Frogtails, Faces you remember
March, 2004March 30, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. I read today that they are pretty certain that they have found methane on Mars. Ground-based telescopes as well as the Mars Express orbiter both point to that conclusion. Scientists claim that methane has a relatively short lifetime on Mars, about 300 years or so. The implication is that something keeps making more of it. It is most likely from consistent hydrothermal activity (volcanism). Of course I’ve seen some of that and that means heat. Add heat to the water we already know has flowed on Mars and it becomes even more likely that life did or still does exist on Mars. It appears to me only a matter of time before we are ready to say that there is life beyond this little planet of ours. Can you imagine the ruckus such an announcement will make. You will probably be here when it is said. Imagine now how you will feel when your favorite news medium states as fact that life exists elsewhere. Two days ago I attempted to start the lawn mower. Fortunately, it wouldn’t start. Although the lawn could surely use a trim, it still feels a bit early in the year to start that regimen. Yesterday I stopped and bought a new spark plug, a new blade, and a new can of gasoline but didn’t have time to assemble it all into a working package before nightfall. This morning it is raining and the forecast calls for more. Hallelujah! Nick and I got up early (5:00 a.m.) so he could go on a field trip to Wright Patterson Air Force Base. Joe and Angie stopped by last night for dinner and to play cards for a bit. Angie has been named head coach of her T-ball team and is looking for a sponsor. I’m giving thought to doing it if she is unable to find one. Many other people have supported me in various ways over the years so perhaps this is an opportunity for me to give a little of it back. I don’t have a business but what should that matter? Maybe I’ll just advertise with a Frogtails logo and URL. March 29, 2004 — Ohio University, Athens, Ohio. Steve and I had lunch at Bob Evans this afternoon. He then gave me a private tour of Cutler Hall (he has worked on the 2nd floor for several years). I met Dr. Gary North, V.P. Of Administration and Finance and Mr. Mike Sostarich, V.P. of Student Affairs. Steve continued his rounds and I was able to meet Kelley, Joni*, and Kim. These three are a delightful trio that I expect keep the office running smoothly and have kept my son on the straight and narrow. A couple of students were also there (and perhaps others) but the names escape me. Steve has told me that he realizes how fortunate he has been to work in the office with you. Everyone we met went out of their way to talk with me and make me feel at home. Thank each of you for the kindness you have shown my son over the years. Knowing that each of you know my son pretty well, I wasn’t certain of the welcome I would receive and had these ghastly images of myself being tossed out of the bell tower and somehow being held responsible for raising him. :) Steve then took me up into the attic and bell tower where I took a few pictures and he had me sign the wall by the clock. Steve claims it is a tradition for everyone who goes up there to sign his/her name. Judging by all of the names that I saw, I can believe him. On the way out, we stopped and had a brief chat with a very pleasant Jenn Haft of the President’s office.
Fitzgerald just called. He is the man that I recently purchased the truck from. I really enjoyed hearing from him and he has read my article describing the car buying experience from my perspective and has been sharing it with his co-workers. If you are in the market for a new vehicle, I would recommend that you talk with him. He is currently working at Joseph Toyota of Cincinnati. Nick headed off for school with a clean shave this morning. The day is looking up already! Of course the sun is brightly shining and I have the day off so it doesn't take much to cheer me this morning. Like the saying goes, “simple mind, simple pleasures.” I plan to visit Steve at Cutler Hall at Ohio University this afternoon. He wants me to see the view at the top of the hall before the leaves come out. March 28, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. This morning I said farewell to our guests and they headed back to Chicago. Their visit reminds me that I have some other old friends that I've not seen or talked with for way too long. Steve and Isabell live in Scotland but you would think that we could find time to write or phone now and then. Terry lives nearby and I can not believe that we don't see more of each other. Alan lives just up near Wheeling. My sister said recently that we manage to find time to visit when someone dies but not when they are living. Why is that? This afternoon we stopped to visit Jeanie's family. Her mom had fallen and broken a wrist. They had set it earlier in the day. It is always good to see my inlaws, even under trying conditions. While we were there, Jeanie’s dad looked over the truck and approved of it. In fact, I think that he and nearly everyone is happy to see me have something nice. To have others truly wish you well is a very, very pleasant feeling. March 27, 2004 — Reedsville, Ohio. Nick performs in the senior play at Eastern. He plays the part of a pirate and does it well. He had his ears pierced (ugh!) and grown a peculiar beard that looks very convincing. Someone applied makeup to Nick making him resemble Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean… a lot! The type casting was excellent. The two who played the natives were perfect! Many of the parts appeared to be custom fitted to match the personalities of the students who played them. Jeanie sewed the costumes together. They even got me to help with the set construction one day. Everyone gets into the act at a small rural school. Perhaps even better is that everyone attends the show. Joe and Angie were there as well as Steve and Mary Ellen. It was a great performance and a lot of fun. Jeanie spent far too much time helping with the set, the food, cleanup, etc. March 26, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Jwei-Hsing, Gwen, Nathan, and Gregory arrived. Mike had to stay in Chicago and work. The twin boys have grown a lot since their last visit. After the long car ride they are quick to make friends and we get along well all weekend. Jeanie and I raised three boys so the sound of young voices and little antics bring back pleasant memories of my own children. March 24, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Tonight when I walked in the door my son handed me the phone. It was a good friend named Jwei-Hsing calling from Chicago. Old friends are really interesting and always bring a smile and a pleasant memory or two. She and Mike, her husband, have known Jeanie and I longer than most people have been alive. As luck would have it they will be in the state this weekend and are planning to visit with us. Made my day! March 23, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Ahhh, Spring! About a month ago I planted a few seeds that I had purchased while in Hawaii. Two seeds went into each of two pots. One pot contains Kona coffee seeds and the other one has Royal Palm tree seeds. The instructions state that it will take between two and three months to germinate. I placed them on a shelf over the top of my gargantuan 21″ monitor at work (it generates loads of heat) and at night place an empty CD case over the top (it keeps the soil moist). Nothing appeared to be happening so I let the soil get a little dry last week. Yesterday I soaked both pots pretty good. Today my diligence and hard work has finally paid off. I noticed that one of the pots had something barely breaking the surface of the potting soil. That has been the highlight of my day. Which one sprouted? I don't know. I've since found out that I don't really care for the taste of Kona coffee and much prefer that which is grown in Honduras. But… I’m not really looking forward to the thought of spending the rest of my life caring for a Palm tree in a non-tropical environment either. What the heck was I thinking? It reminds me of the time I spent two years desperately attempting to get a few Sequoia trees to grow here. The first winter was spent indoors. The trees were growing and really looked like they had found a home during the summer and even through most of the autumn and early winter. By the second spring, there was not a trace to be found of them. Perhaps a deer found a tasty snack one cold snowy evening. In any event, I’ve already got paper napkin drawings of a 20′ diameter greenhouse 50′ tall and am thinking about how much coffee grown locally in Alfred might go per pound at the local farmers market. I have 17 acres that could be turned into a plantation. It already has the run down look about it. Wouldn't it be lovely to grow coffee in Ohio and have an occasional greenhouse sporting a palm tree. I'll call it Kona-East and give tours. It is good to dream and dare and see if anyone cares. It would be even better if on the center of the property there was a grove of giant Sequoia trees. The truck saga…I filled the truck up with gas on my way home from work this evening. It ran 275 miles on 10.617 gallons of gas. I’ll do the math for you, just a second… 25.9mpg. Wait a minute… that is is worse than on its maiden voyage. Of course I did let it warm up and burn the frost off the windshield before heading out a couple of mornings this week. After that lousy performance at the pump, I went out and purchased a 70˘ windshield scrapper and don’t intend to suffer that outrage again. I wonder where the break even point is on that scrapper? No, I am just teasing and don’t wonder about such things. However, I do work with a person who is really thrifty with his money and just might. He has obviously never read my article titled Efficiency in Nature. March 22, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Visitors are welcome here. Tonight we had Joe and Angie stop by for dinner and a friendly game of cards. Last night we hosted Steve and Mary Ellen for dinner and cards. I can’t describe how enjoyable it is to have grown children stop in to visit now and then. March 21, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. I* really don't care for the idea of permitting the most advanced telescope ever built fall apart for lack of a maintenance budget. I recently purchased a fairly complex piece of equipment (my truck—see below) and you can bet that I intend to change the oil now and then and pay the price of gasoline no matter how high it goes. That was all discussed with my family and calculated into our budget before I took the responsibility and made the decision to purchase it. Yes… responsibility. Never before in history has the most advanced telescope we possess been abandoned before a better one was placed into service. This is a shameful act and an embarrassment to the rest of the world. It seems an outrage to me that our leaders would dare pour so much money into a venture such as the Hubble and then abandon it long before it has been fully utilized. After all, it is our money they are spending and not theirs. Normally I am a mild mannered person but you will surely hear my roar and those of many others this fall come election day. NOTE: The Washington Post had an article that I originally wanted to link to but they now require a free sign up. Wrong! March 16, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. We* sure do love our basketball around here. All three of my sons enjoyed playing it while in school. This past week while in Cincinnati, UC and X both did very well. This evening our local high school, Eastern, is playing in Columbus as one of the sweet 16 in the state tournament. Steve wrote a pretty funny note inviting me to bet a nickel on the outcome of the NCAA tournament. Jeanie came right back on him nicely. I’ll send it via e-mail to anyone who requests it. I filled the truck up with gas on my way home from work this evening. It ran 307 miles on 11.263 gallons of gas. I’ll do the math for you, just a second… 27mpg. That is not too bad for its maiden voyage. The weather took a drastic change for the worse. It is wet, cold, and a little breezy here today. Yesterday it was nice (you can see the sunshine in the photos below). I’ve noticed that my throat is a little scratchy today and getting worse as the day progresses. That is normally a sign that I'm coming down with a cold. It seems that I can’t be around a crowd of people any more without catching something. Time for some Echinacea.
So you must have noticed the photo at right. What is it? A rock. Why frame a rock? Well, look at it a moment. I found it in a creek and thought it looked like a gingerbread man. Knowing that my grandmother liked rocks, I gave it to her… back in the 50’s. She kept it in her collection and used to show it to my wife and kids whenever she was showing us her rocks. My cousin brought it over to the house before I left and made sure that I had it before grandma’s estate is split up. Jeanie thought it something special so she bought the frame for me. It does look pretty nice even after all of these years and still resembles a gingerbread man… at least to me. March 14, 2004 — Cincinnati, Ohio. I was the last to leave my Dad’s house today and head for home. He is probably happy to see me leave!
March 13, 2004 — Cincinnati, Ohio. We buried grandma today. It was a beautiful clear day. There were a lot of people who showed up to pay their respect and say farewell. I am sure she would have approved of the gathering and the weather. We will all miss her.
Everyone is arriving from out of town and we head up to the visitation for grandma. It went real well and as so often happens at this sort of gathering, I saw many people that I had not seen for far too long. In fact, I met a cousin for the first time later in the evening. March 11, 2004 — Cincinnati, Ohio. 12:20 a.m. still on my way to Cincinnati on I-275 and I spot three lights in the sky that I can not identify. Serious. I spent the morning with my Dad. He had some errands to run so I so went looking for a vehicle. I stopped at a Nissan dealer first and was surprised to hear that they did not have a two wheel drive standard transmission truck on the lot. Oh well, there are lots of dealers here. Up the road a half a mile is a Toyota dealer. I walked in and met Fitzgerald and he pointed out a nice little Toyota Tacoma. It looks really promising. In the evening, my brother and his son invite me to a pub in Ludlow, Kentucky. It is open mike night and they play every Thursday. It was really pleasant. The owner would not allow me to pay for anything. Dennis and Sam are well known and very well liked in these parts. I also got to meet Scott and Brian (two musicians that I've been listening to for a couple of years). It was real nice to be able to finally put a face with the voice. March 10, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Received word that my grandmother died this morning. Heading for Cincinnati to be with my Dad. March 09, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Light! How sweet it is to flip a switch and light up a room. Mr. Coffee and so many other gadgets in our house (such as this machine I’m currently typing this on) all require the power. I was able to read a little more on my book last night. The previous night I attempted it by candlelight and found that my eyes just aren’t what they were. It was a struggle to read just a couple of pages even with my glasses on. With light, I still prefer to read without glasses. March 08, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. A sign from above. The power went out last night around 7:00 p.m. and was still out this morning when I left for work. School was canceled… no power. It seemed to me a great opportunity to buy a vehicle. My son Nick and I could get a vehicle home between us. I took some vacation time and went to the dealer. The same Nissan pickup truck that had sat on the lot since last July had been sold. I didn’t figure that to be much of a problem and headed over to my local Toyota dealer. “Any 2 wheel trucks on the lot?” “Nope.” “Bye.” Why the two wheel restriction? Gas mileage and the overall price. The Nissan was on my low end requirement at 25 mpg. Some of these behemoths I saw today were drinking gas at the rate of 19 mpg. That sounds like the sixties. Surely to goodness they can do better than that. I recall in 1973 having a car that was getting over 30 and figured it would only go up from there. Who (except maybe Haliburton) could have guessed what we would be seeing today? I headed up to Marietta at lunch and asked my son to check Athens. Nope. Nope. I would really like to give my business to the small towns near where I live but they just make it nearly impossible. Or… it was a sign from above that I'm just not meant to buy a new truck. I feel the same way about where the vehicles are made. It would please me no end to help an American worker by purchasing an American vehicle but the quality/value just isn't there for me so I will not do it. Here are my specsifications for anyone who is interested in making or selling me a vehicle.
GrandmaI called my Dad tonight and found that grandma isn’t doing and well and is not expect to live very long. At this point, I think it best for everyone that she go quickly. Her sister is in from California, a daughter is in from Florida, another from Tennessee, and her son (my Dad) are all visiting or staying with her. She has a couple of grandchildren who are taking 12 hour shifts at the hospital with her. Ninety four years and looking forward to spring just a couple of weeks ago. March 07, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Looking over the USGS Hawaii Volcano Observatory web site a little deeper, I found that they have an archive of photos including what was going on in January while we were there. There was lots of activity while we were in Hawaii but on the particular day we were there, it was pretty calm and quiet. One thing that they have in the descriptions of the photos are the dimensions of what you are seeing. If you look at the photos on the USGS Hawaii Volcano Observatory, January 2004 archives (scroll down to January 27 and find the last one on the left), you can see that it is very similar to the photo of Mt. Kilauea that I had taken. They estimate the width of the hole to be between 8-12 meters. That is not huge, but it isn't a insignificant either. A 24-36 foot hole of boiling rock is big enough for me and if I had it located on my property, you can be that I would charge admission to view it.
Other thoughts…I purchased a new vehicle once back in 1972 and am thinking that I might do it again soon. Every dealer I’ve gone to wants to sell me an automatic transmission. That just isn’t going to happen. I will not buy one. The resale value doesn’t bother me as I intend to drive it for a million miles anyway. The day I can no longer buy a standard transmission vehicle will be the day I already own my last vehicle. So what is the apple of my eye? Well, I don’t really pay much attention to cars or trucks so I’ll just go with what is practical. A Nissan pick-up truck seems to be the front runner at the moment but that could easily change before I actually go out and buy one. The last time it took me a couple of months to part with my cash. This time I've already got my family and friends encouraging me to “just go do it”. I will, but only when I’m ready and all in good time! March 03, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Water on Mars? …life? Suppose there is (or was) for a moment. What would that mean to us? If you can get the chemistry set just right, would life always occur? The questions are simple but the implications are huge. Given the age and dimensions of our universe, it would seem possible that it be teaming with life if it is only a matter of chemistry. If life just occurs quite naturally and easily every time you have liquid water on a planet, what exactly does that make us? March 01, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. Ahhh, March. Once we reach this page on the calendars, I always figure that I can make it through the winter no matter what the weather wants to do. Sure it can snow and get cold, but it can only last for a couple of days. We are of rugged stock in these parts and can take anything Mother Nature dishes out (for a couple of days). Happy Spring! 3:30 P.M. Taxes…I’m working on my taxes right now so don’t please don’t disturb me unless you want to hear this quiet gentle soul cuss you up one side and down the other. I knew a sailor once and picked up a few choice words and phrases that ought naught ever be uttered again. Kindly keep to yourself and don’t tempt me to unleash them. With any luck I’ll finish up today and be in far better spirits tomorrow. 6:30 P.M. Ahhh, March…Guess who is sipping on a good scotch? Someone is getting a modest refund this year. This is the first time in many, many years that I’ve not had to write out a check to my uncle Sam. Of course neither Jeanie nor I claim any deductions and have them hold out an additional bushel of money each pay. For now, I’m just going to ignore the rain and cold that is headed our way and kick back and enjoy my drink. Happy Spring! :)7:15 P.M. ET on Mars…The drink has given me a different frame of mind and so I’m just poking around the net a little and found this article: NASA to release ‘significant findings’ from Mars rover mission. Do you remember way back in January when you read about it here first. I really think that this is just the beginning of a whole flood of announcements. I expect to see it in print before the year is out that ET was on Mars. |
March 15, 2004 — Alfred, Ohio. This morning I’m drinking my first cup of coffee and wondering why on earth didn’t they give me a Toyota mug or at least the opportunity to buy one. The coffee mugs at our house are simply an assortment of freebies or souvenirs that we have picked up here and there on our 
March 12, 2004 — Cincinnati, Ohio. I purchased the truck today. Here is 
