My Own Thoughts

And we’re paying for it. If you don’t believe me, keep reading: The exact Mecca orientation of the Flight 93 Memorial A person facing directly into the giant central crescent of what was originally called the Crescent of Embrace will be facing 1.8° north of Mecca. Defenders of the crescent have used the inexactness of [...]

The hardest part for my sons, and for my students, seems to be doing the homework. It’s not so hard to go to class. It’s not so hard to do the things in class. But it is hard to do the homework. I guess it is a case of priorities. Homework is not as fun [...]

19 years together. It’s been a fun ride. Hope we get another fifty or so.

Yesterday R went to a philosopher’s luncheon. Five folks set around and discussed God and free will and many another concept. One thing they “decided” is that God and time are both infinite and uncreated. God lives only in time. God cannot know the future. This bothered me for a myriad of reasons. One is [...]

We went today for three hours. Many fewer people in costumes. We saw the Falconer folks and Cast in Bronze. It wasn’t as much fun as last time, but it was much cooler and shorter.

I am in as good a shape, or better, than my mother was when she was 29. How do I know that? I was around then. I was 29 sixteen years ago. So I’ve been in better shape than my mother has been since 1975 for the last sixteen years. I plan to be in [...]

From next week until Bike the Bend November 18, 2007: 2 short bike rides a week (5-10 m) 2 long bike rides a week (2 hrs, 20 m) 1 long walk with dog a week (2 m) 3 weight days From Bike the Bend until the Rodeo Run March 1, 2008: 1 short bike ride [...]

It isn’t often my two favorite hobby fields come together. But history and science intersected in my blog reading today: Observations of smallpox-typical skin rashes on Egyptian mummies dating from 1100 to 1580 B.C. gave credibility to theories that ancient Egypt was an early (and perhaps the earliest) smallpox endemic region. However, smallpox researchers noted [...]

Total to date: 234 (Day 302 in the year.) This does not include romance books until September 15 or so. But I am doing better about writing down the books I read. It helps if I don’t buy quite as many as usual. I have re-read some books more than once this year. I am [...]

Stop the Memorial Blogburst: Why only 38 Memorial Groves? One prominently advertised feature of the Flight 93 Memorial is the “40 Memorial Groves,” one for each of the murdered heroes: Why then does the actual design only contain 38? The Memorial Groves are built into the crescent of what was originally called the Crescent of [...]

You probably thought I was going to say bad, but he’s just gone. All Things Conservative’s Bill Crawford has quit. Ack. Where am I going to get my news now? Update: That was quick. Thank goodness. He bought a wireless card and is still blogging.

I rode my bike 12 miles. Then my baby nieces came to play. I am worn out.

“Tell your boobs to stop looking at my eyes.” “That’s not a bald spot. It is a solar panel for a sex machine.”

not the 40 passengers and crew who were murdered by them on Flight 93 on 9/11. The Memorial, being set up by the National Park Service, is full of Islamic symbolism. As the memorial is now, it will be a symbol of the triumph of Islamic extremists over Americans. The controversy is discussed in Wikipedia. [...]

Went yesterday for six solid hours of festival fun. Very hot day. Very bright. Spent “lots” of money, almost $80. Bought a fan and a rondlet for my head. We lost a rosary. (R took it off and forgot it. When he came back four minutes or so later, it was gone.) I like to [...]

The memorial for Flight 93 is, at this moment, a memorial to the hijackers. It is a crescent, opening toward Mecca. In the fall the crescent will be red, because the trees will turn that color. That is wrong. This is not a new topic at My Own Thoughts. It’s just one that ought to [...]

though I don’t remember why. Then I saw this ancient working prosthetic at Live Science. It’s a movable big toe, made of wood and leather, attached to a mummy’s foot. Cool.

Daring Young Mom supports her local bookstore. (Yeah for her!) But she doesn’t agree with their bumper sticker belief on their front door. (I agree with Daring.) However, she also said this, “I also don’t think it’s appropriate to place a sign like that prominently at the entry to your place of business.” That’s where [...]

Pennsylvania Newspapers Pretend There is No Direction to Mecca In September 2005, a half dozen different bloggers verified that a person facing into what was originally called the Crescent of Embrace memorial to Flight 93 would be facing almost exactly at Mecca. Some surrounding trees have been added to the design, but the giant central [...]

The Middle Ages for Kids, Games: Lots of links. Includes links for literature. Toys in the Middle Ages, Art: Descriptions of games and toys, including history. Middle Ages Renaissance Age Games: Links with paragraph explanations. Medieval Games, including explanations of the game and historical points. Did you know that the Romans played Bocce during the [...]