The Year I Became a Teenager

Much is being said about 1969, with the 40th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing, and a multimedia offering on the NY Times focusing on the culture from that year was a reminder for me that although I spent most of that year being 12, it was also the year I became a teen.

The moon landing was much on my mind that summer, as I had followed the earlier Apollo launches and built models of the Mercury and Apollo vehicles. My aunt Jan and her husband were in Florida working for NASA, and they sent me, just another kid far from the action, posters, articles, and even a NASA pocketknife. I had a poster of the Saturn rocket on my wall; my friend Randy Schumacher wanted it badly. He too was an avid fan of the space missions.

It's a long time ago now, but 1969 was a big year.

Gustav Marzion's Signature

I'm still thinking that the signature on the board found in our old porch is Gustav Marzion (or Murzion, perhaps more likely). I found a reference to Emma Marzion in our own Smith-Zimmerman Museum site; she's buried in Graceland Cemetary here in Lake County, SD. She died in 1910. No Gustav, though; perhaps he moved on. A search for his name exactly, however, turns up nothing but this humble blogger's reference to him.

The name Marzion is common; Murzion, not so much. JB wants to know more about the signed S-L-K crossways on the board. Who's SLK? Gustav's more reticent partner? Every carpenter needs a partner.

Winless to Wanless

I enjoyed this song, sent by LB, about the triumph of the Wanless guy from Winner who won the big lottery prize.

Climbing Down

JB says most accidents happen on Mt. Everest when climbers are coming down rather than going up. I can see how that could happen, oxygen deprived, tired, anxious, dragging their nail guns. But the big boom boom boom truck left today and so far nobody's taken the quick route off the roof. There's still some shingling to be done--the front porch is ready for new shingles and the back entry and the widow's walk (I'm gonna keep calling it that though the wife says that's not what it is) still await.

Today I found something I hoped might appear--a signed board by a person I'll take to be the original carpenter. But who is it? My guess is Gustav Marzion, though I could well be wrong. It's dated--2 August 1901. I found it under the roof boards (I was replacing the first rotten boards I've found) and hope to get a good pic of it to post here. Wherever you are, Gustav, here's to you and the house you built!

My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys

Seemed like it was time for a new post on ole' Horseshoe Seven, so the wife has hijacked the site to offer a little dedication to her hardworking roof cowboy.

Roofin’, Roofin’, Roofin’

Keep roofin', roofin', roofin',
Though Mother Nature’s disapprovin',
Keep them shingles movin', Rawhide!
Don't try to understand 'em,
Just nail and throw and grab 'em,
Soon we'll be living warm and dry.
Boy my heart's calculatin'
My true love will be waitin', be waiting at the end of my ride.
Tear 'em off, nail 'em up,
Nail 'em up, goop 'em down,
Tear 'em off, nail 'em down, Rawhide!

John is tearing off the last of the old stuff as I type, so with some luck (and a couple dry days), John should be back soon.

The Old Girl's Makeup

My sister indicated that I had not yet put up a photo that shows some of the color we're adding to the house, so here's one. Sorry, it's a photo with my phone, not so great. Note that I'm about ready to shingle the roof to the right of the dormer pictured here.

Top, fish-scales, are a dark grey, along with the brackets below the eaves and the panels above the upstairs windows. Diamond shapes on each side of the window are a lighter grey, and the window crowns and inner grooves on the brackets are a kind of orange. It's going to look good!

Rain, Yes, But Also Progress

Help yesterday from JB and TR got the roofing project moved along well enough to actually move the lift, so there are signs of progress. Here is a pic of me and TR tearing off the shingles on the "eyebrow" of the dormer so we can put the first new shingles ever on it. The other is of the wife adding some makeup to the old girl, putting a little dash back into her look, showing off some of her best features. I'll add later a picture of what she's done to the dormer--a look that adds some subtle touches that will change the look of the house entirely.

Today's forcast is for hot and humid, so I guess I'll get back up on the roof.

One Good Day, More Rain Delays

It was supposed to be hot today, but with some isolated showers. So far it's been rainy, delaying the completion of this one section. Right now the wife is painting--touching up the paint on some repairs and trying out some accents on the windows and the fancy little brackets under the eaves. We'll see how that looks and post a picture.

Yesterday got a fair amount done. I fixed the eaves and the fascia boards on this section after having removed the gutters, which we're going to dispense with. There's no water problems and the gutters don't seem to do anything anyway.

Adam arrived late in the morning and we got started on putting shingles up, getting this much up before night came on. No more shingles yet today, though I did get paper up and over most of the roof. The very peak is still naked.

Mitch Hansen and Eric Nigg Make Funny

My kids' former classmate from Browns Valley, MN, Mitch Hansen and his partner Eric Nigg are apparently making waves with a comedy routine and some short humorous films he's put on the Youtube. Check them out here: "8 Glasses of Water" and "Heaven is a Rainbow".

Day Three on the Roofing Project

We got through two days of our roofing project without too much of an incident. The big thing today is the rain, which we weren't as prepared for as we would have liked. Things are buttoned up well enough now to allow us to relax a bit as the rain comes down.

Day one saw the wife and I on the roof as the father in law ran the forklift. We got some shingle-stripping done and put the show on the road.

Day two put the sripping in high gear, as Joe and Adam appeared from one area and TQ appeared from another. We got one whole section stripped by about 3:00, but then identified some real problems with the eaves, which stopped us, since the lumber yard in town had just closed. A trip to Menards in SF got the supplies needed. Thanks, Joe! Thanks, Adam! Thanks, Todd!

For day three, this morning we scrambled to put on as much underlayment as we could, got some tarps to cover the rest, and watched in the attic for significant leaks. This afternoon should let us get back on track, fix the eaves and start putting shingles on.

In the meantime, we've had a chance to visit with the B's for supper, with TQ and LB who stayed overnight, and with the Ryans, who had us and the Moose couple out for supper last night, where the sunset shone and the lake was pleasant. Life is good.

Check out photos of the roofing project here.

Other (Donut-Shaped) Roofing Supplies

The wife and the mother-in-law took their own trip to Sioux Falls yesterday, unloading after they arrived. How is it that this box of four donuts ended up in our car? M-I-L says that since donuts have such a short shelf-life, they should not be returned to her, but rather consumed at our house, advice that should not be ignored, in my opinion. What else to do when you're waiting for a boom truck delivery?

My Heart is Going Boom-Boom-Boom-Truck

Airlift support is on the way. I went down to United Rental in Sioux Falls yesterday and made the call, bringing this big unit to Madison to assist in the aerial support of the war on bad shingles. It's supposed to arrive this morning early. Not here yet. The peonies have been warned; civilian casualties are expected.

A Pile of Shingles, a Roof in Need

It's time to make good on the promise to shingle the roof. I've got the shingles and the roof, and now I just need to put a plan into action. Now if I could just decide on a plan. Whichever action I devise, it will have to accomodate the significant height of the roof, a height that my hunky ladder cannot attain. Extended out to its full length, my big ladder will get me up to where I can reach the gutters (full of gunk and plants as you can see in the roof photo), but I'm looking at a big boom or fork lift to put me up where I need to be. More later.

Casey Gets the Job Done

Youngest son Casey graduated from Rosemount High School Friday among 545 others, which led to celebrations by friends and family. Here's a picture of David, Casey, and April with their dad. Good deal!

Their Grandma Rosemary also was in attendance and shows her happy face here.

More photos are available online here.

Running Photos

Deadwood Mickelson Trail Half Marathon photos are available. I'm here. The wife is here. There's no blood!

Medals for Madison

We've been busy the past week or so, doing yard work, working on machinery and houses, and getting ready to run the 2009 Deadwood-Mickelson Trail Half Marathon. It's a done deal, and we brought back two medals to add a little bling to the closet.

The wife was a little fearful of this, her first big race, and first half-marathon to boot. It was her longest run ever, and she faced it with aplomb, picking up speed throughout the race, finishing with the fastest mile of the 13. She wanted to finish under 2:30, but her pace brought her in over a minute per mile faster--2:14. She's ready to try it again! She's looking at the Leading Ladies Half Marathon in Spearfish Canyon. There may be some takers, now that we've got a growing group of runners. Congratulations Wife!

I did fine, not quite what I had hoped for, but about what I expected, same as what I did two years ago, about 1:41 for the half. I'll get better as the summer goes on (I hope).

We enjoyed staying in the Ryan cabin up near Terry Peak, especially the hot tub after the race. Sunday night, though, it snowed! Brother Jess and wife Rena showed up and we enjoyed lunch with them. Saturday we visited sister Renee and her son Dillon and the bunch at her house, who all went up Crazy Horse Monument for the Volksmarch.

I wonder if they're all still as sore as we are!

Happy Anniversary to Us

First we went to Spain, then to Kansas City, then to Sioux Falls (twice? three times?).  Today we went for a short run in Lake Herman State Park, then went to Howard, where we enjoyed lunch at Higher Grounds and then off to the Bechen farm.  It was also a good day for garage sales, and we picked up a little music box (pictured here), a 1963 model Wonderland Music Company radio-type thing that plays "It's a Small World" and has a little rotary-dial and a strap.  It works great!  A search of the internet didn't show me anything similar.  I hope nobody realizes it's the holy grail of Disney memoriablila and raids our house!  We'll entertain offers.  Send me a note if you find something, will you?  

Then we ate at our favorite Madison restaraunt, El Vaquero, to include a jumbo sangria which we shared, and then went to Pixar's new movie, "Up," a big pleasant surprise to both of us.  It was a great ending to our anniversary day.  

Thanks, Pixar!  Thanks too to the wife for six good years of married life.  

Thomas Jefferson Comes to Town

Friends the B's visited Monticello this spring and brought back some of Thomas Jefferson's legacy, a packet of corn poppy seeds (papaver rhoeas) that we're planting in our new flower beds in the back yard.  Thanks, Thomas.  Thanks, B's.  

Laying Tree Fabric

Last Thursday Joe B. called and asked if I'd like to lay tree fabric with them, so we set out with Wayne M. at 9:00 am and just 14 hours later we were heading home, the day done and gone.  

It was a good day; here's a photo of late afternoon, just south of Madison, with the fabric laid, the newly-planted trees in place with their protective barrier ready.  A dozen years from now these trees will probably be fifteen feet high.  

It might be the fabric day, or it might be the days moving sod in the yard, but I'm still sore.  Now for a long run!  

New Back Yard

Several days of effort have resulted in a new look for the back yard.  The dedicated rose gardens are gone, though most of the rose bushes are thriving in their new spots further north in the yard.  We took up the sod from the north side, where the old willow fell, and moved it to where the angular gardent was.  We took out two of the biggest, oldest apple trees; it was sad to see them go.  We've got one struggling survivor replacement apple tree from last year still hanging in there, and one new Honey Crisp sapling to augment our apple situation.  

Several of the lilacs I planted last summer along the east side are blooming this year, an amazing thing to me.  Today the lilacs are beginning to fade, but as you can see in the slide show here, the yard is looking healthy!  

Happy Memorial Day!  

Testing Simple Viewer

I'm trying out SimpleViewer from Airtight Interactive, a tool to create interactive photo slide shows, using a variety of photo editing tools such as Picasa3, which is what I used here. Check it out!

Hmm. Why isn't it loading the full pictures?

Yay! Fixed!

I Saved My Husband's Life (and his washboard abs)

Strange juxtaposition of ads on The NY Times, with Maureen Dowd looking on.  

Middle School Slamming

Today we showed up at Madison Middle School and led students through a quick, slam-bang poetry slam in an hour and a half, with a few minutes of training and examples, some writing and revising time, and mostly time for performing.  

I wasn't sure how it would go, but it was part of "May Madness," on the second to last day of school, and they got into it, cheering and booing and having a great time.  It rocked; it slammed.  

Poems ranged from curses on family members to odes to shoes.  The champion won with one poem on a peanut and another cursing someone for not sharing their pizza.  For that performance, he got to raise the slam belt pictured here.  

Baby We Were Born to Run

After long delay I finally finish my phrase from the Bruce Springsteen gala weekend--coming home with songs in our heads and two new pair of running shoes from Marathon Sports in Minneapolis, where the treat people right and offer a 20% (!) discount for members.   We're members now!  

We had a great time playing Settlers of Catan on Sunday night with Casey, April, and Chester, and we spent Monday poking around the city, taking in a jog, getting shoes (see above), and eating.  Then it was BRUUUUUUUUCE!  We were impressed with their playing "Good Lovin,'" never having played it before in concert.  Cool!  We wanted to have signs calling for "Part Man, Part Monkey," but we didn't get them made.  We did get to see one woman's huge pink Cadillac poster when she unfolded it at the restaurant and then later at the concert, and we saw her bouncing with joy when that song hit the playlist.  

Yesterday we both gave our new pairs of shoes a good workout by going for long runs (two plus hours!) in the final big run before the Deadwood-Mickelson Trail Half Marathon, June 7.  Nothing like a long run to poop a guy out.  Sunday it was TOO WINDY!  Today it was TOO HOT! Yesterday morning it was just right.  

Tramps Like Us

Springsteen was rockin' the house last night, and we were there!  St. Paul was appreciative!  Pics here.  

Powerful Pie

The wife put her talents to work on a German chocolate pie this evening, and it tasted just as good as it looks here.  She claims it was her first pie, from crust to filling.  She got in on a pie-making jamboree on Wednesday to prepare for the Derby Party at Miss Lynn's on Saturday (where we enjoyed mint juleps, a home-stretch sprint from Mine the Bird, and good company--then went to the theatre-people party and karaoke).  The assembled team made crusts galore and the wife came home with two she'd done herself, brimming with new pie-crust skills.  One became a quiche, the other this dandy.

We also enjoyed some delicious stuffed pork chops, asparagus, and sweet potatoes, cooked on the grill and enjoyed out on the porch, a perfect topping to the first day of finals.  

Makes me feel powerful, too!  

If Objects Could Speak

Thanks, Dan for the link!  I love a simple, unadorned piece like this that speaks from the gut.  Or the coin slot.  
The Lost Tribes of New York City from Carolyn London on Vimeo.

More Weekend Stuff, My Sore Back

This weekend was partially clean-up weekend, with Saturday's leaf-raking and leaf-hauling-away, but it also got the house cleaner, the kitchen wall finished, some herbs planted, some rhubarb moved, some flowers planted, and some visiting done. Not to mention the schoolwork that always comes with Saturday and Sunday. Closing in on the end of the semester, the beginning of summer!

We're waiting to see if peonies we moved last fall with survive the migration. The rain Saturday night(over one inch, I think) should help. Good thing we got the raking done (mostly) on Saturday!

John + Deana Endures

Our special pumpkin from last fall is still sending out its feeble and fading reminder, grown into it last summer and being proclaimed last fall from our front doorstep. Say on, pumpkin! Say on!

Saturday Snow

Saturday morning we woke to snow covering the ground, but only lightly, and by the time I went out with the camera, the only snow left was this on the windshield of the pickup.

Later we went to the new Moose abode and tore out some carpet that looks good enough for the rental house. We brought that home, rolled it up, and stored it away for a project to be completed later.

Portrait of the Bard?

This photo, from the Washington Post, shows a controversial portrait of William Shakespeare, which some think is the only portrait of him done during his lifetime.  I like the wry smile and the knowing, engaged look in his eyes.  That should be him!  

But some think the whole thing is bogus.  WS would have appreciated the controvery, I suspect.  

Earbud, a poem by Bill Holm

I subscribe to the American Life in Poetry email offerings, poems selected by Ted Kooser for inclusion in newspapers weekly around the country.  Sometimes it's necessary to share.  It's by Bill Holm, a poet from Minnesota who recently died, leaving a big Norwegian hole in the world of poetry.    Kooser says he and Holm shared a reluctance to embrace new technologies.  

Earbud

Earbud--a tiny marble sheathed in foam
to wear like an interior earring so you
can enjoy private noises wherever you go,
protected from any sudden silence.
Only check your batteries, then copy
a thousand secret songs and stories
on the tiny pod you carry in your pocket.
You are safe now from other noises made
by other people, other machines, by chance,
noises you have not chosen as your own.
To get your attention, I touch your arm
to show you the tornado or the polar bear.
Sometimes I catch you humming or talking to the air
as if to a shrunken lover waiting in your ear.

Blackberry Fruit Smoothies

Walter might look like he's anticipating a taste of these beautiful fruit smoothies that made part of our noontime meal Sunday, but he's not getting any. Blackberries, strawberries, pineapple, juice, ice, and a kick-ass blender. Yum.

Tri-ing My Best

My colleague Bob Warren took this picture of me gutting out the finish of the Community Center Triathlon held on Saturday morning. I was hoping for a nicer day; it was cool enough, but the wind was more than necessary.

The event went well, and I got a little more experience on the whole triathlon gig. The swim was different, with a "serpentine" method of doing the six laps moving from one lane to another, all the swimmers in one line. I had the joy of tagging someone in the pool to pass them, though the same guy, in my age group, went on to smoke out of the transition area on his bike while I was still lacing my shoes on. Gotta work on that transition. I finished second in my age group to him, Mark Stearns. He was excellent on the bike, where the ride north was into the wind, so the return trip was a quick one. The run alwas starts a little stiff after 35 minutes on the bike, but I got the kinks out and enjoyed passing some folks along the way. I was 27th overall, with about 124 finishers, 65 men and 59 women. My overall time was 58:59. First overall was Jason Crisp, who finished in 43:01, over three minutes ahead of the second-place guy, Eric Olson of Sioux Falls.

My times: Swim (6 laps)--6:23, Transition to bike--2:11, Bike (9 miles)--33:46, Transition to run--0:27 (no bike shoes to change), and Run (2.25 miles)--16:14. For the run, that figures to a 7:12 pace, not bad for this old-timer.

I didn't do the race last year, but I did the year before that, and the previous year as well. Dunno what my times were then.

At the end of the day, it was time to lay down the gauntlet and enter the Twin Cities Marathon once again. So I'm now in training for that little joyful experience. Enter soon if you're planning to run it; it fills quickly.

Vacations from Hell

By Vacations from Hell, I don't mean the kind where you leave the fiery depths behind to lounge on a beach; I mean the kind of vacation imagined by someone tortured for too long by someone with a burning prod.

You might find yourself squinching and squirming as you watch the attending slide show. Thanks to S-I-L DB for the link! Enjoy best if you make it full-screen!

Easter Update

The long weekend (with Friday and Monday both off) lent itself to all kinds of activities.  Easter services for one, a visit from brother Jess and son Sid on their way to Bemidji, a quick trip to Sioux Falls on Monday, attending the film "I Love You, Man," doing my taxes, celebrating Anna's 3rd birthday, grading some papers, and having a great Easter dinner with the in-laws.  

And more!  What am I forgetting?  

Myxin' with the Quality

Lynn Ryan sends out this invitation for a shindig in my honor for getting a book published in China.  If you want to see a copy, you'll have to come to the event!  It's Tax Day!  Let's eat cake!  

"Beloved?"  Lynn, who have you been talking to?  

I Heard Mr. Young Sing About It

Back in about 1982-83, I got my only chance to see Neil Young on tour, down in Denver, and although it was good, fun, cool, rockin', and rollin', it wasn't the Neil Young I wanted to see.  He's a guy who's taken many forms, from the hipster folkie in the 60's and 70's to the "Neil and the Shocking Pinks" and "Trans"-Neil from the 80's, when I saw him.  He was alone, with some computerized gizmos that he could set up to sound like a band was there with him playing the songs from "Trans," his techno-flavored album.  

He's on the road again, playing down in Omaha and in Denver this month and all over Canada, his home country.  

I won't see him, but he's back at his best self, singing songs that matter and rockin' on.  

Check out the cool website and videos, some of it promoting his new work:  http://www.neilyoung.com/

Notes from the Malt Shop in the Sky

We weathered the storm on Saturday night for the performance, with 120 people or so braving the blizzard to come out and see our final Grease! performance. In all we had good crowds, with packed houses the first two nights. After Saturday's performance, it was pictures and tearing down the set, so the night was long, and time came to hang up the suit, put away the silver shoes, and stop walking around the house singing "Beauty School Drop-Out" under my breath.

Great performances, and a welcome change of pace in terms of interacting with students.

Here's me and Todd after Friday night's performance, yukking it up.

Shaved and Dyed, Ready for Singing

Last night was the big opening night of the DSU production of Grease! It seemed to go well, though not without a few hitches. We had a great and responsive crowd, and we're looking forward to tonight, when we'll do it all again.

Snow Day! Even at DSU

Today's a day of canceled classes at DSU as a snowstorm packing over a foot of snow in some places in South Dakota moves through the area. It's mostly spared us so far in Madison, though radar images seem to show the heavier snowfall moving in our direction.

It's not snowing now, and wind has died down some, but we'll take the day and make the best of it by staying home, doing some reading, doing some work, and taking just a few moments to be thankful.

Later, it's play practice.

Hand-Jive Warmup--Grease! for You

Put on your poodle skirt and saddle shoes or roll that pack of cigarettes up in your shirt sleeve, and practice your hand-jive.  Grease! is coming to DSU this week, with showings Thursday, Friday and Saturday night at the Dakota Prairie Playhouse at 7:30.  

Yours truly will appear as the teen angel.  Pray for him.  

Monetize? Making H7 a Cash Machine?

Blogger wants to use my blog? Interfere with the clean and clear experience that dedicated H7 readers "enjoy" when they're checking out the latest profundities?

I don't think so. Just keep those volunteer donations rolling in, and we'll keep H7 free of those nasty ads.

Seriously, it was a little odd to see that "Monetize" tab on my Blogger page, offering me the chance to make money by giving over blocks of space to ads. As Bartleby the Scrivener says, "I would prefer not to."

Stepping Lightly

Sure. Sure. It might look like nothing much to you, the blurry photo of a random bunch of digits, but it's what yours truly saw when he climbed on the scale this week, a happy sight not seen for some time. It's not 175 yet, like it was back in the 90's when I was running marathons like a demon (compared to now), but it's a better state to be in than 10% more, which is where I was in December.

Now I just need to keep on the path.

Packaging Online Courses--What's Inside?

An article today in Inside Higher Ed describes the efforts (and the resistance to them) of a company to provide master's degree programs online for established universities.  The company, Higher Ed Holdings, offers universities the "service" of maintaining courses--using "academic coaches" who do grading and answer email.  (The HEH website has two pages, a home page and an investor page, where they proclaim "investing in education provides outcomes that exceeds profits," clearly noting the profit motive.)

Faculty at the University of Toledo, the article notes, recently rejected contract negotiations with HEH.  But the battle continues at Arkansas State University, where administrators sealed a contract with the company without faculty input:  

The concerns Toledo faculty expressed are shared by many at Arkansas State, where professors fear they’re being forced to develop cookie-cutter courses that can be used by thousands of students at a time.

Higher Ed Holdings officials maintain that faculty control of courses is never compromised, even though the “academic coaches” hired by the company typically have more interaction with students.

“The professor always remains in complete control of the content of his course,” Deborah Nugent, the company’s corporate secretary, wrote in an e-mail. “HEH is not a content provider; rather HEH is a distribution and student support system."

While the company insists universities retain complete control of their programs, contracts between Higher Ed Holdings and two universities -- Arkansas State and Ohio -- both state that "once adopted" the universities "shall not amend the curriculum except with the consent" of the company.

As universities face the challenges of staying afloat in the growing competition of online universities like Capella and The University of Phoenix, they'll have to figure out how to continue to offer a clearly better alternative.  

The article is titled "So Many Students, So Little Time." 

Another article here describes how teachers in north Texas have already identified HEH as a way to get a cheap, easy master's degree.   

Several Good Things

In a busy, stressful day yesterday, there were several good things.

• The wife made me a good salad for lunch--leafy veggies, chicken, feta cheese, almond slices, salad dressing.
• I got in a good, 4.5 mile run at a relatively snappy pace.
• On the run, I saw a donkey in the road, rolling back and forth in the gravel, dusting and scratching his back. I remembered my dad, who claimed that you could tell the value of a horse by the way it did its rollover, backscratching. If it rolled clear over, it was worth twenty bucks. If only halfway, only ten. But if it rolled back and forth repeatedly, that was a good horse worth more.
• I had a good talk with my son Casey for over 25 minutes on the phone.
• I got to see that commercial for Hall's lozenges, the one where the drill sergeant comes roaring in as this woman is stocking freezers. I love the way she takes on a whole new attitude when he gets in her face, blowing him right back out of the aisle.
  

Makes me chuckle every time.

Just a Taste of Hawaii

Two years ago we were there ourselves, but this spring break we stayed close to home, not crossing either ocean, or even the state line--barely even the city limits. But Hawaii welcomed a friend of ours, and she brought back (at my request) some fine Maui Coffee, which we're enjoying this morning after our daybreak workout.

World of WarCrafters, Meet the New York Times

So, I'm bopping along on The New York Times reading an article about how Google is spending a gazillion dollars on print advertisements in newspapers to notify writers that Google plans to digitize all books, and there in the margin is an ad I didn't expect to see there, the ad you see here for a ten-day free trial to the World of Warcraft.  Yes, I know, it shouldn't surprise me.  People who read the news also might play WoW, and the other way round as well. 

Fisher Poets and Singers

A cool site in the NY Times again, a tribute to poets and singers who memorialize their roles in the fishing industry in the northwest US. "Fisher Poets Gather for Verse, Song, and Stories," complete with audio and photos. Check it out.

Old Homes Week

For some reason I got a wild hair to see if my old homes were available on Google street views. Two were; one in Billings I don't remember where it was. What humble places. The first the entrance to the trailer court where I lived when I was in graduate school at the University of Wyoming. It's out west of Laramie's center, out in the windy edge of town. The next is a tiny little house where I lived in Billings, MT, when I was teaching at my first job at Rocky Mountain College there. The third is the first house I bought, 206 East Magnolia, Dodge City, KS, when I was teaching at St. Mary of the Plains College, 1985-1992. Then it was back to South Dakota.

Pretty amazing fellows, those Googlites.

Maira Kalman and the Presidents

The quirky and interesting offerings by Maira Kalman on the New York Times are always worth the read. Her newest is "And the Pursuit of Happiness," the story of her visit to the Rosenbach Museum and Library in Philadelphia, where she falls in love with Abraham Lincoln and dreams of bringing him to New York especially to see the Museum of Modern Art. Cool.