i stumbled across beechtalk a while back and i have enjoyed it. my name is bob maddux. i don't have an airplane. and the only beechcraft product that i have experience with is the venerable model 18. back in the 70s l hauled auto parts in a twin beech from the georgia-alabama area to the usual places up north: kansas city, lansing, detroit, oshawa canada etc. plus a few out of the way places. it may well have been the most fun that i've ever had. the twin beech was my kind of airplane. i like a tailwheel, the old smell in the cockpit, fine tuning the mixture by getting the color of the exhaust flame just right, stuff like that. i never did like those hartzell three-bladed props. they just didn't look right. i didn't always stay with flying. a few times i quit and went and did something else for a while. i flew a cessna 207 for a few years and i flew one of those little fedex caravans ln and out of atlanta-hartsfield for a while. i think i wound up with around nine or ten thousand hours. somewhere along there i was diagnosed with parkinson's disease and just got away from flying and paid no attention to it at all. that is until i stumbled across beechtalk. it has made me realize how much i miss the flying and listening to flying stories. i am currently in spokane , washington and i will be 70 years old in july. the years have gone by way too fast. my wife died in october and i haven't been worth a plug nickel since then. beechtalk has helped me some with that. health permitting and the good lord willin', i will be leaving here come late summer. i have to get my wife's ashes to her old family cemetery in connecticut. just me and the dog and two cats. i guess i will try to find someone to go with me and share the driving as that is a pretty long haul. then i will head down the east coast, maybe all the way back to georgia. go jackets. if i have been too long winded i apologize. that is my nature. thank you all for giving me a place to babble. by the way the job at atlanta-hartsfield was kind of boring relatively speaking,but still, as we pilots liked to say, it beat working for a living. sincerely, bob maddux

Welcome to the family, Bob. Thanks for taking time to introduce yourself. This is a great place to hang out....enjoy.

Peace,
Don

Bob,

Welcome to BT. Sorry to hear about your wife. I also lost my wife a few years ago, so I have an idea of what you are going through.
Take your time on the journey to bring your wife home.

Feel free to babble anytime, or call if you prefer.

When you make it to CT, let me know. I sometimes get up there and would be honored to help you at the end of your journey.

Tim

I am sorry I live so far away from you.
It will have been a pleasure and a honour to fly with you
Jean Michel.

Welcome to BT Bob, sorry to hear about your wife, it's never easy to lose a loved one.
If I was closer, I would fly you myself to connecticut, that would be an honor for me. I bet someone comes along soon, my friend
Btw, you wouldn't happen to have pics of those planes you flew just sayin

Welcome Bob!

Great post Bob. My brother in law is about your age and also has Parkinsons. He quit flying about 15 years ago but always asks about where I have been flying and how things are going in the GA industry. It is a constant struggle for him to find the correct balance in his medications that allow him to do fun things like play his guitars or go for walks with his dog. Recently, I showed him pictures of one of my recent favorite places to fly - Sedona, AZ. He had flown there himself and often talked about the red rocks in the background. He was amazed to see and hear about the new (on field) restaurant and vowed to write to the owners wishing them good luck. (I hope he does since we need to encourage and support on airport businesses). Anyways, keep reading the posts and ask any questions you desire.

Welcome Bob. I'm sure you have plenty to add here for sure!