Chazd's (Charles Dowdell's) News Burps

Angie and I are back from Hawaii. We took the plane up twice. I am checked out for the 172 for another year in Hawaii if you want me to fly us around the islands. It was spectacular. We flew commercial to Maui (OGG) from HNL and then in the 172 to Molokai, Lanai, and around. In between we got a lot of good images of Molokini and a bunch of other small islands without landing strips. We swam, snorkeled, and played in the surf. We drove the Hana Highway and flew the equivalent. We took almost 4000 photos. We both learned (from our very different perspectives) more about and appreciated the legitimacy of Hawaiian and Polynesian culture. Here is some raw footage as well. I am sure I will have things edited a bit in the future.

Mele Kalikimaka! We are not missing a white Christmas. The white and black sands are a decent substitute. I got a chance to wear my green pants. Christmas music

Angie and I are back from New Orleans. We had a good time. I needed to spend some Delta Airline Dollars by the end of the year and ensure I met the threshold for their loyalty program in miles. It appears I have purchased a new plane, a 1/4 share in it anyway. It's a beauty. It's all pretty exciting.

Angie and I went to see the Atlanta Premiere of "Antarctica --A year on Ice" At this point, I have only seen the movie once. I will need to see it multiple times. It was not disappointing. It was very familiar, of course. Anthony Powell did a nice job of getting some of the right people in the film rather than the usual camera frame grabbers that appear in Antarctica documentaries. I was pleased to see my best friend from the ice (Dave Voorhees) in several shots including on the summit of Mt Terror. We have been discussing the film via email. I also worked with "Josh" the mechanic. He has the ITASE patch on his shoulder in one shot. I have one of those patches as well for my part regarding the International Trans-Antarctica Scientific Expedition. Most of the other folks in the film I was familiar with as well. Anthony did a great job showing what life is like, and of course, I would have had my slant on things. For example, I would have expanded on the "rebirt...

I refinished the chandelier. I first refinished and rewired this chandelier when I was 14 or 15 years old. It was originally a gas chandelier, perhaps 100 years old. This time I left more patina and I didn't lacquer it this time. Grace the cat is growing fast and being a kitten. She is well behaved for a kitten, although not as well behaved as I would like. We have travel plans for New Orleans and Hawaii. I figured out if I want to get to all the US states I have to go to Hawaii. It is time for that one to come off the list. I have a plane already booked for rental in Hawaii. Flying between the islands has been a dream for quite some time. We had a nice Thanksgiving. We cooked a traditional bird. We used a roaster pan from the 1950s (I think). It occurred to me that the 11 pound turkey was just right for the pan. Turkeys have gotten a lot larger in the last 50 years! Most of what was sold in the store today wouldn't come close to fitting in that roaster. You can probably tell w...

Anthony Powell's movie from Antarctica premieres on the big screens today in many US cities. It is debuting in Atlanta on Dec 12th. We will go see it, of course. Anthony is/was a colleague of mine on the Ice. We shared the same job. We did not work together in the same shop at the same time, but the same job different times. The movie trailer hit some nerves to be sure. It will all be very familiar to me. I will be able to name the mountains in the film, know what it is like to ride in all of those specific helos, and know the warmth of Big Red (the issued red parka) Movie Website The Youtube original short Youtube short

We had a nice relaxing weekend even though it was a bit rainy and cold. I was in Columbus Ohio for a day or so. I drove by the restaurant I worked at many many years ago. The building is now a Pawn Shop. Being there in winter reminded me what it was like, cold. One of the neighbors houses burned the other day. The news said the resident barely escaped. I snapped the pic of the truck tires at a traffic light. I dont think the driver knew he had a flat even though he was carrying 6 large rooftop HVAC units. I didn't have the opportunity to warn him.

Angie and I flew down to Florida for the day last Saturday. Visited with my Sister and Mom. We had the opportunity to visit the Galeon, San Pelayo from Spain. Much like visiting a cool rare plane. It is an artifact of travel! There is much going on as always. Angie and I also met with Jay Hakes an expert energy/information expert. I read his most recent book coming back from Europe last week. He is a refreshing voice saying that good policy requires thought. Also, we took a stand-up comedy class. We learned and laughed at the same time! We lit our first fire in the fireplace this week in Duluth. Nevertheless, the first fire of the year in Duluth is a lot different than that first fire in Berkshire. Plans for Ohio currently.

We have a new kitty named Grace. Current animal count, 1 kitten.

I am back from Bavaria. The pretzels (and other food) are good to be sure! I contested my real estate tax increase for the house in Duluth and I got an overall reduction. It pays to engage on these matters.