mardi, décembre 30, 2008

12/08 4 eme semaine/ 4th week



Bien qu'elle soit encore jeune pour tout comprendre, il n'empeche que Florence aura quand meme appreciee ses cadeaux. Submergee par les paquets, nous nous sommes rendu compte qu'elle a ete vite depassee et qu'on aurait pu faire moins cette annee... Bon, on compense vu que sa famille est plutot petite!!

C'est aussi le dernier post de l'annee est comme d'habitude, j'ai fais le decompte des heures de vols cette annee... Plutot l'hecatombe en fait, alors que j'espere toujours faire mieux chaque annee. Florence grandissant, il est difficile de me mettre les fesses dans un planeur lorsque je suis deja parti la moitiee du temps a cause du boulot. De plus la formation sur le "Sovereign" m'a empeche de faire de la ligne.
Alors resultat, 390 hrs de vols dont 25 hrs de planeur et seulement 3 hrs de monomoteur!

Bonnee annee a tous!

A year is gone. I know not only from the more southern position of my patootie (aka tushy, aka behind, aka ass) but also from the various map routes now outlined around my eyes, crevasses etched deep within the flesh which, if followed, would lead you past my days passed over the hours, weeks, and months since that fateful day of birth so long ago.

Another roll is added to the expanding middle waistline which also could tell the tale of my life, like rings in a Sequoia, betelling of trips to McDonalds or late night love affairs with a Hershey bar.

And, sadly too, are wrinkles added in the head flesh itself, etched deep in the tissue of the brain, forming furrows and fissures, disconnecting thoughts from one another, leading to the inevitable going into a room and sitting down for a while, as I could not remember why I went there in the first place. Or using a word like "fishers" instead of "fissures" until I realized the unlikelihood that my brain was inhabited by tiny, minute fishermen. Though perhaps it would be better if it were, as they might have better opportunity to catch a word for which I often seem lost to recall, it sitting thusly on the tongue for hours until remembered in the wee hours of the night when I roll over the rustle my husband from sound sleep to announce "Oh, I remember now what I was trying to say," his bleary eyed look of horror at being woken bespeaking of not only wondering if I lost my mind but my sanity as well.

And like the sounds of birds in the morning or the sweet cries and calls of the loons at dusk, do the cricks and creaks of my joints and bones play a merry tune as I move to and fro, up and down, down and out.

Ah, time and tide.

Today my daughter sat in amazement and amusement, looking into a cheap mirrow sold at a grocery store as we waited for Dada to finish checking out the food at the register. I sckrunched down with her as far as my knees would allow, to eye spy her in the mirror and partake at her eye level the jocularity of the moment. And in spying her I spied myself, all wrinkly crinkly, looking a far cry from the girl just a few years ago, aged by late motherhood as a presidency ages a president.

But I did not shudder. In fact, a smiled back at myself, who was smiling at her smiling at herself. Because, indeed, these wrinkles now tell a story worth retelling as the years meander by.

It is not the passage of time I fear, but the ability to be aware of all that passes.

I needs must not fall alseep as the brief hours and weeks pass of her life, my darling daughter, and that of my dear husband, and the intermingling of our lives together as a whole. Like a bowl of spagetti, my daughter the pasta, my husband the sauce and I, of course, the meatball.

For although I sit, now with numb legs, next to her in a nothing grocery store, waiting for husband, during a mundane errand, on a dirty floor, the moment could be of no less importance should I have been humbling myself before an emperer or king.

I lay humble before them.

And these moments, the sound, the smell, the very essence of them I shall attempt to enrapt myself in for as long as the mind remembers.

In this my life is worthwhile.






jeudi, décembre 25, 2008

12/08 3 eme semaine/ 3rd week


Froid. Chaud. Froid, chaud. C'est tous ce qu'on a fait cette semaine.

Ca a commence par Chicago, ou je me suis amuse a mettre les baggages dans l'avion par une temperature de -20C et un vent avec rafales a 25 Kts!
Le resultat est qu'on peut obtenir une gelure en un peu moins de 10 minutes. Je suis arrive dans le cockpit dans une stupeur qui m'a empeche de repondre aux passagers. C'est la premiere fois que ca m'arrivait. Pas vraiment l'impression d'avoir froid, mais le cerveau engourdi, a un point ou je me suis demande si je n'allais pas annule le vol.

Heureusement, nous allions au Mexique, Cabo San Lucas, un peu comme d'habitude, puisque nous avons beaucoup de passagers proprietaire de maison la bas. Une temperature de 28C nous a acceuilli, ce qui est quand meme beaucoup plus raisonnable....

La compagnie a eu la gentillesse de me rammener a la maison un jour plus tot, ce qui fait que j'ai pu passer la st-Sylvestre avec la petite famille.

C'est noel, a l'heure ou j'ecris ces lignes, photos a l'appui de Florence devant ses cadeaux.
A la semaine prochaine pour de nouvelles aventures donc, et bonnes fetes de fin d'annee a tous...

dimanche, décembre 14, 2008

12/08 2eme semaine/ 2nd week


Florence est allee faire un tour de Cessna 172 cette semaine.

Equipee d'un blouson aviateur comme papa, elle fut prete pour parer toutes eventualites. A son age, elle ne se rend pas forcement compte de ce qu'elle survole, encore qu'elle a bien vu le lac "pleasant" et les bateaux de plaisance.
A l'aterrissage, elle a saluee la tour de controle en disant au revoir.
Ce qu'elle a apprecie de plus, dit-elle, ce sont les turbulences, ce qui fut bien rigolo. Beaucoup moins pour Katherine cependant...

What could be better than watching my husband and little girl scurrying about a Cessna 172, both excited as can be to go "a flyin'," happy as beavers at a wood convention. And, of course, what better to top it off than they are both dressed in matching jeans, shirts and flight jackets.

Baby bounced about the airplane as Daddy pre-flighted and Mommy fought with the baby airplane seat (aka, car seat for airplanes). Although the day was to be clear of rain, apparently the weather got another memo and decided for winds to kick up early, spewing dust and such all about the horizon, looking much akin to a dust storm as we see here during Summer Monsoon season.

Regardless, Baby was all excited, bouncing and jabbering a series of syllables and she shouted out at Daddy "Airplane! Airplane!" Daddy shot back with his camera taking a few photos, one of which is on display above.

We're ready for takeoff. Keeping with tradition, Mommy smacked Baby's head on the top of the airplane, not flying enough to keep in memory the low roof line on the interior of the 172. But she shrugged it off with a noted "Boo Boo!"

And the engine was started, the air flow tossing Baby's long locks to and fro. All settled in, we headed to the taxiway. Baby wasn't much interested in wearing the adult headset, even though it allowed her to hear Daddy. The weight was too much for her small frame. So she settled for some squishy ear plugs instead and settled in for a comfy tour de force of the Desert Southwest in winter, with a promising sunset to come (in the song America the Beautiful, Arizona was the inspiration for the phrase "and purple mountains majesty" due to the soft pink, purple sunsets often experienced here.)

We pass the tower on the way to the hold short of our appointed runway (we're at a new airport due to our former airport closing down local GA in favor of corporate GA. This new airport is actually extremely busy and has multiple runways, in opposition to our singular runway from before). I advise Baby to wave bye-bye to tower. She concurs.

Daddy shouts from the cockpit "Ready? Here we go!" And he pushes the throttle, the engine roaring to full power, our rocking a bit side to side with the crosswinds picking up, a side effect of the pending storm. But, alas, with the crisp humidity free air and cool temperature we take off in a small hop, like a super charged bunny rabbit anxious to make way to a patch of carrots.

Aloft Baby settles in with some Cookie Monster banana cookies as she looks out among the little ants and cars that squawk about. I try not to think of the bumpy bumpy of the hoppity hoppity turbulence. I have extremely sensitive inner ear so I can feel the smallest sensations, proof sitting right in my stomach getting knotted up like a pissed off boa constrictor.

Daddy shows us the local lake, which unfortunate for us, holds a few surprise sheers, but we bank to show Baby the view of the water and boats, especially beautiful with the approaching sunset blanketing the water in a shower of sparkly pink and purple fire flies. Fourth of July in winter.

The bumpy bumpy picks up as the winds gust about and Baby begins a series of loud snorts and giggles as she screams "Bumpy! Bumpy! More! More!" Alas, another glider pilot is born.

Daddy turns from his in command position and smiles at his beloved girl, clarifying that the noise he heard emanating from her was from happiness and not distress. He is relieved to find it was giggles and not fright. Daddy and Baby destined to become best flying buddies. For this I am grateful, from my now resigned position to the back seat clutching a borrowed sick bag and moaning like a Muslim for help from God to see me through without, dare I say, vomiting.

Time to move home. Baby can only stand being in a car seat too long, especially since our ride to and fro the airport involves up to a two hour round trip strapped down in the car as well.

We come in for a landing with Baby still giggling and yelling for more turbulence. We again wave to tower, this time to say hello.

After parking the aircraft Baby takes off on the tarmac giggling and yelling "Airplane! Airplane! More?!" And we run to the FBO to allay exposure to further cold winds as Baby keeps asking when we will return.

Success. Unadulterated success, for the singular goal was to start the process of instilling a joy of flight that, pray, is to last a lifetime and to allow a passion to be shared between father and daughter.

We'll now schedule regular flights and fit in, when season arrives, some glider rides to give her the full taste of the joy of turbulence, aka wind.

Oh lucky Daddy, to have help born such a kindred spirit of flight.

Now I just need to go on EBay and get more barf bags!

Out.

jeudi, décembre 11, 2008

12/08 1ere semaine/ 1st week

Nous avons a la maison une petite fille qui adore se regarder dans la glace, et essayer des nouveaux vetements, ou meme comme c'est le cas dans cette photo, une casquette.
Beaucoup de traces de doigts donc, ou de bisous sur la glace.
Gavroche pour cette fois.

Elle continue de grandir, arrive meme a faire des phrases, c'est a dire mettre deux mots bout a bout.

Florence, seras-tu manequin?
Peut-etre tous simplement, seras tu une femme.

mardi, décembre 02, 2008

11/08 4eme semaine/ 4th week

Apres quelques jours a la maison, et ben voila, il a fallu repartir au boulot. Decidement, il n'est pas terrible cet emploi du temps, et il a ete meme decide que je reviendrai sur le 7/7 cet ete.

Comme c'est la saison, nous avons fait la navette entre New-York et la Floride principalement. Nous avons eu la chance d'eviter le mauvais temps, lorsqu'il neigait dans le nord, nous etions en Floride!

Bien que mainte fois survoles, nous avons eu l'occasion d'aller chercher un de nos clients aux chutes du Niagara, pour l'emmener ou? Y'en a qui suivent? En Floride bien sur.
Alors, vu que le terrain n'etait qu'a une quinzaine de minutes, petit passage vite fait histoire de dire, avant de revenir a l'avion, et decoller avant que la neige arrive de nouveau..