It is a good thing I do not make my living as a carpet installer. I wouldn't hire me. But, seeing as the carpet I am putting in the dungeon is used, and free, I am the guy for the job. It is some kind of berber that does not want to cut clean, and it is all nappy along the edges. Regardless, it will look reasonable, and it will serve it's purpose.

 

I have a grinder in the garage. Might be hard to chew on, though!

 

huh? should a said sub sammich?

 

I'm thinkin' it would've gone pretty good...

Not the best picture, but here ya go...

 

Way back in the early 70's I was working my butt off as a dual rated civilian helicopter pilot trying to raise a family and make a buck.
I can remember vividly....every airport had at least 1 old abandoned Beech 18 or DC 3 sitting out on the ramp where some small Air Freight Company left it when they went out of business.
Those outfits were dropping like flies in those days.
So, I come back off a flight one day and there's a notice on the board about this new start up air freight company that is looking for pilots and has a preference for ex military......Being the GENIUS that I am, I immediately sez....WTH would anyone leave a good job and go to work for a start-up operation like that???
A couple of my friends decided to take the chance........When they retired a few years ago, they were # 3 and #6 on the seniority list at Fed Ex!!!!
Meanwhile, the company I had been working for folded and that was the end of that...
So much for my vision of the future!!!!!

 

Aviation pay sucked back then except for airlines. When I got outta the Army, checked into some mechanic jobs, from Florida to Oklahoma, buck an hour was usual. Minimum wage for an aircraft mechanic? I was rude to some folks... Automotive paid better. Welding paid better yet. At least if ya lost a job in the morning back then, you could find another one in the afternoon. I quit way too many jobs back then cause I just wuddn't take **** from anyone. Learned to grin and bear it when I didn't wanna give up airline pay.

If we'd made a different decision about FedEx, mighta been werking together. FedEx folks told me they encouraged employees to work up through higher paying positions, coulda made it as a pilot, mebbe. Gave that idea up real quick with passenger airlines, back then would have been a big paycut first couple years, and I wanted to spend nights with the wife, not flight attendents. Geesh, I made all the wrong decisions...

Late 70's, I considered buying a Beech 18, but it didn't have the mandatory spar mod. Guy only wanted $5000 for it. Fortunately I realized the gas bill would be horrendous on those radials. Probably cost near $100 today just to fire one up and get the wheels off the ground. But what a cool ride that'd be today. Probably wouldn't cost more'n a couple hundred thousand to get an old one in top shape with purty paint...

 

Damn Doc that blows, I wasn't making crap at my last job so this wasn't much of leap. I have to admit though I was like "Who the hell is Baker Drivetrain?"

 

Like the man sez......Ya pays yer money, an ya takes yer chances!!

 

We don't eat grinders out here, we eat subs. Every once in a while some shop will try new lingo on the locals, but that rarely goes well. Besides, ya'll out east have funny accents!

 

Three jobs that I had when I was a younger pup all went out of business after I left. I was lucky to have seen the writing on the wall on the last one. I was there 17 years. They lasted 2 more years after I left, but I was 1/2 done with college by then.