Graduation Day

Today was the last day of my NPS experience . . . they actually graduated me! No more 20 page papers or ridiculously huge reading assignments, at least for the time being . . . It was a beautiful day in Monterey -- sunny and 70 --which was the perfect way to close out the first phase of my training here. Next is French language training at the Defense Language Institute, also here in Monterey. But not until the end of July.

Until then Laurie and I will be enjoy a few trips to relax and spend sometime with friends, family, and each other. Between Laurie's travel and my studying, we haven't seen a whole lot of each other over the past year. Hopefully this post finds everyone doing well and we look forward to hearing from you.

Au revoir!

Well...I thought I'd give you a little bit of background! (leave it to the man to just leave out the details!!)

Justin and I are currently living in Monterey, CA (about 1 1/2 hours south of San Francisco). We were stationed here 1 year ago...the Marine Corp sent Justin back to school to get his Masters! He is attending the Naval Post Graduate School (NPS), and then will go to the Defense Language Institute (DLI) to learn French! When he's done (around March 2010), he will have a grad degree in National Security Affairs, with a specialty in Sub-Saharan Africa!! After school...its off to Africa for 1 year!!!

A couple of months after moving to Monterey from Orange County, I took a new position with 3M Medical. I worked for 3M for the past 4 years selling medical supplies into Veterinary Distributors. Now, I am a sales rep for the Skin & Wound Division, selling medical supplies through distributors into Long Term Care, Home Care, Wound Care, Surgery Centers, etc. I really enjoy my work! My territory covers the southwest...so I'm on the road almost every week. This has worked out well while being here, especially since Justin has lots of studying to do!

We don't have any kids yet, but have a 4-legged, furry, bundle of energy of a dog, named Gunner! He is a boxer that I found through a local rescue back in Orange County, and couldn't resist! I brought him home about 2 weeks before Justin returned from his last deployment back in Feb. of 2006. Gunner was about 1 1/2 yrs old then, had no manners, and was very skinny!! He's come a long way...he is now almost 5 yrs old, a solid 70lbs, and is a Certified Therapy Dog!! We visit the local Nursing Homes, and all the residents love him!

So now that you're caught up on the history...let the present bloggs begin!!

2009 BJJ World Championships

Devlin Kostal and I at the 2009 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu World Championships in Long Beach, CA June 4th, 2009.

Dev won three fights to take gold in the Medium-Heavy (194.5 lbs) division. I earned a first round bye, won my first fight, then lost in the semi-finals. That was good enough for bronze in the Medium (181 lbs) division! Very good competition (both my win and loss were to tough guys) and an incredible all around experience.

The First Blog . . .

Greetings from Monterey!

For those who know Laurie and myself, this is probably a long overdue development. Frankly, I am not a fan of the social networking sites. However, inspired by a Jiu Jitsu training partner who maintains his own blog, I decided to start one as a means of staying in touch with friends and family. Personally, I admit to being a horrible person when it comes to staying in contact with people who have played a significant role in my life. Too often I use the stresses of everyday life as an excuse not to call or write. Hopefully this blog will reverse that trend!

Establishing this site essential on a whim, I have no idea what type of content we intended to post. More than likely, Laurie will provide thoughtful, insightful and tasteful material while I'll rant about martial arts, the Corps and the absence of a decent forzen yogurt joint in the greater Monterey area. Read what interetests you and leave the rest.

Thanks for hanging out this long, we look forward to sharing our life and thoughts with anyone who is interested!

Best regards,