It’s 2010! Yes, it’s twenty-ten!! Where is my flying car, dang-it!!

Oh. Well, here it is, right here!

According to to the UK Telegraph the FAA has signed off on the Terrafugia Transition, designating it as a “light sport” aircraft. That means that you do need a special license to fly it, but it’s the easiest one to get.

The company has begun taking orders for production models (which are not built yet). To reserve yours, all you need is a $10,000 down payment. Unfortunately, that is just a tiny fraction of the $194,000 retail price. But, hey! It’s a commercially available FLYING CAR!! What else matters?!

I try really hard not to let political debates get personal.

Okay, that’s a lie. But when your opponents leave the door open for cheap shots like this, it’s so hard not to pounce. Proud “Latino/Hispanic American.” (according to her web page) Democrat County Supervisor Peggy West of Milwaukee County, WI, mounted this stirring argument as to why Milwaukee County should vote to boycott Arizona

Case closed.

[This is a cross post from my mom’s blog.] I’m back at my desk in DFW. It seems like I’ve been gone for a month even though it’s only been a week and a half.

While at the ranch, I was able to take measurements of whole bathroom, the doors, the bed, and even the front porch and walk. We “rebuilt” Mom’s bed. It was 36 inches tall. Now it’s only 18, the height required for her wheelchair. I have a rough plan for building a ramp from the font walk up to the porch. We’ve discussed the bathroom rebuild and have some ideas there. Dad is going to talk to a contractor soon so he can get an estimate on rebuilding the shower, etc.

Speaking of Dad: He’s always been a workaholic. He’s always been the type to get up early and work all day long (“You’re burnin’ daylight!”). But I’ve never seen him like this. He really is running raged all the time. Managing the ranch is a full time job, but now he’s caught between that; getting the house wheelchair accessible; cooking and cleaning for himself; keeping up with insurance claims, lawyers, medicare, doctors, nurses, etc., etc.; and driving back and forth between the ranch and Mom every day (almost) to ferry clothes, food, and all sorts of other comforts of home. I know we’re all focused on Mom and praying her healthy, but keep Dad in your prayers too. He needs it more than he’ll admit.

As for Mom, she’s doing amazing! She really is moving on to a new phase of her recovery. On Wednesday, around 6 PM, after getting her banking files transferred to her new laptop, she kicked me out! She said I needed to get on the road home and that she didn’t need me. (Not in a mean way, of course.) She doesn’t need anyone to stay with her over night. She doesn’t need anyone to help her onto her wheelchair or into the bathroom or to get her salad out of the refrigerator. She’s not 100% independent, but she’s coming along so fast. It seems like every day she achieves a new freedom. Way to go, Mom! We’re all very proud of you. (But do be careful. Don’t over do it.)

I know, I know. These are boring and not at all funny or whimsical. But this is all I got for now.

I’m typing this from my mom’s PC at the ranch in La Grange. I drove down after church this morning. That may seem confusing since my last post told of my driving down to Austin, but that was two weeks ago.

I had to leave the hospital while Mom was still almost totally incoherent (which was very very hard to do). I got back to my job for just long enough to get a big project done before we (Tammy and I) left on a long scheduled mission trip to Westcliffe, Colorado. Our original plan (pre-accident) was for Tammy to fly to Amarillo to spend some time with her parents. Then I would drive up in time for my parents’ big 50th anniversary party there in Amarillo on 6/12. Then we’d drive on up to CO with the rest of our mission group. After the mission, we’d stay in CO for several more days to see our old friends and enjoy the state we miss so much. Then back to work on Thursday, 6/24.

Naturally, all that got scrubbed. The anniversary party is postponed indefinitely. Doing what I can to help out Mom and Dad takes priority over a CO vacation. And, having already scheduled the time off from work makes this a bit easier.

In case you have not been following Mom’s progress on her blog (sandraladd.wordpress.com), she is on the road to recovery. It will be a very very long road, but at least she’s on it. She’s awake, coherent, and fairly active. She should be done with surgery (unless they decide she needs a skin graft for a large open wound on her ankle). She is out of the trauma hospital and on to a rehab facility in Round Rock (north of Austin) where she will be learning the tricks to living in a wheel chair, which she will face for the next 6 months while her hip and foot heal. Everything looks optimistic, in terms of a return to normalcy. It’s just that that return is a long way off (a year?) and right now she is uncomfortable in many ways that we bipeds would never think of. (ex. How do you go to the bathroom when you can’t get out of bed?)

I’m tired and sunburned from the mission trip (which went really well). Tammy stayed in DFW because she seems to have a cold or something and we can’t risk Mom catching anything. I was told to come to the ranch (rather than the rehab hospital) for tonight. So, I’m sitting here in the all-too-quiet house feeling rather lost and unhelpful, but hopefully that will change by morning. Once I have something that sounds less pathetic and self-centered, I will cross-post it here and on Mom’s blog.

And that’s all I’ve got to say about that.

Hey gang. In case you’re not following me on Facebook or Twitter (Why the heck not?!) here’s a quick update.

I’m in Austin at Brackenridge Hospital. My mom was in a serious car wreck yesterday (Thursday 6/3). Nothing life threatening but not great. Tammy and I drove down last night. My sister made it in from up north this morning. We’re all pretty tired and frazzled, but holding up.

Mom is still pretty well zonked out on pain meds. (This is a good thing!) She mumbles something now and then, but I think she’s still not real sure what’s going on yet.

She had surgery yesterday to remove her ruptured spleen. Everything else looks good internally. She has a concussion, but it’s not serious. The worst news is broken bones. She has a fractured left hip/pelvis, a fractured right ankle, and a crushed right heel.

She’ll probably have one surgery early next week for both the hip and ankle. The heel is the worst and will require a separate surgery late next week.

Please keep the prayers coming: Obviously for comfort and healing, for doctors and nurses, and for family peace and sanity. Also for the other driver who is here too, but, for privacy, they can’t really tell us anything. We’ve inferred by their reactions to question that he is in much worse shape.

For further updates, follow me on Twitter or Facebook (trint99) or check out the blog my cousin set up, which my sister will try to keep up to date: sandraladd.wordpress.com.