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.