Hey all, sorry it has yet again been a long time since I last filled anyone in on what's been going on in my life.

The last journal I posted was when I was still in Indiana and I lament to say that I did not get my CDL. Before going to IN I had heard bad rumors about the C.R. England Co, but I was only going to get my CDL and then find another trucking company to go with. The school ended up treating me and the rest of my class more like cattle rather than students. On my last try at the CDL test I was doing just fine on the driving course and made a small mistake when changing gears which caused me to coast just a bit too far. (I forgot to bring the gear selector up when switching from 4th to 5th for those interested.) So the company sent back to GA. I tried to find another school to go with, but nothing was presenting itself in the small window of time I had. So in desperation I called up my Uncle to see if he could help me out somehow. Fortunately he and two of my cousins were able to . So now I'm Living in St. Augustine, FL!

Not only did they put a roof over my head, but also gave me a job at the new company they're all working for!! I'm technically part time and "on call", but because business is picking up I've had more hours. It was something I wasn't expecting when my uncle called me back before the move.

So I've been working for the past 2 and a half weeks. The company is called Fuzion Vapor and they make the flavor "juice" that can be put into electronic cigarettes. They have a multitude of flavors and what I do is label the bottles, fill them with the specific flavor, cap, and package them. It's not uncommon for me to work about 1,000 bottles in one day! So now I finally have a cash flow going into my pockets. I'm now debating on still perusing the trucking career. At the time it seemed like a great idea, but after what happened in IN I'm not sure if I want to be driving 90% of the time I'm awake. That and I've been on the move without being able to stay anywhere for a period of time. In short it just seems stable, at least in terms of staying in one place for any length of time. And I know that's part of the job, but still. Again, I haven't totally pushed that career aside and I still would like to get a CDL. It's a VERY good thing to have!

My uncle had suggested working for the county or state. He used to work for the county when we all still lived in MD. According to him I could get my CDL through that avenue. He's going to talk to some of his old co-workers and see if he can get some more information.

Now, on a more somber note, I'm in PA and at my aunt's house. Our family is finally having my grandfather's memorial this Saturday. It will be the first time all the family will be all together. It'll be nice and a good time. At noon tomorrow we're all going to this golf course to play a round of golf. My grandfather absolutely LOVED to golf and this was one of his favorite places to do so and it's where we're going to spread his ashes. After that we'll all have a nice dinner and just general family time.

Me and my uncle left FL the morning of my birthday, funny enough!! I'm now 26 years old! While on our way up to my aunt's in Red Lion we passed through Glen Rock. It's where my great uncle Bill used to live. Well we came across a railroad crossing and just before we did both my uncle and I heard and odd noise. It was obviously a train... but the sound was... different. I personally thought it was flange squeal, so as we passed over the tracks I looked for the track to see the train. What I saw made me squee like I've never don before. Although I didn't get a perfect view of the train, the best I could see was the last car. But what I saw was a big balloon stack and a red strap iron pilot! IT WAS THE YORK!!!
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We had just missed it rolling through the crossing so I only got to see the tail end of the train as it lumbered by. My uncle was having a field day as to how I reacted. To him it's just another train, but trains aren't his thing and I respect him for that. But then I found out how close the Steam Into History ride is from my aunt's place. So I'm hoping that before I head back to Florida I can find a way of riding it! It's less than 30 minutes away and the fare prices are fantastic for a 2.5 hour excursion from New Freedom to Hanover Jct. I'm hoping to catch one of the scheduled trains on Sunday. That have a few for today, Friday, but they're only to Glen Rock and that's a one hour round trip. So I'm keeping an eye out for other schedules between tomorrow and when we leave next week. But even though I only caught a glimpse of the York it was still a divine birthday gift from above.

Well, that about brings things up to speed with where I am right now. Again, sorry I haven't kept in better contact. Thanks for watching and I'll catch you all later!