Aye, and there's the rub:

A perfect example:

HERE

Words are one thing....action is another.

When it gets serious, you'd better be serious..and able to back up your words. 

Monday thought to start the week:

But seriously, put down the drinks first. (don't say I didn't warn you)

HERE

'Tis a gorgeous day here

Mid/high 70's, decent humidity, mostly cloudy.

Too bad I am unable to enjoy or appreciate it. 

Big changes in small aircraft

For me, at least....

So I flew an Arrow for the first time Wed.  'Twas a different experience.

Now, previously I had flown Cessna products.

But I wanted to get my Complex endorsement, and this is the only plane at the flight school with retractable gear and a constant speed prop.

Now, learning the systems isn't that hard. Nothing too complicated about any of the systems, really. Gear is pretty straightforward, as is the propeller and its's controller.... (apparently, some folks have a hard time figuring out the prop?....It is pretty simple,and works like every other governor I have seen, except the prop is controlled instead of a throttle).

Thing is, Pipers are VERY different from Cessnas.....I'd rather have flown (and landed) a Warrior or something first, rather than the (relatively) massive change to the Arrow and learning how to control all those systems as well as learning to land in an aircraft with an entirely different approach profile.

I'd have cancelled this lesson except that they are very busy at the school, and getting a time slot is difficult enough right now....So I took it, even though my mind wasn't really where it needed to be. I probably should not have flown, but I did alright. Plus I had an instructor to keep me out of trouble and coach me...

All told, I did OK. 3 landings, and really, once one gets used to the different attitude on approach, it wasn't that hard....Although it is easy to get behind the aircraft when one is not used to the different checklist.

1.4 and 3.

Why not take charge of your own survival?

So the Duck Boat tragedy is, indeed, a tragedy.

But nearly all the survivors have the same story.

"No one told us to put on our life preservers" (video with ad)

WTF?

If the boat is swamping...taking on water in high waves.....put yer life preserver on, or at LEAST have it in your hands.

"Keep your seats" was the order...
Fuck that. My kids would be in life preservers, and I'd have on in my arms, at least.

I hate to say this, but Darwin visited here. 

Light blogging ahead

Got WAAAAAY too much going on.

I got no brain to spare for this. Way too much stress goin' on. I only go so many neurons, and none to spare at this time.

Check out the folks on the sidebar, they are better than I at spreading info and knowledge anyway.

Back when I can.

It'll all work out, one way or another.

If ya got a minute though, send good thoughts my way. 

1.0

Yep, I jnow, I am sounding like a broken record.

Took the love of my life up Wed. evening for a quick sightseeing trip along the Lake Michigan shoreline. Beautiful day, smooth air, nearly "Forever Clear" and unlimited ceiling. About as good as it gets, flying weather wise.

'Twas fun. For both of us.

And I did a just about perfect soft field landing (on a hard runway) with 9 knots of quartering crosswind...hardly a bump.

I think she'll fly with me again.

5Guys afterwards, so it was a good evening.

1,0 and 1,

Night landings

So I was 6 months out of currency for night landings. (It can be difficult to get an aircraft late enough, as sunset is pretty late this time of year, and the flying school closes at 7 pm).

I fixed that last night.

One of the crew at the flying school was gonna be flying until about 10PM,  I arranged for him to call me when he was about 20 minutes out, met him at the ramp, and did 3 night landings before we put the plane away.

Total time for 3 full stop landings and the associated taxiing and pattern:
0.2.

The pattern was empty, winds were calm, so I did one takeoff on 36, transitioned to the left for landing on 9. Full stop...took off again and did a transition to 18, full stop, went around the pattern from 18, then transitioned to 27  for my last one and turned off at the appropriate taxiway (this was the shortest path) and taxied back to the school.  Pretty much cloverleafs.

I remember night landings to be harder. This time they were fairly easy.

So now I got my 3 for the next 90. 

More light makes it better

So, having worked with another couple of range members to replace the lights in the indoor range, but not yet having had a chance to try shooting with the new lighting (the old lighting consisted of 6 500 watt quartz halogen fixtures for 12 lanes,....there were shadows and the fixtures had become.....tired) I chose Monday to spend an hour at the indoor range, as the outdoor range was about 94 F and VERY humid. Plus I had to wait there for the Fed-Ex dude to show up with a package for our in house FFL.

Anyway, I did slow fire at 50 feet.  Had the range all to myself. No distractions.

Wow, The new light fixtures make a great deal of difference. There is about twice the amount of light, and with 13 point sources instead of 6 (one in between each shooting point plus the ends) there are nearly no shadows. At times, with the old lighting, it could be difficult to see even .45 caliber holes in the target...no longer.

Plus, better lighting means better sighting.

 The first two are a string of 9 (each) ....1 in the pipe and 8 in the mag. Pace was about 1 round per second.

The first one is one handed

 the second is a Weaver stance.

This one was 2 mags, at a slightly faster, but not rushed, pace....Weaver.

I'm happy with those targets.


All in all, I like the results the new lighting make on my shooting. Much easier on these older eyes.

I must say though that that was the DIRTIEST WWB ammo I have ever used.
Seldom am I moved to clean my Para 7.45 1911 after only a hundred rounds...But today was one of those days. 

I'm thinkin'

That his ears are still ringing.

I bet that was loud. 

Plus, who pays for the windshield? 

WTF do they expect???

These are Wild Animals, not cute furry pets. The fact that they are caged in a zoo does not change their nature.

They need to eat, and, if not fed, will hunt for their food.
They hunt, and kill, other animals.
They are predators, doing what predators do.

NEW ORLEANS -- Eight animals have now died after a jaguar escaped from its habitat at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans. CBS affiliate WWL-TV reports an alpaca and fox died Sunday, the day after the male jaguar killed four alpacas, one emu and one fox Saturday morning.

To expect any other behavior is to show your ignorance. 

Keep pushin' that story

While the Media keeps pushing the "Russia hacked the DNC in an attempt to "influence" the 2016 elections" meme during the stories about Trump's meeting with putin, they leave out an important bit of data: One fun fact that they leave out is that no one has examined the DNC server to see what, if any, evidence might point to the accusation that it is the "Russsians".

Neither the FBI, nor the NSA has been allowed to examine the server. The DNC has refused to allow ANYONE to examine it. Nor has it been kept in a secure location, so it is useless as evidence now.

We only have the word of the DNC that it was the "Russians" that did this.

Odd that, despite there being such an outcry that there was a crime committed the DNC refused to allow any investigation, innit? 

On the one hand

This idiot was pretty much out of line and should have been told by friends to shut up....perhaps a bit too much hops and barley?

On the other hand, He's being charged with a Hate Crime....which is pretty stupid. Where are HIS Free Speech rights? He had an opinion, and even if it was in bad taste (or just flat out bigoted and wrong) he too has a right to speak, even if his opinion is bigoted and, frankly, stupid.

While I would like to see folks show some pride in the US if they are American Citizens, they too have the right to Free Speech, even if that is a t-shirt that others find distasteful.  Good with the Bad and all that. Either we have Free Speech or we have "RightThink". Which is it?

So I ask you, why does this drunken idiot guy not get to speak his mind without being arrested for it? Just because some chippie posted her video on Social Media? Because everyone has the right to prove they are an idiot by speaking, don't they?

I mean, he might have been intimidating (and an ass), but until he laid a hand on her, she had no cause to charge him. Perhaps he was as offended by her shirt as she was by his words.....
And nowhere in our Constitution do I see anything that says you don't have a right to an opinion or not be offended.

This is why I worked to get it.

My pilots license, that is....

Met my parents at the Airplane rental hangar yesterday about 4 pm.

We did the chores, fired up the 172 and flew around a bit, looked at their house (what we could see of it, they have a lot of trees) then flew along the Lake Michigan lakeshore for about 20 miles and looked at the beautiful beaches.

Then we flew to Rochester for dinner.

(Rochester is far enough away from our homes that we would normally not drive there for dinner, bust since we were flying at 105 knots, we could get there in a reasonable amount of time).

Someone got smart, and there is a well-mowed grassy area and a path off the paved taxiway that planes can use to taxi and park across the street from a nice little restaurant.

It was a nice dinner with my parents, and a nice flight.
Skies were a bit hazy, but the views were awesome, and the company was good.

I greased both landings, one at RCR and one back at my home airport. (yeah, the winds were light and favorable, but still).

All in all, a great evening and a nice reward for me, having struggled to gain my Private Pilot license.

Plus, I got to show off a bit.

This is why I wanted to fly, at least in part....To go places and see things and get there faster with friends and people I love to be with.

I shouldn't really complain, but if other parts of my world were different, it'd be a perfect life right now. but overall, I'm pretty content.

Very Good Advice

If you are a member of a club, you should read this.


Lessons from the Annals of Club Management

Really Really good advice if you are involved in any Social or Civic club. 

So....

Equal protection under the law...right?

When will Peter Strozk be imprisoned for  failing to answer question posed by Congress?

(And, for that matter, one would wonder Lying to Congress as well)

Isn't it interesting

That, after years of the DNC types ignoring court orders, and DNC affiliated heads of Federal agencies being allowed to ignore or dismiss court orders...Especially when it comes to investigations into the practices of their members.....or when ignoring those orders benefits their cause.

Yet now, these same folks are insisting the the Trump Administration follow the courts orders to reunite the kids taken from their (criminal) parents be reunited with them....

Odd how they think that the courts have the power to rule when it benefits them, and not so much when it doesn't....








(and, again, are we gonna "reunite" all those kids taken from their parents when their (US Citizen) parents were arrested for crimes and incarcerated??? Who is gonna pay for those huge expansions to the prisons and jails for schools and playrooms? I mean, all US citizen arrestees get separated from THEIR children.....How come illegal border crossers get special treatment?)

Y'know...

I'm no economist.
I don't understand international trade interactions and how they interact to make the economy work better or worse as they change.

But I DO know that China needs the US as a customer more than the US needs China as a customer.

Without the US as a buyer for Chinese goods, China's economy falls on it's face.

Now, it could be that I'm wrong......I welcome (sane, polite, somewhat well thought out and not ranting)  comments which will show if I have made a mistake in my thinking.

But I do think that, if the US stays the course, China falls on it's face without us as a consumer of their products.

Then they will play our game (They will, of course, cheat all they can, because Chinese Culture, but they will play. And then the US will be in a better position. but I repeat myself) go apeshit over the looming additional tariffs TheDonald intends to impose on the PRC. 

200 rounds of .45 ACP yesterday.

32 rounds at a time.

Heat of the day, 15 pushups, 50 yard sprint,,,no sunglasses, as fast as I could squeeze the trigger and change magazines...

And I still hit the 6" gongs at about 90% at 15 yards.

Man, that is work.

But if it Ever Happens, it ain't gonna be in a nice airconditioned lane at a range with bottled spring water and at whatever pace I want, when I am calm and with a low heart rate and low blood pressure. SO I do what I can to simulate the physical.

And the SIG 1911 never even had a hiccup. Ran perfect.

Cross Country

a short one.

I had the plane from 10-1.

So, I planned a trip from VPZ to MGC to watch the parachute jumpers, but when I got there, there weren't any at that time.....So I did a touch and go, and then set course for RCR.

Flew there, with Flight Following from South Bend, and then did a full stop landing and taxied to a parking spot on the grass to check out the restaurant across the street....but, being Sunday, they were packed full of post church folks.

So I taxied back to the ramp and went in to use the bathroom.

At the ramp was a couple of airplanes and one of them was a 337 Skymaster, which have always interested me.

When I came out of the bathroom, the owner of the 337 was waiting to use the plumbing. We started talking and he showed me his aircraft. (He had stopped in and met some friends for lunch at that same restaurant)

I think I want one. Odd airplane, but pretty nice. His was pressurized, and he claimed 220 knots at 20K Feet. (which is pretty fast, but he also said that that makes for high fuel consumption....like 30 GPH). But he did say that at 170 or so at 10K, it is only 20 GPH, so that is doable...

He also said he can carry 6 people, or 4 people and weekend baggage....With full fuel. Which makes that a decent aircraft for my expected needs.

Might be that I will have to get a twin endorsement soon as well.

Overall, it was a good flight. Winds were negligible at 3500 and 4500 respectively, and the traffic was not bad at all. Even SB approach frequency wasn't too busy. I guess everyone flew yesterday?

as Aaron says....1,7 and 4. 

She had it coming.....

She was wearing a short skirt and was provoking that response....

Oh, wait,

I mean, really?

Wearing a hat is enough for a physical attack?

Funny how Free Speech, no matter how offensive, by the Left is always OK... but a conservative??

Found Via Clayton Cramer. 

I find it sorta amusing

That the one community, the main demographic RESPONSIBLE for the "gun Violence" issue in Chicago.....

The culture wherein NO One ever talks to police, or in any way helps them solve a crime....

Whose lifestyle fuels the market for drugs, that in turn fuel the drug gangs who are most responsible for the shootings....

The folks whose neighborhoods are where the Drive By shootings happen at least weekly, if not nightly....

Are the folks who are going to protest "Gun Violence" by shutting down a major Chicago Freeway....

The Gun Violence issue doesn't happen in the neighborhoods of those folks who they are inconveniencing.

But the protesters blame everyone but themselves and their lifestyle and culture.

Kinda sad. 

Finally!

Private Pilot.

Man, that whole escapade was a BITCH. Oral exam, then the Checkride. 9AM-3PM... no break for lunch 'cause we were racing thunderstorms coming from the west. Hot and humid, just to make things interesting with comfort and thermals to add to the fun.

But I did it.

Got my Temp certificate, and I am Official.

Now a Complex endorsement and a High Performance, and I think I will buy a 182....and spend more time learning and earning IFR.

Remember....

Why we celebrate the Fourth Of July......For those that don't know, it is a Holiday called Independence Day....The day the 13 Colonies declared that they were a nation in their own right, no longer under the rule of the King of England. Self Rule.....

They chose their destiny, not some overbred Monarch who wasn't even sure where the lands were and who knew nothing about the people living there.

This was the day that began the greatest nation on the planet. The Constitution, which enabled it to be so, came later, but this was the day those many years ago when that nation began. A nation which became the destination for freedom-loving peoples from all over the world....The day the United States of America....That great Republic, began.

Take a minute to raise a glass to those men who signed that document, who signed the document and, in doing so, "“mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our Sacred Honor,” ....some  of those men did lose some or all of those.


Now go enjoy your beer, hotdogs, and fireworks.

But remember. And be glad you live here. 

Isn't it interesting

How the Democrats are all for Activist Judges when that activist Judge is a Liberal, and blatantly "Legislates from the Bench"  FOR liberal causes....

But they absolutely oppose any Supreme Court Justice nominee who might have an opinion on anything they oppose. Who might apply, you know, the LAW, as written, or the meaning of the Constitution to cases brought before the Court.

Odd disparity, doncha think?

Or is it that the Dems just care about their causes over the rule of law? 

Grandkids and such...

So apparently, there was indeed more than just grandkids discussed in the meeting between Loretta Lynch and Former President Bill Clinton.....

You know, that "accidental" meeting in Phoenix, where they just accidentally ran into each other and had an "Impromptu" meeting (in a plane that had already been cooled and was ready for occupancy.....)
 Where they claimed they discussed only their Grandkids and such....and it was only coincidence that 2 day later the Justice Department (headed by Lynch) decided to NOT charge Hillary Clinton with mishandling of Classified Information.

Odd how those coincidences happen, innit? We know that's what happened 'cause that's what they told us....

OR:

Page 203 of IG Report says Loretta Lynch-Bill Clinton tarmac meeting was planned via Secret Service, FBI.

Who you gonna believe?

Bangin' my head here

and gettin' nowhere.

Kinda frustrating.

Well

After the election in Mexico, I think we need to begin building the Border Wall on an expedited basis.

Leftist, leftist aaaand a Leftist.

Of course, if we can find the water, a moat would work as well....

But at this point, we now have every reason to increase Border Security. 

Truth:

Ain't it though?

Found at Kenny's place.

Odd that we will do more examination of our Judges than our Presidents, ain't it?