Christmas Eve

I have always had problems with the heat in my plane. In the fall, I
replaced a lot of the scat tubes, at least the ones I could get to easily.
Unfortunately, that only helped the problem a bit, but it didn't cure it.
Winter flights were an ordeal, especially for those in the rear seat. I
bought sleeping bags to slip over the legs, or use as blankets. Sometimes I
like to think of my airplane as having the same utility as a car with wings,
and this really shattered that concept (along with preheating, bad weather
and worring about whether Aunt Mabel weighed 120 pounds like she said, or
240 pounds like she looked).

I decided to take the next step and replace the door seals. I did the right
one yesterday, and the left one today. While things were apart, I decided
to paint the door edges which would be visible after the seals were
replaced.

My girlfriend came to the airport just as I was finishing up. Her sister is
visiting from Iran, and they both wanted to do some sightseeing over the
Eastern Shore.

The weather was just a little bumpy, but the visibility was great. Nothing
but a few cirrus above us. It was a great flight, lots of low and slow for
picture taking. And, it was so damned hot that you could cook a frozen
pizza on the glareshield. And that was without any significant leaning. In
fact, I think I will do that next time. Kinda like Bob Hoover. I'll put a
cup of coffee on the glareshield and watch while it ...doesn't ... cool ..
off. Or, I could rig up a pump and have a pressurized cabin. I'd be fine
right up to the flight levels.

It was Sherrie's first flight in a light plane. I doubt whether there is
any GA in Iran, so it might be her last for a while.

It was a great day, beautiful flight, and a good feeling of accomplishment.
Most of the time, life sucks. But not today.