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Praetorium Honoris

Monday, August 5, 2024

Pondering the Past

 Update on the important things...Mrs J is doing great! Released from the hospital a week ago.  Getting a bit of Home Health Care help, the nurses are very helpful and, importantly, upbeat.  The prognosis is very good although some lifestyle changes are called for.

C'est la Vie!

 I've also got a small "procedure" this morning, so responses may be a bit later than usual.  Dr. Tuna has decreed that this is "No big deal".  However, the nurse who called and explained the procedure didn't cause my blood pressure to decrease much.

No, Beans, I don't like knives, especially being used on me.  But, better to get rid of those bastige skin cells now rather than later.

In any case, on with the show.

I was surfing the internet Saturday, after offloading and stacking 21 bales of hay by hand.  Hey, it's August in Texas, hot as usual, but at least it's also humid.  I decided I would enjoy a few glasses of ice water and the conditioned air coming from the vent above my desk.  'Tis quite a pleasant way to cool off. 

 I got to thinking and wondered how much a square bale of hay weighs, so opened up DuckDuckGo and asked it the question.  It turns out it's between 40 and 60 lbs. 21 bales of hay at 50lbs avg each is 1071 lbs or a half a ton.  No wonder I was sweating.

But, the horses are happy.

Now that I got the answer to THAT defense of the Nation question, it's on to other internet adventures.  

 I was sitting at my desk, trying to figure out what twist Sarge was next going to throw into his story while simultaneously trying to figure out what to write about this week.  Something  caught my eye and pointed me to the internet to do some surfing.

Something?  RIGGHT!

Surfing being something different from researching.  Researching has a target, surfing is just looking around to see what you can find.

 I finally decided I wanted to search for "Eagles".  I don't know how, but I had found my "something", and it was very interesting.

Seems someone had spent some time building a site which contains a collage of photos of the 12TFS history from the early '80s until the squadron was disbanded in the 2007.

Yep, there went the rest of my day.  Not that I noticed.

 

Source


Squadron picture in 1989.  Yep, I'm in it.  For those interested, Rocket is in the second row just behind the rear wing of the AIM 9. Bones* is in the front row, fourth from the left. Interestingly, I don't remember many of the actual names of the folks above,  their "Call Sign" however... Unfortunately, this was taken in the last full year of flying for me.

Wish I could time travel.

My First year there (I had more hair then)Source


Tom Curran was a 1LT in the squadron when I was assigned there.  He put together the collection and it was fun to look through the pictures and remember the people I flew with and the jets I actually flew. 

 

Well Done, Tom.Source

*Here's another pretty good "Flying and Fighting" story which talks about Bones.

AHHHH, to be young again!

Peace Out, y'all!


 

 

 

32 comments:

  1. Most Excellent news on Mrs. Juvat, good luck on your procedure juvat, what was it Bryan Adams sang.......Cuts Like a Knife.....just couldn't resist...... :) Liked the wayback story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nylon,
      Sitting in the waiting room waiting on the round one results. Worse part was the painkiller. Not quite Bryan Adams level, but…
      juvat

      Delete
  2. Yay!! Good news is good news!!! Lifestyle changes are important...and learning new habits is ok too, even if it takes some practice.
    Good luck with YOUR procedure as well...skin cancer isn't a pretty way to go if you will excuse the pun. Get it done!
    And yes, moving hay---hot, sweaty, dusty, and a great way to stay in shape!! After hydration is very important! The farmer's wife I worked for my teenage years doing hay made up a drink from honey, apple cider vinegar and water over ice...it tasted like nectar from Heaven!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anon,
      Thanks, might have to give your “cocktail” a try. Although the ice water went down pretty easy, and fast!
      juvat

      Delete
  3. Juvat, in my experience the stress level of the person setting up the hay baler (and whether he's being paid by bale) has a lot to do with weight. If my Grandfather had anything to do with it, the tightness of the baler was set to max minus that extra tightness that could break a twine or going way back in time when push wires and hand tying were in vogue, max we could lift and get up to the guy stacking on the truck or wagon.
    Our field here was just round baled which takes a lot of the sweat out of the process. Recent rains did wonders for the yield.
    Good news on Mrs. J's situation and good luck to you today.
    Cletus

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cletus, my hay guy hasn’t come by yet, which I guess is a good sign vis a vis hay in the area. But…
      Juvat

      Delete
    2. Then there is the low spot in the field where the bales are almost standing in water. Lift the twines to waist level, and the bale hasn't moved.

      Delete
    3. Don,
      Now THAT would be seriously NOT FUN!.
      juvat

      Delete
  4. Juvat, first of all wonderful news on Mrs. J's ongoing recovery and best wishes for your "minor procedure" today.

    Surfing is dangerous. I have easily lost three hours looking up a single Greek philosopher and then learning about their times, the history, tangentially related philosophers...the wonders of easily available knowledge.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. THBB,
      Round 1 complete. Administering the pain killer was the most painful part. Waiting on results to see if round 2 is required. I hope not
      juvat

      Delete
  5. Dr. Tuna...ha! You might be a tad uglier due to location and scarring, but I stand by my earlier prognosis.

    ReplyDelete
  6. "Now I'm gonna pinch you right here, you might feel a little pressure and maybe a sting!" I agree, the worse part. I've gone through seven or eight Mohs Surgeries; it seems the best way to go. Those prevent the "removal of a small part of you..." ones, which in some cases make you look like a fencing instructor or perhaps Porsche mechanic.
    Good news on the lady! Keep your guard up, the time will pass quickly and she'll be free and clear quickly. Our five years after Miss Jeanie's problem are over now and she's meaner than ever. That's good.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lt Fuzz,
      Unfortunately, it seems I may be in the "removal of a small part of you". The first scrape went fine, but needed a second. He also mentioned another area that looked bad on my upper lip. He went scrapping and I'm not sure what happened, but he said I'd need to come back for another session and also see a plastic surgeon for work. I'm not sure exactly what was going on, lots of medical terminology being spoken. I've got an office visit scheduled before anything happens, I think I'll bring my wingman with me. She's a lot smarter than I.
      juvat

      Delete
  7. Guess not everything is bigger in Texas. As a youth, bucked bales in North Park, CO. Wire tied, New Holland bailer, 120 lbs average. Excellent news on the health front.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WSF, Yep, the hay guy has those also. But according to Dirty Harry, "A man's gotta know his limitations". Half a ton, is pretty close to mine.
      Thanks
      juvat

      Delete
  8. First, great news on the medical scene. Having pre-op exams and testing for eve surgeries coming up (they still are not firm on the order.) Their specialty, trying not to stress. I should practice my harmonica.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HTom,
      Not sure me playing (or, more accurately, blowing on) the harmonica would do my wife, or myself, any good whatsoever. Best of luck on your surgeries. We'll add you to our prayer list.
      juvat

      Delete
    2. Future career. Well, just a way to make music (eventually) that's smaller than the piano or the tuba.

      Delete
  9. Late to the party ...

    Good news for Mrs. J. Hope you get all your skin problems resolved without much trouble, pain, and/or expense.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sarge,
      No worries! As expected, the worst part of the procedure was the injection of the pain killer. The slicing and dicing was just a slight increase of pressure. Unfortunately, I've got to go back in a couple of weeks as another spot was found. The bad news is that plastic surgery was mentioned. I'm wondering how a "dueling scar" would look. ;-)
      juvat

      Delete
  10. Great news for her! And yes, those old pics are time sinks, no question...

    ReplyDelete
  11. Excellent news, juvat! Prayers for a continued, swift recovery.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Good work Mrs. J. Keep it up.
    Juvat needs to clam down and let the docs do their thing, and keep troubleshooting until they are sure there ain't no little critters hiding out anywhere. They do it all the time, and this exterior bodywork is pretty simple. Trust them, but if something seems hinky, don't hesitate to get a second opinion.

    Bones sure has that "Sierra Hotel Fighter Pilot" look.
    Almost like our hero Lex.
    https://thelexicans.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/indexthebestofneptunuslex-e1519281375360.jpeg

    Lex certainly admired the USAF F-15 Eagles and their drivers. Especially the time he got FOUR of them, while their general was there to watch them club the baby seal in the Navy F-18.
    https://thelexicans.wordpress.com/2016/02/17/killing-an-eagle/

    John Blackshoe

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JB,
      I'm not overly concerned about the second trip (other than the pain killer injection. OUCH!). The Doc didn't seem to concerned, just needed to consult with a plastic surgeon as the two spots are pretty close to each other.
      Bones was a great member of my Flight. Hilarious on the ground, a great guy to have watching your back when going off base and became an outstanding fighter pilot.
      There's a very old fighter pilot saying. "It's not the Kite that matters, but the person in it." I've starred in a lot of gun camera film. I tried very hard to learn why I was the star and not make that mistake again. But, in my defense, I've also taken a awful lot of film of FA-18's. Since they're dual missioned, air to air and air to ground, they only get to practice half the time. And 3rd/4th generation Air to Air is a lot more difficult environment than Air to Ground, usually.
      I've bought beer for some adversaries and enjoyed the same from others. It's not about film, it's about learning and trying hard not to make those same mistakes when it's not film being used, rather real weapons.
      juvat

      Delete
  13. Great news for Mrs. J! Prayers sent for her swift recovery!
    Prayers also sent for you & your recovery. Skin cancer is a nasty bastard. Luckily the plastic surgeon can work wonders after the bad cells are removed! 🙏🙏

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mary,
      Thanks, Prayers are greatly appreciated. As mentioned above, it wasn't the cutting that hurt, but the numbing was painful.
      juvat

      Delete

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