Who Am I?

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A nobody; a nitwit; a pilot; a motorcyclist; a raconteur; a lover...of life - who loves to laugh, who tries to not take myself (or anything) too seriously...just a normal guy who knows his place in the universe by being in touch with my spiritual side. What more is there?

06 July 2007

Good-Bye Guanaja

So I’m back in Pensacola, probably permanently. That was fun. Why's it over? For now, let’s just say that you can even get burned-out in a paradise like Guanaja. The man and woman I was working for are without a doubt two of the best people on the planet. It was an honor to work for them. But the time had come to leave.

That decision was not an easy one. I had made many friends, both local and gringo. Not only that, the people of Guanaja had come to rely on having the helicopter available for medical emergencies. So I feel a little badly leaving everyone in the lurch like that.

But it’s not like the helicopter won’t ever be available anymore. The Boss is down there pretty much half of the time. He’s also a helicopter pilot and will be available for medevac flights if/when they come up. So with any luck, my presence should hardly be missed.

So much stuff happened that never made it into the blog. I wrote as much as I could, but even if I’d written full-time I would not have been able to cover it all. And you know me: why use two words when two-thousand will do. My writing has never been known for its sparseness of words or economy.

Immediate plans are to take the summer off – go to the beach and just chill; a Seinfeldian “Summer of Bob” if you will. I like working on cars, and there’s a rusting 1985 VW Camper in the driveway just begging for some bodywork and an engine-swap. (Did you know that late-model VW engines bolt right up to the old-model transmissions? Can you say, “More power!”) Maybe I’ll buy a motorcycle...okay, another motorcycle. The two in cold storage are too old and rare to ride everyday. Plus, I miss my (fire-engine red) Harley Sportster, the best damn motorcycle I ever owned. Man, that thing was fun!

The trouble with the intended “Summer of Bob” is that the job offers have already started coming in, drat the luck. Aviation is weird like that. I may have to take one of them. Also, I would like to do some flight instructing. My friends have been bugging me to get my Flight Instructor Rating for some time. Now looks like a good time. So my vacation might not last long.

It was a wonderful, interesting experience, and I was glad to be part of what we were doing down there. Guanaja is a unique, special place. But you know what? It’s good to be home.

7 comments:

David said...

Welcom Home!

Bob Barbanes: said...

Thanks, David...I think. Heh. First, my own car had three flat tires and a dead battery. Not totally unexpected. But I wasn't back 24 hours before I was tasked to work on someone else's car. Air conditioner recharge? Simple. Then someone's power steering pump was seizing the moment to start seizing. Could I...? Well, yeah, okay. I've said it before: NEVER, EVER LET 'EM KNOW YOU KNOW HOW TO WORK ON CARS!

Glad to see that some things never change. Ahhh yes, it's good to be home!

Patty said...

You will be missed, and I am sure you will find that your friends will welcome you back anytime you show up. I will miss you, even though we have never met. You gave good insight into every day living in Honduras. Please don't stop blogging. You have a lot to say, and you say it well.

Patty

Patty said...

You will be missed, and I am sure you will find that your friends will welcome you back anytime you show up. I will miss you, even though we have never met. You gave good insight into every day living in Honduras. Please don't stop blogging. You have a lot to say, and you say it well.

Patty

Bob Barbanes: said...

Thank you, thank you, Patty. Believe me, I won't stop blogging. As my friends know all too well, you can't shut me up.

Guanaja Sharon said...

Bob - Bob, who??
No wonder you left us on the island. With those unknown, unused talents to get cars in running order, no wonder you left. Too many cars in the U.S. begging for your help.
On the other hand, we do miss you already and were so very glad we met you and were able to share time together. Guess it was a good thing you didn't get your boating skills down perfectly cause you won't have much chance to use them on the highways and byways of the U.S. of A.
I will still look forward to your blogs and e-mails. Best of luck to you wherever you end up and this time - DON'T TRY TO SAVE THE WHOLE WORLD!
Love
Guanaja Sharon

Hal Johnson said...

Welcome back, Bob.