Beautiful story, Latham. This captures the subtle elements that go into a special facet of one’s identity - including family ties, time invested, belonging, specialized knowledge, skill, and of course adventure. If I was that random person in the coffee shop, I’d ask for another story.
Beautiful story Latham, and what Julie wrote here captures the feelings that came up for me. And also, I really loved, “and squeezed me out of sleep.” This sentence was wonderfully written.
Thank you Julie. It was a lot of fun to write, one of those that comes out in one sitting without much editing needed at all. I also got a kick out of realizing I was following this piece with something way more serious, but which shares a similar theme.
So looking forward to reading the Recovery stories. That is at the center of my life and quite honestly I think many are approaching a long anticipated “bottom”. Timely and vital
Thanks David. I hope you find value in what I'm writing (going through another revision this weekend to make sure it has as much power as my skill allows). I hit my bottom about a year ago, and it's been one of the best things that happened to me on the other side of it.
Thank you for reading and being here in the community.
Haha, Latham, this made me smile. I have also taught my children how to strategically name drop and highlight things from my past to prove that I am (was) “someone”.
Thanks Justin. Would love to hear what your children highlight. I think it's really fun what kids can and will do.
My kids also name drop the Naval Academy. They're not impressed when I say my job is to be a writer. Maybe that's why I still have so much imposter syndrome about myself as a writer. 🤷♂️
It's fun to get in the point in life where we can flex from a place of security and healthy ego rather than insecurity combined with raging ego. This is how I read into Latham's piece. Check it out.
Btw, the policy institute I started is inspired by Col John Boyd, the fighter pilot turned maverick thinker. We've been operating behind the scenes to date but are starting to emerge publicly - boydinstitute.org
Great piece, Latham. I love the details: your dad closing the full ashtray, the kids running a left handed oval in that carrier landing pattern, falling asleep on commercial flights. (I tend to do the same: I get very sleepy at the gate before push off and often miss the takeoff.) Now you should tell people that not only have you "flown:" you have also "written"!
Thank you Renato. I'm grateful you enjoyed those details. I took out the moments when I fell asleep as the pilot (save those for another conversation).
I think I'll save the "written" accolade for when my first book gets published. But I'm honored and humbled to read you say that.
I'm afraid the Miramar days were before my time Roddy. I only knew Fallon, and I wish I hadn't. It was actually one of the main factors when I decided not to apply to be a WTI.
it was a bad cycle. Only the "true believers" were willing to go to Fallon. Which meant they only picked other "true believers" to become WTIs, and suddenly you had a perfect self-licking ice cream cone.
Was that your path? I realized I don't know a lot about what you flew.
I need a few "no" voices in the room. I was concerned when it was a room filled with all "true believers". There is a necessary "tension" in nature and in relationship. That tension that comes from day and night, and the tension between spring planting and fall harvest. Ya know?
I wasn't so "Top Gun". While it's necessary to parse out for mission and function, I felt we all had basic capabilities to operate and aviate aircraft. There was temporal calculus in all of it. Those that "got good" quickly and happened to select on the "right week" got those cockpits out of flight school and even in flight school. I did well in primary and struggled in intermediate training. That put me behind, never to catch up, and then swept up in cuts and arbitrary selection criteria. In the end, I was proud to be and grateful for the opportunity to instruct flying and learn to be a teacher.
I'm dead serious that I've told people I have a friend who is a Top Gun pilot. So I guess your daughter and I are liars. Or you can go back to Top Gun school for us (Tom Cruise did it).
I'm all here for flying stories. You have so many cool dimensions to who you are as a person (and I appreciate them all), but this one is like cheesecake to me (I can always have a serving).
Thank you Camilo. We jokingly called our own weapons school "Top Dome." Not quite as cool as top gun, but also my airplane didn't shoot missiles or guns (other than the 9mm I carried on me flying in theater). Although....there was an attempt to put a missile on our plane in the 50s. I've seen the videos, it was not a good idea.
Thanks for reading and commenting. It's always a balance writing about those stories and who I used to be, but I think sometimes I err on the side of not celebrating them enough. They're often just fun to write.
Totally. There are some things worth a $50 fine, and a well placed Top Gun quote is definitely one of them. Plus, that money went straight to the O-Club to buy the first few beers anyways, so it was money well spent.
Beautiful story, Latham. This captures the subtle elements that go into a special facet of one’s identity - including family ties, time invested, belonging, specialized knowledge, skill, and of course adventure. If I was that random person in the coffee shop, I’d ask for another story.
Beautiful story Latham, and what Julie wrote here captures the feelings that came up for me. And also, I really loved, “and squeezed me out of sleep.” This sentence was wonderfully written.
Thank you James. That poor old woman, sitting next to a pilot who was too young and cocky to have any social tact.
Glad you enjoyed it.
Thank you Julie. It was a lot of fun to write, one of those that comes out in one sitting without much editing needed at all. I also got a kick out of realizing I was following this piece with something way more serious, but which shares a similar theme.
I'm glad you enjoyed it.
So looking forward to reading the Recovery stories. That is at the center of my life and quite honestly I think many are approaching a long anticipated “bottom”. Timely and vital
Thanks David. I hope you find value in what I'm writing (going through another revision this weekend to make sure it has as much power as my skill allows). I hit my bottom about a year ago, and it's been one of the best things that happened to me on the other side of it.
Thank you for reading and being here in the community.
Haha, Latham, this made me smile. I have also taught my children how to strategically name drop and highlight things from my past to prove that I am (was) “someone”.
Thanks Justin. Would love to hear what your children highlight. I think it's really fun what kids can and will do.
My kids also name drop the Naval Academy. They're not impressed when I say my job is to be a writer. Maybe that's why I still have so much imposter syndrome about myself as a writer. 🤷♂️
It's fun to get in the point in life where we can flex from a place of security and healthy ego rather than insecurity combined with raging ego. This is how I read into Latham's piece. Check it out.
Btw, the policy institute I started is inspired by Col John Boyd, the fighter pilot turned maverick thinker. We've been operating behind the scenes to date but are starting to emerge publicly - boydinstitute.org
Thanks Jeff. As I mentioned on notes, this ended up being a fun flex (if we would call it that).
I'm excited to see what you're doing at the boyd institute. I hope you'll share more.
I love this Latham. Thanks for the kind and funny bump this morning...just what I needed.
Thanks for reading Dee. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Great piece, Latham. I love the details: your dad closing the full ashtray, the kids running a left handed oval in that carrier landing pattern, falling asleep on commercial flights. (I tend to do the same: I get very sleepy at the gate before push off and often miss the takeoff.) Now you should tell people that not only have you "flown:" you have also "written"!
Thank you Renato. I'm grateful you enjoyed those details. I took out the moments when I fell asleep as the pilot (save those for another conversation).
I think I'll save the "written" accolade for when my first book gets published. But I'm honored and humbled to read you say that.
This first phone book story is a heart-melter."He loved flying his plane, and I loved him"
Thanks Rick. He was a pretty amazing man. Definitely one of those people I tell stories about to my own kids about their great grandfather.
Top Gun Tuesdays. Hilarious. Can it even be the same now that it’s at Fallon? No way it’s better than was it still at Miriamar.
I'm afraid the Miramar days were before my time Roddy. I only knew Fallon, and I wish I hadn't. It was actually one of the main factors when I decided not to apply to be a WTI.
But at least Reno was always close.
I suspect the location kept a few away from WTI.
it was a bad cycle. Only the "true believers" were willing to go to Fallon. Which meant they only picked other "true believers" to become WTIs, and suddenly you had a perfect self-licking ice cream cone.
Was that your path? I realized I don't know a lot about what you flew.
I need a few "no" voices in the room. I was concerned when it was a room filled with all "true believers". There is a necessary "tension" in nature and in relationship. That tension that comes from day and night, and the tension between spring planting and fall harvest. Ya know?
I wasn't so "Top Gun". While it's necessary to parse out for mission and function, I felt we all had basic capabilities to operate and aviate aircraft. There was temporal calculus in all of it. Those that "got good" quickly and happened to select on the "right week" got those cockpits out of flight school and even in flight school. I did well in primary and struggled in intermediate training. That put me behind, never to catch up, and then swept up in cuts and arbitrary selection criteria. In the end, I was proud to be and grateful for the opportunity to instruct flying and learn to be a teacher.
I'm dead serious that I've told people I have a friend who is a Top Gun pilot. So I guess your daughter and I are liars. Or you can go back to Top Gun school for us (Tom Cruise did it).
I'm all here for flying stories. You have so many cool dimensions to who you are as a person (and I appreciate them all), but this one is like cheesecake to me (I can always have a serving).
Thank you Camilo. We jokingly called our own weapons school "Top Dome." Not quite as cool as top gun, but also my airplane didn't shoot missiles or guns (other than the 9mm I carried on me flying in theater). Although....there was an attempt to put a missile on our plane in the 50s. I've seen the videos, it was not a good idea.
Thanks for reading and commenting. It's always a balance writing about those stories and who I used to be, but I think sometimes I err on the side of not celebrating them enough. They're often just fun to write.
The way I click so fast every time you have a flying-related story...
Thanks Becky. I’m glad they resonate
This is *earned* dropability...No shame in that! And I’m very much looking forward to the Recovery post too!
Thanks EL. It was fun to write, kind of just to let loose.
I hope Monday's post will resonate.
This was so fun to read 😂 I loved the style! And I had know idea you flew planes!
Thanks Michelle. It was fun to write.
Haha, it's a pretty well kept secret 🤣
Oh, I definitely want to hear more about Top Gun Tuesdays. And did anyone ever quote the movie at some opportune time despite the fine?
Totally. There are some things worth a $50 fine, and a well placed Top Gun quote is definitely one of them. Plus, that money went straight to the O-Club to buy the first few beers anyways, so it was money well spent.