Long-haired hero: If getting your cat's image tattooed on your shoulder seems borderline obsessive, consider Richard Dillon's reasons. The McAllen, Texas, man says his Persian, Kitty, saved his life by summoning his sleeping mother from a bedroom when he was unconscious in a nearby bathroom.
'Old' man and the sea: Ron Triplett shoots the lip during the 25th Annual Sunshine Freestyle Surfabout at Carmel Beach in Carmel, Calif. Triplett finished second in the grand masters division -- for fogeys aged 38 to 49.
Beautiful cat!......the real one, NOT the tatoo one!
SOUTHWEST ASIA -- Senior Airman Michael Ragsdale demonstrates a portable backup method of obtaining weather readings. Since weather is vital in flying operations, the weather observers let people know that it is more than just hot, humid and dusty. Airman Ragsdale is a weather observer with the 380th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron at a forward-deployed location and is from MacDill Air Force Base, Fla. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Elijah Roberts)
Deployed Weather Observers Report More Than The Obvious
by Master Sgt. Cheryl L. Toner
380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
6/8/2005 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- When people think of the job a weather observer has in Southwest Asia, they may believe it would be relatively simple. After all, day after day, it is hot, humid and dusty. What else would there be to report?
More than meets the eye, especially when taking into consideration the mission of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing at a forward-deployed location. Realizing this, the answer becomes much more complex. With a number of different aircraft, each operating within its own parameters, “What will the weather be like today?” is not a redundant question.
“No aircraft can take off or land without talking to us,” said Master Sgt. Wesley Mathias, who heads up the weather observer station in the 380th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron. Since wind drives the temperature, wind direction and speed are “critical for our aircraft,” he said.