Just because

Well I've done it again. I have waited until the last minute possible to post my blog this week. Things at work at still very rocky but it should all be settled by the end of this month. I have not had a lot of time to surf with all of the Daylight Savings Time updates on our PCs and Macs. If you don't know what I'm talking about run your updates now. [drop me a note if you need help]

Anyhoo, I think it is San Diego. I guess the vacations is about the destination and not the trip [this year].

Surf'n California Style....

There is a new movie starring Jim Carrey coming out at the end of this month called 23. I don't know much about the movie except that the number 23 plays a role. I have had my own numerical nemesis this year, the number 36.

According to Wikipedia 36... --

• 36 is the number of degrees in the angle of all 5 tips in a perfect star.
• 36 is the largest numeric base that some computer systems support because it exhausts the numerals, 0–9, and the letters, A–Z.
• The number of inches in a yard.
• In the UK, a standard beer barrel is 36 UK gallons, about 163.7 litres.
• The atomic number of krypton [hmmm]
  
• Many early computers featured a 36-bit word length
• ASCII code for the symbol '$'
• The New General Catalogue object NGC 36, a spiral galaxy in the constellation Pisces [my sign!!!]
  
• According to Jewish tradition, in every generation there are 36 righteous people (the "Lamed Vav Tzadikim") in whose merit the world continues to exist
• Altogether, 36 candles are kindled in the Hanukkah menorah over the 8 days of that holiday.
• Traditionally Chinese dragons have 117 scales, 36 of which are Yang
• Australian Basketball team The Adelaide 36ers.
• The jersey number of retired Pittsburgh Steeler Jerome Bettis.
• The Strait of Gibraltar is 36 miles long.
• The Lakshadweep island group is made up of 36 coral islands.
• The number of the French department Indre.
• Only 36 of the 170 islands in Tonga are inhabited.
• Survey townships were 36 square mile units of land divided into 36 one square mile sections.
• Total number of plays in the First Folio of William Shakespeare.
• The number 36 appears in some book titles, such as:
• Thirty-Six Valentines A romance novella by Julia Quinn.
• The Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations, created by Georges Polti
• The 36-Hour Day By Nancy L. Mace and Peter V. Rabins
• The Wonderful World of Thirty-Six by Rabbi Pinchas Winston, about the kabbalistic significance of the number 36.
  
• The Thirty-Six Strategies is a Chinese collection of 36 proverbs commented as militaristic tactics.
• Thirty-Six Murders & Two Immoral Earnings By Ludovic Kennedy.
• Thirty Six Biggest Mistakes Salesmen Make & How to Correct Them by George N. Kahn
• Thirty-Six A collection of poetry by Steven Sher.
• Thirty-six Exposures by Kevin Major.
• 36 Days by Douglas Brinkley.
• On the piano, the number of black keys (for notes not on the C major scale).
• Thirty-Six is an American band.
• The Wu-Tang Clan's first album is entitled Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers
  The number 36 appears in some song titles, such as:
• #36 by the Dave Matthews Band
• The number of episodes in the original series of Noggin the Nog.
• In Stargate: Atlantis the stargates of the Pegasus galaxy have 36 symbols.
• The number of original founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and also the number of countries it's roster currently includes theatrical filmmakers from.
• The number of people with superhuman abilities on the list, created by Chandra Suresh, in the TV show Heroes. [WOW!!!!]
  Thirty-six is also:
• A perfect score on the ACT Exam
• The code for international direct-dial phone calls to Hungary
• In French, "36" is used as a cliché for "a lot"
• The number of passengers who died when the German Zeppelin Hindenberg caught fire over New Jersey in 1937
• The number of nuclear tests conducted as part of Operation Whetstone
• The American flag had 36 stars from 1865 to 1867. Nevada was admitted as the 36th state of the Union.
• The fruit fly Drosophila, frequently used in genetic studies, normally has 36 bristles. Mutations may cause it to have more or less. Further breeding after mutations always brings the number back to 36
• The usual number of teeth for a healthy adult female horse.
• The number of cards dealt in the solitaire card games Flower Garden and Stonewall
• A suit of tiles in Mahjong consists of 36 tiles (4 of each numbered 1-9)
• The highest number on a roulette table.
• The length of mourning of a United States president is 36 days.

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I saw this great photograph called 'The Top of the Atmosphere' on the NASA website.


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I also came across a site that claims to have the 'Top 500 photos on the Internet'.



I admit that there are some pretty great photos on this site. Some of them I have featured in this blog.



But....



I don't think this site comes close to the top 500. Not even one of the 13 Photographs That Changed the World is on this page!!

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I love to post lists, especially those that pertain to things I am interested in. So a list of '13 sidekicks who are cooler than their heroes' is very appealing to me.
Here's the list:

13. Sideshow Bob, The Simpsons
12. Raymond "Mouse" Alexander, the "Easy" Rawlins series
11. Marvin, The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy
10. Rocky, Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends
9. Dr. Pretorius, Bride Of Frankenstein
8. Inigo Montoya, The Princess Bride

7. Arthur, The Tick
6. Nobody, Dead Man
5. Samwise Gamgee, The Lord Of The Rings

4. Willow, Buffy The Vampire Slayer
3. R2D2, Star Wars

2. Hobbes, Calvin & Hobbes

1. Tonto, the Lone Ranger movies


I like this list but... [you have to know there is always a but]... Samwise would be number one on my list!!! Sorry Tonto, I don't think you would follow that masked man into a volcano and try and save his life after he tells you to leave so he can be alone with his mask and demented horse. And, who is R2-D2 a sidekick for?? Inigo Montoya would have to be number two. Sorry R2, you rock but I don't see you as a sidekick.
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Here is a picture take on the space shuttle before launch. It is a real 'Birds Eye View'.


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Have you seen this offering from 'Tesla Motors'.



"The Tesla Roadster's battery pack — the car's "fuel tank" — represents the biggest innovation in the Tesla Roadster and is one of the largest and most advanced battery packs in the world. We've combined basic proven lithium ion battery technology with our own unique battery pack design to provide multiple layers of safety. It's light, durable, recyclable, and it is capable of delivering enough power to accelerate the Tesla Roadster from zero to 60 mph in approximately four seconds. Meanwhile, the battery stores enough energy for the vehicle to travel 250 miles without recharging, something no other production electric vehicle in history can claim."

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Last weekend I found this great image of the Solar Eclipse taken by Andrew Holder.



I tried to get this out before the eclipse... I also found these 'Top 10 Lunar Eclipse Facts' from space.com.

10. Earth gets in the way
9. Why lunar eclipses don't occur every month
8. Lunar eclipses are frequent, relatively speaking
7. Lunar eclipses visible from the Moon, too
6. A bite out of the Moon
5. Myths persist today
4. Stonehenge may have predicted eclipses
3. Eclipses changed history
2. Eclipse time limits
1. One day total eclipses won't occur

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This is a great picture showing the 'Position of the sun' throughout the year.



"If you took a picture of the Sun at the same time each day, would it remain in the same position? The answer is no, and the shape traced out by the Sun over the course of a year is called an analemma. The Sun's apparent shift is caused by the Earth's motion around the Sun when combined with the tilt of the Earth's rotation axis. The Sun will appear at its highest point of the analemma during summer and at its lowest during winter."

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Writers always make fun of the line 'twas a dark and stormy night'. That is the name of this great image from flickr.com.



Snoopy would be proud!
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I came across this blog called Thrilling Wonder and a post named 'Wonders of the Chinese Landscape'.



There are several beautiful photos on this page, some I have featured on this blog before and some that I haven't. This is a beautiful part of the world and a site worth visiting.


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I have read several articles about the world's 'Deepest Cave'.



"The cave, which lies deep in Mexico's Sierra de Juárez region, has a main system that may have tunnels deeper than 6,500 feet (2,000 meters)."



At one point the explorer's had to swim through the cavern to reach the 2,000 meter mark.
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My blog theme drips into my posting every once and a while. If walking on the moon in cool what about 'Driving on the Moon'?



Apollo 17 mission commander Eugene A. Cernan makes a short checkout of the Lunar Roving Vehicle during the early part of the first Apollo 17 extravehicular activity at the Taurus-Littrow landing site. This view of the lunar rover prior to loadup was taken by Harrison H. Schmitt, Lunar Module pilot. The mountain in the right background is the east end of South Massif."
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I find my self searching through this blog for the game 'Flash Element TD'. There have been several updates to the game since I posted it and I love trying to make as much money as possible. So when I came across 'Desktop Tower Defense' I thought, "Maybe this could be as addicting".



The rules are basically the same build up weapons and try and wipe out the enemy before they cross the line and kill your people. It is different because in this game you use the weapons to build the maze the opposing army moves through. I like the variation of this game but I will most likely be returning to 'Flash Element' for my game play fix.
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This next item is a twofer and a follow up to two separate strings. [Double Bonus!!!] A while ago I blogged about the new 'Arizona Cardinals Stadium' and the innovative way the field rolls out into the sun while not being used. Well, check out this new stadium that was recently completed.



This new soccer stadium [Futbol] called 'Lego Arena' is truly a feat for its builders.



As you can see this Lego creation has a pull-away section so you can actually see the workings of the stadium as well as the game. LegoLand here we come!

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This would not be my blog without a mention of 'The Death of Captain America', 1941-2007. There is a funny clip by Stephen Colbert  about this linked from  Marvel.com. R.I.P. Captain.  We will remember you in the Zombie files!
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As a follow-up to a post from last Fall I just wanted to share an image from a story called 'Walkway Installed Above Grand Canyon'



Maybe I should change my vacation plans!!
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In another geek out moment I saw a picture I felt compelled to share.



According to Geekologie.com the USPS is introducing R2-D2 mailboxes [about 6 years to late!]
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That's it for today. Say hey to Boh3m3 if he stops by.