For anyone who's ever wondered about the location of the photo to the right -- me at Cape Spear, Newfoundland -- here's a nice little video about the place:
It's truly a breathtaking spot, one of my favorites of all the places I've been. It may be a long way to go, but it's always close to my heart.
Monday, January 21, 2013
Monday, January 7, 2013
My kingdom for a knee...
Of those who believe in intelligent design, who hold that only a god could create such a brilliant creature as man and his surroundings, it might be asked, "But what about the knee?"
If that particular part of the human body were more durable and less susceptible to injury, the Washington Redskins would probably be planning a trip to Atlanta to face the Falcons this coming weekend. When quarterback Robert Griffin III went down with another injury to his already-gimpy right knee, the playoff hopes of my favorite football team took a nosedive.
One man can't really carry an entire team, but Griffin came close this year. He brought physical skills, of course, but he also began every offensive play by forcing the defense to cover a dizzying array of options. Griffin's ability to fake, combined with his skill at running and throwing the ball, meant the opposing team had to try to cover multiple possibilities of plays. That, plus an improving defense of their own and the stellar pay of rookie running back Alfred Morris, were the secrets to Redskin's success the second half of the season.
With Griffin's injury, that threat was gone and the Seattle Seahawks, a very good team in their own right, could use their dominating defense to secure a win last night. Hats off to them, they played well and deserved to win. But, as often happens in sports, we're left to wonder, "What if..."
I was sad the 'Skins lost, but happy and proud of the season they had. Championship football has returned to Washington after a long absence, and the future looks bright. Sweeping the Cowboys was a nice extra. I'm appreciative of the work the players and coaches have done and thrilled at the prospect of more success next season. Let's all hope RG III can rehab his knee in the off-season and return with the same kind of brilliance we saw this season.
If that particular part of the human body were more durable and less susceptible to injury, the Washington Redskins would probably be planning a trip to Atlanta to face the Falcons this coming weekend. When quarterback Robert Griffin III went down with another injury to his already-gimpy right knee, the playoff hopes of my favorite football team took a nosedive.
One man can't really carry an entire team, but Griffin came close this year. He brought physical skills, of course, but he also began every offensive play by forcing the defense to cover a dizzying array of options. Griffin's ability to fake, combined with his skill at running and throwing the ball, meant the opposing team had to try to cover multiple possibilities of plays. That, plus an improving defense of their own and the stellar pay of rookie running back Alfred Morris, were the secrets to Redskin's success the second half of the season.
With Griffin's injury, that threat was gone and the Seattle Seahawks, a very good team in their own right, could use their dominating defense to secure a win last night. Hats off to them, they played well and deserved to win. But, as often happens in sports, we're left to wonder, "What if..."
I was sad the 'Skins lost, but happy and proud of the season they had. Championship football has returned to Washington after a long absence, and the future looks bright. Sweeping the Cowboys was a nice extra. I'm appreciative of the work the players and coaches have done and thrilled at the prospect of more success next season. Let's all hope RG III can rehab his knee in the off-season and return with the same kind of brilliance we saw this season.
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Could it be?
Hard as it may be to believe, but we're having a white Christmas in central Virginia!
OK, it was actually Christmas Eve, and it was more like a little white on a mostly green and brown landscape, but I'll take it. We managed to have some heavy flurries that, for an hour or so, stuck to the grassy areas of my property until the rains came and washed it away. Unlike the midwest, we're not getting covered with a cloak of white this holiday season.
That's not all bad, though. With highs in the 40s today, it was another decent opportunity to ride. I headed west along familiar roads through Culpeper and Orange counties.
I used the opportunity to conduct a shakedown test of my new Spot 2 GPS Messenger, a tracking device that sends out signals at regular intervals so friends can see where you're going and rescue personnel can locate you in case of an emergency.
Most long distance motorcyclists use a Spot to reassure friends and family while they're on the road, and many competitive endurance rallies require it. I've never used one before, but thought it was time to try it. Besides, there was a rebate program, so the financial risk was pretty small.
The signals sent out by the device are plotted on a Google maps page, so people can see in near-real time where you are. The rider can either share the page openly, share it with select friends, or keep it completely private.
It's not a perfect system, and my results for today's ride were incomplete, perhaps somewhat due to my unfamiliarity with the Spot. I'm planning a multi-day trip that should show off its functions a bit better, once I get the hang of it.
But I digress. For today was one for enjoying another couple of hours in the saddle, nestled as it was between two days of nasty weather. Yesterday was cold and wet. Tomorrow's forecast calls for ice pellets and freezing rain, perhaps a bit of snow after dark. We must take opportunities as they come and make the best of them. I'm now warm in my house, my GS is parked safely in my garage, and dinner is cooking. Not a bad day so far.
OK, it was actually Christmas Eve, and it was more like a little white on a mostly green and brown landscape, but I'll take it. We managed to have some heavy flurries that, for an hour or so, stuck to the grassy areas of my property until the rains came and washed it away. Unlike the midwest, we're not getting covered with a cloak of white this holiday season.
That's not all bad, though. With highs in the 40s today, it was another decent opportunity to ride. I headed west along familiar roads through Culpeper and Orange counties.
 | |||
| Historic Orange, Virginia, railroad station on Christmas day 2012. |
 |
| Spot 2 GPS Messenger |
I used the opportunity to conduct a shakedown test of my new Spot 2 GPS Messenger, a tracking device that sends out signals at regular intervals so friends can see where you're going and rescue personnel can locate you in case of an emergency.
Most long distance motorcyclists use a Spot to reassure friends and family while they're on the road, and many competitive endurance rallies require it. I've never used one before, but thought it was time to try it. Besides, there was a rebate program, so the financial risk was pretty small.
The signals sent out by the device are plotted on a Google maps page, so people can see in near-real time where you are. The rider can either share the page openly, share it with select friends, or keep it completely private.
It's not a perfect system, and my results for today's ride were incomplete, perhaps somewhat due to my unfamiliarity with the Spot. I'm planning a multi-day trip that should show off its functions a bit better, once I get the hang of it.
 |
| A Spot page showing part of my Christmas day ride. |
But I digress. For today was one for enjoying another couple of hours in the saddle, nestled as it was between two days of nasty weather. Yesterday was cold and wet. Tomorrow's forecast calls for ice pellets and freezing rain, perhaps a bit of snow after dark. We must take opportunities as they come and make the best of them. I'm now warm in my house, my GS is parked safely in my garage, and dinner is cooking. Not a bad day so far.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Slaughter of the innocents
Each workday, I follow winding, tree-lined Brock Road past scattered houses and an elementary school on my way to and from work. It's a nice drive in a car, a fun one on a motorcycle. Deer occasionally cross my path, so it's wise to stay alert on the entire 10-mile stretch.
Brock Road Elementary School is one of the landmarks along the semi-rural route. In the morning, I'm always passing it while children are arriving, so there are many cars pulling in and out of the parking lot, and a 25 mph speed limit in force. Oftentimes on my ride, I'll come upon a school bus stopping to pick up small children, seemingly smaller than their backpacks, at some of the driveways that abut the road.
On my way home, the school is nearly deserted, though I've used its covered front entrance as shelter during bad storms while on my bike. More than once, I've sat on the bench outside the main entrance as thunder and lightning played out just yards away. More than once, the principal or other school staff have invited me to come inside and out of the weather, but I've always declined, content to sit under the roof line until the storm eased. Such has been my interaction with that school, and those were honestly my only thoughts of it.
Until last Friday. The ferocious, barbaric attack on innocent children, teachers, and administrators at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut, changed all that. I can't imagine passing Brock Road Elementary on my commute without thinking about that carnage. I can't imagine watching those small children climb onto the buses without seeing the faces of those killed by yet another madman with yet another cache of high-capacity, high-caliber weapons.
We can and we should talk about banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. We can and we should talk about keeping weapons of mass murder out of the hands of those with mental issues. We can and we should tighten background checks that are inconsistently enforced on those buying guns at gun shows or from individuals.
But we have to do more. We have to look at the kind of culture we have become. Make no mistake, I believe in both the first and second amendments. However, just as I believe the second amendment doesn't mean we should all have access to AR-15s, I think we need to think twice before exposing our children to the most vile and violent video games, movies, and other media.
When I was going to high school in a 1970s-era semi-rural suburb of Chicago, some of my classmates would come to school with a rifle or shotgun hanging on the rack in their pickup truck. There was never a thought that would be a problem. They were coming to school after going hunting in the early morning before school, or they were going hunting after school. The idea that one of them would ever use a weapon against a schoolmate or teacher was as alien as imagining one of us was the king of France.
What has changed? Murder and mayhem are now seen as the basis for numerous video games aimed at children. It's hard to get through a television program without seeing commercials for shoot-'em-up war games.
Lethal violence is perfectly acceptable in PG-13 movies, but if a breast appears on the screen, that brings an R rating. Suggestions of sex are restricted for those under 17, but slash-and-gash horror is considered good fun for tweens and younger.
Maybe I'm becoming an old coot, but things really have changed since I was a kid. Sure, there were scary movies, but the violence was suggested and almost never actually shown. We would get scared, but we wouldn't get desensitized. We didn't get used to seeing dead bodies as just another element in a game.
When I first saw "Saving Private Ryan," the graphic violence of the D-Day landings -- a plot element necessary to understand the horror of war -- brought tears to my eyes and I found it hard not to weep openly. By contrast, this type of violence is the raison d'etre of too many games, movies, and television shows.
So, what to do? I have no quick or easy answers. I truly hope those in power, and even more importantly, those of us who put those people in power, will rally to find some rational and responsible actions and then take them.
As for me, I will write letters, I will communicate with my representatives in Congress and beyond, and I will appreciate just a little more every child I see climbing aboard a school bus on my commute. I don't have children of my own, but I hope those of you who do will give them a hug and a kiss every day. They are your blessing and our country's hope.
On my way home, the school is nearly deserted, though I've used its covered front entrance as shelter during bad storms while on my bike. More than once, I've sat on the bench outside the main entrance as thunder and lightning played out just yards away. More than once, the principal or other school staff have invited me to come inside and out of the weather, but I've always declined, content to sit under the roof line until the storm eased. Such has been my interaction with that school, and those were honestly my only thoughts of it.
Until last Friday. The ferocious, barbaric attack on innocent children, teachers, and administrators at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut, changed all that. I can't imagine passing Brock Road Elementary on my commute without thinking about that carnage. I can't imagine watching those small children climb onto the buses without seeing the faces of those killed by yet another madman with yet another cache of high-capacity, high-caliber weapons.
We can and we should talk about banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. We can and we should talk about keeping weapons of mass murder out of the hands of those with mental issues. We can and we should tighten background checks that are inconsistently enforced on those buying guns at gun shows or from individuals.
When I was going to high school in a 1970s-era semi-rural suburb of Chicago, some of my classmates would come to school with a rifle or shotgun hanging on the rack in their pickup truck. There was never a thought that would be a problem. They were coming to school after going hunting in the early morning before school, or they were going hunting after school. The idea that one of them would ever use a weapon against a schoolmate or teacher was as alien as imagining one of us was the king of France.
What has changed? Murder and mayhem are now seen as the basis for numerous video games aimed at children. It's hard to get through a television program without seeing commercials for shoot-'em-up war games.
Lethal violence is perfectly acceptable in PG-13 movies, but if a breast appears on the screen, that brings an R rating. Suggestions of sex are restricted for those under 17, but slash-and-gash horror is considered good fun for tweens and younger.
Maybe I'm becoming an old coot, but things really have changed since I was a kid. Sure, there were scary movies, but the violence was suggested and almost never actually shown. We would get scared, but we wouldn't get desensitized. We didn't get used to seeing dead bodies as just another element in a game.
When I first saw "Saving Private Ryan," the graphic violence of the D-Day landings -- a plot element necessary to understand the horror of war -- brought tears to my eyes and I found it hard not to weep openly. By contrast, this type of violence is the raison d'etre of too many games, movies, and television shows.
So, what to do? I have no quick or easy answers. I truly hope those in power, and even more importantly, those of us who put those people in power, will rally to find some rational and responsible actions and then take them.
As for me, I will write letters, I will communicate with my representatives in Congress and beyond, and I will appreciate just a little more every child I see climbing aboard a school bus on my commute. I don't have children of my own, but I hope those of you who do will give them a hug and a kiss every day. They are your blessing and our country's hope.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Even more thanks
74 degrees Fahrenheit.
On December 3.
My day off.
Do I really need to say anything else?
It was another wonderful day of riding in the Virginia Piedmont, with a stop at the Barbecue Exchange in Gordonsville, Virginia, for lunch. I felt like I had moved to South Carolina, only without the crazy politicians.
On December 3.
My day off.
Do I really need to say anything else?
 |
| Downtown Culpeper, Virginia, Monday, December 3, 2012. Amazing. |
It was another wonderful day of riding in the Virginia Piedmont, with a stop at the Barbecue Exchange in Gordonsville, Virginia, for lunch. I felt like I had moved to South Carolina, only without the crazy politicians.
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