Kaylee played some Wii, and she got an all-high score on her cheer routine, and still did not "pass" the routine. She's SO close. :) I asked her if she wanted to play outside, and she said no way at first. To show her how cold it was outside, I had her
place a frisbee with water in it outside and check it at regular intervals. The second time she went out to check it, it was iced over, and she was amazed. A little bit later, she suddenly decided she was ready to play outside. I put her in her Alaskan Tundra Gear from the North Pole, and I myself put on a t-shirt, a sweatshirt, and a thick coat. I took my camera outside to snap a few photos of her in the snow. I got two pictures taken before the camera stopped working from the cold. It was unbelievable. I brought the camera back in, warmed it up, and went back out just in time for Kaylee to start throwing snowballs at me. I was only outside for a few minutes total, but when I came in my left hand felt like it was on fire and had turned white and red. Meanwhile, Kaylee's cheeks were pink, but she was doing just fine and loving the snow. I had to warm up my camera a few times to get the pictures I did from today. After awhile, Kaylee informed me that her feet were cold, so I brought her in-the girl had not put on socks before she put her boots on! I went and got her some socks and some hot chocolate and she took a break on the deck for awhile, before deciding she wanted to go back out for Round Two. After she was all caught up on winter playing in sub zero temperatures (you couldn't guess by the sunny photo above, could you!), I threw her into a nice warm bubble bath for an hour to thaw her out. She had a fun day, and I enjoyed it too. Kaylee is out of school tomorrow too-they cancelled schools starting this evening around 5, so at least we don't have to wake up super early to find out. I guess she gets to come to Glenndale lunch with me. :)I got checks printed, phone calls made, some website work done, some bills paid, the house picked up, and various other forms of work done from home, interspersed with playing with Kaylee and a little relaxing of my own now and then. I still have a lot to do, some tonight and mostly tomorrow, but that's okay, I'm feeling pretty good about what's been accomplished these last few days.
Today a US Airways Airbus lost both its engines to bird ingestions (reportedly) and made an emergency landing in the Hudson River. When I first heard that, I figured there would be a lot of deaths, because, well, because airliners ditching in water don't have a great history of survivability. I am not really easily surprised, but I was happily surprised to hear that everyone got off that plane just fine. The news media started talking about the hero pilot, and initially I have to admit to a slight annoyance at the media's insistence on over-dramatizing every thing, including a pilot who did what he was trained to do in an emergency. But then I heard more about the situation, and while that's still true, you have to take your hat off to the guy. I don't know that any person has ever had to deadstick in an Airbus A320 full of passengers, let alone into freezing water. Do they even train for ALL engines out after takeoff in a congested area in the sims? I don't know. He had one shot at this, was flying the world's biggest brick glider, had only one area that was not heavily populated and IT was a narrow-ish band of freezing water, was looking at massive loss of life and damage, and pulled off the smoothest landing on water I've heard of from an airliner, saving a lot of hides. He then walked up and down the aisles to make sure nobody was left behind. He was both good and had a guardian angel on his shoulder, too. Oh, and he was a Purdue grad, naturally. ;)
Here's my soap box. Airlines have always had a mandatory retirement age of 60, until last year after much controversy when they made it 65 as long as someone younger than 60 is also in the cockpit with them. This pilot was 57 years old, a former military pilot, and obviously very experienced, controlled, and professional. Now had this happened three years from now, when he would now be 60, would you rather have him in the front of that airplane anyway, or the 30 year old who went through the pilot mills and was hired in with minimal time and no real world experience, so many of whom were hired in the past several years? The 30 year old who would now have to be with him to allow him to fly? I have always thought the mandatory age retirement was a bad idea. If a pilot can pass the medical just fine, and pass the sim flight checks fine, why not use their experience in the cockpit? Heck, Nathan is over 60, and I'd trust him in an airplane over anyone I can think of half his age. Youth, energy and reflexes are not usually a match for good old-fashioned experience and judgment.
Speaking of pilots and accidents, I just read last night that Chuck Yeager wrecked a T-6 last year. Well, 2007, so a little over a year. Apparently he made a wheel landing with 15 knot winds that I think I read were tailwinds, and as his tailwheel came down, he lost directional control. The plane went off a 15' embankment, hit some big rocks, sheared off the landing gear, and came to a rest with no-one hurt but the plane kaput. You know, from what I've heard, Mr. Y is a bit of a jerk as a person, but has always been an impressive pilot. Since a "hero" to me is someone you'd like to emulate or have your children emulate, and I don't care to have myself or Kaylee emulate someone who is an arrogant jerk (among other things), he isn't a hero to me. But still, the phrase "he's no Chuck Yeager" isn't around because he was an awful pilot. So the thought "Chuck Yeager lost directional control of a T-6" admittedly made me raise an eyebrow. Or two.
Steve took one flight today. Did I mention that the temps were sub-zero? The plane was hangared and heated, but even so it was just too cold, and he cancelled the next lesson. I give him Brave Soul Brownie Points for doing it in the first place. I stayed home. :)
Be thankful for warm houses and beds to sleep in tonight!
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