Spent a big part of Saturday lifting wood (not a euphemism).

I moved about 2-1/2 tons of firewood into the basement. Oddly, my neighbor who lives on the right side of me (the industrious one) was also preparing his wood supply for winter….. (The guy on the left side of me won’t bother until winter and then likely won’t have enough, but he barely has the foresight to tuck it in before zipping up…come February he will be asking if I will give him some dry wood. Like every year, I will say “nope”). I’d have moved more, but I gotta stack what I got first to make room for the rest I have a pile 7 ft high and about 12 across to stack in the next week or so.

Anyway, the two of us each moved about 1/2 of our supply of seasoned firewood to the ready positions. We will be warm and happy when winter comes. Plus we each got a fair bit of exercise.

At least one person who reads and comment here might be able to benefit from the advice my grandfather (Dad’s Dad) gave to me about 50 years ago:

“Don’t let your mashed potatoes get cold while yer complaining that the other guy got more gravy”

It was good advice when I was a young lad, and it is still good advice today.

Just sayin’.

So I had contacted Penn Yan Aero for a quote for a rebuilt engine when getting other quotes. Got this reply a bit before noon today:

Thank you for contacting Penn Yan Aero for your engine needs. Unfortunately due to a lack of parts and cylinder availability lead times are currently longer than 1 year making price quoting impossible at this time.
Thank you

Sal Sciallo
Engine Sales
Penn Yan Aero
2499 Bath Rd.
Penn Yan, NY 14527
Phone:315-536-2333 ext 7235
Fax:315-536-2335

So the parts issue is everywhere, even amongst the (arguably) best airplane engine service folks in the world.

Thanks, everyone, for your suggestion, but I had already contacted them. Either way they can’t help me in a timeframe that I can accept, so I am looking for other avenues.

Seems that Brandon and his people have broken nearly everything in this country, doesn’t it?

When a wild animal approaches,,. be wary.

Woman attacked by rabid fox. 

Notice she didn’t want to hurt it until she had no choice. Then she got serious.

If a wild animal approaches a human there is a reason. Probably not to make friends.

So it is annual time for the 340A. Most of the inspection has gone well no (so far) issues with the airframe or controls or wiring…..

But:

The engine inspection was bad. Very, Very Bad. I expected a bad cylinder, possibly two. I was not disappointed. But when we pulled the first cylinder and inspected the innards of the engine we found a badly worn camshaft. The oil analysis had told us at the last oil change that there was something wearing badly, and it was correct (surprisingly so). The camshaft had worn beyond the surface hardening, and is pretty badly worn. Engine failure will be very soon.

The worst part? At LEAST 120 days for a repair of the engine. Ram Engines (the folks who made this engine (Continental TSIO-520NB) is backed up for AT LEAST 6 months, more like 8 (according to them). A local (very good) engine shop is sure that they can do it in approximately 120 days.

2 years ago the wait time was 15-30 days.  Now it is much greater. “Supply Chain Disruptions” is all that they will say as a reason.

But I won’t have the plane for at least 4 months. 4 MONTHS.

But at least it will give me time to work on my Commercial rating.

I don’t wanna know what this is gonna cost me though.

As long as they make sure that all the energy used to power these electric vehicles either comes from Wind or Solar (or other “Renewables”) and is produced ONLY in the state of California.

California to ban the sale of Internal Combustion Vehicles by 2035

No imported power, especially not power from other states that is produced by coal or natural gas, or anything that is burned. It all must be Carbon Free.

Otherwise, it is hypocritical and a lie. Burning carbon somewhere else rather than in that state is just leaving the “pollution” to someone else to deal with. And if you allow those cars to use “dirty” power to charge, then you aren’t meeting the stated goal of “zero-polluting cars and light-duty trucks” and “leave(ing) this planet better for future generations”.

Possibly with tar and feathers.

Perhaps horsewhipped as well.

Uvalde police chief Pete Arrendondo is fired.by unanimous vote.

This should happen to very police officer who was there and did nothing. Every Single One.

No one is paying off your home loan, nor your car loan, nor (if you have one) your Small Business loan…Or any other loans you may have chosen to assume.

But you are gonna pay off $20K of some young student’s loan….to the tune of about $2K per (taxpaying) citizen.

Where does Joe get off thinking that it is OK to take your and my money and give it to some student who freely chose to go into debt? Who was, supposedly, an adult, able to make decisions.

How is this fair to those people who found professions without student debt? Those military folks who served (and learned a trade while doing so)? Those of us who paid off OUR student loans? Those who never went to college and who work had for what they got?

I wonder if the “forgiveness” is even legal, really. Has anyone analyzed this?

That flooding from hard rains is not “Flash Flooding:. Places like Dallas don’t have enough elevation changes to allow for Flash Flooding. Not Chicago, either. They can get floods, and even fairly fast moving water, but Flash Flooding is a phenomenon that happens in mountains, or at least places with several hundred feet of elevation changes.

Just ’cause streams overflow and poorly drained areas fill with water, does not a Flash Flood make.

Hint for those folks whose cars were caught in flooded areas:…..pay some attention. Those areas did not fill in just minutes. Nor did the overpasses. Be smart, don’t drive into moving water that is higher than the bottom of your vehicle. Best not to drive into moving water at all, or any water that is higher than 1/3 the way up your tires, even if it is still water. Turning around (or backing up) is generally the best option.

Media: Floods are not :”Flash Floods” even if you think that it makes things sound more dramatic.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is at a 35 year low, as Joe Biden continues to sell oil that was purchased cheaply years ago to help keep prices low (they really aren’t)  in a bit to help the MidTerm elections of Democrats….Of course, in the process, weakening the country should war break out. The SPR isn’t meant for keeping oil cheap, but as a strategic reserve should things get spicy in oil producing regions or other times when oil production is curtailed due to war or other military action.

(Of course, we now know that a significant amount of that SPR oil was sold through one of the companies connected to Hunter Biden…I wonder if the “Big Guy” got his 10% cut?)

Realize that the oil that was sold now has to be replaced…and with oil at high prices, that is gonna cost you and me and every other taxpayer just to return to the previous level….But hey, whatever we gotta do to help Joe and the DNC folks, AmIRite?