Author: Chris M. Day

I'm almost 59 years old. I've been online for 33 years - starting with my own dial-up bulletin board system in 1993 - and continuing with AOL, my own dot.com web site, Myspace, WordPress, Twitter / X, Flickr, and Facebook.

Categories
Astronomy Bugs Nature Travel Weather

The Major’s Walk-A-Thon: Special On-Location Edition – Everglades National Park

YESTERDAY I visited Everglades National Park to spend the day outside with nature. Here are my takeaways in 15 words or less:

– Me and a buddy arrived out there shortly after 9 AM while it was still foggy.
– I knew that it would eventually be a sunny and hot day – and it was.
– We took a cool 1 hour and 45 minute tour of the former Nike Missile Site.
– It’s a small abandoned military base that was active from 1964 to 1979.
– It’s remnants are now owned and operated by The National Park Service.
– They started giving (limited) guided tours of it just last year.
– Our tour guide – Ryan – was thorough and knowledgeable.
– Check out this article for more information on the site.
– After the tour and a quick Lunch in the car we went hiking on some trails.
– We took on a couple of easy trails at first – less than a mile combined.
– And then we went for the gusto.
– We went on a 6.0-mile hike through muck and mosquitoes.
– We walked the entire 2.6-mile length of the Rowdy Bend trail eastbound.
– Then we took the Snake Bight trail 0.3-miles south to Florida Bay.
– Then we walked the entire 3.0-miles all the way back to our car.
– I smothered myself with Off / Deet before the hike, but it wasn’t enough.
– The trails were totally infested with swarming and biting mosquitoes.
– They were drinking the Off / Deet, and biting through my shirt !
– In addition to the hundreds of mosquito bites I also got a facial sunburn.
– If I go out into the woods without sunscreen then I might just be a redneck.
– I was totally shocked as to the abundance of mosquitoes on the trails.
– They froze to death during the recent freeze, but then new ones took over.
– It’s been a very wet dry season, so it didn’t take long for new skeeters to be.
– They are totally hungry and thirsty for human blood, and so we were Lunch.
– After the 6.0-mile hike we ventured down to Flamingo on the Bay.
– We took a really nice 1 hour and 45 minute boat tour of Florida Bay.
– We went westward adjacent to the south coast and towards the sunset.
– The sun set at precisely 5:59 PM, as that’s when the disc touched the horizon.
– The sun hit the horizon and then took a mere 3 minutes to drop below it.
– It was one of the most perfect sunsets I have seen in my entire Life !
– There were no clouds in the way obscuring it in any way.
– As our sun was setting it was rising simultaneously in Shanghai China.
– It was a nice tour of the bay, and quite refreshing after a hot and sweaty day.
– Water temperatures on the bay have slowly recovered back to the upper-60s.
– It was recently much colder than that, and thousands of fish died.
– It didn’t smell very nice at the shore with all of the dead fish floating.
– It may take a couple of years for a normal fish population to return.
– I really enjoyed my day out with nature despite the bites and burns.
– I hope to do it again sometime before the end of the current dry season.
– Thank You God for all of your Glorious Creations !

Categories
History Music Radio

Saturday Night Retro

New for 2010 I’ll be looking back at the first decade of the new millennium every 4 weeks here on the ‘Retro’. The same applies for the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s – every 4 weeks I’ll look back at each of those unique decades.

In 2003 I was heavily into the dance club scene – on the radio – and in the clubs. European trance, techno, and house music was the soundtrack of my life at the time, and all I wanted to do was to follow the beat and go faster with it. The music was all based on ‘BPM’ – beats per minute – and once it got above 150 BPM it was all good !

Here’s a European trance track that was a hot dance club smash from January to May of 2003. It was definitely a cool song to dance to with glowsticks moving about in unison to the fast beat. It’s Noémi with “In My Dreams”:

Categories
History Music People Radio Shopping Television

The Major’s Friday Night Disco Party

Disco Ball

One of the hottest hits on the radio, in the record stores, and out in the clubs during the last quarter of 1986 while I was living, working, and playing in the United Kingdom was “Don’t Leave Me This Way” by The Communards (Jimmy Somerville and Richard Coles). It became the # 1 best-selling single of the entire year all across the British Isles. It was a spirited HI-NRG remake of Thelma Houston‘s 1977 # 1 Disco smash – which in turn was a remake of a 1975 Disco smash from Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes featuring the late great Teddy Pendergrass on lead vocals. (Teddy died 9 days ago. He was 59.)

Here’s Thelma Houston’s version as performed on “The Midnight Special”:

Categories
Blogging Food Health History Music People Sports Television Travel Weather

Thursday Night Mini Thoughts

– Let’s get spontaneous.
– Can we talk here ?
– I’m currently fasting for about 16 hours.
– I have to give blood at my Doctor’s office tomorrow morning.
– After that I’m gearing up for a GINORMOUS Breakfast at the Cracker Barrel.
– And then it’s off to work to conclude this weird work week.
– I’m looking forward to this upcoming weekend.
– I plan to make the most of it.
– I’m going outside to play on Saturday.
– I’m taking my ‘Walk-A-Thon’ on the road – and deep into the Everglades.
– I want to see how everything looks out there after the big freeze.
– It’s gonna be a nice and warm and dry weekend.
– 80°F+ weather has a tight grip on America’s Riviera.
– If you like it then have fun for the next 4 days through Monday.
– We’ll have a brief cooldown for a couple of days next week.
– Only 23 more days until my upcoming Carnival cruise vacation.
– I’m getting really excited about it.
– Not only am I preparing for it, but I’ve already got my luggage out !
– This blog will go on a scheduled 8-day hiatus during February.
– When the blog returns LIVE I may transition to a 5 or 6 day a week schedule.
– I’ve been thinking about it for awhile – taking a day or two off per week.
– Sundays and Mondays would be the two days that I’d consider not blogging.
– This Saturday night on the ‘Retro’ I’m bringing back some 2003 Trance.
– But before that it’s the ‘Disco Party’ tomorrow night with Thelma Houston.
– Thank You so much for supporting ‘Moldie Oldie Music Weekends’.
– I also thank you for your requests, so keep them coming.
– This Sunday it’s the Vikings-Saints and the Jets-Colts.
– I’m rooting for a high-scoring offensive blitz in the Bayou.
– Light up that scoreboard Favre and Brees !
– I’m also rooting for the high-flying Jets to show the Colts how to get it done.
– Jets-Saints OR Jets-Vikings would work for me in the Super Bowl.
– Maybe if Favre wins the big game he’ll retire for real ?
– Or maybe not.
– Well those are my ‘Mini Thoughts’ on this Thursday night.
– Your time is valuable, and so I Thank You for it.
– Until I blog again (tomorrow) – REMEMBER THIS !