“Careful there” Austin points out a wobbly rock as he and Maania venture ever deeper into the Hawaiian rainforest.  It’s a blue evening, the result of the Pacific sun’s last rays splashing upward off the dense green canopy.  The warm atmosphere breathes golden light and holds it, pursing it’s lips before blowing the stream into lingering […]

A few weeks ago, out of the blue, Kortnee sent me an email about the possibility of taking some family portraits.  As we talked, we discovered similarities in our backgrounds; her husband is a Navy pilot on the same aircraft as I am, we both have young children, and we both posses a creative spirit. […]

The boats bob, coated in the morning damp, lowly creaking against half-hearted lines. Golden pools of sunshine leak across decks and piers and asphalt, mixing with the dew and car oil sluicing along the drainage channels. With a throaty yawn of a forklift’s diesel engine, another day on Pier 38 blinks it’s bleary eyes awake. […]

Anybody who has been on a deployment will tell you that the slowest part is the last month, and in particular the last week.  This especially rings true in a community where your departure is contingent on another squadron relieving you on time, with weary aircraft, and (in this case) returning over the Easter weekend. […]

Stepping off the plane in San Salvador was an assault on the senses, a wet blanket of heat wrapped itself around me, amplifying the smells of street food and clamoring crowds.  A woman dressed in a brightly colored dress towered over me, balancing on stilts under her dress. She bent over and handed me a brochure […]

Flying a crewed aircraft for nine hours leads to many memorable conversations, and recently on a long mission our crew discussed Christmas traditions.  I expected stories of big meals, flag football, and opening presents on Christmas morning; to be fair there were a few stories like that, but what struck me were the majority of […]

The great Scottish poet Robert Burns penned a poem called My Heart is in the Highlands, an ode to his beloved home country, trying in a literary method to convey the arresting beauty of this rugged land. From the moment I arrived in Scotland the land felt almost familiar; I had tasted it’s earthy peat soul […]