Time

A company-wide email came out last month in April informing us that May is typically a slower month, so now is the time to take some time off with family prior to the busy summer months that are just around the corner.

Did I just read that right? The company wishes for me to spend time with family? Don't come to work? You mean to tell me there's no company email threatening us to work harder so the CEO can line his or her pockets with loot? Where's the memo stating, "Work forever or you will be fired and replaced!"  I am confused.

So here we are in mid-May.  I've been off for fourteen consecutive days today, and no, it is not by accident.  As per the email, this is planned. I am not using any vacation time either, nor is my paycheck affected in a negative way.  This is just business as usual at my airline because for the most part, I make my own schedule.  Call me an independent contractor, if you will.  Oh, and I am also on reserve too, meaning I don't have a set schedule yet. Normally, reservists at an airline are commonly abused and suffer little time at home and are assigned the worst trips in the system.  Not me.  It's the complete opposite, actually. You've seen where I've been lately, so I'll leave the pics for you to determine if I've had it rough here.  Yet, still pilots complain.  I don't know why, but they do.

So what have I been doing with all my free time? Honestly, I've been brainstorming a lot lately, and am researching new business opportunities.  Sometimes I feel unemployed, other times guilty in this economic environment, but mostly I feel lucky and blessed.  Most of my fourteen days off have gone something like this:

Wake up between 5 and 6AM because that's when our son wakes.
Have plenty of family time (not limited to driving my wife absolutely insane with my occasional spouts of obsessive-compulsiveness).
Perfect the backyard with new flowers and plants, etc.  I love working on the yard, as I find it therapeutic.
Hit the gym every morning.
Ride the mountain bike 13.7 miles every day in Annadel Park.  You've seen the pics.
Find good blogs to read (the good ones so far have been added to my blogroll).
Research potential business opportunities.

Are there any business opportunities out there?  Sure, but what? Here are some of my ideas...

I have another company pilot buddy who is growing hundreds of acres of organic winter wheat in South Dakota.  Perhaps there is room for more organic products in the marketplace?  I am passionate about nutrition and eating right, so perhaps some kind of organic energy bar using this wheat?  How about a small bakery delivering fresh baked goods?  There is a family I am familiar with who started making organic foods years ago out of their kitchen in Petaluma, CA and they have done well for themselves.  They were even able to buy a big jet to keep at the Sonoma County Airport.  Ever heard of Amy's Kitchen?

How about producing better bicycle components? I have a good pilot friend who left the airline business cold turkey (good for him) and started a business called Dark Speed Works.  They produce products for triathletes and avid cyclists.

Perhaps I can work on becoming a professional cyclist?  My neighbor is one, but he has the frame of a jockey.

I have researched wine making. Perhaps, but this is a lot of work and the returns may be iffy. Trust me, I know.

How about beer making? Another pilot buddy who works for the same company lives about three miles from my house and wants to start fiddling with the brew.  With Russian River Brewing Company right around the corner, how could you not?

Surfboard shaping? Dude?

Start a landscaping business?  I do make nice backyards.

Open a yogurt shop?

Professional Blogging? Ha ha.

My last one is actually quite doable, and that is to write a book.  I have one pilot friend writing a science fiction novel, and one popular aviation blogger (Karlene Petit) who just released Flight For Control.  Go check it out.  My book idea is simply writing about my father's experience as a PSA (Pacific Southwest Airlines) pilot from 1963 up until retirement in 1998.  That's 35 years of incredible stories.  Could make for a good read.  As I recall there's only a few books written on PSA.  What do you say, dad?

Lastly, my wife (who already works full-time) joined this growing company a few months ago that produces beautiful lockets.  It seems to be taking off, actually. Feel free to click on her Origami Owl page.

Any other suggestions?

To conclude, I was dropping my son off at preschool at about 10:30AM the other day (that's about normal for me) and a little girl in his class asked me the mother of all questions, "Why do you bring your son here so late?"

I knelt down to her level, smiled and said,  "Because I can!"

No I didn't say that, actually.  I think I muttered, "Well, because we play at home in the morning and when we are done playing, I bring him here."  I'm sure she was thinking to herself, "but...you...don't...work?"  In the town where I live, everyone in my neighborhood is usually gone by 7:30AM and back by around 5PM.  I'm sorry, but no thank you.  I do work, yes, but it is when I want to, thank you.

Oh, and in June I am finally a lineholder in Long Beach!  Life is good.

Sonoma Spring

All I can say is wow! Less than one mile from my doorstep in Sonoma County is this magical playground for hikers, bikers, horseback rides and more.  Spring in Annadel State Park is probably my favorite time up here, as, well you can see why from the pictures.  The late spring rains have made up for our driest winter in years with a glorious canvas of green grass, blue sky, wispy clouds and orange poppies. 

These photos were taken May 1st when I decided to slow down a little bit and actually smell the flowers instead of race past them on the mountain bike.  Enjoy and happy spring!

I live in that bowl down there:

Wispy cirrus:

Path home (sort of):

Detroit Sunrise

With the sun racing toward us, coupled by our velocity to the east creates a sunrise in half the time.  Detroit appears slightly to our right, still glowing in at least another thirty minutes of darkness.  Up here, it's another story.  I grab my sunglasses, lower the sun shade overhead and wait for the eye burning that always comes with the arrival of our sun.

The sun finally makes its debut right in front of our minds as we shield its intensive and obtrusive rays after almost four hours of blackness.  However, it rises quickly and soon it sits just above the window, easing the pain that a shortened sunrise will bring.

Chicago Twilight

We are three hours into our redeye transcon toward Boston and the glow of Chicago comes into view as we also begin to pick up the first twinges of twilight in the northeast.  As the northern hemisphere swings toward the sun in spring, so does the spot where the glow begins.  In the winter, the glow starts way to our right; the summer glow begins far to our left.  It's as if one can visualize the globe of Earth orbiting around the sun.

The speed of our jet, coupled with an additional boost from Mother Nature in the form of jetstream winds has us pass the Windy City in no time.  We look east as the glow becomes brighter and brighter...

Next up - Less than one hour east.