Sweet

I was supposed to do checkride prep at 9:30 this morning, but when I got up this morning it was IFR. I pushed her back an hour, and we met up at 10:30, which is when we found out the right main tire was flat. Jon and Steve got that fixed by 11:30, so I skipped Glenndale lunch to fly. We got in, went to prime the plane, and the primer didn't make any sound going in--it didn't sound like it was pushing fuel--and then it stopped, and she couldn't get it back in and locked. She got out and pushed with two hands, and still no luck. I got out and on a whim decided to try it myself. I pushed with all my body weight against that primer, standing outside the plane, and finally did get it in and locked. (Two hours later I still had the circular imprint of the primer on the heel of my hand, I pushed so hard.) So we finally got to fly. Unusual attitudes, power off stalls in a turn, power on stalls, emergencies, all the tougher stuff.

When I picked Kaylee up, she needed to go do "Secret Santa" at her school. So I drove her to that, and she spent $30 and bought Christmas presents for 11 people. And they're nice, too. :) She's good. She walked around and in 15 minutes had these gifts for each person picked out and selected. I saw what she got most folks, and I thought she did well with it.

From there I ran out to Kokomo to get something for Steve and try to find the doggoned exterior power source for the 340. It needed hooked up to a power unit, and we could NOT find where to do that earlier. So I got the POH out and got directions as best I could, unscrewed several rectangular plates which ended up not being it, although I found the battery itself that way, and finally stumbled upon it almost by accident. Not the most intuitive place for it, but by George I've got it. I hooked up the APU and left, starving and tired. I got about 3 miles away and realized I'd left behind what Steve wanted me to get out there, so I turned around and got it. When I walked back in the hangar, the lights were on, and I thought "Man, did I forget the lights?! Sheesh." I switched them off, looked around to see if I heard or saw anyone, and drove of. Found out later I hadn't forgotten the lights, someone WAS in there, and I shut the place down on them. Oops. ;)

When Kaylee walked into the hangar, the first thing she saw was the new 340, and she said "Hey! Sweet Plane!" She asked if she could get in it, so I opened it up for her, and she decided it was smaller than the Cheyenne and a little tighter, but that it was very comfortable and she loved it. Then she asked if she could fly up front with me sometime, and gave it her two-thumbs-up-approval. The final inspection, passed. ;)