Today Rocked

I woke up this morning and thought to myself, I get to fly today. Ah and yes I did and it was awesome. Well Jerry said I'd be building some character today and well...I did. At first I was skeptical. I took two steps out my front door and saw snow, hail, and rain. I wasn't sure if we were going to be able to, but I went anyway figuring he'd call my cell if we had to cancel. Thankfully Jerry never called while I was on my way. I went inside and saw Jerry. Carl, Jerry, and I talked for a little bit and ended with Jerry saying he couldn't finish off the pot of coffee because it was the sabbath.
So yes, we were in fact gonna fly today. "I told you we're gonna build some character day, of course we're goin up!" He said. We went in the briefing room where he made a call to a student who was going to have his first lesson today; unfortunately for him they had to bag the lesson. After going up I'd say it was a good move. It was quite bumpy, although not as bumpy as I expected. We looked at the weather then we talked about the day's mission: Takeoffs, landings, taxiing, and flying the pattern in a Xwind. We tried to start the plane after the preflight or "Prefright" as me and Jerry call it. But the battery was shot so we jumped it. That was an experience. I actually had a reason to call "Clear!" for the prop area. So anyway, we taxied and he did the first takeoff and landing. Then it was my turn. I figured I'd be nervous, but the truth is, I get more nervous at home watching the Price is Right.
So I kept in my ailerons and kept her straight down centerline. Airspeed came up so I rolled out the ailerons a bit and jumped into the air in a right bank, nosed over, and put in my crab angle. That was cool. I find the Xwind landing is difficult, it's quite the challenge, but even though it was my first time, I felt just as comfortable doing it as I do a landing on a no wind day. I like the idea of comin' in hot. Xwind landings serve a dual purpose in training. They teach you the Xwind landing procedures and it makes you keep one hand on the throttle at all times during the approach and landing all the way to the end even while you're on the binders. That one hand on the throttle, if you're not used to it, is a chore until you do it so much that it's second nature. It serves the purpose not only on Xwind landings, but also an a no wind landing. Things can wrong at any time. Maybe you need and extra boost of power if you bounce off the runway or just to get to the runway. I did well today for not having flown in three weeks, and considering the weather.
In conclusion, the day rocked. I'm flying next Sunday again and I can't wait. I want to meet the first timer after his lesson see what he thinks. Basketball starts this week and I'm almost kinda bummed. I wanted to go flying after school one day. I guess that won't happen for awhile! Today has come and gone, and it was a great, challenging day. I love a good challenge.