[b]Name:[/b] John Ashley

[b]Appearance:[/b] 
[img]http://www.guadalupetrout.net/image/36930529.jpg[/img]

[b]Previous to the day of the Rapture, what was your character’s worst day?:[/b] Not so much one day, but several of rescue operations during Hurricane Katrina, when they were pulling out bloated bodies from the water and otherwise dealing with waste and devastation [i]inside[/i] the United States. He was part of the various military units mobilized to help mount these operations and while he'd been involved in humanitarian operations before, this one was grim. Sandy sucked too. It was not a lot of sleep and being frustrated.

[b]What was their best day?:[/b] The day he got wings.

[b]Who was their first love? What came of it?:[/b] There were girls before, but love? A woman named Marcelina Dunajski, Buffalo native and the reason he settled up here, that he met at the University of Texas. They actually got married, and then divorced around the time she found a guy that could give her more in monetary terms. They didn't have kids but she took the dog.

[b]What’s the one thing they would redo in their life if given the chance?[/b] See above.

[b]What was their first job and how did they feel about it?[/b] Helicopter pilot, USAF. He didn't quite expect to fall into Search and Rescue type operations, but that's what he did well and why he landed a job in the New York State Police (as a civilian not as a sworn officer.)

[b]How about their family? Who’s still around, what’s the dynamic?[/b] He's from freakin' Texas, so the problem is that he hasn't really been able to get in contact with his family all that easily since stuff cut out. He isn't sure if he has anyone left. Well, except his ex-wife and her new husband -- they're in Buffalo. Doesn't that suck?

[b]Favorite game? (Of any sort):[/b] River City Ransom, on the NES. In the more active sense, he's a hell of a fisherman. He aced that part of survival training.

[b]What were they doing on the day of the Rapture?:[/b] It was actually a day off, and he was enjoying it. He certainly wasn't in church on a Sunday-- his wife was a kinda-catholic and he was a kinda-baptist, but they both shucked the demands of their respective religions and got married. Anyway, he was drinking with some neighbors and BBQ'ing some brisket and brats when all hell broke loose.

[b]Ever have any legal problems?:[/b] His divorce resulted in a scuffle with his ex-wife's new husband before they were married, mostly because the dude said some shit to him when he was visiting with his dog. He planted the guy like a tree, head first, into some dogshit and mud. Charges were dropped, mostly because the lawyers knew that John was in the employ of the State Police and therefore got blue protection in court. He had to pay for the guy's medical bills relating to a broken nose, and only regrets being caught.

[b]Do they believe in a god? A religion? A belief?:[/b] He isn't sure he believes in a god, but he believes in karma and miracles, because he's seen both at work. How do you explain it? He isn't sure. But as part of the Air Force, he also has been surrounded with religious fervor in certain quarters and knows how to make nice. His bottom line is simpler -- do the right thing.

[b]As a kid, what’d they want to be when they grew up?:[/b] Believe it or not, he wasn't looking to be a helicopter pilot. He actually wanted to be an architect. He changed his mind in college when he did some ROTC at UT Austin.

[b]What was their occupation before the Rapture?:[/b] Helicopter Pilot, New York State Police - out of Syracuse, flying a Bell 412, an airframe he is very familiar with. Also is commissioned in the New York Air National Guard as part of of the 101th Rescue Squadron, where he drives a Pave Hawk. The jobs are pretty similar.