Still Flying Somewhat High

I looked at the last few entries and noticed my name wasn't on any of these latest posts, and then I realized I'm not around anymore. It seems as life has gone on without me at home. Here is what I have been up to. Forgive the difference in writing styles, as my sweet wife is an author and I am just a pilot.

I am currently in ground school for an airline. Yes, I already know how to fly, but they need to indoctrinate me with the new systems on their aircraft. I have heard that this airplane is one of the hardest around to learn. Learning the 747 would be an easy transition (they say). The systems are backups upon backups and we have to learn everything about them so we can troubleshoot in the air. You wouldn't want us to not know how to fix a trouble in the sky would you? We can't pull off the side of the road if it dies.

I live on an old military base in Phoenix that is converted into an Arizona State University campus and will be here for 1 or 2 more weeks. Vancouver will be my next destination for 2 weeks and then thrown into the wolves in either Denver or Phoenix. I did well the first week of tests, but it has been clear as mud (nearly concrete) ever since. We will see how it all turns out. I look forward to seeing all of you who fly on United Airlines or U.S. Airways (America West) in the future.

Cinnamon rolls

When I was younger, I’d sit at my grandma’s kitchen counter and watch as she made cinnamon rolls. The dough was always the perfect shade of beige and never stuck to her fingers as she manipulated it to the proper shape, ready for the rolling pin. A handful of flour from a bottom drawer (I’ve always wanted a flour drawer in my kitchen. It seems so much easier than a canister or bag) and a few flicks of her wrist and it would be a rectangle ready for butter and a brown sugar/cinnamon mix. She made it look so easy and they were always perfection. Like a taste of love and her no-nonsense way of taking care of us each summer.

I haven’t made them in years. I can’t remember the last time I dug out the recipe that was the closest she could come to exact measurements. Everything was by sight, feel or smell with her. I needed numbers. It was on a stained and slightly faded index card with a piece of dried dough from another attempt on one corner and my teenage handwriting. Circles over the i’s and everything.

The signup for the ward girls camp fundraiser made the rounds in Relief Society so I impulsively signed up for cinnamon rolls. Dustin had never tried mine and I knew I could foist the rest off on my dad if we couldn’t eat them. They also freeze really well and that’s actually how dad prefers them as it brings back memories of sneaking one from the deep freeze before grandma could catch him. These take about 3-4 hours to make though and were needed for the fundraiser on Wednesday which meant I couldn’t make them over the weekend or they’d be slightly stale. Tuesday became the day of the project.

Alex helped with the ingredients and I explained how to break an egg as he made a face at the yolk that ended up on his fingers. He asked to taste the dough and seemed amazed that it tasted like bread. I broke a bowl that wasn’t up to the task of me lifting it with one hand after the dough had doubled.

I don’t form the rolls like she did. I make mine into a snake and then slice it like they do at Cinnabon but I kept losing all my filling when I folded it in half and made slices before twisting the dough and making the round roll shape. I think she’d be okay with me not wasting the yummy filling.

The apartment smells like a bakery. It smells like summer at grandma’s. She died a few years ago but I can see her in her kitchen at the farm as she tried to measure the ingredients for me and letting me feel how warm the water for the yeast and the smoothness of the dough.

I miss you Grandma. My cinnamon rolls aren’t as good as yours. Maybe its all that extra love you put into them.

SEAWORLD!

Alex and I went to Seaworld on Monday. We were visiting my sister and her family so I offered to take their baby girl with us. It was pretty uneventful even though Alex wanted to sit in the "soak zone" for Shamu and the dolphins and I wouldn't let him. I didn't get very many pictures because, well, after a few times of trying to keep a six month old baby away from the camera and not being able to take the stroller into ANYTHING, it just got to be too much. I swear we did see the flamingos and the dolphins and the sharks. Alex had a rough time getting his souveniers home though. He wanted to get a gift for his other aunt and had picked out a sword for himself. We forgot the sword at my sister's house and he accidentally dropped the snowglobe for his aunt and it broke. It took some convincing that it was now a statue and she'd still love it.

I've decided its easier to keep pace with an almost 6 year old if I outnumber him with another adult. Preferrably one who likes to get drenched in whale water and doesn't mind the smell of penguin feces. Cause once is about all I can do.

We'll be going back. We got season passes so we'll head back either in the summer or fall and go on some rides and make sure that second adult comes with us. They come in handy.

Suddenly Its Spring

Spring Break is next week. I never really did anything during Spring Break when I was younger. Slept all day and watched tv for the most part. It was like a long weekend that always had a major class project due the Monday you came back to school. At least one. Sometimes two or three. It wasn't a big deal to have a week of school off.

Now, in the land of Goverment Holidays, I always try to take a few days off work for Spring Break. This is the first year Alex is in a school that has it. The private pre-school he was in last year didn't have one and the private sitter the year before that certainly didn't. Her oldest was only 9 months older than Alex.

Back to work. I get 12 paid holidays a year. New Years Day, President's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, Nevada Day, Thanksgiving weekend, Veteran's Day and Christmas. You math people probably count that and say "Hey, you liar! That's only 11!" I get a floating day for my birthday that I can take whenever I want after my birthday. Thats how I was able to go to my good friend's wedding on a Friday (love you Kylene!).

Notice how there is nothing from mid-February to the end of May? That's a long time to be at work without a break. Three and a half months! How can anyone be expected to work for almost 4 months STRAIGHT without some kind of paid holiday?! So, I'm taking part of Spring Break off. Just a few days with Alex next week. It will be my first paid vacation time since I started at this job. Just in time for the nice weather in Las Vegas where we can wear shorts and not shiver with cold wind.

And I have two projects due the Monday after Spring Break. Good to know some things don't change.

Leaving on a jet plane! (or in a Volvo)

Saturday is here and we spent the day getting Dustin ready for spending two months in the equivalent to a college dorm. Ground school is about 8 weeks long and they will be staying in ASU housing with 3-4 guys to a house with a private bedroom and shared common areas like kitchen, living and bathrooms. Oh and maid and linen service. Whatever. I wouldn’t mind maid service.

However, the list of things that we bought isn’t too bad mainly because we didn’t want to overwhelm the bedroom. Paper plates and plastic silverware to go with the ramen for snacks. Laundry detergent so he can actually do laundry and I’m sending the old pots and pans with him in case he actually, you know, cooks.

I’m a little concerned about how it will be with just me and Alex. We’ve never lived with just the two of us since he was a year old and that was only for two weeks. Every other place has been with my parents or my sister or Dustin. It should be interesting to see how it all works out. He’s starting swim lessons in a few weeks so that will keep us busy and I’ll be able to catch up on my tv watching. Actually, without Dustin to talk to in the evenings, I’m going to try to start learning how to make the bead ornaments my great-grandmother made growing up. I treasure the ones she gave me over the years and I want to try to make them to share with family and friends.

Easter is just around the corner and I’ve bought the stuff for Alex’s Easter basket. Included will be some stuff I bought for his stocking and forgot to put out so he’s getting a bit more than usual. I took off a few days for Spring Break but I’m undecided about what we’ll do. I’m tempted to go to San Diego for a few days but if my sister is working and no one else wants to come, I don’t know if I want to be in a rural house for three days with a 5 year old. Karen said I could have him pick up pine cones and I could get him to do a lot for a nickel a pinecone. That might get pricey though. I don’t think he’d do it for a penny. He’s got high prices. I asked what he thought he should get from the Tooth Fairy for his barely loose tooth. He said $100,000.00. I asked if she brought fifty cents if that would be ok and he said he wouldn’t want anything if isn’t $100,000.

Well, that’ll happen.

And it begins...

I can't promise how much this will be updated but the goal is once a week. If we even do anything exciting enough to be blogged about that is!

The biggest news around here is Dustin's new job. He'll be flying for Mesa Airlines which is a regional airline for United and US Airways. Ground school starts on Monday, March 10th and if anyone thinks that separating newlyweds is a good idea, let me tell you now that it will suck. He'll be gone for about 8 weeks training and weeks will be spent studying so he can pass and start flying one of their planes. The aircraft he'll be flying is called the DSH-8-200 or something. Nope, I don't know the brand but he is very excited about it and with the routes that plane is attached to, he'll be home most evenings which is a HUGE luxury in the airline world.

I recieved my probationary evaluation at my new(ish) job yesterday and I'm happy to report that I have passed and can now take vacation time! It was hard to go 9 months with only the regularly paid holidays off especially with the wedding.

Speaking of...here is a link to the wedding pictures if anyone wants to see them. Also, if anyone has pictures they are willing to share, please e-mail me!

http://www.mistydawnphotos.com/gallery/wohlgemuth/