Almost a month without blogging.....

Ok so I've neglected blogging for a month not because I didn't have time but just because I've let it slip kind of like when you let exercise slip out of lack of interest or laziness. Whatever, cutting to the chase......So I'm now back in the urban rain forest of humid New Jersey. Temps have been pretty mild but the weather is disappointing; usually wet and hazy in the mornings and almost always a thunderstorm in the afternoon. At least the nights are pleasant and neither the a/c nor the window fan have to be used.

My relatives whom I am staying with (aunt and uncle) have adopted a new kitten which has been slowly growing. It's black and white, looks like it's wearing a tux and has white paws and blue eyes. Or at least it had blue eyes, now more of a grey/green color. It's name is Kitty, out of us not being able to figure out it's gender and thus chosen a generic name for the new pet. (It's actually female, so I proposed "Judy Blue Eyes" after a Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young song for her blue eyes but I think we're sticking with plain and simple "kitty."

I've applied to several jobs and still to no avail have not been hired. I tried: KEEMA Energy consulting, ESRI (makers of GIS software,) Target (yup that's right, retail....) Rejected by Target, and still not heard back from the other two. If I can't find something at the end of July, I may just take temporary job as a line guy at Princeton airport where I would refuel airplanes and helicopters. Not too thrilled with it but hey it's something to do. Only gripes would be that it's an on-call type job, not too keen on refueling helicopters while they're "Hot," i.e. engines burning, rotors turning (they do it this way because aparently it matters how many times engines are turned on and off from an overhaul and long run cost perspective.) Oh and if you've ever smelled jet fuel, it stinks and the smell won't come off your clothes if you spill it which is very likely. There are however incentives.....1. discounts towards flight training and 2. Work and you won't get fired.

Oh I finally got that go-ahead from Binghamton University that I could request my transcript from my summer course to be sent to HWS for processing and finally get my diploma mailed to me.

We'll see what happens.....

Other than that not much else going on besides my continuation of flight training for the private pilot's license. I just completed my first solo cross-country fligh of 100 nautical miles (that's aprox. 120 statute miles.) From Princeton to Mt. Pocono and back. I was a little nervous but that's expected. Not so much flying alone that was scary but the weather. It wasn't the greatest day and I was perhaps done with a little less visibility that I would have liked. 5 miles visibility with haze, and overcast cloud ceiling at around 3,000ft.

So I was moving along at a brisk 120mph at 2,000ft which isn't very high. At least there was smooth air but I was being extra careful about my dead reckoning (noting elapsed time with known way points on the map.) to navigate. I did have my little gps strapped to my leg on top of the folded map to use as back up just in case I missed a way point. Flew right over the Delaware Water Gap and saw all the congested traffic going through there.

Got to Mt. Pocono to find out that they had temporarily closed one runway which was the one I planed on using but switched to the other one instead as the operator on the ground there radioed me to do. Apparently they are extending one of the runways an extra 5,000ft, no idea why, it's already several thousand feet long. My only guess is perhaps they're planning on receiving heavy jets but I have no idea why, not exactly a busy airport unless Joe Biden is planning on landing Air Force 2 there? I bought fuel (a whopping $4.19/gal.) and topped off the tanks, managing to spill avgas all over the wing, my first time using a high pressure aviation filling nozzle from the self serve. (I'm only used to the automotive nozzle we had at Penn Yan, NY.) Funnily enough while in Princeton, they have attendants who fill the tanks for me, Jersey you don't pump your own avgas either.

Preflighted the airplane, found a little water in the fuel after draining the belly drain, so had to continue taking fuel samples until all the water was gone. Water in the fuel is a bad thing. But it has been known to get into the fuel systems either through condensation from partially filled tanks or from rain if the tank caps don't have very good seals. Nonetheless that's why each tank has a quick drain valve for taking a fuel sample every time before you fly to make sure you know what's in the fuel and that you drain all the water from the tanks.

I taxied to the end of the runway, took off, and flew back to Princeton. Once I got a mile out from Princeton I noticed that there were several planes in the pattern. The other two Cessna 152s where up and I managed to get on one's 6-o'clock (tail) as I came in. (Some times I wish I had machine guns and pretend to be a WWII fighter pilot! I think every pilot wishes this.) I heard the instructor of that plane say his call sign and then an expletive over the radio so I made climbing 360 turn and overflew the airport above the traffic patter to wait while everyone got out the way before I made my way back down to earth. Landed, parked, singed the logbook and then drove home. That was it.

Next week I'm going to plan my last solo requirement which is the 150 nautical mile solo to 2 different airports. Then all I need to do is complete my 3hrs instrument training with my instructor, take the written test, then pass the check ride and I'll be a private pilot, yay! After that, and quoting from another pilot's blog (but can't remember where on the internet) "a mile of runway can take you anywhere."

So that was yesterday.....Today the weather was shitty, so I went and chilled at the local Barnes and Nobel and flipped through books on the science shelf. Namely a book called "Longitude" about watchmaking, geography, astronomy, and navigation. And another book that really caught my attention after reading the first page: "Zero" it's about the number 0. I might go back there tomorrow but I've got to drive my mother and my grandfather to the Jersey shore for the weekend as it's our family reunion and I have relatives coming from CA that I really would like to talk to about me moving there and getting a job.