Man, in two weeks, I'll be on my way out of here. I can't wait. I'm getting really fed up with this place.

Y'know, the training itself isn't too bad, but I'm just getting really sick of all the bullshit in-between. I especially hate inspections. We had three of them yesterday. The platoon is getting burned out, people are hurting, and all everyone wants to do is just relax a little bit on our Saturday, when there is no training scheduled. Instead, we spend most of the day getting cocked by bored instructors. We got a little free time today, which is why I'm back online.

We learned how to clear a trench the other day. That will come in handy, should I ever be deployed to World War I.

Tomorrow, we're doing advance-to-contact. That basically means we're just going to patrol around until someone shoots at us, then we have to kick their ass. We're gonna have to pepper-pot over a few hundred metres to their trench, or whatever they're gonna be using for cover, before clearing it. Considering we're gonna be carrying full mags and wearing ballistic plates, it's going to be incredibly exhausting. I'm a grenadier, so while it could be better for me, it could also be worse. At least I'm not carrying a machine gun or mortar. I'm trained on them all, though, so if it comes down to it, we can switch off.

After that, we've got assault boat training. That might actually be fun, so we'll see. I'm not sure what else is going on this week, but afterwards, we'll be doing our field ex. That's two-and-a-half days on the defensive. I've done a week straight before, in winter, so the duration isn't too bad. Y'know how hard it is to dig a trench in the frozen ground? Still, I don't expect to get any sleep during that time.

As much of an optimist as I am, I'm not gonna lie: I hate this place and want to go home. I've gotten mentally and physically harder -- I can run farther, lift more, and shoot straighter -- but I still hate being kept on a short leash and feeling like a prisoner. But I'm not quitting. Quitting isn't my style.

Plus, at the least, my course-mates are helping to keep me sane. I've got eighteen other dudes and one girl from across western Canada going through the same shit as me. They're good people, and when we get out of here, we're all going to drink until none of us can stand. It will be glorious.

Hey, dudes and dudettes!

This place sucks ass, haha. I managed to get a little bit of free time, finally, so I popped into a cafe on base and decided to say hi. I literally only have 13 minutes left before I gotta form back up, so I'll make this quick.

I sent text messages to a few of you whose numbers I have, during the 50 minutes where I had my phone again. If you try to text me back, I probably won't see it until next weekend. We're kept under close watch a lot of the time, and have very short timings. I don't expect to have a weekend off at all while I'm here.

The physical training is quite challenging, especially the pepper-potting. I am getting in pretty decent shape though, so it's not all bad. The food's pretty good too, when we're not eating rations. I've gotten qualified on the M203 grenade launcher, 60 mm mortar, and claymore mine. The M203 was especially fun. I'm actually a pretty good shot with that thing, haha.

I've been homesick while here. I'm very much looking forward to completing this course and getting back to Winnipeg. I did toss my name in for an exercise directly following, though, so I might be gone for an extra eight days. It won't be fun, but if I do go, I should be able to afford a new computer from it. I've been using the same one since 2004.

I gotta get going. I miss my friends and family, but it's really encouraging to know you guys have been rooting for me from all over the world. I hope to see you all again soon.

[Current Music|Jamiroquai - Blue Skies (Flux Pavilion Remix)]

I'm departing in the morning. My course ends on August 19th. There are 26 training days scheduled officially, so there's a chance I might get a day off here or there, but I'm not gonna count on it. That sort of thing depends on how the candidates perform, and how the staff are feeling. I know we've got a couple of real idiots going on this one. I'll be three hours away from home, so we'll see if I can pop in or not.

This is going to be more challenging than anything I've done before. In fact, I think it's the biggest challenge I'll have in training until I attempt to become a master corporal. I'll be fine, though. I'm resilient. I've been sore and sick and sleep-deprived before, and continued on regardless.

It'll be rewarding.

When I get home, I'll have a dress uniform with a marksmanship badge sewn on it, my unit's cap badge, and a promotion waiting for me. Plus, despite the suck, I always come back from these things with some funny stories.

I'll see you guys and girls when I see you. Thank you, everyone, for your support. ♥

Sorry, it isn't from me! I don't have time to take any before I depart for training. But maybe my good friend  neive can tide you over! :D

Neive is offering fetishy pin-up commissions, to add a bit of diversity to her gallery. She'll do a variety of subjects, including macro/micro. I know I have a lot of macrofurries watching me, so I figured it'd be relevant to someone's interests. She comes up with some of the most adorable macro pics—plus she's good at other stuff too!

I just got a call from the army. I'm course-loaded and confirmed. In twelve days, I'll be going AFK for another month to become a bad ass infantryman. I'm looking forward to it, haha. I've been bored since I got back from Pittsburgh anyway. :D

I mean both AC the con, and  aycee the artist. Take a look through my scraps! That's where I stick work that isn't my own.

I was so stoked to get art trades from my friends and new acquaintances. It's one of the best parts of conventions! Thanks so much for everyone who traded with me.

Again, if I drew anything for you, please scan it and link me to it!

Hope you're having a good one!

I would bust out my necktie with the big maple leaf on it for this occasion, but it's just way too hot and humid! Yesterday, the temperature was up past 40ºc, and the humidity was way up there too. I could handle the heat in Pittsburgh, but surprisingly, Winnipeg's summer is too much. XD

Oh well. Maple leaf boxers it is!

Also, it's kind of cool to see a non-specific holiday banner up top, 'cause it looks like it could apply equally well to Canada Day and Independence Day. Canada Day usually gets ignored on sites that are hosted by Americans, even if there is a large Canadian user base. I'm not sure if that was intentional, but either way, it's nice.

My good friend  atomicstoney lost her badge sometime over the weekend. It was a pretty cool badge, and so she's reasonably upset over it. Take a look here and see if you recognize it.

Stoney and I went on a little search to find it, but to no avail. Hopefully someone found and picked it up. She's offering a free commission to whoever found the thing and can return it to her!

I'm talking about the city, not  chicago-lollie—that guy's awesome.

I just got home a short while ago, finally. That was a ridiculous journey. On the way to Pittsburgh, I had one cancelled flight, and on the way home, I had one delay and two cancels! I had to spend the night in Chicago. Oh, and my luggage got lost! Supposedly they've located it since and are going to deliver it to my house tonight, but still, that's pretty absurd for one trip.

But I'm in a good mood regardless. AC WAS AWESOME! Anthrocon too! Man, there's way too much to write about in detail, as I managed to cram a ridiculous amount of activity into that week by only sleeping about four hours each day. Highlights include:

- Rooming with  s.allen-studios,  toffeee, and  padfootsm.
- Staying up way too late each night with  zippiner,  skitzycat,  pyrokai,  nargleflex,  nemo, and the rest of that crew (sorry, I don't know your FA pages!).
- Imbibing and dancing with  seely,  bowrll,  blitzdrachen, and  paperfang (who happens to be pretty awesome at it) at Proto Collie's set, as well as a few of their guy friends.
- Another massive dinner courtesy of Padfoot, featuring  axelsson,  strype,  cooper,  crux,  dnapalmhead, Perry, Toffee,  beowulf, and moar!
- Dinner at the Church Brewery with  keihound (who I hadn't seen in four years!), AC, Zach, Cinnamon, and Keovi. Thanks, dude!
- Figure drawing sessions, both clothed and nude.
- Constant compliments on my badge by Kittiara, and my style of dress. Lots of people said I was the best-dressed guy at AC, but I think I was out-styled by that dude in the white suit with patch pockets, the sandy-coloured tie and socks, and the black and white wingtips. That guy was classy.
- Being told that I was distracting the artist sitting across from me in Artist Alley, because I was too cute. öwö
- The after-hours dance with Euchre and That One Guy. I ducked out of there once they switched to that retarded-fast jungle shit though.
- Badge-hunting with Stoney. Shame it never showed up, but it was nice to spend some time together again.

I also want to sincerely thank everyone who checked out my work during the two days I was in Artist Alley, and those who commissioned me! I really enjoyed hanging out with Seel and Crux and drawing for you guys. While I didn't make profit, that did cut down on the cost of my trip by a decent chunk. Those art trades were so awesome too. I'm gonna scan and upload them at some point.

If I drew anything for you, please scan it and link me to it!

Can't wait to go again. :D

I'm off to AC! I'm not carpooling with  chicago-lollie and  corbinbusker this year; I'm flying solo. See you in Pittsburgh this afternoon! Say hi to me if you recognize me.

I was considering filling out that AC questionnaire that's been circulating around, but hell, nobody wants to read through a checklist that long—particularly when most of the answers are "no" or "I don't know."

Long-story-short, I'll be showing up Wednesday afternoon. I wasn't planning on doing commissions this year, but if I break my budget, then maybe I will, haha. I'm totally up for art trades though!

Come say hi to me if you recognize me! Just mind your manners too. Like, I'm not opposed to handshakes and hugs and stuff, but keep that murrypurry shit in check. I got scritched by some fat dude last year, and it was really creepy, haha. I felt like I needed to shower after that. I also had some fruitcake I didn't know come up and rub my hair, saying, "Ooh, spikey!" I promptly told him off. So basically, if we're meeting for the first time, don't be a creeper, haha.

I'm so stoked regardless. I had such an awesome time last year. It was like a four-day-long party! I got to meet so many of my friends in person for the first time, see a special old one again, as well as a make a few new buddies. I'm looking forward to seeing you all again! ºwº/

Well, I'm back in Canada. Yay~ I got stuck in a restaurant in Grand Forks on the way back, for two hours, while waiting for the tornado warnings to clear. There was some bad ass, wild lightning illuminating the sky. It was pretty cool!

Spending time with the infamous  corbinbusker was a nice way to unwind for a couple of days. It'd been almost a year since I had last hung out with him. Plus the dude's been kickin' my butt back into making art and stuff, what with his indie-dad advice.

Now, on an unrelated note,  tooiebird is taking commissions. I met her at AC last year; she's a cool chick with an equally-cool art style. Take a look at her stuff if you're in the market for some art. B3

I'm in Minneapolis for the weekend, maxin', relaxin', chillaxin', (which is similar to illin', chillin', and thrillin') with the illustrious  corbinbusker.

Mini-vacation on a whim, fuck yeah. B3

I actually got stopped at the border because I am too stylish. They actually asked me why I was wearing "a suit." Really, it was only a blazer and blue jeans. I guess that's dressing to the nines nowadays.

https://youtu.be/p-dor7Fj3GM

So hey, it's the rapture today, right? Have the proper musical accompaniment.

That nonsense aside, I'm now on vacation! The soldiers who stuck the operation through to the end were rewarded with a week of paid leave. That's right: paid vacation. What up? B3

I'm glad to finally have some time off. I've slept in my own bed only a few times over the last month or so. I've been sore, tired, sick, and sunburned, but I stuck it through all the way. I'm actually very proud of myself. It was my first operation—not just some course or exercise—and it has a measurable effect on my home province. I got to help a lot of people, and see their appreciation.

Now, I'm gonna do the same thing tonight that I did when I returned from my last course: order three large pizzas. Aw yea.

I'm home again. I spent the last three days in the hot sun, slinging thousands of sandbags around (hence the unofficial operation name). I did my best, even while I was sick and still tired from the week previous. The dam should hold now—and if it doesn't, I'm on call to head right back out.

You're welcome, Manitoba. B3

Now, on a different note, I've got my flight to Pittsburgh booked. As bad ass as the road trip with  chicago-lollie and  corbinbusker was last year, I don't want to put up with another fifty-six hours in the car. I'm just curious: what's the best way to get to the con area from the airport? I'm not familiar with Pittsburgh; I was wondering if there's a good and cheap alternative to taking a taxi. Any protips from the AC veterans or locals? Question answered!

'Scuse me for my tardiness, but you see, a state of emergency has been declared in Manitoba. I ducked out of the rear party from that training exercise, and extended my contract to fight the flood. I've been busting my balls, saving the homes of people living in the rural area around Portage la Prairie. We've been working like sled dogs on amphetamines! Picture full days of building modular dams and sandbagging, with about two or three hours of sleep per night.

I don't really have time to go into detail of what I've been going through; I'm only home until tomorrow morning, then it's back to the fight. Overall, though, it was a gong show, and I couldn't be happier to be out of there. There were a few saving moments of sheer badassery, though.

'Kay, I gotta run and do some errands. There's nothing I want to do more than just crash and chill, but I have things to do. I wish they had let us out on a weekday, because all the shops close early.

Going back to the field in the morning. Pretty sure I'm getting no more breaks this time, so I'll see you wacky furries on May 13th.

By the way, that thing I said about drawing kick-ass macrofurries while I'm away still stands. o3o/

Hey, I'm back! Command let us go home to our families for Easter, which is a pleasant surprise. I'll be heading back to the field on Tuesday, though, and I'm pretty sure I won't have any more breaks after that.

Advance party work is pretty repetitive. We had to assemble enough modular tents to hold over a thousand soldiers. I'm pretty much a pro at it now. Hard work at day, drinks and clubs at night—it wasn't a bad time!

Anyway, yeah, I'll be around for a few more days.

[Current Music|Masanori Adachi, Taro Kudo - The Forest of Monsters]

I'm going to be AFK for twenty-eight days. I'm heading back to the field for work and battalion-sized training. It's a long time to be in the wild, away from luxuries like electricity and running water, but the pay is good, and the training might be beneficial. This is going to fund my trip to Pittsburgh this summer!

See you guys in four weeks. Draw some kick-ass macrofurries while I'm gone.

Want to see my view from last week? Click here. I had to guard that area, usually at night. Yes, that is a bag of frozen gummy candy.

Machine gun: check.
Ammo belts: check.
Candy: check.

Ready to rock.

Feeding cold gummies to the section. ^o^

Feeding hot lead to the opfor. =w=

Who nailed a tank with a rocket launcher, and became soldier-qualified?

This guy. B3

I got back to the city and took my first shower in a week this afternoon. Holy fuck, running water and heating are godsends. That week was intense. I marched through deep snow, pushing a sled full of supplies, wearing my full-fighting order, and carrying my rucksack. That was the most physically-demanding thing I've ever done. I slept for about two hours every day, and not in a continuous session—usually in my sleeping bag, but sometimes out in the field, and once even standing up, haha. I woke up shivering every morning—it even rained one day, in the winter! My optical sight had a layer of ice caked on it!

It was hard work, but it wasn't all bad. I got to use two machine guns, and I was pretty accurate with them. I knocked a target on its ass with a hand grenade. Best of all, I got to fire three M72 rockets. That was awesome! A lot of our instructors hadn't even fired any of those. Some of the best times I had, though, were just chilling in the trench, joking with a buddy, while keeping an eye out for opfor.

Man, I became sleepfucked at a couple of points. I remember having racked out for about an hour-and-a-half, when the stand to alarm was called. You've heard of sleepwalking? I pretty much sleep-ran to my trench. I didn't go straight there though; I was so out of it, I had my gear half-assedly thrown on, and I started going down the wrong path at first, before realizing it and booking it to my trench, where I fell down into deep snow four times on the way. Only when I got there, did I start to wake up and think consciously again. Not my smoothest moment, haha. I was also hallucinating a bit from the sleep-deprivation, like most people were, although some of them were in a zombie state, or just flat-out trippin'.

Those trenches, by the way, had to be dug through feet of frozen dirt. We chipped at it all night with pick axes and shovels, and only managed to get about a foot down. After about three feet, however, the sand was softer, making it relatively easier.

But hey, I'm getting the hang of sleep-deprivation thing. I pulled through the days with minimal rest, and got accustomed to walking long distances over challenging terrain while carrying heavy weights. I came home looking a little more rugged and toned.

The end of the ex was nutty. At that point, we got into a firefight with the opfor, in the middle of the night, that lasted for over two hours. I put a few hundred rounds through my C7, and my fireteam partner put over a thousand through his C9. We even got reinforced by a cool MP from the rear guard, who brought his own C7 to the fray, and started bombing mags for us when we were running low. Opfor were coming over the hills, artiesims were blowing shit up all around me, paraflares were being shot to light up the night, and I even tossed a couple of smoke grenades to make a smokescreen for a casualty extraction. It was awesome!

I am so glad to be home though. I got a lot to do here, starting with a good night's rest.

https://youtu.be/AAeHwhCqmkA

Hooah.

Commencing Virtuous Field Ex.

See you guys in two weeks. Hooah!

I'm gonna be gone for a little while. Starting tomorrow, to the 20th, I'll be on a field training exercise. That means I'll be living in a tent, in the middle of winter, while conducting recce (reconnaissance) patrols, manning defences in a trench, and getting my gear blown up by opfor (opposing forces) with artiesims (artillery simulations). I don't expect to sleep more than a handful of hours throughout the entire exercise. Also, we don't get to shower while we're out there; we take, according to my sergeant, "hooker baths"—think: wash basin, soap, and wet naps. Should be fun.

So yeah, I'll be away for a while. While I do get back on the 20th, I'll probably be comatose for a good couple of days after that, haha.

I could use a good war film to psyche me up tonight. Got any recommendations? Preferably something more modern-era. Note that I've already seen the Hurt Locker and Blackhawk Down, the latter being awesome.

Whether or not you're a Fallout fan, you gotta check this out. The fandom's very own  silverfox2007 plays the ghoul in this bad ass fan film. It's super pro all around.

https://youtu.be/Q9UwlAAnlmg

I was quite amused and impressed.

My next military course begins in an hour-and-a-half. It promises to be more interesting but more demanding than my last. I expect to work more and sleep even less, but it will be, above all, rewarding.

I'll see you guys next week. Wish me luck.