Big Day Out!

Yesterday was a big day here in Austin. On Friday, Mindy won tickets at her office to the UT v. OSU game. It was a great day, sunny and warm as we headed down town to tailgate before the game. Great seats and a game that went down to the wire. We had a superfan behind us who was really into the chant "Texas..... Fight.....Texas....Fight!" That got a little old. Not to the mention the seating is very close and hard as a rock.

After the game, we changed clothes in the car and headed to the Austin Music Hall to see The Kings of Leon. We sat through two other bands, The Stills and We are Scientists, and if I was in high school without the knowledge of all music that has proceeded these two bands, I may have liked them. KOL were great and the crowd was really into it and KOL responded. Why do people have to take soooooo many crappy cell phone photos in a dark club from the back row? See my photo as proof.

We left the club and hit Home Slice the best pizza joint in town! Picked up some slices and headed home. All in all a great day spent with my lady and going to a game and a concert were part of the reason we moved to Austin. Mission accomplished!

Today, watching, err I mean wincing, the Dallas Cowboys playing. I going to cut the grass in the back 40 and plan out some meals for this week before going to the store. Life is good.

4 more years, 4 more years!

Today is Mindy and I's 4th wedding anniversary. It has been a wonderful  4 years and I couldn't ask for a better mate. I hear people say being married is a lot of hard work. For us it's not. We seem to just go with the flow and genuinely enjoy each others company. The key to a good relationship: laughter. At each other and at others. I like to end everyday by watching The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Being able to laugh at the sometimes dreadful things that happen or are going on in the world helps me make it through. Also being able to say your sorry, I mean sometimes an arrant karate chop to the neck is actually landed! And compromise, too. Give and take people, not just take, take, take. Clean the house for your mate and see how happy it makes them.

So a big shout out to "Bennett" for putting up with me and here's to many, many more.

I love you.

Citizens Police Academy

Last night was the official night 1 with presentations from the District Representatives and Cadet Training departments. DR's are the guys who focus on relations with the community- schools, block parties, community group meetings, etc. SPO Dunn was a good ol' Boy and a great speaker. He worked a really heavy drug area for a while and told us some stories about Big Tex who was a crack dealer he used to bust a lot. Dunn said they actually had a man to man relationship and it was understood that he was there to make arrests and Big Tex was there to sell crack. And that was just the way it was. Dunn said it had become personal when the cracks dealers starting asking about his wife and kids and he got transfered. TMI I guess.

The second presentation was from a trainer at the academy. I guess I've never give much thought to how smart cops are, I guess i thought it was something somebody did if they couldn't do anything else. I couldn't be more dead wrong. The training in Austin is 8 months, 5 days a week, 10 hours a day. Daily quizzes and weekly tests. A score of 80% is required to maintain status. The book they have to study is like two copies of War and Peace stacked on top of each other. Plus all the defense training, car driving, firearms, etc. Cadets are required to mentor a small kid from the local middle school near the academy and present a paper in front of a public forum regarding a community group they are required to join to learn about diversity. I was really surprised how intense and competitive it is.

One interesting tid bit. After the academy, with all the training, physical fitness etc., they are NOT required to maintain any level of physical fitness. Hence all the fat cops you see and wonder, how the hell is that gut a cop. Fat cop=desk job. Thin and physical fit cop=beat cop. Its just that simple.

Coming up next week is Office of the Police monitor? and Internal Affairs and then what I've been waiting for, Homicide and Cold Cases! I highly suggest if your local department offers this type of class, sign up its really interesting. Did I mention I get to ride along with a cop in a car for an 8 hour shift!!!