25 May, 2008 Haying Season

Briggs checked out another terrapin who came up to the hangar for a tidbit of cat food.

I got the monitor mounted in the 180, now I've got to re-shape the camera mount to fit the D2x.

Roy got a jump on the storm and made a few round bales before the bad weather moved in from Oklahoma.

I closed up the airport early, at 6 p.m., so I'd get home before the rain began. Just made it in time. Had a Cessna 140 come in and put it in the hangar for the night, as there were forecast high winds, possibly hail and tornadoes.

After the rainstorm, there was a rainbow, but it wasn't as impressive as the setting sun.

G'ma Airplane posting on the 25th.

24 May, 2008 Rain, rain...

Rain, rain... poured rain. Frog croaker. Briggs - I want out, I want
out! Well, go ahead, go out. Well, I dunno. Rained about an inch, big whoop.

Ok, so Briggs and Bitty terrorized the hangar for an hour. I shot
video of them trashing Lloyd's desk, paper magazines, bugs, lizard,
thud, thump, crash.

Squeaky tried to nibble out of the little dish in the office. Her son Briggs edged her out. She tried to push his head out of the way. Briggs growled at her and kept eating. There's a 10 pound bag of the same stuff just outside the door. How long do cats remember their offspring, or their parents? Day or two?

Lightning crashing, mostly cloud to cloud, but I videoed (is that a word? Spell checker doesn't know what to do with it.) the sky, just hoping for a spectacular bolt, but instead recorded a thunder boomer and a loud pop inside the hangar. Checked the phones out, and found the surge protector had saved the phone from disaster. Here's a look at the inside of the surge protector. I don't have a clue. I just know how to take stuff apart.

Whoooooo, me? I turned on the super night mode on the video camera, which emits an invisible (to human eyes) infrared beam (or something) to light up the deep dark corners of the world, and it illuminated Smudge's cat eyes. He's just lurking out of range of Briggs & Bitty's hyperactivity. This would be great to use on Halloween night.

Whoa, Nellie! There's traffic on the taxiway! Look out, speedy on the move! Notice the crack in the shell, this dude's been roaming the airport for years. He doesn't know us, but we know him. Or her. Lloyd could tell you, he's been feeding cat food to them for years. I've been looking for the flat shelled one that hides under the doorstep. This is the first terrapin I've seen this year at the airport.

Temp 68, dew point 66. Fog out there now, almost midnight, my usual wide awake time. Humidity about 95 percent. There's going to be fog in the morning. Maybe I'll sleep in until 7.

G'ma Airplane

I just realized I haven't flown in three (make that two) weeks, since 12 May. Come on, Fonda, let's get back in the AIR!

Don't forget, Sunday is the 25th

Mostly this is a reminder for myself, since Ma is on the daily plan.
If you want to join in, see here for details.

23 May, 2008 Some flying today

Well, I'm going to try it again, this video thing. Dave headed out to catch speeders again, on the start day of the Memorial Day holiday. He put the 182 back in its hangar at West Plains, as they just finished paving the taxiway and ramp and paint striping.

Kent made his rounds of airports this morning, didn't stay long to chat as the wind was picking up again. There were rain showers to the west, but didn't show up here. Cloudy and humid and muggy all day!

I mowed the grounds, and found this beautiful wildflower. Oh, all right, so it is just a dandelion.

Worked on that monitor this afternoon. It didn't turn out the way I
wanted, but it will do the job. I had it all apart, then put it back
together, with the lid on backwards! Even had parts left over.

The pilot lounge is 10 years old. The carving in the sidewalk looks
like it's raised, an optical illusion. Well, entertainment is where
you find it.

G'ma Airplane

22 May, 2008 Nobody flying today

Ben & Jerod were preparing signs for the upcoming coroner's election in August.

I started hacking another video monitor for the airplane. This one's tougher, as it's not stamped as clearly for video and audio circuits. Going to do some experimenting with this one.

The blueberry bushes are really loaded with immature fruit. Last year the frost got them, so I will be chasing birds this summer!

Close, closer, closest. The blue irises bloomed while my back was turned yesterday. They are really detailed on the inside of the blossom. I know they don't look blue, but that's what I call them. Transplanted years ago from some fill dirt at the airport, now there are dozens of them!

Sugar, neighbor dog begging for scraps. I hate flash pics like this.
But, oh well. Looks like one of those goggle-eyed greeting cards.

Today, no flying stuff. Sorry, John. Tomorrow is another day. Can't post flying stuff if nobody flies! Keep watching... you never know...

Oh, NO! Not another sunset on a stick!

G'ma Airplane

21 May, 2008 #2 Flying stuff all day!

Started with John's RV4, then Dave went to work chasing speeders.








Then Ben & Rhonda went to Columbia. Then Carl arrived for fuel. Looks like I need to repaint the sign. Does anyone ever look at it... I don't.

Then, hold the phone! It's Ben and Jerry! No, not the "ice cream" boys, the "I scream" boys "Yahoooo!".

And which way is the wind blowing... what wind? What, a day without wind?

Can you believe it, the Post Office raised the postage A PENNY. What's the point? A PENNY?

I was getting a jump on photos today, and didn't think I'd have any at the end of the day, like yesterday. Little did I know I'd be chasing airplanes all day. And cats. Didn't get Briggs in until 9 p.m. He was chasing fireflies.

Having trouble with video clips. I still have a lot to learn. g'nite.
Posted by G'ma Airplane

21 May, 2008 Graduates! Congratulations, guys!

Three of our friends graduated from high school recently.

Zach is Ben & Rhonda's son.
Karl is Annette (Happy) & Gregg's son, grandson to Lacy Martin.
Dillon is Jan's nephew

Congratulations, guys!

20 May, 2008 No flying stuff today

Here we had a beautiful day, but nobody flying anywhere, except Air Evac.

Look how long my legs are today! Well, I'm getting desperate for a photo for today.

Found some wildflowers just at sundown, and played with them on the computer. Sorta looks like a helicopter, doesn't it?

Mowed at the house just before dark... and if you think I'm gonna mow all that with a push mower, you're crazy. Just a little off around the edges, thank you (pun intended). (Many think I'm a little off around the edges. Do ya think? Don't answer that.)

Hey, lookie! Moon on a tower! Yes, I was hard up for a photo. It's a set, with "sunset on a stick", May 8.

Posted by Ma (I don't know why it says "posted by Fonda" as she doesn't post here, except right at the start of this madness).

19 May, 2008 - And more flying stuff

Windy again today... and surprise, in comes a straight tail Beech twin, older model 1959 on a cross country training flight from North Arkansas Regional at Rogers, AR. Good practice, I guess, bucking 33 mph crosswind. And I do mean, bucking.

Then WHOA NELLIE comes a homebuilt Sonex taildragger from Alabama, heading for Kansas. Same wind. Pilot waits awhile, indulges in a Sonic burger. He's going to his grandson's grade school graduation. See the little Teddy bear?

Hey, there's that slick red & white Lance again! Get some fuel and they're gone with the wind.

Jan got the hummingbird with her cell phone camera. The little guy hit a window, and she rescued him from a lurking cat. He was stunned for awhile. Jan was amazed at how tiny he was, she'd never held a hummingbird in her hands before.

John emailed me about the Theresa's goldfinches. He said he had about 50 of them at his house north of town. He's from Texas, and he admits that number might be inflated a bit. I want to see some pictures, John.

That's all the flying stuff for Monday. Cats are so lonely that they're following ME around.

Posted by G'ma Airplane

18 May, 2008 Lots of flying stuff today

More flying stuff... at the end of today, I really did not have any photos!

Per-chik-o-ree (according to my bird book). My bowling buddy Theresa emailed these photos of American Goldfinches. What good timing! She lives down thar in booger county, way out thar somewhar in tha wooods. I guess you have to live thar in tha wooods to see these yaller birdies, ain't seen none flyin' 'round heeyar.

Mowed around the runway this afternoon, and came home as grubby as the mower. Grass & weeds were flying all over the place. Wind was blowing. (NO!).

Wildflowers, (maybe daisies?), bobbing in the breeze, as the sun was setting. I was waiting to fuel an airplane that didn't show up. That's nothing new.

So, taxi to position and hold; check: cleared to active runway 26; check: check props; check: throttle up; check: get out of the way; check:

Well, John wanted more flying stuff, so there ya have it!

Posted by G'ma Airplane