http://www.regrettheerror.com/
something different... when you make a mistake.. .. haha read thru these dandies.... ahaha......
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
be sure and check the source.. haha.. wow... amazing how even our news has to come from china!!
Hurricane Katrina takes heavy toll on environment
As Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans on Monday, experts said it could turn one of the United States' most charming cities into a vast cesspool tainted with toxic chemicals, human waste and even coffins released by floodwaters from the city's legendary cemeteries.
Experts have warned for years that the levees and pumps that usually keep New Orleans dry have no chance against a direct hit by a Category 5 storm.
That is exactly what Katrina was as it churned towards the city. With top winds of 160 kilometres per hour and the power to lift sea level by as much as 9 metres above normal, the storm threatened an environmental disaster of biblical proportions, one that could leave more than 1 million people homeless.
"All indications are that this is absolutely worst-case scenario," Ivor van Heerden, deputy director of the Louisiana State University Hurricane Centre, said Sunday afternoon.
The centre's latest computer simulations indicate that by Tuesday, vast swaths of New Orleans could be under water up to 10 metre deep. In the French Quarter, the water could reach 7 metres, easily submerging the district's iconic cast-iron balconies and bars.
Estimates predict that 60 per cent to 80 per cent of the city's houses will be destroyed by wind. With the flood damage, most of the people who live in and around New Orleans could be homeless.
"We are talking about in essence having in the continental United States having a refugee camp of a million people," van Heerden said.
Aside from Hurricane Andrew, which struck Miami in 1992, forecasters have no experience with Category 5 hurricanes hitting densely populated areas.
"Hurricanes rarely sustain such extreme winds for much time. However we see no obvious large-scale effects to cause a substantial weakening the system and it is expected that the hurricane will be of Category 4 or 5 intensity when it reaches the coast," National Hurricane Centre meteorologist Richard Pasch said.
As they raced to put meteorological instruments in Katrina's path on Sunday, wind engineers had little idea what their equipment would record.
"We haven't seen something this big since we started the programme," said Kurt Gurley, a University of Florida engineering professor. He works for the Florida Coastal Monitoring Programme, which is in its seventh year of making detailed measurements of hurricane wind conditions.
Warning for years
Experts have warned about New Orleans' vulnerability for years, chiefly because Louisiana has lost more than a million hectares of coastal wetlands in the past seven decades. The vast patchwork of swamps and bayous south of the city serves as a buffer, partially absorbing the surge of water that a hurricane pushes ashore.
Experts have also warned that the ring of high levees around New Orleans, designed to protect the city from floodwaters coming down the Mississippi, will only make things worse in a powerful hurricane. Katrina is expected to push a 9-metre storm surge against the levees. Even if they hold, water will pour over their tops and begin filling the city as if it were a sinking canoe.
After the storm passes, the water will have nowhere to go.
In a few days, van Heerden predicts, emergency management officials are going to be wondering how to handle a giant stagnant pond contaminated with building debris, coffins, sewage and other hazardous materials.
He puts much of the blame for New Orleans' dire situation on the very levee system that is designed to protect southern Louisiana from Mississippi River floods.
Before the levees were built, the river would top its banks during floods and wash through a maze of bayous and swamps, dropping fine-grained silt that nourished plants and kept the land just above sea level.
The levees "have literally starved our wetlands to death" by directing all of that precious silt out into the Gulf of Mexico, van Heerden said.
It has been 40 years since New Orleans faced a hurricane even comparable to Katrina. In 1965, Hurricane Betsy, a Category 3 storm, submerged some parts of the city to a depth of seven feet.
Since then, the Big Easy has had nothing but near misses. Hurricane Lili blew herself out at the mouth of the Mississippi in 2002. And last year's Hurricane Ivan obligingly curved to the east as it came ashore, barely grazing a grateful city.
Source: China Daily
As Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans on Monday, experts said it could turn one of the United States' most charming cities into a vast cesspool tainted with toxic chemicals, human waste and even coffins released by floodwaters from the city's legendary cemeteries.
Experts have warned for years that the levees and pumps that usually keep New Orleans dry have no chance against a direct hit by a Category 5 storm.
That is exactly what Katrina was as it churned towards the city. With top winds of 160 kilometres per hour and the power to lift sea level by as much as 9 metres above normal, the storm threatened an environmental disaster of biblical proportions, one that could leave more than 1 million people homeless.
"All indications are that this is absolutely worst-case scenario," Ivor van Heerden, deputy director of the Louisiana State University Hurricane Centre, said Sunday afternoon.
The centre's latest computer simulations indicate that by Tuesday, vast swaths of New Orleans could be under water up to 10 metre deep. In the French Quarter, the water could reach 7 metres, easily submerging the district's iconic cast-iron balconies and bars.
Estimates predict that 60 per cent to 80 per cent of the city's houses will be destroyed by wind. With the flood damage, most of the people who live in and around New Orleans could be homeless.
"We are talking about in essence having in the continental United States having a refugee camp of a million people," van Heerden said.
Aside from Hurricane Andrew, which struck Miami in 1992, forecasters have no experience with Category 5 hurricanes hitting densely populated areas.
"Hurricanes rarely sustain such extreme winds for much time. However we see no obvious large-scale effects to cause a substantial weakening the system and it is expected that the hurricane will be of Category 4 or 5 intensity when it reaches the coast," National Hurricane Centre meteorologist Richard Pasch said.
As they raced to put meteorological instruments in Katrina's path on Sunday, wind engineers had little idea what their equipment would record.
"We haven't seen something this big since we started the programme," said Kurt Gurley, a University of Florida engineering professor. He works for the Florida Coastal Monitoring Programme, which is in its seventh year of making detailed measurements of hurricane wind conditions.
Warning for years
Experts have warned about New Orleans' vulnerability for years, chiefly because Louisiana has lost more than a million hectares of coastal wetlands in the past seven decades. The vast patchwork of swamps and bayous south of the city serves as a buffer, partially absorbing the surge of water that a hurricane pushes ashore.
Experts have also warned that the ring of high levees around New Orleans, designed to protect the city from floodwaters coming down the Mississippi, will only make things worse in a powerful hurricane. Katrina is expected to push a 9-metre storm surge against the levees. Even if they hold, water will pour over their tops and begin filling the city as if it were a sinking canoe.
After the storm passes, the water will have nowhere to go.
In a few days, van Heerden predicts, emergency management officials are going to be wondering how to handle a giant stagnant pond contaminated with building debris, coffins, sewage and other hazardous materials.
He puts much of the blame for New Orleans' dire situation on the very levee system that is designed to protect southern Louisiana from Mississippi River floods.
Before the levees were built, the river would top its banks during floods and wash through a maze of bayous and swamps, dropping fine-grained silt that nourished plants and kept the land just above sea level.
The levees "have literally starved our wetlands to death" by directing all of that precious silt out into the Gulf of Mexico, van Heerden said.
It has been 40 years since New Orleans faced a hurricane even comparable to Katrina. In 1965, Hurricane Betsy, a Category 3 storm, submerged some parts of the city to a depth of seven feet.
Since then, the Big Easy has had nothing but near misses. Hurricane Lili blew herself out at the mouth of the Mississippi in 2002. And last year's Hurricane Ivan obligingly curved to the east as it came ashore, barely grazing a grateful city.
Source: China Daily
The AWESOME power of God. Never, Never, Never beleive of one second that we control things... just about the time we think we do... God shows us He still can do things his way... just to remind us... kind'a like Nathan told me one time ... how to raise my kiddos.. I needed to hit them between the eyes with a 2by4 to get their attention, then they might listen to me.. hahaha, yeah, right!!
A bit of the "Ole" days... about Enid, Bob Wills, etc...
Once upon a time TV station was located here
The Enid News and Eagle
Phil Brown / columnist
Once upon a time Enid had a television station -- KGEO-TV channel 5. The studios were located on the northeast corner of 2nd and Randolph in downtown Enid. The building is now occupied by Enid Transmission Specialists.
In late 1956, they moved the TV station lock, stock, barrel and employees to Oklahoma City, that is, everything except the transmitting antenna. It didn't make it.
They were moving the station to OKC where it would have access to a larger market -- where they could sell more advertising, and make more money. They changed the name to KOCO-TV. The station maintained its Enid symbols, however, for many years. Until a few years ago, the backdrop on the station's news anchor set was a wall-sized photo of Enid's huge grain elevators.
But, back to the tower and antenna that didn't make it. The 650-foot tower topped by a 193-foot, 22-ton transmitting antenna collapsed in a heap of crumpled metal in October 1956, when they attempted to move the antenna from its location east of Enid to the station's new 1,187-foot tower seven miles northwest of Crescent.
n
It was Sunday morning, and I was watching my favorite magazine-type news show on CBS TV with Charles Osgood. I think ol' Charlie's really good. In fact, he should change his name to "Charles Really Good." The show always has at least one or two off-the-beaten-path stories about people, places and things.
I got a real honk out of this week's treasure-hunting segment. Some guy who has made a fortune in computer software hid gold tokens redeemable for $1 million worth of jewelry. The clues to the hiding places were in an elaborate children's book he published. All of them have been found. One piece of jewelry was worth $450,000. Wow! That makes reading Harry Potter a waste of time, doesn't it?
One of the tokens was hidden in southwestern Oklahoma, but they never identified the finder.
Then this guy came on extolling the virtues of five present-day songwriters. At first I thought he might be mimicking Saturday Night Live, and this was a put-on, but when it became apparent he was sincere I began to feel like I had been transported to another world where bad is good, and vise versa.
He said this one guy spent five years in a log cabin out in the woods writing songs. Wonderful! He looked like he hadn't had a haircut or a shave in more than five years. The words of his song may have had some meaning, but I couldn't understand what he was saying. He just banged on his guitar and yelled -- screamed sometimes. That's good?
All five of these "artists" were sartorially challenged to say the least. They all strummed a guitar, and none of them could enunciate clearly.
What has happened to our music? How did it devolve, so to speak, to jungle drums, tribal chants, rhyming rants and screaming, twisting, gyrating meemies? What happened to the catchy melodic rhythms, and the soothing ballads?
Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys took some pretty harsh criticism during the 1940s and '50s, because ol' Bob drank too much and smoked too much. But his music and his band sounded like the Boston Pops Orchestra alongside these ? these, whatever they are. At least we could understand the words to his songs. No! I'm not an ardent country and western fan either, but the melodies and words of "San Antonio Rose," and "You Are My Sunshine" still run through my head.
I think I'll write a letter to ol' Charlie Osgood, and ask him if that Sunday segment about the songwriters was supposed to be a joke. It just wasn't as good as Osgood.
n
If you have wondered what the construction work is all about at the intersection of Garriott and Monroe -- it is the future site of Freddy's Frozen Custard. However, I'm told the name is misleading, and that they will also be serving hamburgers "to-die-for."
Brown is a retired News -- Eagle editor.
The Enid News and Eagle
Phil Brown / columnist
Once upon a time Enid had a television station -- KGEO-TV channel 5. The studios were located on the northeast corner of 2nd and Randolph in downtown Enid. The building is now occupied by Enid Transmission Specialists.
In late 1956, they moved the TV station lock, stock, barrel and employees to Oklahoma City, that is, everything except the transmitting antenna. It didn't make it.
They were moving the station to OKC where it would have access to a larger market -- where they could sell more advertising, and make more money. They changed the name to KOCO-TV. The station maintained its Enid symbols, however, for many years. Until a few years ago, the backdrop on the station's news anchor set was a wall-sized photo of Enid's huge grain elevators.
But, back to the tower and antenna that didn't make it. The 650-foot tower topped by a 193-foot, 22-ton transmitting antenna collapsed in a heap of crumpled metal in October 1956, when they attempted to move the antenna from its location east of Enid to the station's new 1,187-foot tower seven miles northwest of Crescent.
n
It was Sunday morning, and I was watching my favorite magazine-type news show on CBS TV with Charles Osgood. I think ol' Charlie's really good. In fact, he should change his name to "Charles Really Good." The show always has at least one or two off-the-beaten-path stories about people, places and things.
I got a real honk out of this week's treasure-hunting segment. Some guy who has made a fortune in computer software hid gold tokens redeemable for $1 million worth of jewelry. The clues to the hiding places were in an elaborate children's book he published. All of them have been found. One piece of jewelry was worth $450,000. Wow! That makes reading Harry Potter a waste of time, doesn't it?
One of the tokens was hidden in southwestern Oklahoma, but they never identified the finder.
Then this guy came on extolling the virtues of five present-day songwriters. At first I thought he might be mimicking Saturday Night Live, and this was a put-on, but when it became apparent he was sincere I began to feel like I had been transported to another world where bad is good, and vise versa.
He said this one guy spent five years in a log cabin out in the woods writing songs. Wonderful! He looked like he hadn't had a haircut or a shave in more than five years. The words of his song may have had some meaning, but I couldn't understand what he was saying. He just banged on his guitar and yelled -- screamed sometimes. That's good?
All five of these "artists" were sartorially challenged to say the least. They all strummed a guitar, and none of them could enunciate clearly.
What has happened to our music? How did it devolve, so to speak, to jungle drums, tribal chants, rhyming rants and screaming, twisting, gyrating meemies? What happened to the catchy melodic rhythms, and the soothing ballads?
Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys took some pretty harsh criticism during the 1940s and '50s, because ol' Bob drank too much and smoked too much. But his music and his band sounded like the Boston Pops Orchestra alongside these ? these, whatever they are. At least we could understand the words to his songs. No! I'm not an ardent country and western fan either, but the melodies and words of "San Antonio Rose," and "You Are My Sunshine" still run through my head.
I think I'll write a letter to ol' Charlie Osgood, and ask him if that Sunday segment about the songwriters was supposed to be a joke. It just wasn't as good as Osgood.
n
If you have wondered what the construction work is all about at the intersection of Garriott and Monroe -- it is the future site of Freddy's Frozen Custard. However, I'm told the name is misleading, and that they will also be serving hamburgers "to-die-for."
Brown is a retired News -- Eagle editor.
Friday, August 26, 2005
For Jon, Phillip and anyone else interested in photos, working with them, etc.. new deal sounds cool..
PayPal co-founder readies photo-sharing service
By Alorie Gilbert
http://news.com.com/PayPal+co-founder+readies+photo-sharing+service/2100-1038_3-5843575.html
Story last modified Fri Aug 26 13:25:00 PDT 2005
It's been awhile since Max Levchin's job forced him to pull an all-nighter.
But the co-founder and former chief technology officer of PayPal has found himself working around the clock lately to launch his new Internet company, Slide. The San Francisco company, which he started last year, is Levchin's first big plunge into an Internet start-up since cashing in on eBay's $1.5 billion purchase of PayPal in 2002.
The free service, which the 12-person company plans to open to the Web-surfing public on Monday, CNET News.com has learned, combines aspects of social networking, photo sharing, Web syndication and e-commerce. At the heart of Slide is a downloadable desktop program that indexes all the photos on the user's hard drive and creates a slide show at the edge of the screen.
News.context
What's new:
PayPal co-founder Max Levchin on Monday plans to launch Slide, a service that combines aspects of social networking, photo sharing, Web syndication and e-commerce in order to let members subscribe to one another's photo blogs.
Bottom line:
Slide builds on several recent trends in personal publishing and will find itself facing several rivals, including Yahoo and MySpace. But its simpler tools could give it a leg up on the competition.
More stories on this topic
From there, members can invite family, friends and other Slide members to view and save the member's photos and join Slide as a "friend" in the member's network. Members can also add one another's images to their own slide shows and alert one another to new albums. A set of access tools lets users publish their photos to as few or as many people as they wish, and subscribe to other people's photos.
Slide builds on several trends du jour, including digital photography, personal publishing and Web syndication. But the company has a lot of company in this intersecting market. Yahoo, News Corp.'s MySpace and a number of others are developing services that tie blogging, social networking and photo sharing together. Flikr lets users subscribe to photo feeds using the Really Simple Syndication, or RSS, protocol made popular by blogs. Imeem, a start-up that launched last week, is adding instant messaging to the mix.
"Consumers are learning to do more with digital content than just print out pictures and paste them into an album," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at JupiterResearch. "Tools that let them edit, crop and share information and online content are coming into play, making it easier to get their stuff out."
Yet Levchin, who just turned 30 and has invested $1 million of his personal funds in the company, may have hit on the right way to make Slide stand out. He claims Slide's publish and subscribe tools are easier to use than other services, which require some technical know-how and a familiarity with RSS. The general public, including people like his mom, need simpler tools, he said. Jupiter's Gartenberg agrees.
"The key to taking it to the next step is getting to the point where you don't have to know what RSS or other technical concepts are," Gartenberg said. "You want to get to the point where you can just invite your grandpa to subscribe to your photos and all he has to do is click a few buttons."
Slide's "playback," or slide show, feature is unique too, Levchin said. The desktop toolbar looks like a strip of film with different photos in each frame, and it continually scrolls through a trove of stored images that people would probably rarely view otherwise. When consumers mouse over a particular shot, the slide show pauses and enlarges the image. The program gives people the option of e-mailing the photo from there.
The company plans to let members incorporate video, text and news headlines with photos too, creating multimedia "channels."
"I want it to be the preferred way people share digital media with each other," Levchin said, describing his vision for Slide.
For now, Slide works only on Windows computers, but the company is working on versions for the Macintosh.
Slide's business model is another distinguishing feature. Advertising is the main source of revenue for most competitors, but Slide plans to sustain itself on commissions from facilitating online shopping. It has already inked agreements with online shoe store Zappos.com and designer-clothing outlet Bluefly. The Web stores have agreed to maintain a Slide photo gallery of their products with links back to their stores. Slide members can subscribe to the photos, and whenever they purchase something, Slide gets a cut of the transaction.
The fact that Zappos is one of Slide's first partners is no coincidence. Levchin came up with the idea for Slide while watching his girlfriend browse for shoes online. She spent so much time scrolling through pages of shoes at Zappos that he offered to write her a program that would do it for her.
"The idea was to encourage her to spend more time with me and less time browsing for shoes," he said.
Copyright ©1995-2005 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.
By Alorie Gilbert
http://news.com.com/PayPal+co-founder+readies+photo-sharing+service/2100-1038_3-5843575.html
Story last modified Fri Aug 26 13:25:00 PDT 2005
It's been awhile since Max Levchin's job forced him to pull an all-nighter.
But the co-founder and former chief technology officer of PayPal has found himself working around the clock lately to launch his new Internet company, Slide. The San Francisco company, which he started last year, is Levchin's first big plunge into an Internet start-up since cashing in on eBay's $1.5 billion purchase of PayPal in 2002.
The free service, which the 12-person company plans to open to the Web-surfing public on Monday, CNET News.com has learned, combines aspects of social networking, photo sharing, Web syndication and e-commerce. At the heart of Slide is a downloadable desktop program that indexes all the photos on the user's hard drive and creates a slide show at the edge of the screen.
News.context
What's new:
PayPal co-founder Max Levchin on Monday plans to launch Slide, a service that combines aspects of social networking, photo sharing, Web syndication and e-commerce in order to let members subscribe to one another's photo blogs.
Bottom line:
Slide builds on several recent trends in personal publishing and will find itself facing several rivals, including Yahoo and MySpace. But its simpler tools could give it a leg up on the competition.
More stories on this topic
From there, members can invite family, friends and other Slide members to view and save the member's photos and join Slide as a "friend" in the member's network. Members can also add one another's images to their own slide shows and alert one another to new albums. A set of access tools lets users publish their photos to as few or as many people as they wish, and subscribe to other people's photos.
Slide builds on several trends du jour, including digital photography, personal publishing and Web syndication. But the company has a lot of company in this intersecting market. Yahoo, News Corp.'s MySpace and a number of others are developing services that tie blogging, social networking and photo sharing together. Flikr lets users subscribe to photo feeds using the Really Simple Syndication, or RSS, protocol made popular by blogs. Imeem, a start-up that launched last week, is adding instant messaging to the mix.
"Consumers are learning to do more with digital content than just print out pictures and paste them into an album," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at JupiterResearch. "Tools that let them edit, crop and share information and online content are coming into play, making it easier to get their stuff out."
Yet Levchin, who just turned 30 and has invested $1 million of his personal funds in the company, may have hit on the right way to make Slide stand out. He claims Slide's publish and subscribe tools are easier to use than other services, which require some technical know-how and a familiarity with RSS. The general public, including people like his mom, need simpler tools, he said. Jupiter's Gartenberg agrees.
"The key to taking it to the next step is getting to the point where you don't have to know what RSS or other technical concepts are," Gartenberg said. "You want to get to the point where you can just invite your grandpa to subscribe to your photos and all he has to do is click a few buttons."
Slide's "playback," or slide show, feature is unique too, Levchin said. The desktop toolbar looks like a strip of film with different photos in each frame, and it continually scrolls through a trove of stored images that people would probably rarely view otherwise. When consumers mouse over a particular shot, the slide show pauses and enlarges the image. The program gives people the option of e-mailing the photo from there.
The company plans to let members incorporate video, text and news headlines with photos too, creating multimedia "channels."
"I want it to be the preferred way people share digital media with each other," Levchin said, describing his vision for Slide.
For now, Slide works only on Windows computers, but the company is working on versions for the Macintosh.
Slide's business model is another distinguishing feature. Advertising is the main source of revenue for most competitors, but Slide plans to sustain itself on commissions from facilitating online shopping. It has already inked agreements with online shoe store Zappos.com and designer-clothing outlet Bluefly. The Web stores have agreed to maintain a Slide photo gallery of their products with links back to their stores. Slide members can subscribe to the photos, and whenever they purchase something, Slide gets a cut of the transaction.
The fact that Zappos is one of Slide's first partners is no coincidence. Levchin came up with the idea for Slide while watching his girlfriend browse for shoes online. She spent so much time scrolling through pages of shoes at Zappos that he offered to write her a program that would do it for her.
"The idea was to encourage her to spend more time with me and less time browsing for shoes," he said.
Copyright ©1995-2005 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Words from God... from Uncle Ivan...
This will change ... let it run for a bit.. haha... it is an animated gif...
Stan
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
From Jon and Randi... and she has updated their blog too.... check it out!!
Randi started at a place called Eye-Q. It is an eye doctor about 5 blocks from my office. She is their office manager. She is now on her 2nd day, but picking it up very good.
Kaitlyn did well at her first day of day care. She hardly cried all day, and played with the other kids. She didn't eat that much, but Randi has just started switching her to a bottle, so that will take some time.
I have been helping with interviews for a position in our office. We finished the first day with 2 good candidates, so that is a big plus. We are still blowing and going with project after project with a long road ahead. But as the Project Manager, that is good for me! Haha.. J
Kaitlyn did well at her first day of day care. She hardly cried all day, and played with the other kids. She didn't eat that much, but Randi has just started switching her to a bottle, so that will take some time.
I have been helping with interviews for a position in our office. We finished the first day with 2 good candidates, so that is a big plus. We are still blowing and going with project after project with a long road ahead. But as the Project Manager, that is good for me! Haha.. J
God is like.. from Joanna and Clinton
A fifth grade teacher in a Christian school asked her class to look at TV commercials and see if they could use them in some way to communicate ideas about God.
Here are some of the results: scroll down.
God is like...
BAYER ASPIRIN
He works miracles.
God is like...
a FORD
He's got a better idea.
God is like...
COKE
He's the real thing.
(This is great)
God is like...
HALLMARK CARDS
He cares enough to send His very best.
God is like...
TIDE
He gets the stains out that others leave behind.
God is like...
GENERAL ELECTRIC
He brings good things to life.
God is like...
SEARS
He has everything.
God is like...
ALKA-SELTZER
Try him, you'll like Him.
God is like...
SCOTCH TAPE
You can't see him, but you know He's there.
God is like...
DELTA
He's ready when you are.
God is like...
ALLSTATE
You're in good hands with Him.
God is like...
VO-5 Hair Spray
He holds through all kinds of weather.
God is like...
DIAL SOAP
Aren't you glad you have Him? Don't you wish everybody did?
(that one is my favorite)
God is like...
the U.S. POST OFFICE
Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet nor ice will keep Him from His appointed destination.
Here are some of the results: scroll down.
God is like...
BAYER ASPIRIN
He works miracles.
God is like...
a FORD
He's got a better idea.
God is like...
COKE
He's the real thing.
(This is great)
God is like...
HALLMARK CARDS
He cares enough to send His very best.
God is like...
TIDE
He gets the stains out that others leave behind.
God is like...
GENERAL ELECTRIC
He brings good things to life.
God is like...
SEARS
He has everything.
God is like...
ALKA-SELTZER
Try him, you'll like Him.
God is like...
SCOTCH TAPE
You can't see him, but you know He's there.
God is like...
DELTA
He's ready when you are.
God is like...
ALLSTATE
You're in good hands with Him.
God is like...
VO-5 Hair Spray
He holds through all kinds of weather.
God is like...
DIAL SOAP
Aren't you glad you have Him? Don't you wish everybody did?
(that one is my favorite)
God is like...
the U.S. POST OFFICE
Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet nor ice will keep Him from His appointed destination.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
NOT A LOT GOING ON... HOWEVER...
Well, it is raining.. and raining.. and we need every drop..
first time in years it has rained in August!!
Grandson's back in School and lovin' it. Son Jake back in School and lovin' it too.. He is the OLE' man in his class! Always before, he was the youngest in his class for 13 years!! Jake and Great grandma went to town to get school supplies and they had a ball. He reported she was like a kid in a candy store, looking and cutting up, etc. and then she tried to pay with a counter check instead of regular check and Atwoods would not take it... wow.. can you imagine what happened after that... ??? Mom at the counter trying to pay with a check that the business would not take.. haha... yelp, she got ticked... you'll have to ask Jake the rest of the story....
Jon reported to Ann that Randi was hired in Ada by a Dentist/CPA office to run the deal! She will be great at that! I know it is an answer to some prayers there, as it is hard to make it with just one income. Randi has been looking hard for work and finally looks like something has come along that has all the things she loves to do in it.. how lucky!!
You know what, I really miss not seeing Kaitlyn more. I know the road between us runs both ways, but it is hard to get to see her as often as we would like. She is really growing up. Randi and Jonathan are doing a great job with her. Now they just need to have about a dozen more!!
Ann is trying to keep up with all the changes at her office. Seems that the wonders of the peter principle come into play there a lot. If you are our age, you know what that expression means!! Sometimes it helps to have someone driving the train... just an observation!!
Her dear friend Missy is now a chicken farmer. Her and Ann purchased a dozen chicks several months ago, and Missy fixed up a "chicken house and pen" and picked up some of her birds to enjoy some "homemade" eggs... I have to tease her! And now.. I think Jake and Ann have purchased a few of the chicks that lay the "COLORED" eggs... so now we have a new chicken farmer in the family... guess that is better than having chicken thieves in the family.. haha..
Phil and his office are cooking out all week for Driver Appreciation at Rains Trucking. How lucky! Our picnic table that was loaned out several years ago, is on it's way home, with a stop there this week for the drivers to use. ( I wonder???? reck'n we will get a sampling of the great food, for them using it, hehehahah.... !) Phil is so talented.. He is a whiz with photoshop, he and Jonathan both. Be sure to see some of Austyn's photos on Phil's blog.. cool cool cool....
Paul and his team are winning their ball games this summer, rolling over the other's but lots of points.. They have a solid team and they show up to play ball! and then they prove it! Now his goal is to hit one out of the park!! and he will! He reported that they have weaned their baby goats now too... but I think the thing he enjoys most is messing around with his new daughter!! She has him wrapped around her finger right now.. But then Madison has even got Andrew wrapped around it too.. haha..
Heather is doing good, and feeling better. She had a bit of a scare last week when she started feeling bad, but it was other things.. and it was not bad.
Tammy, still smiling and enjoying her teaching... Her and Jake and Phil headed to Bricktown last Saturday to eat and enjoy a movie... I think the boys enjoyed, not sure if Tammy did, haha, as the movie was "Dukes of Hazzard"... haha... They ate at Toby Keith's and said it was good food and atomsphere, too.
Ann and I kept Austyn, who was a hoot. He is on self entertainment mode.. and can play and play and play.
Sunday, Heather and Madison and Andrew came over and had lunch with us, and we kept the kiddos while she went home and got some things done, as she is now back at work. Ann and Jake took them home about 5ish..
Ann and I love the grandkids. How wonderful it is and how richly blessed we are to have them so close that we can see them often and watch them grow. It is amazing how much Madison changes in just a few days... and ... well you know.. haha....
Sure there are things I have left out, and I am sorry.. will try to refresh my memory and write more later.. if the memory comes alive!! haha..
May God deeply bless you and yours, forever!
S
first time in years it has rained in August!!
Grandson's back in School and lovin' it. Son Jake back in School and lovin' it too.. He is the OLE' man in his class! Always before, he was the youngest in his class for 13 years!! Jake and Great grandma went to town to get school supplies and they had a ball. He reported she was like a kid in a candy store, looking and cutting up, etc. and then she tried to pay with a counter check instead of regular check and Atwoods would not take it... wow.. can you imagine what happened after that... ??? Mom at the counter trying to pay with a check that the business would not take.. haha... yelp, she got ticked... you'll have to ask Jake the rest of the story....
Jon reported to Ann that Randi was hired in Ada by a Dentist/CPA office to run the deal! She will be great at that! I know it is an answer to some prayers there, as it is hard to make it with just one income. Randi has been looking hard for work and finally looks like something has come along that has all the things she loves to do in it.. how lucky!!
You know what, I really miss not seeing Kaitlyn more. I know the road between us runs both ways, but it is hard to get to see her as often as we would like. She is really growing up. Randi and Jonathan are doing a great job with her. Now they just need to have about a dozen more!!
Ann is trying to keep up with all the changes at her office. Seems that the wonders of the peter principle come into play there a lot. If you are our age, you know what that expression means!! Sometimes it helps to have someone driving the train... just an observation!!
Her dear friend Missy is now a chicken farmer. Her and Ann purchased a dozen chicks several months ago, and Missy fixed up a "chicken house and pen" and picked up some of her birds to enjoy some "homemade" eggs... I have to tease her! And now.. I think Jake and Ann have purchased a few of the chicks that lay the "COLORED" eggs... so now we have a new chicken farmer in the family... guess that is better than having chicken thieves in the family.. haha..
Phil and his office are cooking out all week for Driver Appreciation at Rains Trucking. How lucky! Our picnic table that was loaned out several years ago, is on it's way home, with a stop there this week for the drivers to use. ( I wonder???? reck'n we will get a sampling of the great food, for them using it, hehehahah.... !) Phil is so talented.. He is a whiz with photoshop, he and Jonathan both. Be sure to see some of Austyn's photos on Phil's blog.. cool cool cool....
Paul and his team are winning their ball games this summer, rolling over the other's but lots of points.. They have a solid team and they show up to play ball! and then they prove it! Now his goal is to hit one out of the park!! and he will! He reported that they have weaned their baby goats now too... but I think the thing he enjoys most is messing around with his new daughter!! She has him wrapped around her finger right now.. But then Madison has even got Andrew wrapped around it too.. haha..
Heather is doing good, and feeling better. She had a bit of a scare last week when she started feeling bad, but it was other things.. and it was not bad.
Tammy, still smiling and enjoying her teaching... Her and Jake and Phil headed to Bricktown last Saturday to eat and enjoy a movie... I think the boys enjoyed, not sure if Tammy did, haha, as the movie was "Dukes of Hazzard"... haha... They ate at Toby Keith's and said it was good food and atomsphere, too.
Ann and I kept Austyn, who was a hoot. He is on self entertainment mode.. and can play and play and play.
Sunday, Heather and Madison and Andrew came over and had lunch with us, and we kept the kiddos while she went home and got some things done, as she is now back at work. Ann and Jake took them home about 5ish..
Ann and I love the grandkids. How wonderful it is and how richly blessed we are to have them so close that we can see them often and watch them grow. It is amazing how much Madison changes in just a few days... and ... well you know.. haha....
Sure there are things I have left out, and I am sorry.. will try to refresh my memory and write more later.. if the memory comes alive!! haha..
May God deeply bless you and yours, forever!
S
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Jake getting ready for his first day at VoTech in Welding class. He goes there from 12:30pm till 3:30pm and then is 10mins from work and he goes directly to it and works till 1am. He has a full day plus helping out the Shultz Ranch, and his Mom and Dad. Ann thought we needed this for future folks to see... haha.. Jake was not too happy 'bout it!!
Monday, August 15, 2005
THE FINAL INSPECTION sent in by Melanie Shaklee....
THE FINAL INSPECTION
The soldier stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.
"Step forward now, you soldier,
How shall I deal with you ?
Have you always turned the other cheek ?
To My Church have you been true?"
The soldier squared his shoulders and said,
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.
I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.
And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand.
There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you soldier,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
~Author Unknown~
NOTE: It's the Military, not the reporter who has given us the freedom of the press. It's the Military, not the poet, who has given us the freedom of speech. It's the Military, not the politicians that ensures our right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. It's the Military who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag.
The soldier stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.
"Step forward now, you soldier,
How shall I deal with you ?
Have you always turned the other cheek ?
To My Church have you been true?"
The soldier squared his shoulders and said,
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.
I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.
And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand.
There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you soldier,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
~Author Unknown~
NOTE: It's the Military, not the reporter who has given us the freedom of the press. It's the Military, not the poet, who has given us the freedom of speech. It's the Military, not the politicians that ensures our right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. It's the Military who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
NOW THIS IS NEWS I LIKE TO SEE - Experimental Hybrid Cars Get Up to 250 Mpg!
Experimental Hybrid Cars Get Up to 250 Mpg
By TIM MOLLOY, Associated Press Writer
Sat Aug 13, 7:08 PM ET
Politicians and automakers say a car that can both reduce greenhouse gases and free America from its reliance on foreign oil is years or even decades away. Ron Gremban says such a car is parked in his garage.
It looks like a typical Toyota Prius hybrid, but in the trunk sits an 80-miles-per-gallon secret — a stack of 18 brick-sized batteries that boosts the car's high mileage with an extra electrical charge so it can burn even less fuel.
Gremban, an electrical engineer and committed environmentalist, spent several months and $3,000 tinkering with his car.
Like all hybrids, his Prius increases fuel efficiency by harnessing small amounts of electricity generated during braking and coasting. The extra batteries let him store extra power by plugging the car into a wall outlet at his home in this San Francisco suburb — all for about a quarter.
He's part of a small but growing movement. "Plug-in" hybrids aren't yet cost-efficient, but some of the dozen known experimental models have gotten up to 250 mpg.
They have support not only from environmentalists but also from conservative foreign policy hawks who insist Americans fuel terrorism through their gas guzzling.
And while the technology has existed for three decades, automakers are beginning to take notice, too.
So far, DaimlerChrysler AG is the only company that has committed to building its own plug-in hybrids, quietly pledging to make up to 40 vans for U.S. companies. But Toyota Motor Corp. officials who initially frowned on people altering their cars now say they may be able to learn from them.
"They're like the hot rodders of yesterday who did everything to soup up their cars. It was all about horsepower and bling-bling, lots of chrome and accessories," said Cindy Knight, a Toyota spokeswoman. "Maybe the hot rodders of tomorrow are the people who want to get in there and see what they can do about increasing fuel economy."
The extra batteries let Gremban drive for 20 miles with a 50-50 mix of gas and electricity. Even after the car runs out of power from the batteries and switches to the standard hybrid mode, it gets the typical Prius fuel efficiency of around 45 mpg. As long as Gremban doesn't drive too far in a day, he says, he gets 80 mpg.
"The value of plug-in hybrids is they can dramatically reduce gasoline usage for the first few miles every day," Gremban said. "The average for people's usage of a car is somewhere around 30 to 40 miles per day. During that kind of driving, the plug-in hybrid can make a dramatic difference."
Backers of plug-in hybrids acknowledge that the electricity to boost their cars generally comes from fossil fuels that create greenhouse gases, but they say that process still produces far less pollution than oil. They also note that electricity could be generated cleanly from solar power.
Gremban rigged his car to promote the nonprofit CalCars Initiative, a San Francisco Bay area-based volunteer effort that argues automakers could mass produce plug-in hybrids at a reasonable price.
But Toyota and other car companies say they are worried about the cost, convenience and safety of plug-in hybrids — and note that consumers haven't embraced all-electric cars because of the inconvenience of recharging them like giant cell phones.
Automakers have spent millions of dollars telling motorists that hybrids don't need to be plugged in, and don't want to confuse the message.
Nonetheless, plug-in hybrids are starting to get the backing of prominent hawks like former CIA director James Woolsey and Frank Gaffney, President Reagan's undersecretary of defense. They have joined Set America Free, a group that wants the government to spend $12 billion over four years on plug-in hybrids, alternative fuels and other measures to reduce foreign oil dependence.
Gaffney, who heads the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Security Policy, said Americans would embrace plug-ins if they understood arguments from him and others who say gasoline contributes to oil-rich Middle Eastern governments that support terrorism.
"The more we are consuming oil that either comes from places that are bent on our destruction or helping those who are ... the more we are enabling those who are trying to kill us," Gaffney said.
DaimlerChrysler spokesman Nick Cappa said plug-in hybrids are ideal for companies with fleets of vehicles that can be recharged at a central location at night. He declined to name the companies buying the vehicles and said he did not know the vehicles' mileage or cost, or when they would be available.
Others are modifying hybrids, too.
Monrovia-based Energy CS has converted two Priuses to get up to 230 mpg by using powerful lithium ion batteries. It is forming a new company, EDrive Systems, that will convert hybrids to plug-ins for about $12,000 starting next year, company vice president Greg Hanssen said.
University of California, Davis engineering professor Andy Frank built a plug-in hybrid from the ground up in 1972 and has since built seven others, one of which gets up to 250 mpg. They were converted from non-hybrids, including a Ford Taurus and Chevrolet Suburban.
Frank has spent $150,000 to $250,000 in research costs on each car, but believes automakers could mass-produce them by adding just $6,000 to each vehicle's price tag.
Instead, Frank said, automakers promise hydrogen-powered vehicles hailed by President Bush and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, even though hydrogen's backers acknowledge the cars won't be widely available for years and would require a vast infrastructure of new fueling stations.
"They'd rather work on something that won't be in their lifetime, and that's this hydrogen economy stuff," Frank said. "They pick this kind of target to get the public off their back, essentially."
___
On the Net:
CalCars Initiative: http://calcars.org
By TIM MOLLOY, Associated Press Writer
Sat Aug 13, 7:08 PM ET
Politicians and automakers say a car that can both reduce greenhouse gases and free America from its reliance on foreign oil is years or even decades away. Ron Gremban says such a car is parked in his garage.
It looks like a typical Toyota Prius hybrid, but in the trunk sits an 80-miles-per-gallon secret — a stack of 18 brick-sized batteries that boosts the car's high mileage with an extra electrical charge so it can burn even less fuel.
Gremban, an electrical engineer and committed environmentalist, spent several months and $3,000 tinkering with his car.
Like all hybrids, his Prius increases fuel efficiency by harnessing small amounts of electricity generated during braking and coasting. The extra batteries let him store extra power by plugging the car into a wall outlet at his home in this San Francisco suburb — all for about a quarter.
He's part of a small but growing movement. "Plug-in" hybrids aren't yet cost-efficient, but some of the dozen known experimental models have gotten up to 250 mpg.
They have support not only from environmentalists but also from conservative foreign policy hawks who insist Americans fuel terrorism through their gas guzzling.
And while the technology has existed for three decades, automakers are beginning to take notice, too.
So far, DaimlerChrysler AG is the only company that has committed to building its own plug-in hybrids, quietly pledging to make up to 40 vans for U.S. companies. But Toyota Motor Corp. officials who initially frowned on people altering their cars now say they may be able to learn from them.
"They're like the hot rodders of yesterday who did everything to soup up their cars. It was all about horsepower and bling-bling, lots of chrome and accessories," said Cindy Knight, a Toyota spokeswoman. "Maybe the hot rodders of tomorrow are the people who want to get in there and see what they can do about increasing fuel economy."
The extra batteries let Gremban drive for 20 miles with a 50-50 mix of gas and electricity. Even after the car runs out of power from the batteries and switches to the standard hybrid mode, it gets the typical Prius fuel efficiency of around 45 mpg. As long as Gremban doesn't drive too far in a day, he says, he gets 80 mpg.
"The value of plug-in hybrids is they can dramatically reduce gasoline usage for the first few miles every day," Gremban said. "The average for people's usage of a car is somewhere around 30 to 40 miles per day. During that kind of driving, the plug-in hybrid can make a dramatic difference."
Backers of plug-in hybrids acknowledge that the electricity to boost their cars generally comes from fossil fuels that create greenhouse gases, but they say that process still produces far less pollution than oil. They also note that electricity could be generated cleanly from solar power.
Gremban rigged his car to promote the nonprofit CalCars Initiative, a San Francisco Bay area-based volunteer effort that argues automakers could mass produce plug-in hybrids at a reasonable price.
But Toyota and other car companies say they are worried about the cost, convenience and safety of plug-in hybrids — and note that consumers haven't embraced all-electric cars because of the inconvenience of recharging them like giant cell phones.
Automakers have spent millions of dollars telling motorists that hybrids don't need to be plugged in, and don't want to confuse the message.
Nonetheless, plug-in hybrids are starting to get the backing of prominent hawks like former CIA director James Woolsey and Frank Gaffney, President Reagan's undersecretary of defense. They have joined Set America Free, a group that wants the government to spend $12 billion over four years on plug-in hybrids, alternative fuels and other measures to reduce foreign oil dependence.
Gaffney, who heads the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Security Policy, said Americans would embrace plug-ins if they understood arguments from him and others who say gasoline contributes to oil-rich Middle Eastern governments that support terrorism.
"The more we are consuming oil that either comes from places that are bent on our destruction or helping those who are ... the more we are enabling those who are trying to kill us," Gaffney said.
DaimlerChrysler spokesman Nick Cappa said plug-in hybrids are ideal for companies with fleets of vehicles that can be recharged at a central location at night. He declined to name the companies buying the vehicles and said he did not know the vehicles' mileage or cost, or when they would be available.
Others are modifying hybrids, too.
Monrovia-based Energy CS has converted two Priuses to get up to 230 mpg by using powerful lithium ion batteries. It is forming a new company, EDrive Systems, that will convert hybrids to plug-ins for about $12,000 starting next year, company vice president Greg Hanssen said.
University of California, Davis engineering professor Andy Frank built a plug-in hybrid from the ground up in 1972 and has since built seven others, one of which gets up to 250 mpg. They were converted from non-hybrids, including a Ford Taurus and Chevrolet Suburban.
Frank has spent $150,000 to $250,000 in research costs on each car, but believes automakers could mass-produce them by adding just $6,000 to each vehicle's price tag.
Instead, Frank said, automakers promise hydrogen-powered vehicles hailed by President Bush and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, even though hydrogen's backers acknowledge the cars won't be widely available for years and would require a vast infrastructure of new fueling stations.
"They'd rather work on something that won't be in their lifetime, and that's this hydrogen economy stuff," Frank said. "They pick this kind of target to get the public off their back, essentially."
___
On the Net:
CalCars Initiative: http://calcars.org
Saturday, August 13, 2005
JUST BEFORE IT ROLLED OVER AND DUMPED ABOUT A HALF INCH OF RAIN AND SOME FANTASTIC LIGHTNING, AND SOME STRONG WIND.. NOTICE THE AWESOME DARK CLOUDS UP ON TOP.. HEHE.. LIGHTNING HIT JUST AS I SNAPPED THIS, AND I STEPPED INSIDE.. RATHER SCARED.. HATE TO ADMIT IT.. BUT IT MADE THE HAIR ON MY BACK STAND UP!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUNT FREDA AND COUSIN DORIS.. AUGUST 15 AND 16TH!!
Aunt Freda was the guest of honor, and it was also Cousin Doris's birthday the day after Aunt Freda's too.. so it was a big party for all!! Joanna and Clinton, Doris and Jim, Aunt Freda and Uncle Ivan, Aunt Fanny, Mom and Mk, Phil and Tammy and Austyn, Paul and Heather and Madison, and Andrew, Ann and I, Jonathan and Randi and Kaitlyn were in attendance... What a great time, and some wonderful visits, and we missed some family... but there will be another time, I am sure. How lucky we are to be in a world where we can come and go as we please, do what we want, when we want, get what we want when we want.. and visit those we can, when we can! The food was great, the company was awesome.. and it was fantastic!! Aunt Fannie was telling me about some "going's on" at the Senior Citzens Center in El Reno... Aunt Freda was talking about 17 years of donuts and day old donuts... and having family over for ice cream, and Clinton's back is a bit better, Mom is not doing to well, and on and on... it was truly God's blessing to us to be able to share that wonderful time together! Thanks to everyone who came and made it a special night!
On the way to OKC to Aunt Freda's Birthday... We took the long way around to miss the storm and it kinda slipped in behind us.. this was the wind whipping across the Oklahoma plains near the Cimarron River on Highway 33. It was an awesome site. I have never in my life seen such a pretty site. The sand was dancing under the strength of the wind.. It was sooo cool that Paul stopped and I snapped a few shots. Will post the rest later.. It was just awesome.. then we took off and headed down the Turner Turnpike and ended up late due to two wrecks and miles of stop and go driving in a 75 posted, 85 usually mile per hour highway!!
Friday, August 12, 2005
Spacecraft Blasts Off to Gather Mars Data
Spacecraft Blasts Off to Gather Mars Data
By MIKE SCHNEIDER, Associated Press
(Link to some GREAT PHOTOS)
A spacecraft blasted off Friday into a golden early morning sky, beginning a mission to Mars to gather more data on the Red Planet than all combined previous missions.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter lifted off on an Atlas V rocket on a seven-month journey to Mars.
"Surveying for the deepest insights into the mysterious evolution of Mars!" NASA commentator George Diller said after liftoff.
The launch went flawlessly. The booster rocket shut down and dropped off into the Atlantic minutes after liftoff, and the second-stage rocket separated less than an hour later, leading workers at the launch control center to break into applause. A short time later, two solar panels that will provide power during the voyage unfolded from the orbiter.
"It couldn't have been any smoother," said launch manager Chuck Dovale. The launch came just three days after space shuttle Discovery completed its mission.
Circling the planet for at least four years, the orbiter is to provide unparalleled information on Mars' weather, climate and geology, which could aid possible future human exploration of the Red Planet.
The $720 million mission is divided into two parts.
During its first two years, the orbiter will help build on NASA's knowledge of the history of ice on the planet. The planet is cold and dry with large caps of frozen water at its poles. But scientists think it was a wetter and possibly warmer place eons ago — conditions that might have been conducive to life. Scientists are also trying to determine if it could support future human outposts.
Equipped with the largest telescopic camera ever sent to another planet, the orbiter also will collect data that will help NASA plan where to land two robotic explorers later this decade. The Phoenix Mars Scout, in search of organic chemicals, will be launched in 2007, and the Mars Science Laboratory will follow two years later.
During the second phase of its mission, the orbiter will serve as a communications messenger between the robotic explorers on Mars and Earth. The reconnaissance orbiter has a powerful antenna that can transmit 10 times more data per minute than the current trio of satellites positioned around the planet — NASA's Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey and the European Space Agency's Mars Express.
Two NASA rovers launched in 2003, Spirit and Opportunity, continue to roam the planet and may be the first to relay information back to Earth via the reconnaissance orbiter.
The orbiter is loaded with two cameras that will provide high-resolution images and global maps of Martian weather, a spectrometer that will identify water-related minerals and a radiometer to measure atmospheric dust. The Italian Space Agency has provided ground-penetrating radar that will peer beneath the surface of layers of rocks or ice.
___
On the Net:
http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/index.html
By MIKE SCHNEIDER, Associated Press
(Link to some GREAT PHOTOS)
A spacecraft blasted off Friday into a golden early morning sky, beginning a mission to Mars to gather more data on the Red Planet than all combined previous missions.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter lifted off on an Atlas V rocket on a seven-month journey to Mars.
"Surveying for the deepest insights into the mysterious evolution of Mars!" NASA commentator George Diller said after liftoff.
The launch went flawlessly. The booster rocket shut down and dropped off into the Atlantic minutes after liftoff, and the second-stage rocket separated less than an hour later, leading workers at the launch control center to break into applause. A short time later, two solar panels that will provide power during the voyage unfolded from the orbiter.
"It couldn't have been any smoother," said launch manager Chuck Dovale. The launch came just three days after space shuttle Discovery completed its mission.
Circling the planet for at least four years, the orbiter is to provide unparalleled information on Mars' weather, climate and geology, which could aid possible future human exploration of the Red Planet.
The $720 million mission is divided into two parts.
During its first two years, the orbiter will help build on NASA's knowledge of the history of ice on the planet. The planet is cold and dry with large caps of frozen water at its poles. But scientists think it was a wetter and possibly warmer place eons ago — conditions that might have been conducive to life. Scientists are also trying to determine if it could support future human outposts.
Equipped with the largest telescopic camera ever sent to another planet, the orbiter also will collect data that will help NASA plan where to land two robotic explorers later this decade. The Phoenix Mars Scout, in search of organic chemicals, will be launched in 2007, and the Mars Science Laboratory will follow two years later.
During the second phase of its mission, the orbiter will serve as a communications messenger between the robotic explorers on Mars and Earth. The reconnaissance orbiter has a powerful antenna that can transmit 10 times more data per minute than the current trio of satellites positioned around the planet — NASA's Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey and the European Space Agency's Mars Express.
Two NASA rovers launched in 2003, Spirit and Opportunity, continue to roam the planet and may be the first to relay information back to Earth via the reconnaissance orbiter.
The orbiter is loaded with two cameras that will provide high-resolution images and global maps of Martian weather, a spectrometer that will identify water-related minerals and a radiometer to measure atmospheric dust. The Italian Space Agency has provided ground-penetrating radar that will peer beneath the surface of layers of rocks or ice.
___
On the Net:
http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/index.html
Thursday, August 11, 2005
1905 - 100 years ago.. what a difference a 100 years makes.. from Uncle Ivan..
THE YEAR 1905
Maybe this will boggle your mind, I know it did mine! The year is 1905, one hundred years ago.
What a difference a century makes!
Here are some of the U.S.statistics for 1905:
The average life expectancy in the U.S. was 47 years.
Only 14 percent of the homes in the U.S.had a bathtub.
Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
A three-minute call from Denverto New York City cost eleven dollars.
There were only 8,000 cars in the U.S., and only 144 miles of paved roads.
The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tennessee were each more heavily populated than California.
With a mere 1.4 million residents, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.
The tallest structure in the world was the EiffelTower!
The average wage in the U.S.was 22 cents an hour.
The average U.S.worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95 percent of all births in the U.S.took place at home.
Ninety percent of all U.S. physicians had no college education.
Instead, they attended medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and by the government as "substandard."
Sugar cost four cents a pound.
Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.
Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
Canadapassed a law prohibiting poor people from entering the country for any reason.
The five leading causes of death in the U.S.were:
1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke
The American flag had 45 stars.
Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Alaskahadn't been admitted to the Union yet.
The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was 30!!!
Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented.
There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.
Two of 10 U.S. adults couldn't read or write.
Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated high school.
Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at corner drugstores.
According to one pharmacist, "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health."
Eighteen percent of households in the U.S had at least one full-time servant or domestic.
There were only about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S.
Maybe this will boggle your mind, I know it did mine! The year is 1905, one hundred years ago.
What a difference a century makes!
Here are some of the U.S.statistics for 1905:
The average life expectancy in the U.S. was 47 years.
Only 14 percent of the homes in the U.S.had a bathtub.
Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
A three-minute call from Denverto New York City cost eleven dollars.
There were only 8,000 cars in the U.S., and only 144 miles of paved roads.
The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tennessee were each more heavily populated than California.
With a mere 1.4 million residents, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.
The tallest structure in the world was the EiffelTower!
The average wage in the U.S.was 22 cents an hour.
The average U.S.worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95 percent of all births in the U.S.took place at home.
Ninety percent of all U.S. physicians had no college education.
Instead, they attended medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and by the government as "substandard."
Sugar cost four cents a pound.
Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.
Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
Canadapassed a law prohibiting poor people from entering the country for any reason.
The five leading causes of death in the U.S.were:
1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke
The American flag had 45 stars.
Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Alaskahadn't been admitted to the Union yet.
The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was 30!!!
Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented.
There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.
Two of 10 U.S. adults couldn't read or write.
Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated high school.
Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at corner drugstores.
According to one pharmacist, "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health."
Eighteen percent of households in the U.S had at least one full-time servant or domestic.
There were only about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S.
Welcome - Our Moffat Family Blog
Sound familiar???
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NASA Postpones Launch of Mars Orbiter By MIKE SCHNEIDER, Associated Press Writer
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA postponed launching a spacecraft to Mars on Thursday after a glitch popped up in the computer software used for monitoring the fueling of the rocket used for liftoff.
The problem with sensors and software that measure the amount of fuel being loaded into the rocket appeared with just minutes left until liftoff. The launch was rescheduled for Friday morning.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter was expected to spend at least four years circling Mars.
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NASA Postpones Launch of Mars Orbiter By MIKE SCHNEIDER, Associated Press Writer
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA postponed launching a spacecraft to Mars on Thursday after a glitch popped up in the computer software used for monitoring the fueling of the rocket used for liftoff.
The problem with sensors and software that measure the amount of fuel being loaded into the rocket appeared with just minutes left until liftoff. The launch was rescheduled for Friday morning.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter was expected to spend at least four years circling Mars.
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
short videos from Sunday's family gathering...
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/08072005kaitlyn.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/kaitlynandrew.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/kaitlynmadison.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/kaitlynplaying.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/madisonkaitlyn.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/sidewayskaitlyn.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/twokiddos.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/kaitlynandrew.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/kaitlynmadison.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/kaitlynplaying.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/madisonkaitlyn.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/sidewayskaitlyn.avi
http://www.paynecountyline.com/avifamily/twokiddos.avi
another ditty from Uncle Ivan... Wear Red on Fridays. to support our military
RED FRIDAY
You will soon see a lot of people wearing Red on Fridays. Here's why.....
The Americans, who support our troops, are the silent majority. We are not
"organized" to reflect who we are, or to reflect what our opinions are. Many
Americans, like yourself, and all their friends, simply want to recognize
that Americans support our troops.
Our idea of showing our solidarity and support for our troops is starting
Friday and continuing on each and every Friday, until this is over, that
every red -blooded American who supports our young men and women, WEAR
SOMETHING RED. Word of mouth, press, TV -- let's see if we can make the
United States, on any given Friday, a sea of red much like a home football
game at a University.
If every one of our memberships share this with other acquaintances, fellow
workers, friends, and neighbors, I guarantee ! that it will not be long
before the USA will be covered in RED - and make our troops know there are
many people thinking of their well-being. You will feel better all day
Friday when you wear Red! So let's get the word out and lead by example;
wear RED on Fridays.
You will soon see a lot of people wearing Red on Fridays. Here's why.....
The Americans, who support our troops, are the silent majority. We are not
"organized" to reflect who we are, or to reflect what our opinions are. Many
Americans, like yourself, and all their friends, simply want to recognize
that Americans support our troops.
Our idea of showing our solidarity and support for our troops is starting
Friday and continuing on each and every Friday, until this is over, that
every red -blooded American who supports our young men and women, WEAR
SOMETHING RED. Word of mouth, press, TV -- let's see if we can make the
United States, on any given Friday, a sea of red much like a home football
game at a University.
If every one of our memberships share this with other acquaintances, fellow
workers, friends, and neighbors, I guarantee ! that it will not be long
before the USA will be covered in RED - and make our troops know there are
many people thinking of their well-being. You will feel better all day
Friday when you wear Red! So let's get the word out and lead by example;
wear RED on Fridays.
From Uncle Ivan... Red Skelton's advice on happy marriages.....
Tips for a Happy Marriage by Red Skelton
1. Two times a week, we go to a nice restaurant, have a little beverage,
good food and companionship. She goes on Tuesdays, I go on Fridays.
2. We also sleep in separate beds. Hers is in California and mine is in
Texas.
3. I take my wife everywhere . . but she keeps finding her way back.
4. I asked my wife where she wanted to go for our anniversary. "Somewhere I
haven't been in a long time!" she said. So I suggested the kitchen.
5. We always hold hands. If I let go, she shops.
6. She has an electric blender, electric toaster and electric bread maker.
She said "There are too many gadgets and no place to sit down!" So I bought
her an electric chair.
7. My wife told me the car wasn't running well because there was water in
the carburetor. I asked where the car was; she told me "In the lake."
8. She got a mud pack and looked great for two days. Then the mud fell off.
9. She ran after the garbage truck, yelling "Am I too late for the
garbage?" The driver yelled back, "No! Jump in!"
10. Remember: Marriage is the number one cause of divorce.
11. I married Miss Right. I just didn't know her first name was Always.
12. I haven't spoken to my wife in 18 months. I don't like to interrupt her.
13. The last fight was my fault though. My wife asked "What's on the TV?" I
said "Dust!"
1. Two times a week, we go to a nice restaurant, have a little beverage,
good food and companionship. She goes on Tuesdays, I go on Fridays.
2. We also sleep in separate beds. Hers is in California and mine is in
Texas.
3. I take my wife everywhere . . but she keeps finding her way back.
4. I asked my wife where she wanted to go for our anniversary. "Somewhere I
haven't been in a long time!" she said. So I suggested the kitchen.
5. We always hold hands. If I let go, she shops.
6. She has an electric blender, electric toaster and electric bread maker.
She said "There are too many gadgets and no place to sit down!" So I bought
her an electric chair.
7. My wife told me the car wasn't running well because there was water in
the carburetor. I asked where the car was; she told me "In the lake."
8. She got a mud pack and looked great for two days. Then the mud fell off.
9. She ran after the garbage truck, yelling "Am I too late for the
garbage?" The driver yelled back, "No! Jump in!"
10. Remember: Marriage is the number one cause of divorce.
11. I married Miss Right. I just didn't know her first name was Always.
12. I haven't spoken to my wife in 18 months. I don't like to interrupt her.
13. The last fight was my fault though. My wife asked "What's on the TV?" I
said "Dust!"
Next US Mars probe set for launch
Nasa's latest Mars mission is set to be launched on Wednesday.
The Mars Reconaissance Orbiter (MRO) will search the planet for promising landing sites for future robotic missions, in the US quest to eventually send astronauts to Mars.
The spacecraft could identify suitable habitats for life on the Red Planet.
A rocket carrying the probe is due to blast-off from Cape Canaveral at 7.54am (11.54 GMT).
Water search
The MRO is the biggest spacecraft to be sent to Mars, carrying some of the most sophisticated instruments ever.
"MRO is the next step in our ambitious exploration of Mars," said Douglas McCuistion, director of Nasa's Mars exploration programme.
MRO Cost: $500m Weight: 2,180kg Payload: Three cameras and instruments to analyse the atmosphere of Mars, monitor the Martian weather, study minerals and search for sub-surface water
"We expect to use this spacecraft's eyes in the sky in coming years as our primary tools to identify and evaluate the best places for future missions to land."
The spacecraft will arrive at Mars in March 2006. It will study the composition and structure of Mars and serve as a powerful communications relay for future missions to the surface.
One of its scientific objectives is to explore whether Mars could once have supported microbial life. Its cameras and spectrometers will scour the surface for features related to water, without which life cannot survive. Meanwhile, a radar sounder will look for liquid water reservoirs that may exist beneath the surface of Mars.
Beagle clues
British scientists hope it will also discover what happened to the lost Mars probe, Beagle 2.
Professor Colin Pillinger, from the Open University, who led the Beagle 2 mission, said: "If we could just see some trace of it on the surface then at least we could see how far it got - the not knowing is the worst bit.
"It will be a very difficult thing to do, but this is our best chance of finding out what happened and we will be watching the progress of the mission with great interest and anticipation."
The MRO will join two US orbiters - the Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey - and one European orbiter, Mars Express, at the Red Planet.
Two US robotic rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, have been on the Martian surface for the past 18 months, investigating the geology of Mars.
Nasa is planning two further Mars mission this decade: the Phoenix module, set for launch in 2007, and a Mars Science Laboratory in 2009.
Here goes some more of our American Rights out the window... hummmmm
Brit License Plates Get Chipped By Mark Baard
Story location: http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,68429,00.html
02:00 AM Aug. 09, 2005 PT
The British government is preparing to test new high-tech license plates containing microchips capable of transmitting unique vehicle identification numbers and other data to readers more than 300 feet away.
Officials in the United States say they'll be closely watching the British trial as they contemplate initiating their own tests of the plates, which incorporate radio frequency identification, or RFID, tags to make vehicles electronically trackable.
"We definitely have an interest in testing an RFID-tagged license plate," said Jerry Dike, chairman of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators and director of the Vehicle Titles and Registration Division of the Texas Department of Transportation.
So-called "active" RFID tags, like the one in the e-Plate made by the U.K. firm Hills Numberplates, have built-in batteries, allowing them to broadcast data much farther than the small passive tags used to track inventory at retail stores.
Active RFID is already enjoying limited use on U.S. roadways. Under a new program, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is issuing RFID tags to foreign freight and passenger vehicles as they enter the country.
The technology is also used in electronic toll-collection systems in the United States to automatically charge participating drivers as they breeze past unstaffed toll booths. In the San Francisco Bay Area, FasTrak toll transponders are also polled at readers away from the toll booths, to determine how quickly traffic is moving through particular areas.
Proponents argue that making such RFID tags mandatory and ubiquitous is a logical move to counter the threat of terrorists using the roadways, and that it will scoop up insurance and registration scofflaws in the process.
"We see tremendous advantages to the (e-Plate) for everything from verifying registration and insurance to Amber (missing child) Alerts," said Dike. But because the RFID plates can cost 10 times more than ordinary plates, they will need strong support from governors and state legislatures before they are tested in the states, Dike added. "It will be several years before Texas will be able to test the e-Plate" on any of the 4 million to 4.5 million cars it registers annually.
Privacy advocates are less enthusiastic about the technology.
"It's too easy for (RFID license plates) to become a back-door surveillance tool," said Jim Harper, director of information studies at libertarian think tank the Cato Institute and a member of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee.
Civil libertarians don't object to an RFID automatic toll-collection system that "anonymizes" vehicles in databases once a transaction is completed. But they doubt the government -- given its thirst for intelligence -- will use such privacy-protection measures. From a law-enforcement perspective, "there is no reason to have privacy for anything," said Lee Tien, senior staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
Active RFID is a huge improvement over cameras that use optical character recognition to read license plates and are accurate only 75 to 90 percent of the time, said Michael Wolf, president of the EVI Management Group.
The U.K. Department for Transport gave the official go-ahead for the microchipped number plates (as they are called in the United Kingdom) last week, and the trial is expected to begin later this year. The government has been tight-lipped about the details. One of the vendors bidding to participate in the trial said it would start with smartplates added to some police cars.
The point of the test is to see whether microchips will make number plates harder to tamper with and clone, said U.K. Department for Transport spokesman Ian Weller-Skitt.
Many commuters use counterfeit plates to avoid the London congestion charge, a fee imposed on passenger vehicles entering central London during busy hours.
Story location: http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,68429,00.html
02:00 AM Aug. 09, 2005 PT
The British government is preparing to test new high-tech license plates containing microchips capable of transmitting unique vehicle identification numbers and other data to readers more than 300 feet away.
Officials in the United States say they'll be closely watching the British trial as they contemplate initiating their own tests of the plates, which incorporate radio frequency identification, or RFID, tags to make vehicles electronically trackable.
"We definitely have an interest in testing an RFID-tagged license plate," said Jerry Dike, chairman of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators and director of the Vehicle Titles and Registration Division of the Texas Department of Transportation.
So-called "active" RFID tags, like the one in the e-Plate made by the U.K. firm Hills Numberplates, have built-in batteries, allowing them to broadcast data much farther than the small passive tags used to track inventory at retail stores.
Active RFID is already enjoying limited use on U.S. roadways. Under a new program, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is issuing RFID tags to foreign freight and passenger vehicles as they enter the country.
The technology is also used in electronic toll-collection systems in the United States to automatically charge participating drivers as they breeze past unstaffed toll booths. In the San Francisco Bay Area, FasTrak toll transponders are also polled at readers away from the toll booths, to determine how quickly traffic is moving through particular areas.
Proponents argue that making such RFID tags mandatory and ubiquitous is a logical move to counter the threat of terrorists using the roadways, and that it will scoop up insurance and registration scofflaws in the process.
"We see tremendous advantages to the (e-Plate) for everything from verifying registration and insurance to Amber (missing child) Alerts," said Dike. But because the RFID plates can cost 10 times more than ordinary plates, they will need strong support from governors and state legislatures before they are tested in the states, Dike added. "It will be several years before Texas will be able to test the e-Plate" on any of the 4 million to 4.5 million cars it registers annually.
Privacy advocates are less enthusiastic about the technology.
"It's too easy for (RFID license plates) to become a back-door surveillance tool," said Jim Harper, director of information studies at libertarian think tank the Cato Institute and a member of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee.
Civil libertarians don't object to an RFID automatic toll-collection system that "anonymizes" vehicles in databases once a transaction is completed. But they doubt the government -- given its thirst for intelligence -- will use such privacy-protection measures. From a law-enforcement perspective, "there is no reason to have privacy for anything," said Lee Tien, senior staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
Active RFID is a huge improvement over cameras that use optical character recognition to read license plates and are accurate only 75 to 90 percent of the time, said Michael Wolf, president of the EVI Management Group.
The U.K. Department for Transport gave the official go-ahead for the microchipped number plates (as they are called in the United Kingdom) last week, and the trial is expected to begin later this year. The government has been tight-lipped about the details. One of the vendors bidding to participate in the trial said it would start with smartplates added to some police cars.
The point of the test is to see whether microchips will make number plates harder to tamper with and clone, said U.K. Department for Transport spokesman Ian Weller-Skitt.
Many commuters use counterfeit plates to avoid the London congestion charge, a fee imposed on passenger vehicles entering central London during busy hours.
Sunday, August 07, 2005
Saturday, August 06, 2005
Here is the night sky view.. as we were walking around the Paseo District last night in OKC...
The awesome sky last night, as we were walking around the Paseo District in OKC.
Here is the link to the album with all the photos....
Theories of humour
Theories of humour
Poking fun
Aug 4th 2005 | TUEBINGEN, GERMANY
From The Economist print edition
Why people laugh
THE true story of how your wife's stalker rang her to discuss killing you isn't supposed to provoke mirth. But when John Morreall, of the College of William and Mary in Virginia, related the events last week to a group of scholars in Tuebingen in Germany, they were in stitches as he divulged the details of how his wife tried to dissuade the confused young man by pleading that her mortgage was too large to pay without her husband's help.
So why did they laugh? Dr Morreall's thesis is that laughter, incapacitating as it can be, is a convincing signal that the danger has passed. The reaction of the psychologists, linguists, philosophers and professional clowns attending the Fifth International Summer School on Humour and Laughter illustrates his point. Dr Morreall survived to tell the tale and so had an easy time making it sound funny.
One description of how laughter is provoked is the incongruity theory developed by Victor Raskin of Purdue University and Salvatore Attardo of Youngstown State University, both in America. This theory says that all written jokes and many other humorous situations are based on an incongruity—something that is not quite right. In many jokes, the teller sets up the story with this incongruity present and the punch line then resolves it, in a way people do not expect. Alternatively, the very last words of the story may introduce the absurdity and leave the listeners with the task of reconciling it. For instance, many people find it funny that a conference on humour could take place in Germany.
Why do people laugh at all? What is the point of it? Laughter is very contagious and this suggests that it may have become a part of human behaviour because it promotes social bonding. When a group of people laughs, the message seems to be “relax, you are among friends”.
Indeed, humour is one way of dealing with the fact that humans are “excrement-producing poets and imperfect lovers”, says Appletree Rodden of the University of Tuebingen. He sees religion and humour as different, and perhaps competing, ways for people to accept death and the general unsatisfactoriness of the world. Perhaps that is why, as Dr Morreall calculates in a forthcoming article in the journal Humor, 95% of the writings that he sampled from important Christian scholars through the centuries disapproved of humour, linking it to insincerity and idleness.
Fear of idleness is why many managers discourage laughter during office hours, Dr Morreall notes. This is foolish, he claims. Laughter or its absence may be the best clue a manager has about the work environment and the mood of employees.
Indeed, another theory of why people laugh—the superiority theory—says that people laugh to assert that they are on a level equal to or higher than those around them. Research has shown that bosses tend to crack more jokes than do their employees. Women laugh much more in the presence of men, and men generally tell more jokes in the presence of women. Men have even been shown to laugh much more quietly around women, while laughing louder when in a group of men.
But laughter does not unite us all. There are those who have a pathological fear that others will laugh at them. Sufferers avoid situations where there will be laughter, which means most places where people meet. Willibald Ruch of Zurich University surveyed 1,000 Germans and asked them whether they thought they were the butts of jokes and found that almost 10% felt this way. These people also tended to classify taped laughter as jeering. Future research will focus on the hypothesis that there is something seriously wrong with their sense of humour.
Poking fun
Aug 4th 2005 | TUEBINGEN, GERMANY
From The Economist print edition
Why people laugh
THE true story of how your wife's stalker rang her to discuss killing you isn't supposed to provoke mirth. But when John Morreall, of the College of William and Mary in Virginia, related the events last week to a group of scholars in Tuebingen in Germany, they were in stitches as he divulged the details of how his wife tried to dissuade the confused young man by pleading that her mortgage was too large to pay without her husband's help.
So why did they laugh? Dr Morreall's thesis is that laughter, incapacitating as it can be, is a convincing signal that the danger has passed. The reaction of the psychologists, linguists, philosophers and professional clowns attending the Fifth International Summer School on Humour and Laughter illustrates his point. Dr Morreall survived to tell the tale and so had an easy time making it sound funny.
One description of how laughter is provoked is the incongruity theory developed by Victor Raskin of Purdue University and Salvatore Attardo of Youngstown State University, both in America. This theory says that all written jokes and many other humorous situations are based on an incongruity—something that is not quite right. In many jokes, the teller sets up the story with this incongruity present and the punch line then resolves it, in a way people do not expect. Alternatively, the very last words of the story may introduce the absurdity and leave the listeners with the task of reconciling it. For instance, many people find it funny that a conference on humour could take place in Germany.
Why do people laugh at all? What is the point of it? Laughter is very contagious and this suggests that it may have become a part of human behaviour because it promotes social bonding. When a group of people laughs, the message seems to be “relax, you are among friends”.
Indeed, humour is one way of dealing with the fact that humans are “excrement-producing poets and imperfect lovers”, says Appletree Rodden of the University of Tuebingen. He sees religion and humour as different, and perhaps competing, ways for people to accept death and the general unsatisfactoriness of the world. Perhaps that is why, as Dr Morreall calculates in a forthcoming article in the journal Humor, 95% of the writings that he sampled from important Christian scholars through the centuries disapproved of humour, linking it to insincerity and idleness.
Fear of idleness is why many managers discourage laughter during office hours, Dr Morreall notes. This is foolish, he claims. Laughter or its absence may be the best clue a manager has about the work environment and the mood of employees.
Indeed, another theory of why people laugh—the superiority theory—says that people laugh to assert that they are on a level equal to or higher than those around them. Research has shown that bosses tend to crack more jokes than do their employees. Women laugh much more in the presence of men, and men generally tell more jokes in the presence of women. Men have even been shown to laugh much more quietly around women, while laughing louder when in a group of men.
But laughter does not unite us all. There are those who have a pathological fear that others will laugh at them. Sufferers avoid situations where there will be laughter, which means most places where people meet. Willibald Ruch of Zurich University surveyed 1,000 Germans and asked them whether they thought they were the butts of jokes and found that almost 10% felt this way. These people also tended to classify taped laughter as jeering. Future research will focus on the hypothesis that there is something seriously wrong with their sense of humour.
It all started with Phil and Tammy going to OKC last weekend, and finding the Paseo, and Adobe Grille... wow, what great finds! They came back and reported how wonderful it was, and in reporting it to us... we all decided to try it again.. last night, and wow, wow, wow, it did NOT disappoint! What a great night!! When you are in OKC, please,, please, head over to the Adobe Grille for some of the best Mexician Food ... ever! It was food prepared for your taste buds, as well as your tummy!! EVERY bite was unbelievable! You actually wanted the next bite to experience the "taste sensation"! I have never had such an experience eating out in my entire life, and I have ate at some really fine places... but NOTHING as great as this. Even if you don't like Mexician, you will enjoy your food there, PROMISE! Just go, and set back and let the fantastic staff waite on ya... and ENJOY!!! REALLY Really .... r e a l l y ... a great place to dine and enjoy and experience dining out, the way it should be... yelp.. GO!!! Can you tell I got carried away... haha.. but GO!!! Then.......... (now why the pic is here, hahaha....) we headed over to the Paseo District in OKC, and MAN, it was like being on vacation in another state... or place. GREAT art, friendly folks, just plain ole neat place to head to and experience. We might have to do it again with all the family... first Friday night of each month is the walk around open gallery displays of art, a little ole wine and snacks, etc... well, will post pics from it in a bit.. but all in all, the four of us felt like we were on vacation.... we had a GREAT time!! Full tummys, and saw some great art and came home with hugh smiles on our faces, our tummys full, and neat thoughts... well worth your time if you are in OKC and you have blood flowing in your veins... you will enjoy this wonderful hidden place in OKC. Enjoy the day... and Thanks PHILLIP AND TAMMY for sharing the night with Ann and I. thanks..
IT RAINED.. PRAISE GOD... IT RAINED...
UNBELIEVABLE, I DID NOT KNOW THAT HE REMEMBERED HOW TO SEND THE RAIN. WE HAVE RECEIVED 3/4 OF AN INCH SINCE JAN. 05!!! WE MIGHT HAVE RECEIVED ABOUT 3/4 OF AN INCH LAST NIGHT.... THANKS TO THE GUYS UPSTAIRS!!! MORE ON LAST NIGHT LATER.. BUT FOR NOW... ENJOY THE FRESHNESS OF THE OUTDOOR SMELLS... AFTER A RAIN....
I believe in God - From Uncle Ivan Moffat
THIS ONE IS FABULOUS!!! It was written by an 8-year-old named Danny Dutton, who lives in Chula Vista, CA. He wrote it for his third grade homework assignment, to "explain God". I wonder if any of us could have done as well?
EXPLANATION OF GOD:
"One of God's main jobs is making people. He makes them to replace the ones that die, so there will be enough people to take care of things on earth. &n! bsp;He doesn't make grownups, just babies. I think because they are smaller ! and easier to make. That way he doesn't have to take up his valuable time teaching them to talk and walk. He can just leave that to mothers and fathers."
"God's second most important job is listening to prayers. An awful lot of this goes on, since some people, like preachers and things, pray at times beside bedtime. God doesn't have time to listen to the radio or TV because of this. Because he hears everything, there must be a terrible lot of noise in his ears, unless he has thought of a way to turn it off."
"God sees everything and hears everything and is everywhere which keeps Him pretty busy. So you shouldn't go wasting his time by going over your mom and dad's head asking for something they said you couldn't have."
"Atheists are people who don't believe in God. I don't think there are any in Chula Vista . At least there aren't any who come to our church."
"Jesus is God's Son. He used to do all the hard work, like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn't want to learn about God. They finally got tired of him preaching to them and they crucified him But he was good and kind, like his father, and he told his father that they didn't know what they were doing and to
forgive them and God said O.K."
"His dad (God) appreciated everything that he had done and all his hard work on earth so he told him he didn't have to go out on the road anymore. He could stay in heaven. So he did. And now he helps his dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones he can take care of himself without having to bother God. Like! a secretary, only more important."
"You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to help you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time." "You should always go to church on Sunday because it makes God happy, and if there's anybody you want to make happy, it's God!
Don't skip church to do something you think will be more fun like going to the beach. This is wrong. And besides the sun doesn't come out at the beach until noon anyway."
"If you don't believe in God, besides being an atheist, you will be very lonely, because your parents can't go everywhere with you, like to camp, but God can. It is good to know He's around you when you're scared, in the dark or when you can't swim and y! ou get thrown into real deep water by big kids."
"But.. you shouldn't just always think of what God can do for you. I figure God put me here and he can take me back anytime he pleases.
And...that's why I believe in God."
EXPLANATION OF GOD:
"One of God's main jobs is making people. He makes them to replace the ones that die, so there will be enough people to take care of things on earth. &n! bsp;He doesn't make grownups, just babies. I think because they are smaller ! and easier to make. That way he doesn't have to take up his valuable time teaching them to talk and walk. He can just leave that to mothers and fathers."
"God's second most important job is listening to prayers. An awful lot of this goes on, since some people, like preachers and things, pray at times beside bedtime. God doesn't have time to listen to the radio or TV because of this. Because he hears everything, there must be a terrible lot of noise in his ears, unless he has thought of a way to turn it off."
"God sees everything and hears everything and is everywhere which keeps Him pretty busy. So you shouldn't go wasting his time by going over your mom and dad's head asking for something they said you couldn't have."
"Atheists are people who don't believe in God. I don't think there are any in Chula Vista . At least there aren't any who come to our church."
"Jesus is God's Son. He used to do all the hard work, like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn't want to learn about God. They finally got tired of him preaching to them and they crucified him But he was good and kind, like his father, and he told his father that they didn't know what they were doing and to
forgive them and God said O.K."
"His dad (God) appreciated everything that he had done and all his hard work on earth so he told him he didn't have to go out on the road anymore. He could stay in heaven. So he did. And now he helps his dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones he can take care of himself without having to bother God. Like! a secretary, only more important."
"You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to help you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time." "You should always go to church on Sunday because it makes God happy, and if there's anybody you want to make happy, it's God!
Don't skip church to do something you think will be more fun like going to the beach. This is wrong. And besides the sun doesn't come out at the beach until noon anyway."
"If you don't believe in God, besides being an atheist, you will be very lonely, because your parents can't go everywhere with you, like to camp, but God can. It is good to know He's around you when you're scared, in the dark or when you can't swim and y! ou get thrown into real deep water by big kids."
"But.. you shouldn't just always think of what God can do for you. I figure God put me here and he can take me back anytime he pleases.
And...that's why I believe in God."
Friday, August 05, 2005
WHAT IS A GRANDPARENT? From Joanna... thanks, kiddo!!
WHAT IS A GRANDPARENT?
Taken from papers written by a class of 8-year-olds
Grandparents are a lady and a man who have no little children of her own. They like other people's.
A grandfather is a man grandmother.
Grandparents don't have to do anything except be there when we come to see them. They are so old they shouldn't play hard or run. It is good if they drive us to the store and have lots of quarters for us.
When they take us for walks, they slow down past things like pretty leaves and caterpillars.
They show us and talk to us about the color of the flowers and also! Why we shouldn't step on "cracks."
They don't say, "Hurry up."
Usually grandmothers are fat, but not too fat to tie your shoes.
They wear glasses and funny underwear.
They can take their teeth and gums out.
Grandparents don't have to be smart.
They have to answer questions like "why isn't God married?" and "How come dogs chase cats?".
When they read to us, they don't skip. They don't mind if we ask for the same story over again.
Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don't have television, because they are the only grown ups who like to spend time with us.
They know we should have snack-time before bedtime and they say prayers with us every time, and kiss us even when we've acted bad.
A 6 YEAR OLD WAS ASKED WHERE HIS GRANDMA LIVED. ''OH,'' HE SAID, ''SHE LIVES AT THE AIRPORT, AND WHEN WE WANT HER WE JUST GO GET HER. THEN WHEN WE'RE DONE HAVING HER VISIT, WE TAKE HER BACK TO THE AIRPORT.''
Taken from papers written by a class of 8-year-olds
Grandparents are a lady and a man who have no little children of her own. They like other people's.
A grandfather is a man grandmother.
Grandparents don't have to do anything except be there when we come to see them. They are so old they shouldn't play hard or run. It is good if they drive us to the store and have lots of quarters for us.
When they take us for walks, they slow down past things like pretty leaves and caterpillars.
They show us and talk to us about the color of the flowers and also! Why we shouldn't step on "cracks."
They don't say, "Hurry up."
Usually grandmothers are fat, but not too fat to tie your shoes.
They wear glasses and funny underwear.
They can take their teeth and gums out.
Grandparents don't have to be smart.
They have to answer questions like "why isn't God married?" and "How come dogs chase cats?".
When they read to us, they don't skip. They don't mind if we ask for the same story over again.
Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don't have television, because they are the only grown ups who like to spend time with us.
They know we should have snack-time before bedtime and they say prayers with us every time, and kiss us even when we've acted bad.
A 6 YEAR OLD WAS ASKED WHERE HIS GRANDMA LIVED. ''OH,'' HE SAID, ''SHE LIVES AT THE AIRPORT, AND WHEN WE WANT HER WE JUST GO GET HER. THEN WHEN WE'RE DONE HAVING HER VISIT, WE TAKE HER BACK TO THE AIRPORT.''
Joanna sent along this neat dealy.. thanks Joanna
GRANDMA'S CURES
Keep this on the Fridge
Did You Know That? Drinking two glasses of Gatorade can relieve headache pain almost immediately -- without the unpleasant side effects caused by traditional "pain relievers."
Did you know that Colgate toothpaste makes an excellent salve for burns.
Before you head to the drugstore for a high-priced inhaler filled with mysterious chemicals, try chewing on a couple of curiously strong Altoids peppermints. They'll clear up your stuffed nose.
Achy muscles from a bout of the flu? Mix 1 Tablespoon of horseradish in 1 cup of olive oil. Let the mixture sit for 30 minutes, then apply it as a massage oil, for instant relief for aching muscles.
Sore throat? Just mix 1/4 cup of vinegar with 1/4 cup of honey and take 1 tablespoon six times a day. The vinegar kills the bacteria.
Cure urinary tract infections with Alka-Seltzer. Just dissolve two tablets in a glass of water and drink it at the onset of the symptoms. Alka-Seltzer begins eliminating urinary tract infections almost instantly -- even though the product was never been advertised for this use.
Honey remedy for skin blemishes ... Cover the blemish with a dab of honey and place a Band-Aid over it. Honey kills the bacteria, keeps the skin sterile, and speeds healing. Works overnight.
Listerine therapy for toenail fungus... Get rid of unsightly toenail fungus by soaking your toes in Listerine mouthwash. The powerful antiseptic leaves your toenails looking healthy again.
Easy eyeglass protection ... To prevent the screws in eyeglasses from loosening, apply a small drop of Maybelline Crystal Clear nail polish to the threads of the screws before tightening them.
Coca-Cola cure for rust... Forget those expensive rust removers. Just saturate an abrasive sponge with Coco-Cola and scrub the rust stain. The phosphoric acid in the coke is what gets the job done.
Cleaning liquid that doubles as bug killer ... If menacing bees, wasps, hornets, or yellow jackets get in your home and you can't find the insecticide, try a spray of Formula 409. Insects drop to the ground instantly.
Smart splinter remover ...just pour a drop of Elmer's Glue-All over the splinter, let dry, and peel the dried glue off the skin. The splinter sticks to the dried glue.
Hunt's tomato paste boil cure...cover the boil with Hunt's tomato paste as a compress. The acids from the tomatoes soothe the pain and bring the boil to a head.
Balm for broken blisters...To disinfect a broken blister, dab on a few drops of Listerine ... a powerful antiseptic.
Heinz vinegar to heal bruises ... Soak a cotton ball in white vinegar and apply it to the bruise for 1 hour. The vinegar reduces the blueness and speeds up the healing process.
Kills fleas instantly. Dawn dish washing liquid does the trick. Add a few drops to your dog's bath and shampoo the animal thoroughly. Rinse well to avoid skin irritations. Goodbye fleas.
Rainy day cure for dog odor... Next time your dog comes in from the rain, simply wipe down the animal with Bounce or any dryer sheet, instantly making your dog smell springtime fresh.
Eliminate ear mites ... All it takes is a few drops of Wesson corn oil in your cat's ear. Massage it in, then clean with a cotton ball. Repeat daily for 3 days. The oil soothes the cat's skin, smothers the mites, and accelerates healing.
Quaker Oats for fast pain relief....It's not for breakfast anymore! Mix 2 cups of Quaker Oats and 1 cup of water in a bowl and warm in the microwave for 1 minute, cool slightly, and apply the mixture to your hands for soothing relief from arthritis pain.
Keep this on the Fridge
Did You Know That? Drinking two glasses of Gatorade can relieve headache pain almost immediately -- without the unpleasant side effects caused by traditional "pain relievers."
Did you know that Colgate toothpaste makes an excellent salve for burns.
Before you head to the drugstore for a high-priced inhaler filled with mysterious chemicals, try chewing on a couple of curiously strong Altoids peppermints. They'll clear up your stuffed nose.
Achy muscles from a bout of the flu? Mix 1 Tablespoon of horseradish in 1 cup of olive oil. Let the mixture sit for 30 minutes, then apply it as a massage oil, for instant relief for aching muscles.
Sore throat? Just mix 1/4 cup of vinegar with 1/4 cup of honey and take 1 tablespoon six times a day. The vinegar kills the bacteria.
Cure urinary tract infections with Alka-Seltzer. Just dissolve two tablets in a glass of water and drink it at the onset of the symptoms. Alka-Seltzer begins eliminating urinary tract infections almost instantly -- even though the product was never been advertised for this use.
Honey remedy for skin blemishes ... Cover the blemish with a dab of honey and place a Band-Aid over it. Honey kills the bacteria, keeps the skin sterile, and speeds healing. Works overnight.
Listerine therapy for toenail fungus... Get rid of unsightly toenail fungus by soaking your toes in Listerine mouthwash. The powerful antiseptic leaves your toenails looking healthy again.
Easy eyeglass protection ... To prevent the screws in eyeglasses from loosening, apply a small drop of Maybelline Crystal Clear nail polish to the threads of the screws before tightening them.
Coca-Cola cure for rust... Forget those expensive rust removers. Just saturate an abrasive sponge with Coco-Cola and scrub the rust stain. The phosphoric acid in the coke is what gets the job done.
Cleaning liquid that doubles as bug killer ... If menacing bees, wasps, hornets, or yellow jackets get in your home and you can't find the insecticide, try a spray of Formula 409. Insects drop to the ground instantly.
Smart splinter remover ...just pour a drop of Elmer's Glue-All over the splinter, let dry, and peel the dried glue off the skin. The splinter sticks to the dried glue.
Hunt's tomato paste boil cure...cover the boil with Hunt's tomato paste as a compress. The acids from the tomatoes soothe the pain and bring the boil to a head.
Balm for broken blisters...To disinfect a broken blister, dab on a few drops of Listerine ... a powerful antiseptic.
Heinz vinegar to heal bruises ... Soak a cotton ball in white vinegar and apply it to the bruise for 1 hour. The vinegar reduces the blueness and speeds up the healing process.
Kills fleas instantly. Dawn dish washing liquid does the trick. Add a few drops to your dog's bath and shampoo the animal thoroughly. Rinse well to avoid skin irritations. Goodbye fleas.
Rainy day cure for dog odor... Next time your dog comes in from the rain, simply wipe down the animal with Bounce or any dryer sheet, instantly making your dog smell springtime fresh.
Eliminate ear mites ... All it takes is a few drops of Wesson corn oil in your cat's ear. Massage it in, then clean with a cotton ball. Repeat daily for 3 days. The oil soothes the cat's skin, smothers the mites, and accelerates healing.
Quaker Oats for fast pain relief....It's not for breakfast anymore! Mix 2 cups of Quaker Oats and 1 cup of water in a bowl and warm in the microwave for 1 minute, cool slightly, and apply the mixture to your hands for soothing relief from arthritis pain.
GET READY FOR SOMETHING NEW....
CHECK IT OUT...
HTTP://WWW.PAYNECOUNTYLINE.COM/PHIL (all small letters
My kiddos are so talented... It just never ceases to amaze me. 'got to be their mom's blood... but then we all knew that!!!
Heather is an awesome writer... when she can find the time and feels like it, Jon's brain is in overdrive in the "web" world... Phil can figure out how to do anything... and Jake is an amazing song writer.. and this is not even their strong suits!!! But then they are married to spouses who are equally talented so the grandkids will be AWESOME!!! Paul is a genius at figuring out things, reconstructing accidents... Tammy can make or bake or .... about anything, and Randi has an great gift for figuring out how to make things that are darn cool!! Great parents, super examples for their children to follow, and even more awesome than that, they are Mr. and Mrs. Moffat's kids, all of them! Yelp, Randi, even you, haha... I just hope they can put up with things like Grandpa did yesterday, sending a note to Jon and Randi, I said" I am so excited that Jon, Randi and Madison are coming up Sunday"... ok.. well, it's an age thing.. Enjoy it.. cuz one day it will be you!! haha.....
And I am fired up.... I can not wait to see KAITLYN - before she starts school!
Love to all... haha.. Enjoy the day God gave us, it could be our last... Not trying to dampen things.. just being honest!!
S
HTTP://WWW.PAYNECOUNTYLINE.COM/PHIL (all small letters
My kiddos are so talented... It just never ceases to amaze me. 'got to be their mom's blood... but then we all knew that!!!
Heather is an awesome writer... when she can find the time and feels like it, Jon's brain is in overdrive in the "web" world... Phil can figure out how to do anything... and Jake is an amazing song writer.. and this is not even their strong suits!!! But then they are married to spouses who are equally talented so the grandkids will be AWESOME!!! Paul is a genius at figuring out things, reconstructing accidents... Tammy can make or bake or .... about anything, and Randi has an great gift for figuring out how to make things that are darn cool!! Great parents, super examples for their children to follow, and even more awesome than that, they are Mr. and Mrs. Moffat's kids, all of them! Yelp, Randi, even you, haha... I just hope they can put up with things like Grandpa did yesterday, sending a note to Jon and Randi, I said" I am so excited that Jon, Randi and Madison are coming up Sunday"... ok.. well, it's an age thing.. Enjoy it.. cuz one day it will be you!! haha.....
And I am fired up.... I can not wait to see KAITLYN - before she starts school!
Love to all... haha.. Enjoy the day God gave us, it could be our last... Not trying to dampen things.. just being honest!!
S
Thursday, August 04, 2005
Old-time rock and roll band Stud Ducks is featured tonight
Old-time rockers to play in park
YUKON -- Old-time rock and roll band Stud Ducks is featured tonight at the Concert in the Park series at the Chisholm Trail Park gazebo.
The concert is free. The gazebo is south of Vandament Avenue and accessed by Wright- Kroutil Drive. Everyone is encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket.
A concession stand is available. Proceeds help pay entertainer expenses. For more information, call 350-8937.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is on the way to the Mulvey farm with the big lake on it at Yukon that we lived on... haha.. just remembering.. later..
YUKON -- Old-time rock and roll band Stud Ducks is featured tonight at the Concert in the Park series at the Chisholm Trail Park gazebo.
The concert is free. The gazebo is south of Vandament Avenue and accessed by Wright- Kroutil Drive. Everyone is encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket.
A concession stand is available. Proceeds help pay entertainer expenses. For more information, call 350-8937.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is on the way to the Mulvey farm with the big lake on it at Yukon that we lived on... haha.. just remembering.. later..
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
Blonde jokes Ann's boss sent to her.. cute.. and clean..
Subject: Helloooo..Blond Jokes
THE MOON
Two blondes living in Oklahoma were sitting on
a bench talking........and one blonde says to the other, "Which do you
think is farther away..........Florida or the moon?"
The other blonde turns and says
"Helloooooooooo!!! can you see Florida.......?????"
CAR TROUBLE
A blonde pushes her BMW into a gas station.
She tells the mechanic it died. After he works on it for a few minutes,
it is idling smoothly. She says, "What's the story?"
He replies, "Just crap in the carburetor"
She asks, "How often do I have to do that?"
SPEEDING TICKET
A police officer stops a blonde for speeding and
asks her very nicely if he could see her license.
She replied in a huff, "I wish you guys would
get your act together. Just yesterday you take away my license and then
today you expect me to show it to you!"
RIVER WALK
There's this blonde out for a walk. She comes
to a river and sees another blonde on the opposite bank. "Yoo-hoo!" she
shouts, "How can I get to the other side?"
The second blonde looks up the river then down
the river and shouts back, "You ARE on the other side."
KNITTING
A highway patrolman pulled alongside a speeding
car on the freeway.
Glancing at the car, he was astounded to see
that the blonde behind the wheel was knitting! Realizing that she was
oblivious to his flashing lights and siren, the trooper cranked down his
window, turned on his bullhorn and yelled , "PULL OVER!"
"NO!" the blonde yelled back, "IT'S A SCARF!"
BLONDE ON THE SUN
A Russian, an American, and a Blonde were
talking one day. The Russian said, "We were the first in space!"
The American said, "We were the first on the
moon!"
The Blonde said, "So what? We're going to be
the first on the sun!"
The Russian and the American looked at each
other and shook their heads.
"You can't land on the sun, you idiot! You'll
burn up!" said the Russian.
To which the Blonde replied, "We're not stupid,
you know. We're going at night!"
IN A VACUUM
A blonde was playing Trivial Pursuit one night.
It was her turn. She rolled the dice and she landed on Science & Nature.
Her question was, "If you are in a vacuum and someone calls your name, can
you
hear it?" She thought for a time and then asked, "Is it on or off?"
FINALLY, THE BLONDE JOKE TO END ALL BLONDE
JOKES!
A girl was visiting her blonde friend, who had
acquired two new dogs, and asked her what their names were.
The blonde responded by saying that one was
named Rolex and one was named Timex.
Her friend said, "Whoever heard of someone
naming dogs like that?"
"HELLLOOOOOOO......," answered the blond.
"They're watch dogs
Don
THE MOON
Two blondes living in Oklahoma were sitting on
a bench talking........and one blonde says to the other, "Which do you
think is farther away..........Florida or the moon?"
The other blonde turns and says
"Helloooooooooo!!! can you see Florida.......?????"
CAR TROUBLE
A blonde pushes her BMW into a gas station.
She tells the mechanic it died. After he works on it for a few minutes,
it is idling smoothly. She says, "What's the story?"
He replies, "Just crap in the carburetor"
She asks, "How often do I have to do that?"
SPEEDING TICKET
A police officer stops a blonde for speeding and
asks her very nicely if he could see her license.
She replied in a huff, "I wish you guys would
get your act together. Just yesterday you take away my license and then
today you expect me to show it to you!"
RIVER WALK
There's this blonde out for a walk. She comes
to a river and sees another blonde on the opposite bank. "Yoo-hoo!" she
shouts, "How can I get to the other side?"
The second blonde looks up the river then down
the river and shouts back, "You ARE on the other side."
KNITTING
A highway patrolman pulled alongside a speeding
car on the freeway.
Glancing at the car, he was astounded to see
that the blonde behind the wheel was knitting! Realizing that she was
oblivious to his flashing lights and siren, the trooper cranked down his
window, turned on his bullhorn and yelled , "PULL OVER!"
"NO!" the blonde yelled back, "IT'S A SCARF!"
BLONDE ON THE SUN
A Russian, an American, and a Blonde were
talking one day. The Russian said, "We were the first in space!"
The American said, "We were the first on the
moon!"
The Blonde said, "So what? We're going to be
the first on the sun!"
The Russian and the American looked at each
other and shook their heads.
"You can't land on the sun, you idiot! You'll
burn up!" said the Russian.
To which the Blonde replied, "We're not stupid,
you know. We're going at night!"
IN A VACUUM
A blonde was playing Trivial Pursuit one night.
It was her turn. She rolled the dice and she landed on Science & Nature.
Her question was, "If you are in a vacuum and someone calls your name, can
you
hear it?" She thought for a time and then asked, "Is it on or off?"
FINALLY, THE BLONDE JOKE TO END ALL BLONDE
JOKES!
A girl was visiting her blonde friend, who had
acquired two new dogs, and asked her what their names were.
The blonde responded by saying that one was
named Rolex and one was named Timex.
Her friend said, "Whoever heard of someone
naming dogs like that?"
"HELLLOOOOOOO......," answered the blond.
"They're watch dogs
Don
The birthday boy.... and his dad had a celebration this past weekend.. Andrew is now officially four, deemed so by all his family!! the photos are at http://www.paynecountyline.com/gallery. Enjoy!
Monday, August 01, 2005
Butterfly unlocks evolution secret
this is the link to the story below... there are some awesome photos of butterfly's.
Butterfly unlocks evolution secret
By Julianna Kettlewell
BBC News science reporter
The butterflies' wings offer clues to speciation
Why one species branches into two is a question that has haunted evolutionary biologists since Darwin.
Given our planet's rich biodiversity, "speciation" clearly happens regularly, but scientists cannot quite pinpoint the driving forces behind it.
Now, researchers studying a family of butterflies think they have witnessed a subtle process, which could be forcing a wedge between newly formed species.
The team, from Harvard University, US, discovered that closely related species living in the same geographical space displayed unusually distinct wing markings.
These wing colours apparently evolved as a sort of "team strip", allowing butterflies to easily identify the species of a potential mate.
For me, this is a big discovery just because the system is very beautiful
Dr Nikolai Kandul, Harvard University
This process, called "reinforcement", prevents closely related species from interbreeding thus driving them further apart genetically and promoting speciation.
Although scientists have speculated about this mechanism for years, it has rarely been witnessed in nature.
"The phenomenon of reinforcement is one of the very few mechanisms that has natural selection playing a role in speciation," said Harvard co-author Nikolai Kandul. "It might be very widespread but it is hard to find good evidence of it."
Geographical isolation
For speciation to occur, two branches of the same species must stop breeding with one another for long enough to grow apart genetically.
The most obvious way this can happen is through geographical isolation.
The butterflies choose mates with similar markings
If a mountain range or river divides a population of animals for hundreds of generations, they might find that if they meet again they are no longer able to breed.
But geographical isolation is not enough to explain all speciation. Clearly, organisms do sometimes speciate even if there is no clear river or mountain separating them.
The other mechanism that can theoretically divide a species is "reproductive isolation". This occurs when organisms are not separated physically, but "choose" not to breed with each other thereby causing genetic isolation, which amounts to the same thing.
Reproductive isolation is much hazier and more difficult to pin down than geographic isolation, which is why biologists are so excited about this family of butterflies.
Butterfly clue
The Harvard team made the discovery while studying the butterfly genus Agrodiaetus, which has a wide ranging habitat in Asia.
The females are brown while the males exhibit a variety of wing colours ranging from silver and blue to brown.
Dr Kandul and his colleagues found that if closely related species of Agrodiaetus are geographically separate, they tend to look quite similar. That is to say, they do not display a distinctive "team strip".
Scientists are excited about this new research
But if similarly closely related species are living side-by-side, the researchers noticed, they frequently look strikingly different - their "teams" are clearly advertised.
This has the effect of discouraging inter-species mating, thus encouraging genetic isolation and species divergence.
"This butterfly study presents evidence that the differences in the male's wing colouration is stronger [when the species share a habitat] than [when they do not]," said the speciation expert Axel Meyer, from Konstanz University in Germany.
"This pattern would therefore support the interpretation that it was brought about by reinforcement, hence natural selection."
The reason evolution favours the emergence of a "team strip" in related species, or sub species, living side-by-side is that hybridisation is not usually a desirable thing.
Although many of the Agrodiaetus species are close enough genetically to breed, their hybrid offspring tend to be rather weedy and less likely to thrive.
Therefore natural selection will favour ways of distinguishing the species, which is why the clear markings exist.
"For me, this is a big discovery just because the system is very beautiful," said Dr Kandul. "As much as we can we are showing that [reinforcement] is the most likely mechanism."
This research was published in the latest edition of Nature magazine.
Butterfly unlocks evolution secret
By Julianna Kettlewell
BBC News science reporter
The butterflies' wings offer clues to speciation
Why one species branches into two is a question that has haunted evolutionary biologists since Darwin.
Given our planet's rich biodiversity, "speciation" clearly happens regularly, but scientists cannot quite pinpoint the driving forces behind it.
Now, researchers studying a family of butterflies think they have witnessed a subtle process, which could be forcing a wedge between newly formed species.
The team, from Harvard University, US, discovered that closely related species living in the same geographical space displayed unusually distinct wing markings.
These wing colours apparently evolved as a sort of "team strip", allowing butterflies to easily identify the species of a potential mate.
For me, this is a big discovery just because the system is very beautiful
Dr Nikolai Kandul, Harvard University
This process, called "reinforcement", prevents closely related species from interbreeding thus driving them further apart genetically and promoting speciation.
Although scientists have speculated about this mechanism for years, it has rarely been witnessed in nature.
"The phenomenon of reinforcement is one of the very few mechanisms that has natural selection playing a role in speciation," said Harvard co-author Nikolai Kandul. "It might be very widespread but it is hard to find good evidence of it."
Geographical isolation
For speciation to occur, two branches of the same species must stop breeding with one another for long enough to grow apart genetically.
The most obvious way this can happen is through geographical isolation.
The butterflies choose mates with similar markings
If a mountain range or river divides a population of animals for hundreds of generations, they might find that if they meet again they are no longer able to breed.
But geographical isolation is not enough to explain all speciation. Clearly, organisms do sometimes speciate even if there is no clear river or mountain separating them.
The other mechanism that can theoretically divide a species is "reproductive isolation". This occurs when organisms are not separated physically, but "choose" not to breed with each other thereby causing genetic isolation, which amounts to the same thing.
Reproductive isolation is much hazier and more difficult to pin down than geographic isolation, which is why biologists are so excited about this family of butterflies.
Butterfly clue
The Harvard team made the discovery while studying the butterfly genus Agrodiaetus, which has a wide ranging habitat in Asia.
The females are brown while the males exhibit a variety of wing colours ranging from silver and blue to brown.
Dr Kandul and his colleagues found that if closely related species of Agrodiaetus are geographically separate, they tend to look quite similar. That is to say, they do not display a distinctive "team strip".
Scientists are excited about this new research
But if similarly closely related species are living side-by-side, the researchers noticed, they frequently look strikingly different - their "teams" are clearly advertised.
This has the effect of discouraging inter-species mating, thus encouraging genetic isolation and species divergence.
"This butterfly study presents evidence that the differences in the male's wing colouration is stronger [when the species share a habitat] than [when they do not]," said the speciation expert Axel Meyer, from Konstanz University in Germany.
"This pattern would therefore support the interpretation that it was brought about by reinforcement, hence natural selection."
The reason evolution favours the emergence of a "team strip" in related species, or sub species, living side-by-side is that hybridisation is not usually a desirable thing.
Although many of the Agrodiaetus species are close enough genetically to breed, their hybrid offspring tend to be rather weedy and less likely to thrive.
Therefore natural selection will favour ways of distinguishing the species, which is why the clear markings exist.
"For me, this is a big discovery just because the system is very beautiful," said Dr Kandul. "As much as we can we are showing that [reinforcement] is the most likely mechanism."
This research was published in the latest edition of Nature magazine.
You have to see to believe.. haha...
From Melanie comes this short video clip.... titled "Passport"! download it to your desktop... save it, and watch... it is funny...haha...
2005, July 24th - Andrew and Madison
Yelp... Ms. Madison Ann is growing like a weed now... here is a link to some photos I took of her and Andrew , more photos coming..
Melanie sends along this note... the choices we make!
John is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing,he would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"
He was a natural motivator.
If an employee was having a bad day, John was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up and asked him, "I don't get it!
You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"
He replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or ... you can choose to be in a bad mood.
I choose to be in a good mood."
Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or...I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it.
Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or... I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.
"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.
"Yes, it is," he said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood.
You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice how you live your life."
I reflected on what he said. Soon hereafter, I left the Tower Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that he was involved in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back.
I saw him about six months after the accident.
When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins Wanna see my scars?"
I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.
"The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter," he replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or...I could choose to die. I chose to live."
"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked.
He continued, "..the paramedics were great.
They kept telling me I was going to be fine.But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'he's a dead man'. I knew I needed to take action."
"What did you do?" I asked.
"Well,there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me," said John. "She asked if I was allergic to anything. 'Yes, I replied.' The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Gravity'."
Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."
He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude... I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.
Attitude, after all, is everything.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34.
After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.
You have two choices now:
01. Delete this.
02. Forward it to the people you care about.
You know the choice I made.
God Bless, and smile,it could be contagious.
He was a natural motivator.
If an employee was having a bad day, John was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up and asked him, "I don't get it!
You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"
He replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or ... you can choose to be in a bad mood.
I choose to be in a good mood."
Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or...I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it.
Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or... I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.
"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.
"Yes, it is," he said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood.
You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice how you live your life."
I reflected on what he said. Soon hereafter, I left the Tower Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that he was involved in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back.
I saw him about six months after the accident.
When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins Wanna see my scars?"
I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.
"The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter," he replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or...I could choose to die. I chose to live."
"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked.
He continued, "..the paramedics were great.
They kept telling me I was going to be fine.But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'he's a dead man'. I knew I needed to take action."
"What did you do?" I asked.
"Well,there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me," said John. "She asked if I was allergic to anything. 'Yes, I replied.' The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Gravity'."
Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."
He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude... I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.
Attitude, after all, is everything.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34.
After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.
You have two choices now:
01. Delete this.
02. Forward it to the people you care about.
You know the choice I made.
God Bless, and smile,it could be contagious.
From Uncle Ivan....
This statue currently stands outside the Iraqi palace, now home to the 4th Infantry division. It will eventually be shipped home and put in the memorial museum in Fort Hood,Texas.
The statue was created by an Iraqi artist named Kalat, who for years was forced by Saddam Hussein to make the many hundreds of bronze busts of Saddam that dotted Baghdad.
Kalat was so grateful for the Americans liberation of his country; he melted 3 of the heads of the fallen Saddam and made the statue as a memorial to the American soldiers and their fallen warriors. Kalat worked on this memorial night and day for several months.
To the left of the kneeling soldier is a small Iraqi girl giving the soldier comfort as he mourns the loss of his comrade in arms.....
Great evening at the Blankinship's last night.....
Well, we had a great get together for Andrew and Paul's Birthday's on the evening of Jon and Randi's Wedding Anniversary... Even though they could not make it, we thought of them and talked of and "about" them too... haha...
Happy Anniversary to them and Happy B'day to the boys...
It was a home fun of laughter, fellowship, fun, visiting, and catching up. The Blankinships and Ameys brought homemade ice cream, and Heather and Mom fixed a freezer of homemade super V ice cream... It was all so very good... Birthday cake, cookies, and special deserts, and lots of presents.. and the kiddos played and got along great!
Roy and Neal are in the hay fields... Roy reports anywhere from 3/4 to 1/3 of the hay is being produced due to the drought we are in... here it's about 1/3 to 1/2 the hay that is usually put up.
Looks like an end of an era is coming here at our ole homestead, too. I think we will sell out of the cattle business at a Special Sale at Sale Barn on Sept. 9th. I truly don't want to, but....
Well, all I know for now. It is REALLY dry ... no rain in months and months.. actually since winter.... everything is suffering ... animals, grass, trees, bushes... shrubs... wow... and NO wind either.
I took lots of photos last night.. will post them but it might be tomorrow before I get them up.
Have a great day....... and enjoy!
Happy Anniversary to them and Happy B'day to the boys...
It was a home fun of laughter, fellowship, fun, visiting, and catching up. The Blankinships and Ameys brought homemade ice cream, and Heather and Mom fixed a freezer of homemade super V ice cream... It was all so very good... Birthday cake, cookies, and special deserts, and lots of presents.. and the kiddos played and got along great!
Roy and Neal are in the hay fields... Roy reports anywhere from 3/4 to 1/3 of the hay is being produced due to the drought we are in... here it's about 1/3 to 1/2 the hay that is usually put up.
Looks like an end of an era is coming here at our ole homestead, too. I think we will sell out of the cattle business at a Special Sale at Sale Barn on Sept. 9th. I truly don't want to, but....
Well, all I know for now. It is REALLY dry ... no rain in months and months.. actually since winter.... everything is suffering ... animals, grass, trees, bushes... shrubs... wow... and NO wind either.
I took lots of photos last night.. will post them but it might be tomorrow before I get them up.
Have a great day....... and enjoy!
like being there... haha... yeah right...!! but photos are cool...
Ole Dave drove to New York for a conference over the weekend... here are his pics.. ....
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