Bryce Canyon

Still no pictures but one chilly memory to share about Bryce Canyon.  Bryce Canyon is famous for its hoodoos - tall skinny stacks of rock eroded by rain and wind into a forest of stone towers. It was fun to see them, even snow capped.  The day we toured Bryce it was 40 degrees, blowing and snowing. I took pictures of snow covered evergreens that reminded me of scenes I saw in Washington State last winter.  We didn't do the long hikes because the trails were slick with a nasty rain-snow mix.  Our chilly situation was easy to take though.  We could always get back on our warm bus.  The people I felt sorry for were a group of eleven or twelve traveling through the canyon on motorcycles.  I have never seen a more miserable looking group.  The weather was a surprise to all of us, but a real bummer to them.  

I'm back.

I've just returned from a week long trip "out west" to enjoy some of the natural wonders of our beautiful country.  I also had time to play a little Blackjack - fun.  We (I was with a tour group) visited four sites; the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Valley Of Fire and Zion National Park.  I hope to have some pictures to show by tomorrow but photos never do the scenes justice.  All of the parks were beautiful but Zion was my favorite.  It was stunning with so many different rock formations and amazing landscapes.  Interestingly, during my morning devotion today I read this quote "The mighty one, God the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth." Psalm 50: 1-2. I think that the Methodist preacher / explorer who named Zion and many of the natural features in it, like Pipe Organ and Angels' Throne, must have been thinking of this Bible passage. The "perfection of beauty" really describes it.

This is not too surprising.

Another report from my trustworthy TV news reporters.  The five most stressed states in the US are New Jersey, New York, California, Georgia and Florida.  If you think about it, it's really not too surprising that people living in these states are streesed.  Think of the natural disasters just during the last year.  We've seen lots of storms and flooding along the east coast and wildly distructive fires on the west coast. I've suspected that middle America is really the best place to live and this confirms it. But just in case I'm wrong, I'm going traveling to some other states next week.  I'll check out the stress levels there and report back in a week.

I think I already knew this.

I heard the results of this study on TV this morning.  After some study, scientists have discovered that hugging is good for you, and it feels good too.  They did stress that they were talking about 'consensual hugging.'  Hugging calms you, relieves stress and generally makes both people feel good.  I'm assuming here that they studied two-people hugs as opposed to group hugs. I am blessed with a family full of good huggers so the results of this study were not very surprising.  In fact, I really doubt if it needed a study to prove that hugs are a good thing. Ask any three year old with a boo-boo or, for that matter, any adult who's feeling stressed. Hug on America!!

were you alerted?

I received an interesting text alert today.  Happily it was just a test, but now, I understand, the entire nation (or at least everyone with a cell phone, so essentially the entire nation) can be notified instantly of a national emergency.  This seems like a good idea, although if a missle was about to blow up Fort Wayne, I'm not sure I would want advanced notice. The other hazard I heard mentioned was a tsunami but I don't think that's a likely threat in Indiana.  Although it might be interesting to see a wall of water rolling down the St. Mary's River. What could I do about it? I think I might prefer to die in ignorant bliss.  I did think it was interesting that, since I had my phone on vibrate, I didn't hear the alert.  I just found it on the screen when I checked for messages after a meeting.  Since I often have my phone on vibrate I guess I don't really need to worry. I'll never know what hit me.  I don't think I have a problem with this new technology but it does seem a little "big brother"ish. 

more excitement on the river

I've mentioned the white crane that I see on the river this time of year.  She or he is still here, high-stepping along the shallow edge of the river.  Very pretty, very elegant, but today I saw a different kind of crane on the river.  I'm not actually sure if 'crane' is the correct term for this piece of equipment.  It really looked to me like a steam shovel except for having a 'claw' instead of a scoop at the end of its long jointed arm.  There it sat, when I walked out on my balcony this morning, on a large flat raft or barge (about 30 x 30 feet) with another smaller flat barge pulled up beside.  This is all part of the ongoing process of clearing a lot of dead wood and brush from along the riverbanks but it was my first sight of the process. I was in and out quite a bit today so I only actually got to see the big claw picking up logs and brush and depositing the debris in a big bin on the smaller barge once.  I was amused to notice that every time I walked out to check on its progress, it would be in a different position.  Still just west of the Spy Run bridge but back and forth on opposite sides of the river.  I finally got to see the power that moved it - a little flat bottom motor boat with upright pushing bars attached to the front. All very interesting but I'm left with two concerns. 1. What if it sinks in the river? Will it be like Mike Mulligan's steam shovel that ended up stuck in the basement of the new court house?  Only in this case, instead of becoming a furnace, would this crane become a home for fish and geese?  
My other concern is will it fit under the bridge to get to my side? Or will they need to take it up, out of the river, over the road and down the bank across from my apartment.  I hope I'm around to see that process. Have I mentioned before that I'm easily entertained?  

Another thing I will never do

I've mentioned before that there are some things that I will never do.  Sky diving and bungee jumping are high on my list.  But here's a new one:  Even if I win a humungous amount in a lottery (which isn't too likely because I seldom play the lottery) I will never spend $17,000,000.00 on a pair of shoes.  I don't care if they are gold plated and diamond studded (both true, as seen on TV) the heels were so high  - 6 inches? - that if I tried to walk in them I would fall off and break some part of me. If anyone would like to gift me with $17 million to test my resolve, I will accept your challenge.