When I Soloed & Got My Pilot's License

Flew to Orlando with my girlfriend, bought the plane and flew it home to Ohio after a few days of diddy-boppin around with it. We flew first to Clearwater and put down at the Clearwater Air Park. Rented a car and went visiting. Spent some time with my son in St. Pete, then drove to Aunt Reatha's house where Aunt Thelma was staying. Then we went to see Phillip and Ingrid, and then took off for home.

On the way, we hit a storm. Had to put down at theTifton, Georgia, airport. This young man, making love to my plane, was Dexter Moore, the night attendant. He was stupefied when two women climbed out of that plane. He had never seen a woman pilot before. Dexter called a Taxi and we went into Tifton for the night. We were transporting some Florida plants that Phillip gave me while I was there. Dexter took real good care of the plants and the plane.

The next day, we gassed up, left Tifton and after a 4 hour delay because of a storm, got as far as Jonesboro. Jonesboro is just outside the restricted airspace of Atlanta's Airport. The weather was turning bad again, and storms were everywhere. My navigator found a small airport on the map so we decided to put down there for the night. When we arrived at this airport, I started praying. The sight of it scared me to death. It was short, narrow, unmarked, and ran down hill. Oh well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. I had learned to do short field landings, but this one ran downhill. I just hoped I had enough brake. I short-fielded just fine, but going down hill, it wouldn't slow down. I looked up and realized that now I was going up hill. Praise the Lord for small favors. I managed to get stopped before the brake pads went. We taxied to the parking area and went in to the building. I noticed that there was a lot of old single engine planes sitting all over the place. The secretary greeted us with enthusiasm. She took us under her wing and all problems were solved.

We stayed there until she got off at 5 p.m. She entertained us and fed us and made motel reservations for us for the night. We found out that all those old planes were owned by retired Airline Pilots. These relics were their hobbies. I guess this was their own private little airport. I can see why. Anyone in their right mind wouldn't try to land there. I suppose that's how they kept it private. Lol

At 5p.m. the secretary put us in her new Mercedes (Birthday gift from her husband) and took us to the Motel. We had a very good supper at the Motel Dining Room. Bought some magazines and watched TV.

The next morning about 7:30, she came to get us in an old beat up car. She said her husband had made an appointment to have something done to the Mercedes, so she had to drive his old clunker. We didn't care. Sure beat walking. We offered to reimburse her for the transportation, but she wouldn't hear of it.

PART TWO

The storms had moved North and East so by the time we got to the airport, we had flyable weather again. We gassed up and took off just fine, headed Northbound again.

It wasn't long after we left Jonesboro that we began to notice some very ominous clouds rolling and building again. We skirted a few then decided we better get down before they got any worse or any closer.

Next stop was Hixon, Tenn. We found an airport called Dallas Bay Park. It was owned and operated by a woman. Her husband had operated it but he died, so she took over. She was so happy to see women pilots. She had a young woman there whom she was giving lessons to and she wanted her to meet us. The young woman was very apprehensive about flying simply because she was a female. She changed her attitude after meeting us. The lady's name was Irene FleWellen. You can see part of the name on the front of the hangar. We stayed there until the storm clouds began to break up and head East and the sun came out.

Next stop was Berea, KY. Needed gas and we were hungry. Not only that, but it had been quite awhile since we saw a bathroom. We landed at the Berea Airport and went to the office. Inquired about someplace to eat and was advised that the nearest place was downtown Berea. About 2 or 3 miles south of the airport. We asked the operator if they had a rental car. He said no but we could use his pick-up truck. That was great. He gave me the keys, and away we went. Berea has a big college campus there, so while we were near we took a drive through there. Very impressive. Kentucky is a poor state and not many kids can afford college, so they have Berea. Four years of college, tuition free for any child with high scholastic marks in regular school and whose parents can't afford tuition costs. We found a shopping center with a restaurant so we stopped and ate. Of course we needed to browse the shops while we were there. We bought a big plastic water jug and had it filled with ice water for the trip home. I found some really neat shorts in a store, so of course, I had to buy a few pair. We finally realized that a pretty good amount of time had elapsed, and we had that guy's truck. We cut the browsing short and headed back to the airport. This airport road was way off the beaten track and the road was windy and full of holes, but we managed it OK. When we finally arrived, the airport man was standing in the middle of the road with his hands on his hips. He was not a happy camper. We apologized but that didn't make him any happier. After a little discussion and a 10 dollar bill, he calmed down. He said he was afraid we had an accident or something. He had gassed up the plane while we were gone, so we just boarded and left.

About 4 o'clock in the afternoon, we saw Fostoria, dead-ahead. We had a roll of toilet paper in the cabin, so when we buzzed my husband's work place, Carol threw it out the window and teepee'd the place. When we got to the airport and landed, word had got out that we were back, so we had quite a welcoming committee waiting. It was quite an adventure

THE END

And all this time, I was convinced I was the worst heller in the family. Oh well, another bubble busted. Bill Johns Re: "Memories" by Barb

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AN ANGEL DISGUISED AS A BUS DRIVER

My husband and I were married in 1952. He had been in Korea during that war and when he came home President Truman had stuck them all with an extra year so even though his time was up, he still had a year to go. He was stationed in Detroit, Michigan in an ack-ack battalion out at Gross Isle.

On the weekends that he couldn't get home, I would take a Greyhound bus to Detroit on Friday afternoons and spend the weekend with him. I stayed at the Lillebridge Hotel, on Fort St., which was one of Detroit's main thoroughfares. Some weekends he could get a pass and he would come to the hotel for the weekend. On weekends that he had to stay at camp, I would take a city bus out there and spend the day and take the bus back to the hotel about 10 or 11 o'clock at night.

I got on the bus one night to go back to the hotel. When I got on, the Bus Driver told me to sit in the seat directly behind him and asked me where I was going to get off. I thought it was kind of strange but I did what he said. There was a man sitting about in the middle of the bus. Every now and then I would see him, through the drivers mirror, move up a row. There was only three passengers on the bus so I didn't think much about it.

Just before we got to my stop, the driver turned to me and said to stay seated until the door was opened and then get off in a hurry. He said it very quietly so that no one else could hear him. Now I began to pay attention. I didn't question his motives anymore. When we got to the Lillebridge Hotel, the bus stopped, the door came open and I was out in a flash. Just as soon as I was out, the door slammed shut. I ran across the street and into the hotel as fast as I could run. When I got inside the Lobby, I turned and looked out the door. The man who was sitting in the middle of the bus was inside the door trying to get out. When the bus driver saw that I was inside, he took off down the street. I have no clue as to where he took the guy but I was safe in the Hotel. I told the Hotel clerk what was going on and he remarked how smart that driver had been. He said that man would probably have gotten off right behind me, and Lord only knows what would have happened.

Just lucky I guess!

THE SAGA OF CRITTER REMOVAL

I thought I had a Dove's nest in my chimney. The nest had dropped down to damper level and they were trapped. They needed to be removed as soon as possible. The following is an account of that process.

10:55 a.m. Sunday, May 16, l999
First call: Fostoria Fire Dept. Sympathized but couldn't help. They want to know who I find to remove them so they can put the information on record in case someone else calls them with a similar situation. Advised me to call the Humane Society.
10:58 a.m. Second call: Seneca County Humane Society. Answerer thought it was funny and snickered during the whole conversation. Directed me to the Seneca County Game Warden.
11:00 a.m.Third call: Game Warden - Jim Davis. Listened to a two minute message from an answering machine. Was given a list of numbers to call for various reasons and situations.
11:03 a.m. Fourth call: Nuisance Animal Control. From the Game Warden's list, I picked this agency. Received the names of 3 people in the area who might be able to help.
11:06 a.m.Fifth call: Bill McDaniel. Left message on his answering machine. He
did not call back.
11.07 a.m.Sixth call: Wes & Cindy House. Left message on their answering machine.
11:08 a.m.Seventh call: Ann Reiter. This number is the Seneca County Opportunity Center in Tiffin. She is employed there. Call was answered by an answering machine that said "No one available to answer at this time".
9:30 p.m.
I heard all kinds of racket coming from my fireplace. I ran in to see what was going on and the damper handle was turning. I opened the door, shone a light inside and discovered a tail and a hind foot dangling from the baffle. At that point I realized it wasn't a bird. The critter is trapped between the baffle and the damper. Be it Racoon, Possum or otherwise, he or she is trapped.

8:30 a.m. Monday May 17, l999
Received a call from Cindy House who was in ALBANY, NEW YORK. She is a member of "Keep it Wild". She gave me the names of 4 people to call. She also told me to call the Fostoria Police Dept. and ask for all the names on the "Keep it Wild" list.
Mike & Suzie Schiffer,Karen Lesher,Becky & Paul Grammer, Ann Reiter
8:35 a.m.
Eighth call: Mike Schiffer. He decided I needed a "Trapper". He gave me the name and numbers of 3 "Trappers" to call.
8:45 a.m.
Ninth Call: Adrian Miller - Bascom. Call answered by a little girl. She gave me another number. Left a message on an answering machine.
8:48 a.m.
Tenth Call: Mike Newcome - Tiffin. No answer.
8:50 a.m.
Eleventh Call: Jimmy Dunlap - Bloomville. No answer.
4:04 p.m.
Twelfth Call: Karen Lesher. Left message on answering machine. No reply.
4:05 p.m.
Thirteenth Call: Ann Reiter. Message: "No one available to answer".
4:30 p.m.
Fourteenth Call: Ann Reiter . No answer
9:45 p.m.
Received a call from Adrian Miller's mother. She had just got home and received my message. Her 15 year old son is a Certified Trapper. He will be here Tuesday May 18th, after school, to remove the critter or critters from my chimney.

PART TWO

5:00 p.m. Tuesday May 18, 1999
Fifteenth Call: Adrian Miller did not show up. I called and left a message on their answering machine.
7:30 p.m. Tuesday May 18, 1999
Received a call from Adrian Miller. He asked some questions about the situation then said he would not be able to come as planned. He said he and his Mother would be over about 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday evening.
5:45 p.m. Wednesday May 19, l999
Received a call from Mrs. Miller. She said her son and two other men would be here around 7:00 p.m. to remove the critters from the chimney.
7:15 p.m. Wednesday May 19, l999
Adrian Miller and two gentlemen arrived about 6:30 p.m. They determined the critters were Racoons. They were not able to get them out of the chimney. They are on a ledge just out of reach above the firebox and are not visible from the chimney on the roof. They attempted to take the back plate off the fireplace but it is welded fast. They suggested getting someone here to take the insert out. One of the gentlemen also suggested hanging a rope down into the chimney and maybe they would climb out themselves. The Mother is going down in there to feed the babies. She is leaving claw marks on the inside of the chimney. She is stretching from block seam to block seam. Tomorrow I will go to the Bodie Shop and get a rope.
9:00 a.m. Thursday May 20, l999
Went to the shop and got two pieces of big rope with grappling hooks on the end. Called Dave Hinkle and he came out and put the ropes together and dropped them down the chimney. He tied the ropes around the chimney at the top. Now all I have to do is wait and see if she takes them out. There was a lot of activity in the nest the whole day.
5:00 p.m. Friday, May 21, l999
All the noise coming from the chimney woke me up at 5 a.m. I got up, shut the door and went back to bed. Got up at 7 a.m. The noise is now coming from the firebox. They must have fallen off the top of the firebox or the mom put them down there. There was a lot of activity for quite some time. Went outside to work and didn't come back in until noon. All is quiet in the firebox but they are still there. I can hear breathing noises.
7:30 a.m. Saturday, Mary 22, l999
Did not hear a thing from the chimney when I got up but shortly afterwards heard the Mother talking and the babies whining. I can hear the Mother going up the chimney now. She is using the rope and making pretty good time getting up to the top. I still haven't seen her but I am seeing her presence in the form of dung piles in the back yard. She has them back up on top of the firebox where they were to start with. I think maybe a baby got too close to the flue hole yesterday and accidentally fell into the firebox. She was probably trying to get it back in the nest and that process was creating the racket and squealing I was hearing. She was flipping the damper over and that was giving her a major problem but she seemed to have solved it. I did not open the door when they were in the firebox because I was afraid I would frighten her and a scared Racoon is a dangerous animal especially if a baby is in jeopardy. I am wondering now, just how old these critters have to be before she takes them out in the world. I figure they are about six weeks old now. A story on the TV News tonight was about a family in Toledo who had to call an exterminator to get a nest of Racoons out of there home (didn't catch where they were). There were six Racoon babies and one of them was a Cinnamon Coon. They were sure cute little devils.
7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 23, l999
Did not hear any noise from the Chimney until about 5:00 p.m. The Mother came to feed the babies I think. There was a lot of rustling noises and some yelping from the babies then everything settled down. Later on in the evening I could hear the Mother talking. She sort of purrs at them.
11:00 p.m. Monday May 24, l999
Cannot hear anything from the chimney. They are either gone or asleep. Do not hear the Mother talking or the babies whining. Checked the chimney all day and heard nothing. I thought maybe I would hear something about 5 or 5:30, which is feeding time, but heard nary a sound. Before I went to bed about 11:00 p.m., I checked the area for noises and heard nothing.
9:00 a.m. Tuesday, May 25, l999
Have heard nothing from the Chimney since Sunday. I opened the fireplace doors, heard nothing and saw nothing. I banged on the front panel where the nest was located and got no response of any kind. I think the family has moved. I'll wait one more day. If I do not hear anything, I will have the rope removed and a bonnet put on the chimney. That Trapper's suggestion of providing a way out for them was a jewel. He said he was sure that they really didn't want to be there and if there was a way for her to get her babies out, she certainly would take it. He was right.

Barb's Critter At Breakfast