WAR

Israel has been, and is now, under attack from Hamas in the Gaza strip.  Hamas has fired hundreds of missiles into civilian areas in Israel.  For this reason the IDF has to act to defend their country.

 Please pray for the peace of Israel now and in the days to come.

Pray that God will frustrate the plans of the enemy and protect the men and women who are fighting for the safety of Israel.  Cause the weapons of the enemy to malfunction and be ineffective.  Divert the missiles and artillery into areas where no one will be hurt.

Related news:http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=291954
Josh Levine's blog 

Loosing it

This morning I got up bright and early to take the van in for a check up.  They checked her vitals; heart rate, fluid levels, cholesterol; HDLs and LDLs, triglycerides, blood sugar, electrolytes, battery level... You name it, they checked it.  In the end all she needed was an oil change and filter.

Meanwhile, I hung out in the office and visited with the other customers coming and going.  There was a small space heater that made it the most pleasant place on the property.  It was an unexpected pleasure to see an old familiar face from my childhood.  We went to the same elementary school and lived near enough to each other to play as kids.  So we greeted each other and caught up on the high and low spots since the last time we visited; 1994.

He told me of his wife's recent death and his new grandchild.  I asked about his son Nickolas, to which he gave me a very puzzled look.  "Just who do you think I am", he said.  I answered without delay and was totally wrong.  My mind went racing trying to regain its footing.  It was something like the disorientation one experiences coming out of anesthesia.

How could I be so wrong?  I've known this guy for over 56 years!  It's not the same as forgetting the name of someone you've just met.  I know its not the end of the world and life will go on, but it shook me then and bothers me still.  Maybe this is just one of those things we have to expect as we get older.  I hope not.  I'd rather think that I was just off my game and hadn't had my coffee yet.  I'm gonna tune up my game and be ready for him when I see him again in 2032.  Gotta stay sharp for my next test at 82.

Is anyone else troubled as they look at the current events in the news.  I suppose only the unthinking are unconcerned.  It's a struggle for me to maintain the long view at times.  I look at the war that's brewing in Israel.  Our country seems to have lost its mind.  No apparent concern for the runaway government.  All the drama around our insane foreign policy and the new installment of sex scandal.  The world seems to be heading full tilt for catastrophe and (were I king) I'd be doing things differently.  As you know, I'm not now and never will be in charge of anything but myself.  This is a good thing.  So I continue clinging to my Bible and my guns.

We are just a week away from the start of our transcontinental trek.  Monday we start squeezing as much of our stuff as we can into the van.  Once it's full, we are ready to roll.  We're both excited about starting our new life in Florida.

The dance I do

We were pleased to learn that the VA appraiser valued our new house higher than what we agreed to pay for it.  Now we are eager to consummate the transaction.  I've never done a real estate transaction from across the country before.

So we are busy preparing for our transcontinental trek in November.  This time will be with a van full of stuff.  No winter clothing or furniture, but just about everything else.  We had thought about buying a trailer to drag everything in, but decided to just haul what we could fit in the van.

Meanwhile, there's a plane in Eugene that's calling my name.  Preparation is being made for its transportation and accomodations in Puyallup.  We have a hangar space reserved and a 24' trailer to carry the plane there.  My friend Doug has a fire breathing big dog truck to pull the trailer with.  We have measurements and must ensure that the plane will fit in the trailer before we drag it to Eugene next Wednesday.

It is so wonderful to have friends help.  It was a friend (John) that introduced me to Rusty who owns the trailer.  Another friend Doug who volunteered to spend the whole day with us driving his truck to Eugene and back.  I know these retired guys all have things to do, so it's a sacrifice that I take notice of.

Did I mention that we are getting ready to drive to Florida AGAIN?   Somehow I had this mental picture of me sitting in the shade consuming some adult beverage in retirement.  Not yet.

So once we get our van back to Florida, with keys in hand we will take possession of our new home.  Then there is the unpacking, the cleaning, the shopping for stuff to fill the place.  The pond is surrounded by trees that need to be removed because they are an invasive species.  So who do you suppose will do that?  That's right, my friend Back Hoe.  He doesn't work for free, but he's reasonable.

Meanwhile, back in Puyallup there's this plane that needs to get finished.  So I will need to return to the perpetually cold and wet Washington in December or January to lend a hand in the effort.

No telling how long I'll be here working on the plane before for I need to waltz back to Florida.

Please don't misunderstand.  I'm not complaining.  I'd call it being amazed.  I never envisioned my life being this way.  There is truly not a dull moment to be found.  I'm a blessed man, living a busy life.  I have good friends and great fun everywhere I go.  But it does make me just a little bit crazy at times...

Paint is done.

The painter posted these latest pictures of the plane today.  I thought I'd share them.  Please note, the airplane is still not assembled; wings are off etc, but still I think this looks great.

Now our task is to transport it back to Puyallup and do the finish work.  Stay tuned.

And the paint goes on

The painter has posted some more pictures of the progress on the plane.  It's a bit of a tease because the real pazzaz shows up after the clear coat goes on.  In any case here are some progress pictures.  If you are not interested in airplane pictures, this will probably bore you.

This is a wing tip.  You can see that there are actually three colors; Pearl White, red and gold.

These are the wings.

This is the starboard (right) side of the fuselage looking aft.













This is the lower half of the cowl and it is upside down.  The next thing is the clear coat which I'm told really makes the colors "pop".  Then a few days to let it all cure before we load it up and drag it all home for final assembly.

It might help to understand the plan.  Below is what we want it to look like when it's done.  If you click on the image it should show you the full size picture.

The company that is painting the plane had done a lot of interesting work with motorcycle painting.  Here is their website  http://www.cuttingedgeillusions.com  We have also seen some of the other planes they have painted.  We were impressed with their creativity and the attention to detail.  We are very excited and anxious to see the finished product.

These are the times that try mens' souls

Halloween is tomorrow and so I snapped a few pictures of the decorations at Big Tom's.  The pictures are kinda creepy, but then...what would one expect?

We arrived back in Olympia Sunday evening after a solid four day drive from Fort Myers Florida.  It's nice to not be driving for a change.  The house  that we're buying has been inspected for pests, and except for a minor fixable bug infestation, is looking ship shape.

The paint job on the plane is coming to an end.  So in a week or so, we will be making a trip to Eugene to retrieve all the parts.  Then we will (with the help of our EAA friends) begin the final assembly in Puyallup.  Here is a sneak peek at the painting process.  The blue lines mark where the red paint will go.

My pickup must have been feeling neglected, because when I took it for a drive (after a month of inactivity) it decided to quit on me.  Now it's getting some expensive attention.  The picture below reflects my state of mind upon hearing the cost of repairs.  I'm hoping the skin condition will clear up.

I'll have more pictures of the house to share as time goes by.  Here is the kitchen for now.

Anh has been making her lists and refining them ever since our offer was accepted.  We were advised not to plant anything new until March, and then  only if we have adequate irrigation to the plants.  So this should give me a few months to do all the clearing and irrigation work.  Also she wants a greenhouse and hydroponic setup like our friend Michael's.  She also wants an outdoor cooking station.  This may take some planning to do a good job.  So much for a life of leisure.

This next month will no doubt fly by with all the work on the plane and preparation for a move of our stuff to Florida.

Our drive West was mostly blue skies until we approached Boise.  Here is a shot taken in Oregon.  We had nothing but rain from Boise to Olympia.  It makes me homesick for Florida.

Never a dull moment

So we finished the plane in Eugene and came home to Oly Wednesday.  We rolled into town about 8PM after a non-stop 5 hour drive.  The plane is ready for the painter.  We are on his schedule for October 1, and he told us it's about a 2 to 3 week process.  This means we have about a month before we reclaim and truck the parts back to Washington where we will assemble and fly our amazing machine.

In the interim, our plan is to drive to Florida and shop for a house.  If you have read the earliest entries in this blog you should recall that we had decided not to buy a house.  Suffice it to say, that has changed.  If we can find a house that she wants and we can afford, then we will do our level best to buy it.  This is because she wants it.  It is an uncomfortable experience to be without a home base.  Some tolerate this better than others.

I was elated to hear from my Professor that I was receiving a favorable evaluation for the Summer quarter and my autobiographical writings.  I still have a couple quarters of work to do before I will get my BA, but that's okay.  Tomorrow I plan to visit the campus and seek a sponsor for another writing contract.  If I can do this while travelling it will be great.

We have just a few details to attend to and then Wednesday morning we will hit the trail to Florida.  I expect the trip to take a week of driving.  Not that we couldn't do it quicker, but I'd like to enjoy the drive.

Election season - is there anything else on TV?

We are once again in Eugene to work on the plane.  Work begins tomorrow morning and we expect to be finished some time Friday.  Then all the parts will be turned over to the painter for a couple weeks to make it look prettier.  After that, the current plan says, we will pack up and truck all the parts to Puyallup where we will (with the help of our EAA chapter buddies) get it all put back together and ready for airworthiness inspection by the FAA.  After that, we expect to have our friend and chapter member Jim, test drive it for us.  He is an expert pilot with a life of training and experience.  So it's looking like sometime in October (weather permitting) I will get to fly N9XG.

Today I had lunch with my friends Ed and Al.  They are both still employed by the government.  I think I may have convinced Al to pull the plug.  The people are all that I miss about having a job.

Yesterday, Boyd and I sat in his hot tub for a couple hours and worked on the solutions to all the world's problems.  It was a three beer session.

Those who know me know that I have definite ideas where politics are concerned.  I'm really trying to back away from the national election.  It's just too depressing for me.  In my humble opinion, it won't matter whether the R wins or the D.  Either way, they will not change the policies that are leading us to ruin.  What is funny is the drama that they put on for the amusement of the masses.  I wonder if anyone really buys the bilge water these guys are selling.  They lie with such alacrity and sincerity, it is truly breathtaking.

I recently found great comfort in Psalms 37.  It's printed here for your consideration.

Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
    be not envious of wrongdoers!
² For they will soon fade like the grass
    and wither like the green herb.

³ Trust in the Lord, and do good;
    dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
⁴ Delight yourself in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

⁵ Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him, and he will act.
⁶ He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
    and your justice as the noonday.

⁷ Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
    fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
    over the man who carries out evil devices!

⁸ Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
    Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
⁹ For the evildoers shall be cut off,
    but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.

¹⁰ In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
    though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
¹¹ But the meek shall inherit the land
    and delight themselves in abundant peace.

¹² The wicked plots against the righteous
    and gnashes his teeth at him,
¹³ but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he sees that his day is coming.

¹⁴ The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
    to bring down the poor and needy,
    to slay those whose way is upright;
¹⁵ their sword shall enter their own heart,
    and their bows shall be broken.

¹⁶ Better is the little that the righteous has
    than the abundance of many wicked.
¹⁷ For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
    but the Lord upholds the righteous.

¹⁸ The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
    and their heritage will remain forever;
¹⁹ they are not put to shame in evil times;
    in the days of famine they have abundance.

²⁰ But the wicked will perish;
    the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;
    they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

²¹ The wicked borrows but does not pay back,
    but the righteous is generous and gives;
²² for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,
    but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

²³ The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
    when he delights in his way;
²⁴ though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
    for the Lord upholds his hand.

²⁵ I have been young, and now am old,
    yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
    or his children begging for bread.
²⁶ He is ever lending generously,
    and his children become a blessing.

²⁷ Turn away from evil and do good;
    so shall you dwell forever.
²⁸ For the Lord loves justice;
    he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved forever,
    but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
²⁹ The righteous shall inherit the land
    and dwell upon it forever.

³⁰ The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
    and his tongue speaks justice.
³¹ The law of his God is in his heart;
    his steps do not slip.

³² The wicked watches for the righteous
    and seeks to put him to death.
³³ The Lord will not abandon him to his power
    or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

³⁴ Wait for the Lord and keep his way,
    and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
    you will look on when the wicked are cut off.

³⁵ I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,
    spreading himself like a green laurel tree.
³⁶ But he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
    though I sought him, he could not be found.

³⁷ Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
    for there is a future for the man of peace.
³⁸ But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
    the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

³⁹ The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
    he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
⁴⁰ The Lord helps them and delivers them;
    he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
    because they take refuge in him.

Pray for peace

TGIF (I think)

This is Friday, right?

We spent a couple days in Walla Walla with family.  It was lovely and the weather is perfect.  But since we only have about a week before we start work on the plane again, yesterday morning after breakfast we gathered our things and headed East.

We avoided the interstate because we wanted the scenery.  It was great!  We went East to Lewiston Idaho where we had our oil changed. From there we took the scenic route to Coors Delane.  The countryside is gorgeous!  We  stopped for Thai food and then proceeded on to Spokane.  We have a friend here that we have not seen in years.  So we will be here for a day or two.  "Our friend" is a couple.  Anh met him thru work years ago, but his wife is also a delightful lady.  I felt guilty for having eaten.  She was so frustrated that we were not hungry.

We are planning to visit Portland for a couple days when we leave here, but plans change quickly and easily.
Peace

Mother's birthday

I have not written anything in several days.  As I started to gather my thoughts and consume my first cup of coffee for the day, I checked to see what day of the week it is.  It's Sunday, and the anniversary of my Mother's birth.

While I don't intend to get all emotional, it is with a great deal of affection that I bring her memory to the fore.  I consider myself a very blessed man to have been her son.  She left us in July of 2001 after struggling with cancer.

Nobody gets to pick their parents or their siblings.  And since she is probably unknown to most of the people who read this, you will have to take my word for it; she really was special.  Memory's of her kind and gentle ways are never far from recall.  It is often one of these memorys that will cause me to be kind or gentle rather than acting out my brutish, self-centered instincts.  Revulsion at the thought of disappointing her is still a force in my life.

So, Happy Birthday Mother!  Rest in peace.

We are just a week away from our final installment of labor on the completion of the airplane.  It has been a week since I was in Eugene working with the guys at Synergy Air.  I'm told that the panel is done and tested.  So, September 4th we will come together for another week (give or take) of work.  We still have all the FAA paperwork to complete, and a two week visit to the painter.  Then a final reassembly.  After its done and inspected by the FAA and declared "air worthy" we still need to fly the plane for 40 hours of testing.

I'll be sure to post updates and pictures as we go along, so I hope you'll stay tuned.

So Tuesday afternoon, Wally says to me,"We're far enough along and reduced to waiting for parts; You could go home tomorrow if you want."  This was exciting for me to hear, but there are still lots of details to wrap up.  So Wednesday morning I packed up and checked out of my hotel.  I was getting pretty excited at the thought of getting home and doing it in the daylight.  So I gassed up the truck for the trip and drove out to the airport to say goodbye to the guys before I got on the freeway.  So Wally says to me,"Hey, before you go why don't you do (list of tasks)?"    No problem, but it was a surprise and I decided to work til lunch and then scoot.

I put the  elevator fairings and Horizontal stabilizer fairings on with pro-seal and pop-rivets.  It went pretty quick.  Then I did some fiberglass work on the trailing edge of the wing tip fairings in anticipation of trimming them to match the elevators.  I actually enjoy laying up fiberglass.  It isn't itchy scratchy like the sanding is.  The pro-seal is pretty messy stuff, but I think a guy could get good at it.  The last thing I did was help Phil install the Angle of Attack (AOA) sensors.  It consists of two sensors; one on top and one on the bottom of the wing.  They need to be located parallel to the chord line of the wing.

Then we went to a free BBQ lunch hosted by the airport administration.  It's the only thing I've gotten for free since I came to Eugene.  I enjoyed visiting with the guys and meeting a couple of prospective employees.  Apparently the young Joshua is moving on to another job.

Hit the road about 1300 and was feeling drowsy within about an hour so I pulled for a combat nap.  After 15 minutes I was back in action and got to Olympia at 1700.  Stopped for a drink at Big Toms and then topped off the tank and it was back on the freeway north.  Traffic was crowded, but I rolled into Lynnwood about 1900.  It's so nice to be cheerfully  greeted by loved ones; hugs and kisses.

So today it's Thursday and I have to get my schoolwork done ASAP.  Today is sit at the computer and slam it out.

I'm staying here in Eugene for another week because there is work I can do to move the project forward.  I had expected that Saturday would be a day off, but Wally called and asked me if I wanted to work.  So I spent the day working on the fiberglass parts.

As I mentioned in a previous post, fiberglass work is very messy and makes you itch a lot.  The mess is all the dust that's generated in the sanding.  This dust is fine like baby powder, but made up of kabillions of teenie weenie fiberglass shards are very irritating to the skin.  I'm told that a preventative is to rub baby powder on your skin before you begin, but I haven't tried it.  The fiberglass dust stays on and in your clothes and gets deposited on everything you touch.  I tried shaking my clothing out and lots of the terrible dust was liberated, but there was still plenty that stayed with me.  It's now in my truck and on the hotel bedspread.

The foam for the seats arrived yesterday.  Friday Bob and I met with the folks that will be doing our interior; seat covers, carpet, cabin liner.  They came prepared with samples and lots of ideas on how it should be.  They seem very accommodating about giving us what we want.  They have done airplanes before, so they have a track record and come recommended.

Pro-seal is a two part material that is used to create a seal.  It is the, I think, the stickiest, most persistent thing I've had the misfortune to touch.  I happened to get a little on my hand and didn't get it cleaned off quick enough.  I may have to wait for the resurrection to get rid of it.

Today will be devoted to washing clothes and writing for my Autobiographical Writing class.  I have much to do and a short time to get it done.  When I signed up for this, I assumed I would have access to the internet, but that has not been the case.  I'm looking forward to finishing the plane and the Summer quarter.  Unfortunately, I'm missing out on what looks like the nicest Summer in a long time.

Just a quick note as I dash off to the airport.
Yesterday I drew the short straw and spent most of the day working on fiberglass.  Itchy, nasty...  There sure is a lot of fiberglass on this all metal airplane!

Stay thirsty my friends.

Update on my last post.  I returned to Eugene, gathered my things and checked out of the Bates Hotel and into a more safe and sane establishment.  

Yesterday was mostly about fiberglass.  We worked on the engine cowl, and the wheel pants.  We also installed and tested the fuel level sensors in the wing tanks.  

You might not notice, but the plane is suspended off the floor.  This is so that we can configure the wheel pants for best performance in flight.  The picture makes it look like the plane is balanced on a saw horse.

Working with fiberglass is itchy.  The dust is actually itty bitty little shards of glass that poke into your skin and make you uncomfortable.  Here I'm connecting the two halves of the engine cowl (temporarily) so that they don't move.  Then I fit the rings in place and prepare for mounting them.  This set me up for a day of itching and scratching because of all the fiberglass dust that I liberated from the cowl.  

This is looking inside the cowl after we had laid up the rings and fiber glassed them in place.  Today we need to take the two halves of the cowl apart.  Hopefully, we will have a perfectly mated surface for the rings to mount to.  

The process of installing the fuel level sensors was not difficult, but very messy.  We put pro-seal on both sides of the gaskets and dipped each screw in pros-seal as well.  Pro-seal is a two part poly sulfite goopy sticky compound that won't come out of clothing.  It requires harsh chemicals to get it off of tools.  No matter how careful one is, this stuff will find a way to get where it isn't wanted.  

The sensors are electronic and have a variable resistance based on the position of the mechanical float.  When the float is high (full tank), the ohms meter read about 30.  When the float is low (empty tank) the ohms meter read about 250.  This resistance is translated by electronic wizardry to tell us at a glance whether we can keep going or if we need to look for fuel.

After a full day of work on the plane, I'm happy but pooped.  I stopped by a supply store for some material we need and then came back to my little peaceful hotel room.  Shower, dinner, and sleep.

It just occurred to me that this sounds like this is all about me.  But I am just one of the people working on this.  There were four others beside me working yesterday.  Bob is such  a hard working detail oriented guy.  He worked on the latch that will open the canopy.  A large part of the job was locating all the parts.  Building at Synergy is nothing like it was at home.  There we could (and did) discuss things at length.  At Synergy we are all about getting it done and Wally is the leader.  No need for lengthy discussions.  As a result, we get a lot done, but we have lost some of the social aspect of building.  We all sit in the sun and eat our lunches together, but that is about as social as it gets.  If this seems egocentric, remember that this blog  is part of my summer quarter at the college.

A lot has happened since the last time I posted to this blog.  The transient lifestyle has meant for me that I am largely detached from my Internet connection.  I hadn't realized how much I am online until it became unavailable.  Last night I stayed with my lifetime friend Boyd and his wife Pam.  They put me up for the night and will be depositing me on the train this afternoon to Eugene.  He fixed breakfast this morning; scrambled eggs, sausage links, fried potatoes, toast and jam.  I think I wanna move in now.

We started work on the plane in Eugene on the 30th of July.  So far, there have been only five days of work, but so much has been accomplished.  Here are some highlights of major accomplishments:

• Wings on and angle of incidence set
• Horizontal stabilizer on 
• Vertical Stabilizer on 
• Elevators on
• Rudder on
• Wing tanks prosealed and final skins riveted 
• Control rods all properly set and installed
• Landing gear assembled and installed
• Engine mounted and all sensors installed
• Vetterman exhaust installed
• Propeller installed, torqued and safety wired
• Engine baffling in progress
• Engine Cowl in progress

We are waiting for the new panel and other parts to arrive, but Wally assures us that two more weeks of work and we should be done and ready for the painter.  One big unknown is how long it will take for the FAA to finish with their paper work.

Working with the guys at Synergy is kind of like paddling in a raft that's flowing down a fast moving river.  So much is happening that it's hard to know how much I'm really adding to the process.  If I were not there, it wouldn't stop them.  Never the less, Bob and I are totally involved and loving it.  The Synergy guys know what to do and don't have to waste time standing around talking about it.  They dive in and before you know it the work is done.  Even while they teach us in the process.

My solution to housing was to rent a room I found on Craigslist.  How could I have known I was dealing with a troubled individual?  My landlord struck me as quirky when we first met.  She seemed paranoid about the air quality and 'Chemtrails' as though someone is out to get her.  She has the house up for sale, but set the price at what she wants rather than what the market would indicate. The first few days were okay.  I tried to keep a very small footprint in the house.  I cleaned my dishes and put them in the dish washer.  I keep my personal items within the confines of my room rather than taking over the bathroom.  I removed my shoes at the door to keep her floors clean.  I tried to negotiate her permission to bring my wife to stay with me, but she said, "NO".  I figured we could handle the one month separation because I could go home for the weekends.

Last Wednesday I noticed that the dishwasher was full, so that evening I put soap in it an ran the dishwasher.  The next morning I removed the dishes and put them away.  I thought I was just being a good housemate, but she instructed me that I should let her do the dishes.  She said, "Just put your dishes in the sink".  So (while it struck me a little odd) I put my dishes in the sink the next morning as instructed.  I went of to the airport for a day of working on the plane.  We had a very full day, and I came home with a big headache and exhausted.  I went straight to my room and fell asleep.

I was awakened by her shouting, "You need to get out right now".  I came out and asked if everything was okay.  She said,"Have you read your email?"   "No", I replied  "I have been working on the plane all day and haven't even noticed that I had email."  She wouldn't talk to me, but instead told me to read my mail.  So I read my mail.  She had left me three messages; each growing increasingly weirder than the last.  She was very upset that I had left my dishes in the sink.  You can imagine my confusion.  She was madder than a wet hen.  So I took the blame for the 'misunderstanding' and tried to calm her down.  I thought that this would be the end of the matter; WRONG.

I came home this last weekend because there was going to be a delay in our work until Wednesday and I wanted to spend the time with family.  You can imagine my surprise when I received another email telling me that I need to move out RIGHT NOW.  Okay, I give up.  So I arranged to stay in a hotel and let her know that I'll be moving out Tuesday evening when I return to town.  I thought she'd be happy.  Now she's decided to verbally attack my character via email.  I can't wait to be out of there.  I am so thankful that my brother will be coming with me to get my stuff.  I have this mental picture of my land lady that disturbs me.

Just to add to the drama, she (Mrs Bates) decided to throw all my stuff in a bag even though I asked her to leave my things alone..  Then she emails me to tell me about it.  Yike!

Today we will make the trek to Olympia again. There is still some work to do with our storage. Later in the day we're looking forward to dinner with friends. I also hope to drop by and see Boyd. He returned yesterday from a fire in Colorado.

Last night I was helping a friend review for her citizenship test. Her biggest problem is her lack of English. She has improved lots since she came to this country, but I can see that much of her study boils down to memorizing answers to a set of questions that she barely understands (if at all). As we were going thru questions about the constitution, government, and US history, I was mindful of two main things. First, how basic the level of understanding required is. It occurred to me that most of the questions would stump the average person on the street. Second, how what they teach is disconnected from current practice. Maybe I've become just a little to cynical.

I need to steer clear of politics for now. Haven't had my breakfast and don't want to upset my stomach.

Connecting to the Internet is one of the things I took for granted when I had a home. Many people have networks in their homes, but not everyone knows their password. My iPhone is way to tedious for typing large amounts of text. I'm entering this on my iPad. Of course it has a virtual keyboard which is better than the itty bitty pad on the phone, but it's still a one finger at a time process. Actually I'm trying a two digit two step, and it seems to work. Normally this is no big deal, but I'm supposed to be blogging and writing autobiographical master pieces.

The trip to Eugene is almost here. I'm all packed and ready to go. We have a final design for the panel layout. It's vary exciting to think that our project will be completed in just a few weeks. We've been working on this for years. We still need to select a color scheme. Of course Bob and I have different tastes in color, so this should be interesting.

Plans for traveling post airplane project continue to morph, so maintaining flexibility is critical.

So now we are homeless.  The key distinction between our state and that of the normal homeless person is that we have means, options and are doing this by choice.  It has been especially heart warming to have so many friends offer us their hospitality.  I had not anticipated so much, and it is humbling.  We are not interested in inflicting ourselves on our friends and taking all that is so lavishly offered.  We didn't rent out the house so that we could take advantage (mooch off) of our friends.

Having said that, there is a strangeness to knowing that we have no place to call home.  The last few days we have been camping with our friends and basking in their friendship.  Always in the back of my mind is the saying that "House guests are like fish; after three days they start to stink".  So we try to be especially thoughtful (as we should anyway).  It has been a great time to be able to share their company and their hospitality.


We discovered a little Vietnamese place on Martin Way.  We dropped in there after church for a bite and ran into friends.  No big surprise there.  I think Anh knows everybody in the Asian community.  So we had a nice visit after our meal and then came back to Steve and Susan's.

Last night we took Steve and Susan out for Thai dinner in downtown Olympia.  Susan really likes the Curry Pumpkin.  I like it all.

We have gotten to meet Steve's Mom and Dad.  We thoroughly enjoy them and their company. They remind me of my own parents in their laid back "come on in"  hospitality.  They are unpretentious people with an uncomplicated virtue.  Yesterday I dropped in on them just to visit.  We talked about politics and religion.  We had much in common with regard to politics, but religion not so much.  I know we aren't supposed to talk about politics or religion, but it was a great visit.  I think they are very interesting topics and everyone has opinions on them.  There was a mutual respect and civility.  I really enjoyed it and think they did too.


Elly has this great smile and quiet grace about her.  Jim is very smart and well read.  Neither of them believe in God, so I wanted to know more and we had a great talk.  Jim gave me an 18 page paper explaining his beliefs and a couple videos to watch.  I'm looking forward to reading it.  How many people put so much thought and effort into sorting out their beliefs?  I've never known any.  We exchanged email addresses and I intend to give him my feedback.


They are very interesting people and have great stories to tell.  We talked about many things:  His experience in the Korean war,   our common problem of poor hearing, some of their travels, the sorry state of our country and the government, as well as current events.  They were telling me about raising Imus.  It was very interesting;  I didn't know anything about them so it was all educational for me.  

Elly asked us to come back for some cribbage after supper, so we did.  She gave us coffee and pineapple upside down cake (yum).   Noah  and Trent (Steve and Susan's grandsons) came with.  What cute little boys; so full of life and joy.  They watched a Disney movie while we played.  Noah is three years old and still likes to be tickled and played with.  Trent is a little older and a very well behaved boy.

Steve and I prevailed on the cribbage board field of battle against overwhelming levels of estrogen in the room.   Then we called it an evening.  It was a good day.

Today we need to take care of some banking and then we'll drive back up to Lynnwood for an evening with Vergil.  I think we are coming back tomorrow for a BBQ.

Yike!  I missed my morning post yesterday.  Not that anyone would notice.  Blogging feels much like talking to yourself; unlikely that anyone else is listening and less likely that anyone will comment on what you've said.

Blogging is not as bad as posting on Facebook (FB).  With FB, the things you post are inflicted on all the people who have befriended you but haven't learned how to block your posts, or flush you as a 'friend'.

"Unfriend" is (I think) a new word that only has meaning in the realm of FB.  I don't think there is a comparable verb.  I might avoid someone or disassociate from them.  Maybe "disassociate" is the closest to "unfriend".

But this raises the question of what is a friend.  In FB, it is almost meaningless.  I get friend requests from total strangers.  In what way can you call a total stranger a friend?  Only in Facebook.  And if I find them unbearably dull or offensive, I either block or unfriend them much as I would walk away from a drunk at a party.  I think that FB has damaged/cheapened the meaning of the word "friend".

I have many acquaintances, but only a precious few friends.  Someone who knows me well and cares about me despite my flaws.  Someone I can depend on to drop what they're doing and come to my aid if I ask.  Someone who will help me to see my BS and still hang in there with me.  A friend like this is not found at the end of a mouse click.

Odd, I hadn't intended to blather on about blogging or FB, but there it is...

Yesterday was one of those beautiful sunny days we wait for all year here in the PNW.  So how did I spend it?  Packing boxes, moving boxes, stacking boxes...

We have today and tomorrow to finish up the move.  Then we join the ranks of the homeless.  It's an odd feeling to not have a place to call home.  I want to try it on and walk around in it for awhile.  Not like the people with the shopping carts and cardboard signs.  I expect to sleep in a bed every night, It's just that I don't know where that bed will be just yet.  I have a room reserved in Eugene, but that's a couple weeks away.  I guess we will inflict ourselves on family.

Even saying that feels icky.  I would not expect family or friends to provide for me what I can provide for myself.  It is heart warming that they have offered to provide for us in this transition though.

I don't mean to make fun of homelessness.  What a terrible thing it must be to have no place to go.  I can only imagine and my situation is dramatically not like that.  The fact that we have choices is the big difference.  We can always stay in a hotel if we want.  We have made choices that put us in our current situation and we are prepared to deal with the consequences of our choices.  Never the less, this is a paradigm I have not lived in before.