC, I had more than 20 stories from which I might post. Before I joined WDC, I discovered there was an active Erotica group there, which was my favorite writing interest. Many of those 20-plus stories were of the Erotica genre. I was a bit shy at first, how my erotic tales might be received. I opted for safety and posted "The Refuge." While I wouldn't say this story is hidden, a lot of stories reside in various folders in my Port--the function of having a Premium membership with all that available space. Perhaps, I will do some Fall cleaning. Still, this tale continues to be one of my favorites ... as is. |
The prompt for Day 3 in "Earn the Badge - Open" is:In your notebook, blog, or on the newsfeed, please tell us what your musical vibe is. Do you listen to music when you write? Do any groups/singers/songs inspire you to write? Share a YouTube video of your latest favorite song or artist. What is it about this song that speaks to you? Honestly, music is the glue that holds my life together. But I always harken back to the folk music days of the 60's and 70's. From Gordon Lightfoot to Cat Stevens, James Taylor to Simon & Garfunkle, and Joan Baez to CSN&Y. I could still be listing names well into the afternoon. And then there's my favorite artist, an almost unknown: David Mallett. His most well-known hit is performed above. Covered by John Denver, Pete Seeger, and many others, The Garden Song continues to be my favorite. This song was part of every coffeehouse set my first wife and I would play for more than 35 years. The Garden Song was there when my youngest daughter began singing with me. David was from my hometown, Dover-Foxcroft, Maine. Or rather, I was from his as he was four years older than I. Though I can no longer play them (no turntable), I still have every album he produced. There are so many facets to this man, and his songs cover most of them. David was an excellent musician and a consummate performer. He passed away last December (like so many of the musicians I've enjoyed over these many years). YouTube has many of his songs. I hope you'll take some time and give a listen. |
The prompt for Day 2 in "Writing.Com in Wonderland" is:Find 12 sets of two items with the same name, and review one item. Author Note: Yes, I started with titles that I used--most of them were used before their match. 1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
My Review: Review of "A NIGHT TO REMEMBER"  |
The prompt for Day 2 in "Earn the Badge - Open" is Which of your WDC friends deserves some recognition? How have they supported you over your time here? C'mon now, ask an easy question. Two caveats come to mind. First, when you've been a member as long as I have--and I suspect also for those members with at least ten years-- there's no way to pin down 30 or 50-plus persons who have supported me over my 17-plus years on WDC. My biggest worry is overlooking a key someone with such a list. Second, the support I received early on in my first four or five years is not the same as over the past four or five years. Does this mean I should have two lists? My mind could get way out of hand with this prompt. Obviously, there's one solution (and I will limit the lists to ten folks): The early years: Jeff is Gru in #2343485  , Shannon  , Sheldon is at 2343485  , NickiD89  , Mara ⣠McBain  , Purple Celebrating 25! , SHERRI GIBSON  , Adriana Noir  , Stephanie Grace , The StoryMistress  The middle years: JoDe , Elle  , ~ Santa Sisco ~ , THANKFUL SONALI Party Hopping!  , iKĂŻyü§ama-Happy 25th!  , Joy-Happy 25, WdC!  , Sophy  , Legerdemain  , , The StoryMaster  The latter years: WW is Monk! Cop Shop @ Bard's  , StephBee  , Choconut  , Sum1  , đ HuntersMoon  , Nixie đŚ  , Asterix , Gaby  , GabriellaR45 , Riot My abject apologies for those I failed to mention. And there will be overlap! No one, and I mean NO ONE, remains a member without the support of the community. |
An entry "Writing.Com in Wonderland" , Day 1: I joined Writing.Com at 8:34am on 2 May 08 after stumbling onto the site while looking for a replacement for the defunct Yahoo 360. I posted my first story, called "The Young Mother" and based on a real event, at 3:57pm the following day after a bit of trial and error. My first review came from Allyson Lindt with 4.5 stars for "The Refuge" on 4 May 08 at 1:12pm, which really swelled my head. In less than a month, I had filled my Free Portfolio with ten stories and poems. The first merit badge I actually earned came on 1 Jun 08 for a 3rd Place May entry entitled "Fulfillment" to the "100 Words Contest" .  My first stop with a paid membership was Upgraded before the end of May 08. I have been a Premium member since Aug 08. Because of my penchant for writing erotica, I became a member of my first group--"Unofficial Erotica Newsletter Group" where I met their leader, Jeff is Gru in #2343485 . Later, Jeff is Gru in #2343485 invited me to become a member of "Rising Stars of WdC" , where he acted as my mentor. One thing I learned from my mentor was that I was not alone here; help was available for any feature that eluded me. Friends like Sheldon is at 2343485 , Purple Celebrating 25! , Shannon , and many others too numerous to name here, taught me many lessons about the workings of WDC. While I was more off than on with it, I wrote my first Blog entry on 10 Dec 08 after acting on a suggestion from a member who's name I do not recall. Embracing blogging has been a recent phenomenon with 56% of my total 184 entries coming in the past six months. I was promoted to Preferred Author on 14 Nov 08. I won the WYRM's Gauntlet, a challenge-based writing-intensive speculative Sci Fi contest, with "The Warlock's Circle " in 2009. I was chosen as one of a select group to help write and collate "Writing.Com 101" , which took about six months to produce, and was released sitewide the same day I was promoted to Moderator--30 Jul 10. I've been a full-time editor of the Noticing Newbies newsletter since my first edition on 29 Jun 2011. I was honored to be promoted to Senior Moderator on 1 Aug 13. I don't have a writing support group outside of Writing.Com, though I do talk with people who comment on one of the many WDC shirts I wear almost daily. Since retiring about a year and a half ago, I've resumed my reviewing efforts completing almost 25% of my total qualified reviews in that period. While I don't consider myself a poet by nature, I enjoy writing form poetry with a special bent toward limericks. I'm currently working on a series of memoirs of my life for my kids and grand-kids. I visit Writing.Com every day possible ... as long as WiFi is available. Tis a mite sad that I have far too many friends and acquaintances to be listed in the space I have available here, With imitation being the sincerest form of flattery, I'm emulating Asterix 's submission with my format for this challenge. |
Part 3 Week 3: Jump Week. The days of push-ups, sit-ups and long runs are over. The training area was about a click (one kilometer) from the airfield. Each morning we would run to the airfield in formation and get outfitted with our gear for jumping. The run was designed to weed out those who were injured enough to be unable to jump. And like every other morning weâd enjoyed thus far, it was hot! We were divided into groups, called sticks, based on the plane from which we would be jumping (either a C-130 propeller-driven cargo plane or a C-141 jet engine driven cargo plane). I donât remember how many were in a stick, but we hoped the powers that be allowed for personal confusion, reluctance and reticence, and just plain stupidity on our part when determining how many needed to jump from each plane. Needless to say, the Black Hats were there to apply their size 14 boot to the fourth point of contact of any cadet unable to exit the door on his own. After the first such application of persuasion, the rest of us moved smartly to the door and into freedom. Actually, after baking on an asphalt runway for an hour or so in full gear, waiting to board a plane with no air-conditioning, and packed in so tight we could barely breathe, we welcomed the opportunity for a little freedom. While waiting to board the airplane, the Black Hats would impart bits of wisdom for us to remember thus making our jumps safer. Such as: - "While the drop zone is fairly large, you must exit the aircraft in a timely manner so that those at the end of your stick have time to exit while still over the drop zone. The aircraft will not circle back to allow late jumpers to exit." - "If you are first in line to jump, you will be required to âstand in the door.â Youâll be afforded the opportunity to grip the handles firmly on each side of the open door facing outward for up to 30 seconds before jumping. If you exit early, or fall out, you will be landing in trees." - "In the event you find yourself floating toward another parachute, pull down on your risers (ropes running from your harness to your canopy) to steer away." - "If you are unsuccessful at moving away and you find yourself above another canopy, your âchute may collapse due to lack of air from the one below causing you to land on top of it. Double-time off that canopy quickly to allow your parachute to reinflate, thus depositing you safely on the ground. Remember you have seconds to react." - "There is a stream that meanders through the middle of the drop zone. If, by chance, you see that you will be landing in the stream, begin double-timing out of that stream as soon as your feet touch water. The stream is heavily populated with water moccasins and cottonmouth snakes." - Finally, you are required to make five jumps and the first four landings safely in order to graduate. If your fifth landing is not successful, they will pin your wings on your chest where you lay. As I mentioned, military parachuting is much different than civilian parachuting. The military uses smaller, round canopies designed to put a soldier on the ground as quickly as possible, thus lessening the chances of being shot in a combat situation. The faster descent is why we practiced PLF landings ad nauseum to avoid injuries. We didnât train for free-fall jumps. We jumped using static lines, which means our parachute automatically deployed when we exited the plane, hopefully error-proofing the process. Jumping from a height of 1250 feet, we would be in the air from 30 seconds to a minute. Longer times were a bonus courtesy of thermal updrafts, something I was not lucky enough to experience. âStand up, hook up, shuffle to the doorâ was a phrase we heard once, or twice ⌠or a hundred times during training. Nowhere is this more appropriate than packed in a plane awaiting your turn to exit. Our plane would be going at 130 to 150 miles per hour when we jumped requiring both a sense of urgency when exiting and a need for good form. And then we were free. If you were able to overcome your natural tendency to close your eyes when you jumped (euphemistically called a ânight jumpâ), you were treated to an awesome view of the aircraft leaving you in a huge arc as the prop or jet blasts caught your parachute as it opened pushing you away from the plane. Despite how fast we exited the plane, its speed was often enough to provide adequate separation between the canopies that now dotted the sky. For the next 20 seconds or so, you were alone in the world, floating to earth with a breeze in your face and a feeling of calm like youâve never known. After that all-to-brief feeling of serenity, you find the ground rushing toward you quicker than you thought. Almost before you know it, your feet touched the ground, and you executed the perfect PLF for which youâve trained so often. You laid on the ground for a few moments, thanking God youâre okay, while a small part of your mind told you that youâd just done the dumbest thing of your life. Then you got up, gathered your gear in your arms and began double-timing off the drop zone following your fellow cadets. I remember wondering if they were going in the right direction. After returning to our barracks, we all celebrated the dayâs events with the only alcohol availableâcans of 3.2 beer. The next day we again ran our mile, got our gear and tempted fate once more. We had four more jumps to make, actually making five jumps in four days. Second ⌠third ⌠fourth ⌠I was beginning to think of these jumps as routine. Then Thursday afternoon, our fifth and final jump occurred. I was dealt an unexpected turn. As luck would have it, my jump was to be made from a C-141. Remember the -141 had jet engine. AND, I was to be first out. Jumping from a plane with a jet engine had a twistâwhen the door opened, a baffled wall about the size of the door opening deployed to deflect the wash from the engine. Without the baffle, I would likely be slammed into the planeâs fuselage before clearing the tail. And since I was first in line and standing in the door awaiting the Go command, I wondered if Iâd be able to let go of the frame on which I had a death grip. Suddenly it occurred to me why we had to jump out 36 inches! So much to rememberâŚ. âGO!â My reflexes took over and I was free once again. After landing, I jumped up and took stock of all body parts. I began whooping and holleringâI had done it! Graduation was Friday morning, though a bit anti-climactic. The pomp and circumstance didnât meet with the intensity of the previous three weeks. Frankly, Everett and I were anxious to begin the 2000 mile trek home. During one of the weekends, we were able to go shopping at the PX (Post Exchange). I had picked up the initial release of a Marshall Tucker Band. Somehow on the trip home, that record had been moved to the back window shelf, the sun turning it into a shallow bowl. To this day, I still have that album. Nope, canât tell you why I kept it. But a penny on the turntable needle played the album perfectly. Also, on the way home, another thought occurred to me. Until Airborne School, Iâd never even been in a plane. During this course, I had taken off in five planes and made five parachute jumps. It turns out that I would not actually land in a plane until I flew to West Germany to my initial posting with the 12th Engineer Battalion some four years later. Airborne School was definitely an experience to remember. I would never jump out of a plane again. But, I have to say it was an adventure I would always cherish. Thanks for joining me on this memory. |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
