The Beginning

I quit my job two weeks ago Friday. Last Friday (24 February) was my last day of work. This is my first official day of unemployment. It's a bit sad, honestly.

I'm on my way to becoming a United States Air Force Pilot. It's not guaranteed that I will get it, but I'm going to document my progress as I go.

For a lot of people, this decision may seem to come out of left field. However, it does all have a flow. The whole story will come out in the course of this blog, but for now, just a cursory introduction.

I've always wanted to fly. When I was little, I wanted to be able to jump off the roof and soar through the air. If anyone asked me what super power I would pick, I always said "Flying" without hesitation. I loved movies like Mary Poppins and Peter Pan - I even tried jumping a few feet with an umbrella once to see if it would work (it didn't).
I climbed trees with a PURPOSE. My poor mom and dad must have been terrified. For as long as I can remember, if a tree was climbable, I would climb it. All the way to the top, if possible.

The big game changer was probably springboard diving. I had always loved playing around on diving boards, and when I got to High School, the coaches said they needed divers. Since I knew how to do more than one dive (and make it look pretty) I was designated the new diver. With the help of my wonderful coach, who I stayed with for almost 8 years, I became pretty good. I broke the freshman records at Belmont High School, and even won the league meet 2 years later. I decided to stay with my coach through college, and went to Bentley College (now Bentley University) in Waltham, MA. I added 3 meter to my repertoire (I had only done 1 meter in High School). 3 meter scared me at first, but I slowly got used to it. My favorite dives were the ones where I would twist and turn a bit at the beginning, and still have time to enjoy the free fall before I hit the water.

After college, as a birthday present, my then boyfriend bought me a hang gliding ride for my birthday. I adored it, but hated the fact that someone else was controlling the steering! I wanted to do it! I also wanted to bungee jump and sky dive, but sky diving was put on hold due to the fact that I would (again) have to do a tandem jump and let someone else get to have all the fun while I just came along for the ride. With bungee jumping, I just never was in an area that offered it, and I never sought it out.

Life got in the way after college, and I forgot about loving flying. I moved overseas to Prague, Czech Republic, I went to school, I got a job, I traveled. In late 2009, I went to Japan to visit my brother in law, who was (and still is) working in the navy. My first night there, he took us out to a bar, and I met some of the people he worked with. One girls name was "Jacks" - she was a naval fighter pilot. She had also been a diver in college, and started telling me about how much she loved flying because it was so similar to diving. I listened awestruck and wide eyed, drinking in every word. Unfortunately, the next day, I found out that my cat had died back in Prague, so the rest of the trip I was a blubbery mess and mostly forgot about my conversation with Jacks.

When I got back to Prague after the Japan trip, I picked myself up, and tried contacting an Air Force recruiter for the first time. I knew I didn't want to do Navy (deployment on a large ship for many months didn't appeal to me) and I knew I didn't want to do Army (too big and not enough chance to fly). Air Force seemed perfect though. The whole NAME implied planes and flying. I never heard back.

The next time I tried contacting a recruiter (in 2010, after I moved to Columbus, Ohio) I had more success. However, I let the ball drop again because I had just started a new job, and wasn't sure if it was really the right time to pursue another career. Finally, I contacted the same recruiter again in late 2011, and committed. I initially wanted to be an intelligence officer like my brother in law, and there's a whole story behind that which I will later expand on. However, after a VERY intense period of personal thought, I decided to apply for Pilot.

Today was my first day back in Belmont, where I'll be spending the next couple of months getting ready to submit my final application to the Air Force. I'm also using the time to get into REALLY good shape, so that I won't fall behind or drop out of Officer Training School. I joined a gym today, and had an OK cardio work out. I should have done weights, but I had too much on my mind, and just left after an hour and 15 minutes on the elliptical. I'm going to go for a run with my mom later on today. Running is apparently super important for Officer Training School, (OTS). I'm hoping that this blog will provide interested readers with updates on my progress, and I'm also hoping that since I'm writing everything down, it will hold me more accountable for what I do! No more slacking off :)

I went to High School with a guy (we'll call him "J") who later enlisted in the army, and now works as a private security contractor. He does MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) and is an extremely fit guy. He was kind enough to create a weight lifting program for me that I actually did last week, but have slacked off this week due to the move. I probably won't be able to start it again until Thursday or Friday, because my mom is having surgery tomorrow and I'll be taking care of her intently for the next 48 hours at least. The bit of down time will hopefully allow me to write more about the background to this process - there's A LOT.