Boeing 787 review…Meh…

Posted on by October 15, 2013

Flew on a 787 from DEN to NRT today…

FLT 139 was over an hour late getting out due to a ‘computer glitch’ in the cockpit, there was a ‘warning’ on the TTY that they couldn’t clear and had to call a senior maintainer to get it finally fixed…

Nickyneat little ‘personal’ screen in the seat back of the seat ahead of you.  Problem is the system died on takeoff and it took over an hour and a half of the FAs screwing with it to get it to come back up…  (Appears to be a known problem)IMG_1420

Quieter???  Maybe, but I’m half deaf…  And people were playing with the windows for about 15 minutes.

Smoother ride???  It’s a more ‘squishy’ ride, kinda like an old Super Connie or a B-52. All the wing flap makes for some interesting side to side motions rather than the up/down motions.  I went back to the tail during one set of bumps, and there IS a significant improvement over the Airbus and it’s frantic tail motions trying to stabilize the airplane with rudder/elevator movements.  Bottom line, it still bumps and bounces just like all the other airplanes. IMG_1419

If you ain’t the lead dog the view doesn’t change… Only positive, better overhead bins that you can actually FIT rollaboards in.  And the seats are a tad bit better, more like the seats on the Shinkansan in Japan, the seat bottom rotates slightly in conjunction with the seat back to give one a little bit of repositioning.  So that takes the seats from a 2 to a 3 on  a scale of 10…

The aisles are VERY narrow, leading to anyone walking by bumping folks sitting on the aisles unless they sidle down sideways.  Got banged by the serving cart, got a big bruise coming on my knee; FA didn’t give a rats ass…  No surprise…  It was “MY” fault…

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Way too much of this…IMG_1422

Finally…  Typically lousy food, supposed ‘chicken’ had no identifiable parts that ‘I’ would call chicken.  Typically grouchy older flight attendants, the younger ones seemed to be at least trying to provide good service.IMG_1424

Bottom line, another cattle car… A little newer, but at least it’s a Boeing…

Oh yeah, and I get here just in time to get smacked with a typhoon…

Typhoon 25W WIPHATyphoon Wipha… Max winds 105 kts, the eye is expected to ‘miss’ us by 10 miles…

Sigh…

Shutdown Day 14… Urban Legends???

Posted on by October 15, 2013

Progress?  Same as the previous days… Zip, zilch…

And it appears the administration has remained ‘strangely’ quiet on the vets march and VA and Vet issues.  It appears their sole reaction was to deploy police in riot gear…

And it appears there are little or no ‘actual’ numbers of enrollees either at the national level or state levels… And even the numbers of visitors appear to be ‘questionable’ at best… Story HERE.

And in answer to the email about where we were shooting from, it’s here…

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Looking from the parking area at the long range bench and the 750 yard berm in the distance on the horizon.  If it hadn’t been for the wind…

sigh…

Shutdown Days 11-12-13…

Posted on by October 14, 2013

Zip, zilch, nada out of DC other than hot air…

But the Vets decided to pay visits to various places including the WWII Memorial and Lincoln Memorial.  Pics and article HERE.  And apparently they delivered some “Barrycades” to the White House! 🙂  Had I been in the area, I’d have been there…

I stand with the Vets!

In other news, Blogorado had to come to an early end for me, work intervened (again). THANKS to FarmFam for putting up with us, and hosting us,  feeding us and giving us a much needed break. The usual suspects were here, minus a couple of folks for a number of reasons.  Y’all were missed!!!

Fun times were had, and much money was turned into smoke and noise!  Me on AR50

Down on the AR-50, three rounds to get on target at 750. I’ll take that in 20kts, gusting winds… And I’m not going to tell you the hold, you’d call me a liar…

Me on 03A3

And shooting a SWEET 03A3 at 750, sadly no hits with it, but I scared it a couple of times…  Both those sweet rifles courtesy of Terry.  Thank you Sir!!!

Good friends, good times, and ended way too quickly…  The conversations were much as always, varying between possums, to the wind, to…

And as usual our ‘theme’ song was, “If the wind would just die down, it’d be a beautiful day.”

We had a couple of T&E items thanks to GC and AD, thanks for letting us play with them!

Pics courtesy of Tam.

Find the Colt…

Posted on by October 12, 2013

Some folks just tend to ‘accumulate’ things…

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And these are just ‘some’ of the revolvers…

Since all but one of them are S&W, I’ll defer to Tam for further descriptions, but he did drag out one old Colt just for me…

And they did have a ‘few’ semi-autos scattered here and there, along with some other rifles etc…

Just ‘accumulated’ a few things over a few years… 🙂

And these go out to Jay G...

The assault baseball bat…

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And the assault hatchet…DSC00415

Some good ol’ boys have WAY too much time on their hands…

Just sayin…

238 and still limping along…

Posted on by October 9, 2013

Happy Birthday to the Navy, 238 years and still hanging in, in spite of the current administration…

Some traditions DO continue, thankfully…

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Traditionally, the oldest sailor and the youngest sailor share in cutting the ‘birthday’ cake.

I happened to be a Third Fleet last week, and they had the cake cutting on the 8th (actual celebrations can be held anytime 7-13 Oct), but since cameras aren’t allowed, no pics, but I DID swipe a napkin…

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The ceremony was held on the quarterdeck with VADM Floyd presiding, and the oldest sailor was a Warrant who was 58, the youngest was a Seaman who was 19 (he was born in 1994)!!!

Us old farts standing in the back started laughing as we’d ALL retired before the poor kid had been born… At least I wasn’t the oldest old fart…

Sigh…

Shutdown Day 10…

Posted on by October 12, 2013

Zip nada again today…

It appears the states can PAY the Feds to open the national parks in their states…  YGTBSM!!!

I can’t find a single positive thing to say…

I’m going to go turn money into smoke and noise for a couple of days…

Go read the folks on the sidebar.

Thank you!!!

Thought for the day…

Posted on by October 8, 2013

We always hear about Social Security running out of money.

How come we never hear about Welfare running out of money?

My comment?

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We are “SO” screwed…

And since I’m doing pictures, here are two more… h/t JP for these…

1375281_616307821742012_663752728_nAnd this one is one of the ‘better’ ones I’ve seen on Benghazi…

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I’m off doing other things today, so go read the folks on the sidebar…

Shutdown Day 10…

Posted on by October 10, 2013

Still nothing productive out of DC… Turns out the Senate FINALLY passed the bill to pay death benefits to the military and now Obummer refuses to sign it.  He said Fisher House is doing it so why should he sign it.  And STILL no admission out of the administration on when the WH actually knew, but the guess is at least Tuesday, if not earlier… Story HERE.

It appears Reid and Gray (Mayor of DC) are apparently in cahoots on ‘some’ kind of deal to keep DC running…

And in lieu of anymore BS, a little humor…

Speech by RADM J. Stark, USN, President of the Naval War College regarding the services:

· The first reason I like Marines: They set high standards for themselves and those around them, and will accept nothing less.

· I like the way Marines march.

· I like the way Marines do their basic training whether it’s Quantico, San Diego, or Parris Island.

· I like the idea that Marines cultivate an ethos conductive of producing hard people in a soft age.

· I like the fact that Marines stay in shape.

· I like the fact that the Marines only have one boss – The Commandant.

· And I like the directness of the Commandant.

· I like the fact that Marines are stubborn.

· I like the way Marines obey orders.

· I like the way Marines make the most of the press.

· I like the wholehearted professionalism of the Marines.

It occurred to me that the services could be characterized by different breeds of dogs.

· The Air Force reminded me of a French Poodle. The poodle always looks perfect…sometimes a bit pampered and always travels first class. But don’t ever forget that the poodle was bred as a hunting dog and in a fight it’s very dangerous.

· The Army is kind of like a St. Bernard. It’s big and heavy and sometimes seems a bit clumsy. But it’s very powerful and has lots of stamina. So you want it for the long haul.

· The Navy, God bless us, is a Golden Retriever. They’re good natured and great around the house. The kids love ’em. Sometimes their hair is a bit long….they go wandering off for long periods of time, and they love water.

· Marines I see as two breeds, Rottweilers or Dobermans, because Marines come in two varieties, big and mean or skinny and mean. They’re aggressive on the attack and tenacious on defense. They’ve got really short hair and they always go for the throat. That sounds like a Marine to me!

So what I really like about Marines is that first to fight isn’t just a motto, it’s a way of life. From the day they were formed at Tun Tavern 200 plus years ago, Marines have distinguished themselves on battlefields around the world. From the fighting tops of the Bonhomme Richard, to the sands of Barbary Coast, from the swamps of New Orleans to the halls of Montezuma, from Belleau Wood, to the Argonne Forest, to Guadalcanal, and Iwo Jima, and Okinawa and Inchon, and Chosin Reservoir and Hue City and Quang Tri and Dong Ha, and Beirut, and Grenada, and Panama, and Somalia and Bosnia and a thousand unnamed battlefields in godforsaken parts of the globe, Marines have distinguished themselves by their bravery, and stubbornness and aggressive spirit, and sacrifice, and love of country, and loyalty to one another.

They’ve done it for you and me, and this country we all love so dearly. They asked for nothing more than the honor of being a United States Marine.

That’s why I like Marines!

h/t JP

Shutdown Day 9…

Posted on by October 9, 2013

Healthcare site is down again (still)… Now saying MONTHS of issues ahead…

Article HERE.

Other than the House acting on the death benefits for the military; zippo again today out of the  congresscritters. It appears the Senate didn’t even bother to take up the resolution on the death benefits…

The Pentagon announced Wednesday that a charity will step in to pay death benefits to the families of fallen soldiers, in response to widespread outrage over the payments being cut off amid the partial government shutdown. 

Earlier in the day, the head of the Veterans of Foreign Wars slammed the cut-off as “absolutely appalling.” 

The House voted Wednesday afternoon to restore the $100,000 payments. But in a rapid turn of events, the Pentagon announced minutes later that it had entered into an agreement with the non-profit Fisher House Foundation to keep the payments flowing to families — without the need for congressional action. (Though the House approved its bill unanimously, senior Senate sources told Fox News that the Senate did not plan to take it up.) 

Full article from Fox HERE.

And KUDOS to Fisher House for stepping up!!! God Bless them!

Even the Senate Chaplain is getting into the act…

Senate Chaplain Barry Black hasn’t been shy of late in calling out lawmakers in his daily opening prayer on the chamber floor.

“When our federal shutdown delays payments of death benefits to the families of children dying on faraway battlefields, it’s time for our lawmakers to say, ‘Enough is enough,’” he prayed. “Cover our shame with the robe of your righteousness. Forgive us, reform us and make us whole.”

From the Washington Times HERE.

The conduct of the National Park Service over the last week might be the biggest scandal of the Obama administration. This is an expansive claim, of course. Benghazi, Fast and Furious, the IRS, the NSA, the HHS mandate​—​this is an administration that has not lacked for appalling abuses of power. And we still have three years to go.

Even so, consider the actions of the National Park Service since the government shutdown began. 

Article from the Weekly Standard HERE.

How bad is it in the military? And how much worse will it get???

Article from the Denver Post HERE.

And potential shutdown of Veterans’ Benefits 1 Nov HERE.

As far as positives, I can’t find any today other than Fisher House.  If you have a spare buck or two, I’m sure they’d appreciate the donation HERE!

Obit for Navy Traditions…

Posted on by October 8, 2013

By LCDR Tom Sousa…

An obituary for Navy Tradition (USN, retired) — 1775-2013:

In a press release from Washington D.C., the Navy Department announced the death of Navy Tradition today after a long illness.

Navy Tradition was born into a world of turmoil and revolution in 1775. Starting with nothing as a child, Navy Tradition evolved to become an essential part of the most powerful Navy the world had ever seen. He was present when James Lawrence ordered “Don’t give up the ship” as he lay mortally wounded on the deck of the Chesapeake. He witnessed cannon balls bouncing off the copper-shielded sides of the USS Constitution, “Old Ironsides.”

He fought pirates off the Barbary Coast and suffered with his shipmates on the battleship Arizona during the attack at Pearl Harbor. He fought his way across the Pacific with Nimitz and saw MacArthur fulfill his promise to return to the Philippines. Navy Tradition was there when sailors fought bravely to save the frigate Stark after it was hit by a cruise missile and witnessed the launch of Tomahawk missiles from the battleship Missouri at the outset of Desert Storm.

Through all the strife, good times and bad, Navy Tradition was there to support his shipmates and give a balance to the misery that sometimes accompanied a life at sea. Be the nation at peace or at war, Navy Tradition made sure that we always remembered we were sailors.

He made sure that promotions were celebrated with an appropriate “wetting down”; crows, dolphins and wings were tacked on as a sign of respect from those already so celebrated; chiefs were promoted in solemn ceremony after being “initiated” by their fellow brethren; and only those worthy were allowed to earn the title “shellback.”

But in his later years, Navy Tradition was unable to fight the cancer of political correctness. He tired as his beloved Navy went from providing rations of rum to its sailors to conducting Breathalyzer tests on the brow. He weakened as he saw “Going into harm’s way” turn into “Cover your backside,” and as “Wooden ships and iron men” morphed into “U.S. Navy, Inc.”

A lifelong friend of Navy Tradition recalled a crossing-the-equator ceremony during World War II: “ I had to eat a cherry out of the belly button of the fattest sailor on the ship. It was disgusting. But for that few minutes, it took our minds off the war and to this day it is one of my greatest memories.”

In lieu of flowers, the family of Navy Tradition has asked that all sailors who have earned their shellback and drunk their dolphins; who remember sore arms from where their crows were tacked on and were sent on a search for “relative bearing grease” or a length of “water line”; who’ve been through chiefs’ initiation or answered ship’s call in a bar fight in some exotic port of call, to raise a toast one more time and remember Navy Tradition in his youth and grandeur.

Fair winds and following seas, Shipmate. You will be missed.bilde

 

Nuff said…