Hiking Through Life

Averted Disaster

Pictures are priceless. Let me say it again… pictures are priceless. My iMac decided to take a dump and stop working altogether Saturday so when I got home from TAPS (another post about my wonderful weekend with TAPS is coming soon) I tried to fix it. By the time I decided to start fresh and do a restore from the Time Machine software it was more jacked up than when I started. So jacked up that if I clicked the mouse or hit a key on the logon screen it froze up completely. Anyway, I found a helpful Mac Support page that said I could do a restore by booting from my install disk and using utilities to restore from a back up. I was like, “Cool, I’ve had time machine up and running since June. I should be good-to-go.”

So, I set it in motion and went to bed. Upon getting up the next morning I checked it out and all my photos were not loading in iPhoto. I freaked a little but then I opened Time Machine and there they were… just waiting to be restored. I thought it kind of weird that they weren’t automatically restored but I figured as long as they were still there… no big deal. So I left to go to TAPS about 90% sure I would come home and be able to restore all my photos with no problems. I got home to find that when I clicked on Time Machine all my backups were gone and I started to cry like a baby thinking all my pictures were gone forever! The 1st 9 months of Emily Kate’s life documented meticulously by Jen and I… gone. Once I stopped freaking out I knew there was a way to recover data from formatted disks because I have heard smart people say it could be done. I’ve never had the need to even try it until now.

So I did a quick search and FileSalvage popped up in Google so I tried it out… boy was I relieved when it worked. All my pictures were still there… just hiding amongst the 1’s and 0’s of the hard-drive. Now the fun of going through them all and sorting them again. But I’d rather have that problem the pain in the pit of the stomach feeling of losing nearly 2 years worth of photos, most of which I could live do without, except the last 10 months. Thanks goes to the folks at SubRosaSoft for developing FileSalvage.

Back in the Saddle

I’ve started taking classes again for my Master’s degree. It’s been a long time coming… I’m going through Liberty University. I’m taking two classes this summer. Seems weird taking classes again after being away from it for so long. One nice thing about being in the military is that my classes are paid for with tuition assistance from the Air Force. To pay it back I have to serve two more years in the Air Force after my last class is completed. Small price to pay for a free Master’s Degree if you ask me. I still have to pay for my books… but that’s chump change compared to classes at $250 a credit hour.

Taking classes online is a lot different than taking them in the classroom. However, with the use of the Internet, it does make it pretty straight forward. I would say to anyone thinking about going back to school for bachelor’s or master’s that they should seriously consider doing it online… and Liberty comes highly recommended. Not only do they have a great online environment, all their instructor’s are committed Christians and teach the classes from a Biblical point of view whenever possible.

TAPS

The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors is a great program… read more about it by clicking the link below.

Chairman Lauds Group for Work With Families of Fallen Warriors

“All of us know that nobody goes through life alone — nobody,” Navy Adm. Mike Mullen told those gathered for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors Honor Guard Gala. “[And] nobody should have to go through grief alone. It’s really that that TAPS does so well.”

Bonnie Carroll started TAPS after her husband, Army Brig. Gen. Tom Carroll, an Alaska National Guardsman, was killed in a plane crash in 1992. Seven others died in the same crash. TAPS, a nonprofit organization, provides ongoing peer-based support to anyone who is grieving the death of a loved one who served in the armed forces. It brings together survivors for comfort, healing, and hope through grief seminars for adults and its Good Grief Camps for children.

April Videos

Here’s a coupe videos of Emily laughing historically. Enjoy!

Click Here to see one more if you liked the first two.