Aileron

We went to Hayward for pattern work today. This was the first flight where we started assuming I'd handle all comms. Rimas is still happy to fix my mistakes, but now I'm the default. As mentioned before, I started flight training at an untowered airport in rural New Jersey where it was often the case that I was the only aircraft in the pattern and just made position reports to hear myself talk. Transitioning from that to one of the busiest airspaces in the country was intimidating, but my comfort preferences have switched now. I'd much rather be talking (making mistakes, feeling embarrassed) with a controller than bear the entire burden of traffic avoidance myself. In controlled airspace, help is always one button away, but outside, in the wastelands who knows if some crazy with no radio is trying to land on top of you where you can't see him.

I had a nice moment while in the pattern, where it hit me that I'm actually having fun doing this. I was looking forward to my next chance to talk to the controller, to my next chance to make my approach better, every leg of my pattern better. I like flying. That sounds obvious, but because lessons are always at the point of task saturation, it really is hard work, and it's easy to forget that I'm doing this voluntarily as a leisure activity. There've been multiple times driving home exhausted after a lesson thinking how I have a strange concept of leisure and, yeah, probably can't argue that, but it's not completely illogical. There are benefits to this.

• Flight Hours: Δ1.0   Σ28.1