Middle of the Week

This is the first chance I've had to sit at my computer and post something all week. It has been so busy at work! On Monday, we visited six different cities! It has been lots of fun, but too busy to keep updated online.

Early Monday, we flew from Phoenix Sky Harbor to a mining town in southern Arizona to pick up an additional passenger. Then we flew to Centennial Airport in Denver, one of my favorite locations. We even had a chance to visit Park Meadows Mall while there to grab some lunch. A sign of the times: I grabbed a BBQ chicken wrap at Red Robin while we were waiting for our passengers, and I was the only customer in the entire restaurant during the "lunch rush." It just meant I had more Bottomless Steak Fries, so I am not complaining. The food industry has been hit hard through all of this!

After Denver, I got to visit my home state of Utah. We went into Provo first, and the visibility was terrible because of the smoke from the California fires. After an hour on the ground there, we continued to Ogden, where I got an ice cream cone from Farr Better Ice Cream while walking around the Ogden LDS Temple. Because it was Monday, I couldn't get onto the grounds for some decent pictures. But I had never visited it before, and it is always so nice to be close to a temple. Late that evening, we ended our first day adventures by flying to Renton, Washington near Seattle. It's such a great city, but I am never there long enough to explore any of it! Some day...

Tuesday started out with a flight to Greybull, Wyoming. There are several World War II war birds at Greybull that are being extensively restored by a specialized group of airplane wizards. You should see some of the airplanes they have brought back to life! While Joe looked around, we ran into the town of 1,800 people to grab an A&W hamburger for everyone on board. Greybull is always a fun fuel stop. I just love seeing airplanes, especially some of those immaculate yet ancient giants. It isn't something seen every day. After a few hours, we continued on our trip to Oshkosh, Wisconsin. It was dark when we arrived, but the magical feel of Oshkosh Airventure still lingered. I was a month too late to see the thousands of airplanes covering the entire airfield! I love that airport, but our stay was short. After an hour in Oshkosh, we flew twenty minutes south to Milwaukee for the night.

Today has been fun as well, and busy (there is a recurring theme this week!). We left Milwaukee to St. Louis Lambert Airport at around 1:00 PM. Before we left, Terry and I tried a new Mexican place called El Fuego. It was so yummy! After getting full on the delicious chips and salsa, they brought out my "lunch portion" burrito. It took four people to carry it out! Needless to say, I only could handle a few bites before I boxed it up for Terry to take home. Luckily for him, the airplane baggage compartment acts as a freezer during each flight, getting as cold as minus 70 degrees at altitude (I learned the hard way not to put makeup in that suitcase!). After St. Louis, we flew north to a small airport in Cincinnati, Ohio. Our last flight of the day was to Connecticut to Hartford. What a beautiful city! Boston Center was quiet on the radio, so I asked a few questions about their facilities. They have over 330 employees in the Center, and as many as 150 are on at any given time. Fascinating! Hartford has a tiny runway (less than 4,000 feet usable) surrounded by hills, trees, a river, and power lines. To add to the fun, we flew in there at 9:30 at night! It was great! With Joe and Darrell, we drove all over town trying to find some place to eat and finally had to resort to the drive-thru at Wendy's.

Tomorrow holds a whole new day of adventures. When Joe is in the airplane, we never know what to expect next!