Dumping Ground for Random Thoughts

Today is my “little” girl’s birthday. We had a special father-daughter moment this morning. As I usually do, I went in and kissed her goodbye. This morning I did something different. After kissing her, I softly sang Happy Birthday to her. She slowly woke up, rolled over and gave her “Dattie” a hug.

1…2…3…Aaaaawwwwwww!!!!

I know, she has me wrapped right around her little finger and I LOVE IT!!

A son asked his father, ‘Dad, will you take part in a marathon with me?’

The father who, despite having a heart condition, says ‘Yes’.

They went on to complete the marathon together.

Father and son went on to join other marathons, the father always saying ‘Yes’ to his son’s request of going through the race together.

One day, the son asked his father, ‘Dad, let’s join the Ironman together.’

To which, his father said ‘Yes’.

For those who don’t know, Ironman is the toughest triathlon ever. The race encompasses three endurance events of a 2.4 mile (3.86 kilometer) ocean swim, followed by a 112 mile (180 .2 kilometer) bike ride, and ending with a 26.2 mile (42.195 kilometer) marathon along the coast of the Big Island.

Father and son went on to complete the race together.

I was doing my daily Bible reading today and came across some verses that I just had to read again:

35. ‘Vengeance is Mine, and retribution, In due time their foot will slip ; For the day of their calamity is near, And the impending things are hastening upon them.’
36. “For the LORD will vindicate His people, And will have compassion on His servants, When He sees that their strength is gone, And there is none remaining, bond or free.
37. “And He will say, ‘Where are their gods, The rock in which they sought refuge ?
38. ‘Who ate the fat of their sacrifices, And drank the wine of their drink offering ? Let them rise up and help you, Let them be your hiding place !
39. ‘See now that I, I am He, And there is no god besides Me; It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded and it is I who heal, And there is no one who can deliver from My hand.
40. ‘Indeed, I lift up My hand to heaven, And say, as I live forever,
41. If I sharpen My flashing sword, And My hand takes hold on justice, I will render vengeance on My adversaries, And I will repay those who hate Me.
42. ‘I will make My arrows drunk with blood, And My sword will devour flesh, With the blood of the slain and the captives, From the long-haired leaders of the enemy.’
43. “Rejoice, O nations, with His people ; For He will avenge the blood of His servants, And will render vengeance on His adversaries, And will atone for His land and His people.”

– Deuteronomy 32: 35-43 (NASB)

A FATHER IS A SOURCE OF STRENGTH

A father is a source of strength,
A teacher and a guide,
The one his family looks up to
With loving trust and pride…
A father is a helper
With a willing hand to lend,
A partner, an adviser,
And the finest kind of friend

A FATHER…

A father is respected because
He gives his children leadership…
Appreciated because
He gives his children care…
Valued because
He gives his children time…
Loved because
He gives his children the one thing
They treasure most, himself.

The righteous man walks in his integrity;
His children are blessed after him.
–PROVERBS 20:7

Remember it takes a college degree to fly a plane, but only a high school diploma to fix one; a reassurance for those of us who fly routinely in our jobs.

After every flight, UPS pilots fill out a form, called a ‘gripe sheet,’ which tells mechanics about problems with the aircraft. The mechanics correct the problems, document their repairs on the form, and then pilots review the gripe sheets before the next flight.

Never let it be said that ground crews lack a sense of humor. Here are some actual maintenance complaints submitted by UPS’ pilots (marked with a P) and the solutions recorded (marked with an S) by maintenance engineers.

By the way, UPS is the only major airline that has never, ever, had an accident.

—————————————————————

P: Left inside main tire! almost needs replacement.
S: Almost replaced left inside main tire.

P: Test flight OK, except auto-land very rough.
S: Auto-land not installed on this aircraft.

P: Something loose in cockpit.
S: Something tightened in cockpit.

P: Dead bugs on windshield.
S: Live bugs on back-order.

P : Autopilot in altitude-hold mode produces a 200 feet per minute descent.
S: Cannot reproduce problem on ground.

P: Evidence of leak on right main landing gear.
S: Evidence removed.

P: DME volume unbelievably loud.
S: DME volume set to more believable level.

P: Friction locks cause throttle levers to stick.
S: That’s what friction locks are for.

P: IFF inoperative in OFF mode.
S: IFF always inoperative in OFF mode.

P: Suspected crack in windshield.
S: Suspect you’re right.

P: Number 3 engine missing.
S: Engine found on right wing after brief search.

P: Aircraft handles funny.
S: Aircraft warned to straighten up, fly right, and be serious.

P: Target radar hums.
S: Reprogrammed target radar with lyrics.

P: Mouse in cockpit.
S: Cat installed.

And the best one for last…

P: Noise coming from under instrument panel. Sounds like a midget pounding on something with a hammer.
S: Took hammer away from midget.