boys in bubbles

Taken from the boardwalk through the salt marshes at Huntington Beach SC

Taken from the boardwalk at Boardwalk on the Beach, Myrtle Beach SC

Boys in bubbles

Our day at Huntington Beach was very relaxing and enjoyable. I hardly noticed the 90-something degree temperature because the sea breeze was so incredibly strong. There must have been a storm raging out past the horizon somewhere to cause such a strong wind and undertow. We didn't spend a lot of time beyond the third break of waves, but we did enjoy long walks along the surf. After leaving the beach we followed a nature trail in the park to a boardwalk over the salt marshes. My wife and I are both fascinated by salt marshes. Last year we visited Edisto Island, SC and found ourselves exploring the salt marshes there as well. I believe our daughters enjoyed the adventure as much as we did [this year and last].

After driving back up the coast a bit we enjoyed an evening of shopping and entertainment at Boardwalk on the Beach. The first time we visited a Ron Jon's Surf Shop was at Cocoa Beach, Florida several years ago. We loved it . . . so we were excited to find a Ron Jon's right here at Boardwalk, along with dozens of other unique, little shops and restaurants. As the evening progressed we joined hundreds of other visitors for a nice fireworks show . . . and bubbles. It was like gerbil balls, except on water. The attendants would pull the bubbles into the dock, unzip them and the occupants would hop out. Two new riders would step in and the attendants would air them up and seal them. It was hilarious watching these kids try to stand up or walk or run inside the bubbles. The two boys in the bottom picture actually did a pretty good job of walking in the bubbles.
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Song 399: The Boy in the Bubble
Artist: Paul Simon
Album: Graceland
Year: 1986
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It was a slow day,
And the sun was beating
On the soldiers by the side of the road,
There was a bright light,
A shattering of shop windows
The bomb in the baby carriage
Was wired to the radio,
These are the days of miracle and wonder,
This is the long distance call,
The way the camera follows us in slo-mo
The way we look to us all,
The way we look to a distant constellation
That's dying in a corner of the sky,
These are the days of miracle and wonder
And don't cry baby don't cry
Don't cry,

(Pause)

It was a dry wind,
And it swept across the desert
And it curled into the circle of birth,
And the dead sand,
Falling on the children
The mothers and the fathers
And the automatic earth,
These are the days of miracle and wonder,
This is the long distance call,
The way the camera follows us in slo-mo
The way we look to us all o-yeah,
The way we look to a distant constellation
That's dying in a corner of the sky,
These are the days of miracle and wonder
And don't cry baby don't cry
Don't cry

(Pause)

It's a turn-around jump shot
It's everybody jump start
It's, every generation throws a hero up the pop charts,
Medicine is magical and magical is art think of
The Boy in the Bubble
And the baby with the baboon heart

And I believe
These are the days of lasers in the jungle,
Lasers in the jungle somewhere,
Staccato signals of constant information,
A loose affiliation of millionaires
And billionaires and baby,
These are the days of miracle and wonder,
This is the long distance call,
The way the camera follows us in slo-mo
The way we look to us all o-yeah,
The way we look to a distant constellation
That's dying in a corner of the sky,
These are the days of miracle and wonder
And don't cry baby don't cry
Don't cry don't cry

oooooooooEmmmmmmmmmmm........

off the beaten path

Atalaya plantation home

Looking out from the dunes

Saltwater marsh

After visiting several surf shops, we headed south to a park off the beaten path. We strolled through an old plantation home, taking hundreds of pictures along the way, and wound up on the beach for an afternoon of playing in the sun. On our way out of the park we stopped by the salt marshes, walking out on the boardwalk in search of an alligator or two. We didn't see an alligator but I found the saltwater currents flowing through the marsh very interesting.
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Song 398: Jet
Artist: Paul McCartney
Album: Band on the Run
Year: 1973
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Jet
Jet
Jet I can almost remember their funny faces
That time you told them that you were going to be marrying
And Jet I thought the only lonely place was on the moon
Jet Jet Jet

Jet was your father as bold as the sergeant major
How come he told you that you were hardly old enough yet
And Jet I thought the major was a lady suffragette
Jet Jet Jet

Ah Mater want Jet to always love me
Ah Mater want Jet to always love me
Ah Mater . . . much later
Jet

And Jet I thought the major was a lady suffragette
Jet Jet

Ah Mater want Jet to always love me
Ah Mater want Jet to always love me
Ah Mater . . . much later
Jet with the wind in your hair
Of a thousand laces
Climb on the back and we'll go for a ride in the sky
And Jet I thought
that the major was a little lady suffragette
J et-J et-J et

And Jet you know I thought
you was a little lady suffragette
Jet

A little lady
My little lady . . . yes

on the beach

I could live at the beach. I could so be a beach bum. We should move to the beach and set up a t-shirt and ice cream stand. We could spend our days whiling away in the sun . . . . and an occasion hurricane or two. But that's a small price to pay for walking along the beach at sunrise and sunset. Feeling the sea breeze. Enjoying the sunshine. Collecting sharks teeth and seashells. Alas it is only for a few days and then we must retrace our path back to reality. While we're here . . . we are having a great time!
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Song 397: Jesus Just Left Chicago
Artist: ZZ Top
Album: Rio Grande Mud
Year: 1973
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Jesus just left Chicago and he's bound for New Orleans.
Well now, Jesus just left Chicago and he's bound for New Orleans.
Yeah, yeah.
Workin' from one end to the other and all points in between.

Took a jump through Mississippi, well, muddy water turned to wine.
Took a jump through Mississippi, muddy water turned to wine.
Yeah, yeah.
Then out to California through the forests and the pines.
Ah, take me with you, Jesus.

You might not see him in person but he'll see you just the same.
You might not see him in person but he'll see you just the same.
Yeah, yeah.
You don't have to worry cause takin' care of business is his name.

goat face

We stopped at my mother's house on our road trip. This face belongs to one of a half dozen goats that live next door to her. The goats were curious about all the activity in the yard, so they dropped by for a visit. Well that, plus the tasty hickory nut leaves and nuts hanging low enough on the branches near the fence for them to reach.

Julia, the turtle in this picture also came by for a visit. That's [g]irl with many dresses and only one closet petting Julia. [G]irl with many dresses tagged the turtle with the name Julia. Go figure. I don't know the significance of the name but the turtle didn't seem to mind. The boy in the picture is my great-nephew. I think that would make him my daughters' first cousin once removed. He's a GREAT great-nephew. He is incredibly smart. He studies all the time. He knows a tremendous amount about geography . . . including the names of the capital cities of EVERY country in the world. He asked me to test him on it so I asked him several country capitals and he know every answer and a few facts about each capital he named. He plays several musical instruments [guitar, mandolin, violin, banjo, piano, and probably several others that I am not aware of]. He's also into fossils, so I gave him a piece of fossilized coral from our mini-fossil dig.

Anyway, we had a very nice visit with my family.
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Song 396: Helen Wheels
Artist: Paul McCartney
Album: Band on the Run
Year: 1973
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Said farewell to my last hotel it never was much kind of abode
Glasgow town never brought me down when I was heading out on the road
Carlisle city never looked so pretty, and the kendal freeway is fast
Slow down driver, wanna stay alive, I wanna make this journey last

the physics of flying grapes

I found this coral fossil yesterday. [T]ae kwon mom loves collecting minerals and fossils. We should have a bumper sticker on our car that says This car stops for minerals and fossils. I found four fossils and one nice 2-pound cluster but my wife found about 20 pounds of fossils. She loved it. Our daughters and I have to keep reminding her that we have a destination to reach and a time to be there.

So what about the physics of flying grapes. When we returned to the interstate [t]ae kwon mom tossed a grape out the window and noticed its hangtime before it began its descent to the ground. An experiment ensued. [t]onks and [g]irl with many dresses observed grapes as they were thrown from the window. We determined that since our car was traveling at 70 miles an hour, the grape was also traveling at 70 miles an hour when it left the car. Hangtime before the grape began its descent was about 2 seconds, then it began a gradual descent to the ground. It was funny to look out the window and see these grapes hanging beside the car before they fell.

Then [g]irl with many dresses thought . . . if I open my window, maybe the air being forced into my window will make the grape bend its trajectory and I can catch it in my mouth. The result of that experiment was negative. So she opted for trying to catch a grape with her hand. Unfortunately, once hangtime ends, the grape heads groundward quickly and [g]irl with many dresses didn't have an opportunity to snag a grape.
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Song 395: Have You Heard?
Artist: ZZ Top
Album: Rio Grande Mud
Year: 1973
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Have you heard 'bout jo ti mahr,
Yeah yeah yeah?
Well, then you could not be lost,
Yeah yeah yeah.

Which way are you comin' from,
Goin' up or gettin' down?
Well, have you thought about it some
Or have you put it down?

Have you heard about heaven,
Yeah yeah yeah?
Seven come eleven,
Yeah yeah yeah.

Have you heard, dear brother,
Yeah yeah yeah?
Well, let's help one another,
Yeah yeah yeah.

Have you heard, oh yeh?
Have you heard, oh yeh?
Have you heard, oh yeh?
Have you heard, oh yeh?
Have you heard, oh yeh?
Have you heard, oh yeh?
Have you heard, oh yeh?

railroad crossing

As [t]ae kwon mom and I hiked along the trail, we came to a railroad crossing. I took this as an opportunity to take some pictures. She saw this as an opportunity to look for fossils, agates and jaspers along the tracks. I found plenty of pictures, but alas, she found no curious treasures to bring home.
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Song 394: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Artist: Elton john
Album: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Year: 1973
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When are you gonna come down
When are you going to land
I should have stayed on the farm
I should have listened to my old man

You know you can't hold me forever
I didn't sign up with you
I'm not a present for your friends to open
This boy's too young to be singing the blues

So goodbye yellow brick road
Where the dogs of society howl
You can't plant me in your penthouse
I'm going back to my plough

Back to the howling old owl in the woods
Hunting the horny back toad
Oh I've finally decided my future lies
Beyond the yellow brick road

What do you think you'll do then
I bet that'll shoot down your plane
It'll take you a couple of vodka and tonics
To set you on your feet again

Maybe you'll get a replacement
There's plenty like me to be found
Mongrels who ain't got a penny
Sniffing for tidbits like you on the ground

poche torte de cioccolato con la crema di ammarto

As a team building activity this afternoon, about 15 of my fellow coworkers and I attended a cooking school. For three hours we prepared, cooked and ate an incredible Italian meal. Our menu included: goat cheese and sun-dried tomato crostini; mixed green salad with balsamic vinaigrette; risotto with porcini mushrooms [risotto con funghi]; chicken breasts with lemon sauce [petti di pollo al limone]; and little chocolate cakes with amaretto cream [poche torte di cioccolato con la crema di ammarto]. Being the chocolate lover that I am, my favorite part of the meal was the little chocolate cakes.

It is hard to believe that cooking a meal together could strengthen the ties between coworkers, but that's exactly what it did. I can't recall a time when this group was more engaged in conversation, more focused, or more involved in a project. It was great to observe them and work with them.

I enjoy cooking, but I don't get an opportunity to get this involved in a meal. After today, perhaps I will spend more time in the kitchen. This was a very enjoyable experience.
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Song 393: Gimme Three Steps
Artist: Lynyrd Skynyrd
Album: Pronounced Lynyrd Skynyrd
Year: 1973
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summer games are only weeks away

The summer games are less than three weeks away and the little plastic people are busy lifting weights and doing fingertip push-ups.
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Song 392: Free Bird
Artist: Lynyrd Skynyrd
Album: Pronounced Lynyrd Skynyrd
Year: 1973
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If I leave here tomorrow
Would you still remember me?
For I must be traveling on, now,
cause there's too many places I've got to see.
But, if I stayed here with you, girl,
Things just couldn't be the same.
cause I'm as free as a bird now,
And this bird you can not change . . .

red spots battle it out on jupiter

Jupiter photo courtesy of NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

The red spots shown in this sequence of pictures taken with the Hubble Space Telescope Planetary Camera give us a glimpse at one of the curiosities of our solar system. In this series the Great Red Spot is the dominate storm, but there are two smaller red spots close to it. The middle-sized one [nicknamed Red Spot Jr.] first appeared on Jupiter in 2006 as it changed from a white storm to a red one. Since 2006 it has passed south of. In the June the Great Red Spot twice without being swallowed up.

That wasn't the fate of the smallest red spot in this sequence [nicknamed Baby Red Spot]. It is on the same latitudinal band as the Great Red Spot. It first appeared earlier this year and you can track its progress in the three pictures. As it gets closer to the huge spot, Baby Red Spot is caught up in the counterclockwise spin. In the July 8th image the baby spot has been deformed and weakened in color as it is spun to the east of the Great Red Spot. Astronomers predict that the baby spot will be pulled back into the bigger one and be absorbed.

Perhaps this is why the Big Red Spot is the big red spot.Maybe it has been capturing smaller storms for the past 150 years that astronomers have been watching it.

For images and more information, visit the Hubble Space Telescope website.
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Song 391: Feelin Stronger Every Day
Artist: Chicago
Album: Chicago VI
Year: 1973
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I do believe in you
And I know you believe in me
Oh yeah
Oh yeah
And now we realize
Love's not all that it's supposed to be
Oh yeah
Oh yeah

And knowing that you would have wanted it this way
I do believe I'm feelin' stronger every day . . .

favorite web spots

I could spend every minute of every day reading blogs. There are hundreds . . . thousands . . . hundreds of thousands of blogs out there. But alas, I cannot spend every minute of every day reading blogs so I have chosen a few that I try to read regularly.

There's one that I read every day . . . or almost every day. It's called Writing As Jo(e). She teaches writing and literature at a small college in the northeast. Her blog is a journal about her life and family. Almost every post has a picture taken on that day. She has a link to Argon[one] on her blog.

Another one of my favorite blogs is Bent Objects. It's hosted by a true artist. He takes objects like Cheetos, ice cubes, candy peanuts, eggs, you-name-it, adds wire arms and legs and brings these things to life [still life]. He has converted an extra bedroom in his house into a studio where he builds his scenes and photographs them. I love visiting his blog to see what's up. He also invented a new holiday [S.O.S.A.D. -- Strangely Orange Snack Appreciation Day]. What a great escape from the trials of real life.

Being Five is one of my favorites. It's a daily comic strip written from the point of view of a five-year-old boy. It's simple and clean and just plain fun. I've met his grandparents, his dog, his best girlfriend and his alien mouse [who doubles as a computer mouse]. Being Five also has a link to Argon[one].

Then there are blogs like Nature's Blog , The Space Review, and Personal Spaceflight to help keep me informed and entertained. Check out the links on the right for more interesting blogs [at least I find them interesting].

And now here's a song from one of my favorite rock and roll bands -- Foghat!
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Song 390: Feel So Bad
Artist: Foghat
Album: Rock and Roll
Year: 1973
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Feel so bad, feel like a ballgame on a rainy day,
I feel so bad, feel like a ballgame on a rainy day,
Since I lost my baby, I shake my head and walk away.

Sometimes I want to stay here, then again I want to leave,
Sometimes I want to leave, then again I want to stay,
Since I got my clothes packed, I'll catch a train and ride away.
Yea-hey-yea

I'm tryin' to tell you people - try to tell you how I feel,
I'm tryin' to tell you people - try to tell you how I feel,
I feel so bad, yes I do - my baby she gave me a dirty deal, Oh yea
I feel so bad

Sometimes I want to leave - then again I want to stay,
Since I've got my clothes packed I'll catch a train and ride away.

Gonna ride away, gonna ride away,
Gonna ride away, gonna ride away,
I feel so bad, I feel so bad,
I feel so bad, I feel so bad.
Woo!

Whoa yea
I feel, I feel so bad,
I feel, I feel so bad,
I'm gonna ride away,
I'm Gonna ride away,
Gonna ride, gonna ride.
Whoo!

no kids in the pool

Our doorbell rang last night around ten. When we looked outside there stood our neighbor and friend from around the corner. She asked if our neighbor two doors down was out of town. We said we thought so. Teenage boys were congregating in the driveway of our out-of-town neighbors house. I figured the parents were out of town, but their teenage sons were not. There were no lights on inside and the boys were parking down the street or around the corner so as not to draw attention. Yeah right! When dozens of high school boys start congregating it can only mean one thing . . . party time! Fortunately an unmarked police car came cruising down our street and stopped near the boys. In just a few seconds the boys were gone.

Our neighbors in the house between the party house and ours were also out of town last night. We were watching their house and taking care of their dog so I thought I better check on everything one more time before going to bed. There were just a couple of boys talking in the drive next door when I went in our neighbor's house, but when I came back out five minutes later, boys were coming from everywhere. It looked like a swarm of teenagers, most with cell phones at their ears and many of them with beer cans in hand. There were 40 or 50 of them that I saw. In just a couple of minutes the police were back at the house and this time when the police car left, every light in our neighbor's house was on, including the porch lights and backyard lights. I imagine the policeman told the boys to keep the lights on and if they saw them off anytime during the night, they would be back. The neighbors beside us have a pool, and one of my worries was that these kids would start partying and jump the fence to go swimming. Teenage boys, alcohol and swimming pool equals trouble.

Fortunately, when I left for work this morning there were no kids in the pool.
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Song 389: Every Time I Look At You
Artist: Hall and Oates
Album: Abandoned Luncheonette
Year: 1973
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pinnacle mountain climb

Yesterday was an incredible day. Thirteen of us traveled to Pinnacle Mountain, just northwest of Little Rock, and climbed to the summit. Pinnacle is this great rock that rises a thousand feet above the base trail. The West Summit trail is a bit easier, but our crew chose the East Summit Trail and the challenges of its rock face. You can't tell very much about this trail from these pictures, but I can tell you that it is spectacular. You cannot make it to the top without climbing hand-over-hand, and the rocks yesterday were probably about 120 degrees. I think I burned some of my fingerprints off. I'll take a little whisk broom with me next time and see f I can brush them into a ziplock bag. The air temperature was around 92 to 95 degrees with no breeze. The order of the day was water . . . . plenty of water. I drank more water on this trip than I had on any of my previous trips to Pinnacle. If you do not keep your body hydrated on a climb like this, you are asking for trouble.

The best news at the end of the day was . . . we went with 13 and we returned with 13 and no injuries!
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Song 388: D’yer Mak’er
Artist: Led Zeppelin
Album: House of the Holy
Year: 1973
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geodes and shells

There were 16 kids in attendance last night at the geology club youth meeting. My strategy as youth program director is to have a different presenter each month and man is it working well. The kids are having a great time. I have not heard one of them complain about being bored or not enjoying themselves the entire year. The adult members of our geology club are very knowledgeable, very talented, and willing to volunteer to teach the kids. I am so appreciative of them and the time they have taken to share with the kids. Last night's program was about geodes: what they are; how they are formed; where the crystals come from; why there are so many different colors of crystals that can be in a geode. Last night each child was given a geode half and a variety of items with which to decorate their geode half. Some chose micro fossils like sharks teeth and fossilized coral. Others chose colorful sand dollars and sea shells. No matter what they chose, the end result was that they all had a great time.

After the geode talk and craft, our speakers [Mr and Mrs L] gave each child a spoon full of micro crystals [ones that had broken loose from the inside of geodes over time] and a magnifying glass. The kids had a great time looking at these micro-crystals and asking questions about the structure and color [or lack of color] of their treasures. There were several double-terminated crystals in the bunch lst night. Double-temrinated means that the crystals have pinted tips at both ends of the crystal.
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Song 387: Daniel
Artist: Elton John
Album: Don't Shoot Me I'm Just The Piano Player
Year: 1973
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Daniel is travelling tonight on a plane
I can see the red tail lights heading for spain
Oh and I can see daniel waving goodbye
God it looks like daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes

They say spain is pretty though Ive never been
Well daniel says its the best place that hes ever seen
Oh and he should know, hes been there enough
Lord I miss daniel, oh I miss him so much

Daniel my brother you are older than me
Do you still feel the pain of the scars that wont heal
Your eyes have died but you see more than i
Daniel youre a star in the face of the sky

Daniel is travelling tonight on a plane
I can see the red tail lights heading for spain
Oh and I can see daniel waving goodbye
God it looks like daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes
Oh God it looks like daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes

nature camp

These kids were part of a nature camp this week that was organized and directed by my wife. She did projects with the kids each day and she also had a different speaker visit the kids each day. One day a forester visited the camp, played tree games with the kids and taught them all about trees. Another day a naturalist visited the camp and brought a variety of animals along for the kids to see and hold [snakes, hedgehogs, and various other animals]. On the last day a biologist visited the kids. I lead them on a hike through a wetlands park, and the biologist taught them about what they were seeing. She brought several props with her and the kids also participated in a scavenger hunt along the way. My wife, [Tae kwan mama] did an outstanding job. The kids loved it. I loved it and so did she.
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Song 386: Dancing Days
Artist: Led Zeppelin
Album: Houses of the Holy
Year: 1973
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tunguska: 100 years later

Just after seven in the morning, June 30, 1908, a man was sitting on the front porch of a trading post at Vanavara in Siberia. Little did he know, in a few moments, he would be hurled from his chair and the heat would be so intense he would feel as though his shirt was on fire.

That's how the Tunguska event felt 40 miles from ground zero.

The 100th anniversary of that ferocious impact near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in remote Siberia just passed and after 100 years, scientists are still talking about it.

Trees felled by the Tunguska explosion. Credit: the Leonid Kulik Expedition.

While the impact occurred in '08, the first scientific expedition to the area had to wait for 19 years. In 1921, Leonid Kulik, the chief curator for the meteorite collection of the St. Petersburg museum led an expedition to Tunguska. But the harsh conditions of the Siberian outback thwarted his team's attempt to reach the area of the blast. In 1927, a new expedition, again lead by Kulik, reached its goal.

While testimonials may have at first been difficult to obtain, there was plenty of evidence lying around. Eight hundred square miles of remote forest had been ripped apart. Eighty million trees were on their sides, lying in a radial pattern.

"Those trees acted as markers, pointing directly away from the blast's epicenter," said Yeomans. "Later, when the team arrived at ground zero, they found the trees there standing upright – but their limbs and bark had been stripped away. They looked like a forest of telephone poles."

Such debranching requires fast moving shock waves that break off a tree's branches before the branches can transfer the impact momentum to the tree's stem. Thirty seven years after the Tunguska blast, branchless trees would be found at the site of another massive explosion – Hiroshima, Japan.

Kulik's expeditions (he traveled to Tunguska on three separate occasions) did finally get some of the locals to talk. One was the man based at the Vanara trading post who witnessed the heat blast as he was launched from his chair. His account:

Suddenly in the north sky… the sky was split in two, and high above the forest the whole northern part of the sky appeared covered with fire… At that moment there was a bang in the sky and a mighty crash… The crash was followed by a noise like stones falling from the sky, or of guns firing. The earth trembled.

The massive explosion packed a wallop. The resulting seismic shockwave registered with sensitive barometers as far away as England. Dense clouds formed over the region at high altitudes which reflected sunlight from beyond the horizon. Night skies glowed, and reports came in that people who lived as far away as Asia could read newspapers outdoors as late as midnight. Locally, hundreds of reindeer, the livelihood of local herders, were killed, but there was no direct evidence that any person perished in the blast.

"A century later some still debate the cause and come up with different scenarios that could have caused the explosion," said Yeomans. "But the generally agreed upon theory is that on the morning of June 30, 1908, a large space rock, about 120 feet across, entered the atmosphere of Siberia and then detonated in the sky."

It is estimated the asteroid entered Earth's atmosphere traveling at a speed of about 33,500 miles per hour. During its quick plunge, the 220-million-pound space rock heated the air surrounding it to 44,500 degrees Fahrenheit. At 7:17 a.m. (local Siberia time), at a height of about 28,000 feet, the combination of pressure and heat caused the asteroid to fragment and annihilate itself, producing a fireball and releasing energy equivalent to about 185 Hiroshima bombs.

"That is why there is no impact crater," said Yeomans. "The great majority of the asteroid was consumed in the explosion."
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Song 385: The Crunge
Artist: Led Zeppelin
Album: Houses of the Holy
Year: 1973
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. . . Excuse me
Oh will ya excuse me
Im just trying to find the bridge
Has anybody seen the bridge?
Please!
(have you seen the bridge? )
I aint seen the bridge!
(wheres that confounded bridge?)

laughing pig seeks revenge

You may recall this pig from a post a few days ago. It seems that pink pig may be seeking revenge for being forced to race against his will by the little plastic people. Perhaps he didn't think the race was fair. What chance does a pink pig have against a pink pearl eraser bobsled? Stay tuned for more adventures of the little plastic people.
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Song 384: Crocodile Rock
Artist: Elton John
Album: Don't Shoot Me, I'm Just The Piano Player
Year: 1973
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I remember when rock was young
Me and suzie had so much fun
Holding hands and skimming stones
Had an old gold chevy and a place of my own
But the biggest kick I ever got
Was doing a thing called the crocodile rock
While the other kids were rocking round the clock
We were hopping and bopping to the crocodile rock

Well crocodile rocking is something shocking
When your feet just cant keep still
I never knew me a better time and I guess I never will
Oh lawdy mama those friday nights
When suzie wore her dresses tight
And the crocodile rocking was out of sight

But the years went by and the rock just died
Suzie went and left us for some foreign guy
Long nights crying by the record machine
Dreaming of my chevy and my old blue jeans
But theyll never kill the thrills weve got
Burning up to the crocodile rock
Learning fast as the weeks went past
We really thought the crocodile rock would last

wireman

Blue Wireman was just hanging around this morning. Friendly little guy. He waved as I walked past.
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Song 383: China Grove
Artist: Doobie Brothers
Album: The Captain and Me
Year: 1973
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nature scavenger hunt

My wife will be conducting a nature camp for kids ages 6-12 this week. One of the days will include a nature hike through a wetlands park. Part of the hike will be a nature scavenger hunt. The kids will be given a sheet with twenty pictures on it. They have to find the source of the picture along the trail. Here are three from the list.

Blackberries.

Honey locust thorns.

Seed pods on a box elder tree.

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Song 382: Can't You See
Artist: Marshall Tucker Band
Album: Marshall Tucker Band
Year: 1973
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hubcap found treasure

While driving home this afternoon, [girl with many dresses and only one closet] called out from the backseat.

Daddy, there's a hubcap on the side of the road. Can I get it?

I turned around at the next street and returned to the hubcap. [Girl with many dresses] was very happy. She insisted on an impromptu hubcap photo shoot as soon as we got home. She has plans to include the hubcap in the redesign of her room. I'm curious to see how that turns out.
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Song 381: Candle In The Wind
Artist: Elton John
Album: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Year: 1973
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Goodbye Norma Jean
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to hold yourself
While those around you crawled
They crawled out of the woodwork
And they whispered into your brain
They set you on the treadmill
And they made you change your name

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never knowing who to cling to
When the rain set in
And I would have liked to have known you
But I was just a kid
Your candle burned out long before
Your legend ever did

Loneliness was tough
The toughest role you ever played
Hollywood created a superstar
And pain was the price you paid
Even when you died
Oh the press still hounded you
All the papers had to say
Was that Marilyn was found in the nude

Goodbye Norma Jean
From the young man in the 22nd row
Who sees you as something as more than sexual
More than just our Marilyn Monroe

copper horse

Horse statues dot the landscape of the town between mine and the one in which I work. My guess is that the horses are part of a fund-raising scheme. Each one of the horses is decorated differently. The one that stands in front of the fountain at the entrance of an up-scale shopping area is decorated all in pink. The annual Race for the Cure begins and ends at this point, so I suppose the sponsor of this horse is the management of this shopping center [in honor of Race for the Cure]. The horse pictured in today's post is standing in front of one of the banks in town, and it is covered entirely in pennies [except for two rows of nickels on each hoof and the tail and mane made from copper strips].
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Song 380: Black Cat Moan
Artist: Beck, Bogart and Appice
Album: Beck, Bogart and Appice
Year: 1973
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adventures of the little people

Competition appears to be heating up as Independence Day approaches. The little plastic people who have taken up residence near here spend most of their days just hanging around or lying on the cabinets, but I think they are getting serious.

Standing by at the starting gates is [lime green and orange man] and his huge pink pig. I've seen pig races before and they are not a pretty sight. I just hope [lime man] can keep pink pig on course without taking a dive from the top of the cabinet.

[Sister golden hair] seems to have been using all her spare time [and I think she has a lot of it] tinkering with used office supplies and it appears that she has built a bodsled out of paper clips and a pink pearl eraser. She plans to leave [lime man] in her dust, I am sure.

I may never know the outcome of this race. These little plastic people are so unpredictable. The race may never take place. Stay tuned.
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Song 379: Bennie and the Jets
Artist: Elton John
Album: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Year: 1973
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workplace little people

A few days ago I told you about these little people who keep hanging around on top of the cabinets and overheads on the other side of my floor at work. These little guys are quite animated. They are doing something different every day. Here are just a couple of examples of today's activities.

Remember the little person that was swinging on a paperclip/eraser swing high above the canyon floor? Well today I caught him lounging around, watching fireworks. He's a few days ahead of the rest of us.

There are dangers even in the world of little plastic people. Last time I told you about this guy, he was sitting on the grill of this truck [with his hands tied]. I thought that was a little bit dangerous, and I think I was right on target. Looks like he fell from the top of the truck and the truck came crashing down on him. Either that or he just simply got run over by a speeding 18-wheeler. And his hands are still tied. Makes you wonder if this was really an accident.

Something tells me this guy will be back in action real soon. You just can't keep a good man down.
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Song 378: Band On The Run
Artist: Paul McCartney
Album: Band On The Run
Year: 1973
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Stuck inside these four walls, sent inside forever,
Never seeing no one nice again like you,
Mama you, mama you.
If I ever get out of here,
Thought of giving it all away
To a registered charity.
All I need is a pint a day
If I ever get out of here.

Well, the rain exploded with a mighty crash as we fell into the sun,
And the first one said to the second one there I hope youre having fun.
Band on the run, band on the run.
And the jailer man and sailor sam were searching every one

For the band on the run, band on the run, band on the run, band on the run

Well, the undertaker drew a heavy sigh seeing no one else had come,
And a bell was ringing in the village square for the rabbits on the run.
Band on the run, band on the run.
And the jailer man and sailor sam, were searching every one

For the band on the run, band on the run, band on the run, band on the run

Well, the night was falling as the desert world began to settle down.
In the town theyre searching for us every where, but we never w ill be found.
Band on the run, band on the run

And the county judge, who held a grudge
Will search for evermore
For the band on the run, band on the run, band on the run, band on the run