J.P.

Sunset.

I spent the day is an office writing code with other programmers I had never met before. It’s what I do for my career, and while it was an interesting experience, it didn’t give me the opportunity to enjoy much of the spring like weather here in Fort Wayne, Indiana today.

Luckily I took some time between supper and working in my hotel room to enjoy a gorgeous sunset, as seen from Interstate 469.

I enjoy the flat landscape of this area. The local folks seem laid back.

People don’t know what they’re missing when they fly over this part of the country.

16 March 2015 by J.P. Fun and Games Dept 0

DL3389

As mentioned in my previous blog entry, I am on my way to Fort Wayne, Indiana for work. My flights are by way of Detroit. The hop from Detroit to Ft. Wayne is short. I’m not worried about the 30 minutes of layover time, if I miss the connection I can just drive the two hours by car tonight.

I feel quite relaxed.

I spent the first few minutes of our flight reading about becoming an Instrument (IFR) Rated Pilot and listening to the radio calls between the flight crew on our flight and ATC. I had to stop listening when I lost cellular service. Yes, I was breaking a rule.

I just realized that I am probably breaking an FAA regulation right now by using my Bluetooth keyboard with my iPad. Perhaps I should stop.

The flight attendant’s name is Josie. She is very nice and organized. I am enjoying this flight on Delta 3389. It’s an ERJ145. I thought I had flown DL 3389 before, but I can’t find any earlier flights with that flight number on the spreadsheet I use to keep track of these things. Maybe I’ve just heard so many ATC calls over the years for 3389 it’s just ringing a bell.

The climb from KSYR through the clouds was short and fairly smooth. I watched for ice because I had heard earlier calls on ATC mentioning ice around 6,000 feet, but I didn’t see any ice accumulate on the wings. I looked back to make sure.

The decision to become an instrument pilot has been a tough one for me to make. This is venturing into territory beyond the ratings that my dad and grandfather had, but I love flying so much, including the challenges of being a great pilot, that I don’t want to limit myself to just flying in clear skies. I want Earl and I to be able to travel, and if our airplane is able to fly in the clouds, then I should be able to fly in the clouds as well. I’d never fly in scary weather, that’s just stupid, but having an IFR rating would allow us to worry less about weather when trying to come home from a weekend getaway or something like that. Plus, becoming an IFR pilot will greatly improve my piloting skills in general, and I’m always looking to become a better pilot.

Always learning. Always having fun.

15 March 2015 by J.P. Fly. 0

Fly For Work.

I am sitting in Syracuse Airport awaiting my flight that will get me to Fort Wayne, Indiana. It was less than two weeks ago that I found out that work needed me to fly to our Fort Wayne office for some meetings. The timing of this trip is a little off, as Earl, Jamie and I are headed to Walt Disney World on Thursday morning. I land at Syracuse Wednesday evening at 11:00 p.m., head home, and then Earl and I leave for Orlando from Syracuse Airport on Thursday morning at 11:00 a.m. If I miss my connection in Atlanta on the way home from Fort Wayne, I’m just going to camp out there and meet Earl there to get to Orlando. There’s always a plan B.

Syracuse Airport is desperately trying to ramp up its facilities. They’ve added a couple of shops, a new “AleHouse” (though I question why a modern airport would want a bar called “Middle Ages AleHouse”) and Johnny Rockets will be opening soon.

I just ate a heat and serve Grilled Chicken Panini that was acceptable. The calories weren’t horrible and the staff was very friendly. I’m feeling good.

I wish I was flying the airplane today, but being a passenger is still aviation awesomeness. Any seat on an airplane is a great seat.

15 March 2015 by J.P. Fun and Games Dept 0

Respect.

While I’ve been trying to steer away from getting too emotional about politics lately, two recent developments in the arena have caught my attention.

The first news item is Hillary Clinton’s use of a personal email server housed at her home in downstate New York during her tenure as Secretary of State. Apparently she had a server somewhere handling to @clintonemail.com domain and according to her explanation yesterday, it was because she wanted to carry only one device with her (like an iPhone or Blackberry or whatever) and she didn’t want to deal with multiple devices. She has her own server but her IT people can’t figure out how to put two email accounts on the same device, apparently. This revelation (the server, not the two accounts on the device thing) has created a media frenzy. Apparently Mrs. Clinton deleted everything she deemed personal and considers all her correspondence to @state.gov and other government addresses as the matter of record.

OK, so there’s quite a few holes in the logic. The fact that no one brought up red flags during the time that she was using her own server is disturbing enough. Of course, many are weighing in on the matter, including Sarah Palin, who condemned the practice. Because apparently, using your own server is a no-no but using a Yahoo email address as the Governor of Alaska is, you betcha, okie-dokie.

Now see, that last sentence there makes me sound disrespectful of the Governor of Alaska, when indeed, I just don’t like Sarah Palin. In fact, I believe that whoever brought Sarah Palin into the spotlight in the first place should be tried as a terrorist. As far as the Governor of Alaska, well, I don’t know who that is right now but whomever it is probably did their best to get there and hopefully they’ll ignore precedent and stay the course until the end of their term. They are the elected leader of the people of Alaska, and I respect that. Respect is important.

The second news item that has caught my attention is the letter signed by 47 members of the GOP to the Iranian government, essentially circumventing the negotiations that President Obama is trying to, well, negotiate. This unprecedented act is completely disrespectful of the spirit of our country and the role of the President of the United States.

Look, I’m not the biggest fan of President Obama. I think he’s done an adequate job and honestly, my life as an American right now is in good shape because of the work he has done as President. I voted for him because I believe he was the best choice at the time, but I don’t think he was ever the ideal choice. I might not agree with everything President Obama does as Commander-In-Chief, but I certainly respect the position he holds. I respect the office of the President. I will voice my praise and my opposition of policy, as a U.S. Citizen I have the right to do that, but I will never go out of my way to make the office look bad. I don’t believe that anyone, especially elected officials, should be going out of their way to make our country look bad, disorganized or unresolved. I wasn’t a fan of President George W. Bush at all; I thought that he took many missteps along the way and I didn’t agree with much of his policy, but when push came to shove, he was the Commander-In-Chief and I still respected that.

I think there’s a current of disrespect in our society these days that is damaging for the long term. I wonder if some of it stems from the outspokenness one can have on the Internet under a guise of anonymity. People think nothing of being disrespectful in comments on a political story or in the stream underneath a YouTube video. Users type without thinking; they spew their venom, completely disrespect their target and then move on. As people become more brazen on the Internet, I think this behavior starts to carry into real-life. How many videos have you seen where a customer has completely trashed a McDonalds because they couldn’t get Chicken Nuggets when they wanted them? It’s a lack of respect; respect for property, respect for people and respect for fellow human beings.

Smashing out a drive-thru window in a fit of rage is basically what happens when Congressional members write letters to Iran saying that they can easily undo anything that our Commander-In-Chief does. Why would you go out of your way to make your leader look weak? Just because you don’t like him? Well, you may not like him but you have to respect the position that he holds. You can disagree, you can voice opposition, but dont’ be disrespectful and don’t undermine him. That’s good for no one.

I think we need to start respecting one another again. Smile at the drive thru window, don’t rage. Be kind to the person behind the airline counter, don’t have some hellacious hissy fit. Be respectful.

11 March 2015 by J.P. Politics. Ponderings and Musings 0

Melting.

Last week this field was nothing but a field of white. While there is still at least a foot of snow on the ground, it’s good to see that melting is in progress.

I talk about the weather a lot. I guess I’m excited that I made it through another winter. Barry Manilow may have made it through the rain, but I made it through the snow.

11 March 2015 by J.P. Fun and Games Dept 0

Prep.

I recently signed to ride my bike in this year’s Tour de Cure. Last year I rode the 62 mile, or 100 km (metric-century) ride. This year I decided to push myself a little harder and signed up for the 100 mile ride. The event takes place in June. If you’re interested in contributing a donation to my ride, please feel free to visit my Tour de Cure Personal Page.

While I have been riding my stationary bike in the basement on an intermittent basis this winter, I feel like the experience does little in the way of getting me ready for a season of road cycling. Since the weather started to creep back into normal ranges this week, I started my pre-workday walk. I spend 45 to 60 minutes walking the roads of our neighborhood. It was 15ºF this morning when I went out; I bundled up and still found the walk to be enjoyable.

Once the snow is gone and the roads are relatively debris free, I plan on riding my bike before work as I have done in years past. It’s been a long, long time since I’ve ridden a 100-mile ride in a day and quite honestly I’m really looking forward to the experience. Most importanly, it’s all for a great cause. I’m planning on this ride being just one of many longer road trips on my bike this year. My plan for the nice weather is that if I’m not flying an airplane, I’m riding my bike.

With the weather finally getting somewhere in the direction of spring, I have started spending more time outdoors. I have a bad habit of staying cooped up in the house, especially since I work from home, and it does me a world of good to see some sunshine and a change of scenery throughout the day. For today’s lunch hour I’m sitting in the Jeep armed with an unsweetened tea from Dunkin’ Donuts, just as I would do if I was working at the office.

Unlike the office experience, the view here is a little bit better. Instead of staring at a shopping center parking lot, I’m able to enjoy the likes of the Barge Canal, which is just starting to show signs of thawing.

It’s a great day to be lunching in the Jeep.

10 March 2015 by J.P. Fitness. 0

Walk.

The jump to Daylight Saving Time is partially motivated to remind the American populace that spring is here. To celebrate this non-fact, I decided to go for a walk this morning, no matter what the weather. It ended up being 22ºF when I awoke this morning, so I bundled up and went on my usual walk. My desired route is a 3 mile trek and though it was a little chilly, it was still enjoyable.

The only drawback of this morning’s walk was that it’s not spring. It’s still winter, despite what the clock says.

8 March 2015 by J.P. Fitness. 0

Inspiration.

Earl, Jamie and I spent our evening watching “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” this evening. Simply stated, the movie is about a group of British retirees who decided to outsource their retirement and relocate to India. There are several familiar faces amongst the cast, include Dame Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Penelope Wilton and others.

I found this movie delightful in many ways, mostly because I found the circumstances of the plot to be most inspiring. Granted, I’m more than a decade away from any sort of retirement, but the idea of relocating and immersing myself into new surroundings and a new culture is very appealing to me.

Lsat week I remarked to Earl that I was in the mood for a change of scenery, a new adventure. It’s probably residual effects from my annual bout with Cabin Fever. But seeing the characters of that movie navigate through their new surroundings made me wonder what it would be like to travel somewhere outside of our comfort zone.

7 March 2015 by J.P. Ponderings and Musings 1

Flight.

My friend Chuck and I went flying today. I hadn’t been in the pilot’s seat in over six weeks, so I felt a little rusty but after a few moments I was on my game. We flew the airplane that Chuck is part owner of: a Cherokee 180. It has much more get-up-and-go than the Cherokee 140 that I am part owner of. The speed difference coupled with the challenges presented from an increase in performance made for that much more of a great flight.

It was good to get off the ground.

The forecast for next week shows Mother Nature getting her act together a little bit and that we might start seeing signs of spring. I am more than ready.

5 March 2015 by J.P. Fly. 0

Archives.

I am fascinated by the New York State Historic Newspapers archive (nyshistoricnewspapers.org). The archive has scans of numerous newspapers dating back to the early 1800s. Every issue of the two newspapers that were in my hometown, The Pulaski Democrat and The Salmon River News, are available in this archive. Full text searches are available. The interface is quite nice and easy to use.

I have been using this archive to research the airports in the area of my hometown, as well as the building of Interstate 81 and the reconstruction of many roadways in the area. For example, I always wondered why “Confusion Corners” was named as such; it turns out that the intersection of (then) US Route 104 and NY Route 104B was poorly marked, contained a lot of medians in the middle of the roadway and generally created havoc for motorists when it was opened in 1950. There were also several car related fatalities in the area. I had always thought that the roadway was built in the 1960s, but it turns out Confusion Corners was born in 1950. It had a similarly designed, but not as busy sibling at the other end of NY Route 104B, where it intersected with NY Route 3. Both of these intersections have been reconfigured to a standard intersection as of sometime in the 1990s.

After searching around about airplanes and roads, I started looking up the history of various family members over the years. I found an interesting article about my paternal grandfather’s poultry farm, which was awarded by Niagara-Mohawk (the local power company at the time) a mercury vapor light to illuminate the yard. Apparently the farm had a lot of electric equipment and the power company was quite grateful for this consumption, so they award the farm a light.

A smaller farm down the street also received a light for their yard. My grandfather is quoted in the article that accompanied the photo as having a friendly competition with the other farm and that first and foremost they were neighbors and friends.

The photo and article have such a technology-progress vibe so typical of the 1950s and early 1960s to it. I get a kick from the “looking forward” ambiance of the photograph. It reminds me of another photo I found in an archive years ago, where two women, in their 1950s dresses and high heels, are standing under high tension wires in the Finger Lakes, gazing up at the towers carrying the electricity overhead.

It was such a different time back then.

Photo courtesy of Niagara Mohawk Corporation

4 March 2015 by J.P. Ponderings and Musings 0

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J.P.

Sunset.

DL3389

Fly For Work.

Respect.

Melting.

Prep.

Walk.

Inspiration.

Flight.

Archives.

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