Keeping Up With The Cohens

Patrick Picture, From Pensacola

Here's the kid, in front of a very famous jet. I was so thrilled to get this photo from him! He had a friend take it with his phone, and he texted it to me Monday. So cool. I love modern technology! I believe Patrick was not working on the jet, but just happened to be in the vicinity, and knew my love of the aerial team. Thanks, Pat!

He's doing well in Pensacola. Getting through some prerequisite classes before A school starts in earnest. He's now past "Phase 1" (whatever that is), and he can wear civies off base. He's pretty stoked about that. Now that he has his phone and computer with him, we stay in daily contact. Like today, I had to let him know that the eggnog latte is back at Starbucks. He loves his eggnog. Although, his favorite nog is made by Weigels, and it's a local Knoxville chain. I will have to buy some and save it for him when he (hopefully) comes home for Christmas. Meanwhile, keep those cards and letters coming. I know he appreciates them!
 

Mom and George's Visit

It's wonderful to have Mom and George in our house! After a cold start to the day (34), Mom and I went to breakfast, and then both she and Papa George came over to watch the Nascar race. I'm going to cook a lasagna for dinner, and just enjoy the heck out of the novelty of having them in the same state for a change. Monday morning, they leave for Florida, so it is a short, but sweet, visit.

In Trucking, Stuff Happens

Like what happened about a week ago to the tire on the left, above. We had just gotten back from Chicago to see Patrick, and Bradley was preparing to go back on the road. Sunday evening, we had kissed goodbye as he sat in his truck, then I watched as he drove down the hill in front of our house, onward to work.

Then...

When he got to where he parks the trailer (at a coal-mining truck yard where the owner kindly lets Bradley stow it), he discovered, the hard way, that one of his trailer brakes was locked. Of course, the only way to discover this is to drag the trailer. The tire attached to the brake that was frozen got trashed by the asphalt. Now, these are not your usual, run-of-the-mill truck tires. These are what you call "super singles:" instead of the double tires you usually see spaced along a trailer, Bradley's trailer has one. They are double the width of your usual truck tires, saving hundreds of pounds of weight on the vehicle. And of course, they are more expensive than regular tires.

So, in the dark, Bradley had to get the brake unstuck (a very helpful fellow at the TA truck stop in Knoxville talked him through it, since it would have cost over $200 to get a service call out in La Follette). With the car's high beams giving us as much light as possible, we crawled under the trailer, and Bradley wrenched and beat at the stuck brake while I held a flashlight. Thankfully, Bradley is very good at mechanical stuff and very determined, and it worked!

However, the tire was trashed and had to be replaced. Immediately. Check out how the tread got ripped away from the tire:

Can you see that whitish area in the center of the tire? That's the gash. It's about an inch deep.

Since we didn't have the equipment to change a tire on a big rig, there was little choice but to make it to the TA shop where they (thankfully) had a couple of used super singles they would sell us. I followed Bradley down to Knoxville so that I could keep an eye on the tire in case it blew. Again, thankfully, it didn't. So, TA changed his tire, and we bought another used one as a spare, because the one Bradley had as a spare was brand-new, and really, you don't want a $1000 piece of equipment like that loose on your truck where it can be stolen. (There is no way to really secure a spare tire on a trailer... thieves will get it if they want it.) 

And... $600 and 4 hours later, Bradley left for work. And I got to ride home with two huge tires in the back of my car, and then roll them (quite humorously by myself I might add) down from the backyard to the garage, where they sit at the bottom of our stairs, waiting for their next gig.

Ah, stuff sure does happen!

Street Performers in Chicago

Just a brief post, of a photo I wanted to share from last weekend in Chicago. I haven't seen street performances since leaving Los Angeles two years ago, so it was amazing to watch these guys perform. We happened to be hanging out in the area where they set up shop. What incredible musicians they were! In complete syncopation, not a rhythm or beat off. I think we all ended up through a buck or two in their tip bucket. They were that good. Rock on!

Patrick Update - "A" School

Just a brief post to let you know that Patrick is in Pensacola, Florida now. He is going to A school to learn aviation electronics. I will post more when we know more. He talked briefly with Bradley today, just to let us know where he was headed.

Meanwhile, below is one more photo from this past weekend, during our dinner out at Red Lobster. Frankie took the photo, so of course we don't have one with him in it. Doh!

Happy Third Anniversary

Today is our third anniversary, Bradley and me! Can you believe it? I know I can't. Time has flown by, and so much has happened in those three years. The photo above is from the weekend Bradley and I met in person. Our first date was in Las Vegas, on Friday, October 13, 2006, at the Vegas Renaissance Faire! We knew right away that we would be spending the rest of our lives together.

Most of you know Bradley and I met on eHarmony, and decided to make our lives together in Knoxville. We wanted to spend some quality time with Bradley's son Patrick before he graduated high school. So we all packed up in June 2007 and made the cross-country drives: Bradley and Patrick drove from Knoxville to Fargo, North Dakota to Los Angeles, where they picked me up. We said goodbye to friends, and started our journey together.

There have been bumps in the road along the way. I think that happens in any relationship. I believe it's rare for two people to agree on EVERYTHING. But both Bradley and I have always stressed open communication and honesty above all else, and that, along with our deep love for each other, gets us through difficult moments.

Happy Anniversary, my love!

Visiting Chicago With Patrick

Here we are on Navy Pier in Chicago, me, Bradley, Patrick, Robyn and Jason. Patrick had some leave today, so we picked him up from base and drove to town. Our friend Larry also was in town, so we snatched him up from the truck stop so he could spend time with us and Mr. Patrick.

Check out this next series of pictures... I wanted a nice photo of the boys, and it ended up being a comedy routine as Larry (a former Navy guy himself) was "helping" Patrick fix his gig line... the line of buttons, belt buckle and zipper...

And finally, the picture I was hoping for. Yay! LOL!

Here's one of me and my boy...

 

Here we are walking around downtown Chicago. And walking. And walking... We probably walked about 3 to 4 miles today!

 

Here's Larry in town, with the "L" in the top right. It was so cool to be in this big city and see things I've only read about or seen in movies!

 

Bradley got chilly (shocker, I know!), since it was about 42 degrees and the wind was blowing, especially by the waterway. So we stopped in at Old Navy to get him a sweatshirt. Patrick and Jason pimped him out, so I had to take this photo!

 

Here's Patrick in front of this cool amphitheater downtown. We decided it would be an excellent place to skateboard.

 

And Bradley in front of the same amphitheater...

 

It was a wonderful weekend, and we are so proud of Patrick. He is clearly in his element, and very happy. He's excited about his future and his upcoming schooling. I will keep everyone posted about his whereabouts and goings-on as they occur. Meanwhile, he asked me to pass on just how grateful he is for everyone's letters, support and congratulations.

I will leave you with this last picture, which is my favorite photo from this weekend, by far... Bradley and Patrick having a father/son talk as we walked through one of the parks in the city.

Patrick's Navy Basic Graduation... Pics!

Here we are with Seaman Recruit Cohen, at Great Lakes Naval Station in North Chicago, after the Military Pass & Review where family and friends can show their support for their recruit. Bradley and I made the drive up yesterday, and Patrick's sister Robyn and her husband Jason drove down from St. Cloud, MN this morning to be here for the pomp and circumstance.

The ceremony was very moving, and it was clear that everyone in the entire crowd was very proud of the recruits. Here we are (below) in the parade hall, recruits on the left, family and friends on the right. We barely got there in time. Getting in past security was a bear. It took us an hour to go less than a mile. And we had thought we had gotten there in plenty of time!

 

Below: Here's Pat stuffing his face with his first taste of civilian food in 8 weeks. Buffalo Wild Wings and Coke, no ice!

Below: And enjoying his first Starbucks in 8 weeks!

We are so very proud of our son. He came through basic training with flying colors, and was one of the flag-bearers of his division. He's here with us at the hotel right now, and we are meeting Frankie and (hopefully) Larry for dinner later this afternoon. Patrick's leave ends by 8:30 tonight, but he might have more leave time tomorrow. If he does, we're heading out to a movie. At the moment, he's in the hotel hot tub with Bradley and Jason. I'm heading down there shortly. Oh, and he DID get a Mountain Dew first thing, when we stopped for gas after getting off base. Once we hit a movie tomorrow, he'll be three-for-three with his dream day!

Heading Out to See Naval Recruit Patrick...

We have the rental car (above). It's 640 miles to North Chicago. We are stoked! Bradley and I leave Thursday morning about 9am. We are hoping to stop to see my old theatre buddy from Florida, Maria, who now lives in Chicago, first. Patrick's graduation from Navy basic training is Friday morning at 9am. We'll then whisk him away for "...some more hot wings and some Mountain Dew and go to a movie" as Patrick requested in his last letter home. We are so excited to see Patrick! He's been gone almost 8 weeks, and I miss him. Can't wait to see him, especially all grown up and in uniform. I'll be sure to take lots of pictures. If I can post from the road, I will.

More later... Woo hoo!

Visitors: A Long-Overdue Post

This post is LONG overdue. These pictures were taken back in August, before Patrick left for basic training.

Before Patrick moved to Tennessee to live with Paula and John, he lived with good friends of Bradley's: Johnny and Alisha. I'd never met them, so when they were roadtripping it this summer they stopped by our place to re-connect with Bradley and Patrick and meet me. What a wonderful visit it was! They and their daughter Danica are amazing people, and we had a blast. It was awesome to get to know them, even though they were only with us for a few days.

It was a relaxing weekend, and we had plenty of opportunities to chat and EAT. LOL! Like ice cream, while watching a movie. Loved it!

I'm so glad they were able to stop by on their summer trip. I feel like we have some awesome new friends!