Flying USA – August 2019

GEAR UP FLYING Opinion

60 | AUGUST 2019 FLYINGMAG.COM

NEW CARPET

HOUSE RENOVATION LEADS TO REMINISCENCES

By Dick Karl

W

e’ve got new carpet around

here. After 20 years, it must

have been time to refresh the place.

Though, to tell you the truth, the

old carpet looked fine to me. This

exercise meant removing everything

from shelves and surfaces in the

room I call my study—a misnomer

for certain, as no studying ever takes

place within its confines.

When the new carpet was installed,

I had to admit it looked better. This

may be why men frustrate women.

Restocking the bookshelves in a

more organized fashion than the pre-

vious 20 years of randomness allowed

for a sentimental review of several

airplanes. I was in love with each of

them in sequence, and they each came

with training manuals and handwrit-

ten notes in big binders. Now they are

arranged chronologically—or by max-

imum takeoff weight, whichever mea-

sure you prefer. Like an archaeological

dig, each airplane was more complex

and heavier than its predecessor.

The skinniest binder is for the

Cessna P210 I bought in 1982. Until

then, a new-to-me ( but used) air-

plane acquisition involved little more

The historical traces of a pilot’s

evolution.