September 30th

I went over to the airfield and took the plane out for an hour or so - there was a hot air balloon that launched before me, so I ended up going around him on the way back :o)

I "helped" Richard with some fibreglassing on his front cowl, then met Jim to go and drop stuff off for the poker run.  Unfortunately one of his magnetos failed, so we couldn't go - he's rebuilt the other one recently, but this one is a PITA to get out, so he was putting it off.  Well, now it gets done, I guess :o)

September 29th

I dropped Mum and Dad at the station to catch a bus to Stockton, a train to Bakersfield and a bus to Long Beach.

Tilly's exhausted.

September 28th

We went over to the airport so I could take Mum up in the Flightstar.  She's impressed with the new engine :o)

September 25th

We got up early and went to the airport so that Mum and Dad could fly with Andy in the N3 biplane.

We went through the Galleria and picked up Dad's Jelly Belly jelly beans, and stopped at the Green Acres nursery so Mum could take a look around.

September 24th

Dad and I got up early and went to the airport to take the plane out for a quick flight.  After that we went home and all went to Folsom to look around the old town, then on to the outlet stores.

September 23rd

Dad and I went to the airport first thing in the morning to cook breakfasts before Andy's presentation on his Cessna T-50.

September 22nd

Tilly and I went to Sacramento airport and picked up her grandparents :o)

September 20th

I spent the evening at the EAA membership meeting cooking burgers for ~25 of my closest friends :o)

September 17th

I started the day updating the EAA website with the latest newsletter.  I then got up on the roof and washed out the gutters where the angles of the roof join, as they get clogged with mud and cause the rain to flow under the tiles, causing all manner of other problems.

In the afternoon, we went to the airfield and took the plane out.  No alarms flying 2 up, even though it was 90F out.  We still hit ~6400rpm on takeoff, and that was generally good for ~800fpm.  It was very bumpy out, so we didn't fly for long, but that's the first time I've taken a passenger with the new engine :o)

September 16th

We went to a van meetup at Folsom Lake.  Tilly had a whale of a time playing in the water with Vic, and we got to watch a guy in a Syncro bury his van up to the axles in soft sand, then just drive out.  I had been thinking of going flying in the afternoon / evening, but I was just too damn tired.

September 10th

I helped Vic with some of the stuff for her company picnic, then went to the airfield and took the plane out again.

September 9th

I tinkered around in the garage making some braces for the (aftermarket) mirrors on the DRZ, then in the evening went to the airport.  I've been seeing the coolant temperatures running quite high, so I drained out some of the 50/50 antifreeze/coolant mixture, and put back in just water (I reckon I'm now at around 40/60).  The coolant temperatures are now better :o)

September 4th

Today was Labo(u)r Day, when Americans celebrate the wins of the union movement by going shopping.

I started the day at the airfield.  It was still smoky, but at least that means it's not too turbulent.

We watched "Avatar" while Vic did some stuff for her staff picnic later this month.

September 3rd

It's all smoky and hot still, so I changed the oil on the Jeep, as that's been bleating all weekend.

September 2nd

I started the day at the airport cooking for the first Saturday breakfast - it was pretty damned hot already, so there weren't a massive number of people.

In the evening, I went back and took the plane out - it was over 100F, but there was pretty much no turbulence anywhere.  The smoke meant I couldn't see much though.

September 1st

A new month, so here are the solar stats:

Power billed

Power generated

The van was taken away, and I got a call around 4pm to say it was all fixed up - it was the new cylinder.  The thing is, I can't pick it up until Tuesday morning, due to the holiday on Monday :o(

Ron came over and picked up the old sofa that we've decided we don't need any more - that'll go into the hangar at the airport.

In the evening we watched "The Empire Strikes Back: Revisited".  I'll be honest, it's so long since I've seen the original and the special editions that I couldn't tell you what had been changed without checking :o)

August 31st

I went out to the garage and found a lot of brake fluid on the floor - one of the new cylinders is definitely leaking.  I put some brake fluid in the (empty) reservoir and pumped it up to the point I could turn the van around (obviously it was the wheel against the wall), then called Stephan's to see if they had any bright ideas what it could be before I jacked the van up to take a look.  Scotty said it was most likely the cylinder itself, and it'd need replacing again.  They're sending a tow truck tomorrow to get the van, as it obviously can't be driven like this.