Wichita, KS

Cessna gave me the option of flying out to Wichita for my drug screen. It was a perfect opportunity to see the city and my new apartment for the summer, so I decided to go for a brief 24 hours with mom.

Everybody flying into Wichita is there for airplane business. I sat next to a nice guy from Hawaii who is an airplane mechanic. He was going to the Cessna factory to learn about a new type of plane that he and his business are receiving this summer. The flight was really short (only an hour), so we spent the entire time talking plane-talk...NERDS!!



The air capital of the world!!!



The area around my apartment complex is surprisingly pretty. Kansas isn't as bad as everyone in Colorado makes it out to be. :)



Arkansas River



See? Kansas isn't all grass and cows like Eastern Colorado. :)



Cessna! I'll be out there this summer working on propellers!

Since Cessna booked our hotel room, mom and I were given passes to the "Aviator Club", which meant we got discounts on hotel food and access to the "Aviator's Lounge"...a room that had free continental breakfasts and cocktail parties. We went in there to get breakfast on Monday, and we were the only women aside from the lady who was servin g everybody, and I was the only one under the age of 40. It was awkward, and I'm sure all the old men there thought that we were the wife and daughter of an aviator.

My drug screen ended up taking an extra hour, because they ran out of hair test forms...so a receptionist had to go to a neighboring medical facility to get a form, but for some reason, she took freakin' FOREVER. I just sat in the room, and read the awful "People" Magazine that was sitting there....doctor finally came back, and asked about what I was doing for Cessna as small talk. I guess I didn't clarify enough that I was a summer intern and not a full time employee, because he asked me if I had a husband and kids and where we were moving from...! I always thought I looked like I was still in high school, not like I'm old enough to have my own family...what a kook.

It will be a fun summer....can't wait!

Power Kite

My friend, Jeff, introduced me to power-kiting today. To say the least, it is pretty fun!





The kite can pull about 100 pounds of force (it varies, depending on the wind and the span of the kite)...so you can imagine that there is some fun to be had with these things. They'll pull you around, and you can jump and get some pretty good sustained air. Compared to Jeff and John, the kite pulled me a bit harder since I am a smaller person...but it was really fun and easier to control than I imagined.

Sometimes it's hard to remember the motivation behind studying Aerospace...the thought of studying photography again or going to culinary school sometimes makes an appearance in my head. Decorating pastries or editing photos seems more fun and appealing...and then I remember that it's a love for things that fly. Kites, planes, birds...they're all so liberating, and I think power-kiting helped me remember that today.

It was also amazing to enjoy the 70+ degree weather that we were having in Boulder...first time in a while that I have been able to enjoy myself outdoors on a weekday. :)