Ray Bradbury--the lost book

I was never more embarrassed then when one of my friends lent me her huge collection of Ray Bradbury stories. I read them all, then returned it at work by leaving it on her desk before a holiday. The book was never found again by anyone she or I knew. It was a tradgedy. I looked everywhere for a replacement but never found them. My favorites of his stories, well all of them, still, in picking the two out that stick in my mind, Dandelion Wine is high as is the story of the house that kept on being alive after everything else on earth was dead. Maybe it even shaped my future writing direction. Out of Dandelion Wine, I remember the boy's new tennis shoes, the tinker, and the discovery that people could die--what a haunting tale that was. My first tennis shoes really shaped me in another way--I refused to be tied into the high heel scene,

Anyway, it makes interesting memories. Read more of mine>

In other news, winter birding is picking up. This week we spotted a peregrine falcon on our sumac and today, we spotted pigeon guillemot in winter coloring. Whenever birds change color, it feels just like discovering a new bird to see them out and about. I didn't get the picture, but the one of the Western Grebe turned out pretty good.

See above.

Mining--Tourism and Drama

I've been caving in a number of places around the world and have visited many mines because I find them interesting. The recent collapse of a coal mine tunnel that stranded 6 people in Utah is an example of the terrors one faces in order to travel deep within the Earth and the difficulties to be encountered while they struggle to survive. What's especially praiseworthy is the company and comrades of these men don't give up. I like the technology--sluices, drills, earth moving equipment, the history--the Celts, the Africans, the Egyptians, the beauty--stalactites, stalagmites, crystals and jewels, and willpower needed to get our valuable resources.

On the Road--Dinosaur Provincial Park

The dinosaur display at Dinosaur Provincial Park is available during park hours. We hiked several trails in the evening. The best plan though is to show up for several days and get in on one of the guided tours. That's when they take you into the fossil beds and point out the work being done. The trails were there, but marked closed so we of course obeyed. The area is scenic with lots of sedimentary cliffs at various stages of erosions. Lots of desert plants and animals--but no snakes.

I spent a lot of time working on my laptop recording our trip and keeping up to date with my writing. This can be a chore and I'm just beginning to wind down and get unpacked.

Nanotubes--there all over science fiction but...

I just found this wonderful new webpage: the nanotube site.

One of the coolest pages on the site is a history of nanotube research. Another five list various synthesis methods. A nanotube is a one atom thick cylinder of carbon or other element. The cylindrical shape makes them good electrical conductors and very strong.

See wikipedia for more information.

The Sun and Patterns of Convection

Scientists are using helioseismology to study sound waves from the interior of the sun to help understand the activity that occurs at the center of the sun. See
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.rss.html?pid=22802
for more information. And I was pleased to just have fun during the last (locally viewable) eclipse watching the shadow move across the face of the sun, by wearing welder's glasses. I'm not sure they were actually safe, but I felt no afteraffects. The best advice though, is to never look at the sun--the article above may prove that true with new meaning.