tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-343504012024-02-22T16:36:12.275-05:00Vote No'MalleyEludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.comBlogger1376125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-17891015607653017742023-11-26T14:00:00.002-05:002023-11-26T14:00:30.103-05:00Southwest, Southwest, Southwest<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I tested positive for Covid again, on Thanksgiving Day as a matter of fact, and I've been sequestered to the basement ever since. I'm running out of things to do. I don't feel <i>terrible</i>, but I also don't feel <i>great</i>.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">I found remembered about this blog that I wrote years ago and started going through past posts. I was a funny guy!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">My hobby time is now mostly consumed with airplanes. It used to be consumed with politics, but now I HATE politics. Both sides suck.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">So since I am all about airplanes now, here are some Southwest planes. Southwest Airlines dominates BWI. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">To date I've photographed 641 unique Southwest Airlines planes, including 424 -700 series, 180 -800 series, and 52 Max 8s. If you didn't go to Baltimore City Public Schools, you'll quickly know that this doesn't sum to 641. I also had the pleasure of photographing one -500 series, and three -300 series.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Southwest has 813 active planes, including 393 -700s, so I'm not sure which ones I missed, but I know I've photographed more than are now active. There are 207 -800 series, so 27 planes away from photographing all of them. And there are currently 213 active Max 8s. There are also some Max 7s on order. I can't wait to see those!<br /><br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivD3DTlQJBx9w-jLDgSnpTcqJb6rqH6LVadDrwcvhjCt15n_Ae_SeOMkcsJhinZHri9N2EvtZkT0uwDLj751F6AL4ltNhq3cve4FK_VkU3fMzK3bLL6a73aB6BXhvsQCyM17TpqPWaalrQnjN4DE8ZMHDtojz3tpvH8FudRrMAksbVlR2751ruPw/s4096/2F8033DA-591C-4145-8DFB-EB7002CA2F1E.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2715" data-original-width="4096" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivD3DTlQJBx9w-jLDgSnpTcqJb6rqH6LVadDrwcvhjCt15n_Ae_SeOMkcsJhinZHri9N2EvtZkT0uwDLj751F6AL4ltNhq3cve4FK_VkU3fMzK3bLL6a73aB6BXhvsQCyM17TpqPWaalrQnjN4DE8ZMHDtojz3tpvH8FudRrMAksbVlR2751ruPw/s320/2F8033DA-591C-4145-8DFB-EB7002CA2F1E.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEdbDy_Si2A6NmsDcY94mP_3CAQ4QYp0pWho9gedG_NnX3zgBtBpA0zriXRviwZgMtrRNnYerwkzdX7nidIvwf7TxtDEHno-_Kgska6xehIrwpREgMwN-jktY5tgS0oHOz0N1v1fQMbTlUAwIzzOGS8v9Q_kk4L9ahiTwZKGnl-JBaccYjnfnLzg/s4096/3BFC2180-33DF-4953-A7E6-287EE705F1BA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2208" data-original-width="4096" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEdbDy_Si2A6NmsDcY94mP_3CAQ4QYp0pWho9gedG_NnX3zgBtBpA0zriXRviwZgMtrRNnYerwkzdX7nidIvwf7TxtDEHno-_Kgska6xehIrwpREgMwN-jktY5tgS0oHOz0N1v1fQMbTlUAwIzzOGS8v9Q_kk4L9ahiTwZKGnl-JBaccYjnfnLzg/s320/3BFC2180-33DF-4953-A7E6-287EE705F1BA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo4CLRyIQODq16mipLhDnqRZ11Pm3-BI5Nn1ZW4n_TOWt5oo27-Ijk_mWAcfGrO8hwIZQshQqQ8A8Tc5cN8cpWodFvZh5OCYaf6rcDKNhAH9UcEhi7xi58lLo1h0GMUNgs9KzTjEhCeAhLPRnUlcCYe3byipQzAEZsMXiKZFMsf3T42HSc9HLBdg/s2904/5CEAC30E-1AB0-4F1A-BBBA-E64394E6F580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2128" data-original-width="2904" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo4CLRyIQODq16mipLhDnqRZ11Pm3-BI5Nn1ZW4n_TOWt5oo27-Ijk_mWAcfGrO8hwIZQshQqQ8A8Tc5cN8cpWodFvZh5OCYaf6rcDKNhAH9UcEhi7xi58lLo1h0GMUNgs9KzTjEhCeAhLPRnUlcCYe3byipQzAEZsMXiKZFMsf3T42HSc9HLBdg/s320/5CEAC30E-1AB0-4F1A-BBBA-E64394E6F580.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgbe-GwSPtEqAW3fZYZKBCnz_HsVy8bh46-nj8pN02aU2aXLRrMOCrw_nSKrY5jHdEYZ2bcSpp2MwB6LjJyuO7oFBrZXeIWV2XdNovs9xLnBHmtbe299TPFuHsJSUlVxoc0Td4z2rz7AVXgSISPT8xC-UJ2honwJqTlkJ3Jgk4sddegAOFsqzmIw/s4096/8D31F279-6EC8-4D19-BA4B-220EE5EA7BAE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2364" data-original-width="4096" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgbe-GwSPtEqAW3fZYZKBCnz_HsVy8bh46-nj8pN02aU2aXLRrMOCrw_nSKrY5jHdEYZ2bcSpp2MwB6LjJyuO7oFBrZXeIWV2XdNovs9xLnBHmtbe299TPFuHsJSUlVxoc0Td4z2rz7AVXgSISPT8xC-UJ2honwJqTlkJ3Jgk4sddegAOFsqzmIw/s320/8D31F279-6EC8-4D19-BA4B-220EE5EA7BAE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBT4hXRhFvfFHmAo4hizTXWGB63hi1CFgZQQfyXjkj5ioEPTMnElqkD41A2W0oRW36IqxKJMmF_BYBDKvD93PJ56_i5H6xsHGt7ODOuh9MpM9jUS7z2Jnc3YLHJMAlDRjz4RJvA14SE48s2nj-ewJ3FUZruk3CYYTY_h9Ozbs6BTYk0SpjFIvCmw/s2777/9B4DB5F0-D1DC-462C-8816-645962D13C2E.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="2777" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBT4hXRhFvfFHmAo4hizTXWGB63hi1CFgZQQfyXjkj5ioEPTMnElqkD41A2W0oRW36IqxKJMmF_BYBDKvD93PJ56_i5H6xsHGt7ODOuh9MpM9jUS7z2Jnc3YLHJMAlDRjz4RJvA14SE48s2nj-ewJ3FUZruk3CYYTY_h9Ozbs6BTYk0SpjFIvCmw/s320/9B4DB5F0-D1DC-462C-8816-645962D13C2E.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgwryzzBIqI_EubIYXWjJhrpnLOE2BeM2NB9PC_080QweHOKcRmhXlaF9oWn4uCGlu54djuSsXAvbvbuMgpbXnb2BFi13e1bLRPFx4Emj1Ud2fxjGUycojLLTeL3Z2-Bz53JXr_3c1nmxkGbk1fjqgp3X_LLeuOcVwUeyD8ftCyjLLhtMWInHXqw/s2905/287E3867-55AB-4DED-9688-8E9DC71D2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1883" data-original-width="2905" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgwryzzBIqI_EubIYXWjJhrpnLOE2BeM2NB9PC_080QweHOKcRmhXlaF9oWn4uCGlu54djuSsXAvbvbuMgpbXnb2BFi13e1bLRPFx4Emj1Ud2fxjGUycojLLTeL3Z2-Bz53JXr_3c1nmxkGbk1fjqgp3X_LLeuOcVwUeyD8ftCyjLLhtMWInHXqw/s320/287E3867-55AB-4DED-9688-8E9DC71D2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-23929674934629372832023-01-14T12:03:00.000-05:002023-01-14T12:03:14.368-05:00Does Spirit Airlines Really Suck?<p><span style="font-family: arial;">For the uninitiated, Spirit Airlines is a U.S.-based ultra low cost carrier (airline) commonly referred to as an ULCC. Their planes are easily identified by their bright yellow livery and earned the nickname "flying bananas" by aviation enthusiasts. Fares for flights on ULCCs are generally cheaper than mainline airlines like Delta and United, and somewhat cheaper than low-cost carriers such as Southwest Airlines, though there is much debate within the airline and business community as to whether Southwest Airlines is really still a low-cost carrier, but that's a topic for a different discussion.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Fares for flights on Spirit Airlines, are kept low by offering no-frills flights. There is no free drink, no free snacks, and customers are encouraged to perform tasks themselves, such as reservation check-ins and baggage check-ins. Additionally, the planes are packed with as many seats as possible with little to no pitch in the seats, so the more paying customers that they can get on the plane, the more money they can make per flight. What they don't make in per ticket revenue, they can make up for in volume of ticket sales. The lack of amenities and comfort are not necessarily bad things. To the contrary, ULCCs have opened air travel to a group of people that previously had not been able to fly. Lower income families can now fly to Orlando, for example, for much less than $1,000.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwTq50-lsdGSQuFEB5FfXJTTvv49IrPZ2IaolENHsEeeHtAq3WG3SFCTFo3cRDIauypmfRBx9ZWAh-KfIz4v5PUPSNU3HwT0ggRz3-KW6R_KuC9TlzOiJtKYWIttwEwOgPwRWB5vrR2t9jWjt0vvLsEtLQX-LZzmR-Ex6R2mAdOqKcRDCoiw/s3932/Spirit%20Airlines%20A320.N623NK.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2470" data-original-width="3932" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwTq50-lsdGSQuFEB5FfXJTTvv49IrPZ2IaolENHsEeeHtAq3WG3SFCTFo3cRDIauypmfRBx9ZWAh-KfIz4v5PUPSNU3HwT0ggRz3-KW6R_KuC9TlzOiJtKYWIttwEwOgPwRWB5vrR2t9jWjt0vvLsEtLQX-LZzmR-Ex6R2mAdOqKcRDCoiw/w424-h267/Spirit%20Airlines%20A320.N623NK.JPG" width="424" /></a></div><br /><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Much to Spirit Airlines dismay, they have earned a sordid reputation due to fights and disruptions on their planes. Thanks to cellphones, you can find numerous videos of arguments, shoving matches, and outright brawls on the planes. Click </span><a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=spirit+airlines+fights&source=lnms&tbm=vid&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjk9Nycv8f8AhUUm2oFHZ9cAVcQ_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1242&bih=568&dpr=1.1" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> to view some.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I had never flown on Spirit Airlines, but in September my wife said she wanted to go to Las Vegas. While reviewing fares, Southwest was about $270 per person one-way. Spirit Airlines, on the other hand, was about $79 per person one-way. I convinced her that we could survive on an ULCC for 5 hours and we would save a lot of money. Plus, as an aviation enthusiast, I want to fly on all airplanes on all airlines! </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">As my wife's and my 25th anniversary was hampered by the Covid-19 pandemic, we decided that this trip would be our celebration. My wife, my 22 year old daughter, and I flew Spirit Airlines flight NK691 on Spirit Airlines Airbus A320 N923NK from BWI to Las Vegas on Monday September 19th. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The first 4 hours of the flight were uneventful. With my window seat, I was enjoying the view of middle America, identifying the Mississippi River, Oklahoma City, then the American Southwest desert.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">On the flight, there was a large muscular middle aged man sitting in the row diagonally behind us who was loud and obnoxious the entire flight. He then ordered 3 party platters (is that the right name?). The flight attendant (FA) brought the drinks and the passenger started consuming them immediately. Then the FA returned a few minutes later saying the credit card wouldn’t go through, it was declined. The passenger said he didn’t have another credit card, but would give him $100 cash. The FA said they couldn’t take cash. The passenger said he’ll have to settle it with Spirit when we land. Overhearing this, I thought the situation to be awkward, but given the circumstances, having the passenger settle it with Spirit after the flight lands seemed like the only reasonable option.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The FA said the bill needed to be satisfied <u>NOW</u>. The passenger then got LOUDER and told the FA to get out of his fucking face (his words). He repeated it 2 more times with increasing loudness and more profanities including homophobic slurs. There were 2 sets of gay couples in the row in front of us. The FA held his position and the large burley passenger put his hand on the FA’s chest and forcefully shoved him away knocking him into other passengers, including my 22 year old daughter who was sitting in the aisle seat. The FA then left and there was no further intervention from the flight crew.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The entire plane was aware of the situation and there was an uncomfortable sense of awareness. Some passengers were requesting male passengers to rally and be ready to subdue the passenger, who was easily the largest passenger on the flight. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">My family talked about repositioning ourselves as I was in the window seat, but we decided against that as it would be obvious to the drunk raging passenger about what we were doing, and we didn’t want to draw any response from him, but we gave my daughter instructions to get out of her seat immediately and climb onto us or over the seats if it got worse. I overheard the lady in front of us asking the same questions to her partner.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">All flight service was immediately suspended as was announced over the intercom. I fully expected an immediate landing, but the flight continued. The next 45 minutes of the flight were anxious, scary, and stressful as the passenger continued to angrily rant about how Spirit sucks, how the FA is a fucking dick-sucking bitch, and the passengers were all a bunch of fucking pussies. This rant never ended for the remainder of the flight. Mind you there are several small children on the flight, as well. We were certain things would get worse when the plane landed - the guy was BIG, like a weight lifter, and tall. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Finally the plane landed and he starts soliciting passengers to get his back if push comes to shove. We waited anxiously expecting the police to board the plane. The flight attendant instructed all passengers to remain seated. We knew what was coming. The flight attendant and pilots disembarked the plane. What was going on? When were the police coming? But after about 10 minutes a flight attendant finally informed us we could deplane. As we were in front of him, we scurried off of the plane as fast as we could. Other passengers outright ran off of the plane.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">We finally made our way down the aisle and onto the jet bridge were we were met by 10-15 police officers in tactical gear waiting to board. As we made our way up the jet bridge and into the terminal, there was another set of police officers waiting, along with a crowd of well over 100 people. I can imagine their curiosity as they see lots of police running to the gate. We decided to wait a while so we could see the passenger get arrested and brought off of the plane, but alas, after 20 minutes we gave up and decided to get our baggage and head to our hotel.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This could have been prevented. First, stop selling alcohol. I know selling alcohol is profitable, but I’m confident that these in-flight issues are <u>ALL </u>alcohol-related. Secondly, <u>NEVER </u>give the alcohol to the passenger <u>UNTIL </u>the charge is processed. Finally, though the passenger was abusive and obnoxious the entire flight, the FA should have de-escalated <u>IMMEDIATELY</u>. Once that passenger raised his voice and told the FA to get out of his face, LEAVE. Further intervention needs to be done on the ground for the safety of the passengers and the crew.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Now comes my rant. I'm calling this a "Fine or Whine?", as is used on the aviation podcast Airlines Confidential, which, coincidentally, is hosted by former Spirit Airlines CEO Ben Baldanza. People can send in a complaint and Ben and his cohost determine if it's a passenger whine, or if the complaint is legitimate (a fine).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">When we got to the hotel, I posted on Twitter that we never expected to be on one of the Spirit Airlines flights where a fight broke out. Very little time elapsed before I got a response requesting more information. after which I sent them what I typed above.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In response, Spirit Airlines offered us three $50 vouchers for a future flight, a voucher which would expire on December 21st, 2022. I thought that was a generous response from them. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">My wife said hell no, she was never flight Spirit Airlines again. She was more than willing to pay more money NOT to fly on Spirit Airlines. I, on the other hand, was more than willing to fly on Spirit Airlines again given the cheap fares, so I took them up on the offer. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">After talking with my 20 year old son, he said that he hasn't been to too many states, so I asked which state he wanted to go to and he said Texas. I decided on December 21st (the deadline to use the voucher) to book a flight from BWI to Dallas Fort-Worth (DFW). I booked the flight online and entered my voucher number, but to my surprise, it only reduced the flight cost by $8.90, not the $50 value of the voucher. I tried several times, switching from my laptop to the Spirit Airlines app, then having my wife try herself, all with the same results.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I then called Spirit Airlines. After 20 minutes or so, a customer service representative (CSR) answered my call. Unfortunately, you could tell she was working from home as you could hear a child in the background, and the call suffered from an intermittent echo. I explained my predicament and the CSR vowed to help me. She attempted to book the flight on her system and got the same results. Only $8.90 was taken off. She told me I wasn't going to be able to use the full value of the voucher, but she had no idea why. Well, this isn't an acceptable answer. I then took to Twitter.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I sent message indicating that I was unable to book a flight using he full value of the voucher and informed them that when I called Spirit Airlines directly, they were unable to solve the issue. The response from Bonnie was to review the voucher policy, which I read, and I found no restrictions about using the full value of the voucher that would seem to apply to this situation. I was then asked to provide information about the flight I booked, including the reservation confirmation number, the pairing cities, intended dates, and the voucher number. I replied that I hadn't yet booked the flight, so I didn't have a reservation confirmation number, but provided the details of the intended flight. As it was already late in the day, I also requested an extension of the deadline as they were unable to explain why I was unable to use the full value of my voucher.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The next response asked me please provide the reservation confirmation number and they assured me that they were going to help me resolve the issue. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I followed-up that I was confused, because I already informed them that I did NOT book a new flight, but requested an extension of the deadline and assistance in determining how I could use the full value of my voucher.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The next response was from Sage on the 24th, and she requested confirmation of the email address used on the original flight when we went to Las Vegas, which I provided.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The next response was from Yasmin on the 26th, and she asked me to provide the 6-digit confirmation code from the flight from my new flight booking. I replied that there was some ongoing confusion. I re-emphasized that I was given a $50 voucher, but was unable to book a flight using the full value of the voucher, and that I had requested an extension of the deadline as Spirit Airlines has yet to determine why I was not able to use the full value. I re-iterated that I had NOT booked a new flight yet and would not do so until the issue was resolved.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The next response came from Nics on January 1st and informed me that they were experience higher than normal customer requests, but assured me that he would help me if I could provide him the reservation number of the flight in question. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><Sigh></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">My next response was: "So clearly no one is reading what I wrote. I’ve provided the information 5 separate times. NO NEW flight has been booked as I have not been able to determine why the full value of the voucher is not being used."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I then got another response from Nics on January 4th. He assured me again (assuming it is the same Nics) that he would help me resolve the issue, and asked me to provide the reservation confirmation number. At this point, I'm thinking that all responses are automated responses.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I performed a copy and paste from my previous message. "So clearly no one is reading what I wrote. I’ve provided the information 5 separate times. NO NEW flight has been booked as I have not been able to determine why the full value of the voucher is not being used."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Later that same day I got another response, though with no name on it. I was asked to provide the reservation confirmation number. It's like Groundhog's Day!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">On January 6th, I received a response from Jessa and she said she located my voucher number, but informed me that unfortunately it has expired, but asked if there was anything else she could do for me. She then politely asked me to complete a survey to let them know how well they are doing. Blahahahaha! </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">As you can tell, dealing with Spirit Airlines is a losers' game. You will <u>NOT </u>get an appropriate response. I firmly believe the system is designed to be aggravating so that you eventually give up. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">What are your thoughts? Have you ever had any bad experiences dealing with Spirit Airlines? </span></p><p><br /></p>Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-44674311755555746542022-09-18T13:54:00.004-04:002022-09-18T13:54:36.973-04:00Southwest Airlines - new photos!<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">Since I don't follow politics as closely as I used to, I filled my time with photographing airplanes. Really nerdy, right? I don't care. I love airplanes. I always wanted to be a commercial airline pilot. But this is as close as I got.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Back in 1987 when I was in the 10th grade, we had a lesson in career planning. I investigated being an airline pilot. There were 2 paths to becoming an airline pilot - join the military and learn to fly there with either the Air Force, the Navy, the Marines, or the Army (did you know that the Army has more pilots than the Navy???), or pay for your own pilot's license, which in 1987 was over $10,000. Granted, that was about 2 years worth of tuition at the time, but the career path was difficult. Entry-level pilots were paid like $19,000. I could make more than that at Burger King, and no one's life was in my hands. So I want to college and got a degree in Business and Finance. Now I have a camera and photograph those planes.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Fortunately, the airlines got smart as there has been a dearth in military pilots, and suddenly after Covid subsided, though only moderately, there is now a pilot shortage. So airlines have created their own airlines schools.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">BWI (Baltimore Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport) is dominated by Southwest Airlines. Southwest doesn't use a "Hub-and-Spoke" system like Delta, United, and American, but Southwest's domination at BWI makes it a fortress. That's a real airline term. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Since I have LOTS of photos and opportunities to photograph Southwest planes, I have made it my objective to photograph EVERY Southwest plane. I'm up to 580 unique planes. Southwest, according to planespotters.net, has 707 active planes, with 37 parked, for a total of 744 planes. So, good math would indicate that I have about 160 to go. However, I have photographed multiple planes that have been retired or sold, so I probably have closer to 170-180 planes to photograph.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Here are 4 of them.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsvKIX3r9864ZkIHpjCPhS-YpQBmjeoS8KDhv7hfOtQfFgQtbLEQGjvoGIPeaojGeTcfidDtHUS0qn6BY5Lv8zAnNvlrwNjcU41PFWztB52IlB_fNI4OMC84PC7tLqs8vU7_kIuKOcPvwUOgIG1P3c3frkRnRk8-VEJNNsLR4XzuSngIrU0gM/s4096/JHLF7040%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2820" data-original-width="4096" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsvKIX3r9864ZkIHpjCPhS-YpQBmjeoS8KDhv7hfOtQfFgQtbLEQGjvoGIPeaojGeTcfidDtHUS0qn6BY5Lv8zAnNvlrwNjcU41PFWztB52IlB_fNI4OMC84PC7tLqs8vU7_kIuKOcPvwUOgIG1P3c3frkRnRk8-VEJNNsLR4XzuSngIrU0gM/w454-h312/JHLF7040%5B1%5D.JPG" width="454" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbAQc5wSFxk5b2kxBAHj_0qjBEl2eb4k_eUbLDtbpxxW1N9kzqE5Ik7AnRSSdw_5hX-NYmhR07zsNAPsjiuBki1j90C3wju1AL2HGsau5fBXA9X3_ESSa4txTtUJa456RL1-J-Az6yEhE-qVVUs2eA-tvdlCfaR9YZFob3mzSDCKCK05s5zrk/s3676/LPAE3499%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3676" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbAQc5wSFxk5b2kxBAHj_0qjBEl2eb4k_eUbLDtbpxxW1N9kzqE5Ik7AnRSSdw_5hX-NYmhR07zsNAPsjiuBki1j90C3wju1AL2HGsau5fBXA9X3_ESSa4txTtUJa456RL1-J-Az6yEhE-qVVUs2eA-tvdlCfaR9YZFob3mzSDCKCK05s5zrk/w452-h301/LPAE3499%5B1%5D.JPG" width="452" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS2V953GlnCTMGH7x3HJtWCG-I0-L4Uw8_gNRDskcmuxKV5PGpwruy3BGz9zDu23QsJMhTBfm1Mj2ok0wCpHvXQhbndlvd7fNSn2holgvbVRG0LYIKzY6oWsjtnyXb_GqrOR4P8OfM3UCL5RgM5Aa7W7mL8N1MUmK9u9XgBDdv7IWtQ38EFSI/s4052/TJWN9336%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2745" data-original-width="4052" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS2V953GlnCTMGH7x3HJtWCG-I0-L4Uw8_gNRDskcmuxKV5PGpwruy3BGz9zDu23QsJMhTBfm1Mj2ok0wCpHvXQhbndlvd7fNSn2holgvbVRG0LYIKzY6oWsjtnyXb_GqrOR4P8OfM3UCL5RgM5Aa7W7mL8N1MUmK9u9XgBDdv7IWtQ38EFSI/w453-h306/TJWN9336%5B1%5D.JPG" width="453" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg22xA60hRhpGL04iRno6E8IvOLf5BEyZODhK0oZBPy083TcGgyxH0XSDYxBjOw_nrIvbb-P3HkKoLvQ4cXK21OgaAhUwiX2IZOHA2yl3-Yo01-RpxNVyIG_Ro3QEBMl65G4_Ea3d0BGblyNz4zXCcxJsyrTXBX56VwGudo3TAMAmunce_Ediw/s4096/WACX1202%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2147" data-original-width="4096" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg22xA60hRhpGL04iRno6E8IvOLf5BEyZODhK0oZBPy083TcGgyxH0XSDYxBjOw_nrIvbb-P3HkKoLvQ4cXK21OgaAhUwiX2IZOHA2yl3-Yo01-RpxNVyIG_Ro3QEBMl65G4_Ea3d0BGblyNz4zXCcxJsyrTXBX56VwGudo3TAMAmunce_Ediw/w452-h237/WACX1202%5B1%5D.JPG" width="452" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-12500656918479471622022-09-18T13:41:00.002-04:002022-09-18T13:41:30.769-04:00Lisbon Volunteer Fire Department<p><span style="font-family: arial;">I read recently on Facebook that Lisbon Volunteer Fire Department in Woodbine, Maryland was donating Engine Tanker 44 to Hindman Volunteer Fire Department in Hindman, Kentucky. I knew that I needed to get to the station to snap some photographs before she was gone.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">If you follow the news, you know that Kentucky has been especially hard-hit with flooding this summer. Hindman VFD lost all of their equipment due to the flooding. Lisbon VFD, on the other hand, was planning to to acquire a new engine tanker. With Howard County having a reserve tanker, Lisbon made the thoughtful decision to donate the old tanker to those in need. The new tanker is on order and the mismatched red tanker will fill-in until it arrives.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Engine Tanker 44 is a 1992 Pierce Lance. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Fortunately (tongue-in-cheek), Blogspotter doesn't allow you to upload multiple photos at the same time and for each photo it defaults back to the main directory so that you have to navigate to the root directory for the photo multiple times. Idiot.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR3o0roHArSIuozb3SLsTZy9d67lKOyg74TBkg6-GEJ3IzoNw61WXyTQ4FX_zoOdKLZmio4O5v3WH8aRfAWQY9Ofo8pt-moHJs1nRRaHVsx18JIMAnlhsNjjCsRyTpv-AI5ah00NV3NkbCotxeRtnbN_lVKtP-rBdu5ssTjD5BzoHj5DaFamM/s4032/IMG_5037%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR3o0roHArSIuozb3SLsTZy9d67lKOyg74TBkg6-GEJ3IzoNw61WXyTQ4FX_zoOdKLZmio4O5v3WH8aRfAWQY9Ofo8pt-moHJs1nRRaHVsx18JIMAnlhsNjjCsRyTpv-AI5ah00NV3NkbCotxeRtnbN_lVKtP-rBdu5ssTjD5BzoHj5DaFamM/s320/IMG_5037%5B1%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYG8Qpyh_s6ko0OvkIb326T1qWk86dfyYtzP7tuSQ2tgLl3e9m98WxdIDzbTleiTmC_HhvMNsAXeB5l2FttjELSHousgPXZ-nttRmpaAQaIMXmoLkzQ2LebHI1vuJUacOHTVuIAdViri4IlS37S4kNIqkIHF9rCdOgWho3HcoVb-TlMlPRwpY/s4032/IMG_5038%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYG8Qpyh_s6ko0OvkIb326T1qWk86dfyYtzP7tuSQ2tgLl3e9m98WxdIDzbTleiTmC_HhvMNsAXeB5l2FttjELSHousgPXZ-nttRmpaAQaIMXmoLkzQ2LebHI1vuJUacOHTVuIAdViri4IlS37S4kNIqkIHF9rCdOgWho3HcoVb-TlMlPRwpY/s320/IMG_5038%5B1%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid0UfcFQA6U1o1l8Zbodn8yN0I-loUhmThKlKPnrF4MFiXcqa_9qSHeF-9MhviHiMMKBZwhCeRqML8kbzmPDd0a0jVVQfWbl8Bh2zyIDA-ToPK22YHL6yiPxpdsd39zbz5fQj1CusmBE9FYHtEv_x0CNgdmT2eMHuCNv-OkSYfT4v1UO3p2Nc/s4032/IMG_5039%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid0UfcFQA6U1o1l8Zbodn8yN0I-loUhmThKlKPnrF4MFiXcqa_9qSHeF-9MhviHiMMKBZwhCeRqML8kbzmPDd0a0jVVQfWbl8Bh2zyIDA-ToPK22YHL6yiPxpdsd39zbz5fQj1CusmBE9FYHtEv_x0CNgdmT2eMHuCNv-OkSYfT4v1UO3p2Nc/s320/IMG_5039%5B1%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA5OAiOD9KSGzePL7yB7fpn3xtw-XE97Eq_unSMa-PdqWg3wJl2wwgRHHLPSnFOXn2VJhV4W98cP74yialU2_g2-ouxX74f8Gkf3-vbhVRuih3XK5GnuTTDeDlLUbRpWNH1oxdAqDVpChO1yC98c3dexNbbyoiRBMIWDc0pFWcv-NWNGb1x3w/s4032/IMG_5040%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA5OAiOD9KSGzePL7yB7fpn3xtw-XE97Eq_unSMa-PdqWg3wJl2wwgRHHLPSnFOXn2VJhV4W98cP74yialU2_g2-ouxX74f8Gkf3-vbhVRuih3XK5GnuTTDeDlLUbRpWNH1oxdAqDVpChO1yC98c3dexNbbyoiRBMIWDc0pFWcv-NWNGb1x3w/s320/IMG_5040%5B1%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-51344838976963877342022-09-11T16:32:00.002-04:002022-09-11T16:32:53.404-04:00Condor Wraps Up BWI Flights for the Summer<p><span style="font-family: arial;">This upcoming week wraps up the 3x weekly flights from Condor Airlines at BWI. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The German-based airline has been flying Boeing 767s from Frankfurt (FRA) to BWI three times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Condor Airlines is now wholly-owned by an investment firm after previously having a significant ownership by Lufthansa and Thomas Cook. Thomas Group went defunct in 2019. It was reported that Poland's LOT Airlines would purchase Condor Airlines, but that deal didn't materialize.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">According to Condor's <a href="https://www.condor.com/eu/flights/usa/baltimore-washington/" target="_blank">website</a>, it appears that the airlines will restart service again to BWI in May of 2023 with flights on Mondays and Saturdays, then moving to a Monday / Thursday / Saturday schedule in June of 2023. But as we know, everything is subject to change.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">It was fun seeing Condor at BWI this summer. Maybe one day I'll even fly on that <br />airline. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3j_GQuiQmmIXwaQrasGDHA9rL18nCVUNvGGjyIz7f20_3U45J16udYrJH9ZzZx-o5fNhlqr_sl3GiSEvVo84VWTqgZhIimxfeFa9zvEcKK65wPggbDXfWiohg0cGR8n9zc6ycEOMH6BuUaBC5zLmyGPSz40gJop3LoRsxSVrnO01DuRi-aYk/s4928/DSC_1213.Condor.767.DABUM.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="4928" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3j_GQuiQmmIXwaQrasGDHA9rL18nCVUNvGGjyIz7f20_3U45J16udYrJH9ZzZx-o5fNhlqr_sl3GiSEvVo84VWTqgZhIimxfeFa9zvEcKK65wPggbDXfWiohg0cGR8n9zc6ycEOMH6BuUaBC5zLmyGPSz40gJop3LoRsxSVrnO01DuRi-aYk/w564-h374/DSC_1213.Condor.767.DABUM.JPG" width="564" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-86822106051635166542022-09-02T09:37:00.000-04:002022-09-02T09:37:02.767-04:00Lufthansa - New 787<p><span style="font-family: arial;">This week Lufthansa took delivery of it's first Boeing 787. This model is a 787-9. If you're a U.S. planespotter like myself, it may be a while before you spot this plane. According to Simply Flying, Lufthansa will be flying this plane on the shuttle route between Frankfurt (FRA) and its southern neighbor, Munich (MUC). This is an uninspiring 35 minute flight, as I observed with the most recent flight which was performed by an Embraer ERJ-195-E2.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Therefore, for the time being, U.S. planespotters will need to be satisfied with the 747s, A330s, and the A350s, which for me is fine.</span></p>Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-87662126397791527162017-03-24T15:45:00.000-04:002017-03-24T15:46:38.307-04:00Aberdeen Fire Department Steals Photos?I was looking for the make and model of an old firetruck of which I took a photo several years ago. It's a vintage Mack from the Aberdeen Fire Department. When I looked on their website, low and behold - they have a photo of Heavy Rescue 251 - THAT'S MY PHOTO!!! I don't think I've ever posted it to this blog - I couldn't find a photo. However, I have posted it to my Instragram account - MarylandFiretrucker.<br />
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Aberdeen Fire Department - did you steal my photo?<br />
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Here's the guilty photo:<br />
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http://www.aberdeenfd.org/news/fullstory/newsid/229303<br />
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Here's my photo:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR01Wn6HbOBzN5xmHj1xTwSDmw3_tr3LDO6m0-88CpOiQWel5HBd9NtsYr-DllyB_ug3MGHo5yHyAYEREzROKxb2AmGnSPNUE_bJz_u71bTTGnf0OL8sLFBidCix_6xY5B1pWr2A/s1600/Aberdeen+Heavy+Rescue+251.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR01Wn6HbOBzN5xmHj1xTwSDmw3_tr3LDO6m0-88CpOiQWel5HBd9NtsYr-DllyB_ug3MGHo5yHyAYEREzROKxb2AmGnSPNUE_bJz_u71bTTGnf0OL8sLFBidCix_6xY5B1pWr2A/s640/Aberdeen+Heavy+Rescue+251.png" width="358" /></a></div>
<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-66578702528338443442016-05-17T21:51:00.000-04:002016-05-17T21:51:26.869-04:00Obama's War on the BathroomThe rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated. <br />
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Yes, another phase of my life that is super busy and jam-packed with kid activities, work, and craftbeer drinking has been upon me for the past few fortnights. With Martin O'Malley dropping out of the Presidential race to pursue a career in trying to convince the country that climate change will kill all of the polar bears, I have found politics less interesting. The Democratic crime bosses are doing their best to give Bernie Sanders a beat-down, reallocating his delegates despite his wins in states such as New Hampshire, Nevada, Wyoming, and Kentucky. Brain-washed Republicans think Trump is the second coming of Ronald Reagan. Good grief, we live in interesting times.<br />
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So, to borrow from Peter Griffin, you know what really grinds my gears? It's Obama's new directive to public education institutions that they must immediately allow people to use the bathroom of the gender with which they associate. This means that they are not using the bathroom that correlates to their gentiles, ie. their biological assignment. This action, in my opinion, is creating a path to criminal behavior that will be impossible to stop.<br />
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For the record, I'm not against transgender or <insert correct="" gender="" identification="" phrase="" politically=""> using the bathroom of the gender with which they associate. I truly believe that some people are born thinking they should be the opposite sex. I don't think this is a fault and I don't think they should face discrimination nor be punished. Now it gets complicated.</insert><br />
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However, here's my problem. I have 2 daughters. It is my job to protect them from harm. I am not allowed in the female bathroom to protect them for multiple reasons, the main reason being that I am a heterosexual guy. There are many ways that we have instinctively been able to tell something is wrong and can react appropriately to save ourselves. One of those is when you see a person of the other gender in your bathroom. "Dad, there's a guy in the bathroom!" "Quick! Call the police!"<br />
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I don't think this is as much of a problem for guys finding a women in their bathroom. I've been to concerts. You always see girls in the guy's bathroom because the lines are shorter. No one makes a big deal about it, except for the occasional jackwagon who wants to "whoooooo!!!!" the girl. My only concern in these cases is: are there any guys that are going to try and take advantage of these girls when they are vulnerable, i.e. urinating with their pants down. I would glady shove that guy's head into the wall.<br />
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Which sort of brings me to my main point. If my daughters see a man in the women's room prior to last week, then this automatically triggers the fear in their mind that something is not right. A guy doesn't not belong in the women's room. Fight or flee. I want them to flee. <br />
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Last week Obama sent an executive order instructing all public education institutions (assuming it's all public education institutions? Does it apply to private education institutions?) to allow people to use the bathroom of their gender identity. There is no law requiring this. Only Obama declaring it so. Now, though unlikely, my daughters may find themselves in the women's room with another man (biologically speaking). Do they flee? You better damn well bet they are going to flee. Is Obama going to hold himself criminally responsible if another man uses this situation to his advantage and strolls into the women's room to take pictures or force himself upon a girl? I think not. Do I think transgender people are going to perform this crime? No. Do I think opportunistic creeps are going to perform this crime? Hell-fuckin yes! It's already happening. Google it!<br />
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How do we stop this type of behavior? Can we trigger the alarm when a guy enters the girls bathroom? Nope. It might be a transgender person. We must tolerate this behavior and cross our fingers and hope that nothing bad happens. <br />
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Further questions to ponder, which may have already been answered - are trans-gendered people now allowed to use the locker room of their choice? What about the showers in the locker room? I can only imagine someone taking a shower with the girls because he's pretending to be a girl. The 17 year old in me thinks this is cool. The father in me wants to keep a pipe close at hand.<br />
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What's the solution? I don't know. Perhaps more individual bathrooms? Privacy bathrooms? Regardless of the laws, we must learn to protect ourselves and our children from harm. And if this means not allowing our daughters to use the bathrooms, then unfortunately, that's the way it must be. <br />
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Obama, you have failed again.<br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-56453492779195218692016-01-04T12:18:00.002-05:002016-01-04T12:18:29.916-05:00Coming to Eldersburg - Super Discount Grocery Store LidlAs if Eldersburg didn't have enough grocery stores, the German super discount chain Lidl's announced they want to build a store similar to Aldi's right in our back yard. <br />
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You can read about it right here: <br /><span style="color: blue;">http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/news/local/ph-cc-luers-avenue-1218-20151224-story.html</span><br />
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At present, we have Food Lion, Super Wal-Mart, Shopper's, Safeway, and Martin's. I think per capital, we may already have the highest grocery store to person rate.<br />
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The addition of another store that targets the low-income crowd will certainly make times even more difficult for stores in Eldersburg. Why would the Carroll County Zoning Commission want to perpetuate urban sprawl and create unfavorable economic conditions for existing businesses?<br />
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And why do we need a Lidl's in Eldersburg? This type of store certainly does not meet the economic demographcis of Eldersburg's upwardly mobile, commuting, two-income families. I suspect they wanted to put this store in Randallstown, but couldn't find a place suitable for them.<br />
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Eldersburg - the next Randallstown. That just doesn't sound like a selling point to me.Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-35728771371737061152016-01-04T12:10:00.000-05:002016-01-04T12:10:23.506-05:00Martin O'Malley - Ohio Eludes You<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-61705849625041929262016-01-01T11:47:00.002-05:002016-01-01T11:47:55.194-05:00O'Malley Ineligible for OhioSorry it's been so long since I've written. Life. It happens.<br />
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Martin O'Malley has been trudging around Iowa and New Hampshire for the past year or so speaking to dozens of people at a time. Meanwhile, Grandma Hillary Clinton and Crazy Hair Bernie Sanders are speaking to thousands of followers. I'm not sure how O'Malley is even still in the race. I'm sure he has hundreds of dollars left in the bank to finance his campaign.<br />
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The former Maryland governor's anti-fans got the best news yesterday. Martin O'Malley failed to qualify to be on the ballot for the primary in Ohio. Ohio law requires the submission of 1,000 signatures to be included. O'Malley submitted 1,175 signatures, but the Buckeyes rejected 403 of those signatures, leaving him with 772, far too few to be on the ballot.<br />
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O'Malley's spokesperson is saying that they are exploring their options. In political speak this usually means that they are trying to how to bow out of the race with dignity, but I suspect that is a trait that eludes our former tyrant.<br />
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As most people are saying, at this point, Martin O'Malley isn't really running for President. He's running a public awareness campaign, perhaps for a cabinet post. He certainly won't be selected for a running mate for Vice President. What would that accomplish? The Democrats would carry Maryland? The Democrats would carry Maryland with a bigot like Rahm Emanuel on the ticket.<br />
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The good new, for O'Malley at least, is that he has already qualified to be on the ballot for 18 or 19 other states. I'd say that's bad news for us, but he's not going to be president, so it will be nice to see him squirm for the second half of the year.<br />
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Here's to another year of Martin O'Malley not being in office!<br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-71168430004395983722016-01-01T11:16:00.001-05:002016-01-01T11:16:33.559-05:00Welcome Back!<div style="text-align: center;">
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Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-77886870540101949212015-06-04T22:13:00.001-04:002015-06-04T22:16:01.978-04:00If You're Going to Steal.....I came across an article on the Baltimore Sun mentioning the large white oak tree in Eldersburg that fell in the storm on Sunday. Then I realized something amazing - the photos used by Sun reporter Michel Elben are actually MY PHOTOS!!!!<br />
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Here is the article on The Sun with MY photos:<br /><a href="http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/carroll/ph-cc-eldersburg-tree-fall-20150602-story.html">http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/carroll/ph-cc-eldersburg-tree-fall-20150602-story.html</a><br />
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I looked at the caption and someone else was credited with submitting them. Look - if you're going to use my pictures, at least give me credit.<br />
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I know that if I was to use The Sun's photos without attribution, they'd come after me. We all know it's not a level playing field. I demand justice be served! And by justice, I want them to post a link to my blog and a bag of Doritos!Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-1404913750877457262015-06-01T21:29:00.001-04:002015-06-01T21:29:59.336-04:00Eldersburg White Oak FelledIf you live in Eldersburg, you may have seen the large white oak tree on Stafford Court off of Ridge Road. The tree was HUGE! We once looked at a house for sale on this street when we were looking to move to Eldersburg. I remember commenting about how large the tree was.<br />
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Last night we heard an amazing storm. It was like a strobe-light session with a entourage of howitzers having a competition. Flashes of lighting and chest-thumping cracks of thunder woke me around 11:45. The wind was whipping the trees sideways and the rain was smacking the side of our house. It was one of those top ten storms of the year kind of storms. I knew that the next morning would uncover some damage around the neighborhood.<br />
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I was almost disappointed when I didn't see much damage on my way to work this morning, but once I checked Facebook I saw posts of some big trees down all over the metro Eldersburg megalopolis area. The one that caught my eye was the big white oak tree on Stafford Court.<br />
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Tonight was a running night, so I decided to make Stafford Court part of my route. My quick 8:45/mile pace came to a jolting stop as I turned onto Stafford Court from Ridge Road. The massive tree lay on its side aiming across the road. The trunk stood taller than a man. Trees on the other side of the street were not spared. Large limbs littered the cul-de-sac, areas far enough away from the old wooden ghost that you would have though they would have been safe over there.<br />
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The property owner was outside, so I fired up a conversation with him. He said the previous owner of the house had heard that it was about 285 years old. In fact, the original owner, well, previous-previous owner, would occasionally come around and collect the fallen acorns to plant elsewhere. Another neighbor joined the conversation and said that she once read that it was estimated that the tree was the 4th oldest tree in Carroll County. <br />
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285 years? Let's put this in perspective. That means the tree started growing in 1730. Benjamin Franklin was in his 20's. Britain ruled the colonies. The tree was already 59 years old when George Washington became President of the United States. This tree was already 100 years old when Andrew Jackson was President. That was an old tree.<br />
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The tree across the street suffered the wrath of mother nature and the Earth's gravity during the storm when the massive white oak tree sheered the tree nearly in half.<br />
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Carroll County sent trucks at 2am to clear the street of the tree so that emergency vehicles could get through the mess. It almost looks as if the old legend's limbs shattered from the core when it hit the ground. <br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-12695565837599059092015-04-10T10:47:00.000-04:002015-04-10T10:47:00.537-04:00Firetruck FridayNot a firetruck, but I thought you would appreciate this nonetheless. This, I believe, is a 1971 Ford 500 Maryland State Police car. Note that this was the olive and black color scheme that the Maryland State Police ended, but then returned to later.<br />
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I took this picture at the 2007 4th of July Parade in Kingsville, Maryland.<br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-15886085770995889332015-04-06T20:34:00.001-04:002015-04-06T20:34:59.423-04:00Hiking - Liberty DamThis is mostly a picture post. I've lived in Carroll County almost 16 years and this was the first time I've ever been to Liberty Dam. <br />
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As you can see here, the government is going a great job of protecting us from the environment.<br />
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This is the reservoir behind the 160' dam. The water was barely trickling over the dam, but that's a million times more water than all of California has. Way to go, L.A.!<br />
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Here is the dam from the front. I would have had to hike for miles to get down to the bottom. There were people down there. Maybe I'll do that on another day. Technically this is the Baltimore County side of the dam and the other side is Carroll County.<br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-60358067543009437242015-04-03T08:55:00.000-04:002015-04-03T08:55:00.465-04:00Firetruck FridayHere's a gem that I forgot I had. It's a 1963 Mack from Baltimore City. Note that the cab is open in the back. That must have sucked when they were working on a fire on a cold wet January day. Where did they get warm?<br />
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The more I look at this picture, the more I love it!<br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-47424783988796615832015-04-02T10:38:00.000-04:002015-04-02T10:38:00.381-04:00Throwback Thursday in EldersburgRemember the Verizon Store in Peddler's Square? It is now a Liberty Tax store. At the time we had 2 Verizon stores in Eldersburg. Probably more than we need. If you take a good look, this is also an example of Jackass Parking. See the white Ford Explorer occupying 2 parking spots.<br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-64863602498304176912015-04-01T07:24:00.001-04:002015-04-01T07:24:32.839-04:00March - A Month in ReviewThere's an old expression that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. In Congress, a lion showed up, but a bunch of chickens ran around and acted like a bunch of jackasses. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a speech to the Congress, but only because President Obama (a lion, a chicken, or a jackass?) refused to see him at the White House. Cowards such as Maryland Congresswoman Donna Edwards shamefully boycotted the speech. Apparently, the spineless left believes that soft negotiating with Iran over nuclear weapons is a better approach than the hammer approach, which will allow the survival of Isreal.<br />
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University of California Irvine students decided that they no longer want to be Americans, but rather communists from a repressive country like Russia and China. They showed their unity when they supported a ban on the United States flag in the lobby of public buildings because it might make illegal aliens feel bad. In unrelated news, Pampers announced that they will be marketing adult-sized diapers and will target Irvine, California as a test market.<br />
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French reality television began filming a new show in Argentina that involves throwing Olympians from a helicopter and then crashing the helicopter. To their surprise, they all died, and the show was quietly cancelled.<br />
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Maryland Congresswoman Donna Edwards announced her candidacy for the seat being vacated by Senator Barbara Mikulski. Her campaign logo included the Virginia portion of the Delmarva peninsula leading to speculation that by the grace of God Almighty, Maryland and her allies from Delaware plan to attack and rightly conquer this portion of the King's Dominion.<br />
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A German discount airline crashed into the Alps after the copilot locked the pilot out of the cockpit and intentionally crashing the plane. This proves once again that terrorists should not be left alone in the cockpit of an airplane.<br />
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Washington, D.C. Congresswoman proves time and time again why she is an arrogant senile piece of shit. This home video catches her scraping another car and she wantonly parks in a diagonal parking spot in wrong direction.<br />
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In the NCAA tournament, West Virginia head Coach Bob Huggin's daughters sent out racist and bigoted messages over Twitter about Maryland players, calling one a rapist. I guess what they say about people in West Virginia is true, guh-huck. Well, Karma is a bitch and she doesn't like rednecks like Jenna Leigh Huggins. Kentucky DESTROYED West Virginia in the Sweet 16 78-39. Blahahahahaha!!!!</div>
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Legendary 98 Rock personality Sarah Fleisher announced her retirement. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member has been on the air at 98 Rock since its inception. You'll recognize her by her raspy smokers' voice. We wish her a happy retirement.</div>
Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-72031913243794207592015-03-27T10:33:00.000-04:002015-03-27T10:33:00.543-04:00Firetruck FridayBaltimore County Fire Department Fullerton Station, Truck 8 Aerial Ladder. This picture was taken at the 2006 4th of July Parade in Kingsville, Maryland. I couldn't get much (any?) information on the truck as they don't have a website with apparatus descriptions.<br />
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On a side note, this is also the parade where I first got to meet Maryland Governor Bob Ehrlich and his lovely wife Kendel.<br />
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<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-66668372111074161232015-03-27T08:03:00.002-04:002015-03-27T08:03:57.878-04:00Obama Wants to End the Use of the Redskins?<div style="text-align: center;">
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Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-82737153468518926342015-03-27T07:41:00.002-04:002015-03-27T07:41:20.272-04:00Best Driving Advise EVER!You know the idiots that think they must be in the fast lane at all times. Heck, you may be one of those idiots!<br />
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<img alt="" class="spotlight" src="https://scontent-lga.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/10516805_10200260373268326_8431841405324228729_n.jpg?oh=6a25adbd189d4446297efc2b7fcdf38f&oe=557A2313" style="height: 544px; width: 405px;" /></div>
Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-57896188199062073502015-03-26T10:24:00.000-04:002015-03-26T10:24:00.092-04:00Eldersburg Throwback ThursdayRemember S&N Katz Jewelers in the Carrolltown Mall? Obviously this picture was taken after they had closed. I got into the mall while it was being demolished, with permission, of course. <br />
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I sure am glad the mall is being replaced with a Super Wal-Mart. Which font is the sarcasm font?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnzB5eUGV-TCnFLw6PcEy13X7oyW-eaYsBl2bNFIZAPTvTcXVQgkUo9fnTzi5Cc1heh79RUm-UnWphHdBErWqxsAzG_65Mehnpa8KNdODNjbnPQ5quWLuj9v39hgUcrsDaHTN6JQ/s1600/Carrolltown+Mall+S+&+N+Katz+Jewelers.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnzB5eUGV-TCnFLw6PcEy13X7oyW-eaYsBl2bNFIZAPTvTcXVQgkUo9fnTzi5Cc1heh79RUm-UnWphHdBErWqxsAzG_65Mehnpa8KNdODNjbnPQ5quWLuj9v39hgUcrsDaHTN6JQ/s1600/Carrolltown+Mall+S+&+N+Katz+Jewelers.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-60858656415336234172015-03-22T22:12:00.000-04:002015-03-22T22:12:10.813-04:00Eldersburg Radio Shack - ClarificationI previously mentioned that the Radio Shack is closing. This caused quite a raucous on the Sykesville Online Community.<br />
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I like to paraphrase Obi Wan Kenobi. On the Sykesville Online Community page on Facebook you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. That site if full of haters and arrogant asses who are trolling the Internet pointing out how everyone else is an idiot. And I used a Star Wars reference because I know the trolls will get it.<br />
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With regard to the post about Radio Shack, Sprint is buying some of the Radio Shack stores. The Shacks that are not being bought will probably be closed. The ones that are being bought will be converted to Sprint stores. The Eldersburg store is being bought and converted to a Sprint Store. It is expected that the workers in the current Radio Shacks that are being bought will be retained and converted to Sprint employees.<br />
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If this isn't clear enough for you trolls to understand, go back to your laptop and tab-browse between SOC and your Incognito tab set to Pornhub.com and leave the this webpage to the real readers who want the inside scoops.Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34350401.post-15765609043456396832015-03-21T07:13:00.000-04:002015-03-21T07:13:33.660-04:00Closing in Eldersburg - Radio ShackI heard from a good source that the Radio Shack in the Carroll Station will be closing. I am not sure of the date, and neither was my source.<br />
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As you may know, the store is in financial disarray. They expanded rapidly, then didn't generate enough money to sustain that growth or to justify keeping them all open. To make matters worse, they found that they didn't even have enough money to break the leases on enough stores in order to downsize.<br />
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Along comes Sprint. The Sprint Corporation is buying up a lot of the stores and the Eldersburg store is one of those locations.<br />
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I don't know what they plan to do with the store other than sell Sprint phone-related items. Now I don't know where one will get higher quality electronics, speaker wires, connectors, etc... Wal-Mart? Ha! I said high quality. Higher quality products are becoming a thing of the past as the lemmings of our brain-washed society shop at stores like Wal-Mart and purchase mass-produced low-quality items that are made with near slave-like labor by communists in China. <br />
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Eludiushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10331890376342585365noreply@blogger.com0