It has been determined that the 20 year-old, bus-sized, 6 ton NASA satellite crashed to the earth in pieces. And . . . since it landed in the Indian Ocean just northeast and southwest of Christmas Island . . . it “falled harmlessly into the ocean and caused no human deaths.”
Whew! That was close! said the Christmas Island Frigate Bird to the nearby sea turtle. I was just sailing along in the wave-troughs, minding my own business, when I saw my two frigate friends disappear in a tremendous cloud of foam and plankton. They just were simply gone. I will never see them again. There are not many of us frigates around anymore . . . unlike the humans. What was it anyway?
Beats me, said Sea Turtle, I know just what you mean . . . I was under the water at the time . . . just swimming along . . . and the the force of the impact was so great that I blew out all my ear wax that I was collecting for sale on the mainland. They pay a lot for it! The rumor among us few turtles is that the Christmas Islanders collect it and make Turtle Wax to sell for polishing their cars and even sell it abroad. And my ears aren’t all that large . . . it takes time to collect enough to amount to anything.
Something bothers me, Frigate, said Sea Turtle. What’s that Turtle? said Frigate.I can’t seem to find the rest of the turtles. They said that they were going, as a group, to find better feeding grounds. But, they were just here when we saw that chunk of something crash into the ocean. DO YOU SUPPOSE?! Oh, no! What will I ever do all alone? At least, it didn’t cause any human deaths . . . and maybe I will eventually generate more ear wax to sell to the islanders . . .
And what about all the endangered seals, dugong, and whales?
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
What Goes Around, Comes Around
The heavy vise-like tool,
slips from an astronaut's grip.
Released to orbit.
Assumed
never-to-be-seen-again.
After three days -
a fifteen-pound emergency
looms.
Shuttle rockets fire to avoit
an insipient disaster
almost not seen.
What goes around
comes around.
Written on the day that parts of a bus-sized
chunck of space junk was to fall somewhere
to the earth. September 23, 2011
slips from an astronaut's grip.
Released to orbit.
Assumed
never-to-be-seen-again.
After three days -
a fifteen-pound emergency
looms.
Shuttle rockets fire to avoit
an insipient disaster
almost not seen.
What goes around
comes around.
Written on the day that parts of a bus-sized
chunck of space junk was to fall somewhere
to the earth. September 23, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
Give Me Driving in Canada Any Day
After a near-death experience in our car earlier this week, I yearned for a return to Ontario - the place where driving remains a sane enterprise. We wondered if Canadian highways were heavily policed? Even though we did not see a single highway police car between Sault Ste Marie and Thunder Bay Are Canadians simply more civil than drivers in the states? It is a prejudice I freely confess I have had for years, ever since first traveling in Canada as young adults. Or are Canadian traffic laws that different than those in this country?
The highway across the eastern and northern shores of Lake Superior is part of the Trans Canada Highway system. It is a busy road and one of only two options to cross western Ontario. Yet there was never a sense we were taking our lives in our hands by being on this highway.No harassment by other drivers (can't imagine anyone giving the one-finger salute). No one trying to get somewhere yesterday.Road construction must be one of the seasons in Ontario (as it is here), but there was never any sense of it not being managed well.
The highway is a two lane road with a centre passing lane every few miles. Knowing one would have the opportunity to pass slower vehicles made it unnecessary (and foolish) to pass on hills and curves. There was no one exceeding the speed limit. Nor was there any tailgating or intimidation of other drivers. No tailgating. No semis breathing down your neck. No car drivers who believe that being right on your tail will somehow make you drive faster - or pull over on the narrow shoulder so that they might whiz by and preempt the road for themselves.
I thought it might be wise to be more informed about Canadian traffic rules. since this trip will not be the last we visit Canada.Thanks to the Internet, I found the Rules of the Road in Ontario Highway Traffic Act. It defines the proper distance between vehicles as "reasonable and prudent having due regard for the speed of the vehicle and the traffic on and the conditions of the highway " (R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 158 (1). Reasonable and prudent? Try telling that to Minnesota drivers!
When we crossed the international border into Minnesota, we traveled down the North Shore of Lake Superior, one of my all-time favorite roads. And the highway games began immediately. No question we were now in another country. Speeding, tailgating, poor judgement as to passing - and intimidation. You would think we were doing the Daytona Five Hundred. Please, take me back to Ontario!
The near-death experience? We were driving on a freeway, which narrowed to one lane - slowing the traffic down to a crawl. We were fine - until Clem looked in the rear-view mirror. A car was speeding towards us and the driver lost control. He (happened to been a he) apparently hadn't thought the highway signs included him - or he never saw them. He skidded, sliding down the highway sideways first one way and then another.. He regained control a few feet from us. If he hadn't, we would have been dead.
Perhaps US drivers have played too many video games and have lost the ability to discern between a car chase game and real life.
The highway across the eastern and northern shores of Lake Superior is part of the Trans Canada Highway system. It is a busy road and one of only two options to cross western Ontario. Yet there was never a sense we were taking our lives in our hands by being on this highway.No harassment by other drivers (can't imagine anyone giving the one-finger salute). No one trying to get somewhere yesterday.Road construction must be one of the seasons in Ontario (as it is here), but there was never any sense of it not being managed well.
The highway is a two lane road with a centre passing lane every few miles. Knowing one would have the opportunity to pass slower vehicles made it unnecessary (and foolish) to pass on hills and curves. There was no one exceeding the speed limit. Nor was there any tailgating or intimidation of other drivers. No tailgating. No semis breathing down your neck. No car drivers who believe that being right on your tail will somehow make you drive faster - or pull over on the narrow shoulder so that they might whiz by and preempt the road for themselves.
I thought it might be wise to be more informed about Canadian traffic rules. since this trip will not be the last we visit Canada.Thanks to the Internet, I found the Rules of the Road in Ontario Highway Traffic Act. It defines the proper distance between vehicles as "reasonable and prudent having due regard for the speed of the vehicle and the traffic on and the conditions of the highway " (R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 158 (1). Reasonable and prudent? Try telling that to Minnesota drivers!
When we crossed the international border into Minnesota, we traveled down the North Shore of Lake Superior, one of my all-time favorite roads. And the highway games began immediately. No question we were now in another country. Speeding, tailgating, poor judgement as to passing - and intimidation. You would think we were doing the Daytona Five Hundred. Please, take me back to Ontario!
The near-death experience? We were driving on a freeway, which narrowed to one lane - slowing the traffic down to a crawl. We were fine - until Clem looked in the rear-view mirror. A car was speeding towards us and the driver lost control. He (happened to been a he) apparently hadn't thought the highway signs included him - or he never saw them. He skidded, sliding down the highway sideways first one way and then another.. He regained control a few feet from us. If he hadn't, we would have been dead.
Perhaps US drivers have played too many video games and have lost the ability to discern between a car chase game and real life.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Autumn and the Great Inland Sea
Lake Superior is Minnesota's sea - and Wisconsin's, Michigan's, and Ontario's. For us, Minnesota's North Shore is a place to immerse ourselves in the north woods. Our dream has been to drive around the entire Lake. This past month we fulfilled our dream.
Trying to guess when the fall leaf-color would be in its prime was a bit tricky. Dependent on rainfall and cool nights, there was no guaranteed calendar time. We took our chances.We began in Duluth at the end of September, heading east along the great Lake's south shore. Trees were blazing with fluorescent reds and orange, with golds and yellows sprinkled in among the dark green of evergreens. The surreal light through the leaves was like being suspended in time.
Slowly, we made our way along sandy beaches on the sky-blue autumn days. Always the Lake stretched out on our left. When any of us travel, it has long been a family tradition to disconnect and live fully in the present. Such disconnecting created solitary time for us to take photographs and to write, giving us both needed time to rest from our busy lives.
It had been an upside-down six months. Spring was so delayed that garden-planting was postponed from its usual pattern. Soil too cool would not have been conducive to the germination of tiny seeds. July followed with too much heat. It meant a season not friendly to growing tomatoes and peppers. Many local gardeners reported no tomatoes at all, while we managed a few for the table. We have never been very successful with cucumbers, but this year our vines gave us state-fair quality and so many that we kept the neighborhood supplied. At the same time, the zucchini planted next to the cucumbers produced one lone zucchini. Go figure!
The disruption of house remodeling further contributed to the disruption of our usual summer patterns. We are still catching up with maintenance that usually would have been done earlier in the summer - such as scraping the peeling paint around the garage door, which is now is ready for a fresh coat of white. And we have been engaged in "spring pruning" of bushes and trees in our backyard woods. At least with no leaves, it is easy to see what goes and what stays!
I think we embody the seasons within us wherever we live. When weather (or other disruptions) alter year-long routines, it creates an undercurrent of dis-ease. Who could complain of an extended beautiful autumn like this one. At the same time, folks keep looking over their shoulders as if there has been a "disturbance of the force."
Yesterday, I clipped sage and oregano to dry for winter. Whether it does snow in the next couple days - or rain -or gift us with sunny days, at least I am ready for what comes my way.
Trying to guess when the fall leaf-color would be in its prime was a bit tricky. Dependent on rainfall and cool nights, there was no guaranteed calendar time. We took our chances.We began in Duluth at the end of September, heading east along the great Lake's south shore. Trees were blazing with fluorescent reds and orange, with golds and yellows sprinkled in among the dark green of evergreens. The surreal light through the leaves was like being suspended in time.
Slowly, we made our way along sandy beaches on the sky-blue autumn days. Always the Lake stretched out on our left. When any of us travel, it has long been a family tradition to disconnect and live fully in the present. Such disconnecting created solitary time for us to take photographs and to write, giving us both needed time to rest from our busy lives.
It had been an upside-down six months. Spring was so delayed that garden-planting was postponed from its usual pattern. Soil too cool would not have been conducive to the germination of tiny seeds. July followed with too much heat. It meant a season not friendly to growing tomatoes and peppers. Many local gardeners reported no tomatoes at all, while we managed a few for the table. We have never been very successful with cucumbers, but this year our vines gave us state-fair quality and so many that we kept the neighborhood supplied. At the same time, the zucchini planted next to the cucumbers produced one lone zucchini. Go figure!
The disruption of house remodeling further contributed to the disruption of our usual summer patterns. We are still catching up with maintenance that usually would have been done earlier in the summer - such as scraping the peeling paint around the garage door, which is now is ready for a fresh coat of white. And we have been engaged in "spring pruning" of bushes and trees in our backyard woods. At least with no leaves, it is easy to see what goes and what stays!
I think we embody the seasons within us wherever we live. When weather (or other disruptions) alter year-long routines, it creates an undercurrent of dis-ease. Who could complain of an extended beautiful autumn like this one. At the same time, folks keep looking over their shoulders as if there has been a "disturbance of the force."
Yesterday, I clipped sage and oregano to dry for winter. Whether it does snow in the next couple days - or rain -or gift us with sunny days, at least I am ready for what comes my way.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Need Some Good Fall Reading?
As the days shorten, it is time to curl up before the proverbial fireplace (whether you actually are blessed with a fireplace or not) with a warm blanket and lose yourself for a while in a good book.
I highly recommend my book, The is No Future in the Past: A Travel Memoir. Of course I am not prejudiced or anything, when I say it is well worth your time.
It is a book I never intended to write. I have always had a dim view of confessional memoir, spilling one's family history all over the pages in gory detail. I want to say to some of these writers that they should get a good therapist to work out their issues and not expect their readers to serve in that capacity. But when I began to look at favorite books I have read, I was surprised how many memoirs I have read and loved.
I was just playing around writing short essays and bringing them to a writing group whose support and critique I value. Somewhere in the process, the writing took over and the individual pieces began to acquire an order and direction. This book is the result.
You can purchase it direct from us. Just email us. Or at this point, we have begun putting it in some of the local independent bookstores: Banfill-Locke Center for the Arts in Fridley, the St. Paul Benedictine Spirituality Center, Loyola Spirituality Center in St. Paul, and The Bookcase in Wayzata. Gradually, the list of available places will expand (we will keep you posted). And eventually, I hope you can purchase it at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com.
Remember - curl up some evening with a warm blanket and give it a read! Let me know what you think.
I highly recommend my book, The is No Future in the Past: A Travel Memoir. Of course I am not prejudiced or anything, when I say it is well worth your time.
It is a book I never intended to write. I have always had a dim view of confessional memoir, spilling one's family history all over the pages in gory detail. I want to say to some of these writers that they should get a good therapist to work out their issues and not expect their readers to serve in that capacity. But when I began to look at favorite books I have read, I was surprised how many memoirs I have read and loved.
I was just playing around writing short essays and bringing them to a writing group whose support and critique I value. Somewhere in the process, the writing took over and the individual pieces began to acquire an order and direction. This book is the result.
You can purchase it direct from us. Just email us. Or at this point, we have begun putting it in some of the local independent bookstores: Banfill-Locke Center for the Arts in Fridley, the St. Paul Benedictine Spirituality Center, Loyola Spirituality Center in St. Paul, and The Bookcase in Wayzata. Gradually, the list of available places will expand (we will keep you posted). And eventually, I hope you can purchase it at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com.
Remember - curl up some evening with a warm blanket and give it a read! Let me know what you think.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Autumn Images
One of our favorite places is Carlos Avery Wildlife Refuge.
We head there to see what is happening from early spring to late fall.
Sometimes we go to ground ourselves,
to seek solitude,
or when the weight of writing projects
becomes unwieldy and we need to regain perspective.
As Clem says often, "May there always be wild places."
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Cycle of the Seasons
No matter where a person lives, the cycle of the seasons are embedded themselves in us. Disruptions in those cycles disturbs the soul - and complaining is likely to follow.
After several grey-sky days, people in checkouts lines in the grocery store and pharmacy declare loud and clearly their strong feelings about the sun's absence. When the weather disrupts our lives with drought, snow storms, or floods, our noticing takes on even more importance. At such times, meteorologists hedge their bets, even though their predictions often are more accurate than indicators regarding the rise and fall of the stock market.
Few of us lead lives anymore in which it really matters if the the sun shines or not, whether the rains come in a timely fashion, or the first snow fall comes at the "right" time. We go to work, engage in indoor exercise, and shop whenever pantry shelves are getting empty.
It is hard to say why humans are still so wired to the cycle of the seasons. The people who built the structures of Chaco Canyon in northwestern New Mexico have moved on, assimilated into contemporary cultures. But their engineering and astronomical skills remain an elaborate testimony to a time when the cycle of the seasons was essential. In my travel memoir, There is No Future in the Past, I describe how these people planted their calendars into a landscape "saturated with cosmological meaning. One wall of Pueblo Bonito is perfectly aligned with the cardinal directions and connects the heavens with the earth, predicting the spring and fall equinoxes. Other Chaco structures foretold the solstices, by situating them in relationship with distant sun-watching stations chiseled in the rock."
No matter where you live in the world, your ancestors depended on the regularity of the season's cycles. When weather patterns changed, they migrated to some place else - or starved. Diverse cultures resulted, giving us our rich human heritage. But perhaps we all share this connection to the seasons embedded in our bodies.
Of course it is possible to put your head down, go about your life, and ignore the seasons. Looking up occasionally when weather diverts your agenda. But how much richer it is to pay attention. Notice the sun - and the grey skies. Smell the differences in the air. And listen, if you are lucky to live where honking geese flying overhead are practicing before migrating.
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