We’re getting old…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
Some assembly required… X 30…
But who is going to do it when we’re gone?

I’m on the road again, putting stuff on a boat to go test it and I’m looking around and other than the geeks, everybody else has gray or white hair (if they have any hair left)…

Ages are 68, 67, 66, 66, 63, 61, 59, 58, 58, 56, 53 and 51, or an average of 60+ years; and all of the scientists were over 60 too (one is 79 years young). Two guys were lured back out of retirement to come work on this stuff. We were in at 0630 every morning, worked until about 1900, and did it again and again till we were done. And some of the stuff was ‘designed’ on the spot to get things done…

There was an immense amount of experience at work, and it was actually funny a couple of times, because most of us have interacted off and on for years; so some of the ideas were ‘floated’ and shot down by somebody else going, “Now wait a minute, you remember back in 93, you tried that s**t and it didn’t work THEN; now I’d do it this way..” And away we’d go again…

But a problem (or at least my perception), is there are NO younger people in training for any of our jobs. I literally went around to the various organizations represented and asked! The consensus was when we all retire (I think ALL of us will be gone within 5-6 years), there will literally be no one with the capability to build/integrate/assemble/deploy/retrieve systems like this; much less anything larger.

It’s NOT something that lends itself to automation, and requires experience, ability to think out of the box, manual dexterity, knowledge of strain limits (and how to take a strain on a line), field operations, weather, safety, and most of all the ability to remain calm when literally crap is coming down around your ears…

Who is going to replace us? The geeks? Well, they complained that the tent didn’t have air conditioning (one), that they didn’t have Internet connectivity (two), and what did we mean Monday was a workday, it’s a HOLIDAY (three)… (OBTW, they are both post-docs from a reputable institution which shall remain nameless to protect the guilty) Sigh…

And then one of them has the balls to come on the ship and ask us to step out of the way so he could take a picture of all the work HE did… (so we turned around and mooned him)…

But seriously, what’s the next generation going to do? Forfeit the capability to the Asians? Hope they can pay somebody to do the work for them? Just stop doing R&D? I don’t know, but I’m not getting a good feeling here…


Weird History take number whatever…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

A bit of history… And yes I am actually going some place with this…

1968 – Dr. Tom Lang of the Naval Underseas Center (NUC) in San Diego begins intensive development of his concept for a “high speed ship with semi- submerged hulls”, for which he was awarded a U.S. patent in 1971. A key element of the concept is the provision of movable horizontal fins located aft of the vessel’s center of gravity to stabilize vessel trim and pitch motions at higher speeds.

1970 – Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., in Tokyo, begins basic research on the “semi-submerged catamaran”, or SSC.

1972 – Construction begins on the 190-ton SWATH workboat SSP KAIMALINO for NUC after 18 months of research by engineers at NUC and nearly 2.5 yea

rs of design and confirmatory model testing4. Launching occurs in March, 1973.

1973 – The acronym “SWATH” is coined by U. S. Navy technocrats who promote its use, rather than “semi-submerged” ship or catamaran, to distinguish this concept from conventional catamarans.

SWATH actually stands for Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull… In simple terms, it means take two submarine hulls, tie them together horizontally and vertically, and you have a VERY stable platform in some pretty high sea states (15 ft plus waves for example)…

RV Kiamalino in the mid 70’s- note, it’s NOT pretty, all the money went to the underwater portions; the rest, well it was kinda like, oh just put a box on top to hold the engines and test people…

Ironically it was originally powered by two helicopter jet engines, with chain drives running down to the props… Bonus points if you can name the type and squadron of the helo on the deck. 🙂

Kiamalino today- It sits forlornly in a back dock in Hawaii, but there is apparently a move afoot to actually put her back in service as a test asset. Note the Plimsoll marks on the vertical connectors, she is actually capable of ballasting from eight feet to twenty feet down on the hulls for test purposes…

Kiamalino hull connectivity-The light patch is the aft horizontal plane connecting the two underwater hulls, there is also one forward…

And this is her ‘daughter’, the RV Kilo Moana, pulling into the pier at Sand Island, HI. Kilo Moana draws 24 feet and is stable in pretty high sea states.

A rather interesting ‘problem’ with doing research from KM (or any SWATH hull), is that even though the ship is extremely stable, as soon as you put any research package in the water and it is still attached to the ship, there is a SIGNIFICANT disconnect between the package (which is now reacting to the water column it is in) and the stable ship which doesn’t react… It’s lead to some ‘interesting’ strain readings on sensors…

Anyhoo, this is your two minute history lesson for the day… Now back to the regular BS…

Jesse Jackson’s Ride gets jacked…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Now this is just too funny…


The Reverend was in Detroit pushing GREEN jobs no less… From Channel 7 in Detroit

DETROIT (WXYZ) – A teenager is now being questioned about the rims and tires that were ripped off of one of Mayor Dave Bing’s vehicles.

This comes as Detroit police investigate the theft of tires and rims from vehicles chauffeuring high profile people.

The GMC Yukon Denali used to drive Mayor Bing around was found parked at the Shoreline East Condos, resting on bricks. It was in the possession of a Third Deputy Chief in charge of the Mayor’s executive protection unit. The SUV is one of the Mayor’s “secondary” vehicles. It was found on East Jefferson on Tuesday night.

Two days ago a 2009 Cadillac Escalade being used by Reverend Jesse Jackson was stolen from a parking lot near the Doubletree Hotel. It was recovered on Lawton Street after business people called police. One employee tells Action News “the window was busted out and the rims were missing.” He believes the rims would go for a thousand dollars on the street.

Mayor Bing’s spokesperson says “It’s our hope the community will continue to support the administration’s effort to communicate that any activity compromising the quality of life in Detroit is intolerable.”

I just want to know who’s doing this, and how much moving around they’re doing… makes me wonder if the wheels I bought to replace mine came from Detroit???

Oh yeah, the thousand dollar value, try $900 each NEW, $1200 with tires…

Attention Golfers…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Want to do something fun AND productive this weekend? Go play golf…


Sounds funny doesn’t it…

Well, Patriot Golf Day helps provide scholarships for postsecondary educational scholarships for the children and spouses of military men and women disabled or killed while serving our great nation. On Labor Day weekend, golfers across the country are asked to add an extra dollar to their greens fees to fund Folds of Honor scholarships. The Patriot Golf Day campaign is jointly supported by The PGA of America and the United States Golf Association.

The inaugural Patriot Golf Day in 2007 was started by Major Dan Rooney, Founder of the Folds of Honor Foundation, F-16 Pilot, PGA Professional, and USGA member. On Labor Day 2007 Rooney asked golfers to add $1 to their greens fees. His request resulted in donations of more than $1.1 million from more than 3,200 golf facilities. In the last three years, golfers nationwide have been instrumental in raising more than $5.3 million through Patriot Golf Day events.

I WILL be playing tomorrow (early, early… like dew sweepers at sunrise) and I’m donating $10…

Bigotry…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Got a request from Ambulance Driver to help spread the word and some bigotry in South Louisiana…


So do me a favor, and link this post in your own blogs, or link Robert’s post, and let’s Google bomb these backwards-assed yahoos into the 21st century. You did it for me with those mouth-breathers at Cycles and More, and now I’m asking you to do the same with Southern Style Granite. This post or Robert’s needs to be the #1 Google result by the end of the week.

And if you’re of a mind, go to one of the online review sites and spread the word about their business practices.

Thanks for your help.


You can read his entire post HERE, Robert’s post is HERE and Gay Cynic’s post is HERE…

Obviously the liberal democrats in South Louisiana need a bit of ‘education’ on what liberal is REALLY supposed to be… sigh… Actually they just need to be put out of business…

As time goes by part 2…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Here are the tribute posters for Challenger and Columbia… Sadly, these were lost along with all their crews. Ironically, I have connections to both. I saw the first night launch (STS-8) with Challenger, and was one of the search team for the Challenger when she blew up, and Columbia when she disintegrated, shed parts/pieces over our family place in Louisiana among many others…

Without further comment, here they are
Challenger-

This Tribute Display features Challenger, which blazed a trail for other vehicles with the first night landing (STS-8) and also the first landing at Kennedy Space Center (STS-41B). The spacewalker represents Challenger’s role in the first spacewalk during a space shuttle mission (STS-6) and the first untethered spacewalk (STS-41B). Crew-designed patches for each of Challenger’s missions lead from earth toward our remembrance of the STS-51L crew. Other significant accomplishments include the first night launch with STS-8; the first in-flight capture, repair, and redeployment of an orbiting satellite during STS-41C; the first American woman in space (Sally Ride on STS-7); the first African-American in space (Guion Bluford on STS-8); and the first American woman to walk in space (Kathryn Sullivan during STS-41G).

Columbia-

This Tribute Display features Columbia, the “first of the fleet”, rising above earth at the dawn of the Space Shuttle Program. Crew-designed patches for each of Columbia’s missions lead from earth toward our remembrance of the STS-107 crew. In the background are images from the Chandra X-Ray Observatory (launched aboard STS-93) representing Columbia’s contributions toward scientific discovery. Other significant accomplishments include the first space shuttle landing at White Sands with STS-3, first deployment of commercial satellites during STS-5, first four-member crew on STS-5, first Spacelab mission and first six-member crew on STS-9, first female mission commander (Eileen Collins) on STS-93, as well as multiple laboratory missions—many with international partnership.

Still nothing on the possibility of actually being able to get copies, but I’m pokin’ around…

As times goes by…

Posted on by March 6, 2013


We (the USA) are coming to the end of life on the Shuttle program, and there are some posters being considered as tributes to each of the Shuttles. Here are three in consideration, with a short (for NASA) description of each Shuttle and what they accomplished.

For Discovery:


This Tribute Display features Discovery demonstrating the renowned Rendezvous Pitch Maneuver on approach to the International Space Station (ISS) during STS-114. Having accumulated the most space shuttle flights, Discovery’s 39 mission patches are shown encircling the vehicle. The background image was taken from the Hubble Space Telescope, which was launched aboard Discovery on STS-31 and serviced by Discovery on STS-82 and STS-103. The prominent American flag and eagle represent Discovery’s two “Return to Flight” missions, STS-26 and STS-114, and symbolize Discovery’s heroic role in returning American astronauts to spaceflight. Discovery’s significant accomplishments include the first female Shuttle pilot (Eileen Collins on STS-63), John Glenn’s legendary STS-95 mission, and the celebration of the 100th space shuttle mission with STS-92. In addition, Discovery supported numerous Department of Defense programs, satellite deploy/repair missions, and 13 flights for construction and operation of the ISS.

For Atlantis

This Tribute Display features Atlantis soaring above the earth. Atlantis flew seven missions to space station Mir. In addition to its many assembly, construction, and resupply missions to the International Space Station, Atlantis also flew the last Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission on STS-125. The planet Venus represents the Magellan probe deployed during STS-30, and the planet Jupiter represents the Galileo probe deployed during STS-34. Threaded through the design are the mission patches for each of Atlantis’ flights. The inset photos illustrate various aspects of space shuttle processing as well as significant achievements such as the “glass cockpit” and the first shuttle docking with Mir during STS-71. The inset photo in the upper left corner shows a rainbow over Atlantis on Pad A and Endeavour on Pad B. Endeavour was the assigned vehicle had Atlantis’ STS-125 mission needed rescue, and this was the last time both launch pads were occupied simultaneously. The stars in the background represent the many people who have worked with Atlantis and their contributions to the vehicle’s success.

For Endeavour

This Tribute Display features Endeavour soaring into orbit above the sailing vessel HMS Endeavour for which the orbiter was named. The Cupola, delivered to the International Space Station by Endeavour on STS-130, is shown framing various images of Endeavour. The images represent the phases of mission processing and execution for the Space Shuttle Program. The first ever use of a drag chute during orbiter landing (STS-49) is depicted in the top window and moving clockwise the images symbolize the following: Rollout to the Pad, Ferry Flight return to Kennedy Space Center, Orbiter Processing Facility Roll-in, Docking at the International Space Station, and Lifting Operations for Orbiter Mate in the Vehicle Assembly Building. The background image was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope and signifies the first servicing mission which was performed by the Endeavour crew on STS-61. Crew-designed patches from Endeavour’s maiden voyage through her final mission are shown ascending toward the stars.

I don’t have any info on when/where these will be available, but if I find out, I will post it. Having lived (vicariously) through Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and now the Shuttles; I for one, am proud of what we accomplished not only for America, but the world with our Space Program. I believe we are doing the wrong thing by cutting NASA and the Constellation project…

Just sayin…

Comments needed!!!

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Well, they’re at it again. got this in an email from NSSF…

All Gun Owners, Hunters and Shooters:

With the fall hunting season fast approaching, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Lisa Jackson, who was responsible for banning bear hunting in New Jersey, is now considering a petition by the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) – a leading anti-hunting organization – to ban all traditional ammunition under the Toxic Substance Control Act of 1976, a law in which Congress expressly exempted ammunition. If the EPA approves the petition, the result will be a total ban on all ammunition containing lead-core components, including hunting and target-shooting rounds. The EPA must decide to accept or reject this petition by November 1, 2010, the day before the midterm elections.

Today, the EPA has opened to public comment the CBD petition. The comment period ends on October 31, 2010.

Go HERE and read the blurb from the NSSF, and PLEASE go comment on the proposed legislation!!!

TIA folks…

Blogorado…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Here we go again… 🙂


Yesterday we set up the range, and people started rolling in…

We met for breakfast (supposedly at 0800, but I’m not sure which time zone for some folks), and ‘some’ of us went out to actually do work…

So far, we have the usual suspects here, FarmFam, Sal, Matt, JPG, Lawdog, Phlegmmy, Oleg, Peter, Wing, Jim-Jim, the Nerds, AD, Gay Cynic, TD, Vine (a commenter on IRC), and a couple of others…

We’ve made a few more challenging set ups from last year, and Farm Dad has added more steels, a couple of more poppers, and a new rifle range set up. This year we put the half-size torso out at 550 yards, in a different direction, and a couple of folks SWORE there was no target out there… 🙂

There were ‘toys’ to be played with, karma jumped on me (we had just been talking about reliability among pistols vs. costs, and I offered Oleg my C&S to shoot- On the second mag, the extractor broke…); and of course AD happened to be standing there, so he offered his Rock Island, which functioned perfectly… sigh…

The winds HAVE been a factor, and the heat/altitude have been interesting, but the shooting has been fun, frustrating, more fun, humorous, a few Doh moments…

One of the funnier ones today was watching Matt driving horses with the little Ford Escape (gee, I don’t know why the theme from Rawhide keeps running through my head)…

As always, the conversations have run the gamut- movies, games, AD stories, tactical vs. gamers, and all the cross talk that usually happens…

At one point yesterday morning, with 22 people at breakfast, I counted 14 different conversations going on!!! The poor waitress was going NUTS!!!

From my perspective, the best shots this time out have been Matt, JPG, LD and Oleg (now Oleg cheats and actually takes time to aim…)

The food has been awesome as always (so much for any diet on this trip), the Nerdbeer was all the rage yet again (and as good if not better than last year)… and Peter contributed a couple of bottles of VanDerum liquor from South Africa (GOOOOOD).

We got rained out this afternoon, so everybody is relaxing, and taking a bit of a break. Off to enjoy the downtime and see where the conversations go tonight…

To those who didn’t make it, we miss you!

I FEEL his pain…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

This letter is a thing of beauty (even if the language is a bit rough)…You definitely feel the guy’s pain! Supposedly actual letter to the passport office…
Dear Sirs,
I’m in the process of renewing my passport, and still cannot believe this. How is it that Radio Shack has my address and telephone number and knows that I bought a cable t.v. from them back in 1987, and yet, the Federal Government is still asking me where I was born and on what date.
For Christ sakes, do you guys do this by hand? My birth date you have on my social security card, and it is on all the income tax forms I’ve filed for the past 30 years. It is on my health insurance card, my driver’s license, on the last eight damn passports I’ve had, on all those stupid customs declaration forms I’ve had to fill out before being allowed off the plane over the last 30 years, and all those insufferable census forms that are done at election times.
Would somebody please take note, once and for all, that my mother’s name is Maryanne, my father’s name is Robert and I’d be absolutely astounded if that ever changed between now and when I die!!!!!!
I apologize, I’m really pissed off this morning. Between you an’ me, I’ve had enough of this bullshit! You send the application to my house, then you ask me for my address?
What is going on? Do you have a gang of Neanderthal asses working there!
Look at my damn picture. Do I look like Bin Laden? I don’t want to dig up Yasser Arafat, I just want to go and park my ass on a sandy beach.
And would someone please tell me, why would you care whether I plan on visiting a farm in the next 15 days? If I ever got the urge to do something weird to a chicken or a goat, believe you me, I’d sure as hell not want to tell anyone!
Well, I have to go now, ’cause I have to go to the other end of the city and get another copy of my birth certificate, to the tune of $60. Would it be so complicated to have all the services in the same spot to assist in the issuance of a new passport the same day??


Nooooo, that’d be too damn easy and maybe make sense. You’d rather have us running all over the place like chickens with our heads cut off, then find some idiot to confirm that it’s really me on the damn picture – you know, the one where we’re not allowed to smile?! (bureaucratic morons)
Hey, you know why we can’t smile? We’re totally pissed off!
Signed – An Irate Citizen.
P.S.. Remember what I said above about the picture and getting someone to confirm that it’s me? Well, my family has been in this country since 1776 …….I have served in the military for something over 30 years and have had security clearances up the yingyang……….However, I have to get someone ‘important’ to verify who I am – you know, someone like my doctor WHO WAS BORN AND RAISED IN INDIA !
Sincerely,
You Sure In The Hell Should Know Who I Am.
…………………And you want to run our health care system?!?

Off to Blogorado ver 2.0, I’ll try to get a post or two up from there…