Page 28 - Volume 17 Number 4

26 • TWIN & TURBINE APRIL 2013From the Flight Deck by Kevin R. DingmanD Fortso you remember when you first realized, perhaps around five to seven yearsold, that you no longer needed assistance to build a Fort? Mom or Grandma probably helped you to build some early Forts in the bedroom or living room, on one of those days that you skipped – I mean, were sick – and stayed home from school. Construction materials and furnishings included bed sheets and broom sticks, pillows and blankets, a box of Legos, the dog, GI-Joe, snacks and flashlights. And of course, if you had a good throwing arm and the big kids thought you were tolerable, they would let you participate in the building of a Snow Fort to defend the neighborhood. The concept of a solid and more permanent Fort was introduced later, when Dad helped with the one in the garage attic or the huge oak tree in the yard. Oh, the excitement and pride of building it, and then going inside the completed structure for the first time! You were a King.Secret TunnelMy best Fort was built when my Dad’s fourteen-foot aluminum fishing boat was stored for the winter, upside-down on sawhorses next to the driveway. After a good snow or two, and the addition of a few dozen shovels-full from the driveway, it became one large mound of snow. All that was needed was a secret tunnel to gain access to the underside of the suspended boat.When I built a large platform tree stand for bow hunting a few years ago, I planned on it being used just for hunting. But now, I sometimes climb up the thirty or so feet during the off season; it’s a place to be inspired. As a sportsman, you learn to sit quietly with your eyes and mind open. Some of mybest experiences in the outdoors were presented under just such a mindset. A field mouse rummaging around under the leaves by my boot as I sat on the ground; a small chipmunk, not realizing he had ventured onto Gulliver’s hunting bow, skittering up a bow limb and onto my gloved hand. Early one morning on the North rim of the Grand Canyon, a mule deer fawn stood on its hind legs and kangaroo- boxed with a flower atop a tall weed. The Fort building process has to do with personal space; getting away from Mom and Dad, the bullies of the neighborhood, or friends and family that cause your time and attention to be occupied with day- to-day tasks and, thus, formally placing that all-important creative play time on the back burner. My friends, I’m building an inspirational Fort.That’s Deductible, Right?For some silly reason, folks have decided that the politically- correct name for a grownup Fort is a Man Cave. Really – what kind of name is that for a Fort? In aviation circles, some exclusivity and gender neutrality has been employed and the name changed to Pilot Cave. For those of you that don’t like Fort, or either of the Cave names, what I’m really building is an office in my hangar – that’s a boring, very non- inspiring description. But I’m sure the IRS wouldn’t allow a deduction for building expenses if I called it my clubhouse, hideout, Fort, Man Cave or even a Pilot Cave. Hence, for tax purposes I’m building a Formal Office for Reading and writing Time:(FORT) – wink, wink. I’m keeping all the construction receipts of course, but, so far, the majority of it was purchased with Home Depot gift cards given to me last Christmas – that’s still deductible, right?And as long as we are wink- winking – one of the following things is quasi-illegal, so no telling anybody, and since we’re talking about a Fort, especially don’t tell any girls. Here’s a list of some of the cool things in my Fort: an artificial fireplace, a refrigerator and microwave, a desk with a wireless printer, a coffee table made from that blasted cracked engine case that kept me from Oshkosh last year, a couch, love seat, mirrored coat and hat rack, a book cabinet, a video poker machine from Vegas that weighs about a million pounds and of course, a Bose Wave CD player. Okay, the Bose was cut from the budget because the darned thing is about $1,200, but I will have music, aviation band radio and internet. My friends Jim and Karole at Kalamazoo Aircraft, the maintenance shop near my hangar, are letting me mooch their wireless signal. So, you see, all these things are normal furnishings found in a Formal Office for Reading and writing Time used by a writer and pilot; bring on the audit.Bunker-Strength Tool TimeLast year, the Duke was moved from a city hangar into a private row of T-hangars. This provided enough room and the political freedom to build the Fort. It’s no secret that airline pilots are notorious for