Finally, GRADUATION!!!

Well, a second graduation I guess. Tim finally completed the first half of his training as a wildlife manager for the Game and Fish when he graduated from the police academy in December. The 17 weeks of training were a rollercoaster for Tim personally, and for our family, but he made it through it, and arguably, as the best graduate in his class.

With a rigorous inspection each morning, during which time the sergeant and deputy looked for stray strings inside pockets, double creases in shirts, a stray whisker that was overlooked during shaving, boots that you couldn't see your reflection in, and the hint of a smirk on someone's face, it was CRITICAL that Tim be the image of perfection each day.

So what did I learn through this? Stain-removing skills, efficient ironing, and patience.
I have never seen Tim more dedicated to a lint roller, shaving cream, and shoe polish.
*Side note: did you know that to have shiny shoes you have to-- 1.coat with polish, 2.rub with water, 3.use a lighter, 4.repeat 5,000 times until shiny*

Really, I am serious when I say that Tim was probably the best recruit in his class. Except for minor strings, etc. that amounted to a few hundred situps and pushups as punishment, Tim's worst day was when he forgot to shave before going to work (in my opinion, an honest mistake when you are getting up before the sun. he's lucky if I shave once a week!) His punishment was 600 pushups and 600 situps. He was VERY sore afterwards, but was grateful not to receive a punishment of 1000 pushups and 1000 situps, as some recruits did. And did I mention that he graduated as the most physically fit in the class? I was so proud...

Graduation was fun to go to, with the best part being the video that highlighted the 17 weeks. For some reason, Tim wasn't given a lot of screen time (probably because he was so pro to start out with), but it was fun to see what he had been going through the past 4 months.