Monthly Archives: September 2020

September 30, 2020 · 23:19

The Monkeys, She Are Winning

Say something silly about hypothetical, rhetorical primates and they go out of their way the next day to prove they exist and they’re in charge…

Between the deadlines both scheduled and spontaneous at both the office, the hangar, the home, and the world, plus the aches and pains of getting through this decade, plus the gremlins that are inhabiting my computer hardware, plus…

I’m sure we’ve all had those days.

I’m sure we’re all having a lot more of them these days.

That’s probably going to get worse in the next five weeks, and I don’t have a lot of faith that they’ll get better a whole lot after that.

Maybe in February. Or March. March would be nice. Maybe a trip to Tempe Diablo in the middle of  the month…

Again, I’ve wandered. My apologies.

Perhaps sleep will help. Remember sleep? It was so nice…

Hang in there. One foot in front of another. It’s not how many times you get knocked down, it’s how many times you get back up! (I suspect the smarmy schmuck who came up with that one never, EVER got knocked down.)

Just be there for one another, be there for others when they need help, ask for help when you need it. We’ll get through this.

But that printer may get chucked into traffic if it doesn’t get its shit together tomorrow.

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Filed under Castle Willett, Deep Thoughts

September 29, 2020 · 23:51

My Circus, My Monkeys

There’s an old Polish proverb that goes, “Not my circus, not my monkeys!”

I wanted to think that today, between the deadlines and work piling up and then tonight’s “Presidential” “debate.” (Yeah, read the Twitter feed on the right if you’re still in the dark about where I stand on that Charlie Foxtrot situation. This is the sorta clean, I’m-trying-by-best-to-keep-it-mostly-family-friendly site – I place no such limitations on my Twitter feed and I’m pretty much on my last nerve there about 24/7/365.)

But in verifying the origin and exact wording of that circus/monkeys thing I got a half-dozen ads for coffee mugs that say, “That awful moment when you realize that this is your circus and those are your monkeys!”

First of all, I probably need one of those mugs.

Secondly, it’s true. Being one of the grown-ups in the room, with a sense of responsibility along with certain PTSD issues about quitting and giving up, this really *IS* my circus and those really *ARE* my monkeys.

Shit.

Well, that probably explains the trouble sleeping and the stomach pains…

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Filed under Disasters, Politics

September 28, 2020 · 23:38

Blooming Mexican Bush Sage

We’re into our third year in this house (time flies…) but I don’t remember this Mexican Bush Sage ever blooming quite this overwhelmingly before.

Maybe it’s been encouraged by all of the stinking hot weather?

Maybe the gardeners have fertilized it this year?

Maybe it was that “golden hour” light as the sun set? (This is where my money lies!)

The bees have found it in the past, but apparently not tonight.

Whatever’s going on, it was worth a trip back into the house for the good camera.

No aroma that I can smell, not like the roses (search the site, there are a gazillion of them) on the other side of the driveway.

Whatever’s happening, it’s worth a trip down to the mailbox when the sun starts to set! (Wear a mask!)

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Filed under Flowers, Photography

September 27, 2020 · 23:35

Twin Tree Lizards

I saw the big tree lizard out gathering some sun.

At this point I’m just at the edge of the porch, maybe fifteen to twenty feet away with a telephoto lens.

Two small steps forward, slowly, I don’t want to spook him. Another half step…

…wait, what’s that on the left that just moved?
I had failed to #FindThatLizard. There had been an assumption on my part, which was incorrect.

This guy was off on the left, ready to bolt.

The first guy was still holding steady on the right, but my guess is that a quick getaway wouldn’t be long in coming if I twitched.

Y’all are good – enjoy the afternoon sun and watch out for those crows. I’ll back away slowly and let you have the yard.

 

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Filed under Critters, Photography

September 26, 2020 · 23:46

PT-19

If you’ve never taken a flight in an open cockpit plane, I highly recommend you try it!

This is our PT-19 trainer out at the CAF Southern California Wing in Camarillo.

Boarding is a little bit different than on Southwest or United – just climb up onto the wing, stay on the black strip, flip a leg over, and settle in.

In the back seat you’ll have that stick moving around and the rudder pedals moving back and forth as the pilot flies the plane. Try not to hit those unless you’re flying the plane. Those other knobs and levers are for fuel and throttle and flaps – don’t touch any of them, either. Just enjoy the view!

It’s not super fast – top speed is barely 100 mph. It’s still a joy to fly in.

If you want to fly and you’re in SoCal, get in touch with us once the COVID thing is over. (We’re all grounded right now.) We can make that happen!

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Filed under CAF, Flying, Photography

September 25, 2020 · 22:56

Random Old Photos – September 25th

The setting should be familiar, even if you’ve never been there yourself.

American Falls on the left, Horseshoe Falls in the distance in the center-right.

It was an okay day, we had fun. One of those places that I spent a couple hours at where I wouldn’t mind going back for a day or two to explore more.

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Filed under Photography, Travel

September 24, 2020 · 23:10

Test Results In The Time Of COVID

It’s one thing to see that everything’s fine. That’s good.

It’s another to see that all of that clean living, healthy diet, a little exercise, and one previous result that the doctor had been bugging me about was now MUCH better. That’s great!

So I sent a message to the doctor about how that means that I don’t have to change meds like he’s been pushing, right? And I got the usual “this stuff is great” and “in the long run” and so on, but in the end I got my long sought after “ATTA BOY!” and his consent to leave things as they are. Which I’m happy about.

Now if I could just get rid of this rotator cuff (old age, threw way too much batting practice a couple decades ago) issue which is annoying as hell. The worst part is when I’m not thinking about it, like when I picked up the newspaper and threw it up toward the garage without thinking. It can make one scream like a stuck pig, sink to one’s knees in the driveway, and have the neighbors wondering if there was a drive by shooting that they didn’t get invited to. It can make me use words that my mother would not approve of! (Not that that particular bar was ever set real high…)

If someone tells you they’ve got a chronic pain condition – cut them some slack. This shit isn’t fun.

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Filed under Health

September 23, 2020 · 22:38

Tests In The Time Of COVID

It’s that time of year when a whole slew of annual tests were due to convince my doctor that I’m not on Death’s door. I managed to group them all together with a bit of time left in between to get my flu shot. All’s good.

Of course everyone’s fully masked up. I got several complements and inquiries about mine. I also had my eyes dilated as part of the final test and they gave me those cheap temporary sunglasses to use. The combination might not have been my best look, but it was unique.

Probably a good day to try going into a bank…

The mask is printed to show a standard Visual Flight Rules (VFR) sectional map from the FAA. There’s a small company started by a teenager in Florida that will print them with whatever location you want – mine show Camarillo, where the CAF SoCal Wing is based. I bought them as a lark (through Sporty’s catalogue if you’re interested) but they turn out to be the best fitting and largest masks I’ve gotten. And it is a conversation piece.

One of the folks who was checking me in for one of the appointments was quite taken with the mask (I hadn’t gotten the glasses yet, so I looked a little less like a “Watchman” extra) but she filled out part of the initial patient intake form without getting my input.

I’m not saying she’s WRONG, mind you. Some assumptions are pretty solid. But it is 2020…

 

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Filed under Health, Photography

September 22, 2020 · 23:44

Autumn Equinox

Which means winter is coming? We don’t have winter here, but maybe we can ameliorate some of the more savage heat waves of winter with some failed Darke Ancient Magik byproducts.

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Filed under Photography

September 21, 2020 · 23:02

No Context For You – September 21st

Enough doomscrolling about the fires around Mount Wilson, at least for tonight. (Yes, the fires are still a threat, they were setting defensive backfires all day on the north side, which looked scary as hell, and now those have moved to the west, still very close, still very scary, but they seem to know what they’re doing.)

It’s been a frustrating few days – getting things done, actually getting some results, but every single one feels like it takes ten times more effort and bullshit than it should. The sense of accomplishment from pushing through the BS and getting things done is okay, but would it freakin’ kill the universe to cut me some slack and let things that are supposed to be easy and trivial actually be easy and trivial?

Apparently it would.

So, let’s limit the thinking tonight and go back to random photographic nonsense for the evening. I hope wherever you are and whatever you’re doing you’re having an easier, more pleasant time of it.

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Filed under Photography