7/18/03 My Long Lost Love - I couldn't wait to get home today. It was the start of my three-week vacation away from Dubuque, where I've been all summer except for most weekends. Today I reunited with an old friend, the Cessna 150 that taught me to fly! I hadn't flown it in over a year and a half. It's been grounded most of that time. Finally it was ready for me with some new engine parts and an overhauled propeller. I made it to the airport just as the sun was setting, so I quickly got the plane out and flew it until I could barely see the ground. I barely recognized the plane with all its new power! Of course it's still just a 150, but I'm excited to be able to fly whenever I want, wherever I want again. I'm sure I'll be flying a lot in the next few weeks and who knows what kind of fun ideas I'll come up with.

7/19/03 Washington Island Fly-In Fish Boil - Today more than 300 planes landed on Washington Island, at the tip of Wisconsin's Door County peninsula. My pilot friend Keith flew a 172 from Rockford and met me in Appleton. I rode from there to Sturgeon Bay, where we picked up one of his friends. Then the three of us flew up to Washington Island for the annual fish boil. We waited in line for something like an hour to get that great Door County cuisine, and it was well worth it as usual. We also witnessed several "stupid pilot tricks" as usual. We made it out okay and stopped at Sturgeon Bay again, where I saw one of my school's planes (long trip!). By the time I got back to Appleton, I had ridden for about two hours total. Beautiful weather and a great fly-in.

7/20/03 Looking at Lightning - Out of boredom and the desire to fly every day possible, I went out to the airport tonight after making sure no storms were going to hit us. There were small thunderstorms scattered north and east of here, but nothing was heading this way. I took the 150 up for a couple of trips around the pattern at dusk. It was just enough to keep me busy for a while and get a good view of the lightning show.

7/22/03 Airplanes All Day - I hung around the airport almost all day. This morning I went to Airtronics to see my old coworker buddies. After going to lunch with them, I flew the 150 for about 40 minutes. The cumulus clouds were building fast and I knew it would rain soon. The afternoon turbulence was rough on my little bird but it was bearable. I landed and called my brother, and he came out for a ride. We went flying for about 20 minutes. I gave the 150 some TLC today too, putting air in the tires, adding oil, and cleaning the wings and windscreen.

7/23/03 Ego Trip - My best friend Julie and I made the short hop from Clintonville to Shawano this evening. I parked on the grass directly across the road from The Launching Pad, which is a popular bar and restaurant. It was cool to step out of the airplane in front of the crowd gathered around the volleyball games. We went inside to eat, said hi to a couple people Julie knows, and walked back across the busy road to the airplane. A man and two young boys stood on the very edge of the road to watch us take off. It was like we were starring in a show! We were treated to a nice sunset on the way back. I've flown on five out of the past six days!

7/24/03 Two Local Solos - I flew to the Iola area today, near Central County Airport. It was mid-afternoon, the cumulus clouds were getting tall, and my little 150 was getting tossed around enough that I decided to call it quits. I went back up in the evening and things were different. It was a nice calm night and I could see forever. I went north and flew around Shawano Lake. I didn't want to come down and it was dark when I landed!

7/27/03 Oshkosh Visit and Solo Cross-Country - I went to Oshkosh today to get a preview of "the big show." People were working hard to set up for

AirVenture. I watched planes fly in for a while. Then I took advantage of the open gates and had a much-anticipated reunion with my friend at the Cirrus display. After hanging out for a while, I rushed home to get the 150 out. I flew a solo cross-country from Clintonville to Merrill on the spur of the moment. I got back to Clintonville at night again and logged 1.9 hours.

7/28/03 Good View of Hunting Land - My friend's boyfriend Rick went flying with me for just over half an hour. He had flown a few times before but mostly commercially. It was his first ride with me and he liked it. We looked at his friend's hunting land. Flying was a good way to check the lake level and look at the woods.

7/29/03 More Bird's Eye View - Rick apparently didn't get too scared yesterday because he went flying again with me tonight. This time we looked at a different piece of land and then went for some sightseeing. The weather wasn't as good as it has been lately and I know this will be my last flight in a while. An upper level low pressure system is invading the area.

7/30/03 Seems Strange Not to Fly - Today it was windy, stormy, and just about everything else unflyable. I have flown nine out of the past 11 days. Today it will be nine out of 12. Not bad, but now that I'm used to all this flying, I practically have withdrawal when I can't go!

7/31/03 To Oshkosh by Habit - I went to AirVenture today out of habit more than anything. It's already Thursday and I felt strange about not going Tuesday or yesterday. I wasn't in a hurry, though, and I arrived at 2:30 while it was still raining. First I looked at the exhibit hangars. Then I wandered around and rode the trams up and down the flight line to get an overview of what's there this year. And it was a small world, too-- without trying to find anyone, I saw eight people who I know. Thankfully the weather cleared up enough for the airshow. I stayed to watch the ultralights flying in the evening. I left at 8:00. I feel sorry for anyone who is camping right now because the stormy weather just won't quit!

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