Onomatopoeia

San Antonio Hobby is CLOSING

After 40 years, San Antonio Hobby in Mountain View is closing.  I first came there in 1971 or 2 with my uncle CG.  We were playing a lot of Richtofen's War and that was a great place for models.  In those days Aurora had a decent line of 1/48 WWI aircraft. Had mucho fun.

Last summer I got back into modeling and having SAHS so close was a Godsend.  They had everything.  Books, models, paints, detail kits, decal sheets, figures, landscaping stuff, props...  And not just for models but they also had everything for RC aircraft, cars, model railroading, you name it.

I went there this evening to see what's up.  The shelves were practically empty, there was almost nothing left. 

I made a friend of sorts there, a guy who works there.  He gave me tons of tips, advised my on buying my airbrush, and generally was supportive and informative.  He was there and said they maybe maybe maybe will start a new place but who knows.

Joni Mitchell was way right about taking stuff for granted.  It;s more than missing a resource for a hobby. It feels like part of my past is getting cut off.  Also, places like that are hard to find.  It's like we are coming off of an age where you really could get anything and everything.  Yes, life continues to improve for most folks - longer lifespans, ease of access to consumer goods, etc.  But is it me or are things getting more and more standardized, normalized?  Where can you go for the quirky stuff?  There are canning supplies I can't get anymore - will all that go away?

I'm no change-o-phobe, but sometimes it feels wasteful to see something unique go away.

In any case, I am glad I was a patron of San Antonio Hobby.  I wish everyone involved well, and I do hope they will start again.

Sons Of The Silent Age, David Bowie

Out Of Shape

[Editor's note: Sincere apologies for those who read the original post with it's crapass spelling.  I hope it did not hurt or cause permanent damage. - MMC]

  OK, I think we finally got the garage back in some semblance of order.  The semblance consists of a largely clear middle floor; the areas around it are sorely in need of attention.

Witness my "workbench", for example.  I do want to get back into model-building, and in fact have accumulated about two dozen kits.  I actually have several going (sort of), including a Mosquito, M3 Grant tank, and an Me-110.  I've laid aside an Albatros DIII since I am having paint-problems with it.  Might make a good diorama of one undergoing repair/repainting at some point.  We'll see.

Meanwhile, I have a couple of patients to attend to.  One of these is a simple glue job.  The other is a full-fledged repair of an old friend.  The N-17 hit the bricks by our fireplace and came apart in a pretty spectacular manner.  I have all the parts, but as you can see, there is a lot of repair work, including drilling-out rigging holes and re-rigging the whole shebang.  I also have a 1/32 kit of an N-17 that I was going to paint as Nungesser's, but I don't feel right starting that while this one is in need of some TLC.

Relax, Frankie Goes To Hollywood

Done And Done

I have updated the Remake Remodel Gallery with 5 photos showing the end product.  We love it.  Now all I have to do is pay for the durn thing...

So Far Away, Dire Straits

Easy Come. Easy Go. Again.

We visited C up in the Hudson Valley this weekend. On Saturday (my 45th), C and I went to the Rhinebeck Aerodrome. I have been wanting to go for a while.

Hog heaven does not begin to describe it. 2 old Bleriots. A Caudron G3. Sopwith Camel, Fokker Dr I (triplane) and a D VII. Albatros DV, Nieuport 11, Spad VII... Most of these are airworthy, folks. Never seen anything like it.

And they offer biplane rides. So of course I went up. It's a 1929 New Standard biplane. We sat in front of the pilot, Captain Mike. When he revved the engine for takleoff I got that adrenaline surge that goes from your rear-end to the tips of your fingers and toes, and a small feeling of "maybe this ain't such a great idea..." Then we glided up as if falling asleep, over the flaming treetops (autumn was on full blast), the wind whipping, everything for real man. In an open cockpit biplane you truly feel what flight is about; you feel the plane play over the air, when the engine's power is pulling and when the aerodynamics are allowing a glide. We climbed to maybe 1500 feet and he took us over Bard (he know C goes there) and did a circle or two. everything looked so clean and hyper-real. We were actually seen by C's roommate and her family! Then over the Kingston bridge and headed back towards home.

Not over yet, folks. Captain Mike drops the nose (stomach goes up), then pulls back into a climb (stomach goes down), and then does a wing-over and hung the plane on its tail. We arelooking (almost) straight down into the flaming brilliant trees in a steep dive. Howling. He pulls out gracefully. Yes, I hung on for dear life and it was great, albeit terrifying. On the way in he buzzed the airfield and we popped up over the trees at the end of the strip, executed a lovingly delicate turn, cut the throttle, sideslipped into the runway (again coming in right over the treetops) and touched down without a bump.

Gives me somethignt to think about when I imagine dogfighting in the old kites.

And now the lesson part of this post. All of the picturees I took are gone. Into the digital ether. Don't know what happened, except maybe the card got temporarily corrupted. Yes. All C and I have of those moments are our memories (like Rutget Hauer at the end of Blade Runner). You never know what will turn out to be fleeting. It must have been my birthday gift.

Romance, R.E.M.

Nieuport 17

I've finished it! This is the Nieuport 17 kit I had problems with (see Inner Monologue). This model has a lot of firsts for me. First time I ever rigged a WW I aircraft, first time I ever tried a laminated propeller, and first time I used the new airbrush. It's gotr it;'s share of mistakes, but hey, I had a ball making it. I have posted a mini-gallery on it with information about the pilot, Georges Guynemer, as well as some more detailed building notes.

Serenade in Blue, Glen Miller Orchestra

Inner Monologue

Ok, I think I got it this time. Those are lined up... that's in the right hole... everything looks straight and aligned? Good... oooo, it's starting to slip there, and those are coming out of their slots! Hold onto the others while I...just...*snap*

Tarnation! Dang! Gosh-a-mickle Dickle Pickle!

How am I gonna fix that?

I'll let you know how it goes.

It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Want To Rock And Roll), School of Rock

What I Did On My Summer Vacation #20040701

There are those who might think building a 1/72 scale model of a Spitfire and attaching it to the handlebars of your bike is a little excessive or obsessive. I would agree, unless of course the propeller spins freely in the breeze as you ride along.

This one does.

It's a Revell kit and not bad. Decent detail, clean pressing with very little flash, good fitting parts. Highly detailed decal set. I only put on some since this will be a "field piece".

She did fine on her maiden flight, from home to Trader Joe's in Mountain View and back again. Popped off the handlebars when I inadvertently hit herwhile getting off the bike. No damage, but I think she needs a once-over after this shake-down cruise.

Cornflake Girl (Live version), Tori Amos.

Dolls For Guys

First off, in my previously posted rant Time Has Come Today, I mentioned the B-52's. They were awesome. Thank you, Frank for a great time! Highly recommend the Mountain Winery as a venue as well.

In the meantime, Mary has had an operation and has been recuperating at home since. She is doing great: she starts to get bored but then needs a nap. I have taken some medical leave to watch over her and wait on her hand and foot; I like doing that anyway and I am pretty good at it, or so I have heard.

To keep myself out of trouble, I have gotten somewhat back into model building (Ibid. prev post, horoscope ref perhaps?). A couple of birthdays ago, Mary and the girls got me a bunch of 1/48th scale model planes. All are Monogram WW II aircraft - be still my heart. I started in with the ME-109. As the picture shows, the spirit is willing but the skills need redeveloping. That's all right with me since I am having a ball. I can say that despite the brushstrokes etc, and the fact that this is not a showpiece job, it still ranks among the best work I ever did when I was building models in grade and high-school. That includes when I had my Pasche airbrush and compressor.

This is definitely dollhouses for guys; I am loving it. Am currently putting the finishing touches on a Hurricane Mk II, but need to get fresh decals since the ones that came with the kit are so frikkin' fragile they fall apart when I am trying to put them on. Will post an image or two once that is picture-worthy.

One of the nice things: I am trying to keep everything contained and portable so I can do this at the dining room table. That way I can be where the action is and not off in some other room tinkering...

Claudia is really working hard this summer, and Katie is doing a theater camp. Truly cool ladies both and a great help around the house. *kisses* to them!

Same great weather - I will stop posting it unless it is interesting.
Never Outfox The Fox, from the movie The Court Jester.