Captain's Log 20-15-06-09

I’m fascinated about what I’ve observed this week of the “world of airplane manufacturing.” This orb of metal, machines, mechanics and mechanisms revolves light-years outside my right-brained universe of words and how they fit together to make novels. Yet, the idea of rounding up the right ingredients and  the perfect mix of people to magically transform these four m’s into a big, fat, shiny ship that plies the skies seems very much akin to the stuff of which novels are made.

I especially enjoyed watching Frank’s reaction to the precision-made materials supplied to Boeing by our daughter-in-law’s company, TW Metals.  My senses perk up at the aroma of fresh-cut lumber from the shipping containers the raw materials arrive in, but Frank gets jazzed by anything involving metal and machines. As a long-term bystander to the magic of metalwork melting into motorcycles, I get some sense of the awe Frank displays when he sees a component perfectly smoothed and polished.  Read the First Officer’s Log for his take on the tours.

First  Officer’s Log

Okay, so we took two factory tours this week. The first was through the Boeing Future of Flight Aircraft construction facility. This is said to be the biggest enclosed building in America. It’s huge! There’s room enough in one bay to have three 747’s under construction.  747’s are built in place from the wheels up, one piece at a time and take four months to build. On the other hand, 787’s arrive in huge prefabricated sections and are bolted together at this facility in just a few days , rolled out and flown away.

The other tour was just this morning when we were invited to see daughter-in-law Michell’s workplace at TW Metals. Now the Boeing tour was cool and fun, but Michell’s tour had it all over it! TW Metals fabricates huge amounts of aluminum, magnesium, steel, and titanium tubing sections primarily for Boeing Airplanes and other aircraft manufacturers.

The raw materials arrive in huge long, wooden boxes (I mean really HUGE) and then are laser cut, mechanically cut, polished, prefab’d to exact  aircraft standards down to the bazillionithed-of-an-inch specs.  Michell has worked there since the 90s starting way down on the totem pole, working her way up through about every position, into and out of quality control and into management.  Now she’s pretty much the HMFIC (military terminology).

As we walked around, she explained the function of every machine and the destination in the aircraft of every piece of material. Also, fascinating to me was that the machinery ranged from a 1940’s chop saw that is still the best machine for a specific job; all the way up to brand-new, high-tech laser cutters.

I was very impressed by the work atmosphere. Although all this heavy industrial work was taking place around us, it was a low-intensity environment.  From what Michell’s told us I get the impression that TWM really values its employees. If they don’t have an HR motto, they should have one that’s sorta like, “Train, re-train, educate, compensate, retain.”

You know me; I love everything about big machinery and metal working, and I would work there (and for her) in a heartbeat.

End First Officer’s entry.

Captain’s Log 20-15-06-04 Good news!

Frank removed the malicious ad-ware from our notebook computer!

We’re staying at Lake Pleasant RV Resort in Bothell, Washington about 8 miles from our youngest daughter, Stacie’s house. We’ll be attending our grandson, Kyle’s graduation from high school tomorrow evening and celebrating beforehand with a BBQ dinner at Stacie’s.  All three of our children and all six of our grandchildren will be there.

The resort where we’re staying resides smack in the middle of a conifer forest. We’re surround by lush green trees, bushes and flowers. There are paved walkways around the park and trails in the trees to hike. The large lake in the middle of it all hosts mamma ducks with ducklings and those ever interloping  Canada Geese, but not too many.

To back up a bit, the carriage museum we visited in Raymond, WA rewarded our 50 mile trip there with some of the finest beautifully restored carriages we’ve ever seen. See previous post for pictures. The courthouse in South Bend was closed on a Sunday, so now we have an excuse to return (as if we need one).

On Saturday we’ll tour The Future of Flight at the big Boeing plant north of us. Friends, Gwen and Dave from Phoenix now live in the Tacoma area and will join us for lunch and the tour.

First Officer’s Log:  Eagles and Ducks.

Eagles 1:  The other day as we were driving along an eagle swooped down right in front of the rig and landed in a roadside tree.  It was quite a sight even at 60 mph. 

Eagles 2:  There’s a big lake here with lots of ducks and duckettes.  There’s also a resident eagle that swoops down regularly and snatches up a duckette for breakfast.  It could be interesting to watch but it involves getting up early, and we don’t do that anymore.  About the break of 8 is good for us.

Ducks 1:  So there we were, rolling along I-84 at about 65 mph, traffic nicely spaced out, minding our own business, following one truck with another behind us, when all at once a family of ducks, Mommy Duck, Daddy Duck, and three duckettes, landed right in the highway right in front of the truck in front of us!  Have you ever seen how much smoke 18 locked-up wheels make at 65 mph?  Lemme tell you, it’s a lot!

So, I slammed on our brakes.  No smoke as the ABS took over and we stopped a few feet behind the truck with 18 flat spots on eighteen tires.  But then I looked in the mirror and saw the truck behind us still coming on strong!  Egad, I was sure we were about to have an eighteen wheel colonoscopy.  I could just see him slamming into the Smart Car (“Maxwell”, as in Maxwell Smart) and jamming it up into our garage and then the living room.

But he didn’t.  He actually got that big red “Swift” truck stopped right behind Maxwell.  I wish I could have gotten out and thanked him but traffic started rolling and we had to move on. 

Now, one last thought.  If I had been first in line when those ducks landed, there would have been five-duck soup all over that highway.  And I pretty much believe the first trucker would have behaved the same way.  So I would bet a bunch of money that there was a four-wheeler that slammed on their brakes in front of that truck and who now owes a huge debt of gratitude to the trucker for not killing them and probably doesn’t even know it.

Another last thought.  The malware/adware came back a few days ago.  I called the tech support group that I paid $149.99 to for a year's online assistance, and they immediately tried to sell me an additional $79.99 piece of security software.  So beware of iYogi.com as they are a scam.  I found the fix steps online and did it myself.  I wouldn’t be surprised if the original malware or the subsequent adware originated . . . . well, I won’t say.  But beware of iYogi.  I don’t trust them.

End First Officer’s Entry

Captain's Log 20-15-06-04 Pictures At Last

Ore buckets from the defunct mine still hang over the highway at Pioche, Nevada.

Totem marking the patch to the beach at Andersen's RV Resort.

RV's at Anderson's taken from the beach path. 

Here's Long Beach and the 101 Highway up to Raymond and the Carriage Museum

Give me a sign!

ABC Sleigh (Another Beautiful Carriage)

ABC with a fringe on top!

ABC

Make that 19th Century Funeral Wear! Ooops!

Lake Pleasant RV Resort's Lake! Bothell, WAS

Waterwheel at Lake Pleasant

Captain’s Log 20-15-05-31

Long Beach, Washington

We got here around 4:30 p.m. yesterday, unloaded the Smart Car, unhooked the trailer and left it up front at Andersen’s RV Park. We backed in without a problem, and I was on the beach 5 minutes later. It’s wild and unspoiled up here with plenty of room to walk the wide, wide beach. I’ve seen several SUV’s driving along on the sand enjoying the ocean view. The dogs run and spin and twirl while chasing each other on the beach.

This morning at 5:00 a.m. I popped out the path for a great walk all by myself on the newly washed sand and watched the tide going out. I made it back home before 7:00 a.m., and Frank whipped up a batch of  great French toast using some locally baked English toasting bread. I think that was the best French toast I’ve ever had! Since the dogs woke Frank up at 5:30 a.m., he crashed for a few more hours sleep. Now the plan is to go eat at the Lost Roo and then drive to Raymond to see the carriage museum and also the impressive rotunda of the County Court House.

Tomorrow we’re bound for Bothell, just south of Everett where our daughter, Stacie lives.

Bad news. Our notebook computer is again infected with malicious ad-ware. I haven’t told Frank yet. Maybe I’ll tell him when we get back from our wanderings later today. Anyway, I won’t be posting pictures for awhile, but I can still manage words on the iPad. Laters . . .

Captain’s Log Stardate 20-15-05-30

Portland Fairview RV Resort impressed us with it’s multi-level campground and wide paved streets bordered by green grassy garden walks. Masses of flowers including rows of pink roses in full bloom lined the walkways down the little hill from our rig to the duck pond. We enjoyed a very pleasant stay and took our time leaving this morning as our drive to Long Beach, Washington today measures only about 100 miles.

Since we’ve got some time, we decided to visit Starbase Deepspace Blue Beacon Starship Wash. We need to get all the space dust removed from our thrusters, so we hope it will be worth waiting in this two-hour lineup of space freighters. We’re passing the time watching the birds in a huge eagle’s nest perched high atop a light post in the parking lot here.

We’re anxious to get a couple days of R&R at Andersens on the Ocean, our favorite Long Beach Starbase. It’s a short walk through the dunes to the ocean from the back of the park. While Frank isn’t an ocean-loving First Officer, he actually looks forward to our visits to Long Beach. It’s a pretty little town, not quaint but it’s got character, and they don’t gouge. For instance, if you want to park or drive on the beach or even park near the beach, they don’t charge their beloved tourists. This low-key ocean experience is always the height of laid-back. I can hardly wait to get sand in my shoes!

Pictures will follow later today.

Captain's Log Stardate 20-15-05-29

Thursday, 05-28 at a roadside stop on the way to Weiser, Idaho and Monroe Creek Campground

Today's destination Fairview, Oregon and tomorrow on to Long Beach, WA for a couple of days at the ocean. We're ahead of schedule, so we have time for Cheryl's Pacific Ocean "Fix!" Hooray! Captain CK

Note: Remember to view yesterday's entry to see the photographs.

These are the Voyages of the Starship Arrowstar - Stardate 2015-05-26

Captain's Log 20-15-05-28
These are the voyages of the Starship "Arrowstar."

Starship Arrowstar 3-month Mission:
Destinations:  Planet Seattle, Star Colony Norton, Ashville, North Carolina, and Galaxies as yet Unexplored.

Starcraft:
The Starship "Arrowstar," Shuttlecraft "Maxwell," Starship "Snoopy," and Shuttlecraft "Woodstock."

Starship Arrowstar Crew:
Captain CKThomas (A Human from Planet Earth)
First Officer (#1) Effjay (A Provalonian from Planet Redsauce)
Medical Officer: P-Bones (A PeaNuterian from Planet Nonuts)
Communications Officer: CC-Uhura - (A ChaHuaHua from Planet Ah - Hua - Hua)

Road-trip technology conspired against us, so here is a recap of the first three days of our Phoenix-to-Seattle-to-North Carolina adventure: 

Day One – Monday, May 25: Destination Kingman, Arizona

We struck out a day early on Memorial Day. We figured most of the holiday traffic would be later on, so we hit the road at 7:30 a.m. The Kingman KOA had a nice long pull-through for our 40-foot Starship and the 15-foot “toad” (RV-speak for towed vehicle).  An early afternoon arrival gave Frank time to tinker with enhancements to the RV (a seemingly never-ending task), and I had a chance to rearrange “stuff” (as in Cramalot Inn).

Day Two – Tuesday, May 26: Destination the Ghost Town of Pioche, Nevada

Leaving Kingman we hooked up with Rt. 93 into Nevada. Frank suffered a pancake attack about 10:30 a.m. just outside Las Vegas where he pulled over into a nice wide spot on the side of the road.  While he flipped flapjacks, I walked the dogs and discovered a sign about the history of early travelers along this route.  In this unlikely setting, I got the chance to walk a few steps on the Old Spanish Trail marked by the obelisk in the picture.

Photo: Look to the left of the marker to see the worn imprint of the path to the north on one of the busiest routes for trade in the late 1800s. Lack of water holes made this trek one of the most dangerous, but the most expedient for travel across Nevada between New Mexico and California.

Still on Rt. 93 (See Photos) Caliente-Nevada's train depot sits among sweet bungalows fronted with white picket fences. We passed through here on the way to the old mining town of Pioche and our billet for the night.

When we arrived in Pioche we immediately felt a tingle of familiarity. Once settled in the RV Park that we dubbed "Dogpatch," we launched the Shuttlecraft and cruised into the historic district of Pioche where the tingle got even stronger.  We flagged down a local cop to ask about an RV Park we remembered being located in the middle of town. Sure enough, we drove past the place and recognized the site where  the drunken owner had helped us back Ali-gator the trailer into the new fence he had just built.

Ore buckets from the glory days of the Pioche Mine still hang from cables. The ore went from the mine to the smelter in these buckets. The tumble down remains of the mine still stand.

The "Dogpatch" RV Park, tucked among huge, craggy mountains, made dreams of WiFi and cell service just that, dreams. Talk about isolated, no electrons penetrated that deep valley. A true picture of the place includes animal skulls tacked to shed walls, fish heads lying in the tall grass and a rustic bar, testifying that this camp caters to hunters and fishermen. 

Day Three – Wednesday, May 27: Destination Wells, Nevada

Last night Frank and I fell asleep to the comforting sound of rain on our fancy-dancy fiberglass roof! On the road today we reminisced about times past when we've slept in a two-person tent alongside a motorcycle in the rain. 

We pulled into a very nice rest stop (atypical for Nevada) and read about the history of the Pony Express. The pictures show the cowboy-art enclosures for the picnic tables and the large metal sculpture of the Express rider at the end of a short trail.

About 19 miles outside Wells, we’re approaching what looks to be a ferocious thunderstorm and hoping to get into Angel Lake RV Resort before it hits!

Day Four – Thursday, May 28: Destination Somewhere in Idaho

We drove through some spectacular rain yesterday, but it was short-lived. It cleared within the hour, and I spent a sunny afternoon walking the dogs, reading and fixing dinner. Frank, however, spent 3 hours on the phone with a tech guy clearing up our computer problems! 

First Officer's Entry:

Question 1:  How many times have you heard, "Never sign onto an unsecured WiFi system!"?

Question 2:  Have you ever heard the term, "Malware?"  

Well, I did the first and am now VERY familiar with the second.  That's why I spent three hours on the phone with Tech Support.  I signed on to an available WiFi "just to do a quick email check" and something grabbed the laptop and jammed a malicious bug up its ass and the computer suddenly became a venue for advertisements to stuff you wouldn't buy in a thousand years.  We had no control at all.  So, three hours and $149.99 later the junk-ware was removed and the little laptop is speaking to you even as I type this.

Lesson hard learned!