Sweet Home.......!!!!

The past 5 months have proved eventful for the fourth member of the Hector family, but the culmination was in the last two weeks. The first of the last two was filled with cramming, finals, and more cramming. The last of the last two weeks was an all expense paid trip, for 18 of my classmates and I, to the Department of Homeland Security's class on Weapons of Mass Destruction Awareness in Anniston, Alabama. During the week we trained on how to handle a possible terrorist attack at the first responder level. One of the training exercises included coming face to face with sarin and VX (two deadly chemicals, which with a single drop can kill upwards of 500 people).

We left Sacramento International at 0620, and arrived in Atlanta, GA around 1330 eastern time. The planes in Atlanta like to get really close to each other it seems.


Our pilot liked living life on the edge and almost landed on the freeway. We convinced him that it probably would get him fired.


From the airport, we took a two hour bus drive to Anniston, AL where our accommodations were waiting for us. I got my own room for a whole week!!


That night we started things off with food. They fed us well during our stay. I ate three FULL meals a day and still didn't gain a single pound!


We had several hours to kill that evening since our classes didn't start until the next day, so a couple of us decided to take the beach cruisers provided for our use out for a spin. Meet the first SCUSD paramedic biker gang.


The next day we got right into the swing of things and went to class. We just got DONE with class and we volunteered to go AGAIN?! What were we thinking?!


Several exercises were preformed throughout the week, including mass triage (sorting of patients) on little stuffed animals with condition tags strapped to their poor lifeless bodies. Great idea!


We practiced decontamination techniques.


They had a whole building set up with different scenes and props, including a mock train wreck with tracks included!


We dressed up in "Level B" suits to do some of the scenarios. My buddy Eric on the left and myself on the right.


In our break area, there was a most oddly placed gazebo with a weather vane included!


From left to right: Chris, Mr. Moonsuit Manikin and Thomas, Eric.


There was a lot of down-time in the evenings, so we would take walks and find cool Alabama stuff to look at. We were on an old military base and there were old military base-like buildings which were abandoned, so we explored them. I'm not exactly sure what the chains were inside the bus stop though.


The upstairs in the barracks building was particularly creepy. Long, dark hallways with strange figures standing in front of the windows.


In the lounge area, they had a foozeball table! We had hours of fun there.


At the end of the week we headed back to Atlanta for our return flight. 4 hours of sitting around at the airport meant boredom. Boredom meant goofy pictures. My friend Vinnie and myself.


My good buddy Dan and myself.


Once on the plane I couldn't pass up this great picture of my traveling buddy Kiegon catching a few Z's.


Nine hours later we arrived in Sacramento. I love this state.


My one bit of information that I will now pass along to you in regards to possible domestic terrorist attacks is to move as far into the country as you can. That is all.