So there’s a pilot currently flying a Cessna 172 from Merced, California to Honolulu, Hawaii. Today I learned this is somewhat common; these ferry flights get new airplanes over to Hawaii when the winds are favorable and the weather is cooperative.
Working strictly from memory, a typical Cessna 172 has a range of about 650 nautical miles. This particular trip is nearly 2500 miles. For these flights these airplanes are fitted with extra fuel tanks, and the pilot makes the trip in around 18 hours.
That’s a LOT of time sitting in a Cessna 172.
I’m going to follow this flight on FlightAware to its completion.
I’ve been on a casual, retro vibe t-shirt craze lately. Here’s the latest t-shirt to enter the paradigm. This limited run UNIX t-shirt from Cotton Bureau arrived yesterday and I am very much enjoying it.
For those not familiar with UNIX, it’s an operating system that’s been around for decades. Technically, Apple products run on a variant of UNIX, and Linux is based on the principles of UNIX. When I worked for Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) back in the late ’80s and early ’90s, they had a variant of UNIX called Ultrix, which was frowned upon within the company because it competed with DEC’s VAX/VMS operating system.
Earl and I enjoyed a very nice sunset walk in Saguaro National Park – Rincon District this evening. Though the temperature was still quite high at 99ºF, we enjoyed our surroundings during our power stroll.
I had a fun hike up on Mount Lemmon yesterday. I’m happy I got this whole “hiking in the summer in the desert” thing figured out. Here’s a video of my adventure, with some bits about the history of Incinerator Ridge, some tips to make it enjoyable, and maybe a blooper or two. Enjoy!
Our second wave of thunderstorms of the night is passing through as I type this blog entry. I grabbed some good lightning shots before the rain became too much.
Truman stops for a casual pose while waiting for someone to either give him a treat or spur on his automatic feeder. I’ve been encouraging him to eat less, as he’s quite the big boy, but he does enjoy the kibble. Don’t we all.
I’ve featured this video on the blog before, and it remains one of my favorite tracks of all time. A cover of Gloria Gaynor’s “Never Can Say Goodbye”, which is a disco remake the Jackson-5 track of the same name, this song was quite popular when I first discovered gay clubs in my college years.
From 1987, here’s The Communards with “Never Can Say Goodbye”.
I have to admit I had a crush on keyboardist Richard Coles, who became an ordained priest in 2005.
My husband and I are seriously considering selling our Disney Vacation Club membership. There, I’ve said it out loud.
The past few trips to Disney properties, namely Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Florida, have not lived up to the memories we cherish from earlier trips to these venues. There’s a few reasons for this, and at the top of the list is the cost. Even with our prepaid accommodations, a trip to WDW for four or five days costs an incredible (to us) amount of money. From park tickets that are way over $100 per person, per day, to the cost of meals, to the cost of extra like ride photos and whatever “FastPass” is called this week, to now having to pay for the (non-)Disney bus from Orlando International Airport to the park… it’s just too dang expensive.
And honestly, the “magic” I once found in Disney seems to have dwindled a bit. It is impossible to escape the outside world. It used to be that you passed under the big arch and things were more colorful, the cast members were groomed to a certain standard, smiles were brighter, and in general, you were leaving the big, frustrating world behind for a while.
Now, Disney wants you constantly on your phone, with meal reservations and ride reservations and photo reservations. The male cast members that were originally required to be clean shaven and now required to grow a “neat, short beard” during their vacation, in actuality are all scruffed up to “meh, I didn’t shave for two days and I’m not brushing my teeth anymore”. Exiting attractions is often through the “back stage” area, where we see Mickey without his head on a smoke break. There’s more and more money required for anything beyond getting through the gates.
The magic has broken our bank a bit.
Yes, as I’m constantly reminded by my husband, I have old fashioned expectations for this modern world. I get that. That’s why there’s no one on our lawn. But when you’re paying sums of money equivalent to several house payments for a week in the Floridian humidity, you want a little bang for your buck.
I recently stumbled across this four hour review of the now closed “Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser” two day immersive experience. A lot of what is mentioned here can be attributed to the entire Disney experience.
I love the sound of the classic analog synths of the late ’70s and ’80s. I stumbled across a YouTube channel that features these wonderful sounds, and here’s a sample.
Just a guy with a husband. We’ve been together 28 years and he still makes me see fireworks on a daily basis. Hiker. Storm Chaser. Private Pilot. Tech Guy. Hackerish.
