A Birthday, A Bird and a Boxer

Not long ago Adrianna went up for her 1st Orientation Flight

for Civil Air Patrol. After Michigans snow machine caused the flight

to be rescheduled several times, a last minute call finally

confirmed a go. And we needed to leave in 30 minutes.

For me that meant grabbing a hat.

And the Canon.

Because there was an extra spot on the plane,

the awesome pilot invited Nathan to accompany his sister, much to her delight.

And his as it happened to be his birthday.

Prep for them (her) was a bit more involved since we are still

working on a timely system for dressing in BDUs

and getting the hair bun to cooperate.

When we arrived, we were told that a celebrity had just flown in

so while Captain Reed and the kids did a pre-flight check,

I tried to make myself blend into the woodwork of the hangar

(there is virtually no wood in a hangar and nowhere to hide)

and snap some pics of this guy.

I won't mention his name on here and I really do not like

the sport in which he participates

but I had heard of him.

I heard that this dude had body guards and was cranky because

he was supposed to have drivers for the rented SUVs.

This area is his stomping grounds and apparently

he is accustomed to having things a certain way.

Now. I've never seen this dude.

Correction. I hadn't seen this dude,

until a few days ago when I saw his photo in the newspaper.

And this ain't him!

I suppose it was his size,

and what I "thought" someone who did this sport

would look like.

I smiled whenever one of his buds looked my way,

hoping they would think I was a nice lady,

star struck and was not going to go home

and post pics all over the Internet.

I caught him groomin' his hair.

He just wasn't the right dude.

I'm thinking he might be the dude in green.

If you see him in any of these pics, please comment

as I really want to know that my sneaking efforts paid off.

His last name starts with H.

Sooooo. That was my job.

All that was required of me was to sit in the very nicely decorated

and stocked waiting area and enjoy all the amenities that my stomach

could handle. 

Captain Reed was a gracious host and excellent teacher,

helping ease AJ into her first flight and imparting

all the knowledge he could in a limited amount of time.

 The plan entailed AJ flying out first,

heading west to the shoreline and follow it north to Muskegon.

Captain Reed would take off and land,

with his co-pilots taking control once in the air.

The Cesna 182 Skylane was equipped with a G1000,

a glass cockpit instead of steam gauges,

headsets for all and a pillow for those who are still growing.

No iTunes.

AJs seat had needed to be in it most upright and forward

position to accommodate Nathans size "large" combat boots.

 Just me and my coffee now.

The ride to the lake shore included flying up the beach line, over the USS Silversides submarine and some basics on turning and speed for AJ.

The landing in Muskegon was a bit rocky due to turbulence.

As they left Muskegon coming south, Captain Reed asked where we live

and proceeded to let Nathan fly down our shoreline and indeed circling 

right over our house, practicing some of his flying skills. 

I later suggested that he come down low over the horses to make them run.

Maybe not.

 The ride back east was fraught with a bit more turbulence.

 And I'm told the back seat does not provide

the same protection against such turbulence.

 Thanks so much to Captain Reed

and Civil Air Patrol for a great experience. And birthday ride.

February Blues

Dutch dance practice

suggests that February will pass.

And is perhaps the only proof

that life continues

for those of us who do not believe

in biking in the snow with 4" tires

and cannot look forward to

Hilton Head in a few weeks.

A cold, grey snowy Friday with a sick child

sounds like the perfect day

to review photos from SUMMER 2012

and do a little catch up.

Day 2, Nathans Travels

Random Solomonism of the day:

"Daddy" (baits Solomon as he is getting tucked in)

"you know, you can sell your truck

and buy the original Darth Vader costume".

********************

So, my last post left me sleeping

and Nathan was beginning his 4+ hour long test.

Solomon had plans to have a friend over

to go sledding at the golf course

and Adrianna really needed  the library.

Nathan called and was walking the city block

to where he had parked the Jeep, hoping the weather had

kept the parking police out of commission or at least bogged down.

Avoiding the ticket and with a good understanding

of how to get to 131, then 96 then 31, he said he would

call when he made it to Muskegon.

He called as we pulled into the library.

He had missed a street, gotten caught on 1 ways and

was lost in downtown GR.

Tying the kids hands together and warning them

about the perils of splitting up,

I let them go upstairs at the library,

while I sat on a bench

(in eye shot of both the stairs and the elevator)

on Google maps trying to find my other kid.

Giving him an idea of where he was in relation to 131,

we determined the next right moves to make.

He would call me from 96 at a drive-thru.

He called 5 minutes later, the kids still upstairs in the library.

He realized his snow pants were not in the Jeep

and wondered if he should just drive home to get them

then drive the easy route to Gerber from home.

The children still upstairs, I called Doug who had

just sent his first casualty of the snow and cold back to the hothouse.

I apprised him of Nathans situation. Long pause.

We both new if Nathan came home, he should just stay home

as the additional time would put him several hours behind.

But. Nathan had the coffee grounds

and toilet paper.

Doug found someone we know who was just out for the day

and would not need their snow pants.

Tired and exasperated, Nathan geared up for the drive.

Oh. He missed the last street

and he was now well west of 131 so I sent him

west to the zoo for the entrance ramp to 196 and he would backtrack.

He called from 96 and was sitting at an Arby's,

well out of the maze of 1 way streets and tall buildings.

The children with me at the library

finally showed their faces

and after paying off late fees,

we headed home.

Nathan later told me that one of the roads he turned on

sounded a bit strange and he found himself surrounded

by pedestrians glancing strangely at the Jeep.

When he saw the cobblestone and benches on both sides,

he realized that he had turned onto and was driving on

a sidewalk.

He made it in record time to Gerber

and 3 people in their group needed the attention

of the hothouse that night.

************

*The girls stayed at home reading books*

Around The World in 1-1/2 Days

Photos from this winter

will be scanty.

Sun has been scanty.

Snow has been scanty.

*******

Doug and Nathan survived the annual BSA survival test:

Okpic camp out.

See this post to find the details of the thing from last year,

that will save me some words.

Words, this winter, are scanty.

What actually tried Nathan most,

No.

What tried me the most,

was leaving at 6:20 on Saturday morning

headed to the nearest real city to take the SAT.

We planned. Oh did we plan. 

We studied Google Earth. We printed from Google Maps.

The State Police site was visited to check road conditions,

which were not good because, of course,

that was the weekend IT SNOWED.

Really snowed. Schools closed Friday.

Temps (finally) hovered closer to zero.

I checked Collegeboard every hour

watching, hoping to find the test rescheduled

due to inclement weather.

My last check at 5:50 am forced me to realize

the kid was going to drive an hour east,

where "inclement" weather had not suspended the test.

That is because the folks who make the decision

live in a high rise condo, surrounded by concrete that is

getting plowed every 6 minutes and

 do not know what The Snow Machine is.

Or what it produces.

Nor did they look at their roster and say

"Oh we have a newly *17 year old boy

driving in from the lake and according to the

Department of Transportation

the road conditions are dangerous and the wind chill alone

would cause severe health problems should he go in the ditch

and lose power to his vehicle,

rendering him alone and vulnerable because

HE DOES NOT DRESS FOR WINTER."

And so. Loaded with pancakes, toting, pencils, calculator,

cash for parking, phone, directions, water bottle and

wearing an Under Armor hooded sweatshirt-

he pulled out at 6:25.

Also note that he was loaded with gear

for Okpic along with ground coffee that Doug forgot

(and toilet paper)

as he would be trekking to Gerber directly

after finishing his test.

I sat drinking coffee, (I think I even asked if he would like some,

which by the way, he does not drink and doing so for the first time

on SAT morning was not in the recommendations labeled

"how to make test day a success").

Time really does crawl

when waiting for someone to arrive.

From afar or to their destination.

I REALLY REALLY wanted to call his phone

but I knew he would not answer if he was driving,

which would begin a whole series of "what ifs" fired straight at me.

Of course he arrived safe and sound.

And early.

And found parking on the street.

And had tons of change for the parking meter.

I could finally sleep.

*Photos from birthday

**This completes Part 1 of Nathans Travels.

Watch for Part II coming soon**