Golden Age of the Pharoahs 11 Apr 2009 | 20:25 This afternoon, herwonderulday and I went to the Dallas Museum of Art to see the King Tut exhibit. It had been here since October and it leaves next month and dammit, we weren't going to let it slip away without a look! The exhibit was amazing, full of precious artifacts and treasures uncovered within pyramids and tombs in Egypt. Although King Tut was not there himself, many of his dear items were including chairs and jewelry, and even parts of his canopic jars were on display. Many of the items you could walk around 360 degrees, and see the back side to them. It was so beautiful, and it was incredible how well they were made and preserved to be on display over 3000 years later! At the end, they of course lead you through the gift shop. In the "as is" section, something caught my eye. It was a wooden fish, with his bottom fin broken off, part of his tail chipped, and his paint job made no sense whatsoever. But something made me pick it up, and I knew I had to have this fish. It had a wonderful, warm energy to it, and my $10 purchase was on my mind the entire car ride home. I couldn't wait to bring it out again, hold it, close my eyes and focus on it. And tonight I cannot wait to meditate on it. It may sound completely strange, but I love that fish. It called my name. Now that I'm out of that relationship, I want to once again focus on my spiritual side. And I'm thinking this fish might be my inspiration to meditate once again. 1 departure ready for takeoff.

FedEx @ NRT 23 Mar 2009 | 10:18 Photo of the FedEx plane that crashed at Narita yesterday. Both pilots died. Here's a clip that shows the footage captured of the plane bouncing twice then rolling over... 1 departure ready for takeoff.

Turkish Airlines crash updates... 04 Mar 2009 | 17:08 Some facts have emerged about the most recent crash in Amsterdam... --- Dutch safety investors are saying that a faulty altimeter helped cause last week crash of a Turkish Airlines flight approaching Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam. The investigators said one of the altimeters indicated that the airplane was eight feet below ground level even though it was still nearly 2,000 feet above ground. The autopilot reacted by slowing the airplane to the point that it simply dropped from the sky, with pilots acting too late to spool the engines up. The Financial Times quoted Pieter van Vollenhoven, chairman of the safety board as saying: "This sudden change in altitude had a direct effect on the automatic throttle which controls engine power during the descent. The aircraft reacted as if it was at a height of just a few metres above the runway by fully cutting engine power." Reported The Times of London: According to conversation recorded between the plane's captain, first officer and an extra first officer on the flight, the pilots noticed the faulty altimeter earlier but did not consider it a problem and did not react, the chief accident investigator said. The first officer, was at the controls for the landing, watched from behind by an instructing third pilot. With power almost non-existent, the automatic pilot attempted to keep the aircraft on the profile of the glide-slope and may have started "flaring", or pulling the nose up for landing. The plane then slowed to the edge of stalling speed while still relatively far from the ground. The emergency warning systems came into action, sounding an aural warning and shaking the control columns to alert the pilots to the impending stall. They applied maximum power, but since it takes seconds for jet engines to react to power commands and make an airliner to accelerate, it was too late for the Boeing 737 to regain flying speed and recover from the stall. The plane hit the ground with engines under full power, struggling to climb back into the air. Investigators are suggesting that Boeing rewrite its manuals to preclude use of autopilot or autothrottle if there are questions about the radio altimeters, the Financial Times said. --- So, a faulty altimeter, which the crew about, was the initial cause. The crew not reacting quickly enough to the faulty altimeter was the ultimate cause. But, I knew it! I knew Boeing would be targeted during this investigation! I think I'm ready for the NTSB now :) 3 departures ready for takeoff.

Baby Boeing takes a hit... 25 Feb 2009 | 09:39 If I were Boeing right now, I'd be thinking "holy shit" while the investigation for what caused the Turkish B737-800 to crash 3km from the runway at Amsterdam's Schiphol gets underway. Being the world's most popular aircraft ever built, a design flaw would mean the grounding of the entire B737-800/next generation fleet. Which would in turn cripple the entire world's airline fleets, as 1 of every 4 planes is a B737. 6 departures ready for takeoff.

The trouble with props and icing conditions, from Eagle's experience... 18 Feb 2009 | 23:09 This recent Continental operated by Colgan Air Dash-8 crash in Buffalo, NY raises more questions about the safety of propeller aircraft in icing conditions. From what they are saying about Continental's crash, I gather that ice built up and it wasn't until the autopilot was disengaged that the aircraft began a pitch up to 31 deg, pitch down 45 deg, roll to the left, and the flipped over during its roll to the right of 105 deg. Then it was 5 seconds of an 800 foot plunge until they met the ground. 50 people lost forever. It is incredibly tragic. And once again, ice and props are brought to the FAA's attention. Personally, working for an airline that still flies propeller aircraft (and at one point was only prop planes), there are a few very strong reasons why Eagle no longer flies prop planes in icing conditions... We lost 68 souls... On Halloween 1994, Flight 4184, an American Eagle commuter plane, enroute from Indianapolis to Chicago, crashed in a Newton County, Ind., field during a rainstorm, killing all 68 people onboard. The devastating crash left debris and body parts strewn over a wide area. It was determined that a ridge of ice had built up on the wings of the plane while it was in a holding pattern waiting to land in Chicago. Once ORD ATC cleared the aircraft to start its approach, autopilot was disengaged, but ice buildup caused the plane to bank to the right and roll over. Nearly two years after the crash, an NTSB report completely absolved the flight crew, blaming ATR, the French builder of the turboprop ATR-72, and French aviation authorities. The FAA also received some of the blame for its lack of coordination with the French. The French disputed the findings, laying the brunt of the blame on the flight crew. Following the crash, the FAA began prohibiting ATR aircraft from flying in icing conditions. As a result, Eagle relocated all its ATRs to its DFW and SJU operations. This is the worst crash in Eagle's history. We had a close call... On January 2, 2006, a Saab operated by American Eagle Airlines as flight 3008, encountered icing conditions during the en route climb over Santa Maria, California. As the airplane climbed through 11,000 feet the captain noted light rime ice accumulating on the windshield wiper blades and about an 1/2-inch-wide area of ice on the left wing. The captain reported that as he began to reach up to activate the manual deice boot system the airplane vibrated. The crew reported that the airplane encountered ice and the windscreen immediately turned white. The clacker and stick-shaker activated and the captain took control of the airplane. The autopilot disengaged and the airplane began to bank to the left in a nose low attitude. The airplane began a rapid decent and the captain recovered at an altitude of about 6,500 feet. Nothing to do with icing, but the passengers on board this plane witnessed the following... On April 4, 1993, the crew for a prop plane had an electrical fault indication as they started the left engine for a night departure. They shut down the left engine to board a maintenance troubleshooter. The mechanic identified a failed part and obtained its replacement. The failure extinguished the airplane's external lights and prevented its accepting external electrical power. A baggage handler from another airline arrived behind the airplane with bags for the flight. The crew prepared to shut down the right engine to accomplish the part replacement and signaled the marshaller to apply external power to maintain light in the passenger cabin. The marshaller was at the external power receptacle on the front right fuselage when the handler walked forward along the right and into the turning propeller and was killed. The baggage handler was on her second day in that capacity and on night shift. She had been an aircraft cleaner on dayshift for an operator who fleet was all jet. The job change entailed to classroom or practical training. ready for takeoff.

Carma 16 Feb 2009 | 22:12 So last night, I locked my keys in my car WHILE IT WAS RUNNING at Starbucks. How this happened, I have no idea. I must have brushed something on the door when I closed it to say goodbye to a friend who had brought me back to my car after an afternoon out. Realizing that my only option was to get back into my house and get my spare keys, I had to find someone available who I could get my house key from. From the time I started calling, it took 17 minutes to finally get a hold of somebody. Melissa, Brian my neighbor, and Bryan my boy were all unavailable! At any rate, I got my house key, and therefore I got my spare car key, made it back to my locked running car, and headed home. But! As if that one hour key detour wasn't enough! I got PULLED OVER three blocks from my house because my license plate lights were out. I got away with a warning, but the cop picked up on my strange attitude... and asked me why I was in such a good mood, to which I told him the abridged story of my idiocy. Obviously I upset the car gods or did something to deserve the double hit. ready for takeoff.

I'm not sure we can make any runway... 06 Feb 2009 | 01:15 The FAA has released the recordings of the ATC tapes for the morning that the US Airways flight (call sign Cactus) landed in the Hudson a few weeks ago. After the crew tells NYC ATC they are unable to return to LaGuardia, they asked to go to Teterboro, NJ. The calm in Captain Sullenberger's voice is eery... ATC: Cactus 1529, turn right 280, you can land runway one at Teterboro. Cactus: We can't do it. ATC: OK which runway would you like at Teterboro? Cactus: We're gonna be in the Hudson. ATC: Say that again Cactus. And that was it! Listen to it yourself here - FAA recording. It's long, but the meat is in the middle, really. ready for takeoff.

Five years with Blogging on Jan 30th (also five years of Zoë) 30 Jan 2009 | 08:38 herwonderfulday posted an older entry from her LJ. In the comments, another LJ user stated that they like to go back to the same day years ago to see what they doing/thinking/concerned about. So, I went back to January 30th in all the years that my LJ has been in existence and I thought I'd sum them below... Jan 30, 2004 Location: Montreal I blogged about buying all my cat supplies pre-adoption. And on Jan 31, 2004, I adopted Zoë into my life. Happy five years, my sweet lil Zobos! Jan 30, 2005 Location: Montreal I blogged about a very social time in my Montreal life. I went to a dinner party, I went ice skating in Vieux Port, and I attended a pirate/terrorist themed party in the Plateau, talking drunkenly in Arabic. I assume this was in the span of the past few days. Jan 30, 2006 Location: Montreal I was struggling with anxiety during this time. I blogged about finding a psychiatrist. I was also about to break up with my ex (Sri) for the first time and I posted some lyrics to reference the problems I was having with him/myself. The relationship would finally end in early April (and in hindsight, thank god it did!). Jan 30, 2007 Location: Nashville I blogged about how my pre-employment background check for American Eagle Airlines had a hiccup in it (due to McGill/Montreal, by the way). Knowing this, I also know that my Opa (grandfather) had passed away just a few days before. And I would find out on Feb 14 that I had been hired, with a seniority date of Feb 15! Jan 30, 2008 Location: Dallas I wrote about feeling bad and calling out sick from work at Love Field. I also discussed frustrations at work with some difficult coworkers. Man, I really hated working there. DFW is a much better airport! 2 departures ready for takeoff.

Obama - bringin it! 27 Jan 2009 | 17:48 This is why I love President Obama... According to a report from ABC News, President Obama is not taking kindly to corporate greed, especially when it's funded by taxpayer money. Read more from ABC here: The high-flying execs at Citigroup caved under pressure from President Obama and decided today to abandon plans for a luxurious new $50 million corporate jet from France... ABC News has learned that Monday officials of the Obama administration called Citigroup about the company's new $50 million corporate jet and told execs to "fix it." On Monday, the news broke that bailed out bank was going through with its $50 million private jet purchase even though it had recieved $45 billion in government funds: The New York Post's Jennifer Keil and Chuck Bennett reported in Monday's paper that Citigroup, which has received $45 billion in government bailout funds, is about to upgrade to a new $50 million, twelve-seat corporate jet. The plane, the Dassault Falcon 7X, is a luxurious jet with a range of 5,950 nautical miles (meaning it can fly from New York to all of Europe and South America, as far east as Riyadh, and as far west as Honolulu or Petropavlovsk, Russia). The Post reports it has "plush interior with leather seats, sofas and a customizable entertainment center." That's my President! That's what I'm talking about! REPRESENT OBAMA!!! 8 departures ready for takeoff.

update 26 Jan 2009 | 12:28 So... an update. What? I spend the majority of my time at work. There is always overtime to pick up. In fact, I have a total of over 100 OT hours for the past six weeks. The paychecks have been looking good. My stressed level has been too high for my liking. This is why I've decided to take next week off for vacation. Bryan and I will be spending a week in Orlando. Not really my favorite place to go (Florida in general isn't my fav). But, it's not where I am, but who I'm with that'll make the difference. We lucked out and got a week using his parents' timeshare - so we will have a nice place to stay in at a fantastic price. Had a doctor's appointment today. I got placed on a different asthma medicine because he believes that instead of asthma, I have acid reflux disease. So I got a trial month's worth of pills to see if it helps with the phlegm issue. I hope it does - because my breathing test came back completely normal but I still feel like I'm having problems breathing because of all the stuff I can't cough up at the bottom of my throat. Well, off to work. I'll end this with one final thought. I am so overjoyed that Obama is now president. He has done more good in less than one week than Bush did in eight years. Finally, a president that our country came be proud of. A president that the rest of the world can look up to, and envy :D :D :D I love the Clintons, but Obama will be a much better president than Bill and he'll be a much better president than Hillary would have been. BOLD statement, I KNOW! ready for takeoff.

New era in American history 21 Jan 2009 | 09:12 Yesterday, I took Bryan to Nashville with me so we could watch Obama's Inauguration speech with my mom. Soon after we arrived in Tennessee and at the house, the VIPs were arriving at the scene, so it wasn't long afterward that Obama had his hand placed upon Abraham Lincoln's Bible, taking his oath as President. I knew his speech would be great, but I was still impressed and amazed. And I do believe in his words, I take him to be completely authentic and genuine. I know from the emotion in his voice that he is going to fight to take our country back. His speech was cohesive and well rounded. He touched on the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, WWI and WWII, Vietnam, 9/11 - some in overt ways, others subtle. He truly is the man to lead this country into a period of great peace and prosperity, showing the world that a super power can coexist in a respectful manner - even with countries the Bush administration stomped on and bullied. I am incredibly excited to see what President Obama will do. President Obama! It has finally happened!!! 2 departures ready for takeoff.

TRIBUTE 17 Jan 2009 | 12:51 To the Hero of the Hudson, I salute you! Captain Chesley Sullenberger, 29 years with US Airways, walked the plane twice after everybody else was off and tried to verify that there was nobody else onboard. His decision to ditch in the Hudson saved the lives of everybody onboard, and potentially those on the ground, too. 3 departures ready for takeoff.

ice ice, baby 05 Jan 2009 | 17:27 Dallas 01/05/09 2 departures ready for takeoff.

haven't been posting... 04 Jan 2009 | 12:16 Busy busy I am! Happy happy I am! Maybe I'll update later! ready for takeoff.

Macy's Day Parade Rick Rolled 27 Nov 2008 | 21:56 OMG my fav parade moment EVAR: 3 departures ready for takeoff.

Transformational Dream 25 Nov 2008 | 12:09 I dreamt last night that my sister passed away. But in my dream, I was not sad, for after her physical passing, she was always with us, in a spirit form, completely viewable but only to my family and I. I was planning my speech the night before her funeral, and that night, I died in my sleep. But the next day I was not dead, but not alive (nor zombie!). In my dream, I knew that there was a gap between when I physically died and when my spirit would be taken by God/Universe. I thought it would only be a day or two. Meanwhile, my sister was always hanging around, helping my mom out by hiding the best items at the store the night before so my mom could find them the next day. But for me, days went by and all I wanted was for God to finally separate me from my physical self so I could only be spiritual. I was not scared... I had completely accepted the cycle of life and I wanted to experience it all. I was ready. --- I think the dream, for my story in it, marks a transformational period in my life. I have really begun to dig deeper into my spiritual side through my own means and I believe that I am coming into a period of realization of the spiritual truth and how I fit into the Universe. All in all, it was a fantastic dream. 9 departures ready for takeoff.

VIVA! 20 Nov 2008 | 00:50 Viva la Vida (or Death and All His Friends) 2008 Coldplay Tour American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX, November 19, 2008 Just an interesting note: During the end of one song, Chris Martin played a little piano piece that I immediately recognized. Though I could not determine the artist then and there, I knew I had the track on my computer. So I took a video of him playing so that I knew I could make an accurate identification upon my return home. Come to find out, it's from a Lebanese violinist named Claude Chalhoub and his track is called Gnossienne. Thinking back to the crowd, I'm probably the only one there that knew that piece. Unless of course Claude Chalhoub took it from another source. I'll post a video with comparison to the song in the next few days. But, back to the meat of the concert. ( See 14 more photos below the cut... ) 1 departure ready for takeoff.

remapped 16 Nov 2008 | 10:07 According to a new study at UCLA, surfing the internet is one of the most complex exercises that your brain can engage in. In fact, those of us who have prior experience with the internet have higher activity in multiple areas of the brain at one time than those that do not surf the web. So... this study proves that our brains have become rewired by the internet so that we can engage more regions of our brains simultaneously. So, surf away! Your brain is getting a great work out! 1 departure ready for takeoff.

matching set 05 Nov 2008 | 23:04 I made an Obama icon. Then it inspired me to make a wallpaper. Below is my desktop's screenshot. I might make a few more in the same style. 2 departures ready for takeoff.