Deployment and everything after: the little things that make our days

On a day like this it is hard to have high spirits (the picture above is DAYTIME). The air is so thick with dust that you can literally taste it. When you walk outside and are physically covered with a fine mist of sand/dirt it's hard to say that you are having a good day. Never mind that it was another scorcher today, a lovely heat category 5 (120+°F) . Now what exactly is a heat category 5 you ask? Well, first we must understand how to calculate it. It's really simple to calculate the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT). Simply use this formula:

Average_WBGT	=	(WBGT₁)(t₁)+ (WBGT₂)(t₂)+...+(WBGT_n)(t_n)
		(t₁)+(t₂)+...(t_n)

Now I don't mean to get all scientific on you but I'm just saying this formula just came to me. Now once you have determined the WBGT you can use that information to determine how quickly you are going to melt. Actually the heat categories are to suggest how long you can work outside in a work to rest ratio calculated in minutes per hour. In a heat category 5 you should only work 10 minutes with 50 minutes of rest. Hell, I think most Americans use this work to rest ratio on a daily basis, regardless of the outdoor temperature (especially those smokers). Gotta love that sense of entitlement.

Sorry, I kind of got off on a little tangent due to the lack of oxygenation going on inside my lungs because they are now sand pits! As I was saying, in spite of crappy days like this there are always those diamonds in the rough that we find that brighten our day. My sister-in-law (I hate saying that because I think of her as my sister but it would really sound weird if I were to say my sister whose married to my brother...), Susan, sent me some pictures that her students had made for me (now I know this is July and school let out sometime in June but it's a little hard to come by a scanner here). As I have said before I appreciate all of them but there are always one or two that really stand out. They stand out because of some prophetic picture or deep, inspiring words that were spelled out in a letter or it could be just one of those "Darndest things kids say" type of letter. And here are a couple of them:

I also wanted to thank a very special niece of mine, Stephanie, who wrote me a letter and drew me a picture. It was fairly straightforward but I know how sincere she is and how much she cares for me. Her parents have reared her to be a very thoughtful and caring young lady. I am very proud of her and it comforts me to know that my little girl has such a person to look up to in a world that seems to be spiraling out of control. I just pray that I can be as good of a dad to my little girl as my brother has been to his little girl. I just want my niece, Stephanie, to know that your uncle Bryan loves you and is grateful for the pictures you sent me, oh and don't be afraid to take the car out he won't mind. Thank you.