Crock’s Thoughts

I finally decided it was time to master balloon animals—I know, cool, right!? So, I purchased a bag of those squeaky, colorful tubes and a pump that looked like it belonged in a clown’s torture chamber.

My first attempt was a dog—I figured that would be easy. Nope! I twisted and twisted until it looked like a sad, deflated sausage with legs.

Then came the moment of truth: I attempted a giraffe. Big mistake! The neck launched like a rocket, pinged off the ceiling, and exploded right in my face. I shrieked like a schoolgirl—yep, docked myself a few man-card points there. My cat hightailed it out of the room, and my neighbor hollered, “Pipe down, you weirdo!” By the end, I was left with a heap of rubber wreckage and a newfound admiration for circus clowns.

Okay, I kinda-sorta fibbed about my balloon animal training. Truth is, I’ve been diving deep into the Runway Overrun Awareness and Alerting System (ROAAS) for my next writing project. It’s this cool aircraft technology that alerts pilots when they’re about to barrel off the runway like they’re auditioning for a Fast & Furious sequel.

So, no balloons were harmed—just my brain, which is still reeling from all the runway overrun information I’ve been learning. It’s a lot less chaotic than balloon-twisting, and honestly, way more practical!