How I Made a Difference on December 16,2007

                                                         Discs for the SPCA

Today I made a difference by going through our cd’s and donating the ones we don’t want anymore to Discs for Dogs. This benefits my local SPCA. Instead of the discs ending up in a land fill they are sold for a dollar and the money goes to the SPCA. This was Mrs.Toney’s idea ( Thank you  Mrs. Toney) and it’s a great one!

My mom and I put a call in with my local SPCA saying that I’d like to voulenteer there long term after the holidays! We have a dog named Biscuit and a cat named Oliver. Oliver came from the SPCA. We got him last year at Christmastime! He likes to tear our curtains down and race up the Christmas tree this year. My mom and dad are really happy about this (NOT).

I love my pets. And when I grow up I want to be a veterinarian. I think I would enjoy this! We just learned about a cool new site thanks to me having to spell that word correctly! It is called dictionary.com. I learned how to spell veterinarian correctly because we looked it up on that site. My mom was an English teacher for a long time, and even she messes up spelling that one.

Tonight, we are going to be doing a MEME. I hope that some of you will play along! I am going to invent some questions about making a difference, and I will answer them in a new post. Then, I am going to tag some of you who have been playing along and ask that you answer these questions in YOUR blogs or in my comments section! When you respond, you can tag other people you know too! I think that getting everyone thinking and talking about what it means to make a difference is a great thing to do during this time of year.

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How I Made a Difference on December 15,2007

This week, my mom and I have become acquainted with a mom named Hallie. Hallie’s son, CJ, is going to be a soldier in Iraq soon. He is leaving right after Christmas. He is only 18 years old too. My mom asked Hallie to tell us about what CJ will be doing as a soldier, and she sent us a great email message. Here is a part of it:

CJ is trained to be an AIRBORNE BATTLE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS SPECIALIST. What that means is that he is part of a flight crew and will be flying in support of the war.  We thought CJ would be stationed in Japan and would then be sent on “missions” (deployments) that would have him in a plane flying at 33,000 feet.  This plane acts a moving satellite – it intercepts transmissions from ground.  Even though he would have been in war zones, he would have been high enough above the action that he would be hopefully safe.
 
CJ did so well in Tech School – graduated first in class – that he was recruited to join an elite flight crew based out of Hurlburt Field in Florida.  He was so honored to be chosen.  We are so proud of him but terrified.
 
What this new job means is that CJ will now be on a plane (a gunship) that has large guns on it.  He will be sent to do his job but will not be able to let us know where or when he leaves. Sigh…this plane flies a lot lower and goes in at night.  CJ tells me that none of these planes have ever been shot down but I still worry.
 
Becasue CJ will be in a plane in a dangerous situation, he is now required to complete SERE – survival school.  He will be trained to survive, evade capture, resist and escape.  This all happens right after Xmas – he will spend 17 days in WA and will be treated as a POW for part of this time.  The intent of this training is to prepare him in case (God forbid) he gets captured by the enemy.  

CJ is nervous but ready to do what it takes to defend our country.  We are so proud of him.  Can’t believe this is my 18 year old son – what a wonderful man he is becoming.

My Grandpa Al was a Korean War veteran. He never fought in the war, but he was in the 82nd Airborne and he jumped out of airplanes. He loved to do this! My Uncle Mike was a Marine, in the Army, and he is now in the Air Force Reserves. My Uncle Paul and my Uncle John were also in the Marines. I am very proud to have uncles who served our country.

The war is something that makes me very sad. I don’t think we should have a war because people are suffering. I wish that George Bush would end the war. I wish that people like CJ didn’t have to go to war. But I am really grateful for people like CJ and my uncles because they risk their lives to protect our country.

My package will be sent out for CJ on Monday! Right now, we are waiting to get socked with a big snowstorm! Keep your fingers crossed that school is closed on Monday!!!

 

How I Made a Difference on December 14,2007

Today I made a difference by being a kindergarten bus helper.

Even though I am a bus helper all school year round, it is especially challenging in the winter because I have to help my kindergarteners get dressed to go outside at the end of the school day. Usually, I have to move fast, and do you know that kindergarteners like to be dressed a certain way? They do. Ryan likes his boots on first and then he likes to stick the bottom of his pants in his boots perfectly. He always keeps starting over if they are not “done right.” Felicia has to have her coat zippered all the way up to her chin and she looks like a little eskimo in her coat.

Today, I helped Ryan because he was a little behind on getting ready to leave. Usually I have five kids to take care of, but today I only had four because Felicia was sick. This gave me a little more time. Some kids get overwhelmed taking care of little kids, but I really like it.

 My kindergardeners names are Ryan, Callan, Angela, Felicia and Luke. I also am a bus helper in the morning when I go to school. I get to count kids and help the bus driver. I really like my bus driver.

How I Made a Difference on December 13,2007

Oliver and my fish, Sushi

Today I made a difference by cleaning my fish’s fish bowl. It used to be really yucky water! When I clean the bowl, which is shaped like a fish, I put my real fish, Sushi, in a big white bowl. It takes me about 15 minuets to clean her bowl.

I got Sushi at a fair. I won her by playing this game where you try to throw ping pong balls in these tiny plastic bowls. I got her on the 4th of July. It was really hot where I live! My parents can’t believe Sushi has survived as long as she has. She’s awesome.

I have a cat whose name is Oliver. Oli is his nickname. Oli likes to watch the fish all night long. He likes to wake me up and show me how much he likes to play. I get really mad at him sometimes when he wakes me up in the middle of the night because he’s playing with my fish! I can’t do anything about it though because my fish bowl didn’t come with a lid. It’s about thirty years old. I also hate closing my door when I sleep.

 I really love my fish!

 

A Request from “The Mom”

Did you know that Laura wants to be a veternarian when she grows up? She really does, and I think she is an ideal candidate for this profession. Just don’t ask her to clean any fishbowls…we won’t discuss the current state of the one in her bedroom right this very moment. Anyway, as I was scrolling through my blogroll tonight, I became attuned to the fact that the Animal Rescue site is failing to meet their quota for daily clicks and may no longer be able to donate food to needy animals. I thought I’d pop back over here briefly and please ask everyone who stops by to visit their site and give them a little bit of support. It won’t cost you a cent, and I know that Laura will appreciate this.

Thanks!

Angela (Laura’s mom)