On Wed, 15 Aug 2007 08:14:53 -0700, Doug Semler
wrote in . com:

This has
probably been asked umpteen times before, and will be asked umpteen
times in the future, but I am trying to get a feel for the
psychological aspect that causes a person to WANT to be a pilot.

To experience the joy evoked by the vistas encountered in flight. The
rapture evoked by the sights an airman routinely encounters fill his
memories with delight.

To play among the clouds as every child imagines. Why lay on your
back wishing you could cavort among the cottony forms when piloting
enables you to fulfill those dreams?

To overcome the limitations of human navigation in the third
dimension. Why accept the limitation of merely walking the surface of
the earth when there is so much more available?

To overcome the frustration with automobile and airline travel.
Traffic congestion, surreptitious speed-trap radar operation by law
enforcement officers, low highway speed limits, and the exposure to
the hazard caused by inept motorists conspire to make driving tedious
and banal for all but the short trips to the grocery store. The
character of airline travel has changed from a pleasurable experience
to become a waiting game for dubious security and inane delays as a
result of stupid airline scheduling and routing. No thanks.

To enable the exploration of geologic and cultural artifacts on the
surface. There are many surface features that can only be truly
appreciated from an aerial vantage point:
http://www.pilotgetaways.com/skytours/index.html

....