The Mirror Image...

...of a fortnight ago:

Today was a classic case of "Second verse, same as the first!"  Sorta.  This week's Adventures in Aging went a lot faster than our last, seein' as how Dr. Watterberg only had about half the procedures today as she did last week.  We were at Roosevelt General at 0800 hrs and asleep in El Casa Móvil De Pennington around 1015 hrs.  

As for the procedure itself... I went in thinkin' it would be a piece o' cake, since Round One went really well.  Well... not so much, to my surprise.  I felt a lot more discomfort this morning and Dr. Watterberg made a couple of "sorry!" remarks when I winced a time or two.  The process seemed to take longer, as well.  But mebbe that's coz I wanted this to be OVER, thank ya.  And over it is.  Don't get the wrong ideer, Gentle Reader.  This wasn't an ordeal or anything... just minor discomfort.  I've had a helluva lot worse experiences at the dentist, believe me.

So we're enjoying our long-delayed morning coffee and just hangin' out until it's time for our first follow up this afternoon.  I have to wear The Fly's hand-me-down eye for the rest of the day and can't drive until tomorrow.  And we WILL drive tomorrow, straight to Wally-World to buy us some interim reading glasses for computer and close-up work.  It is now perfectly clear to me I was using my unfixed eye to do those sorts of things for the past two weeks... mainly coz I can't see close up worth a damn now.  The work-around ain't workin' out too well, either:

No computer for YOU the rest of the day, Bucko!

Update, 1350 hrs:  I replaced the first image with one I like better, mainly coz I can be a vain sumbitch at times.  And, apropos of not much, I got the Usual, Customary, and (un)Reasonable post-op briefing which contained the "no alcohol for 24 hours" warning... at which time I stopped the post-op nurse and asked "why?"  "We're required to say that," was the answer, followed by an off-the-record discussion about alcohol, anesthesia (which I didn't have), and other germane topics.  Bottom line:  there WILL be a Happy Hour this evening, just as there was last evening.

Update II, 1745 hrs:  Zounds!  I'm not one to flog dead draft animals, but now that I'm binocular the improvement in my vision is simply astounding.   We're back from the first follow-up over in The Big(ger) City™ and all is good.  Better than good, since I had granddaughter Felicity whip by Walgreen's so I could pick up a pair of spiffy new reading glasses, and Boy Howdy can we ever see clearly now!  I'm simply stunned at the improvement, so much so that it brings to mind that ol' '60s-era thang:  "The colors... maaaan... the COLORS!"  In a completely different context, of course.

OK, enough of that.  Let us get down to the bid'niz at hand: beer, a cigar, and hockey! 

For Wings Fans Only...

Interesting vid, that.  FWIW... I labored through the lean years as a Wings fan, coming to the party in 1985 and leaving it... physically... when I moved from Detroit to Rochester, NY in 1996.  True to form, the Wings won their first Cup in 40-something years the next season, and I had to watch it on teevee.  Worse, one of my BEST friends had to send me pictures of her and her honey at a local dive-bar (one of my FAVORITE watering holes) drinking from the Cup while we were stuck in Ra-cha-cha.  (Sigh)

No matter.  We remain a fan of the Winged Wheel, wherever I might find myself.  Which is not to say there haven't been glorious moments in the interim, like that night in SFO in 2002 when the Wings eliminated the Once-Hated Avalanche (now I feel only pity for a once great club fallen on hard times) in Game Seven of the Western Conference Finals and went on to take the Cup.  The BEST moment of that playoff year?  Sitting in a sports bar in SFO with other Wings expats while watching a beleaguered Avs fan rip off his Patrick Roy jersey and stomp it when the horn sounded to end Game Seven of the Western Conference Finals.  The Wings won and were off to the SCF... everything after that moment was anti-climatic.

So here we are... about three hours from face-off of Game Three, and here I am... hanging on every moment.  God, but I LOVE this time o' year!

H/t for the vid: the inimitable Kukla's Korner.

Good To Go!

I'm just in from the day's errands, chief among which was an appointment with my eye surgeon for a routine follow-up just to "make sure" there are no issues that would prevent tomorrow's scheduled surgery.  I received a clean bill o' health and a cheery "See Ya tomorrow!" from Dr. Watterberg.

We are MOST pleased.  So is Dr Watterberg, for that matter... and she told me so.  Did I ever tell ya she's VERY good at what she does?  No?  Well, I'm tellin' ya now... and this IS an endorsement.

―:☺:―

I returned from The Big(ger) City™ via Cannon Airplane Patch, where I got my tri-annual  haircut, did some light shopping, yadda, yadda.  My route back to P-Ville took me through part of the area that burned off in yesterday's fire and I am MOST amazed a lot o' people didn't lose their homes.  That was one hella fire from the looks o' things.  An immediate and most obvious result of the fire is an absolutely incredible amount of dust... the worst I've seen in the eight-plus years I've lived here on The High Plains of New Mexico.  The wind is up again today and the blowing dust reduced visibility to about a half-mile or less on parts of NM 467.  It's pretty danged bad out there.

Wildfires (and Hockey)

It's the season for 'em...

C-130s Fight Texas, Mexico Wildfires: Two specially modified C-130s from Air Force Reserve Command's 302nd Airlift Wing at Peterson AFB, Colo., on Sunday dropped about 12,000 gallons of fire suppressant and retardant on raging wildfires in the northern Mexico state of Coahuila during four missions. The two aircraft carry the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System, a self-contained aerial firefighting device. They began operating from Laughlin AFB, Tex., on April 16 after the Mexican government requested US assistance. So far, they've released roughly 21,000 gallons of fire suppressant and retardant in seven missions. These Reservists have also been helping to fight wildfires spreading in southern Texas. Four additional MAFFS-equipped aircraft were slated to arrive at Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Tex., by Monday to help fight the Texas wildfires. They're from Air National Guard units in California, North Carolina, and Wyoming. (Laughlin release) (Tyndall report by Lt. Col. Susan A. Romano)

The Cannon Airplane Patch fire department got into the act right here in P-Ville yesterday, too.  From the Portales News-Tribune:

Firefighters from more than 30 departments struggled most of Sunday to contain a massive grass fire that erupted near Melrose and quickly spread through Curry and Roosevelt counties, damaging homes and forcing several evacuations near Clovis and Portales.

The fire started about 11:30 a.m. after a tire on a vehicle blew out and sparks from the wheel set nearby grass ablaze. It had burned an estimated 17,000 acres, fanned by wind gusts of up to 30 mph that frequently changed directions.

[...]

A spokesperson for Cannon Air Force Base said there was no fire damage to the base. The spokesperson said the base fire department assisted in extinguishing a small blaze south of the base, a flare apparently set off by the main fire.

It's been a VERY dry Spring and the wind has been fierce (as noted elsewhere in these pages).  The combination of the two can make for some very anxious ranchers in this part o' the world.  Anxious everybody, when ya get right down to it.  (photo credit: Portales News-Tribune)

―:☺:―

Your hockey update: Chicago is toast. The current custodians of the Stanley Cup will suffer a first-round exit at the hands of the Vancouver Canucks unless they can become the fourth team in history to come back from a 3-0 deficit. Here's Steve Rosenbloom, writing in the Chicago Tribune:

It might not be officially over, but it's over. The Hawks aren't going to come back on the Canucks they owned the last couple springs. These aren't those Hawks, and these are those Canucks. The Hawks aren't going beat this team four straight when they can't beat them even once. I mean, the Hawks have led just once after the nine periods in this series.

Yup. I've watched all of Chicago's playoff games and they ain't got it. I'm thinkin' every Dallas Star is a bit pissed right now.

Boston could be in the same boat, after losing their first two games... at HOME... to the Habs. It ain't lookin' good for Bruins fans, to say the VERY least.

I'm pissed at Versus. The Nashville-Anaheim series is arguably the best of the playoffs based on what I've read, and Versus hasn't showed us one single game in that series.  I shouldn't get too strident in my criticism, though... coz ALL the Beloved Wings games have been televised.  Game Three is tonight, in Phoenix.

Let's Go Red Wings!

―:☺:―

A hockey update of another sort...  Remember last week?  It was exactly a week ago today when I said "One final note... this is also the time o' year when blog traffic falls off the cliff."

I NEVER lie.  

Notable and Quotable

From Larry Brooks, writing in the New York Post ("No playing out string in honor-rich NHL")...

The NHL wants to be like the NFL, and I guess which league wouldn't aspire to be granted the kind of sacred cow status pro football has mysteriously and regrettably achieved in this country? 

Last weekend, however, in what was one of the great final weekends in NHL history, hockey reached a status the NFL wouldn't even recognize. 

It was a weekend showcasing the integrity of the athletes who are the fabric of the sport, and the integrity of coaches and front offices around the league that recognized their responsibility to compete when nothing was on the line for their own respective teams but everything was at stake for their opponents. 

[...]

And Detroit, starting with Ken Holland and running straight through the championship pedigree of that organization, recognized its obligation as well -- though the chance to KO the Cup champ Blackhawks was an obvious bonus -- in going to the mat to beat Chicago in overtime when the Wings might have taken the day off to get ready for the first round against the Ducks.

[...]

The NFL would never give you a final weekend like that. The NFL has a 16-game schedule in which teams try until they clinch playoff spots. Then, with league approval, they sit out starters, claiming the risk of injury overrides the integrity of competition. It's a sorry spectacle; scandalous, even.

Well said, Mr. Brooks, and I'll forgive ya the errors in fact about the Wings, given they won that last game in regulation time and our first-round opponent is Phoenix.  You could have mentioned that Detroit lost the services of Henrik Zetterberg, its highest scoring player, in that last, meaningless game due to a knee injury, services that could have a major impact on how far they go in the playoffs this year but thankfully haven't... yet.  Your other points are spot-on and are but a few of the many reasons I don't watch pro football.  Honesty and integrity in pro sports?  Who'd a thunk it!

There's more at the link... Mr. Brooks' piece is a very worthwhile read.

Added, 1230 hrs:  A short blurb from Steve Simmons' sports column in the Toronto Sun:  "And this is why Twitter amuses me: On Saturday afternoon, somebody Tweeted that the NHL has finally found an owner for the Coyotes: Just happens to be Pavel Datsyuk."  OK, that's Inside Tee-Ball stuff, but hockey fans geddit.  That's pretty damned funny, actually.

News Item Blatant Self-Promotion

A lot of you Gentle Readers won't watch the vid below or even read the comments because of the R-rated subject matter.  So, in my own enlightened self-interest, here's what the sole comment to that post sez:

Laurie said...

All Buck's followers:

I nominated Buck in the milbloggies, but they need at least 3 more nominations of Air Force blogs to keep the category open for voting.

So go nominate some more AF blogs, but preferably not, you know, the really wildly well known ones :-)

Go here

Hurry, nominations end today!

The astute among you have noticed there's a Milbloggie Finalist badge in my sidebar, but that's only because there aren't any Air Force blogs of note.  I've often wondered why that is but I gave up thinkin' about the subject quite some time ago... it prolly has sumthin' to do with it's "Not Your Father's Air Force."  But... just for grins and giggles... here's a list of Air Force blogs on milblogging.com.

And thanks, Laurie!  You're SO sweet!

Update, 1800 hrs (Sunday):  This just hit my in-box:

Nominations in the 2011 Milbloggies are nearly finished.  Almost half of the categories are now closed to nominations, however the deadline for the following categories has been extended by 24 hours to Monday, April 18, in the hope of getting the minimum number of eligible nominees in each category.

Best U.S. Coast Guard Blog Nominations

Best U.S. Reporter Blog Nominations

Best U.S. Military Veteran Blog Nominations

Best U.S. Air Force Blog Nominations

Best U.S. Navy Blog Nominations

Best U.S. Military Parent Blog Nominations

Please remember, you must leave a comment in order to nominate a blog. 

If you don’t see a comment for your favorite blog or if it has been placed in the wrong category, please make sure to visit one of the links above and make sure it gets left.

More information here. 

Well, how about that? An additional 24 hours to submit nominations in multiple categories. Interest in the Milbloggies must not be all that great this year.

Inscrutable

That would be the Chinese...

Yeah, I'm thinkin' there are some places technology just shouldn't go.  Hell, I wouldn't even go see Avatar, let alone sumthin' like this.

Today's Happy Hour Soundtrack

So there I was, sitting on the verandah, deep into today's WSJ, puffing occasionally on my second cigar of the day and enjoying my second beer when Pandora decides to bring this ol' chestnut around ...

...which stopped me dead in my tracks.  I shut the Kindle, sang along, and fell back into that same, oh-so-lovely daydream that happens EVERY time I hear this song.  

Amie what you wanna do?
I think I could stay with you
For a while, maybe longer
Longer if I do

I knew an Am(ie)y once upon a time... well over 30 years ago... in both a space and time that's long ago and far away.  "My" Amy was a friend of a friend who came to Westby, Montana to visit and stayed at my place for the duration of her visit, mainly because the mutual friend Amy came to see was a single female airperson who lived in the barracks and I had a pretty nice house with a comfy couch.  Amy slept on that couch the first night she was in Westby but never again after that.  Strange how that sorta thing happens...

Amy's visit in Westby lasted only a week or perhaps a little longer, but what a week that was!  The girl was prolly 20 years of age at that time and in her prime; I was three years on the wrong side of 30 but that was close enough for gub'mint work.  I wound up taking a few days of unplanned leave just to spend as much time with this woman as I possibly could before she vanished into my past.  That was a GOOD decision, Gentle Reader.

Young Amy and I corresponded for a time after she returned to Ohio but nothing more happened after that; our communication ceased after a while.  Well, nothing happened except for The Second Mrs. Pennington finding Amy's letters to me shortly after TSMP and I married... and she subsequently burned them (along with all the other letters I'd received from former lovers), without my permission.   Which is QUITE another story and one that still pisses me off when I think about it, even after all these years.

The image isn't the Amy I knew (I found it in a generic Google search for "dark eyed beauty"), but it's close.

Slim (Blog) Pickins

We arose much too late, aren't even close to bein' fully caffeinated, and the puck drops at The Joe in mere minutes.  So this is all ya get, Gentle Reader.  Priorities.

Let's Go Red Wings!

Update, 1400 hrs:  That was TOO damned close for comfort... but all's well that ends well:  Wings 4, Feral Dogs 3.  The Wings were leading by 4-1 at the end of the second but the Yotes came back in the third... making it a near-run thing. We won't talk about the piss-poor officiating and questionable calls... But, Hey!

A 2-0 hole will take a lot o' diggin' by the Feral Dogs to come back.  I'm not sayin' it can't be done, because it has been done.  But not this time... bear down, Wings... skate to the throat!

Image courtesy of Trish at the A2Y live-blog.

Added, 1430 hrs:  Why we'll win:
 


Datsyuk is the BEST Russian in the league, mebbe even the best player.  That play was just beauteous... and the reason he's the Number One Star of today's game.

To Whom It May Concern...

Thank you.  A thousand thank-yous!  You turned off the wind machine and we are MOST grateful... so much so that we shall have our second beer in your honor today, whoever you are.  This is what the WX guys out at Cannon Airplane Patch say our current conditions look like:

But they LIE, coz it's as close to dead still as it gets around here... AND it's cool.  There's no need for the awning today; we shall sit and read on the verandah in direct sun.  And we'll love it.

Speakin' of love... imagined, in this case... we picked up our eye-meds at the Cannon pharmacy earlier this afternoon and indulged in a lil snappy repartee with a young female Master Sergeant who was working behind the counter.  The good sergeant had THE most fetching manner about her, including sparkly dark eyes and a melodious and lilting laugh.  They sure don't make MSgts like they used to... and I'm thinkin' that's a GOOD thing in this particular case.  The lady made my day. 

An Anniversary; An Unserious Person; The Wind Doesn't Blow, It Sucks; and (Wait For It) Hockey

Twenty-five years ago today, from the (other) usual source...

 A 48th Tactical Fighter Wing F-111F aircraft takes off to participate in an air strike on Libya. (photo: Wikipedia & US Air Force)

Remembering Operation Eldorado Canyon: (Ed: link to The Wiki added) Twenty-five years ago on April 15, Air Force and Navy strike aircraft dealt a blow to Libyan dictator Muammar' Qaddafi's arrogance and overt support of terrorism. While a force of F-111s from RAF Lakenheath, Britain, (taking off on April 14, 1986) struck targets in Tripoli, including Qaddafi's headquarters, Navy strike aircraft from the Sixth Fleet pounded sites in Benghazi. A host of USAF and Navy platforms supported the mission, which President Reagan ordered after a string of deadly terrorist attacks were traced back to Qaddafi's regime. The raid came at a cost. Capt. Paul F. Lorence and Capt. Fernando L. Ribas-Dominicci were killed when their F-111 went down, presumably to hostile fire. Noted Air Force author Walter Boyne, in his March 1999 Air Force Magazine article on the raid, said the mission pushed USAF crews and aircraft "to the absolute limits of their capability. Yet they prevailed, destroying key targets and shocking Qaddafi." Fast forward 25 years. Air Force aircraft are once again flying over Libya to deal with his misdeeds, this time against his own people.

RIP, Captains Lorence and Ribas-Dominicci.

―:☺:―

Today's Toon of Note:  

From the usual source, of course.  Choosing today's toon was harder than it normally is, coz there's much goodness on the deficit/budget brouhaha at the link.

―:☺:―

The wind machine is still cranked up, to my great dismay.  Things are supposed to get better in this space later on today and that's great good news, seein' as how I have to get my old ass out to Cannon Airplane Patch to refill my meds in anticipation of next week's final eye surgery installment.  We have been counting the days... two weeks can be a VERY long time!

―:☺:―

Here's your briefest of brief hockey updates...  The playoffs are NOT disappointing us hockey fans.  Well, some of us hockey fans.  I'd wager Flyers and Bruins followers aren't all that happy about the outcome in Game One, Round One but I was certainly pleased... those games were great, compelling examples of the sport.  The games in the Eastern Conference seem to be defensive duels with the Hot Goalie O' The Moment (read as: Lundqvist, Miller, and Price) taking center stage.  All three of the top seeds in the East struggled in the first game, with only the Caps prevailing... and they had to go deep into OT to win.  Oh yeah... the Flightless Birds won, too.  For what THAT'S worth.

It ain't so close out West, what with the Canucks dominating Chicago in the first game (that game was NEVER close), San Jose beating El-Eh (that game WAS close; watch out, Sharks), the Beloved Wings winning easily, and Nashville systematically plucking the Ducks.

I'm not gonna make any predictions this year, mainly coz I suck at predictions (check my April archives in past years for proof in this space; it's embarrassing).  I do have my hopes, though, and those hopes go like this:  Chicago wins in seven, El-Eh wins in seven, the Beloved Wings sweep the Feral Dogs, and the Dicks... err, Ducks... win in seven.  Yes, I AM out of touch with reality, why do you ask?  Never forget that '60s truism: reality is for people who can't handle drugs.

As for the East... who really cares?

Hey! This Is ME!

Think I should order one of these?

¡Pues sí, Señora... Estoy muy Suave y Cremoso!  (Not to mention deboner!)

Ryan On Rose

I love Charlie Rose's show and I think I may have mentioned this a time or two in these pages.  I DO have an issue with Ol' Charlie, though... I think he should allow embedding certain segments of his show, if only in the interest of a better informed public.  Last night's show was one such, seein' as how Mr. Rose had Jack Lew,The One's budget director; Representative Paul Ryan (who needs no introduction in these pages); and Steven Pearlstein, a WaPo columnist for the full hour.  The best thing about Mr. Rose's show is he goes beyond sound-bites, indulging in lengthy discussion with his guests... which obviously brings clarity to the issue at hand.  It's great good stuff and one of the best shows on my teevee (and yours, too... assuming you watch).

The topic last evening was The One's budget speech yesterday, as you might gather from the guest list.  Mr. Lew's performance was predictably apologetic, and that's bein' kind... bullshit bein' a much more descriptive word.  Mr. Ryan, OTOH, pulled no punches and called it as he sees it.  It should come as no surprise my view coincides with Rep. Ryan's view... who basically said "The President has no plan.  All he has is a speech."   And... wonder of wonders... Mr. Pearlstein came down HARD on Obama, so much so that I was mildly shocked.

All that said... I found this lil clip on the Tube of You.  Skip forward to about the 41 second mark, wherein Mr. Ryan begins his comments.  Or watch the whole thing... it's up to you.

Like it?  If so, I'd recommend you hie yerfineself off to Charlie Rose's site and watch the whole thing (today the segment begins once you hit the site; alternatively you can click on "last night" or search for April 13th, if you go after today).  The show is broken up into three segments so you're not forced to swallow all of Mr. Lew's crap.  Representative Ryan's comments are keepers, and he is deadly serious... as opposed to our UNserious president, of course.

Bitch, Bitch, Bitch

Stop, already!

A High Wind Warning remains in effect until 8 PM MDT this evening.

* Location... the east Central Plains... including the Interstate 40 corridor.

* Winds... west winds will gradually shift out of the northwest at 35 to 45 mph with gusts around 60 mph.

* Timing... wind speeds will continue to strengthen through mid day then remain strong through the afternoon. Speeds will then weaken below hazardous levels a few hours after sunset.

* Visibility... blowing dust will drop visibility below 1 mile at times in dust prone locations.

* Local impacts... winds of this magnitude can cause property damage and could down a few trees and power lines. Secure loose objects like lawn furniture. Dangerous Crosswinds will develop on north to south and northeast to southwest oriented roads.

Lately it seems like it's one day out and the next day in, all because of this gotdamned wind!

I suppose I should go outside and secure the chairs before they end up over in Amarillo.  I hate this shit.

Not Your Father's Air Force XII

I found out today that the Air Force Personnel Center has a spiffy web site devoted to what used to be known as AFR 35-10... the bane of my military existence and a perpetual thorn in my non-conformist side... but is now AFI 36-2903.  (Minor digression: Today's Modern Air Force doesn't have regulations; it has "instructions."  This irritates me slightly, an unusual position for a non-conformist to take.  Whatevah.)  I found out about the web site through the (other) usual source, of course.

Eye on Style: The Air Force's dress and appearance standards website is now fully operational and ready to help airmen with their uniform questions. The site is accessible via Air Force Personnel Center's public website (left column under "featured programs"). It's designed for ease of use. "It has both pictures and word descriptions of everything," said Capt. Meghan Liemburg-Archer, Air Combat Command force management officer at Langley AFB, Va. She continued, "So you can click if you have a question specifically on [physical training] wear, or you can type in 'PT uniform,' and it will show you a picture for both genders." The website also has a frequently asked questions page. Personnel officials will keep the site up to date. "The website is going to be your most accurate resource," said Liemburg-Archer. The website debuted last July. (Langley report by SrA. Jason Shamberger)

"Well, cool!" sez I while promptly trotting off to check out all the different unis.  I was suitably (heh) impressed with the site's ease of use, the clarity and brevity of the writing, and the sheer diversity of all things 35-10 36-2903.  A couple o' screen shots:

There sure are a LOT of unis these days!  One wonders how many of these uniforms are part of an airman's original issue, how many are "optional" (by that I mean authorized for wear but bought at one's own expense), and how many are organizational issue.  As an example, the parka used to be "organizational issue" back in my day: you drew one from supply at your cold weather base upon arrival and turned it in when you left.  Those things were expensive, Gentle Reader... and warm, too.  The Air Force gave me the absolute best cold weather gear I've ever worn... period, end of report.

Long time readers know my "Not Your Father's Air Force" series tends to run heavily on snark and/or "Get Off My Lawn!" sorts of comments.  I was thinkin' "Good on the AF" as I scrolled down and clicked on the various uniform combos, read the verbiage, and all that happy stuff.  No snark potential here!  Well, check THAT, coz there's THIS:

O my aching ass... It's the Mr. Rogers uniform!

I've always wanted to have a neighbor just like you.
I've always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you.

Way t'go, Air Force.

(Inadvertently) Broadening Our Horizons XX

I bought a sixer of Sammy Adams' Winter Lager on my last beer run and imagine my surprise when I went to the fridge and pulled this out of the carrier:

That's an SA Blackberry Witbier, which I wouldn't have bought by choice, given my recent less-than-satisfying run-ins with American fruity beers.  This one is no different, bein' way too sweet for my tastes... but we shall drink the damned thing anyway.  And then follow it up with a Winter Lager, which we both wanted and expected.  The best laid plans, yadda, yadda...

Today's cigar is an Acid Kuba Kuba... a fine lil stick that often graces our humidor.  It looks like today might be a two-cigar kinda day.  I just kinda-sorta feel it in my bones and elsewhere.

Update, 1535 hrs:  Round Two.

MUCH better!

Update, Part Deux:  Under the awning, in two views:

You need to view the second picture in its original size, i.e., click for larger.  In which we thank The Deity At Hand we don't suffer from allergies as the cottonwood detritus resembles a snow storm in its most intense moments.  But other than that?  It's the finest of fine days here on The High Plains of New Mexico.  I hope your day is half as good, Gentle Reader.

Sorry, Air Force. No Shuttle for YOU!

From the (other) usual source...

No Space Shuttle for Air Force Museum: NASA Administrator Charles Bolden on Tuesday announced the museums where the four space shuttles will go on permanent display once the shuttle fleet retires later this year. The National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, was not one of them. Instead, the Shuttle Atlantis will go to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor's Complex in Florida; Shuttle Discovery will reside at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia; Shuttle Endeavour will rest at the California Science Center in Los Angeles; and Shuttle Enterprise will relocate from the Udvar-Hazy Center to the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum in New York. NASA said the Air Force museum will receive some shuttle artifacts: the nose cap assembly and crew compartment trainer as well as orbital maneuvering system engines. Bolden's announcement coincided with the 30th anniversary of the first shuttle launch and 50th anniversary of manned space flight. (See also Air Force Museum release)

Well, that sucks.  Just for grins and giggles, here's a couple o' items from the Air Force Museum's web site on the subject:

01) Why does the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force want a shuttle orbiter?

Throughout the shuttle's flying career, the USAF has been an important NASA partner. In addition to contributing massive infrastructure and multifaceted operational support, the Air Force has provided NASA with many highly skilled shuttle astronauts. NASA and the Department of Defense began cooperating on space shuttle design in early 1969, and the USAF-NASA formal space shuttle relationship began on Feb. 17, 1970. Air Force satellite launch requirements largely determined shuttle design, and the Air Force saved the shuttle program in lean budget years during its development.

Recognizing this vital and historically significant partnership, the Secretary of the Air Force, in accordance with 40 U.S.C. §524(b)(2), has requested the interagency transfer of a shuttle orbiter to the Air Force's national historical collection. This acquisition is required in order to represent the USAF/NASA partnership and the contributions of the shuttle orbiter program to national defense.

Therefore, the National Museum of the United States Air Force and its governing body, the USAF Heritage Board of Directors, has identified the Air Force's space mission as its most important exhibit priority.

04) Which shuttle orbiter is the museum requesting?

The museum is open to receiving any available orbiter; however we are most interested in Atlantis due to it being the primary Air Force/Department of Defense shuttle. Atlantis is the orbiter that has flown five Department of Defense (DoD) dedicated missions, more than any other shuttle, and has also supported other DoD activities. The basic space shuttle design was heavily influenced by Air Force and DoD requirements, and Atlantis has included more than 30 Air Force astronauts among its crews. The Air Force and DoD also play critical roles in shuttle launch and recovery operations in a continuous, decades-long partnership with NASA.

Well, Atlantis will stay at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  I suppose the Air Force museum shouldn't be all that disappointed... Houston didn't get one, either.

NASA administrator Charles Bolden announced today the four museums -- the Smithsonian Institution (Discovery), the California Science Center (Endeavour), Kennedy Space Center (Atlantis) and the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum (Enterprise) -- that will receive space shuttles for public display after the fleet retires this summer. 

As expected Houston, the home of human spaceflight, was snubbed. 

It's a shame. Houston's campaign, Bring the Shuttle Home, probably deserves some blame for being late to the game in terms of politicking for an orbiter. 

But I'm not sure any campaign could have saved Houston. The politics of this decision were pretty clear. President Obama appoints the NASA administrator, and Texas is a decidedly Republican state.

Me?  I blame George Bush. 

Fifty Years Ago Today

I was a sophomore in high school.. and I, along with everyone else in the world, was absolutely stunned to hear Yuri Gagarin had become the first man to orbit the earth.  You can ride along with Mr. Gagarin and see exactly what he saw in this brilliant film made to commemorate the 50th anniversary of this historic flight:

From FNC's web site, which is where I found this film:

As he edited together the film, Riley made an unusual discovery: Gagarin's short bursts of communication from the cockpit were very much akin to modern Twitter chatter. In addition to being the first man in space, Riley called him the first man on Twitter.

“It’s clear Yuri spoke in 'tweets’ -- as communications to the mission controllers were always brief and to the point," he said. " Today a text-based tweet is composed of up to no more than 140 characters, so in essence Yuri was the first perfect tweeter."

First man to orbit the earth and the first Tweets (sorta)... ain't that sumthin'?  Yeah, the film IS long, but it's also worthwhile.

A Mish-Mash of Miscellanea

First... from today's AFA Daily Report...

Return of the Fireballs: Officials with the 27th Special Operations Wing at Cannon AFB, N.M., have activated the 522nd Special Operations Squadron. "We will commit ourselves to excellence, be dedicated and courageous, and we will always, lead the way," said Lt. Col. Paul Pendleton, who took command of the reformed unit, whose history dates back to World War II. The 522nd SOS will be USAF's first unit assigned the MC-130J Combat Shadow II, which is due to begin operations in 2012. The unit's role will be covert infiltration, exfiltration, and resupply of special forces in hostile and denied regions. Pendleton received the unit's laurelled guidon from 27th Special Operations Group acting commander Col. Charles Myers during the April 7 stand-up ceremony. The 522nd, known as the Fireballs, was one of the most decorated air units during World War II. (Cannon report by A1C Jette Carr)

We always run news items from Cannon Airplane Patch... that's one of our responsibilities as a Local Retread Air Force blogger, yanno?  SN1 spent some time with the Fireballs, if memory serves.  That was when they were flying Lawn Darts, tho.

―:☺:―

Today's Toon Of Note: 

The way The One is acting about these miniscule budget cuts just cracks me up.  Speaking of Teh Funny...  The people who run the Fever Swamp blogs are having serious splodey head attacks... which is sorta fun to watch, especially in the comments... for a short while, anyhoo.  The One sure ain't their favorite guy at the moment.  Who'd a thunk it?

―:☺:―

The nice lady from American Home Patient Services dropped by this morning to perform annual service on my oxygen machine, which involves changing out a couple of filters and checking the output to make sure the machine is doin' what it's supposed to do... which it is.  I also found out the machine has an odometer of sorts, in the form of an hour meter.  Liz (the nice lady) read the meter and said... "It looks like you're using the machine every night!"  "Well, yeah... isn't that what the doctor ordered?" sez I.  "You'd be surprised," sez she...  "I find some machines with three hours or less on 'em when I do the annual service call." 

I suppose stupidity knows no bounds... yet I admit I WAS surprised.  Go figger.

Finally!

As in: someone finally found the switch and turned that infernal wind machine OFF.  We're just in from the day's errands and today is as pretty a day as we've seen in these parts in a month or at least it feels that way.  Note:

It goes without sayin' that we WILL be taking today's Happy Hour outdoors on the verandah.  And we've decided to kick off gin & tonic season in honor of this perfect day.  Ain't this purty!

Our soundtrack today?  Why... the Gin Blossoms, of course.

Full disclosure:  we are entirely free of gin blossoms, in the medical sense.  As of this moment, anyhoo... there bein' no guarantees on the future.

Now, if you'll excuse me, Gentle Reader, the Great Outdoors (heh) is calling.