Dave & Barb Bindewald

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

A New Dog

After Conan died, I tried to keep our household to one dog...I really did...for a whole 2 weeks.  Then I gave in and rescued a new little boy.

See Spot.















See Spot cuddle.















See Spot pose.  Smile, Spot, Smile!















See Spot walk.  Walk, Spot, walk!
















See Spot hang around.
















(By the way, Dave's parents' names were Dick and Jane!)

If you don't understand why this is funny, you're just not old enough!

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Conan the Barbarian XIV

After nine years of joy, we had to put Conan to sleep on Monday.  We rescued him when he was three years old after his owner committed suicide.  He was a purebred chihuahua, with papers and everything; that's how we know his full name of Conan the Barbarian XIV!  He loved us and strangers well, jumping up into the lap of people he didn't even know.  I would take him to the Assisted Living place in our town and he patiently let the folks there love on him and listened with me as they told their stories about their dogs they had to leave behind when they entered the home.  He loved to ride in the car, sitting in my lap as I drove, hoping we'd go through a drive through.  He loved his Mimi, my mom, and would perk up and jump around when I said "Wanna go see Mimi?"  He was a power to be reckoned with when it came to meeting other dogs on walks, having no thought at all of being height-challenged.  Conan was patient with the grandkids...almost always.  He was petrified of thunderstorms, and love for my husband grew exponentially when I saw him pick up trembling Conan and walk him around the house, holding him and talking comfortingly.  Thank You, Lord, for our Conan!









Tuesday, October 19, 2010

B-17 Comes to Columbia

Through a generous gift I was able to fly on Aluminum Overcast, a B-17G Flying Fortress. It was amazing!









 Some mementos for sale


Thankfully we didn't need this


Spark plugs for the Wright Cyclone engines



Waist gunner position


Ball turret in belly


.50 cal. ammo supply



In the bombardier's position. On the way to the target he was also a machine gunner.


Bombardier's chair


Enjoyed myself immensely



Lake Murray



Bomb bay control panel


Hydraulics for something


One of 4 bomb racks


Radio and other controls




A great experience thinking about all our brave veterans have done for us


.50 cal. waist gun mount, sight, ammo feed





The top hatch was open the whole time! We could stick out our heads and take pics. It was only a few degrees cooler than on the ground, but VERY breezy. This is a view facing rear.


Back on the ground, walking around the plane



 





Not as bad as some nose art



One of the pilots



Close-up of one of the Wright Cyclones



Side entry to the lower ball turret. The shortest smallest guys were used here. Note cramped orientation in diagram pic below.





Token artsy pic


Macro of brake line for main landing gear wheel. Simply amazing how much detail and how many exposed parts.




Here's video of the engines starting up. My camera's video isn't fast enough to catch the props spinning at higher speeds. They look like they are barely running but actually were a blur with a yellow circle at the tips.



More videos of takeoff, view out of the top hatch, walk through the bomb bay, flight deck and cockpit, and a "crawl through" to the nose bomb sight. I was very aware that these guys were in their early twenties and I am not.