Oops. Almost forgot to write today's entry. It hasn't been all that exciting a day
anyhow. Flying this morning was cut a bit short; I found a couple of broken tie
wraps in the engine of the Cessna 152 I was scheduled to fly at 8AM and elected
not to take it out, having been thoroughly indoctrinated with horror stories of
FOD (Foreign Object Debris in the engine) damage during my time at Boeing. They
had not other 152s free, so I ended up flying a 172 instead. Preflighting the 152
had taken some time, of course, and we had to have the 172 back by 10, so it was a
short flight. For someone with a propeller in her logo, I have a ridiculously low
number of hours logged; I'm still well under 100 hours. I really should go get an
instrument rating; just the amount of flying time to get it would make me a better
and more confident pilot. Anyway, it was a windy day, with a fairly substantial
crosswind across the runway, so my landings today were not things of beauty, nor a
joy forever.
After that, I went to the mall where I exchanged a CD my
uncle had given me (because I already have O Brothers, Where Art Thou?).
This may be the first (and probably last) time either of us has ever given the
other a CD that's on a best-seller list. Most of the music we both like is not the
sort of thing that's been played on any radio station since roughly the advent of
rock 'n' roll. I traded it (and some additional plastic) for the audiobook version
of Antonia Frasier's Lives of the Kings and Queens of England so I can
broaden my education as I drive. Unfortunately, I think it only goes back to
William I; I'd have liked to learn more about Alfred and Æthelred, Hardicanute and
Boudicca.
A local car dealer had a tent sale at the mall, so I
browsed their used cars and realized that what I really need for my commute to
work is a Civic, so that I don't have to refuel three times a week. Much as I love
my truck, it is not the appropriate vehicle for my nearly 80-mile round-trip daily
commute. They had a Civic EX I really liked, except that it had a rear-window tint
so dark as to impede visibility and an arm rest that can't be used when the seat
is far enough forward that I can reach the pedals. The tint can be removed, but
the arm rest problem is permanent.
I decided to drop in at a Honda
dealership to see if they had more used Civics, which is when I realized that it
makes very little sense to buy a 1999 car for $14,500 when a new one, same
model, still with the moonroof I'd liked but with the arm rest design flaw fixed,
is about $16000. I don't normally do this, but since the main purpose of the
car is to commute to work, and since I'm a contractor and can't stay there for
more than 2 years unless I convert to a direct employee, I think a lease might be
the appropriate option. I may try to drag Rudder there tomorrow to make sure the
car is comfortable for him too, since he's much taller than I am. And to make sure
the whole thing isn't a stupid idea.
Speaking of Rudder, he will be
home in only a few hours. Yay!!