Good Ol' Days
Some regulations governing the operation of aircraft in the early 1920's included the following:
1. Don't take the machine into the air unless you are satisfied it will fly.
2. Pilots should carry hankies in a handy position to wipe off goggles.
3. In case the engine fails on take-off, land straight ahead regardless of obstacles.
4. No machine must taxi faster than man can walk.
5. Do not trust altitude instruments.
6. Pilots will not wear spurs while flying.
7. If you see another machine near you, get out of its way.
8. If an emergency occurs while flying, land as soon as possible.
Saturday, April 17, 2004
Outsourcing? Forgetaboutit
If you want anything done right, do it yourself. That is the lesson I am quickly learning.
The exhaust system on Volksjager, my trusty 14 year old VW Jetta has been leaking from a hole in the resonator for quite some time. Since I had no money for quite a while, it was necessary to put it off permanent repairs and resort to putty and muffler tape. However the State of PA doesn't think very highly of such band-aids so I knew I had to get it replaced by the end of April when my inspection ran out.
I hate working on exhaust systems. I do not relish the thought of working above my head trying to remove a dozen rusty bolts. It is inevitable that they will simply snap in two and shower down cascades of rusty particles that know just how to get around safety glasses and into my eyes. I don't have a lift, air compressor, or an oxy-acetylene torch. It would take me most of the day just to drop out the old exhaust.
I ended up taking it to a Muffler shop recommended to me as being reasonable. I dropped it off on a Wednesday night and looked forward to picking up a quietly running Jager the next day. I arrived, gave it a quick look over and paid my bill. As I was turning to leave the office, technician mentioned, "Oh, the manifold is still leaking a bit, so it is going to still have the tick." I later noticed they had put several deep gouges in my my bumper. Granted, my car is one of the oldest ones still on the road, but that's just silly.
What did I pay for again. They replaced the resonator, muffler, and quite a bit of pipe, but they didn't solve the problem. Now I have to spend the first absolutely beautiful Saturday of the year under my car chasing down stray CO and picking pieces of metal out of my eyes.
If you want anything done right, do it yourself. That is the lesson I am quickly learning.
The exhaust system on Volksjager, my trusty 14 year old VW Jetta has been leaking from a hole in the resonator for quite some time. Since I had no money for quite a while, it was necessary to put it off permanent repairs and resort to putty and muffler tape. However the State of PA doesn't think very highly of such band-aids so I knew I had to get it replaced by the end of April when my inspection ran out.
I hate working on exhaust systems. I do not relish the thought of working above my head trying to remove a dozen rusty bolts. It is inevitable that they will simply snap in two and shower down cascades of rusty particles that know just how to get around safety glasses and into my eyes. I don't have a lift, air compressor, or an oxy-acetylene torch. It would take me most of the day just to drop out the old exhaust.
I ended up taking it to a Muffler shop recommended to me as being reasonable. I dropped it off on a Wednesday night and looked forward to picking up a quietly running Jager the next day. I arrived, gave it a quick look over and paid my bill. As I was turning to leave the office, technician mentioned, "Oh, the manifold is still leaking a bit, so it is going to still have the tick." I later noticed they had put several deep gouges in my my bumper. Granted, my car is one of the oldest ones still on the road, but that's just silly.
What did I pay for again. They replaced the resonator, muffler, and quite a bit of pipe, but they didn't solve the problem. Now I have to spend the first absolutely beautiful Saturday of the year under my car chasing down stray CO and picking pieces of metal out of my eyes.
Tuesday, April 13, 2004
Music File
Every time someone asks me what type of music I listen to I just look at them and chuckle. My music collection is so incredibly random It ranges from Dylan to Smashing Pumpkins, Dido to Ozzy, Sonatra to Chopin, with a bit of Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker mixed in for good measure. It really depends what mood I'm in.
My CD of the week has been Nickel Creek. I saw them in concert a couple of weeks ago and was blown away. It was the best concert I have been to in years. Their bluegrass style with a "New Nashville" edge is refreshing different. I didn't know most of the songs when I went, but it didn't keep me from enjoying all they played. The opening band cancelled so they extended their oncore to five or six more songs. Then they went unplugged. They managed to give an auditorium of 2000 people an intimate performance that was nothing short of amazing. They are on tour. Definitely go when they come to town.
Every time someone asks me what type of music I listen to I just look at them and chuckle. My music collection is so incredibly random It ranges from Dylan to Smashing Pumpkins, Dido to Ozzy, Sonatra to Chopin, with a bit of Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker mixed in for good measure. It really depends what mood I'm in.
My CD of the week has been Nickel Creek. I saw them in concert a couple of weeks ago and was blown away. It was the best concert I have been to in years. Their bluegrass style with a "New Nashville" edge is refreshing different. I didn't know most of the songs when I went, but it didn't keep me from enjoying all they played. The opening band cancelled so they extended their oncore to five or six more songs. Then they went unplugged. They managed to give an auditorium of 2000 people an intimate performance that was nothing short of amazing. They are on tour. Definitely go when they come to town.
Monday, April 05, 2004
Friday, April 02, 2004
Gloomy Skies
I have finally proved it. After all those years of wondering, I can now know for sure. There is an end of the rainbow. I stumbled upon it yesterday during my rainy drive home from work. I sat there at watched as the colorful ribbons of light extended from the hood of my car up into the sky where they disappeared into the black curtains of gathering storm clouds. What a disappointment it was. No treasure awaited me, not even a hint of gold.
That's life. Nothing is quite as good as advertised. A thought crossed my mind recently. Perhaps the greatest danger in setting goals is not in failing to reach them, but rather in seeing them come to fruition and finding the success mockingly hollow.
If I could do it again I would make sure I chased a dream so lofty that there would be no chance for the misfortune of seeing it come true. It is an ugly feeling to look a dream in the face and seeing only ghostly wisps of something that once burned bright.
I have finally proved it. After all those years of wondering, I can now know for sure. There is an end of the rainbow. I stumbled upon it yesterday during my rainy drive home from work. I sat there at watched as the colorful ribbons of light extended from the hood of my car up into the sky where they disappeared into the black curtains of gathering storm clouds. What a disappointment it was. No treasure awaited me, not even a hint of gold.
That's life. Nothing is quite as good as advertised. A thought crossed my mind recently. Perhaps the greatest danger in setting goals is not in failing to reach them, but rather in seeing them come to fruition and finding the success mockingly hollow.
If I could do it again I would make sure I chased a dream so lofty that there would be no chance for the misfortune of seeing it come true. It is an ugly feeling to look a dream in the face and seeing only ghostly wisps of something that once burned bright.
Saturday, March 20, 2004
Engineers Are Idiots...
At least those working for Learjet. I just spent the afternoon crammed upside down in the cockpit trying to insert 3 stinkin bolts that the goofballs decided needed to be nestled 6 inches up a blind crevice hidden by several overgrown wire bundles. And this was supposed to be their idea of a quick install method. I can't wait to do it all again tomorrow.
At least those working for Learjet. I just spent the afternoon crammed upside down in the cockpit trying to insert 3 stinkin bolts that the goofballs decided needed to be nestled 6 inches up a blind crevice hidden by several overgrown wire bundles. And this was supposed to be their idea of a quick install method. I can't wait to do it all again tomorrow.
Tuesday, March 16, 2004
What’s This? A BLOG?
Here it is. The post that the faithful few have stopped waiting for. The craptop computer is finally back up and running. Kind of. After a month of suffering through fatal errors and the never-ending blue screens of death, it was time for some work. Since I am not as computer literate as a post college kid should be, it took me awhile to get all the formatting and reinstalling done. The interesting part of the whole thing was that, after a week or so of not turning the thing on, I didn’t really miss it any more. It did feel a little weird to actually read a book instead of the internet, but an occasional throwback to the good ol’ days is ok.
The Subtle Change of Tune has begun its melodies once again.
Here it is. The post that the faithful few have stopped waiting for. The craptop computer is finally back up and running. Kind of. After a month of suffering through fatal errors and the never-ending blue screens of death, it was time for some work. Since I am not as computer literate as a post college kid should be, it took me awhile to get all the formatting and reinstalling done. The interesting part of the whole thing was that, after a week or so of not turning the thing on, I didn’t really miss it any more. It did feel a little weird to actually read a book instead of the internet, but an occasional throwback to the good ol’ days is ok.
The Subtle Change of Tune has begun its melodies once again.