Things to do before I die

See a movie at a drive-in.

It's shocking to me that I could grow up in Middle America and never see a drive-in movie. But it's true. As I drove through Oakley the other day and saw that the local drive-in was closed for the season I realized that yet another summer has slipped by and I still haven't met that goal.

Next year.

Goals like that are funny. There's a whole list of things that I want to accomplish "eventually." Some are significant, some are trivial.

One of those things was to land at Meigs field in Chicago. Anyone who is a Microsoft Flight Simulator fan will recognize that as the default airport. It's a unique place, cutting right out into Lake Michigan with tremendous views of the skyline and easy access to the heart of Chi-town.

And I love Chicago. But really, who doesn't?

"One of these days" I was going to fly up there for a day or a weekend. Maybe catch the train up to Addison and drop by Wrigley Field. Or peruse the Art Institute. Or just have lunch and leave--just to say I did.

The problem is, in prototypical Chicago political chicanery, Meigs field was suddenly closed and torn up this summer. If you're interested in the gory details then click here>> or here>>.

As much as anything else that motivated me to start flying again. I realized that waiting for "one of these days" can have disastrous ramifications. And life is just too short for that. The funny thing is that that kind of attitude feels wanton and luxurious to me. I was raised to be careful, and to prioritize and take care of needs first and wants later.

So it surprised me when I was talking to my dad about these things. We were walking around AirVenture and I was explaining my new summer goal of regaining pilot currency. He shocked me by being extremely supportive. The support didn't surprise me, but his emphasis did. I expected a cautionary warning, perhaps a brief consideration of what that money would be worth if I stuck it in a retirement account...you know, something like that.

But no. My dad stopped us, looked straight at me and said "I've never regretted a single dollar I spent on flying." When I was a kid dad owned several airplanes: a get-there-fast Mooney, a classic Commonwealth Skyranger, a homebuilt Fly-Baby and a couple others in various states of building or restoration. Then when he developed high blood pressure he was grounded for medical reasons.

He made it clear to me that even back then he was aware that there were many things he could have done with his time and money and energy. But he pursued a love and shared that with his family.

You know what's peculiar, though? I earned my pilot's license back in early 1998. And I still haven't flown with my dad. That's another one of those "one of these days" kind of things on my list. Hopefully checking that one off isn't too far off.