Friday, February 19, 2016

Day 18/194

Thursday, Week 3!
It's almost Friday, which means I almost get to see Kev! Good God, will this ever pressing feeling to see him at the end of each week ever settle down? How am I supposed to manage being this eager on a weekly basis for 6 months!? I better get used to it! And this weekend, I am going to attempt not to dread Sunday the whole time but instead to appreciate the time we haven while we have it. Anyhow, I crushed the gym after work and I am officially 11 pounds down and really starting to tone up :) This has been helping my overall mood lately too and has given me something to focus on personally, in addition to success at work but rather than just investing all of my time to thinking about Kev at the academy.

I talked to Kev when I got home from the gym, but he didn't text me that he was done for the day until about 8:30 PM. Mind you, he was up at 4:30 AM to 'practice' putting the PT mats away. He said that basically consisted of meeting in the gym at 4:30 AM and being advised by the PT staff that "we can't force you to practice putting the mats away, but we highly suggest it." Kev has heard this "we highly suggest it" statement a few times and it seems that is a passive aggressive way the academy likes to tell the cadets they better so something or they will regret it later. After practice, the day was followed with classroom work and a surprise spelling quiz. Kev missed 3 of the spelling words and as a result he has to write a memo for each, in which he also has to write the word 25 times. He said they also started PMA (Physical Methods of Arrest). This is exciting because Kev now gets to wear his cop belt the rest of the time at the academy, with his cuffs and baton. He is stoked, but said that sitting in a classroom chair all day with a baton hanging from your belt is a little uncomfortable at first. The cadets also learned their fighting stance. I honestly can't remember what Kev called it but it is the stance they take when they approach someone that gives them an advantage if they were to need to jump into action. He said they then passed out pretty graphic images of crime scenes and officers who were killed on duty. Kev is a pretty strong willed and strong minded individual, but said this was certainly eye opening and moving. I finished reading "A CHiP on my Shoulder" which also touches on this unnerving subject in a few chapters. It is definitely something that is still new and daunting to me. When I met Kev he told me he was waiting to be accepted into the academy and wanted to be a CHP officer. To be honest, I didn't think much of it at first. Now that I am his girlfriend and have come to love him more and more each day, I respect him so much more for the career he chose. However, the vow he will one day pledge to "lay down your life rather than swerve from the path of duty" scares me so much. I keep reminding him that is one of the reasons why he needs to give 110% to the academy and consume all the education they give him - so he is prepared for the next 28 years on the job .

I would highly suggest reading "A CHiP on my Shoulder". It was a great book written from the viewpoint of a wife who was married to a CHP officer for over 20 years. She recalls stories of other law enforcement couples she has befriended over the years and couples their strengths and hardships with that of her own family. She provides great advice for both sides of the relationship and tips for success in sustaining a long and happy relationship with a law enforcement officer. I thoroughly enjoyed it! I also bought "Cadet Blues" on Amazon, so I am on to a new book. This one is about a gentleman who was a college dropout and joined the academy to change his life and make his family proud. He describes each day at the academy, much like my blog but through the eyes of a cadet. I swear my next book choice will be something non-CHP related! ;)

- Mimi

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