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« December 2006 |
Main
| February 2007 »
Well... "Not so much"
At left is the prediction yesterday from AccuWeather.com, at right is the current (Wednesday) predicition. By the time it gets here I predict we may see a grass-covering 1", if we're "lucky."
My heart really goes out to this poor woman. Assuming this is a photograph of the "victim" before the "crime."
The Pakistan Daily Times (don't you love the Internet?) is reporting that an ancient mirror was dropped during a Chinese TV show. The mirror was dropped by a model while she was showing it to the audience. Unfortunately this wasn't any old mirror - the mirror dated back 2,500 years and was worth £500,000 (or $979,250 USD according to Google.) The owner of the mirror was sitting in the front row.
For a description of the mirror and to see what the owner did next, head over to Pakistan.
Uncredited photo from the Daily Times. Believed to be the million dollar 2,500 year-old mirror before the accident.
If California Assemblyman Lloyd Levine has his way, the incandescent lightbulb will hear it's last "How Many X Does it Take to Screw In A Lightbulb" joke by the year 2012. The Assemblyman wants to do away with the bulbs in an effort to reduce energy use and greenhouse gases, which are of course warming the earth and going to kill us all by 2011 and a half.
(I know I'm an unreasonable skeptic, but when one cosiders all that the planet earth has been through in its lifetime, from meteor impacts to volcanic activity, tectonic plate shifting to Paris Hilton, it's hard to imagine that we're going to doom life by using too many incandescent lightbulbs. On the other hand, in the interest of full disclosure, I've switched about 60% of our bulbs to the non-incandescent variety which, in case you were wondering, cost about $42 dollars each.)
I guess this means that in the near future you will probably not be able to spank your two-year-old with a lightbulb. Or something. (It must be hard to keep track of all of this stuff if you live in Cali-fornia.)
Article here from Reuters.
It appears as though we're in the cross-hairs of the first significant snowfall this winter:
I would be remiss in my role as Captain Bitter if I didn't point out that swath of 6-12 that mysteriously stops right before State College and then picks up again afterwards. I mean, that's just plain weird. Maybe the storm senses an abundance of snowblowers in the county, or something.
I'll keep everyone posted. I may have to raid the grocery store for bread, milk and Twinkies like the lemming that I am.
"They also move erratically about the lab, rolling around on the floor, bouncing off objects, and burning whatever they touch."
At first I thought this was an article about Henry, as I often see him rolling around on the floor, and bouncing off objects, and moving erratically. He will often burn whatever he touches too, which is a real hassle since I sit next to him and he keeps borrowing my phone book.
But no, this is an article about ball lightning. Wikipedia has a great article on ball lightning, including an old photo of some ball lightning entering a saloon to get a cold, frosty beer. (I'm firmly convinced that Wikipedia is written by aliens; there's really no other explanation.)
In any event, scientists in Brazil may have solved the ball lightning mystery. To review, the mystery is "Where does it come from? What does it want? Why doesn't it just approach our leaders and try to open a peaceful dialog?" The article really doesn't answer all of these questions to my satisfaction. Apparently silicon is involved. As many people know, silicon occurs naturally in, um, nature and since it's so plentiful it could explain how ball lightning forms just about everywhere, including up-scale saloons.
If you have any questions after reading the article feel free to post them in the comments. I've been contacted by ball lightning and may be able to pass along a question or two.
 Tonight it was my turn to take Cassie to her Tae Kwon Do testing. It was my turn for three reasons:
1. I hadn't gone last time.
2. Alert Volunteer Tammy was volunteering at the crisis pregnancy center in town.
3. It is the coldest night here in 400 years, or something.
Now, any situation where I should be present in order to support my child(ren) and ALSO have to be in close proximity to other humans that I don't know creates a lot of tension for me. I find making small talk difficult, and tend to want to just cut to the chase and discuss religion, or politics, or something controversial like trans-fats. But those are generally not the sorts of things you discuss in these situations, so I try to control myself and just listen instead.*
Listening, though, only serves to further convince me I need to work on my patience. Because I find that if I hear something I disagree with I have this chivalrous urge to wade in, long sword swinging to and fro, in an attempt to Make It All Right. Past experience has taught me that's a misdemeanor.
Cassie's instructor is Master Chaar. Master Chaar runs the Chaar Tae Kwon Do & Martial Arts Center. So far I've been very impressed with Master Chaar personally and professionally. As an example, he puts together extra movie nights for the kids to come, play with some of the equipment and just unwind with a good, kid-friendly movie. I think that's great - fostering that sense of community amongst the students. Professionally his accomplishments are very substantial.
Although he's really a nice guy - you don't want to cross him. If you do, it would probably go down like this: First, he would raise his hand into some sort of animal shape. Then he would say: "DANCING PYTHON IN THE CLOUDS!" without moving that hand at all, for about ten seconds. But then you would realize he haf been moving it all along - too fast for the human eye to see - and then your head would fall off your body. (I know all of this because he ordered extra anchovies one night and the pizza boy didn't come through and, well, I think the next guy made sure there was a whole bunch on there.
Cassie's testing went very well. She had to break a board again, but instead of using her head, she was only allowed to use her left ear (she's left-handed.) Eventually, as she progresses, she'll have to learn how to break a board with a harsh word, and then at the last test - she'll break a board with a stern look. I have no doubt that she can do it. I get that same look from Alert Reader Tammy all of the time. Oh, I know she tones it down because so far I've only suffered some minor abrasions, a bruise or two, and once a pretty good sprain. I'm convinced that one day she'll lay it on me big time and I'll probably show up at work with crutches the next day. And lot of pain medication.
Cassie did wonderfully and I'm very proud of her. She sacrificed last week to attend extra classes in advance of her testing, even though I'm sure there were other things she wanted to do. And she was a trooper tonight, still feeling a little queasy from her weekend bug. Now that she passed the test there will be a new belt ceremony this weekend complete with cake. I hate getting my arm twisted like that but I think I can make it.
*Okay, that was pretty vague, even for me. So here's a sample, which I write at my peril because we know that this sort of thing will go around and the next time I show up at TKD I'll get a look from this person that seems to say "Oh THERE'S the Smug Blog Hero with his Smug Blog WhoThinksHeKNOWSEVERYTHING!" But, really, this is just an example of my challenge interacting with other humans. I observed a woman talking with her young son, who was slightly nervous. The mother remarked "What can I do to give you good luck?" and she sort of hemmed and hawed and actually there was this extended semi-embarassing pause as it seemed inevitable that the young lad was now going to enter his testing sans any luck of any sort. Without thinking I almost said, "You could say a prayer for him" which I would have said respectfully, but that's one of those things that you never know how it would be taken. (I ended saying a silent prayer) Should I have said anything? Introvert Carl says no and is breathing into a paper bag at just the thought. Perfectionist Carl says yes and is figuring out how to commandeer the brain when another situation like this turns up.
All in all, just another night at Tae Kwon Do.
 I appreciate the effort here, really. I know everyone is working as hard as possible. But I have to say I'm a little disappointed.
First, if you're going to unveil a ray gun it can't be as big as a Hummer. Everyone knows that ray guns are hand-held weapons, because only then can they be concealed properly until the right moment, at which point you pull out the ray gun from your pants or a pocket or from under your hat and point it at your enemy with a triumphant, "A-HA!"
Second, the ray gun that the military has developed shoots a beam that makes people feel as if they will catch on fire. What? Whatever happened to shooting a beam that actually makes people burst into flames? Eventually people are going to figure out that they're not catching on fire. And you KNOW some super villain somewhere is now trying to leapfrog this technology and create weapon that makes you feel like you're going to catch on fire, AND makes you feel like you don't look good in that dress. And where will all of this end? They should either work on the ray gun that makes you feel like you just need to go home and nap, or a weapon that makes you catch on fire. Let's just get the job done.
CNN article. Photo courtesy CNN/AP.
This would be somewhere around #3 or #4.
The Times Online reports "A married woman who was having an affair with a fellow skydiver plunged 13,000ft to her death after her love rival and best friend tampered with her parachute, police say."
I really can't even begin to do this story justice, so just visit the Times Online and read the entire article. It reads like a TV episode of something (CSI?) and has everything a "great" made-for-tv movie would have: A two-timing guy, having affairs with two women who are best friends, his attempts to keep the two women from knowing about the affair with the other, the entire group belonging to a skydiving organization, betrayal, murder, a horrible death. And the fall captured on a helmet camera.
This is one of those articles that I read and then can't help but put myself in the victim's shoes: what do you do when you're 13,000' up and your chutes don't open? Did she figure out what happened? How do you suspect your "best friend" of cutting both of your chutes?
There are some other interesting revelations about the woman charged with the crime at the end of the article.
Just horrible.
First, the latest forecast. (No, really, I'm not bitter.)
And here's a recent radar image sent in by Alert Reader and Radar Watcher Mark:
This radar shows the "State College Effect" - as it's called in the office. It's also referred to as the "Weather Shield" because the reason weather does this in central Pennsylvania is that we're ground zero for the testing of a state-of-the-art high-frequency weather repelling device. The device is fueled by coniferous trees, slate, beer and college students - so State College was an obvious choice.
In all fairness to the weather, this past week we've gotten some snow. Our sidewalk was covered three different days. Not the lawn, mind you - just the sidewalk and driveway. This covering of the sidewalk to at least .3" triggered the business-starved snow removal people that I contract with, and I was awoken the other morning by the high-pitched whine of something mechanical. I knew that someone was outside, actually removing my .3" of snow for the same fee I would (will?) pay if it snows two feet. Although my blood began to boil it still wasn't enough to get me out of bed because I asked myself "Do you really want to start an argument this early in the morning?" Fortunately good sense won out, and I'll start an argument some other time when I'm well-rested and capable of witty comebacks like, "Well, fine then! I won't pay!" Okay, the comebacks need a little work, I'll still feeling under the weather.
Speaking of under the weather, my nemesis is out of the office for a few days. He and Jesse were packed up and shipped out to Wichita to visit our branch office for a big Weather Summit. I could tell you what it was about but then... you know. You have to feel for Henry; he's been calling for the big Northeast Snow Storm for quite some time now but it just won't cooperate. I hear he has a snowblower, but that's just crazy talk.
Our family has been experiencing every kind of illness since Christmas. We take turns with the vomiting, usually in this order: Connor, Cassie, Tammy, Carl. And by turns I mean each person has the illness for 2-3 days. I just recently experienced something new; a moderate fever, chills, insomnia, and a horrible horrible headache. As of tonight, 11:43, I'm feeling better although very worn out. I'm off to bed soon, but wanted to apologize for the dearth of posts. Mostly so that I could use the word "dearth."
So forgive me as I ramp up here again and get to some email in the next day or so...
 Before I begin I have a confession to make. I have not seen either of the two aired episodes of American Idol, except for a short part walking through the room wherein Alert Viewer Tammy (who may or may not be my wife, but certainly is my idol) was watching. That said (and confessed) I read this article with some interest: New 'Idol' Season Shows Mean Streak.
If you've seen the show and have an opinion, I'd love to hear it. My opinion about this is formed only by snippets of past shows seen in transit past the television on the way to the bathroom or refridgerator, or from articles written about the show (which are all but impossible to avoid.) That said, my first reaction is "What were they expecting?"
If I was to go on American Idol I would fully expect the humiliation of my life - a humiliation to end all humiliations. I would expect that everyone I know would be quoting whatever Simon Cowell would tell me for at least a year. I would expect my clip to be put on You Tube and passed around the office ad infinitum. This show consists of two distinct parts: The humiliation part and the talent part. And to say that people don't want to see the humiliation part? Sadly that's untrue, as the record viewing audience for these first two shows this season proves. Are the judges getting ruder? Possibly, but if that's the case I think it's more a response to the audience watching the show, not some crazy idea the producers thought they would test out.
Personally, I can't watch this sort of thing because my heart breaks for people who embarrass themselves. These people really do think they're talented, and (to me) there's nothing more depressing than watching someone get their dreams crushed. Not just crushed, but sort of hit by a semi and backed over a few times. And then set on fire.
But should they be surprised at the harshness of it all? Not so much?
It's not my intention to flog this horse for too long. When I start writing about certain current events I never know when to stop. The simple approach would be to stop when the story stops, and this one doesn't seem ready to stop. The other approach, which I normally take, is to stop when I get bored or get a headache, or both. Right now I'm getting a pretty good headache, so this might be the last update. Not only that, but several polar bears have called me to weigh in.
There's an interesting update, of sorts, to the global warming brouhaha found here: The Weather Channel Climate Expert Refuses to Retract Call for Decertification for Global Warming Skeptics. This site is associated with the Senate Environmental Public Works Committee, and specifically the minority chair, Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma). Sen. Inhofe is a big human-induced global warming skeptic, so keep that in mind when you read the article.
The point that I think is worth considering here is this: some have said that Ms. Cullen's blog statement, about decertifying those that don't tow the climate change line (my words), was taken out of context, or that she didn't mean it that way. However, Ms. Cullen in her responses today and that channel about weather have both refused to clarify her statements or suggest that they were taken out of context. This leaves one with the conclusion that she meant it just as it sounds, and that it's not being taken out of context.
Having been in the weather industry for 17 years you'll have to forgive me if I find all of this amusing. Hopefully things will calm down and those researching climate change can go back to scientific studies instead of arguing about who needs to believe what and how we can make them believe it.
For an impartial (IMO) look at both sides of the global warming debate visit AccuWeather.com's Global Warming Blog written by Laura Hannon. It sports a classy blog design by yours truly, you can leave comments and also check out the Headline: Earth™ video spots by Katie Fehlinger. I think they're doing a good job of making the debate more understandable without politically "clouding the issues." (Sorry, couldn't resist.)
Blogger's Note: The above comments do not reflect the views of AccuWeather, any particular AccuWeather Meteorologist, that channel about weather, polar bears, Senator Inhofe, anybody from Oklahoma which incidentally is a very nice place to visit if you're driving by I would really encourage you to stop in and say hello, or the Japanese Mafia. Thank you.
I've been watching this story for most of 2007 as I have friends (albeit "Blog Friends" but friends nonetheless) in New Orleans. They've been personally impacted by the rise in crime as a good friend of theirs was killed and her husband shot and wounded. Like many in New Orleans, they're considering leaving - a difficult decision as they love the city and history of the area.
The first fourteen days of 2007 have brought ten murders, according to this Christian Science Monitor article. The past year has seen a dramatic increase in holdups, carjackings, and murders, and is sapping the strength and resolve of residents of New Orleans.
"The crime is way worse than the storm," says Charles Cannon, a born and raised New Orleanian who works as an English professor at the University of New Orleans. And while many would blame the crime, or at least the increase in crime, on triggers like Katrina or the slow federal response to the storm, Mr. Cannon says the city has to look to itself and find solutions. "We can't shake our fists and blame someone else for what's happening."
Are things really that bad? This statistic suggests they are, and is even difficult to believe: The national conviction rate for murder and attempted murder in 2003 and 2004 is 80 percent. In New Orleans? The rate is a staggering 12 percent at best. (According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the Metropolitan Crime Commission respectively.)
What are you going to do? Send me to heaven?
Many residents are fighting back though, and attempting to take the streets back from the criminal element. Dave Scott, who lives in Central City - "ground zero" for the crime wave - runs youths off of street corners whom he suspects of dealing drugs. When threatened, Scott just replies, "What are you going to do? Send me to heaven?" Scott and his church group travel the neighborhood and invite teens to join a basketball league. Unsupervised youth, many of whom are left alone because older parents and grand parents have not yet returned to the city, are thought to be a large part of the problem.
I hope that New Orleans can pull together and solve their problems. I like to think of myself as an optimist, but there are so many challenges there and still so much damage from the storm that remains, I have to wonder.
 Dr. Heidi Cullen and that channel about weather have finally responded to the firestorm that was created with her December 21 blog post. You can find a video here, and her blog response here. Having just posted about language and how choices of words and phrases can say so much, I found the video fascinating.
In the video, Dr. Cullen makes the point that that channel about weather has not chosen a political side in the global warming debate, and that there isn't any sort of political agenda. But the video ends with an ad (which I've screen-captured at right) that states:
"Will Pres. Bush save the polar bears?"
Now, I love polar bears. Some of my best friends are polar bears. In fact, a polar bear pulled me out of burning wreckage when my plane was shot down over 'Nam*. I also love President Bush, who pulled me out of a burning polar bear when I was shot down over the San Diego Zoo back in '86**. But to me, the question "Will Pres. Bush save the polar bears?" is a political question. It speaks to the inherent tension in the global warming debate where policy decisions reflect (to some) priorities on the environment, global warming and polar bears. I haven't watched this particular episode and probably won't, but it's hard to believe there are no politics involved here.
Agree? Disagree? Bored? Want to hear what happened after the polar bears pulled me out of the burning wreckage and took me into their home? Leave a comment!
*Okay, maybe I made that up.
**Okay, not so much.
Blogger's Note: The above comments do not reflect the views of AccuWeather, any particular AccuWeather Meteorologist, that channel about weather, polar bears, aircraft manufacturers or the San Diego Zoo, which actually is a terribly nice place to visit although I wouldn't recommend getting shot down over it particularly over the polar bear exhibit as they're awfully testy about that sort of thing particularly right before feeding, or the Japanese Mafia. Thank you.
Interesting Side Note: Should Side Note be hyphenated? Like Side-Note. I don't think so (Susan?) but if so I apologize to all of the people in the audience who just cringed and sort of shook in an uncontrolled manner. Anyway, my side...note: This page mentions that Dr. Cullen first got a bachelor's degree in Near Eastern religions and history from Juniata College before going on to engineering and operations research and then climate variability. That's an interesting evolution, from Near Eastern religions to climate variability. (Sort of like "anything at all" to "blogger".)
Where were these people when I was a kid?
California assemblywoman Sally Lieber (D-Mountain View) has introduced a bill to outlaw spanking children up to 3 years old. Now, whether you agree or disagree with spanking, this article via the MediaNews Sacramento Bureau is a fascinating read because it shows how people use language to communicate.
For example, the author himself (Mike Zapler) says the following early on:
"California would become the first state in the nation to explicitly ban parents from smacking their kids."
Now, would pro "discipline" parents use the word "smacking?" No doubt there are people who "smack" their children, but I don't think that's discipline done correctly. (For the record, I really don't know what "spanking under three" means. I don't know if there are specifics to how the rogue spanking needs to be applied to be against the law, what happens if there is rogue spanking, etc.)
Next in the article the assemblywoman says the following:
"I think it's pretty hard to argue you need to beat a child 3 years old or younger,'' Lieber said. "Is it OK to whip a 1-year-old or a 6-month-old or a newborn?''
Now we've graduated from "smacking" to "beat" and "whip". I thought this was a no-spanking bill, not a no-whipping bill. I'm guessing parents who whip a newborn would likely face felony abuse charges.
Wherever you fall on the spanking issue, it's interesting (to me, anyway) how people use words. It reminds me to always listen and read carefully.
Alert Readers Jane and Joe sent this photo from the BBC, which you can find in their In Pictures section as of this writing under the section called "The Big Picture:"
Their caption reads: A young Highland cow covered in Snow at Carronbridge near Denny in Scotland after heavy snow fall. Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA
I think a better caption is simply, "Mmmmmmmm, Snow" which is something I haven't been able to say yet because of a total and complete lack of a first eatable snowfall.*
*Blog Hero cautions all readers that the Blog Hero is not suggesting you eat snow, and is not responsible for any mishap that may occur to you if you do eat snow. Please, eat snow responsibly. Do not eat yellow snow, and do not eat snow that is not white, or well you know light gray. Do not eat snow with little sticks or rocks in it, or mulch unless you can pick out most of the big pieces. Do not eat snow given to you by friends, no matter how well-meaning because really you don't know where that snow came from. Thank you.
Blog Hero says "eatable" even though everyone laughs when he does that. Actually, everyone laughs usually no matter what Blog Hero says. Hmm.
 There's a bit of hay being made in meteorological circles since December 21, 2006 when Dr. Heidi Cullen of the Weather Channel posted this in her blog:
If a meteorologist can't speak to the fundamental science of climate change, then maybe the AMS shouldn't give them a Seal of Approval.
You can read the post here - it might sound like it's taken out of context or something, but it really isn't. That appears to be her position. The comments are somewhat amusing too. I'm a bit surprised there are only 72, but I suppose they're moderating and only approving certain ones. (i.e. those that don't discuss Viagra or Ambien.)*
The biggest challenge I have with her sentiment is not whether humans are causing or contributing to global warming - my concern is that this sort of solution (withholding the AMS seal unless a certain climate change view is held) stifles scientific debate. Meteorology is a complicated discipline, and there are many, many factors involved. Scientists are trained (I thought) to have an open mind, to be skeptical, and to search for answers wherever they may lead. Once there was a scientific consensus that the sun revolved around the earth, and woe to anyone who dared to disagree. Hopefully we've come a long way since then. (We now know that the earth and sun revolve around each other, for example, and that the earth isn't flat - it's a disc on the backs of four elephants that stand on the back of a giant turtle walking through space.)
Blogger's Note: The above comments do not reflect the views of AccuWeather, any particular AccuWeather Meteorologist, Terry Pratchett, my accountant, my hair stylist, my personal masseuse, turtles, or the Japanese Mafia. Incidentally I don't have a personal masseuse but would like a really good, inexpensive one, particularly one that has his/her own masseuse table and those heated rocks and expertise in that fast chopping form of massage, that looks entertaining. Thank you.
*Update: Comments have jumped to 121 as I post this, so they must be going through the mail.
Here's a funny AccuWeather.com Graphic:
This is funny because you have this map of the United States, with this ginormous monster storm which starts with snow in Arizona (Arizona! Just let that sink in for a second) and goes all the way across the country to the east coast, but when it hits Pennsylvania it fizzles out. In fact, the graphics folks did a great job with this image, showing the Pennsylvania Fizzling Effect beautifully.
Sigh.
For those of you actually in the path of the storm, take care, check AccuWeather.com early and often and make sure your stockpiles of bread and milk are up to snuff. Get some ice melt too; I've read that areas of the midwest hit last week ran out in many places. Oh, and take lots of pictures for your friends in Pennsylvania who have to experience winter vicariously through Flickr this year.
DTUS stands for Difficult To Understand Story. It comes from The Sun via Drudge:
East Side Art Dealer Sues Homeless Men
I'm tempted to leave it at that, and not even comment, but how can I resist? First, the fellow suing is Karl Kemp. You can find out more about Karl here. He seems like a decent sort; at least he has a great name.
The store involved is Karl Kemp Antiques - and while there are two locations listed here, it's the 833 Madison Avenue location in question. I wonder what the rent is like at 833 Madison Avenue? Here's a shot of the street in question from Google Maps.
I'm curious about the $1 million part of the lawsuit. I can completely understand being frustrated and possibly losing business because homeless people are loitering outside of your store and creating an environment that is not conducive to selling expensive antiques. But why sue for $1 million? I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that these men won't be able to pay, even if this were to go to trial and Karl would win. And in the meantime, Karl will get beaten up in the press for being a successful, wealthy antiques dealer on Madison Avenue unleashing his high priced legal team on a bunch of urinating, alcohol-consuming, cardboard-box living men who don't even own sanitary clothing.
Sound off in the comments!
Joe Bastardi's column on AccuWeather.com Professional today has this chilling (sorry) warning:
"Two major winter storms from Texas to mid atlantic and New England in period Jan 20-27. Cold continues to deepen nationwide, extreme shot growing more likely week of Jan 30."
You can subscribe to Pro here. Has Alert Reader Tammy's (snow) luck finally run out, or is Carl looking at another bag full of rocks? Only time will tell...
I discovered the cause of the citrus freeze in California. It came to me via email from Amazon.com, of all places. At first I didn't know why I was getting this email, but when I followed the link suddenly it all fell into place.
This definitely would cause temperatures to drop and citrus (not bananas) to freeze.
 The governator has asked the federal government for disaster aid in the aftermath of four days (nights) of freezing weather, which now is estimated to have caused nearly $1 billion (with a B) dollars in losses to crops, particularly citrus. Hardest hit were oranges, lemons and tangerines. Bananas, which are rumored to be used in the making of banana juice, were apparently spared.
The good news for consumers not directly involved in the industry is that prices aren't expected to spike, although some short-term rise in probably unavoidable. An unnamed spokesperson for the banana industry was quoted as saying, "Now is a GREAT time to get some extra bananas and squeeze your own banana juice."
You can get the details here from this AP article. The photo at right is some wannabe frozen OJ in Modesto, California on Tuesday. (AP Photo by talented AP Photographer Rich Pedroncelli)
If I had to pick between losing oranges and losing bananas, I would probably lose bananas although I enjoy both fruits. You really can't drink bananas* though, so oranges win by a nose (leaf?).
California has experienced a crippling citrus freeze in the last few days. An amazing $700 million dollars worth of fruit has been destroyed, and it's estimated that up to 10,000 jobs may be lost as a result. I've read that 3/4 of the crop may have been lost, but I've also read that 25% of the crop was harvested before the freeze. That would mean (he says, quickly doing the math in a computer-like fashion) that all of the remaining crop was destroyed. Right?
ABC has an article here that also mentions lemons. I really don't care for lemons at all, so I don't feel a lot of pain there although I'm not happy to hear about the economic loss that people experience as a result of these things.
And now, the Rhetorical Question of the Day: If you experience unseasonable high temperatures in the northeast, that's global warming - but if you experience unseasonable low temperatures in the west, is that global warming too? Break up into small groups and discuss.
*If you or someone you know have actually found someone willing to take a normal, decent banana and squeeze it to the point that some sort of banana juice is created, I really don't want to know about that. Some things, like Santa, the Easter Bunny and solid bananas should never be spoiled.
This weekend the Schaads attended a funeral in Ohio. I would have mentioned this before I left, but our 40' tall "Please Rob Us" neon sign was in the shop, and announcing via the blog that I was going to be out of town seemed somehow inappropriate without the sign. (I'm sure I'll make similar announcements in the future once the sign is repaired.) Tammy's grandfather Vernon passed away shortly after Christmas after a battle with cancer, and one of his wishes was that there would be two weeks until a funeral so that people would have time to make preparations and get to Ohio. That's a small insight into what made Vernon a great man; his life was marked by an uncharacteristic selflessness (uncharacteristic for human beings, I think) that put other people first. Vernon was a devout Christian, and after the funeral there was a "Home Going" service at his church. I hope that when I come to the end of my time people say even half of the things that they said about Vernon. It was very convicting to hear what friends and family shared. Someone said that for as long as they knew him, Vernon never had a single bad thing to say about anyone, and no one he knew had a bad thing to say about him. How many people can say the same thing? Very humbling.
The travel weather was very dreary, which seems fitting for a funeral somehow. We drove out Thursday and I think it's not an exaggeration to say there were more semis on the road than cars. I don't normally mind sharing the road with trucks, but when you're driving on wet roads at night in the rain it can be a little nerve-wracking.
On the way back from Ohio we drove slightly out of our way and went through Pittsburgh. We did this for two reasons:
1. The more direct route would be to take I80 from Ohio to State College, but I80 is in the northern tier of the state where ice and snow are more common. (Snow? Pause here for insane laughter.)
2. Pittsburgh is the home of Moio's Italian Pastry Shop. I've been a MIPS addict since I was a wee young lad and didn't know any better. Moio's makes the best cake on earth, and anytime I come within 100 miles of Pittsburgh I usually go out of my way to stop by. I don't know what we'll have to eat in Heaven, but I'm willing to bet that Moio's cake and chocolate chip cookies are somehow involved.
While in Pittsburgh we also stopped at Dave and Buster's and let the kids get their fill of electronic fun while Tammy and I had a quiet lunch together. They had a blast and walked away with some goodies after exchanging the tickets they had won on various games for prizes. I try not to think about how much cheaper the "prizes" would have been if I had just gone to Wal-Mart. I mean, it's all about the fun right? Right? (Crickets chirping.)
That ka-ching sound you hear is the price of oil rising, no doubt.
While oil has retreated somewhat in the past few weeks, the price still remains at historically high levels. CNN Money has a good article on what may be causing this. And no, it's not brain surgery: Oil's charge is likely being funded by speculators.
(I'll pause here for you to recover from your shock and catch your breath. Okay, time's up.)
The article goes on to try and paint this speculation in a good light, mentioning something about pension funds. Now, I'm a Total Economic Idiot when it comes to these things, but I'm going to guess the average consumer is going to lose more in the cost of gas, heating, and the slowing of the economy from higher fuel prices than they would gain in their pension funds from the trading of oil. But again, I'm a T.E.I.
Given that the market is so dominated by speculators, look for the price of oil to rebound very soon based on the coming cold snap that's going to hit the U.S.*
*The Blog Hero would like to state unequivocally that he is not a financial genius, trader or even slightly versed in anything that would make him money. As such, all financial advice, wisdom and insight is completely made-up and given for entertainment value only. Sort of like the horoscope, only less accurate. Your mileage may vary. No shirt, no shoes - no service. Void where prohibited by law. You must be this tall to read this blog. Thank you.
Apparently, according to a study by Christian D. Klose of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, New York. National Geographic has the article here.
I have a difficult time believing that mining, no matter how deep or extensive, is enough to cause some sort of tectonic shift. Of course, I'm not a member of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University and can't even caulk my bathtub properly, so the betting money would be on Mr. Klose's side.
If this theory is to be believed, though, it would rattle the entire mining industry because - as the article points out - the damage caused by a "human-caused" quake in Australia resulted in more monetary damage (to say nothing of the lose of life) than the value of the all of the coal that was extracted. (You can begin to see the political ramifications of this sort of study, which always makes me wonder.)
This reminds me of a plan that "we" had when "we" were kids - to get everyone on this side of the earth to jump up at exactly the same time, sending a massive shockwave from our combined weight to the other side of the world in a final blow to communism. Okay, so we were very bored, if not (in a misguided sort of way) patriotic.
AccuWeather.com now offers video that you can embed right in your site. For example:
Here's the video for State College. You'll note that the presenter (Melissa, at least when I posted this - it will always pull the most up-to-date forecast) does NOT mention snow at all. Not a bit. Nope.
If you'd like video on your website, take a look here at the AccuWeather.com NetWeather site.
...in January. Some cherry trees around Washington are blooming. Boy, won't THEY be in for a surprise just as soon as Henry and Jesse get rid of their snow blowers! What? Oh, yeah, I guess so.
Article here. An interesting thing to note about this article - as of this writing, the photo they have of the cherry trees is actually a photo taken by a different AP Photographer, and it's actually a photo from New York. I hate it when that happens.
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin (really!)
(With apologies to Douglas Adams.) Max Mayfield, the former director of the National Hurricane Center, departs his job with a message for the United States (and, especially, southern Florida) - Run! Run for Your Lives!
Okay, I made that up - but his message isn't much different. Max is convinced (despite his otherwise optimistic nature) that we're living on borrowed time and it's inevitable that we're going to see a major hurricane hit a populated area like southern Florida. In fact, this article talks about his "apocalyptic vision" of thousands dead and millions homeless.
I often wonder what would happen if you have a massive storm target southern Florida - because you really have no place to run. You can drive north, but everyone would be driving north, and it wouldn't be hard for a storm to change direction slightly and move north also, trapping everyone on the roads during a category 5. I know, it sounds like a made-for-TV movie, starring Victoria Principal, Brian Dennehy and Nipsey Russell* as the NHC Meteorologist trying (unsuccessfully) to warn everyone in time. But, it's a possibility, at least to Max Mayfield. (I mean, the hurricane not the movie.)
All the best to Max as he leaves the NHC and pursues a more calm life outside of government.
(*I've heard the rumors that Nipsey Russell died in October of 2005 but refuse to believe them. There have been many, many Nipsey sightings since then, the latest and most credible at a IHOP in Tennessee just this past December, although Nipsey was apparently dressed as Santa at the time.)
Ahhhhhh! Jesse got a snow blower for Christmas! It's a conspiracy.
Sigh. I'm moving to Denver.
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