"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:IwoVk.388782$TT4.149115@attbi_s22...
So I've been contacted by half a dozen folks, telling me that my absence
was the topic of a rather lively thread here -- so I thought I'd pop in
for a peek at my old stomping ground. How's everyone been?

No, we're not dead. On September 4th, after over ten years of daily
postings on these groups, I joined the ranks of "former RAPpers" by
quitting, cold turkey. Nothing specific precipitated my departure -- it
was just a long, slow, gradual culmination of many things. The signal to
noise ratio here had deteriorated to such a level that no number of
killfiles could do the job -- and what was left after culling the herd of
trolls was pathetically small. Pilots of America called to me, warts and
all, so I jumped in with both feet and haven't looked back....

....until now.

It's been a lively few months. Martin (if you're still out there) we made
it to Munich for Oktoberfest, where I turned 50 years old by partying with
4 million of my closest friends. We drank beer with Croats, Austrians,
Germans, Brits, Irish, Italians, and (of course) Germans, and had a
wonderful time. Man, my Bavarian kin certainly lived up to their advanced
billing -- it was the Mother of All Parties.

While we were there, we took a day trip up the autobahn to Salzburg, in
your beloved Austria, and were in awe of the place. There's something
humbling about eating in a restaurant that has been continuously in
business for over EIGHT HUNDRED YEARS. It sure puts everything in
perspective! And, of course, sitting in the church where Mozart was
baptized was a magical experience.

We even hooked up with this group's own Markus (largely a lurker, from
Germany, whom we've met at Sun N Fun and Oshkosh) while we were there. He
met us in Munich and gave us the chance to go "off-tour" with a native --
a real treat after being trapped in buses and cabs. We visited Dachau
with him, both the concentration camp and the city, and marveled at man's
capacity for cruelty -- and beauty.

Since then, Mary and I have been doing lots of flying, both in the Ercoupe
and the Pathfinder, with trips to Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, and
Minnesota. We've also developed a lively email group made up of many
former members of this group. We email daily, sometimes a dozen or more
times -- so it's kinda like the way this group used to be, back in "the
day"... It's funny/sad -- none of us would have ever met each other
without this group -- a group that taught us all so much -- yet none of us
still visit here.

Businesswise, things are just like you might expect -- sloooow. The
wheels came off our local economy the very day that Congress announced the
$800 billion bailout plan, and hasn't recovered since. It's like the
entire business community let out a collective gasp, and all business
travel ceased, virtually overnight. Scary stuff.

Luckily, this comes after a record-busting year for us, so we are perhaps
better able to absorb a business slow down. Not so with several of our
business neighbors -- we've lost three nearby restaurants in just the last
month, as they were unable to weather the sudden loss of business.

Our son is first year Army ROTC, doing well, flying when he can. He's
still jazzed by all the attention he received for flying into Oshkosh this
year, but college is keeping him busier than ever. Our daughter should
start flight lessons next spring -- so we're keeping the aviation ball
rolling!

I hope everyone here is healthy, happy, and well. I'll hang around long
enough to see if anyone I know responds to this -- but mostly you can
catch me over on Pilots of America, a wonderful, moderated group of
aviation enthusiasts.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
Ercoupe N94856
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Good to see you haven't fallen off the map Jay. I started a thread upon
returning to the groups about what had happened to you and many other of the
good people that used to post here, and man what a response I got! I've been
doing some island flying since we moved back to Hawaii, and man is it good
to be back on island and back in the air :-)