Happy 81st. birthday to me!

Today I turn 81 years of age. I never dreamed I would live so long . I have enjoyed almost every minute of the journey. There were a few rough patches along the way but I'd do it all over again and the same way, I'm sure. I'd marry the same man, have the same kids, you know, live it again if I could.

Last year I flew an 80th. birthday celebration flight in my gyro and in a few days, when the weather cooperates, I will fly an 81st. plus a few days, BD celebration flight. The photo is of me suited up and just back from a flight in my Bensen gyro on the dry lake of El Mirage, Ca. The photo was taken a few months ago at the annual gyro fly-in in September , 2009.

Gyro flying must be good for people! Commander Ken Wallis of the UK is well into his 90's and he is still flying gyros. Johny Miller, an old time gyro pilot of the 1930's who flew Pitcairn and Kellet autogiros continued to fly his Bonanza airplane until he passed away at the age of 102. It must be something in the air up there.

On the day he died, Johnny told his grandson, " It looks like my flying days are over". Like most gyro pilots, flying was ever on his mind. It is with mine for sure. Just ask my children. Sometime back when I asked my daughter Linda if I could bring my new Rotordyne blades into her living room to take them out of the crates, she answered,

" why not? I've lived with gyros my whole life". She is an understanding daughter! She gave me a fuel transfer pump for my gyro for Christmas awhile back . Other gifts from her have included motorcycle hand grips and a set of screw drivers. A recent gift from Linda and Donna was a gift certificate from my favorite store, Home Depot . As I said, a most understanding daughter who knows her mom pretty well.

I find it very peaceful and relaxing to do housekeeping chores on my gyro. I plan to polish that machine till it outshines the sun and I will enjoy every minute of working on it. And just think, my granddaughter Crystal will be making a Great Grand Mother out of me any day now! I will probably be off polishing my gyro instead of doing grandmotherly things like making baby clothes for the soon to be greatgrandbaby. Is that any way for a woman of my age to act? YOU BET IT IS !!

Till next time.

Marion Springer

CFI-Gyro, Ret.

Styles- fashions- trends- fads- whatever!

My friend tells me that I have lived too long when I complain about the lack of courtesy and good manners and some of trends of young people of today. I think he really means that times are different today than when I was young and that is very true.

Back in my day if a kid misbehaved in school the teacher or school Principal could and did paddle the kid and when the kids dad found out about it he added his discipline to the kid. Nowadays, parents stand a good chance of doing jail time for child abuse if they discipline the child. And kids know it... " yeah dad, you spank me and I'll call the cops, so there "!

Some of the fads of the young people just mystify me...how in the world can anyone eat with a ball bearing fastened to the tongue? How can anyone blow his nose if he has a ring through it?

And the hair! for some young people of today fashion dictates that their hair stand straight up in peaks that look sharp as nails. Others go in for wild colors, with rainbow streaks of color throughout .

But the pants the guys wear with the crotch at about knee level just is unbelievable . I was walking through a parking lot recently and there was a young man with his family just ahead of me. At first I thought he was limping but no, he was having trouble walking because his pants were barely hanging on and the crotch was at knee level or maybe just a tad lower. Thank goodness he was wearing a long T-shirt so I was saved from getting mooned !

His manner of walking was wierd ...to take a step, he would first throw a knee out to the side , then step forward with that foot, then throw the opposite knee out to the side and follow up with a step from that foot. I realized that throwing the knee to the side was to allow a little more room in the pants so he could take a step. If he had had to move suddenly he would have been like a deer in the headlights or more likely, would have fallen flat on his face.

And the girls with the push-up bras ! I'm an old gal and not much surprises me anymore but one day I turned a corner at a fall festival and just stopped in my tracks when I saw two young girls with push-up bras and what was being pushed up was nearly out ! I see practically the same thing on women on television and even on the female news anchors . Besides the low cleaveage , the news anchors are all very cutesy when giving the news. Walter Cronkite, I miss you!

Tatoos seem to be in fashion . I saw a woman with tatoos on every inch of skin that wasn't covered with clothing and that was a lot of skin. I thought to myself, when she is old and her skin is all shriveled and wrinkled, her skin color will be all blue. Then I thought of things we used to say to someone when we were annoyed with them , back in the good old days. Drop dead was one, Cool it, was another, then there was , don't have a cow, and also, ' turn blue'. The tatooed lady will do just that when she gets old, she will literally ' turn blue'.

Till next time.
Marion Springer