“Let’s not grow with our roots in the ground.”
Today’s weather is neither one nor the other. The sun is shining, but rain is predicted. We have a wind then we have a breeze. It is a bit chilly.
I went out on the deck to watch the dogs. Nala did her business than did a zoomie, cone and all. I watched her maneuver at top speed between tree trunks. She was amazing.
When I was in the first grade, I was in the rhythm band. I played the sticks first then a triangle. My talent went unrecognized. That was the end of my early musical career. I always thought it a pity.
Fast forward. I have reenergized my musical career with my uke. I’m an okay player. I can play most of the chords without looking at my fingers the way I used to when I first started. Sometimes, though, the chord switch is quick, and the second chord is difficult so my fingers sort of slide from one chord to the other. I keep practicing the switches, but my fingers don’t cooperate. Though I love playing the uke, I sometimes long for the ease of banging the sticks.
Of late, I have been a sloth. Most days I sort of hang around the house in my cozies. I make plans then don’t follow through. I have no guilt about it.
My first plane ride was when I was a freshman in college. I flew in a small commuter plane from Hyannis to Boston, a gift from my parents. It was a glorious ride skirting the shoreline. It fed my longing to travel. I flew to New York during college for a weekend with friends. I flew stand by. It was cheaper. My next flight was in my uncle’s plane. This was just a few weeks before Peace Corps. I had babysat my aunt and uncle’s brood for longer than expected so my uncle offered to fly me to Hyannis. We flew over Boston. It was amazing. I could identify landmarks. My head flew from side to side. I didn’t want to miss anything. The next flight was monumental, from Philadelphia to Accra. I remember watching The love Bug, the in-flight movie. I remember the drink cart making unending trips up and down the aisle. I remember the pilot telling us we were flying over the Sahara, and we all crowded to look out the windows.
I have flown many, many times now, trips to Europe, South America, North Africa and back to Ghana three times. What is amazing is I still look out the windows so I don’t miss anything. I have learned to ignore everything but the flight. Flying is still magical to me.
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June 22, 2023 at 6:25 pm
Hi Kat,
Today was mostly cloudy and not very hot. Only 90° but still humid. We had a thunderstorm around noon, but didn’t get a lot of rain.
The first time I flew on an airplane was in 1953. We flew on a DC-4 from Dallas to New York LaGuardia airport. In those days they encouraged passengers to visit the flight deck. I know then and their wanted to be a pilot.
The first time I ever flew a small airplane was in 1963. My dad had a friend who was a private pilot and was a member of the St. Louis flying club. While on a road trip to St. Louis and Kansas City, with my dad, his friend took us up in a Piper Apache. When we reached cruising altitude he gave me the flight controls. I will never forget making turns, climbs, and descents over the city of St. Louis. That flight sealed the deal.
One reason I became a flight instructor is that going on trips is hours of shear boredom. Instructing was interesting because every student was different. Also, I got to sleep in my own bed most nights. 🙂 On one trip in a Cessna Citation III, we were cruising from Washington National Airport to Dallas Love Field. We were at 47,000 ft. To get on top of a line of thunderstorms. The airlines never flew above 39,000 ft. in those days. My co captain picked up the microphone and made a pilot report. He said, “Indy Center, Citation 44HS, smooth ride and in the clear at 47,000 ft. Unfortunately, the airliners below were getting bounced around pretty good. After his pilot report, an airline captain’s voice came on the radio and said, “Thanks for that report, very funny, but we are getting the crap beat out of us”. My co captain had a strange sense of humor.
June 22, 2023 at 7:50 pm
Hi Bob,
90° around here is very hot. We don’t get constant humidity until August, the worst month.
My family traveled by car mostly. I think it was too expensive to think about buying all those plane tickets for the 6 of us. My first flight was an Easter present. I could see the cockpit as it was only behind a curtain.
My uncle’s plane was a small one. I loved that ride. Everything was so close around and below that plane.
The flights from New York to Ghana are close to 10 hours, and you have to add the short flight from Boston to New York. Those are night flights, but I don’t often sleep more than an hour or two.
I don’t remember running into much turbulence on any of those long flights. Actually I don’t remember any flight with turbulence, but maybe I just blotted that from my memory.
June 22, 2023 at 7:58 pm
We finally had rain, lots of rain, and it’s great 🙂 Severe weather warning in parts of Europe and some towns got too much rain or hail or storm but no problems here. Just long needed rain. I filled my empty rain buckets and then sat outside under the roof for hours and watched the rain fall until past midnight.
Good night, I will happily dream of rain now 🙂
June 22, 2023 at 8:37 pm
Hu Birgit,
Im so glad for your rain finally.
It has happened here too-getting so much rain there is flooding. We have been lucky in that the heat which is hitting the southwest has mostly stayed away though the next few days will be in the 70’s, even as high was 76.
We will be getting rain here and there. I much prefer its here!
Enjoy your rain and your happy dreams.