In the news today there are reports that the scientists have resurrected the Spanish Flu.
They have done this to study how it worked because it is closely related to bird flu.
Good and bad.
Good to know that there are people working on the possibility of bird flu infecting humans. After all it has killed over 60% of people who have caught it.
Bad to know that the Spanish Flu is on the planet again. After all it killed upto 50 million people.
Nake no mistake about it, we are not at the top of the food chain. A deadly flu virus will take the honors someday.
Thursday
Tuesday
deja vu
I had a number of things I wanted to write about tonight but I spent my time pouring over some maps and the hours flew away!
It was just like being a kid again!
It was just like being a kid again!
Sunday
photo of the week
These little kids are all grown up now and have FIVE kids of their own!
Click on the photo for a full size view.
There is anothe jump photo posted below.
Saturday
puzzled
A good soaking rain.
A dreary day.
Something for me to look forward too!
Days like this pay off richly if you are interested in the river system like I am.
I drove from work to a little village by the name of Jersey in Licking county. They have a small stream that you drive over before entering the village. The stream was full and flowing fast. What I found most interesting was how twisty the little stream was. Not only did it twist and turn and contort right there but it did it for a few miles down stream.
The nearest road does not go directly next to this stream but I could more or less keep it in sight as I cruised south. I crossed back over the water in Pataskala, it was considerably larger by then.
From there it heads east to Kirkersville and grows into a full blown river. I was surprised to learn when I got home that my county map identifies it as the South Fork of the Licking River as far north as Jersey even though it is just a little stream there.
I drove into the cemetary in Kirkersville hoping to get a look at a little stream that flows into Feeder Creek, the main source of water for the lake. I was surprised at the size of the stream I drove over on my way in. It was flowing a lot of water east. I couldn't see any stream at the back of the cemetary.
I left and went down to Swamp Road, the road on the left in the ariel view of my previous post on this subject. I expected to see water in those ditches flowing west but they weren't. Mostly they were not flowing at all and had flooded the fields. One had moving water, moving the wrong way, east!
Now I am puzzled.
Then again it might not be that hard to figue out. I think there my be a place where the water flows into feeder creek only when it is allowed to. After all the lake was built to control the water level in the canals something was probably built to control the water level of the lake.
A dreary day.
Something for me to look forward too!
Days like this pay off richly if you are interested in the river system like I am.
I drove from work to a little village by the name of Jersey in Licking county. They have a small stream that you drive over before entering the village. The stream was full and flowing fast. What I found most interesting was how twisty the little stream was. Not only did it twist and turn and contort right there but it did it for a few miles down stream.
The nearest road does not go directly next to this stream but I could more or less keep it in sight as I cruised south. I crossed back over the water in Pataskala, it was considerably larger by then.
From there it heads east to Kirkersville and grows into a full blown river. I was surprised to learn when I got home that my county map identifies it as the South Fork of the Licking River as far north as Jersey even though it is just a little stream there.
I drove into the cemetary in Kirkersville hoping to get a look at a little stream that flows into Feeder Creek, the main source of water for the lake. I was surprised at the size of the stream I drove over on my way in. It was flowing a lot of water east. I couldn't see any stream at the back of the cemetary.
I left and went down to Swamp Road, the road on the left in the ariel view of my previous post on this subject. I expected to see water in those ditches flowing west but they weren't. Mostly they were not flowing at all and had flooded the fields. One had moving water, moving the wrong way, east!
Now I am puzzled.
Then again it might not be that hard to figue out. I think there my be a place where the water flows into feeder creek only when it is allowed to. After all the lake was built to control the water level in the canals something was probably built to control the water level of the lake.
Monday
Sunday
gadgets
Shocking!
I have one electrical outlet behind my desk and I am forced to run twelve lines to it.
Such is the nature of gadgets that I am forced into such a dangerous situation.
Well, it really isn't all that dangerous. I have two rack mount power strips that I use for everything. Unlike the power strips that most people end up with for their computer gear these have on\off switches. So everything is almost always turned off at the source.
And never will everything be turned on at the same time.
But such is the must have nature of gadgets today that such situations develop. I could wax on about a time in my youth when a Schwinn in the shed and four channels on the TV were more than enough to keep me occupied but you have probably heard that lament before.
Instead I will remind you of the rule that if something doesn't get used then it should be gotten rid of.
That being the case I need to do a few more things everyday or I may have to git rid of some of my gadgets.
I have one electrical outlet behind my desk and I am forced to run twelve lines to it.
Such is the nature of gadgets that I am forced into such a dangerous situation.
Well, it really isn't all that dangerous. I have two rack mount power strips that I use for everything. Unlike the power strips that most people end up with for their computer gear these have on\off switches. So everything is almost always turned off at the source.
And never will everything be turned on at the same time.
But such is the must have nature of gadgets today that such situations develop. I could wax on about a time in my youth when a Schwinn in the shed and four channels on the TV were more than enough to keep me occupied but you have probably heard that lament before.
Instead I will remind you of the rule that if something doesn't get used then it should be gotten rid of.
That being the case I need to do a few more things everyday or I may have to git rid of some of my gadgets.
Saturday
lost
Right in the middle of the Zeitgeist.
At some point in life you find yourself right in the middle of everything that is going on.
But the Z waits for no one and is always on the move. For most of us it eventually becomes uninteresting, even silly and stupid.
Some try to keep up with it, they end up looking a bit silly.
Some try to maintain the characteristics of the Zeitgeist of their youth, they end up looking a bit silly too.
There is, perhaps, a middle ground. A place for us to go along side the evolving Zeitgeist. A neutral path where we are free to pursue the interests we have without the need to be part of everything.
The 'must haves' and the 'must be's' disappear. We can find freedom when we no longer have the need to make statements that have become irrelevent.
But river Z is always flowing nearby and many of us are stuck in it's murky waters. Unable to dive in with the current generation and unable to understand what happened to the clear flow we once were in. These are the lost ones.
At some point in life you find yourself right in the middle of everything that is going on.
But the Z waits for no one and is always on the move. For most of us it eventually becomes uninteresting, even silly and stupid.
Some try to keep up with it, they end up looking a bit silly.
Some try to maintain the characteristics of the Zeitgeist of their youth, they end up looking a bit silly too.
There is, perhaps, a middle ground. A place for us to go along side the evolving Zeitgeist. A neutral path where we are free to pursue the interests we have without the need to be part of everything.
The 'must haves' and the 'must be's' disappear. We can find freedom when we no longer have the need to make statements that have become irrelevent.
But river Z is always flowing nearby and many of us are stuck in it's murky waters. Unable to dive in with the current generation and unable to understand what happened to the clear flow we once were in. These are the lost ones.
Friday
sitting on a story
The media get things wrong, we all know that.
Regretfully this idea may be correct.
Where I live, there is a recurring story.
There is a river nearby that floods every once in a while.
The media springs into action when this happens. They jump into their vans and sprint out here from the city, often they end up right at my house, sometimes all at once.
Why my house?
Because I have a part of the river next door, a lake out in front and the flooding just off to the other side. (By the way, my house has never flooded.)
I and some family members have done numerous interviews for TV and the papers and without fail we have been surprised by the results. Why? Because the media had the whole story before they got here, they just needed some comments from the public to put it together.
Lesson: Even though you think you are saying one thing someone can take part of what you said and make it sound like something else.
Fact is the media can't be bothered much anymore with getting things right. That takes time.
They need to air their stories as soon as possible.
What good is the truth when it is the last one to show up?
Anyway when they come out here they point their cameras at the lake and blame it for the flooding.
It is an easy story to believe but it just isn't true.
You see this lake is one of those old man made resevoirs built for the canals back in the 1840's. It just doesn't have much of a watershed. Nevertheless some water can be seen splashing over the spillway when the river is high so the lake must be at fault.
Here is the rub. The part the media doesn't look for.
Since the lake is man made it needed water diverted to it. The state figured out what the height of the water level of the lake would be and then they went up the nearby river until they found a place even higher. The Irish workers started digging with their shovels and after a few miles a series of ditches were cut into the earth and water filled the resevoir.
What this means is that the water coming over the spillway when the river is in flood is always water from that same river!
Here is an ariel view of it. I put this together from Yahoo maps, give them a try. I colored in the river and the creek that feeds the lake. Included some directional arrows too.
Regretfully this idea may be correct.
Where I live, there is a recurring story.
There is a river nearby that floods every once in a while.
The media springs into action when this happens. They jump into their vans and sprint out here from the city, often they end up right at my house, sometimes all at once.
Why my house?
Because I have a part of the river next door, a lake out in front and the flooding just off to the other side. (By the way, my house has never flooded.)
I and some family members have done numerous interviews for TV and the papers and without fail we have been surprised by the results. Why? Because the media had the whole story before they got here, they just needed some comments from the public to put it together.
Lesson: Even though you think you are saying one thing someone can take part of what you said and make it sound like something else.
Fact is the media can't be bothered much anymore with getting things right. That takes time.
They need to air their stories as soon as possible.
What good is the truth when it is the last one to show up?
Anyway when they come out here they point their cameras at the lake and blame it for the flooding.
It is an easy story to believe but it just isn't true.
You see this lake is one of those old man made resevoirs built for the canals back in the 1840's. It just doesn't have much of a watershed. Nevertheless some water can be seen splashing over the spillway when the river is high so the lake must be at fault.
Here is the rub. The part the media doesn't look for.
Since the lake is man made it needed water diverted to it. The state figured out what the height of the water level of the lake would be and then they went up the nearby river until they found a place even higher. The Irish workers started digging with their shovels and after a few miles a series of ditches were cut into the earth and water filled the resevoir.
What this means is that the water coming over the spillway when the river is in flood is always water from that same river!
Here is an ariel view of it. I put this together from Yahoo maps, give them a try. I colored in the river and the creek that feeds the lake. Included some directional arrows too.
Thursday
photo of the week
These grainy jump photos were shot with a Minolta 110 SLR.
The camera was stolen Thanksgiving weekend 1987 in a break in while we were away.
The little boy in the middle is the singer in the picture of the band below.
Wednesday
Tuesday
fundamentalist politics
Living in Ohio I have met my share of fundamentalists. Even have some in the family.
However this is not an entry about the effect of fundamentalists on American politics.
In the U.S. when we say the word fundamentalist we are most likely talking about Christians.
I am not.
I am talking about living your life according to fundamental ideas that you believe in versus living your life in turmoil because the world does not belive in your ideas.
Many people today are polarized from one another because they cannot listen to each other. This happens because they have staked their claim and cannot budge one way or the other.
I think this is a self destructive stand to take.
The ability to talk about something is one of God's blessings upon us. Fundamentalists throw this gift away.
My anchor may have a firm grip below but the line to the boat is long and I can drift around a lot to listen to others.
You should give yourself this freedom too.
However this is not an entry about the effect of fundamentalists on American politics.
In the U.S. when we say the word fundamentalist we are most likely talking about Christians.
I am not.
I am talking about living your life according to fundamental ideas that you believe in versus living your life in turmoil because the world does not belive in your ideas.
Many people today are polarized from one another because they cannot listen to each other. This happens because they have staked their claim and cannot budge one way or the other.
I think this is a self destructive stand to take.
The ability to talk about something is one of God's blessings upon us. Fundamentalists throw this gift away.
My anchor may have a firm grip below but the line to the boat is long and I can drift around a lot to listen to others.
You should give yourself this freedom too.
Monday
promise much, deliver little
A blog entry starts with as little as a phrase.
A phrase leads to an idea and the idea develops at the tips of your fingers as you tap away on the keyboard. You may not even be aware of where it is going.
Some people drive cars like this and some don't. This driver must always go the same way while the next one will turn down any road just to see what is there.
The start of a new year brings us the two R's. Reflection and Resolution.
Reflect on what has been gained and lost, done and undone, said and unsaid.
Resolve to do the things that will bring satisfaction upon reflection.
The life we see in advertising is promise. We can live like that if we do this or buy that.
The life that we see around us is reality. We get up early to go to work. The cars we drive are not so new. The products we use do not make us so beautiful. The house is not as nice or as clean. The job is not so fun.
And there is nothing wrong with any of that.
Nevertheless frustrations build up in a great many people. Their perception of what their reality should be and what it is just doesn't jive.
That is like choosing to be unhappy.
I don't know about you but I can't put up with any of that.
So as I reflect on the recent past I see few gains and some genuine losses but I also see a resolution growing inside to build on what I have.
Work on the things that you have already expressed an interest in. Get a few accomplishments before distractions pull you away.
The promises made are great but they depend on the recipient for delivery.
A phrase leads to an idea and the idea develops at the tips of your fingers as you tap away on the keyboard. You may not even be aware of where it is going.
Some people drive cars like this and some don't. This driver must always go the same way while the next one will turn down any road just to see what is there.
The start of a new year brings us the two R's. Reflection and Resolution.
Reflect on what has been gained and lost, done and undone, said and unsaid.
Resolve to do the things that will bring satisfaction upon reflection.
The life we see in advertising is promise. We can live like that if we do this or buy that.
The life that we see around us is reality. We get up early to go to work. The cars we drive are not so new. The products we use do not make us so beautiful. The house is not as nice or as clean. The job is not so fun.
And there is nothing wrong with any of that.
Nevertheless frustrations build up in a great many people. Their perception of what their reality should be and what it is just doesn't jive.
That is like choosing to be unhappy.
I don't know about you but I can't put up with any of that.
So as I reflect on the recent past I see few gains and some genuine losses but I also see a resolution growing inside to build on what I have.
Work on the things that you have already expressed an interest in. Get a few accomplishments before distractions pull you away.
The promises made are great but they depend on the recipient for delivery.
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