Category: Astronomy

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Astronomy Blogging Career Commerce Driving Food Holidays Sports Travel

Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

1.  Let’s kick-off this week’s edition of the ‘Grab Bag’ with some ‘Breaking News’. This just in to ‘The Major’s Life Blog’ satellite news desk. It appears that I’ll be going on a business trip in about 4 weeks from now. It’ll be my first business trip since the start of March of 2007 when I drove nearly 1,600 miles to and from north of Atlanta Georgia. This time around I’ll be visiting New England for the very first time in my entire life – specifically the Springfield Massachusetts area. It should be nice up there during the middle week of October !

2.  I’m not driving to and from Massachusetts, but I will be driving to and from the Dallas Texas area in just about 8 weeks for the Thanksgiving holiday week. That’s a little over 1,400 miles one way, or 2,800 miles round trip. That’s a lot of driving for me considering the fact that I’m averaging a little over 7,500 miles of driving per year over the past couple of years. Over the course of 6 years and 3 months I’ve put just a little over 60,300 miles on my car.

3.  Can you believe it ?  The Autumnal Equinox is just minutes away. The southward Sun crosses over the Equator at 5:18 PM EDT this afternoon. It continues its southward trek until the 21ST of December as our days continue to get shorter and our nights continue to get longer. Tomorrow – Wednesday September 23RD – is the first full day of Autumn here in the Northern Hemisphere, and the first full day of Spring down under. Incidentally I’ve got new regular blog readers checking in from South America, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Welcome aboard !

4.  This past Sunday afternoon I indulged in the mother of all MASSIVE meals over at Downtown Homestead‘s very own Mamma Mia Pizza. I enjoyed an ENORMOUS plate of traditional spaghetti and meatballs. The meatballs were GINORMOUS and plentiful. Just because there’s new competition in the city (The Olive Garden / The Big Cheese) it does not mean that Mamma Mia has disappeared or is inferior in any way. Mamma Mia is still there. It needs your business to stay alive. The food is still scrumptious. Check them out again !

5.  My pathetic Washington Redskins barely scraped up a squeaker of a win against the lowly St. Louis Rams this past Sunday afternoon in their home opener. I’m glad that I didn’t see it. This upcoming Sunday afternoon my Redskins take on the lowly Detroit Lions, and La$ Vega$ has them as a 6 to 6.5 point favourite in a low-scoring game. I’ve been calling for the promotion of veteran Todd Collins from backup to starting quarterback since last season, and I’m still calling for the move. Offensive yards does not win games. Points wins games. Let’s do something !

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Astronomy Blogging Career Computers God History Humor Internet Money Television Weather

Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

Here’s what’s on my mind on this 3RD Tuesday night of July of 2009:

1.  My long day at work is finally complete, and I believe that my gradual transition from ‘computer geek’ to ‘financial wizard’ is now official. For nearly 10 hours today I was never too far away from a calculator and a constantly-evolving EXCEL spreadsheet. I played with more numbers (in the form of dollar amounts) today than on possibly any other day in modern recorded history. I loved every single dollar and cent of it too !

2.  ‘The debate over whether or not global warming exists is over.’ FALSE !  That’s an ‘easy-out’ statement that’s freely used by those followers of the media and the various special interest groups who believe in its existence but can’t provide any logical reasons why. There is just as much scientific evidence out there that we are experiencing global cooling. It is simply politically correct to join the ‘we must save the Earth from global warming’ bandwagon. I don’t join bandwagons. I start them.

3.  Speaking of bandwagons I have never ever in my entire adult life accessed the Facebook web site, and I have no plans (or urge) to do so at this time. Facebook is the new Myspace which was the new Yahoo which was the new AOL. In a couple of years everyone on Facebook will gradually abandon it and move on to whatever else is hot at the time. Meanwhile I’ll still be here blogging.

4.  I saw an excellent hour-long special on Discovery Channel last night entitled “When We Left Earth: 40th Anniversary Special”. It was a great historical presentation of all of the various Apollo missions that led up to Apollo 11 that finally landed a Man on the Moon before the close of the decade that was the 1960s. Good show. Very educational.

5.  Exactly 30 months ago today – on the 21st of January of 2007 – I became a part of Life Pointe Church. It was not when I went to church for the first time in some 30 years, but rather when I became the church for the first time in some 30 years. The church is not the building. The church is the living and breathing body that follows, obeys, and loves Our Lord Jesus Christ. I am the church. We are the church. Let us be the church. Forever and ever. Amen.

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Astronomy History News

Man On The Moon: 40 Years Later

It was exactly 40 years ago today on the 20TH of July in 1969 that Man set foot on the Moon for the first time ever courtesy of NASA‘s Apollo 11.

Man On The Moon 1

Here’s a short 96-second video from CBS News that remembers that momentous day with the late great anchorman Walter Cronkite at the helm. The entire world was watching as Mr. Cronkite delivered the amazing news. His LIVE reaction is one of the most legendary moments in television broadcasting history.

Earth From Afar

WALTER CRONKITE:  1916-2009

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Astronomy Blogging Career History Holidays Music Travel Weather

Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

It’s the longest-running episodic weekly series in the entire history of this blog:

1.  So far March in America’s Riviera has been windy and soggy – and that’s a good thing considering the fact that November, December, January, and February were pretty much chilly and arid extra dry. This morning I drove through a ferocious rainstorm in the dark. It lasted all but three minutes, but I thought that I was either gonna drown or blow away to Kansas during the peak of it.

2.  I’m allergic to a bunch of things to include cologne and freshy cut grass. They make me sneeze. I don’t wear cologne. I don’t need to. I smell fresh and delightful naturally primarily because I take regular showers. Some people use cologne in lieu of bathing. They make me sneeze. Oh yeah – and they smell nasty.

3.  I moved over to my current workplace on base almost 20 months ago. I don’t have very many ‘low’ days, but of the ones that I’ve had they’ve all been far better than my ‘high’ days at my previous workplace on base of over 13 unlucky years. My career renaissance continues.

4.  Exactly 22 years ago tonight (on March 24TH 1987) I saw British musician Howard Jones LIVE in concert at London England’s historic Royal Albert Hall. That place has been standing there for nearly 140 years (since 1871).

5.  Last year March 24TH was the Monday after Easter Sunday. This year Easter Sunday occurs on April 12TH. That’s because it’s the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after the 21ST of March. (The full moon occurs on April 09TH.)

That’s what I’ve got for you for this week. Be sure to check out my ‘Mini Thoughts’ this Thursday night here on the big green blog. You won’t regret it pal.