Whatev.....

A few weeks ago Peg and I took a bike cruise up to and around Park Falls. One of the things that caught our eye was a little shop in Fifield that has a bunch of cool looking stuff, some carved, some normal construction.
Here we see that Peg found a nice, cuddly bear. Apparently that deer in the background was jealous, 'cause he's approaching fast!!


Isn't this just a cool old knot-head of a guy? There were quite a few chainsaw carvings in the yard, but this was the neatest.



And what should be right in the center? A pergola just like the one at Liz' wedding!! Must be a popular pattern. I had to frame our bikes in the arch to prove the photo was legit.



Remember those dark red things hanging on the silver maple? I think I put a pic of them on here a few weeks ago. Well they since have turned into mature seeds and have been filling the air with nature's original whirly-gigs. The lawn was brown with them the last time I mowed.


Liz and Dennis showed up the weekend after Memorial day to do the annual planting and refurbishing of the flower beds. Many new plants were procured from Larry's Greenhouse in Prentice, and the place is awash in blooms right now. No pix yet.


Of course, Dennis did his part to help in the process.......

On June 3rd, as you know, I brought my plane to Phillips. I had the chance to fly Tuesday evening in the area here, and then Thursday evening I took it back to Merrill to be ready for the airworthiness inspection that had been scheduled for Saturday the 10th.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I spent Friday evening practicing the "Tennessee Stud" song with Russ and Laurie for about 3 hours. Saturday evening was a scheduled engagement at Mondeaux Dam!


Saturday morning I got up early and headed to Merrill to finish a few last minute preps for the inspection. That included putting on my N-number!! Here it is, N924EC. All planes numbers start with N, 9 24 is my birthmonth and day, EC my initials. So my call on the radio is "niner two four echo charlie".


Instructor Steve is working on his Sport Pilot Seaplane Instructor rating, so a friend's plane with amphibious floats was there, along with the little Avid Flyer in the forground. We had five planes jammed into that hangar...


and it took two pictires to get them all in view! I may not be the smartest cookie in the fridge, but I'm having a good time.


The inspector flew up from Oshkosh in his 1942 Waco biplane. It has a 7 cylinder rotary engine with 220HP. Recently restored, painted brilliant red, and I forgot to bring my camera that day!!!! Doh!!!


Onlyhow, this picture was taken as I was leaving the Phillips area to do some practice maneuvers. Thought it would be neat with the struts in the picture.


And this sight greeted me as the sun went partially behind the clouds as I was passing Cranberry Lake. I could see the sun rays shooting down through holes in the clouds, but didn't expect the rendering of the lake that occured!!


So last Saturday, here we are "at mondeaux again, ain't it good to be at mondeaux again". I still don't know what was so funny about getting ready to play the "Tennessee Stud" song, but something must have been. It was kind of nice to get a chance to play the accoustic guitar for a change.


We did get a little more serious when Archie got up to do a little pickin' and sangin', but mostly we just had fun.....



That's about it for happenings, but a few things are approaching fast!! First, just let me mention that Pool Week this year is slated for 7-1 thru 7-9. Be there, or be symetrically rectangular.

I don't want to sound like a broken record (of for you younger readers, a corrupt MP3 file) but I must tell you about the potential flight test plans. Lyle, a fellow Sport Pilot student in Merrill, called last night and wanted me to committ to scheduling our practical test for "near future", like in two weeks from now!! I said O.K. and am waiting to find out what Lyle found out when he called Sean, the FFA examiner in Wautoma. Of course this means that I'll be a nervous wreck for the coming weeks, trying hit the books (two hour oral test) and get into the air as much as possible (flight test prep). Depending on Sean's schedule, I may get this done before the end of June... that means I can take passengers.... if I pass....
Wish me luck!