Training

So I have been getting alot a crap from people because I have not updated the Cole Family Blog. I would like to thank Amber for her recent post - but for all those who have been requesting an update here you go!! Also, if you just logged onto our blog, you will notice the added music - I thought I would add a few of my favs for your listening pleasure! Also, I need to make a clarification from Amber's post - I was in training in Louisville, and did attend some good training - but I also took full advantage of what I like to call "networking". And while some nights the "networking" kept me out till the wee hours of the morning, I still made it to all my classes. It really was a GREAT time, and was very much needed for me. It was wonderful to visit with lots of my old friends, and of course meet many new ones - (Thanks to my new Michigan buddies who picked me up on the side of the road and drove me down to 4th Street).
I was released from the Bishopric yesterday - Amber and I are so excited about the free time I will now enjoy! It is crazy to think that both she and I have been in major leadership positions since we have been married - over 10 years now - so this is a well deserved and much needed break! I am really hoping for a calling in the nursery - that way I can hang out with little Bennett boy - not to mention I will get a snack each week (including fast Sunday - which is a beautiful thing since we have the dreaded 1 to 4 schedule).
Work is always very busy, and keeps me on my toes. I enjoy every minute of it, and love what I do. I have 3 trainings upcoming - I am doing the Crime Scene Academy in September - attending and teaching at the Tri-Division Conference in Phoenix Arizona the end of September - and then doing the Advanced Crime Scene Academy in October. Also in October I am hosting The Science of Fingerprint Identification course. In November - just after Thanksgiving I am heading back to Anniston, Alabama for additional training with Weapons of Mass Destruction - this will be another hands on training and I get to go to "Cobra Alley" again. "Cobra Alley" is the only area in the US where you work with live chemical agents. They suit you up, to include full respiratory gear, and go into rooms with monitoring equipment to detect the chemical. Last visit I was exposed to Serin Gas and VX Nerve Agent. It is pretty wild, and quite the adrenaline rush.