What if Merriwether Lewis had a Prius?
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Add this to the Bucket List
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Discovering the Zen of Skiing
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
The "LOC Nest Monster" Captured!
I have been following this story closely for several days and while our President was delivering his State of The Union Address last night, the group in the following story was plotting the capture of this free-spirited Raptor who had the run of The Library of Congress for about a week.
Let me say that I am not very happy about this:
" The elusive "LOC Nest Monster" has met her match.
The hawk that has been avoiding capture inside the Library of Congress was finally corralled at about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday by bird experts.
A team of three rescuers -- Kennon Smith, a federally licensed raptor bander who volunteers with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Linda Moore, Vice President of the Raptor Conservancy of Virginia; and Craig Koppie, an eagle/raptor biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service -- used two European starlings to bait and trap the hawk."
I know the hawk was treated well and hopefully she is now back with her family, but really, how cool would it have been to keep her as a permanent resident in this national landmark.? So they would have to feed her a few times a week and maybe deal with a few droppings from time to time. Big Deal! We make such a big deal over the Bald Eagle, which is basically a scavenger, and ignore the majestic hawk. Everytime I have seen Bald Eagles in the wild they were either nesting or feeding on something that some other animal had killed or washed up on shore. But Hawks, and I see many on my frequent hikes, are alway in motion, whether gracefully riding a thermal to rise high in the sky or diving downward to get a rabbit or mouse. I think of the Bald Eagle as a 747 and the hawk as F16 fighter jet! I doubt if congress would ever consider replacing the Bald Eagle with a Hawk as the symbol of America, but they would have my full support to do it.
But here is the real kicker, keeping the hawk in the library would be a novelty, kind of like the Phantom of the Opera. People would come to the library just to see her. We could even have a national contest to name her with the first prize being a lunch in The Rose Garden with Michelle Obama!
What a great way to get people into the library. Think about all the times you have been to Washington to see the sights. But how many of you, myself included, have never put a foot inside the Library of Congress?
I went to Wikipedia just to find out more about the LOC http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_of_Congress and boy was I impressed. What a history, and of what an impressive collection of books.
Too bad, only members of congress can check out the books, but there are lots opportunities for us common people to explore the building, its collections and other public programs. This web site gives you an idea of all that is offered at the LOC. http://www.loc.gov/index.html
This place is now on my bucket list for sure. It's just too bad I won't have the opportunity for a hawk sighting while inside.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Christina Green-- Happy
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
The Lord and the BCS Championship Game
After the game Oregon's coach Kelly graciously congratulated Auburn University, praised the event organizers, the Auburn players and his own team for a great season and effort. Always positive, Kelly said we will get back to work in the spring and try to get here again. Don’t dwell on the past, learn from your experience and move on…what a great example to set for his players and the rest of us.
I really wanted to win this one, but this was definitely a bucket list day and all the fans I interacted with were as much a part of the day as the game. Oregon and Alabama are as politically different as you can get, yet on this day, you would never know it by the friendliness of the crowd.
Over my life I have accumulated lots of "stuff" but I am getting to the point where I realize the best kind of "stuff" is not tangible. January 10th 2011, I made a huge deposit in the Bank of Great Memories.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Celia Cruz vs Talk Radio
With Fidel Castro assuming control of Cuba in 1959, Cruz and her husband, Pedro Knight, performing in the United States at the time, refused to return to their homeland and became citizens of the United States.
In 1966, Cruz and Tito Puente began an association that would lead to eight albums for Tico Records. The albums were not as successful as expected. However, Puente and Cruz later joined the Vaya Records label. There, she joined accomplished pianist Larry Harlow and was soon headlining a concert at New York's Carnegie Hall.
By the mid-seventies Cruz had become an international star within the Latin community.During the 1980s, Cruz made many tours in Latin America and Europe, doing multiple concerts and television shows wherever she went, and singing both with younger stars and stars of her own era. She began a crossover of sorts, when she participated in the 1988 Hollywood production of Salsa, alongside Robby Draco Rosa.
In 1990, Cruz won a Grammy Award for Best Tropical Latin Performance - Ray Barretto & Celia Cruz - Ritmo en el Corazon. She later recorded an anniversary album with la Sonora Matancera. In 1992, she starred with Armand Assante and Antonio Banderas in the film The Mambo Kings. In 1994, President Bill Clinton awarded Cruz the National Medal of Arts. In 2001, she recorded a new album, on which Johnny Pacheco was one of the producers.
On July 16, 2002, Cruz performed to a full house at the free outdoor performing arts festival Central Park SummerStage in New York City. During the performance she sang, "Bemba Colora." , the you tube version will give you a good feel for her energy, even as a women in her seventies: :http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JtzanIsFAQ .
On July 16, 2003, Cruz died of a cancerous brain tumor at her home in Fort Lee, New Jersey. She was survived by her husband Pedro Knight, who died February 3, 2007.
After her death in New Jersey, her body was taken to Miami to lie in state in downtown Miami's Freedom Tower, where more than 200,000 of her South Florida fans paid their final respects.
I have ordered some of her music. Celia will accompany me on my hikes. i expect my pace will improve!