Online Courses!

I love online courses, especially free ones. I was informed about the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association's (AOPA) Air Safety Foundation (ASF) Program, which is a series of online, interactive modules on the AOPA's website that focus on pilot safety, weather, GPS technology, runway safety, etc. After the completion of a module, it shows up on your ASF Course Transcript, and you can print off a certificate if you have a current pilot's license.

Unfortunately, I haven't yet obtained my Student Pilot's License, which I don't need until I solo, but I think I'll go grab it anyway. At least then I can start accumulating these certificates, which can then be used for the FAA's WINGS program, and is another WOFT resume-builder, hopefully. At any rate, these courses are extremely interesting and I've learned a lot so far.

Completed:
1) Runway Safety
2) Do the Right Thing: Decision-Making for Pilots

Next step: take my 3rd Class Medical exam so I can get my Student Pilot certificate!

Been teaching myself "The Flight Environment" out of the Schweizer Pilot Manual. For the most part, extremely interesting. Even airport lighting was interesting once I re-evaluated it after a good night's sleep. :D

Working on Airspace (Class A, B, C, D, E, G) now...some of it is interesting but at the moment it is just confusing. Not as straightforward as I was hoping...

Minor Updates

Just got off the phone with my recruiter, and I now have dates set to take the ASVAB and AFAST.

ASVAB: December 7
AFAST: December 16

Also, if I get my LASIK done in mid-December, it is quite likely I'll be able to board as early as May.

More Pics from the Mountain X-Country

Except these were taken by my CFI (Flight Instructor), meaning I was at the controls!

College

Just thinking out loud at this point...

After this quarter, I am 50 credits (10 classes) away from graduation. June is two quarters (Winter & Spring) away, so I have two quarters to knock this out. Basic math = 5 classes/quarter. Now, my school dictates that a "full-time student" is 12-18 credits per quarter, i.e. ~3 classes. Highly annoying, since I am not allowed to register for more than three classes, and I'll have to add the others the first day of class for that quarter, severely limiting my options. 

I think I am going to apply online for a local Community College so I can knock out some of those credits via online courses. Being in five classes per quarter while trying to work on WOFT and flying and everything else is a little bit too much, but taking one of those five online will really help offset the workload. The amount of homework isn't the issue; it's sitting in class all that time. Each class is just over two hours long, so it gets a bit tiring. Online courses will really allow me to work at my own pace (i.e. knock it out faster). 

So, it looks as though for Winter quarter, I'll be taking:

Intro to Political Values

Intro to American Politics

International Economics

Media Globalization 

+ 1 Online Class

Spring quarter schedule isn't out yet, but I'll need to take:

PPE (my major) Seminar

Another Economics Course

Elective 1

Elective 2

+ 1 Online Course

I'm also toying with the idea of taking two online courses during Winter quarter (6 classes total) so as to decrease my Spring quarter workload. I suppose if it becomes too much, I can always drop one of them early on, no big deal. Hmm...I'm just glad I decided to knock out my really tough, upper-division classes early on at Reed. Already for Winter quarter I'll be taking three lower-division classes as a result, so that's a relief.

My major is PPE: Politics, Philosophy & Economics with an Economics "Track."

LASIK

Forgot to mention that on Wednesday I found out that I am indeed a candidate for LASIK, which is incredible news. However, my eyesight is hovering around -6.00 diopters, the cutoff for the Army's pre-op requirements. So I'd need to get an Exception to Policy (ETP). Apparently it's not unheard of, and the decision to grant an ETP is usually based on post-op results. Either way, I'm going to another place in the beginning of December to get another consultation. Maybe they'll read my eyesight differently. *Crosses fingers*

Doesn't matter, in the end. I know if I don't get LASIK, then I'm not a candidate for WOFT, no doubt about it. At least with putting in an ETP, I have a chance.

Ground School Lesson No. 1

AEROMEDICAL

I think it speaks volumes about my CFI that I was able to pay attention to this material. He even made it interesting. Yesterday, I was in class literally all day, 8am-8:30pm, then headed to the airfield immediately afterwards, and after BSing a bit, dug into Aeromed.

We just covered the basics, and are finishing it up in a group ground lesson on Monday, but it was clearly a valuable and critical topic. We covered the different types of hypoxia and the symptoms, hyperventilation, some FAR/AIM regulations that pertain to that, and other physical & physiological symptoms that should ground pilots, such as congestion, medications, etc. 

Also went over "I'M SAFE," which is an acronym for basically a preflight checklist of yourself, the pilot. Illness, Medication, Stress, Alcohol, Fatigue, and Eating habits. This was all very straightforward and mostly common sense, but the value of the lesson is clear.

Of particular interest to me was the section where we discussed what happens to the ear canal during ascent and descent, especially to higher altitudes. I've always had excessive ear pain in commercial flight, particularly on descent (I had ear tubes put in when I was 2, probably why), so it was very informative to see diagrams of what is actually occurring inside your ear.