The cabin was now toasty warm, and
the sun was setting on the horizon like a giant ball of fire.

Great writeup, Jay! There's nothing like winter flying, especially in a plane
with good cabin heat...and the dense, cold air is so smooth, you climb like
that first solo without the instructor!

I was on the road Monday night, with dense ground fog over Iowa's snow and the
big full moon so bright in the clear sky above, it made the night sky
bluish...and remembered my night x-c four years ago. The 133-year perigee
solstice moon was just rising as we turned crosswind and flew into it, and the
rest of the trip was equally magical.