Why I'm Here

Why I’m here.

You may look at the title of this blog and think, “Ok Doc is going to give us the meaning of life.” But what I would like to talk about is “Why I am here, in Texas.” I am attending the NCO Academy here at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. Lackland AFB sits here in the city of San Antonio TX. It was strange to come back to the place where my Air Force career started. After about a day the flood of memories came back about my time in Basic training. But now that I am here I am here for a different reason.
Now the Non-Commissioned Officer training is a stepping-stone in my career it is very important for me as a future leader to attend this course. Now you might ask me, “What do you learn there?” This 6-week class teaches us writing skills, speaking skills, teamwork skills, managerial skills, and above all leadership skills.
Our first week has been a very intensive week. We start out every morning with singing the Air Force Song. How does this affect learning? This is to help us instill pride in what we do. There are also other ways to instill the pride in what you do such as learning how to properly march and wear your uniform. All of these little things help us in the learning process.
Although some of the things that we are learning here seem to be second nature, we can see classmates that might struggle in these areas and need to help one another out. This is where we foster teamwork. Of the 226 students here we are split up into flights or classes of 14-16 students. In these classes we work on projects that will force us to work as a team. It is very close to the points that if one student fails you all fail. You might think that this is a very harsh way of learning, but in the career field that we have chosen if we don’t work together people die.
So in all relative terms, I am here to learn how to become a more effective manager and leader. Communication to your subordinates and being able to clearly lead will be my main objective while I am here. Now in future blogs I will write about some of the off the wall stuff that happens here, so stay tuned for more about where I’ve gone and to what I’ve done.

www.af.mil
http://www.aetc.randolph.af.mil/default.htm
http://www.lackland.af.mil/

The importance of Etiquette when using e-mail.

Assignment 4
The importance of Etiquette when using e-mail.

The most important aspect that I have seen through these readings is the importance of Electronic Communications. E-mail has become a vital part of the way we do business and is a very important way to communicate and pass along vital information. I only belong to one mailing list and “group,” that I use on a personal basis. This group is very good about not sending out un-important information. I had belonged to groups in the past and the amount of junk that was sent out was at times overwhelming.
As a supervisor at work I try and curb the amount of e-mail that is forwarded because at times this can be overwhelming also. There is quite a bit of information that is passed down in my work center that is only important or pertains to supervisors.
I think that the re-sending of e-mail with F.Y.I. is one of my main pet peeves. Also it seems that when these types of information do come out that there is always someone or more than one person that has to throw in a comment to the original e-mail that contradicts or has nothing to do with the original e-mail. These at times can be offensive to the original author and I see people often make the mistake of Reply All and have seen people get reprimanded for doing so.
Educating our co-workers and subordinates is something that we need to do to stop the massive flow of junk. There have been days that I have wasted hours reading e-mail that is of no importance to my work center or me. Whether it be memos that do not pertain to my work center or just junk in general, this time sifting through the junk could be more productive on other requirements or assignments that need to be taken care of in a timely manner.
E-mail and maintaining my disk space is at times can be a challenge. One thing that I have found to help in the storage of “important e-mails,” is the ability to save these e-mails on a disk and keep them handy if they are needed in the future. I recently had one of our servers go down at work and thought that I had lost some very important e-mails, but luckily by doing a weekly back up I was able to recover most of the information that I thought was lost. (Rinaldi, 1998)
'By requiring employees to use appropriate, businesslike language in all electronic communications, employers can limit their liability risks and improve the overall effectiveness of the organization's e-mail and Internet copy in the process' - Excerpt from 'Writing Effective E-mail', by Nancy Flynn and Tom Flynn. (Email Etiquette, n.d.)
For the most part we as supervisors should insist that our employees and coworkers adhere to basic standards and etiquette when using e-mail. With these practices in place we will be able to increase productivity by alleviating useless e-mails and communication.


Rinaldi (1998) The ‘Net User Guidelines and Etiquette. Retrived 12 Sept. 2006. https://myasucourses.asu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=/bin/common/course.pl?course_id=_16190_1

Email etiquette (n.d.) Retrived 12 Sept. 2006. http://www.emailreplies.com/

Drivers Bug me

You see it everyday. People cruising down the road talking on their cell phones not paying attention to the road. I was told when I moved down here from Anchorage Alaska that Phoenix drivers are the worst. Mind you I have driven all over the world, and I have to say, driving here in Phoenix can be a challenge at times. I was amazed to being passed when I was driving what I thought was the speed limit of 65 mph. I was being passed like I was sitting still. My only question is, where is everyone going in such a hurry? Is there really anything that you need to get to that quick? And if so, why didn't you leave earlier?
I am glad to see the enforcement of the Red Light running Cameras that have been popping up here in the valley, and another favorite is the Speed Cameras on the 101. But all these little technological gadgets still don't seem to be making a dent in the speeders and red light runners that just annoy the crap out of me.
Since I have driven in other countries I see that the U.S. really has a problem. Driving etiquette is really lacking here in the United States. People here drive very aggressively and look out only for themselves. Drivers in the United States, especially Phoenix, should learn a lesson from countries such as Europe where they see driving as a privledge and driver etiquette is seen every day and the roadways of Europe are driver friendly.

Read more from Phoenix drivers in this blog.
http://www.azcentral.com/blogs/index.php?blog=265&blogtype=News

Distracted Drivers

What are you thinking?
Did you know that motorcycle-crash fatalities have risen within the past year to 146. There were 118 deaths in 2004 and 75 deaths in 2001 (Golfen, 2006). So why the jump in Arizona motorcycle deaths you might ask? On of the major concerns is that automobile drivers just don’t pay attention to the road. With the increased use of cell phones, I-Pods, and other electronic devices, more and more motorcyclists are being killed in accidents involving distracted drivers.
So what do we do to help slow down the rate of motorcycle deaths? First, riders need to educate themselves and drive defensively as possible. Also it is a great idea to dress to be seen. Wearing clothing that is bright in color helps the chances that the motorcyclists will be seen by automobile drivers. Also wearing of helmets dramatically increases the chances of a motorcyclist to survive a crash (Ullrich, 2003).
Second, there needs to be education for automobile drivers. A key in this is for the federal government to enact stronger laws against drivers that drive distracted. There needs to be an all out media blitz to educate the public on the hazards of driving distracted. Should we have commercials that show the hazards of driving distracted? Sure! Just as driving drunk or under the influence of drugs, driving distracted can and has had fatal consequences.
So both the motorcyclist and the automobile driver need to take responsibility while on the road. But there is more responsibility of the driver of the automobile to be more attentive and drive responsibly and not distracted. There have been many times that I have driven the Valley by-ways and highways and seen some really distracted drivers. Recently I witnessed a driver talking on a cell phone while trying to read what I think was a map while driving down I-10. Too much multi-tasking while driving a potential weapon that can kill in an instant.
Please do everyone a favor, do not drive distracted!


References:
Ullrich, Dan. (2003) Bikers Beware: Motorcycle Deaths on the Rise. HealthLink – Medical College of Wisconsin. Retrieved Sept 4. http://healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1031002245.html

Golfen, Bob. (2006) More Arizonans Riding, Dying On Motorcycles. The Arizona Republic.Saturdayay, September 2, 2006.

Conclusion of Blogging.

Alright went and surfed some blogs and saw some that mimic the Tabloid papers you would see at the check out counter. So my first impression of blogs is just trash talking. Or people talking about nonsense. So why would one Blog? Is it a narcissistic type of personality that would Blog the most? Having so much to say about oneself could be seen as a curse. Or is it mostly the shut in that has no one to talk to and makes up the fantasy realm that you can see through the writing that this is the place the author would like to live. Who knows? I have seen a few of these and will go back so I can link to certain blogs and show you what I am talking about. Is it the scholarly attributes that have led me on this quest? Well no not really. I just like to see what people write and try and find a motive of why they write some of the things they do.
Ok enough of my rambling. Hopefully I will not be too crucial on why people write the things they do, but there are times you have to wonder "Why did they say that?" So my quest of why people Blog begins. Check back often and see what I see and please add comments and try and help me figure this one out because it dumbfounds me at times.

Hashing with the Hashers.

You may ask, what is Hashing? Well there are many clubs, or what we called kennels all around the world. Our main thing is that we are "A Drinking Club With a Running Problem." What we do is get together during the week and have some fun following a trail and then afterward singing some bawdy songs and of course drinking beer. The trail is set in a hound chases hare format. Usually there is one to two people that are the hares and they take a bag of flour and some sidewalk chalk and make a trail. The "Hares" get a 10-15 minute head start and take off down the street, trail, woods, or wherever the meeting place is and lay drop little handfuls of flour or draw directions with the chalk on the ground. Now having two hares and a little bit of a lead this allows the hares to lay false trails that lead nowhere. But there is always 1 true trail that will lead to the end.
Ok, now the hares have their lead and are out setting a trail and it's been about 10-15 minutes. What next? While for that 10-15 minutes the "Hounds" or main pack have been sitting around drinking beer, singing bawdy songs, and getting instructions on what kind of symbols or markings that they would see on trail. At the sound of a whistle the pack of hounds is off to chase the hares. The object of the run is to catch the hares before they can get to the end. If a hare is caught there are penalties to pay at the party after the run.
So the hounds chase the hares to the end and then the debauchery begins. Now you really have to experience it, because it is unexplainable. But to put in simple terms it is a party of drinking and singing late into the night.
For more information on the Hash House Harriers check out the links below.
http://www.half-mind.com/
http://www.phoenixhhh.org/
http://www.gthhh.com

First Blog on the Blog

SO this is something that is quite new to me. What to write about what to say. Well other having to run around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to prepare to leave for the NCO Academy my day has been pretty usual. Getting up in the morning for PT running a mile and a half, push ups and situps, jumping on the motorcycle going home and getting ready for work and being in at work by 7am is how I start my day. So here is the start of my Blog. I am sure that as the class goes on the will get better as now I am off to read what a Good Blog should be.