s n a p p e r h e a d

ESP Explained

Stuffed stuff from Mahar Drygoods. Idea poached from Owl Farm Blog (by Anita Thompson, Hunter S.'s widow).

Every generalization is dangerous, especially this one. — Mark Twain

Please do something special for our planet today. Whether is be something simple like not using any of the electricity you would normally use, or not taking a shower, or taking the bus, or planting something that will grow, or cleaning/picking up garbage. It doesn't matter what it is...one little thing is one little important thing.

Every little (bit) counts. We are very glad to have it, thin as the slice may be. — Mark Twain

Boswell—Seasons

digital rendering by veach st glines — 2009

Note: The title is an anagram for the collection of items in this rendering. Anyone wish to hazard a guess?

When we know a thing, we have only scorn for other people who don't happen to know it. — Mark Twain

Meteor Showers

Beginning tonight—20 April—the Lyrid Meteor Showers will be visible to most of the Northern Hemisphere. The Lyrids are caused by the Earth passing through the dusty tail of Comet Thatcher, a non-periodic comet, named (in modern-times) in 1861, although it has been dip-zipping around the sun for a millennium or twenty-six.

The dark hours before dawn on Tuesday, 22 April, will be the peak time to see these comet-trail based meteor showers. The Lyrids will end on Wednesday, 23 April.

The difference between the right word and almost the right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug. — Mark Twain (born and died in the years that Halley's Comet was closest to Earth, 1835-1910)

Zeal 4 Real - strip

Stuffed stuff from giant microbes, the rest comes from me.

Zeal and sincerity can carry a new religion further than any other missionary except fire and sword. - Mark Twain, Christian Science, 1903-1907

pareidolia-apophenia

digital rendering by veach glines — 2009

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. — Mark Twain

Spotless Days & What That Means—Redux

This is:

A) a vid-demo of the newest funked-up skratch-laden LP "each-ahh-lader" by DJ Blex.
B) a very-extremely boring special effects loop (which couldn't get any u-tube play).
C) a 1sec=1hour 'snapshot' of the solar winds 'dragging' shit away from the sun.
D) a pic of Eiffel65 looking thru a ziegler head mirror (da-ba-dee da-ba-doo).

Yesterday's 'Sun Times' was nothing compared to todays'.

I mean come-on. Does it get any more better zowie-wowie than this? This is a UV photograph of our dear old ultra-calm and quiet Uncle Sol. No spots...but there are two rather good sized holes (the darker areas at the south pole and above the south pole, closer to the middle). And they may mean something besides cool green photo. But then you'd have to click on the photos and read about the excitement. Nah.

A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining and wants it back the minute it begins to rain. — Mark Twain [1835-1910]

Spotless Days & What That Means

Over at SpaceWeather they explain all about our current 'solar minimum' (relating to the current lack of sunspots, which have been on-the-decrease for the last five years). Last year had the least number of sunspots since 1913. This year may have even less; already 88% of 2009-days have been spotless.

Our sun has (approximately) an 11-year cycle of sun-spot activity and 2009 could be a record minimum 'calm' year. The last 'solar minimum' peaked in 1996; the current one began in 2004.

How does this effect us? There are less auroras (except there may be one Thursday/Friday this week in the extreme northern latitudes because of a solar hole). And, the sun is cooler and heats the earth (a fraction) less. Oh, and that photo in the top corner of this post is really very nice—isn't it?—without any pesky spots.

If you're looking for excitement, there isn't any. But, then that's science...not apocalyptic, not miraculous, not even particularly essomenic, just logically informative.

Warm summer sun, shine kindly here. Warm southern wind, blow softly here. Green sod above, lie light, lie light. Good night, dear heart, good night, good night. — Mark Twain

Black and White Stuffed Convention

That's the way with a cat, you know—any cat; they don't give a damn for discipline. And they can't help it, they're made so. But it ain't really insubordination, when you come to look at it right and fair—it's a word that don't apply to a cat. A cat ain't ever anybody's slave or serf or servant, and can't be—it ain't in him to be. And so, he don't have to obey anybody. He is the only creature...that don't have to obey somebody or other...It sets him above the whole ruck, it puts him in a class by himself. He is independent. — Mark Twain, "The Refuge of the Derelicts"