I saw a couple of headlines this morning that made me think: a truly amazing impact being that it was a Monday morning and I was only half way through my first cup of coffee. The first headline said, "Investment in oil sands will boost U.S. economy - study." The second pronounced, "Senator calls for increased investment in domestic oil drilling." Now, neither article contained earth-shaking news or unusual content. The calls to increase oil sand development in Canada and domestic oil drilling are nothing we haven't heard before. What did catch my eye, though, was the common use of the term "investment." Because, as I understand the word, investment implies the active redirection of resources from those being consumed today, to those creating benefits in some future time. This definition of investment begs, I think, a critical question: In what future benefits are we investing, and for whom?
If the combustion of hyrdocarbons is fueling the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (a given); if the accumulation of atmospheric carbon dioxide is contributing to a not-so-gradual shift in the world's climate (also a fact); and if that shift will dramatically alter the social, ecological and economic fabric of the world as we know it (a somewhat well-founded hypothesis), then why on earth would we call increased reliance on oil (or tar) sands and domestic oil an "investment?" The incongruous use of the term boggles the mind - even a mind only half awake on a Monday morning and running on just one-half cup of caffeine!
Interestingly, the use of the word "investment" in such a context pays ironic homage to the word's roots. "Invest" finds its meaning in the Latin word investire, which means to "clothe" or "surround." And doubtless, burning more fossil fuels will generate more carbon dioxide that will "clothe" or "surround" the earth with an atmospheric shroud of heat-trapping carbon dioxide: a shroud and resulting climate change that will eventually render our past reliance upon the world's natural resources totally unpredictable.
If we are investing in anything by increasing our future reliance upon hyrdocarbon based fuels, it is a future of increased atmospheric carbon dioxide levels and resultant climatic change. If we are to have any chance of avoiding that chaos, today's investment should be in alternative sources of energy; not one founded upon vesting the earth in a thickening blanket of climate-altering gases.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
To Be or Not
As I was walking to the bus stop this morning and passing through a park area near our house, I could smell the newness of the plants and soil refreshed by last night's heavy rains in the Washington, DC area. It had been very dry in the area recently before yesterday's rains. The ground was hard and parched. Many plants - grasses, shrubs and trees - were starting to reach their wilting points. And the typical urban response of turning on the sprinklers at night was not putting a dent into an emerging water deficit. Yesterday's half-inch, plus, rainfall will help.
We are fortunate in the eastern states to have abundant water. So, I'm not too concerned of the prospects of a long-term drought in the DC area. And I know elsewhere in the Northeast and Midwest, fresh water supplies are fortunately very abundant. Pennsylvania, my home state, has more stream miles than any other state besides Alaska. The Great Lakes hold about one-fifth of the world's fresh water supply. And the Mississippi River discharges roughly somewhere between 200 and 700 thousand cubic feet of fresh water each second.
The abundance of water that we enjoy is not matched everywhere. Dozens of countries obtain most of their water from sources outside their own borders. Water withdrawals from rivers bordering multiple jurisdictions are contentious (i.e., various Indian states, U.S. and Mexico, the Middle East). And as glaciers continue to melt worldwide, those countries and regions dependent on glacial melt (China and India) and snowpack melt (Western U.S.) for freshwater supplies are likely to see less reliable or diminishing supplies. Three news reports from just this past week highlight a growing incidence of water shortages worldwide, in places like the U.S. Southwest, Middle East and India.
Some who take note of these growing trends and who have abundant water resources available within their regions have taken the initiative to protect those water supplies from outside exploitation. A prime, recent example would be the governors from the eight Great Lakes states. On October 3, 2008 President Bush signed a joint resolution of Congress consenting to the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact (The U.S. and Canadian governments have entered into a similar agreement.). The signature marked the final step in a Compact negotiation and approval process reaching back into the 1980s, and enabling the protection of Great Lakes water for future generations to enjoy and utilize-individuals, businesses, industries. And the ongoing protection of the lakes' waters will help secure the rich natural heritage of fish, birds, mammals and other wildlife for which the Great Lakes region is renowned.
Not only are the volumes of Great Lakes water being protected, but the quality of those waters is being maintained and restored through the collective, organized and concerted efforts of the Great Lakes government, business, conservation and grassroots communities. For more than a century now, individuals, governmental bodies, companies, agencies and organizations have joined together to protect and revitalize the international treasure that is the Great Lakes. The results of those collective efforts can be most recently seen in the $400-plus billion Great Lakes restoration appropriation making it way presently through the U.S. House and Senate.
The Mississippi River Basin, like the Great Lakes, is an internationally renowned and treasured natural resource. And like the Great Lakes, people in the region and around the country care for and value the waters of the Mississippi River. But the waters of the basin are not protected from those who might want to export them for outside use. There is no "Mississippi River Water Resources Compact." And no concerted effort to protect and restore the quality of the River waters from the source to the Gulf of Mexico exists. None to the scale and degree of cooperation so evident in the Great Lakes basin. None remotely as effective as the collaborative that has succeeded in those lakes to the north and east.
That model for success is there for all to see, draw from and apply toward the effective protection and restoration of great water bodies world wide; for the protection and restoration of the Mississippi basin waters.
As the world's population booms; as demands for fresh, clean water soar; and as available supplies of that resource dwindle, those of us with abundant fresh water within our communities can choose to assure its presence for our and future generations. Or not. We can choose to use the models of connection, engagement, cooperation and collaboration - models like that employed to such great success in the Great Lakes. Or not.
The choice is ours to make. And the time to make the choice is now. Because in the end, without enough fresh water, the question will no longer be whether to cooperate or not. It will be whether to be . . . or not. - Mark Gorman
We are fortunate in the eastern states to have abundant water. So, I'm not too concerned of the prospects of a long-term drought in the DC area. And I know elsewhere in the Northeast and Midwest, fresh water supplies are fortunately very abundant. Pennsylvania, my home state, has more stream miles than any other state besides Alaska. The Great Lakes hold about one-fifth of the world's fresh water supply. And the Mississippi River discharges roughly somewhere between 200 and 700 thousand cubic feet of fresh water each second.
The abundance of water that we enjoy is not matched everywhere. Dozens of countries obtain most of their water from sources outside their own borders. Water withdrawals from rivers bordering multiple jurisdictions are contentious (i.e., various Indian states, U.S. and Mexico, the Middle East). And as glaciers continue to melt worldwide, those countries and regions dependent on glacial melt (China and India) and snowpack melt (Western U.S.) for freshwater supplies are likely to see less reliable or diminishing supplies. Three news reports from just this past week highlight a growing incidence of water shortages worldwide, in places like the U.S. Southwest, Middle East and India.
Some who take note of these growing trends and who have abundant water resources available within their regions have taken the initiative to protect those water supplies from outside exploitation. A prime, recent example would be the governors from the eight Great Lakes states. On October 3, 2008 President Bush signed a joint resolution of Congress consenting to the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact (The U.S. and Canadian governments have entered into a similar agreement.). The signature marked the final step in a Compact negotiation and approval process reaching back into the 1980s, and enabling the protection of Great Lakes water for future generations to enjoy and utilize-individuals, businesses, industries. And the ongoing protection of the lakes' waters will help secure the rich natural heritage of fish, birds, mammals and other wildlife for which the Great Lakes region is renowned.
Not only are the volumes of Great Lakes water being protected, but the quality of those waters is being maintained and restored through the collective, organized and concerted efforts of the Great Lakes government, business, conservation and grassroots communities. For more than a century now, individuals, governmental bodies, companies, agencies and organizations have joined together to protect and revitalize the international treasure that is the Great Lakes. The results of those collective efforts can be most recently seen in the $400-plus billion Great Lakes restoration appropriation making it way presently through the U.S. House and Senate.
The Mississippi River Basin, like the Great Lakes, is an internationally renowned and treasured natural resource. And like the Great Lakes, people in the region and around the country care for and value the waters of the Mississippi River. But the waters of the basin are not protected from those who might want to export them for outside use. There is no "Mississippi River Water Resources Compact." And no concerted effort to protect and restore the quality of the River waters from the source to the Gulf of Mexico exists. None to the scale and degree of cooperation so evident in the Great Lakes basin. None remotely as effective as the collaborative that has succeeded in those lakes to the north and east.
That model for success is there for all to see, draw from and apply toward the effective protection and restoration of great water bodies world wide; for the protection and restoration of the Mississippi basin waters.
As the world's population booms; as demands for fresh, clean water soar; and as available supplies of that resource dwindle, those of us with abundant fresh water within our communities can choose to assure its presence for our and future generations. Or not. We can choose to use the models of connection, engagement, cooperation and collaboration - models like that employed to such great success in the Great Lakes. Or not.
The choice is ours to make. And the time to make the choice is now. Because in the end, without enough fresh water, the question will no longer be whether to cooperate or not. It will be whether to be . . . or not. - Mark Gorman
Shifting Boundaries
A Christian Science Monitor article caught my eye this morning: "Climate change could redraw national borders." The article mentions, by way of example, that as the ridge crests defined by the glaciers in the southern Alps shift due to glacial melting, the border between Italy and Switzerland, defined by treaty as those ridge crests, has likewise shifted - northward by hundreds of feet. Melting glaciers may also play a role in redefining the boundaries in already-disputed sections of India’s borders with Pakistan and China; a somewhat chilling scenario, if you'll pardon the reverse pun. And as lowland and coastal countries become more and more submerged by rising seas, those coastal boundaries, too, will change.
Sometimes boundary changes are forced upon us, as in the cases above. At other times, if we are prescient enough, we can shift our personal, political and positional boundaries - our perspectives if you will - voluntarily. Impending changes in our climate, along with all of the attendant changes in economy, ecology, lifestyle, health, natural and human built resources, hold the power to force a change in perspective upon us - a change in the boundaries that we may be very comfortable living within at the present. But forced change is rarely the preferred, efficient, agreeable and enjoyable path forward. And unlike the shifting ridge crests, our perspectives are not physically or legally defined. We can choose, ahead of time, voluntarily, to listen to others, to find common ground and to follow shared interests.
Before those changes are forced upon us.
Before the foundations of our relationships literally shift beneath us, as assuredly as the glaciers are melting and the boundaries shifting in the Alps and Himalayas. - Mark Gorman
Sometimes boundary changes are forced upon us, as in the cases above. At other times, if we are prescient enough, we can shift our personal, political and positional boundaries - our perspectives if you will - voluntarily. Impending changes in our climate, along with all of the attendant changes in economy, ecology, lifestyle, health, natural and human built resources, hold the power to force a change in perspective upon us - a change in the boundaries that we may be very comfortable living within at the present. But forced change is rarely the preferred, efficient, agreeable and enjoyable path forward. And unlike the shifting ridge crests, our perspectives are not physically or legally defined. We can choose, ahead of time, voluntarily, to listen to others, to find common ground and to follow shared interests.
Before those changes are forced upon us.
Before the foundations of our relationships literally shift beneath us, as assuredly as the glaciers are melting and the boundaries shifting in the Alps and Himalayas. - Mark Gorman
Climatic Convergence
Two bits of climate news converged in ironic fashion over the past several days, as seemingly random bits of news tend to do now and again.
The first was Senator Barbara Boxer's (D-CA) announcement last week that the committee she chairs, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, will wait until after the August Congressional recess to take up consideration of climate change legislation. With several other pressing topics up for Senate consideration before the recess (i.e., Supreme Court nominee confirmation, health care, appropriations), the EPW Committee would have been hard pressed to give the complex and important climate legislation its due attention before hand. Even beyond that relatively short Committee delay, full Senate passage of climate change legislation this year is less than certain, portending even further delays.
I noticed the second news headline yesterday (Sunday) in The Observer article entitled: "Wild weather in the year ahead, scientists predict," in which scientists predict that along with "droughts, floods and other extreme events, the next few years are also likely to be the hottest on record." All the result of an evolving "global "El Niño" phenomenon exacerbat(ing) the impact of global warming."
Now I wouldn't want to wish droughts, flooding, heat waves or other "extreme events" on anyone, particularly the world's poor, who often seem to be at most risk from such events. And the Upper Mississippi River basin certainly has seen more than its fair share of flooding over the years. However, in light of the human tendency to react under crisis with more urgency and certainty that when not in crisis mode, a decision to delay serious consideration of climate legislation in the short term may result in more serious consideration of climate legislation in the long term, if that short term gives us a glimpse into what a climate-changed future might hold.
What that future might hold for the Upper Midwest was outlined in a June report by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, which “summarizes the science of climate change and the impacts of climate change on the United States, now and in the future.” Specifically, for the Midwestern U.S., the authors predict "an increase in precipitation in winter and spring, more heavy downpours, and greater evaporation in summer, leading to more periods of both floods and water deficits." More "droughts, floods and other extreme events," in other words.
El Niño means "the child" in Spanish. Perhaps it will be a child who brings clarity to the climate change debate. - Mark Gorman
The first was Senator Barbara Boxer's (D-CA) announcement last week that the committee she chairs, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, will wait until after the August Congressional recess to take up consideration of climate change legislation. With several other pressing topics up for Senate consideration before the recess (i.e., Supreme Court nominee confirmation, health care, appropriations), the EPW Committee would have been hard pressed to give the complex and important climate legislation its due attention before hand. Even beyond that relatively short Committee delay, full Senate passage of climate change legislation this year is less than certain, portending even further delays.
I noticed the second news headline yesterday (Sunday) in The Observer article entitled: "Wild weather in the year ahead, scientists predict," in which scientists predict that along with "droughts, floods and other extreme events, the next few years are also likely to be the hottest on record." All the result of an evolving "global "El Niño" phenomenon exacerbat(ing) the impact of global warming."
Now I wouldn't want to wish droughts, flooding, heat waves or other "extreme events" on anyone, particularly the world's poor, who often seem to be at most risk from such events. And the Upper Mississippi River basin certainly has seen more than its fair share of flooding over the years. However, in light of the human tendency to react under crisis with more urgency and certainty that when not in crisis mode, a decision to delay serious consideration of climate legislation in the short term may result in more serious consideration of climate legislation in the long term, if that short term gives us a glimpse into what a climate-changed future might hold.
What that future might hold for the Upper Midwest was outlined in a June report by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, which “summarizes the science of climate change and the impacts of climate change on the United States, now and in the future.” Specifically, for the Midwestern U.S., the authors predict "an increase in precipitation in winter and spring, more heavy downpours, and greater evaporation in summer, leading to more periods of both floods and water deficits." More "droughts, floods and other extreme events," in other words.
El Niño means "the child" in Spanish. Perhaps it will be a child who brings clarity to the climate change debate. - Mark Gorman
The Speed of Light
A couple of days back I sent an email to Greg, an intern and fellow worker here at our F Street office at the Institute. It was an invitation to an agriculture coalition meeting that I thought he would find interesting and contribute to, as well. A minute or two later I was walking past Greg's desk and mentioned the invitation. He hadn't gotten it yet. So, face-to-face this time, I explained what I had written in the email and then some. It seems I was faster that the electrons buzzing their way through the Internet ether!
But on a whole other level, my experience just goes to show you that oftentimes in coalition building and networking and communicating it's the face-to-face relationships that work better. That are the more efficient. That result in the stronger teams and longer-lasting results.
I'm not really faster than the speed of light. Or the speed of electrons parsing through the virtual world we have come to know and love and so heavily rely upon. But maybe my presence now and again in real meetings with actual people across solid tables can go far in achieving constructive conservation and restoration ends. That's my personal goal anyway. More real meetings. Fewer of the virtual.
Yours in Tweeting, Facebooking and Blogging - Mark Gorman
But on a whole other level, my experience just goes to show you that oftentimes in coalition building and networking and communicating it's the face-to-face relationships that work better. That are the more efficient. That result in the stronger teams and longer-lasting results.
I'm not really faster than the speed of light. Or the speed of electrons parsing through the virtual world we have come to know and love and so heavily rely upon. But maybe my presence now and again in real meetings with actual people across solid tables can go far in achieving constructive conservation and restoration ends. That's my personal goal anyway. More real meetings. Fewer of the virtual.
Yours in Tweeting, Facebooking and Blogging - Mark Gorman
A Commonplace River
Samuel Clemens (a/k/a Mark Twain) begins his book "Life on the Mississippi" by noting, with Clemens' typical gift for understatement, that the Mississippi River is "not a commonplace river." While certainly true in many respects, I would beg to differ from one particular perspective. The River and its rich heritage of resources, both natural and cultural, are the very essence of commonplace - reflecting the very heart of America.
We’ve been extremely lucky in that heartland. In the valleys cut by the Mississippi, by its major tributaries, like the Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin and others, and by the hundreds of smaller streams that ultimately feed the mighty waterway, we’ve been handed a unique treasure. Those streams in so many ways tie the central region of the Nation together into the diverse natural, historical and cultural quilt that is our common heritage. They are streams that have literally sustained the region's economy and ecology. The Native Americans who lived along these waters and the first Europeans to settle in these valleys understood that relationship – the connection of their lives to the land and the water . . . the connection of economy to ecology. And the today's rural neighbors in the basin's farm-filled valleys and its small towns largely understand those connections still.
The mode of conservation that works in this type of landscape has to similarly recognize and build upon those connections. It has to recognize that all things in a watershed are connected. The language that we use to solve problems and address issues together has to acknowledge that everything is connected. The paths toward conservation that we follow have to recognize that there are connections everywhere.
It’s ironic that the Native Americans and early settlers recognized those connections, and that today's rural communities live out those connections on a daily basis. Ironic because all too often discussions about ecology and economy boil down to a debate over choices and concessions, and over primacy and control of one perceived sphere of influence over the other, as if one or the other - the economy or conservation - has to predominate.
It’s especially odd since ecology and economy both at their core relate to the heart of our very existence. Both words arise from the same ancient Greek word for home - “oikos.” Ecology literally means to study or to know our home. And economy literally means to manage our home.
So, rather than being at conflict, what the Greeks knew intuitively when the words formed so naturally out of their daily lives over 3000 years ago is that ecology and economy are joined - one to the other. The Greeks understood - doubtless because they lived much closer to nature than most of us do today - is that we need to know our home in order to manage it wisely.
But over time as an increasingly urbanized America has separated itself from our natural roots, we’ve forgotten what the Greeks and Native peoples and early settlers tried to teach us in their words and actions. We’ve forgotten what rural America still knows - that our economy and ecology, rather than being opposed and at odds, are inescapably linked.
It is in the commonplace, in the farms and small villages and the back roads and pastures and woodlands and people in the great Mississippi valley where day-to-day life practically oozes the unspoken message of conservation – the message that these people connect with and hold the land dearly to their hearts, and that they want so much to be able to pass those lands and waters and natural areas and way of life on to their children and children's children. If we listen closely, we will hear that landscape and those people silently screaming out the message of connections . . . connections with the land and water, connections in this time and place with each other, and connections through time with both past and future generations.
Once upon a time, the story goes, a disciple asked the elder, “How am I to listen?” And the elder responded, “Become an ear that pays attention to every single thing the universe is saying. The moment you hear something you yourself are saying, stop.”
All too often we miss the commonplace message from the nation's heartland that speaks so loudly of conservation and of connections, as we are busy writing and typing and speaking and instant messaging. Trying to explain ourselves. Not listening at all. It’s time, I would offer, that we stop to listen carefully to the echoes from the voices of our early ancestors and Native peoples, which speak of connections and responsibility and accountability. It’s time that we listen attentively to our rural neighbors whose lives convey a message of care for the common wealth. And it’s well beyond time that we attend to the whispers of those generations yet to come, which ask simply that their dreams may be fulfilled, their hopes realized and their opportunities achieved. Because if we do that - if we stop in our frenetic rush toward who knows where - to listen . . . we will hear those calls demanding that we have the vision to create a radically new and innovative way of doing things and solving problems and moving together into a very commonplace - yet very rich - future. - Mark Gorman
We’ve been extremely lucky in that heartland. In the valleys cut by the Mississippi, by its major tributaries, like the Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin and others, and by the hundreds of smaller streams that ultimately feed the mighty waterway, we’ve been handed a unique treasure. Those streams in so many ways tie the central region of the Nation together into the diverse natural, historical and cultural quilt that is our common heritage. They are streams that have literally sustained the region's economy and ecology. The Native Americans who lived along these waters and the first Europeans to settle in these valleys understood that relationship – the connection of their lives to the land and the water . . . the connection of economy to ecology. And the today's rural neighbors in the basin's farm-filled valleys and its small towns largely understand those connections still.
The mode of conservation that works in this type of landscape has to similarly recognize and build upon those connections. It has to recognize that all things in a watershed are connected. The language that we use to solve problems and address issues together has to acknowledge that everything is connected. The paths toward conservation that we follow have to recognize that there are connections everywhere.
It’s ironic that the Native Americans and early settlers recognized those connections, and that today's rural communities live out those connections on a daily basis. Ironic because all too often discussions about ecology and economy boil down to a debate over choices and concessions, and over primacy and control of one perceived sphere of influence over the other, as if one or the other - the economy or conservation - has to predominate.
It’s especially odd since ecology and economy both at their core relate to the heart of our very existence. Both words arise from the same ancient Greek word for home - “oikos.” Ecology literally means to study or to know our home. And economy literally means to manage our home.
So, rather than being at conflict, what the Greeks knew intuitively when the words formed so naturally out of their daily lives over 3000 years ago is that ecology and economy are joined - one to the other. The Greeks understood - doubtless because they lived much closer to nature than most of us do today - is that we need to know our home in order to manage it wisely.
But over time as an increasingly urbanized America has separated itself from our natural roots, we’ve forgotten what the Greeks and Native peoples and early settlers tried to teach us in their words and actions. We’ve forgotten what rural America still knows - that our economy and ecology, rather than being opposed and at odds, are inescapably linked.
It is in the commonplace, in the farms and small villages and the back roads and pastures and woodlands and people in the great Mississippi valley where day-to-day life practically oozes the unspoken message of conservation – the message that these people connect with and hold the land dearly to their hearts, and that they want so much to be able to pass those lands and waters and natural areas and way of life on to their children and children's children. If we listen closely, we will hear that landscape and those people silently screaming out the message of connections . . . connections with the land and water, connections in this time and place with each other, and connections through time with both past and future generations.
Once upon a time, the story goes, a disciple asked the elder, “How am I to listen?” And the elder responded, “Become an ear that pays attention to every single thing the universe is saying. The moment you hear something you yourself are saying, stop.”
All too often we miss the commonplace message from the nation's heartland that speaks so loudly of conservation and of connections, as we are busy writing and typing and speaking and instant messaging. Trying to explain ourselves. Not listening at all. It’s time, I would offer, that we stop to listen carefully to the echoes from the voices of our early ancestors and Native peoples, which speak of connections and responsibility and accountability. It’s time that we listen attentively to our rural neighbors whose lives convey a message of care for the common wealth. And it’s well beyond time that we attend to the whispers of those generations yet to come, which ask simply that their dreams may be fulfilled, their hopes realized and their opportunities achieved. Because if we do that - if we stop in our frenetic rush toward who knows where - to listen . . . we will hear those calls demanding that we have the vision to create a radically new and innovative way of doing things and solving problems and moving together into a very commonplace - yet very rich - future. - Mark Gorman
It's worse than you know
One of my favorite movies, Joss Whedon's "Serenity," has a little bit of dialogue that is quite appropriate to some climate change and Mississippi River news that came out this past week. The movie's villain and hero are having a conversation, and the villain says that the situation is "worse than you know." To which our hero replies, "It usually is."
Which is a bit like the cover story published in the July 1 edition of the NewScientist: "Sea level rise: It's worse than we thought." To quote the article, "The good news is that some of the scarier scenarios, such as a sudden collapse of the Greenland ice sheet, now appear less likely. The bad news is that there is a growing consensus that the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) estimates are wildly optimistic . . . The oceans are already rising. Global average sea level rose about 17 centimetres in the 20th century, and the rate of rise is increasing."
What does this have to do with the Mississippi River region you might ask. Well, beside the typical answer that "all things are connected," and that a crisis in one region will have repercussions in others, there is the article just published last Sunday in ScienceNews, the magazine for the Society of Science and the Public. That article, "Losing Louisiana," says that engineering attempts to save a sinking Louisiana delta by allowing sediment-laden Mississippi River water to overflow the River channel into the delta region will fail, because the River no longer carries enough sediment for those efforts to succeed. There are dams on the River now and farther upstream on many of its tributaries, too - each dam trapping tons of sediment that at one time reached the delta and replenished its wetlands.
The ScienceNews article cites an analysis by Michael Blum and Harry Roberts, published in the June 26 online issue of Nature Geoscience (free registration required), in which the authors estimate that between 2000 and 2100, the combined effects of subsidence and sea-level rise will swamp as much as 13,500 square kilometers — about 10 percent - of the area of Louisiana.
Blum and Roberts estimate that, compared to times when the Mississippi River was free-flowing, today only about half of the River sediments reach the delta region. Therefore, diverting sediment-laden Mississippi River water into wetlands at the head of the delta will only prevent about 900 square kilometers of land from sinking below sea level over the next 100 years.
The scientists conclude their article by saying, "Our calculations of sediment mass balance represent a conservative first-order assessment because we use modest subsidence rates, conservative sea-level rise estimates, optimistic sediment supplies and an optimistic timeline for implementation of large-scale diversions."
In other words, it may be "worse than you know." - Mark Gorman
Which is a bit like the cover story published in the July 1 edition of the NewScientist: "Sea level rise: It's worse than we thought." To quote the article, "The good news is that some of the scarier scenarios, such as a sudden collapse of the Greenland ice sheet, now appear less likely. The bad news is that there is a growing consensus that the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) estimates are wildly optimistic . . . The oceans are already rising. Global average sea level rose about 17 centimetres in the 20th century, and the rate of rise is increasing."
What does this have to do with the Mississippi River region you might ask. Well, beside the typical answer that "all things are connected," and that a crisis in one region will have repercussions in others, there is the article just published last Sunday in ScienceNews, the magazine for the Society of Science and the Public. That article, "Losing Louisiana," says that engineering attempts to save a sinking Louisiana delta by allowing sediment-laden Mississippi River water to overflow the River channel into the delta region will fail, because the River no longer carries enough sediment for those efforts to succeed. There are dams on the River now and farther upstream on many of its tributaries, too - each dam trapping tons of sediment that at one time reached the delta and replenished its wetlands.
The ScienceNews article cites an analysis by Michael Blum and Harry Roberts, published in the June 26 online issue of Nature Geoscience (free registration required), in which the authors estimate that between 2000 and 2100, the combined effects of subsidence and sea-level rise will swamp as much as 13,500 square kilometers — about 10 percent - of the area of Louisiana.
Blum and Roberts estimate that, compared to times when the Mississippi River was free-flowing, today only about half of the River sediments reach the delta region. Therefore, diverting sediment-laden Mississippi River water into wetlands at the head of the delta will only prevent about 900 square kilometers of land from sinking below sea level over the next 100 years.
The scientists conclude their article by saying, "Our calculations of sediment mass balance represent a conservative first-order assessment because we use modest subsidence rates, conservative sea-level rise estimates, optimistic sediment supplies and an optimistic timeline for implementation of large-scale diversions."
In other words, it may be "worse than you know." - Mark Gorman
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Redrawing Boundaries
A Christian Science Monitor article caught my eye this morning: "Climate change could redraw national borders." The article mentions, by way of example, that as the ridge crests defined by the glaciers in the southern Alps shift due to glacial melting, the border between Italy and Switzerland, defined by treaty as those ridge crests, has likewise shifted - northward by hundreds of feet. Melting glaciers may also play a role in redefining the boundaries in already-disputed sections of India’s borders with Pakistan and China; a somewhat chilling scenario, if you'll pardon the reverse pun. And as lowland and coastal countries become more and more submerged by rising seas, those coastal boundaries, too, will change.
Sometimes boundary changes are forced upon us, as in the cases above. At other times, if we are prescient enough, we can shift our personal, political and positional boundaries - our perspectives if you will - voluntarily. Impending changes in our climate, along with all of the attendant changes in economy, ecology, lifestyle, health, natural and human built resources, hold the power to force a change in perspective upon us - a change in the boundaries that we may be very comfortable living within at the present. But forced change is rarely the preferred, efficient, agreeable and enjoyable path forward. And unlike the shifting ridge crests, our perspectives are not physically or legally defined. We can choose, ahead of time, voluntarily, to listen to others, to find common ground and to follow shared interests.
Before those changes are forced upon us.
Before the foundations of our relationships literally shift beneath us, as assuredly as the glaciers are melting and the boundaries shifting in the Alps and Himalayas.
Sometimes boundary changes are forced upon us, as in the cases above. At other times, if we are prescient enough, we can shift our personal, political and positional boundaries - our perspectives if you will - voluntarily. Impending changes in our climate, along with all of the attendant changes in economy, ecology, lifestyle, health, natural and human built resources, hold the power to force a change in perspective upon us - a change in the boundaries that we may be very comfortable living within at the present. But forced change is rarely the preferred, efficient, agreeable and enjoyable path forward. And unlike the shifting ridge crests, our perspectives are not physically or legally defined. We can choose, ahead of time, voluntarily, to listen to others, to find common ground and to follow shared interests.
Before those changes are forced upon us.
Before the foundations of our relationships literally shift beneath us, as assuredly as the glaciers are melting and the boundaries shifting in the Alps and Himalayas.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Slow
The week is moving slower than most it seems. It's only Tuesday. Seems like it should be Wednesday or more.
Maybe it's the fact that there is less activity than the past few weeks.
Maybe it's because the Internet was very very slow the past couple of days (it's better now).
Maybe it's the general slowness of summer in the south. People tend to move slower here - likely to conserve energy and not overheat.
Things are slow in DC, too. Not a lot of activity. Just the Supreme Court nominee confirmation.
No scandals or pressing legislation or real news. Just the fake, contrived kind.
We'll see if Tuesday ends up being any faster. Maybe tomorrow will end up being Friday!
Maybe it's the fact that there is less activity than the past few weeks.
Maybe it's because the Internet was very very slow the past couple of days (it's better now).
Maybe it's the general slowness of summer in the south. People tend to move slower here - likely to conserve energy and not overheat.
Things are slow in DC, too. Not a lot of activity. Just the Supreme Court nominee confirmation.
No scandals or pressing legislation or real news. Just the fake, contrived kind.
We'll see if Tuesday ends up being any faster. Maybe tomorrow will end up being Friday!
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Cool Jazz
Kate and I were going to sit and enjoy some live jazz at the outdoor sculpture garden of the National Museum of Art last evening. But there was no sitting to be had. The place was crowded with people of all sorts, sizes and shapes, leaving little room for two to sit down on the grass or benches or fountainside curb. I think it was a combination of the nice weather and . . . and something else (it's always a combination of causes, you know - but I can't think of another right now).
So, we left the sculpture garden and walked around downtown DC until we stumbled upon - by crazy, random happenstance - ESPN Zone. How shiny is that? Had a nice meal there. Although in the "Bristol Room" where we sat it was a bit chilly. The air conditioning must have been cranked down a bit in anticipation of a combination of the large Friday night crowd and . . . something else.
Then we grabbed the Yellow Line Metro to almost home. Kate had parked the car at the Metro thinking we would get back after dark. But because of a combination of the cut-short Jazz and quick meal (See! Two things!) we got back before dark. No fears but we drove home anyway in the daylight.
All-in-all not a bad evening. Even though things didn't happen as planned. It's like the French (I think) say, "If you want to make God laugh, make plans."
So, we left the sculpture garden and walked around downtown DC until we stumbled upon - by crazy, random happenstance - ESPN Zone. How shiny is that? Had a nice meal there. Although in the "Bristol Room" where we sat it was a bit chilly. The air conditioning must have been cranked down a bit in anticipation of a combination of the large Friday night crowd and . . . something else.
Then we grabbed the Yellow Line Metro to almost home. Kate had parked the car at the Metro thinking we would get back after dark. But because of a combination of the cut-short Jazz and quick meal (See! Two things!) we got back before dark. No fears but we drove home anyway in the daylight.
All-in-all not a bad evening. Even though things didn't happen as planned. It's like the French (I think) say, "If you want to make God laugh, make plans."
Friday, July 10, 2009
Walks
The two dogs and I have been enjoying our evening walks down along the Potomac River. The breeze is usually noticeably heftier there, and it's nice to get a longer perspective reaching out to horizons on the east (Maryland shore), north (DC) and south (downriver). Usually sailboats are breezing by and always others are out for a walk, jog, bike or run along one of the paths and trails down there.
A few of those others have dogs along for the walk, too. Kooper and Logan will either avoid them (at my prompting) or go sniff appropriate (for dogs) body parts in a canine introductory ritual. Kooper tends to approach out of fear and apprehension. Logan out of curiosity (if I may add on a layer of human intent here).
We typically walk down Bashford Lane, which crosses the George Washington Parkway just up from the house, bend south along the railroad tracks that feed coal to the power plant down along the River, and then cut across the tracks into the Riverside park. The park (with some gaps in the business and residential districts) goes south along the River through a good chunk of Alexandria. But we only do a bite-sized chunk on our walks and cut back west and north again before hitting the Alexandria downtown area.
Then it's back to the house for a treat (dog treats), some water and settling in for the night (until around 10 PM when it's time for a pee break . . . and 3:30 AM . . . and 5 AM). Get lots of walks that way.
A few of those others have dogs along for the walk, too. Kooper and Logan will either avoid them (at my prompting) or go sniff appropriate (for dogs) body parts in a canine introductory ritual. Kooper tends to approach out of fear and apprehension. Logan out of curiosity (if I may add on a layer of human intent here).
We typically walk down Bashford Lane, which crosses the George Washington Parkway just up from the house, bend south along the railroad tracks that feed coal to the power plant down along the River, and then cut across the tracks into the Riverside park. The park (with some gaps in the business and residential districts) goes south along the River through a good chunk of Alexandria. But we only do a bite-sized chunk on our walks and cut back west and north again before hitting the Alexandria downtown area.
Then it's back to the house for a treat (dog treats), some water and settling in for the night (until around 10 PM when it's time for a pee break . . . and 3:30 AM . . . and 5 AM). Get lots of walks that way.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Love
It's heartening to know that besides all of the crappy stuff that people tend to do a lot of the time, there are a lot of glimmers of love that shine through, too. Gives me hope. Not hope that people will change. But that people have the ability, the capacity, the innate drive to love each other. It makes the crappy stuff easier to bear, although not any easier to understand.
Then I think of all of the dogs I've known over my life. Just counting the ones in my families: Happy, Heidi, Daisy, Bess, Lady, Dobie, Kooper and Logan. Plus many other "extended family" and friend's dogs. They always seem to epitomize the unending capacity for forgiveness and love. No matter how much they are ignored or scolded or disciplined they always seem to come back with tail wagging and body squiggling and happy panting. I know that I'm humanizing the dogs a bit here. But, then, maybe we humans could do with a bit of dog-anizing, ourselves. Wag our tails a bit more now and again.
Makes the crappy stuff easier to bear.
Then I think of all of the dogs I've known over my life. Just counting the ones in my families: Happy, Heidi, Daisy, Bess, Lady, Dobie, Kooper and Logan. Plus many other "extended family" and friend's dogs. They always seem to epitomize the unending capacity for forgiveness and love. No matter how much they are ignored or scolded or disciplined they always seem to come back with tail wagging and body squiggling and happy panting. I know that I'm humanizing the dogs a bit here. But, then, maybe we humans could do with a bit of dog-anizing, ourselves. Wag our tails a bit more now and again.
Makes the crappy stuff easier to bear.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Jayne
The Ballad of Jayne (revised in honor of good friends who are adopting a Newfoundland puppy and naming him "Jayne")
Jayne, the dog they call Jayne
He went from the couch
And he went to the door
He had to go pee
And perhaps to do more
Our love for him now
Ain't hard to explain
The dog that's a Newfy
The dog we call Jayne
Jayne, the dog they call Jayne
He went from the couch
And he went to the door
He had to go pee
And perhaps to do more
Our love for him now
Ain't hard to explain
The dog that's a Newfy
The dog we call Jayne
Dollhouse Update
Update - DOLLHOUSE will now have its Season 2 premiere on FRI, 9/25 at 9/8c. Pushed back 1 week from the originally announced FRI, 9/18.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Poem of the week
From Iran’s national poet, Ahmad Shamlu, written in response to the recent Iranian election and subsequent violent suppression of the election abuse resistance movement-
To slaughter us
Why did you need to invite us
To such an elegant party?
To slaughter us
Why did you need to invite us
To such an elegant party?
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Clouds
Today is the first in a long time when it has been generally cloudy. That cloudiness is reflective of the loneliness I feel these last few days between the days of much family visiting and the days of Kate being back. I talk to the dogs and Zelda (Lucky is still in daytime hiding) but they can only talk back in dog and cat talk so our conversations are limited.
"Hi Zelda." "Mrroww"
"Want to go for a walk Kooper?" heavy panting and tail wagging (Kooper)
Stand up. Move on the couch. Go upstairs. Brush my teeth. Roll over in bed. Take a pee. You name it. heavy panting and jumping and rapid short tail waggingg (Logan)
You get the picture.
The check out clerk and I had a nice conversation yesterday about the Fourth of July and her work schedule and the pace of business at the local Trader Joe's. But then I left. And she went on to have another nice conversation with the next person in the checkout line.
I say "hi" to people who are walking the opposite way down the sidewalk when we are out for our innumerable dog walks. About a half of the people respond. Others don't make eye contact or talk to their cell phones or text message someone.
It's a lonely world for anyone alone.
Cloudy.
I think I'll go to church now and be alone together with others.
"Hi Zelda." "Mrroww"
"Want to go for a walk Kooper?" heavy panting and tail wagging (Kooper)
Stand up. Move on the couch. Go upstairs. Brush my teeth. Roll over in bed. Take a pee. You name it. heavy panting and jumping and rapid short tail waggingg (Logan)
You get the picture.
The check out clerk and I had a nice conversation yesterday about the Fourth of July and her work schedule and the pace of business at the local Trader Joe's. But then I left. And she went on to have another nice conversation with the next person in the checkout line.
I say "hi" to people who are walking the opposite way down the sidewalk when we are out for our innumerable dog walks. About a half of the people respond. Others don't make eye contact or talk to their cell phones or text message someone.
It's a lonely world for anyone alone.
Cloudy.
I think I'll go to church now and be alone together with others.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Lucky
Seventy years ago today Lou Gehrig declared that he was "the luckiest man on the face of the earth." On Lou Gehrig appreciation day at Yankee Stadium.
I thought it would be appropriate to reprise his speech that day. You can also see it here:
"Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about the bad break. Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans.
"Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn't consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day? Sure, I'm lucky. Who wouldn't consider it an honor to have known Jacob Ruppert? Also, the builder of baseball's greatest empire, Ed Barrow? To have spent six years with that wonderful little fellow, Miller Huggins? Then to have spent the next nine years with that outstanding leader, that smart student of psychology, the best manager in baseball today, Joe McCarthy? Sure, I'm lucky.
"When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, sends you a gift - that's something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers and those boys in white coats remember you with trophies - that's something. When you have a wonderful mother-in-law who takes sides with you in squabbles with her own daughter - that's something. When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so you can have an education and build your body - it's a blessing. When you have a wife who has been a tower of strength and shown more courage than you dreamed existed - that's the finest I know.
"So I close in saying that I may have been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for. Thank you."
I thought it would be appropriate to reprise his speech that day. You can also see it here:
"Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about the bad break. Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans.
"Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn't consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day? Sure, I'm lucky. Who wouldn't consider it an honor to have known Jacob Ruppert? Also, the builder of baseball's greatest empire, Ed Barrow? To have spent six years with that wonderful little fellow, Miller Huggins? Then to have spent the next nine years with that outstanding leader, that smart student of psychology, the best manager in baseball today, Joe McCarthy? Sure, I'm lucky.
"When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, sends you a gift - that's something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers and those boys in white coats remember you with trophies - that's something. When you have a wonderful mother-in-law who takes sides with you in squabbles with her own daughter - that's something. When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so you can have an education and build your body - it's a blessing. When you have a wife who has been a tower of strength and shown more courage than you dreamed existed - that's the finest I know.
"So I close in saying that I may have been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for. Thank you."
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Not Another One!
Yes! I have another blog (but it's work related so . . .). But over there at that blog I'm just as pithy and sublime and anachronistic and all of those other neat adjectives you could apply to this blog.
So, go visit over there (http://nemwuppermiss.blogspot.com/) if you'd like (or even if you don't like). In my second posting, I even mention a favorite movie of mine (no hints needed).
So, go visit over there (http://nemwuppermiss.blogspot.com/) if you'd like (or even if you don't like). In my second posting, I even mention a favorite movie of mine (no hints needed).
Quiet Quieter Quietest
Over the past few days things have really been winding down here in DC as people flee the city for the Fourth of July weekend. Each day there are fewer on the streets. Fewer on the Metros. Fewer on the buses. Fewer in the offices. And stores. And banks. All this fewering going on in large part is because congress went on recess last Friday and there is no one here to lobby or interview or pester or listen to (they tend to do all the talking) or report on.
I went to a Representative's office yesterday and his staff were reveling in the quiet and calm. Enjoying the down time of the week to actually stop and think and breathe. Up times tend to be noisy and busy allowing little time for thinking and breathing.
It's been quite nice bussing and training and walking around because I haven't had to zig and zag around folks or be bumped into or rushed ahead of by those in a hurry to get somewhere and do something (obviously a very important somewhere and something).
Today I'll go into work. Enjoying the relative calm and quiet. Tomorrow it should be even less busy with people either out of town or in their homes. I understand the National Mall gets quite packed for the fireworks and concert on the Fourth. That should be a sight. I think I'll walk down to the River here in Alexandria and watch it all from a few miles out. Sometimes crowds are best watched from a distance.
I went to a Representative's office yesterday and his staff were reveling in the quiet and calm. Enjoying the down time of the week to actually stop and think and breathe. Up times tend to be noisy and busy allowing little time for thinking and breathing.
It's been quite nice bussing and training and walking around because I haven't had to zig and zag around folks or be bumped into or rushed ahead of by those in a hurry to get somewhere and do something (obviously a very important somewhere and something).
Today I'll go into work. Enjoying the relative calm and quiet. Tomorrow it should be even less busy with people either out of town or in their homes. I understand the National Mall gets quite packed for the fireworks and concert on the Fourth. That should be a sight. I think I'll walk down to the River here in Alexandria and watch it all from a few miles out. Sometimes crowds are best watched from a distance.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Reductions
It's a bit lonelier these days now that the visiting family folks have left. Kate (not visiting but of the "left" variety anyway) is out in Oakland these days. Erin and Brid left on Sunday, late in the day after we went to see the London Royal Ballet at Kennedy. And Pat and Jen left last week earlier on to head to northwestern PA and then a board gaming convention in Columbus, Ohio.
That leaves just the four-legged family members and me. I don't recall being a four-legged type much. Just when I'd take the kids for a horse-back ride when they were small. I'm sure I crawled at some point way back when. But that when is too way back for me to remember.
The family that's left is pretty quiet. Zelda spits at Logan when he passes by. And has even taken to hissing at Kooper now, too. Zelda, it seems has now lumped Kooper in with other evil dogs because of the frenetic pace of Logan. We sometimes see Lucky but only for a few minutes at a time (I was going to say "occasionally" there instead of "sometimes" but I always have trouble spelling that word - get the double consonants wrong a lot).
So, we are plodding along on all fours or all twos as the case may be until someone else comes through the door. If things go according to plan that will be Kate sometime in the middle of next week. Of course, things could happen of the unplanned variety and a visitor could grace the doorstep. You never know. Stray dog. Feral cat. Injured squirrel. Traveling friend. There always seems to be enough room.
That leaves just the four-legged family members and me. I don't recall being a four-legged type much. Just when I'd take the kids for a horse-back ride when they were small. I'm sure I crawled at some point way back when. But that when is too way back for me to remember.
The family that's left is pretty quiet. Zelda spits at Logan when he passes by. And has even taken to hissing at Kooper now, too. Zelda, it seems has now lumped Kooper in with other evil dogs because of the frenetic pace of Logan. We sometimes see Lucky but only for a few minutes at a time (I was going to say "occasionally" there instead of "sometimes" but I always have trouble spelling that word - get the double consonants wrong a lot).
So, we are plodding along on all fours or all twos as the case may be until someone else comes through the door. If things go according to plan that will be Kate sometime in the middle of next week. Of course, things could happen of the unplanned variety and a visitor could grace the doorstep. You never know. Stray dog. Feral cat. Injured squirrel. Traveling friend. There always seems to be enough room.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
No Substitute
Money
Cars
Houses
Trips
Vacations
Winning
Comfort
Work
Food
Sex
Security
Power
Activity
Control
Toys
Games
A lot of Love is lost along the way there.
Cars
Houses
Trips
Vacations
Winning
Comfort
Work
Food
Sex
Security
Power
Activity
Control
Toys
Games
A lot of Love is lost along the way there.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Stretching, the Political Way (Metaphorically Speaking)
The interesting thing about working in DC is that you get to learn all sorts of new things political, such as the latest ways of stretching things (and I don't mean muscles). Like this quaint news item from Arkansas, where Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Curtis Coleman says that his comment that when traveling to southeastern Arkansas one "might as well get a visa and shot" was not meant to be derogatory, but rather as a "metaphor" celebrating the rich diversity of Arkansas (ahem, please give me a moment to clear my throat).
The Little Rock businessman, who has formed a committee to explore a run for Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln's seat next year, made the comments Tuesday night to a Benton County Republican gathering. Benton County, for those unfamiliar with life in Arkansas, is in the prosperous, northwestern, corner of the state (whereas southeastern Arkansas is largely agricultural and economically depressed).
Now here is the stretching part. Today, when asked about the comment, Coleman said he was trying to "accentuate or maybe even celebrate the enormous diversity we have in Arkansas."
"I’ve done a lot of international traveling since the 70s," he said, "and when going to a new and different land, you had to have a visa and shots. I only meant it to show the tremendous differences you see from one corner of the state to the other. I love southeast Arkansas and meant it only as a metaphor."
I wonder if he knows any metaphors for "shooting oneself in the foot" or "sticking your foot in your mouth." Oh. Wait. Those are metaphors.
The Little Rock businessman, who has formed a committee to explore a run for Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln's seat next year, made the comments Tuesday night to a Benton County Republican gathering. Benton County, for those unfamiliar with life in Arkansas, is in the prosperous, northwestern, corner of the state (whereas southeastern Arkansas is largely agricultural and economically depressed).
Now here is the stretching part. Today, when asked about the comment, Coleman said he was trying to "accentuate or maybe even celebrate the enormous diversity we have in Arkansas."
"I’ve done a lot of international traveling since the 70s," he said, "and when going to a new and different land, you had to have a visa and shots. I only meant it to show the tremendous differences you see from one corner of the state to the other. I love southeast Arkansas and meant it only as a metaphor."
I wonder if he knows any metaphors for "shooting oneself in the foot" or "sticking your foot in your mouth." Oh. Wait. Those are metaphors.
It's Still Safe
Despite the horrific Metro train crash and deaths and injuries earlier this week here in DC, I still feel safe riding the trains. The old, outdated, less secure trains. And the newer, more modern, safer varieties. The Red Line (the line where the crash occurred) is still closed down at the crash site but open otherwise on either side of that point. It was packed at rush hour this morning. At the point where I switched from bus to train (the Metro Center), I had to wait one train (two minutes) to get room in a Red Line car to get to my stop at Union Station (I was training it because the heat and humidity are spiking today in DC - no desire to be soaked with sweat by the time I walked the mile-plus from the bus stop to work).
So, while there may be trepidation, there were still crowds on the Metro. On the Red Line. It's still a safe way to get around.
So, while there may be trepidation, there were still crowds on the Metro. On the Red Line. It's still a safe way to get around.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Monumental
Brid, Erin and I are coming back into DC tonight (after I go out of DC this afternoon for a bit) to see some monuments. Brid wants to see the monuments in DC. Washington Monument. Lincoln Memorial. Jefferson Memorial. Those sort of monuments.
I'm sure - I know - that everyone has their faults. Those memorialized in monuments and the rest of us, too. In the glare of media - new and old - the faults just seem a bit bigger these days. I doubt that they are. We are just hungry for big faults and the supply rises up to meet the demand. The faults seem as monumental on the 6 o'clock news as the marble memorials in the National Mall.
I just have to wonder who will be memorialized in monuments 100 years from now, big warts and all. Whose monuments will Brid's grandchildren want to visit in DC in the summer heat in 2109?
I'm sure - I know - that everyone has their faults. Those memorialized in monuments and the rest of us, too. In the glare of media - new and old - the faults just seem a bit bigger these days. I doubt that they are. We are just hungry for big faults and the supply rises up to meet the demand. The faults seem as monumental on the 6 o'clock news as the marble memorials in the National Mall.
I just have to wonder who will be memorialized in monuments 100 years from now, big warts and all. Whose monuments will Brid's grandchildren want to visit in DC in the summer heat in 2109?
Monday, June 22, 2009
That Sinking Feeling
Everywhere I read these days (and I do a lot of it in my current job), I read of countries scaling back plans to scale back the emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases. England, Russia, Australia, Germany, United States. China may be the one exception but that remains to be seen. Third world countries are complaining loudly to the first-worlders about being subjugated and ignored once again. They are likely correct.
In the meantime more and more scientists are saying that soon it will be too late to reverse course. One, James Lovelock, recently said that it's already too late. That the past 100 plus years of CO2 production has already tipped the scales past the point of re-balance. He wants to name his soon-to-be-released book "The Vanishing Face of Gaia: A Final Warning. Enjoy It While It Lasts." But his publisher talked him out of it, saying pessimism doesn't sell. Don't worry. Be happy.
To quote Star Wars (I, II, III, IV, V and VI), "I've got a bad feeling about this."
In the meantime more and more scientists are saying that soon it will be too late to reverse course. One, James Lovelock, recently said that it's already too late. That the past 100 plus years of CO2 production has already tipped the scales past the point of re-balance. He wants to name his soon-to-be-released book "The Vanishing Face of Gaia: A Final Warning. Enjoy It While It Lasts." But his publisher talked him out of it, saying pessimism doesn't sell. Don't worry. Be happy.
To quote Star Wars (I, II, III, IV, V and VI), "I've got a bad feeling about this."
Monday
We start of another week with a semi-full house. Pat and Jen are down for a few days visit and sightseeing. And Erin and Brid are here for a week or so for string (violin) camp in nearby Falls Church. We did a "dry run" by Metro and foot to the Falls Church camp location for registration. The real fun begins today.
The house is semi-full because Kate is out west somewhere with the Mormons doing things with the Unitarians (in Salt Lake City). Then she's going farther west into bankrupt California to try to boost the economy there. Visiting brothers and all. I think she's back sometime in July for a few days but I don't have my iPhone calendar handy for the details. I just recall it's booked up with mostly theres and leastly heres through the remainder of the summer.
So it's nice to have some company in the meantime (some of the non-four-legged furry variety).
The house is semi-full because Kate is out west somewhere with the Mormons doing things with the Unitarians (in Salt Lake City). Then she's going farther west into bankrupt California to try to boost the economy there. Visiting brothers and all. I think she's back sometime in July for a few days but I don't have my iPhone calendar handy for the details. I just recall it's booked up with mostly theres and leastly heres through the remainder of the summer.
So it's nice to have some company in the meantime (some of the non-four-legged furry variety).
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Fathers
Mark Twain once said that “it’s a wise child who knows its father, and an unusual one who unreservedly approves of him.” I’m here standing before you today to unequivocally state that I was neither wise nor unusual as a child. Oh, I knew who my father was all right. He was the red-haired state police officer who left in the morning and came home every evening to laugh and joke and tell stories, and make candy, and play cards and other games. He led us on vacations to the seashore, which he relished dearly. He was steady and constant. He was always there.
But when I was young, I didn’t know him. Really know him. And I certainly didn’t “unreservedly approve of him.” I loved him in the general sense that a child is capable of at that age. I appreciated his giving and his presence. I relied upon him for support, both emotionally and materially. But it wasn’t until I was an adult that I really got to know and appreciate my father – not at the father-son level; but as a friend and mentor. Mark Twain also wrote that when he was a boy of fourteen, his father was so ignorant he could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when he got to be twenty-one, Twain was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years. That was the way I was as a child. That was a lot of us, as children, I think. Maybe we didn’t appreciate our fathers within the specific time frame in which Mark Twain experienced his awakening. For some of us, (if at all) we may have come to appreciate our father when we were 17, or 28, or 56, or 81, or long after our father was gone. Although I’m sure that I did many times as a child, I don’t remember telling my father I loved him and hugging him, and actually sitting down and talking to him as a friend and adult until I was in my late 20s. That’s when I started to “unreservedly approve of” my father.
Now, when I say “father,” it doesn’t necessarily have to mean our biological father that we relate to as a “father” or “dad” or “daddy” or “pop.” I have four fathers – not biological fathers . . . that would be a record. I had four men who guided me, and prompted me, and cajoled me, and kicked me (not literally), and pushed me into adulthood. From my biological father, my “dad,” I received the gifts of patience, and gentleness, and steadiness, and an appreciation of quiet . . . and an ability not to “sweat the small stuff,” as my dad would say. From my uncle, Uncle Gene, I received the gifts of love of nature, and insightfulness, and spirituality . . . and the appreciation of a fine cigar. My grandfather, my “Poppy,” gave me the gifts of integrity, and respect of others, and personal pride and belief in oneself, the ability to call things as I see them . . . and a receding hairline. I swear that I spent most of my life through my high school years with my best friend. And it was through my best friend’s father – my fourth father, Mr. Cioffi – that I came to value honesty, and forthrightness, and laughter, and family . . . and the New York Yankees.
All of these fathers ended up giving a good part of themselves to me. What you see standing before you today is, in large measure, an amalgamation of the gifts of those gracious, good people. And in the end, that’s what fatherhood is all about . . . giving – unreservedly, unendingly, undeniably.
When my dad was dying of cancer, I went to visit him at home one evening. Just my Mom and Dad and I were there. I stayed for awhile. My father had brain cancer and wasn’t speaking much by that point. He wasn’t moving at all, being confined to bed. When it came time to leave, I whispered goodbye to my Dad; squeezed his shoulder and kissed his cheek. I told him I loved him. He struggled to whisper back “I love you, too.” Those were the last four words my dad ever spoke. A few weeks later he died, but he never spoke another word again. What an honor to be a child of that man, who gave to me as long as he could – until his very last words.
I have one last Mark Twain quote to share today. Mark Twain wrote, “a distinguished man should be as particular about his last words as he is about his last breath. He should write them out on a slip of paper . . . He should never leave such a thing to the last hour of his life, and trust to an intellectual spurt at the last moment to enable him to say something smart with his last gasp and then be launched into eternity with grandeur.” My father neither wrote down his last words ahead of time nor relied upon an intellectual spurt to be launched into eternity with the grandeur he was due. He relied upon that essential aspect that defined him as a father; that defined all four of my fathers as fathers; that sets apart all fathers as fathers – he relied upon his love for his child. May we and all of our children be blessed with such people of love in our lives.
But when I was young, I didn’t know him. Really know him. And I certainly didn’t “unreservedly approve of him.” I loved him in the general sense that a child is capable of at that age. I appreciated his giving and his presence. I relied upon him for support, both emotionally and materially. But it wasn’t until I was an adult that I really got to know and appreciate my father – not at the father-son level; but as a friend and mentor. Mark Twain also wrote that when he was a boy of fourteen, his father was so ignorant he could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when he got to be twenty-one, Twain was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years. That was the way I was as a child. That was a lot of us, as children, I think. Maybe we didn’t appreciate our fathers within the specific time frame in which Mark Twain experienced his awakening. For some of us, (if at all) we may have come to appreciate our father when we were 17, or 28, or 56, or 81, or long after our father was gone. Although I’m sure that I did many times as a child, I don’t remember telling my father I loved him and hugging him, and actually sitting down and talking to him as a friend and adult until I was in my late 20s. That’s when I started to “unreservedly approve of” my father.
Now, when I say “father,” it doesn’t necessarily have to mean our biological father that we relate to as a “father” or “dad” or “daddy” or “pop.” I have four fathers – not biological fathers . . . that would be a record. I had four men who guided me, and prompted me, and cajoled me, and kicked me (not literally), and pushed me into adulthood. From my biological father, my “dad,” I received the gifts of patience, and gentleness, and steadiness, and an appreciation of quiet . . . and an ability not to “sweat the small stuff,” as my dad would say. From my uncle, Uncle Gene, I received the gifts of love of nature, and insightfulness, and spirituality . . . and the appreciation of a fine cigar. My grandfather, my “Poppy,” gave me the gifts of integrity, and respect of others, and personal pride and belief in oneself, the ability to call things as I see them . . . and a receding hairline. I swear that I spent most of my life through my high school years with my best friend. And it was through my best friend’s father – my fourth father, Mr. Cioffi – that I came to value honesty, and forthrightness, and laughter, and family . . . and the New York Yankees.
All of these fathers ended up giving a good part of themselves to me. What you see standing before you today is, in large measure, an amalgamation of the gifts of those gracious, good people. And in the end, that’s what fatherhood is all about . . . giving – unreservedly, unendingly, undeniably.
When my dad was dying of cancer, I went to visit him at home one evening. Just my Mom and Dad and I were there. I stayed for awhile. My father had brain cancer and wasn’t speaking much by that point. He wasn’t moving at all, being confined to bed. When it came time to leave, I whispered goodbye to my Dad; squeezed his shoulder and kissed his cheek. I told him I loved him. He struggled to whisper back “I love you, too.” Those were the last four words my dad ever spoke. A few weeks later he died, but he never spoke another word again. What an honor to be a child of that man, who gave to me as long as he could – until his very last words.
I have one last Mark Twain quote to share today. Mark Twain wrote, “a distinguished man should be as particular about his last words as he is about his last breath. He should write them out on a slip of paper . . . He should never leave such a thing to the last hour of his life, and trust to an intellectual spurt at the last moment to enable him to say something smart with his last gasp and then be launched into eternity with grandeur.” My father neither wrote down his last words ahead of time nor relied upon an intellectual spurt to be launched into eternity with the grandeur he was due. He relied upon that essential aspect that defined him as a father; that defined all four of my fathers as fathers; that sets apart all fathers as fathers – he relied upon his love for his child. May we and all of our children be blessed with such people of love in our lives.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Accordion Fun
We are going to see the Motion Trio tonight at the Polish Embassy. It's the last in this season's series of embassy nights in DC, where there is a reception and some kind of musical event in one of the embassies in town. I'm on the email list and get notices all throughout the year. But what caught my eye was that there was a special "buy two get one free" for this night, and the music is accordion music! Not your typical embassy, classical kind of musical thing. It should be fun. The group, The Motion Trio, is touted as being unlike any other accordion act in the world.
My only other experience with accordions is when I was growing up and my best friend was taking accordion lessons. He had to practice every day. So, I got to listen to him a lot as I waited for him to finish, so we could do real things. Like play baseball.
We have four tickets for tonight. Got the three for two deal and then one more. Erin and Brid are down for the week, while Brid goes to a nearby string camp next week with her violin. So we get to hang out and do some nice Alexandria-DC sorts of things. Like accordion embassy visits.
My only other experience with accordions is when I was growing up and my best friend was taking accordion lessons. He had to practice every day. So, I got to listen to him a lot as I waited for him to finish, so we could do real things. Like play baseball.
We have four tickets for tonight. Got the three for two deal and then one more. Erin and Brid are down for the week, while Brid goes to a nearby string camp next week with her violin. So we get to hang out and do some nice Alexandria-DC sorts of things. Like accordion embassy visits.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
New Doomsday Counter
Deutsche Bank has launched a "carbon counter" (click here) that displays the running total amount of long-lived greenhouse gasses in the earth's atmosphere, measured in metric tons.
It hums along there pretty fast. You can even download a widget here to put on your computer's desktop if you're into that kind of thing. One person who has seen it has likened it to "watching a car crash in slow motion, but we're in the car." Happy driving!
It hums along there pretty fast. You can even download a widget here to put on your computer's desktop if you're into that kind of thing. One person who has seen it has likened it to "watching a car crash in slow motion, but we're in the car." Happy driving!
Day of Thor
Thursday is well-named for this morning. The clouds are thick and dark. It's humid and damp. And the thunder is rolling in from the north. From up in DC way. As we re-enter the southern, summer air mass. The god of thunder must be happy on his day.
This means we will shut the windows and restart the air conditioning. Conditioned air isn't my preference but not sitting in sweat-soaked clothes also isn't quite a pleasant experience. So, we opt for the conditioning and dry clothes. The tandem dehumidifiers in the bottom floor help to keep that dry. While they make the electric meter spin faster and more constantly.
So, we are cooler and drier. The power meter turns continuously. The power plant burns more coal to keep up. Pumping more CO2 into the air above. Which, if you believe the experts, makes for severe and more frequent thunder storms.
Making for more thundering Thursdays. Everybody wins! Especially the god of thor.
This means we will shut the windows and restart the air conditioning. Conditioned air isn't my preference but not sitting in sweat-soaked clothes also isn't quite a pleasant experience. So, we opt for the conditioning and dry clothes. The tandem dehumidifiers in the bottom floor help to keep that dry. While they make the electric meter spin faster and more constantly.
So, we are cooler and drier. The power meter turns continuously. The power plant burns more coal to keep up. Pumping more CO2 into the air above. Which, if you believe the experts, makes for severe and more frequent thunder storms.
Making for more thundering Thursdays. Everybody wins! Especially the god of thor.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Be Careful What You Wish For
"He has no credibility left." - Sen. John Ensign (Republican from Nevada), quoted by the Las Vegas Sun in 1998, urging Bill Clinton to resign after Clinton admitted an extramarital affair. In a press conference yesterday, Ensign admitted an affair but seemed resolved to remain in political life.
Mutt and Jeff
Logan
Frenetic
Fast
Zig-zag
Blur
Sniffing
Pulling
Delirious
Fanatical
Wired
Turbulent
Kooper
Calm
Slow
Sauntering
Restrained
Stoic
Pulled
Placid
Ambling
Relaxed
Frenetic
Fast
Zig-zag
Blur
Sniffing
Pulling
Delirious
Fanatical
Wired
Turbulent
Kooper
Calm
Slow
Sauntering
Restrained
Stoic
Pulled
Placid
Ambling
Relaxed
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Twitter Me This
Apparently when the Iranian government was blocking forms of e-communication in the lead-up to last week's election, they missed Twitter, and that social networking platform has been the main avenue for dissident and other non-approved communications since the election. The use of Twitter in Iran prompted the following statement, issued on the Twitter blog:
"A critical network upgrade must be performed to ensure continued operation of Twitter. In coordination with Twitter, our network host had planned this upgrade for tonight. However, our network partners at NTT America recognize the role Twitter is currently playing as an important communication tool in Iran. Tonight's planned maintenance has been rescheduled to tomorrow between 2-3p PST (1:30a in Iran)."
"A critical network upgrade must be performed to ensure continued operation of Twitter. In coordination with Twitter, our network host had planned this upgrade for tonight. However, our network partners at NTT America recognize the role Twitter is currently playing as an important communication tool in Iran. Tonight's planned maintenance has been rescheduled to tomorrow between 2-3p PST (1:30a in Iran)."
Dollhouse
The season premiere date has been announced - Season 2 of Dollhouse will premiere Friday 9/18 at 9 PM! Mark your calendars (party time).
Monday, June 15, 2009
Irony
A new coal port that will cement Newcastle, Australia's place as the largest coal exporter in the world is quietly being built up in height by several meters, in preparation for the rising sea levels brought about by the climate change in large part caused by the carbon dioxide released from burning coal.
Ironic ("That's not irony. No one gets that one right.")!
Ironic ("That's not irony. No one gets that one right.")!
Summer
Summer is settling in slowly and quietly I've noticed. The birds who sing in the morning are shifting to a different mix of singers with different songs. Moving from the melodies to the chirps as we move out of mating and egg laying to feeding and survival mode. And the nights, while not warm, are no longer chilly.
We were out on the Potomac with a group of people yesterday in kayaks and the water plants are filling the shallow areas. The trees (all but the Chinese chestnut) are no longer blooming but have moved into full speed photosynthesis. Capturing the fullness of the June sun and storing up energy for later, leaner months.
People, too, are in summer mode. Moving slower. Picnicing. Traveling in their cars and motorbikes and buses here and there and back again. Crunching things to do into the "things-to-do" time of year. Sandals and shorts are the dress of choice in the hot middays. And floppy hats to shade the sun.
Maybe the rain that we've been getting in the area will slacken now. We've had twice the amount lately as is usual for this time of year. There are loads of mushrooms popping up in lawns and fields. Even those pristine, chemically bathed lawns harbor the fungi, it's been so wet. The molds will likely creep there way into the dark, damp places of the house, too, as summer takes hold a bit more each day.
But in another week, solstice will be passed and we'll be traveling toward the next season and all that it holds in store.
We were out on the Potomac with a group of people yesterday in kayaks and the water plants are filling the shallow areas. The trees (all but the Chinese chestnut) are no longer blooming but have moved into full speed photosynthesis. Capturing the fullness of the June sun and storing up energy for later, leaner months.
People, too, are in summer mode. Moving slower. Picnicing. Traveling in their cars and motorbikes and buses here and there and back again. Crunching things to do into the "things-to-do" time of year. Sandals and shorts are the dress of choice in the hot middays. And floppy hats to shade the sun.
Maybe the rain that we've been getting in the area will slacken now. We've had twice the amount lately as is usual for this time of year. There are loads of mushrooms popping up in lawns and fields. Even those pristine, chemically bathed lawns harbor the fungi, it's been so wet. The molds will likely creep there way into the dark, damp places of the house, too, as summer takes hold a bit more each day.
But in another week, solstice will be passed and we'll be traveling toward the next season and all that it holds in store.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Werner Herzog In The Jungle
Werner journeys to South America in search of a rare type of honey for his struggling cooking show on American television, in this preview clip from the upcoming web series. He is seeking finishing funds, distribution and a live whooly mammoth; please message him if you can help.
Werner Herzog In The Jungle - watch more funny videos
Friday, June 12, 2009
Too Much
The Big Easy is big in more things than "easy." New Orleans is a city of excess. Plenty of bars and restaurants and other pleasures too. Like sex shops and prostitutes. In the French Quarter.
I only tried one of those things. The food. I went to Cafe du Monde
and got a three-pack of beignets. Which are powder sugar covered fried dough things.
That was my supper last night. Plus a couple slices of pizza. And a quart of orange juice. Too much. But it was all way too easy.
I only tried one of those things. The food. I went to Cafe du Monde
and got a three-pack of beignets. Which are powder sugar covered fried dough things.
That was my supper last night. Plus a couple slices of pizza. And a quart of orange juice. Too much. But it was all way too easy.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
New Orleans
New Orleans is a tale of two cities. There is the high ground and the low ground.
The high is above sea level. It is the older town.
The places where people originally settled and where the town once was constrained to. It is business and history and infrastructure and the parts of New Orleans we see when we usually are shown New Orleans in movies and TV and print.
The low is below sea level. It is the newer town.
The ninth ward. The places where people later settled. After World War II. Middle income once. Devastated now. Mostly empty. Maybe 20% of the homes and people it had once. Before the floods of Katrina.
The broken levees are being rebuilt. So that the low ground town parts can be reinhabited. "Safely" this time they say. The empty low town portions of town are being peppered with a few new homes.
Some (with the help of a Brad Pitt foundation) very modern and energy efficient. Most spaces are empty still. Filled with weeds and brush where there were once vibrant neighborhoods.
Meanwhile the promised help from the state and nation has slowed to a trickle. And the people who once lived in the low ground have moved on. Or struggle to rebuild on their own. With the help of neighbors. The American way.
The high is above sea level. It is the older town.
The places where people originally settled and where the town once was constrained to. It is business and history and infrastructure and the parts of New Orleans we see when we usually are shown New Orleans in movies and TV and print.The low is below sea level. It is the newer town.
The ninth ward. The places where people later settled. After World War II. Middle income once. Devastated now. Mostly empty. Maybe 20% of the homes and people it had once. Before the floods of Katrina.The broken levees are being rebuilt. So that the low ground town parts can be reinhabited. "Safely" this time they say. The empty low town portions of town are being peppered with a few new homes.
Some (with the help of a Brad Pitt foundation) very modern and energy efficient. Most spaces are empty still. Filled with weeds and brush where there were once vibrant neighborhoods.Meanwhile the promised help from the state and nation has slowed to a trickle. And the people who once lived in the low ground have moved on. Or struggle to rebuild on their own. With the help of neighbors. The American way.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Just Dance
I'm not very good at dancing. Even though Kate and I took dancing lessons and all. But this is a good song and good video and a good response to the things that might otherwise overwhelm you.
Now it's off to New Orleans for two days of trying to work out how to save and resurrect large ecosystems like Chesapeake Bay and San Francisco Bay and the Great Lakes.
Well, there's always dancing I guess.
Now it's off to New Orleans for two days of trying to work out how to save and resurrect large ecosystems like Chesapeake Bay and San Francisco Bay and the Great Lakes.
Well, there's always dancing I guess.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Earth-That-Was Browncoats
Here is a nice group shot from Sunday. The neat thing is that all of these people are coming together for two main reasons. First, they love Firefly. Second, they're happy to be doing good works (since the movie will be a charity fund raiser).
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Browncoats: Redemption
I'm going to be in the movies! Browncoats: Redemption. A call went out a few days ago to the folks in our Northern Virginia Browncoats Meet-up Group for extras in the movie and there I was today. This morning. Being an extra! How shiny is that.
Can't say much about the movie. Can't say anything really because I signed a non-disclosure agreement. I mean I can say the things that the world already knows (from the web site). But can't give out anything about the plot or things like that. The technical equipment was very fancy and expensive. We're talking $30,000 cameras and computers and monitors and sound equipment. And the very nice and savvy crew transformed the place we were in into a place totally something else (which I can't say what something else for fear of being mysteriously killed).
Here are a few "behind the scenes" photos from today's shoot (if you click on them, they get magically bigger):
Can't say much about the movie. Can't say anything really because I signed a non-disclosure agreement. I mean I can say the things that the world already knows (from the web site). But can't give out anything about the plot or things like that. The technical equipment was very fancy and expensive. We're talking $30,000 cameras and computers and monitors and sound equipment. And the very nice and savvy crew transformed the place we were in into a place totally something else (which I can't say what something else for fear of being mysteriously killed).
Here are a few "behind the scenes" photos from today's shoot (if you click on them, they get magically bigger):
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Four AM
It's nice that Logan is beginning to bond with the rest of his pack. His habit of waking at 4 in the morning and wanting some company is taking some getting used to. Even on Saturdays! You would think he would give some deference for the human's day off from work.
But, no, there we were this morning. Kooper, Logan and me (and the birds, who are up and singing at that hour, too). Strolling through the neighborhood. Kooper and I stroll. Logan sniffs in a jagged, frenzied, zig-zag pattern. Like he's doing a serpentine maneuver on a battlefield, trying to avoid the bullets of an enemy sniper. He snuzzles along with his nose firmly to the ground. Looking up only every once in awhile to see where his companions are.
Kate and I walked downtown alone (just the two of us) last night to the local movie house to see Angels and Demons. I had seen at least one good review so was willing to give it a chance. It was pretty flat. No good story line really. Nothing that touched the soul. I guess it was more like the author's books. Short chapters. Giving you a bite of something maybe good - maybe not. Enough to get you to want to turn the page to the next chapter. Only to find the menu to be maybe good-maybe not once more. Then . . . it was over. Left me hungry for a real story.
So we walked home. To two happy, tail-wagging dogs. And we strolled and snuzzled our way around the neighborhood. That's a good story that satisfies most any hunger.
But, no, there we were this morning. Kooper, Logan and me (and the birds, who are up and singing at that hour, too). Strolling through the neighborhood. Kooper and I stroll. Logan sniffs in a jagged, frenzied, zig-zag pattern. Like he's doing a serpentine maneuver on a battlefield, trying to avoid the bullets of an enemy sniper. He snuzzles along with his nose firmly to the ground. Looking up only every once in awhile to see where his companions are.
Kate and I walked downtown alone (just the two of us) last night to the local movie house to see Angels and Demons. I had seen at least one good review so was willing to give it a chance. It was pretty flat. No good story line really. Nothing that touched the soul. I guess it was more like the author's books. Short chapters. Giving you a bite of something maybe good - maybe not. Enough to get you to want to turn the page to the next chapter. Only to find the menu to be maybe good-maybe not once more. Then . . . it was over. Left me hungry for a real story.
So we walked home. To two happy, tail-wagging dogs. And we strolled and snuzzled our way around the neighborhood. That's a good story that satisfies most any hunger.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Rain
I can't recall if I've had a post entitled "Rain" before, but it fits this week. Lots of drizzly periods interrupted by occasional downpours. My little "Penn State" umbrella can take the drizzles but it's totally inadequate for the downpours. Then I get wet along the edges and from the knees down (with no wind) or the waste down (with anything above a breeze).
On this morning's (now two-dog) dog-walk it was just wet enough that I got damp but not rainy enough to warrant holding an umbrella in one hand and two dog leashes in another. That gets to be pretty tricky when I need to add a full poop bag to the mix.
Springer Spaniels are known as "velcro dogs." Although I've had Springers in the family before, I never heard the term until we looked into the Springer rescue group. Now that Logan is here I can see why the term is used. He's a follower. Follows either Kate or I around the house. Is always near one of us. On his first day at church with Kate he followed her into the women's room, and when Kate shut the stall door he squeezed in underneath to join her. That's togetherness. That's velcro.
Logan is still enamored with Zelda the cat. In a "run so I can chase you" sort of way. He just stares and stares hoping for a quick move on Zelda's part. She rarely complies. She was startled the other night when the Pittsburgh Penguins scored a goal and I yelled. Zelda shot off the couch and Logan went tearing after. That's the one time when Logan doesn't seem to mind being non-velcro.
On this morning's (now two-dog) dog-walk it was just wet enough that I got damp but not rainy enough to warrant holding an umbrella in one hand and two dog leashes in another. That gets to be pretty tricky when I need to add a full poop bag to the mix.
Springer Spaniels are known as "velcro dogs." Although I've had Springers in the family before, I never heard the term until we looked into the Springer rescue group. Now that Logan is here I can see why the term is used. He's a follower. Follows either Kate or I around the house. Is always near one of us. On his first day at church with Kate he followed her into the women's room, and when Kate shut the stall door he squeezed in underneath to join her. That's togetherness. That's velcro.
Logan is still enamored with Zelda the cat. In a "run so I can chase you" sort of way. He just stares and stares hoping for a quick move on Zelda's part. She rarely complies. She was startled the other night when the Pittsburgh Penguins scored a goal and I yelled. Zelda shot off the couch and Logan went tearing after. That's the one time when Logan doesn't seem to mind being non-velcro.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Illusion and Reality
I took an English course in college called "Illusion and Reality" where we read several great books the central themes of which centered on the topic of what is real and what is illusion in people's lives (The Glass Menagerie is one that I recall was in the reading list). Click here to see a modern day example of illusion and reality.
And if you liked that one, click here to watch the white dove change colors.
I present these because I'm having a hard time anymore figuring out what is illusion and what reality to the lawmakers in our nation's capital. Maybe I need to read The Glass Menagerie again.
And if you liked that one, click here to watch the white dove change colors.
I present these because I'm having a hard time anymore figuring out what is illusion and what reality to the lawmakers in our nation's capital. Maybe I need to read The Glass Menagerie again.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Too Good not to Post
Despair
So much gloom and doubt in our poetry–
flowers wilting on the table,
the self regarding itself in a watery mirror.
Dead leaves cover the ground
the wind moans in the chimney,
and the tendrils of the yew tree inch toward the coffin.
I wonder what the ancient Chinese poets
would make of all this,
these shadows and empty cupboards?
Today, with the sun blazing in the trees,
my thoughts turn to the great
tenth-century celebrators of experience,
Wa-hoo, whose delight in the smallest things
could hardly be restrained,
and to his joyous counterpart in the western provinces,
Ye-Hah.
–Billy Collins
So much gloom and doubt in our poetry–
flowers wilting on the table,
the self regarding itself in a watery mirror.
Dead leaves cover the ground
the wind moans in the chimney,
and the tendrils of the yew tree inch toward the coffin.
I wonder what the ancient Chinese poets
would make of all this,
these shadows and empty cupboards?
Today, with the sun blazing in the trees,
my thoughts turn to the great
tenth-century celebrators of experience,
Wa-hoo, whose delight in the smallest things
could hardly be restrained,
and to his joyous counterpart in the western provinces,
Ye-Hah.
–Billy Collins
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Logan
Logan is settling in it seems. He's growled a low growl to assert his male dominance over Kooper. Has stared down Zelda (the cat) over several faceoffs - those end up as draws mostly with Logan slowly advancing until Zelda hisses and spits. He has tried to flush out Lucky (the other cat) from beneath our bed with no luck yet. Lucky will come out eventually. She always does - it's a phase she goes through with any entry into the household.
Logan is very wiggly and an enthusiastic greeter when I come into the house after being out awhile. And he seems to greet the morning with a wiggly small tail and a wiggly body and smiling, licking, snorting face. Trying to wiggle his way into bed and get me up and awake for the day.
We've gone for quite a few extended walks through the neighborhood. Just got back from one down to the River. Logan is very friendly with other dogs and people. He keeps his nose low to the ground and does a lot of sniffing in traditional spaniel style.
He eats well too. And fast. Gets two and one-half cups of food mixed with vanilla yogurt for his daily meal. The yogurt is reported to help forestall ear infections, which springers are prone too.
We're about to settle in to watch the Pittsburgh Penguins play their second Stanley Cup playoff game against the Detroit Redwings. I think Logan is a Penguins fan.
Logan is very wiggly and an enthusiastic greeter when I come into the house after being out awhile. And he seems to greet the morning with a wiggly small tail and a wiggly body and smiling, licking, snorting face. Trying to wiggle his way into bed and get me up and awake for the day.
We've gone for quite a few extended walks through the neighborhood. Just got back from one down to the River. Logan is very friendly with other dogs and people. He keeps his nose low to the ground and does a lot of sniffing in traditional spaniel style.He eats well too. And fast. Gets two and one-half cups of food mixed with vanilla yogurt for his daily meal. The yogurt is reported to help forestall ear infections, which springers are prone too.
We're about to settle in to watch the Pittsburgh Penguins play their second Stanley Cup playoff game against the Detroit Redwings. I think Logan is a Penguins fan.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Tomorrow is a Stranger
If Tomorrow is a Stranger
Then Yesterday is an old far-away friend.
In the moment
Yesterday singes me with regret
She tickles me with pleasant memories.
He fills each step with caution
And roots me in what is Real.
Yesterday brings Wisdom to the Now
And whispers
Don't worry about the Stranger
Or fret
Or anticipate
Or hurry to his arms
Tomorrow will be soon enough
And soon become an old friend.
Then Yesterday is an old far-away friend.
In the moment
Yesterday singes me with regret
She tickles me with pleasant memories.
He fills each step with caution
And roots me in what is Real.
Yesterday brings Wisdom to the Now
And whispers
Don't worry about the Stranger
Or fret
Or anticipate
Or hurry to his arms
Tomorrow will be soon enough
And soon become an old friend.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Stop Requested
The express bus (11Y) that I take to and from Alexandria each weekday talks to me. I don't mean the way the gods talk to saints or the devils talk to sinners or anything like that. I mean in a very soothing feminine voice, she announces which stops are next. "Constitution Avenue." "Abingdon Drive and Slater's Lane." That kind of thing. And, when someone pulls the cord for a stop, she says, "Stop requested." Much nicer than a buzzer or ringer. Then the bus stops and people get off to go and do their own things.
When I got off the bus and walked to work today to do my own thing, there was this new twist of climate irony in my daily climate news briefing: the Republic of Palau, which says its very survival is threatened by climate change and the accompanying rising sea levels, is about to embark on a mission to become a major supplier of oil and natural gas, which are among the chief culprits behind greenhouse gas accumulations. The tract to be initially explored is found in the waters of Palau's Kayangel state, located on the northern edge of the 300-mile long island nation. Officials say the area is likely home to one of the world's largest oil fields. For money's sake, Palau wants to pump that oil. For us to burn and exhaust greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. To melt the icecaps. To raise the seas. To drown the low-lying archipelago of Palau.
In the meantime a group of nine Nobel laureates will announce today that unless the world starts reducing greenhouse gas emissions within six years, we face devastation. Canada has announced that it will delay greenhouse gas emission reduction efforts for at least six years. And a Chinese analysis of US and Australian carbon dioxide emission reduction plans says they are inadequate and inconsequential.
"Stop requested."
When I got off the bus and walked to work today to do my own thing, there was this new twist of climate irony in my daily climate news briefing: the Republic of Palau, which says its very survival is threatened by climate change and the accompanying rising sea levels, is about to embark on a mission to become a major supplier of oil and natural gas, which are among the chief culprits behind greenhouse gas accumulations. The tract to be initially explored is found in the waters of Palau's Kayangel state, located on the northern edge of the 300-mile long island nation. Officials say the area is likely home to one of the world's largest oil fields. For money's sake, Palau wants to pump that oil. For us to burn and exhaust greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. To melt the icecaps. To raise the seas. To drown the low-lying archipelago of Palau.In the meantime a group of nine Nobel laureates will announce today that unless the world starts reducing greenhouse gas emissions within six years, we face devastation. Canada has announced that it will delay greenhouse gas emission reduction efforts for at least six years. And a Chinese analysis of US and Australian carbon dioxide emission reduction plans says they are inadequate and inconsequential.
"Stop requested."
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Reality Bites (DC)
When Bravo announced Tuesday that the cable network was launching "The Real Housewives of D.C.," it was the first official confirmation of whispers that have circulated around Washington for months: Like it or not, reality TV is coming to the nation’s capital.
Although Bravo is out first with an actual announcement, three production companies have taken steps in recent months to create five different Washington, DC - based reality shows.
Half Yard Productions of Bethesda is behind "The Real Housewives of D.C.," which will focus on Washington's established elite, and "Inside Washington," which would be aimed at the younger party set. Los Angeles-based 44 Blue Productions has been working on two ideas - "The Hill," which would chronicle the lives of young political types, and "Women of Influence," which would focus, as the name suggests, on the capital's most powerful women.
And the CW network has greenlighted "Blonde Charity Mafia," a "docu-series" that follows some of D.C.'s most avid 20-something party-goers as they trot through the cocktail-and-charity-event circuit.
I'm just waiting for the show "Policy Analyst Studs." I'll be first in line!
Although Bravo is out first with an actual announcement, three production companies have taken steps in recent months to create five different Washington, DC - based reality shows.
Half Yard Productions of Bethesda is behind "The Real Housewives of D.C.," which will focus on Washington's established elite, and "Inside Washington," which would be aimed at the younger party set. Los Angeles-based 44 Blue Productions has been working on two ideas - "The Hill," which would chronicle the lives of young political types, and "Women of Influence," which would focus, as the name suggests, on the capital's most powerful women.
And the CW network has greenlighted "Blonde Charity Mafia," a "docu-series" that follows some of D.C.'s most avid 20-something party-goers as they trot through the cocktail-and-charity-event circuit.
I'm just waiting for the show "Policy Analyst Studs." I'll be first in line!
One Plus One
We're getting a second dog-person in the household. On Saturday we'll drive down about half-way from DC to Norfolk, VA and meet the foster mom of Logan, a stray, about six-year-old English Springer Spaniel who will come back with us. He'll be added to the mix of Kooper, Lucky and Zelda, and Kate and Mark. From the description of him on the Mid Atlantic English Springer Spaniel Rescue group, he sounds like a sweet dog.
Logan was picked up as a dirty, scroungy stray by animal control folks in North Carolina. They know when the stray is a Springer Spaniel and when they can't find its owner to call the rescue group, who takes the dog in (to one of the foster homes), gets it cleaned up, neutered, doctored and settled in, and then matches the dog with a new home that is a good fit. Logan gets along good with other dogs, and cats, and people, too. He's apparently a couch potato and a wanna-be lap dog. Sounds like a good fit.
Two dogs are more than twice the work as one. It's a bit harder to walk and coordinate poop cleanup with two. A bit harder to keep food allocated equally and to make sure the one doesn't eat the food of the other. A bit harder to keep them both active and entertained.
But two are also a lot more fun than twice as one.
Logan was picked up as a dirty, scroungy stray by animal control folks in North Carolina. They know when the stray is a Springer Spaniel and when they can't find its owner to call the rescue group, who takes the dog in (to one of the foster homes), gets it cleaned up, neutered, doctored and settled in, and then matches the dog with a new home that is a good fit. Logan gets along good with other dogs, and cats, and people, too. He's apparently a couch potato and a wanna-be lap dog. Sounds like a good fit.Two dogs are more than twice the work as one. It's a bit harder to walk and coordinate poop cleanup with two. A bit harder to keep food allocated equally and to make sure the one doesn't eat the food of the other. A bit harder to keep them both active and entertained.
But two are also a lot more fun than twice as one.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
SCOTUS
The word spinners whose emails I get each morning are reporting that the White House will announce President Obama's nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court at 10:15 am today. The Intrade political futures markets predict Obama will pick Elena Kagan, followed by Diane Wood, Sonia Sotomayor and Jennifer Granholm.
This will be the big news in DC today.
Not the soaking rain that I walked through to get from the bus to work (my shoes will take awhile to dry out).
Some day the nation's capital will get its priorities straight: the news of the day should always start with an update on the weather!
This will be the big news in DC today.
Not the soaking rain that I walked through to get from the bus to work (my shoes will take awhile to dry out).
Some day the nation's capital will get its priorities straight: the news of the day should always start with an update on the weather!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Morning Walk
It's so quiet here on Sunday mornings that Kooper and I usually go for longer morning walks. The noise isn't nearly as relentless and droning and invading. So we did this morning. Walked down to the Potomac River and back. Saw a few dogs. Saved a few worms.
[as an aside I should mention that I often do that. When I see an earthworm wriggling on the dry sidewalk I'll often pick it up and toss it into the wet grass or underbrush. If it's a rainy day and the sidewalk traffic not too treacherous for worms I may let the worm on its own to squiggle across the concrete to the other side. But on a dry day with the sun sitting on the edge of the horizon, today wasn't one of those days. Any earthworm would soon face desiccation and oblivion if left to its own devices. I figure not only will the worm appreciate the lift - in a metaphorical sense of appreciation - but I may be saving just the worm whose genes are passed on to future worm generations which triggers an evolution into a new branch of worms which evolve into creatures heretofore unknown to the universe which later (by "later" we are talking millions of years) evolve into the most perfect sentient beings on the planet.]
So. Being a quiet Sunday morning, Kooper and I took a long walk today. Down to the Potomac River and back. And in doing so, changed the world for all time to come.
[as an aside I should mention that I often do that. When I see an earthworm wriggling on the dry sidewalk I'll often pick it up and toss it into the wet grass or underbrush. If it's a rainy day and the sidewalk traffic not too treacherous for worms I may let the worm on its own to squiggle across the concrete to the other side. But on a dry day with the sun sitting on the edge of the horizon, today wasn't one of those days. Any earthworm would soon face desiccation and oblivion if left to its own devices. I figure not only will the worm appreciate the lift - in a metaphorical sense of appreciation - but I may be saving just the worm whose genes are passed on to future worm generations which triggers an evolution into a new branch of worms which evolve into creatures heretofore unknown to the universe which later (by "later" we are talking millions of years) evolve into the most perfect sentient beings on the planet.]
So. Being a quiet Sunday morning, Kooper and I took a long walk today. Down to the Potomac River and back. And in doing so, changed the world for all time to come.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Chaos Theory
Everything tends toward chaos. Life - whatever that is - works against that trend. Literally. Using energy to move mass into orderliness. For a little while. Then chaos reigns again. Humans being one example of life - sometimes at least - have institutions that mirror life's tendency toward order. Maybe that's why human institutions for the most part seem to be designed (intentionally or not) to maintain the status quo or - if change is allowed - to promote more order. Less chaos. Stronger interpersonal bonds. More community. No killing (that's death and chaos). Lengthen life. Reduce death in general - or at least make it less random and more ordered. Less fighting (or - if fighting happens - to make sure our side remains in an orderly state while the other is sent off into chaotic hell).
We tend not to like things that throw our lives into chaos. Wars. Separation. Crashes. Illness. Killing. Destruction. Loss.
But in the end everything succumbs to the relentless pull of randomness. And the energy holding us together as a person or as a people is overcome by the energy pulling us apart. We contribute our molecules and atoms to the greater good. Only to be re-ordered in some other fashion once again. Maybe that's reincarnation. Or nirvana. Or heaven.
We tend not to like things that throw our lives into chaos. Wars. Separation. Crashes. Illness. Killing. Destruction. Loss.
But in the end everything succumbs to the relentless pull of randomness. And the energy holding us together as a person or as a people is overcome by the energy pulling us apart. We contribute our molecules and atoms to the greater good. Only to be re-ordered in some other fashion once again. Maybe that's reincarnation. Or nirvana. Or heaven.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Time shift
Now I know how all those time travelers feel in the science fiction movies. Disoriented. And they are jumping days or years or eons. I just jumped 900 miles or so and one-hour in time zone difference flying back to DC from Minnesota yesterday. Last night was fine. I was up late-ish. Fueled by the adrenalin rush of a Pittsburgh Penguins playoff hockey win over the Carolina Hurricanes. But this morning I didn't want to get out of bed and my mind is in a fog.
I think a coffee will open up the capillaries and wake me up. My morning coffee usually comes at work now. I'm the first one in and I grind some Guatemalan medium roast beans and brew a pot first thing when I get in. In fact, my first cup (usually of two for the day) is down before most other people walk through the door.
At some point the fog will lift and I'll be back in this time zone again. Unless somehow the plane warped into a new dimension during its flight east yesterday and I'm not really in my old dimension anymore. I could be trapped in a new reality! Maybe there will be a peaceful world and no one pollutes anymore and camping is all done by backpack and the Yankees win each year! No. That would be too good to be true. But at least maybe it really is Friday. And that's good enough for now.
I think a coffee will open up the capillaries and wake me up. My morning coffee usually comes at work now. I'm the first one in and I grind some Guatemalan medium roast beans and brew a pot first thing when I get in. In fact, my first cup (usually of two for the day) is down before most other people walk through the door.
At some point the fog will lift and I'll be back in this time zone again. Unless somehow the plane warped into a new dimension during its flight east yesterday and I'm not really in my old dimension anymore. I could be trapped in a new reality! Maybe there will be a peaceful world and no one pollutes anymore and camping is all done by backpack and the Yankees win each year! No. That would be too good to be true. But at least maybe it really is Friday. And that's good enough for now.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Mariah
The wind in St. Paul yesterday was ferocious. Like in a blizzard but it was sunny and hot. A cold front was draped over southern Minnesota and the wind along the front was steadily in the 25-35 mph range with gusts that would drive you back up the street if you were walking into it. I don't think I've ever experienced that degree of wind on a sunny, hot day. I've been in blizzards with gusts to 80 mph and a storm once on the Gulf of Mexico where the wind would have blown you off the ship's deck if you weren't lashed in. But never a strong wind on an otherwise fine day.
The front was slow going through the area so the wind kept it up all day long and into the evening, when it passed onto the east. Accompanied by no lightning or rain. Just a few clouds. So today - this afternoon - we'll fly through the front on my way back to DC. Then, later I'll get to experience the front passing through again. I bet it's different by then. More mature. Maybe having picked up some moisture from the Gulf and slowed down a bit by the Appalachians. Won't be the same.
The front was slow going through the area so the wind kept it up all day long and into the evening, when it passed onto the east. Accompanied by no lightning or rain. Just a few clouds. So today - this afternoon - we'll fly through the front on my way back to DC. Then, later I'll get to experience the front passing through again. I bet it's different by then. More mature. Maybe having picked up some moisture from the Gulf and slowed down a bit by the Appalachians. Won't be the same.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Saint Paul
St. Paul, the story goes, found religion on the road to Damascus. I'm on the road. In St. Paul this week. I've found a nice region here. Nice people. Lots of green and more trees that I thought there would be (don't know why I thought that). A lot of water. About as much as I thought. Lakes all over the place - small to biggish. And then there's the Mississippi River, which is a fairly wide river by the time it gets here. Not huge like the upper Ohio or lower Susquehanna. But it has a long way to go to the Gulf of Mexico. This is the view out of my 14th floor hotel room looking north up the River.
There's been a lot of heat too! 90 yesterday. And again today. A cold front is coming through tonight. So it should be cooler tomorrow. Then I'm on the road again. Back to DC. Maybe I'll be blinded by a bright light. And find religion.
There's been a lot of heat too! 90 yesterday. And again today. A cold front is coming through tonight. So it should be cooler tomorrow. Then I'm on the road again. Back to DC. Maybe I'll be blinded by a bright light. And find religion.
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