Server Downtime

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Hey folks! Not that there are a lot of you out there that read my blog of visit my page (actually I got about 100 hits in one day and that's the highest so far) but my entire website has been this way for way too long. I did say that I've been thinking of changing the entire format for it, and here it is. You won't really be getting to see all the stuff until I go public with it, but its a lot of backend projects and coding. Over the next few weeks it'll still be up as I will be keeping up my posts in this area (CAPT). You're probably here already because of the redirect from the main elijahnicolas.com

I'm incorporating a new photo album and a new index that is powered by Joomla. I'm still learning all the comp langauge and stuff, but hopefully I'll be able to pick it up in no time. Of course, this is all going to be accomplished after I finish the MD90 course, so don't think of looking for anything crazy awesome in the next few days. Consider it a work in progress to occupy me during the times of no planes.

Here's a link to the new elijahnicolas.com photo album. It's powered by Coppermine and works great! I'm been deciding on whether or not to use the Apple iWeb application, but looks like I'll just be sticking around w/ Joomla and all this other open source projects. If you would like an account or something or just need some server space to upload some pix, don't hesistate to ask. I have 12GBs or something!

So far so good...

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I completed my MD-90 Oral exam on last Friday and now begins the fun. I'm 14 lessons away from the DC-9 type rating! Really...its crazy! To fully comprehend how much I have learned in the last few weeks is just impossible. I mean its like reading an automobile manual back and forwards with emergency procedures and having the limitations memorized. Of course, the oral was a good 4 hours. You think that you can't talk about a plane that long, but you could actually probably go on for days! It was a good nice smooth oral and I was rather impressed that I knew more and wanted to keep going! I did get stumped here and there, don't think it wasn't hard, but the jet instructors did a tremendous job in preparing all of us.

I finished Sim 1 on Saturday and this final course in the CAPT ciriculum brings me full circle in another a 14 rides. The last one is the FAA Checkride that is held to ATP standards. Should be fun.

the time accordingly. The aircraft that we flew was the DA20-C1 (Diamond Eclipse) 2 seater. She performed great in the air, but sometimes if the headwind was ugly, the cars beneath us looked as if they were traveling faster than us! The power was good enough but the largest factor in our delays was that the aircraft was not IFR certified. Once we had sight of any clouds, we had to land. Oh well...made for a great trip. If anyone wants a plane ferried, don't hesistate to ask.Last weekend, I took a trip out to Long Beach, CA from Spruce Creek, FL with Greg Farlow. It was an amazing trip and we took some great pictures. We logged a total of 21.3 hours and split The picture of the mountains with the snow was taken while we were crossing on top of Palm Springs . I chose that we take the higher road over the mountain for a straight in into Long Beach. Banning Pass isn't always accomodating to small planes. :-)

Is Drew Brees really leaving San Diego? I like Rivers...I just don't want to wait too long until we go and win a Championship!

FTDs and Chili

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So, I have to saying that all the jet simulator work is starting to take its toll on my brain! It's also just draining me completely. It's great to fly and learn, but the rate at which we do it is crazy! It is faster at the airlines, and I'm sure that after this MD-90 training, I will be more than ready!

We are in the stage where our Jet Sim instructors want us to learn the systems instead of flying. Think of it as a bonus that we end up flying. Last night, I got to land from the right seat with a 15 knot left crosswind. That was interesting. My landing wasn't the smoothest once again, but it was my first in the right seat. We landed at KSFO (San Francisco) and I have to say that it might have been my first time there.

I have quite a bit of work cut out for me this coming week with a possible stage check and an oral exam in the very near future. Memorizing the limitations of the MD-90 is so fun and exciting! No really though, I'm having a tremendous time reading and learning more and more. I just wish that I could actually be more into it which is impossible, but I'm loving every minute of it!!!

Oh yeah, the latest and greatest thing on my menu is the cafeteria chili. For $1.60 you get a 12 oz cup of not so fresh chili and a piece of cornbread. I'm really doing it for the cornbread, but it fills you up and makes for a good cheap dinner. Then some other days, they have a different soup and its just a whole other adventure.

a fun week with lisa

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quick note: this entire past week consisted of below freezing temps. check out the pic at trelijah If you can't read the temp gauge, its reading 30 degrees F.

I just wanted to say thanks to lisa for coming to visit me here in Florida. It was a great week of just relaxing and hanging out. It's great to know that we are still learning quite about each other and growing even though we are so far apart.

Adelle got to hang out in the MD90 for a demo flight (I wasn't at the controls) for a little bit and it was nice to know that she acknowledged it as a good simulator. It's not that I'm trying to prove anything, but hey, its pretty damn close to the real thing if not there already. I wish that all my friends could come out and check it out while its still here in Daytona Beach.

This picture is of us at Shayna's surprise birthday party last Saturday. I haven't been updating the blog because of just all the school and hanging out I've been doing. Last weeks schedule included me waking up at 3:00 AM everyday so that I could get to Daytona Beach by 4:15 AM to begin going over my flights. It was definitely a tiring week, but once Lisa got here, it was smooth sailing.

Sadly enough, I really didn't plan too much because hanging out is something that is more fun to me these days. Is that a sign that I'm getting old or maybe that we are getting old already? It's really fun though, trust me. We have done quite a bit already in Florida the past year so there isn't that much to do. We almost went to a NBA game last night but found out that it was an away game. I like the spontaneity of our decisions. I mean its all last minute, but we try. We hung out till the last minute when I needed to take her to the airport this morning to catch her flight out of here back home to San Diego. Valentine's Day was a chill holiday. I was sad that I didn't take out Adelle to a nice fancy restaurant, but the time will come. Don't worry babe!

It's been a year (actually 13 months) and I'm ready to get out of here and head back home to San Diego. Most likely, I might be here in Florida (Ft. Lauderdale maybe) trying to learn as much as I can about the 747, but that's all speculation right now. I can only hope for the best. Adelle has 3 more months to go before she is done with her Master's of Public Health at San Diego State. I'd like to think we're both making some good headway into our futures.

meesh you already nache...come back soon k?

Chilling...MD90

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Everyone has to pick up the new Jack Johnson Album entitled: Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George. It is definitely one of the best sounding, coolest, chillest, just laid back albums I have heard since, I don't know, his last one. It's great! Go get it already and stop reading this!

Quote from iTunes Reviewer: "all you have to do is pop this in and the girls strip all their clothes off."

My serious review: If you love songs just about everyday life, this album stands out in happily creating "happy" tunes. It's almost as if Jack Johnson was born to sing about Curious George. It is a little childish, but come on, you can't expect that it wouldn't be esp. with it entitled "Sing-A-Longs..." The famous intro to Napoleon Dynamite theme song is onboard and it just works and completes the theme of this release. His acoustics along with G. Love and Ben Harper epitomizes how great a release can be if you combine two musical geniuses. Grab it!

MD90: It was rather smooth today with Kevin and I definitely now finally moving right along together in the airplane together. What I mean is, is that we aren't chasing it anymore being that we were way far behind it. We aren't topnotch just yet, but we are getting comfortable. I did a circle to land in Boston Logan which was great at 700" AFE and touchdown without consequence. We're still navigating with the VORs / NAV radios, but soon enough, we will start using the FMS to its fullest automating glory!

Windshear

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Today was one of the better flights in the MD90-30 Level D Full Motion Simulator. It was an enjoyable flight with a lot of hands on. When I say hands on, I mean like fighting the beast all the way down to the ground. I can't say that it was a safe landing (I crashed and red screened the sim) but it was definitely a learning experience where I would definitely avoid all possibilities of getting myself, crew and passengers involved in.

Departing KLAS on the MCCARAN 2 Departure with the Hector transition, we began setting up for the YENNI 1 Arrival. We were (or at least I thought we were) quite a ahead of the plane in terms of navigational and situational awareness. Little did we know that what the ATIS was broadcasting (Thunderstorms in the Vicinity) would turn into them moving onfield. It was definitely, bar none, the bumpiest ride I have ever experienced. At one point I thought that we lost an engine, but nope, it was just chaos taking over. This was only the 6th flight and with no knowledge of systems (this is only the transition course not the MD90 ground lab) it was a battle. I found myself saying to Kevin that I didn't think that we would make it.

The first shot around, we had to get revecotred because I blew through the ILS 25R Localizer and then wound up 3000 feet above the Middle Marker. That was a definite go-around. Getting revectored for another approach seemed to go well, but I should have known to not and try to save any approach if I wasn't stabilized. I definitely wasn't at 1000' but I still tried to do it. I had the field in site, but it was too late. We started another inbound approach and I got a chance to go around. Of course, I thought that it was another case of Windshear, but I just wasn't setup fully. Once more, we got put on the 4.5 DME out from runway 25R and made another attempt. It was an alright one, but still, I definitely would like to get more of this action on.

My babe is coming to town! T-minus 51 hours and counting...(as of this publication)

WX (Sat Uplink)

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There has been quite a lot of weather in this part of the US, as well at the northeast, and in lieu of the recent awesome radar images of the squall lines that we were so blessed with, I have included at the bottom right side of the toolbar underneath the link to trelijah, a picture with constant updates from the NOAA website. Check it out. I'm going to sleep now because I have to wake up in like 5 hours for a 3:30AM departure from my house! It's going to be great!