A new take on English, or is it Spanish?

Ok, as my sister informed me, my blog postings are too serious. Not light hearted enough. I am lost in the dark, too far gone I guess. Well to show I am not yet beyond redemption I will share a few of the new ways to use words that I have learned from some of the Mexicans I have apprehended.

-Cheese

The teacher told Pepito to use the word cheese in a sentence.

Pepito replies: 'Maria likes me, but cheese fat.'

-Mushroom

When all of my family get in the car, there's not mushroom

-Shoulder

My fren wanted to become a citizen but she didn't know how to read, so I shoulder.

-Texas

My fren always Texas me when I'm not home, wondering where I'm at!

-Herpes

Me and my fren ordered pizza. I got my piece and she got herpes.

-July

Ju told me ju were going to that store and July to me! 'Julyer!'

-Rectum

I had 2 cars but my wife rectum!

-Juarez

One day my gramma slapped me and I said, 'Juarez your problem?'

-Chicken

I was going to go to the store with my wife but chicken go herself.

-Wheelchair

We only have one enchalada left, but don't worry, wheelchair.

-Chicken Wing

My wife plays the lottery hoping chicken wing.

-Bishop

My wife fell down the stairs, so I had to pick the bishop.

-Body Wash

I want to go to the club but no body wash my kids.

Who Am I?

Have you ever wondered "Who Am I?" I have, at night, when I can't sleep. Or when I am stuck at the station during post academy days, they cage my physical body but they can't trap my mind. I allow it to wander freely and hope it comes back to me. Today my mind stumbled upon the question of "Who am I." It's been bouncing around in my head ever since I was a child and was taught the song "I am a child of God." Well that's great. But there has got to be more to it than that. I am made up of so many things. The values and morals my parents taught me. The strategies and tactics sports taught me. The ethics learned in making life's many decisions. The yin and yang, my good and bad. There is a darkness in each of us, and if you think there is not then you run a great risk of letting it loose. Our job is to contain it. Each day we are confronted with choices, those choices decide who you are and will become. What you choose everyday sways you one way or another. You are never just you, you are always changing. Becoming something new, be it good or bad. You have to constantly be aware of every choice you make, lest you find yourself someone you would rather not be.

With my mind free to probe the depths of who I am I decided to start with some basics. A little study of etymology and onomatology. Andrew means; manly, brave, courageous. Andrew was also the first apostle chosen. While Legion is not typically given as a name it is used as a military or semi military unit trained for combat. It can mean a large number or a multitude. Lange from the English origin means long and from the Dutch origin means tall. There are 17 letters, 7 vowels and 10 consonants, in my full name. Oddly there are also 17 letters, 7 vowels and 10 consonants, in my wife's full name. (A perfect match) But my name is not who I am.

So I start to really think. Am I who I really want to be? Am I even headed in the right direction? If I haven't learned who I am, how am I supposed to show a child who they should be? When the time comes can I be the parent I hope to be? Will that time ever come? I have learned a lot with this new job. So much of it so very important to just survive in the environment I am immersed in everyday. This experience has given me an opportunity to grow and expand. To find out so much about myself. Being pushed to the limits, to the edge, allows you to look down inside your soul and see the real you. And for now I am glad for who I am. And I realize that who I am isn't just me at all, its my wife, my family, my friends. Without them I am nothing, no one. When I look deep inside I see you. I am so thankful for you all. So I stop thinking of Who Am I, and I start thinking, who are you? Because you, you are everything to me.

I love you all.

Just a bunch of cool kids and their 3-D Glasses

Someone at work gave me a bunch of the 3-D glasses that were needed to watch the 3-D commercials during Superbowl halftime. Fortunately we are friends with some really cool people who are willing to embarass themselves too. :) We had a great time though and are glad to have made some good friends.

Andrew woke me up this morning to tell me that there was snow in the backyard. I figured he was confused or crazy, maybe both. We left the snow behind in Utah, at least I thought we did.

I couldn't believe it at first but it was true. Thankfully there wasn't too much of the white stuff and it didn't stick around for too long. But there was enough that the local schools closed for the day, as did most of the government offices. Andrew actually worked in the snow storm last night, in the mountains! Poor guy!

Oh by the way, I am starting a new job on Monday February 16. I was able to find a position at a bank here in Sierra Vista so NO MORE LONG COMMUTES FOR ME!!! (I am really really excited about this if you can't tell!) In all seriousness though, I know how truly blessed I am to not only have a job, but to be able to find a better one that is closer to home during this uncertain time. I thank God everyday for all my blessings, this being a big one. :)

BP Slideshow

Border Patrol

Otra Vez

{ANDREW}
Here we have another post academy day. So I figure I have a little time on my hands, why not send a brief (maybe) message out to all our avid blog followers. I guess I should first off explain a little more about my last post since some of you seem to think I left you hanging. I clearly explained why I drank the Pepsi, because it was post academy day and it was either fall asleep from boredom, or drink the Pepsi. I drank the Pepsi, and didn't fall asleep for many hours. Even when I got home and wanted to sleep, I was still wired to go. This time I have no Pepsi, but I do have a lot of cold medicine. You see I got sick a couple days ago and am fighting off a nasty cold. What? A cold you say? But how? You are in the desert. It is supposed to be warm in the desert. Why yes, that is true. It is warm in the desert. The days are absolutely beautiful right now. But I am not working days, I am working nights where the temperature drops to 35-40 degrees. And this last week we had the luxury of working in the mountains, climbing peaks up to 7000 ft at 11pm. Not only is hiking at that time of night great fun but we usually have to do it LO (lights out) due to the fact that its one of the more dangerous areas we have.

You see average Joe Mexicans, they call themselves Jose not Joe, will jump the fence about anywhere and get caught like 5-6 times before they either give up or make it past without getting caught. It's no big deal to them if they get caught, they will just try it again tomorrow. However for those carrying drugs, money, and guns they take the high mountain route. It's a little bigger deal if they get caught, a potential 10 years in a federal prison isn't quite like "try it again tomorrow." And then you also have OTMs (other than mexican), these are people from all over the world who have sometimes paid $5,000 or $10,000 just to get this far. They don't give up very easily. It requires a "hands on" experience to subdue them. They love to run, or throw rocks, or bite, pretty much anything but obey commands.

So Tuesday we were told there was a sensor that hit and a possible group of 35 was on a certain mountain trail. We think hey, that sounds like fun, 9 of us and 35 of them is better odds than usual. Let's give it a shot. So we go into hunter mode. . .

By the light of the moon we begin stalking our prey. Carefully avoiding sticks and loose rocks that would give away our presence we ascend the hillside. Pausing every now and then to listen for movement in the trees, for a hint of their putrid scent on the air. Nothing. I try to maintain a steady breathing, not too loud to be heard. I stifle a cough. The temperature is dropping rapidly now, I can see my breath. As cold as it is there is still sweat running down my back as I climb another 600 ft. Something above me knocks a rock loose and as it comes tumbling past me my heart begins to race. My senses peaked I strain to detect any movement, any sound or smell that doesn't belong. Me ears tune in on a sound, is it breathing? I can't tell, I try to hold my breath to hear better. It sounds like he is moving towards me. I look around and try to alert my fellow agents. They are too far below, in my excitement I moved too quickly and am ahead of them. My muscles tense, as I focus my mind begins to speed up, running through the myriad of possibilities of what could happen in the following moments. Time slows. I slide forward the retention strap on my pistol.

Suddenly a deer bolts from the brush and bounds away to the east, prey, but not my prey. We continue on up to a height of about 7,000 ft and lay in. Now we become part of the terrain. Hidden, within the mountain itself. Enveloped within its folds of treacherous foliage. Sharp rocks, trees with more thorns than leaves, cactus, sudden ledges, sheer drops all grasping for the one wandering unaware. We disappear, and wait. And wait. The cold biting at any flesh uncovered, unprotected. Devouring the sense of feeling, the wind eats at your nerves until you go numb. Then you hear over the radio that the group is on the other trail. There are only two trails down from that sensor, we picked the wrong one.

That my friends is how I got sick. And yes the group was apprehended, most of them got away but we got the drugs they left behind.

Oh ya, I have a video clip but it is too long, so I am breaking it up and will post it later.