Author Archives: Maria Langer

Flight to Pateros

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With a landing beside the motel.

I relocated to Pateros, WA today. I’d been based in Quincy, WA for about three weeks when my contracts ended. My second batch of contracts had been pushed back a week, leaving me with 2 weeks with nothing to do. But I soon found another contract — this one 50 miles (as the helicopter flies) north at Brewster. Because the motel at Brewster was supposed to be pretty bad, they set me up at the Lake Pateros Motor Inn, right on the Columbia River, between Brewster and Lake Chelan.

I flew up to Chelan to meet with my dispatcher. He’s the guy who will call me and send me to the various orchards that need drying. I used my POV.1 camera to capture the highlights (such as they were) of my flight from Quincy Airport to Chelan Airport. You can view it here:

After filling up with fuel and killing time reading about the 100 Things to Do in Chelan, my contact, Dan, drove up. After a quick chat, he told me I should move my helicopter over to an area away from the pumps. That, of course, required that I start up the helicopter and fly it over. It was about 200 yards away, in a grassy area on the other side of a bunch of hangars. I suspect that Dan just wanted to check out my hovering abilities because there really wasn’t any reason for me to move. But I moved and made a nice smooth landing on the grass.

I got into his truck and he went over the paperwork with me. There was a lot of it, but not more than I can handle. Then he drew a map to show me where the motel in Pateros was and where I should land the helicopter beside it. We talked about where the orchards were. He said he’d send Mark, another pilot, out to fly with me this afternoon to show me the orchards. And that was it.

Well, he did tell me a funny story about what his one-year-old puppy did one afternoon when he left her home alone, but I’d better not repeat it here. Let’s just say it involved dirty laundry, a doggie pool, and the UPS lady.

I climbed back into my helicopter as Dan drove away. I fired it up and turned on the camera. I then proceeded to record the video embedded below. This video features a landing on the grassy spot to the east of the hotel, right along the river.

I have to say that I’m getting better at recording these things. Although I don’t like the mount I used for these flights — I call it the “wiggle-stick” because of the way it vibrates in flight — I am getting better at narrating what’s going on. I hope some of the people who visit the blog find them interesting. If you do, please use the Comment link or form to let me know so I keep delivering them.

Creamed Spinach

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My way.

SpinachMike and I love creamed spinach. Although we can buy it frozen in a microwaveable bag, we both prefer it fresh. Here’s my microwave-friendly recipe.

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tablespoons Butter (or margarine)
  • 1/4 cup chopped onions or scallions
  • 12 ounces fresh or frozen spinach (fresh is better, of course), prepared for cooking. When using fresh spinach, I usually use the bagged spinach. (I can’t be bothered washing, cutting, etc.)
  • 2 Tablespoons flour
  • 1 cup milk (skim is okay)
  • salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Instructions:

  1. In a saucepan or microwave-safe, covered bowl, melt the butter.
  2. Add the onions or scallions and saute until done, stirring occasionally.
  3. Meanwhile, lightly cook the spinach. I use the microwave, without added water, but you could steam it if you prefer. If you added water, drain when done. Keep warm.
  4. Sprinkle the flour in the butter/onion mixture and stir in. Cook for about two minutes.
  5. Add the milk slowly, stirring and cooking until thickened.
  6. Add the cooked spinach and blend well.
  7. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  8. Serve hot.

If you use a microwave to prepare the sauce, cover until the flour has been added to prevent splattering. Zap the mixture for one minute at a time, stirring after each minute.

This recipe can be multiplied.

Shopping from my Desktop

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Today’s Amazon.com order.

From living in Wickenburg, I’m extremely accustomed to online shopping. In fact, other than groceries and minor household/hardware items and, of course, feed for the horses, I buy just about everything online.

Product ImageToday, I started work on a book that I don’t think I’m supposed to talk about yet. And in using my MacBook Pro, I realized that I really miss my Mighty Mouse. So I ordered one. It’ll be here by the time I get back from my Brewster gig. I ordered a wired one because I really hate the wireless version of this mouse. (I have one at home and purposely didn’t bring it.)

By the way, I wrote extensively about the Mighty Mouse here.

Product ImageProduct ImageI also ordered two birdwatching books. Birds of Washington, which I borrowed from the local library, impressed me so much with its photos that I bought the Arizona version, too. I don’t know if this author has done all the states, but if you’re a birdwatcher and prefer photos over drawings, this might be the book for you. See if its available for your state.

What’s nice is that even though I’m away from home, I can still get my mail here. General Delivery is a wonderful thing.

Unemployment Lasts Just Two Days

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My contract ends and I get another.

My first round of cherry drying contracts went…well, I guess it went well. They were two-week contracts. It rained only two days, but not enough to launch me. So I spent 12 out of 14 days just hanging around and exploring the area. I only spent 2 days prepping the helicopter and remaining on “active” standby. Still, I collected standby pay for all 14 days.

I feel only a little bit guilty for collecting money without doing any real work. After all, because I was required to be in the area with the helicopter, I couldn’t do any other paying work with it. So the compensation is partially for possible work lost. The rest is to cover my expenses, some of which are quite substantial — think insurance and travel costs and that damn fuel tank and the helmet I have yet to wear while flying.

But the first round of contracts ended at sundown on Monday. And my next round of contracts wasn’t due to begin until July 8. That meant I had two full weeks with no potential income and a lot of time on my hands.

It was like being unemployed.

I made a few phone calls yesterday and today. I got a few back. And one of them was an offer for a new contract that would run from June 26 (Thursday) through July 7. A fill-in contract. I jumped on it. So I’d enjoy my unemployment for a total of two days.

The new contract is up in Brewster, WA. That’s about 100 road miles from here but only 50 nautical air miles from here. I can get there in 30 minutes by helicopter, according to Duats flight planning.

Sectional Chart around Brewster, WA

But I’m not moving my camper from Quincy. After all, I have to return for that July 8 contract. My camper is all settled in and the campsite and Internet are paid for. The campground’s full hookup sites are all filled and I know that if I move my camper, someone else will steal my site, despite the fact that it’s paid for. Besides, this area is due for a heat wave starting on Saturday. I’d much rather suffer through that in a motel than in the camper. The camper’s air conditioning works fine, but it makes a hell of a racket.

The motel I’m going to is in Pateros. It’s right on the Columbia River and all the rooms look out that way. They allow pets, so Alex the Bird won’t need to be hidden — although he will cost me an extra $10/day. There’s even a pool. And, if you can believe this, they’ll let me park my helicopter on the grass to the east of the building.

Mike is flying up on Friday. He made his plans yesterday, when we both thought I’d be down here in Quincy, twiddling my thumbs for two weeks. His timing couldn’t be better. He’ll drive the truck up for me on Saturday morning, with Alex the Bird and his rather bulky cage.

Then, on July 7, when Mike is gone, I’ll have to figure out how to get everything back to Quincy for the next three week gig.