Seagulls and Storms

Living so close to the ocean allows for random meetings with wildlife. We live literally next door to a national park and so we entertain uninvited visitors ranging from raccoons, bunnies, foxes and turtles. One of the most interesting groups are the seagulls.

Every time the weather looks to turn stormy,  seagulls move into the parking lots. You can see a group beginning to gather in this photo.

 

They always head for an open area of a parking lot.  You can walk pretty close to such a gathering, and if you walk slowly enough,  they will not fly off but will walk quickly away from you.  This little guy was not really sure if he wanted his photo taken but he was very certain that he did not want to be airborne.

The thing that really interests me about this behavior is why they decide to ride out a storm in such an open space. Much of the coast where we live has forests quite close to the water.  Why not move there? Many of these birds are not timid around people; they could have some shelter near a building or next to a roof top sign.  Yet they seem to group in the most open space they can find.

I looked for information about this but nothing had the ring of truth. Many people believe that seagulls like shopping malls lots because these are good places to look for food that people have discarded. Sometimes visitors to the coast feed seagulls French fires, and maybe that is why they like parking lots. This would make sense, except in my area, I never see seagulls in groups in the parking lots unless it  feels as if a storm is coming.

Other people write that the blacktop surface generates heat that provides lift. Great idea, but it was a cold January day when I took these photos. The only birds I saw in the air were coming into land to join the group. They were not flying or begging for food; they were grounded and waiting.

Maybe there is a lesson in this.  A lot of times when people hit a stormy patch in their lives well-meaning friends and family are quick to offer advice on how to best weather the storm.  Frankly, it is easy to give advice when you are not the one looking into the headwinds. Sometimes the best you can do is plant your feet firmly and decide to ride it out.  If this little guy can do it, so can the rest of us.

Christmas 2010

I have not fully made the transition to the digital age; I still send Christmas letters. When I was working through the cards this year, I realized that my address book is hopelessly out of date. This post is for those of you that somehow have drifted out of my life due to my neglect in keeping up with the most important part of life, the people that enrich it. If you are one of the lost threads of my life, please leave a comment and let me know how you are doing.

Christmas, 2010

I have always loved Christmas. Over the years, we have had grand Christmases and modest ones but every one had a sparkle all its own. The holiday reflects where we are in our lives and yet still grants that indefinable quality of grace, grandeur and simplicity blended so that it is simultaneously a great public event and a private celebration.

This Christmas has been an unusual one. At this moment, we both have jobs that we enjoy, our children seem to be happy in their marriages and the dog is finally adjusted to living in a new place. Like any new/old home, things began falling off the house the minute we bought it but since that is a historical pattern for us, it is nothing new. For once, my house is clean, my presents are wrapped, work is under control and it is still four days until Christmas.

I realize as I write this how fortunate we are. Many people have had a pretty rough year. Jobs have been pretty iffy, most of us are old enough that health issues and the loss of love ones is no longer a distant possibility but a present reality. This year it may be a little hard to find the merry in Christmas.

I understand and sympathize with this. Earlier this year, things were not looking too good for my career before things fell into place. We were just fortunate that events worked out by Christmas, something that does not always happen. If the Ghost of Christmas Past were to drop by for an outing there would be holidays dimmed by unemployment, personal loss, near homelessness and just general malaise. I am grateful for all of these experiences.

Christmas did not begin in grand style but in a manger with a family who either forgot to call their travel agent or were too broke to plan ahead. Yet it turned out alright, choirs of angels, some interesting, if not so practical gifts, and the ultimate Christmas decoration. I think Christmas is supposed to be bumpy; there is the Christ of the manger, the Christ of the three kings, and the Christ of the angels. Christmas is simple, humble and cosmically grand. So if you want a blow out Christmas, go for it, complete with choirs and kingly gifts. If the simplicity of the manger speaks to you this year, then enjoy a merry little Christmas, lunch with a friend and some hot cocoa with a good book. There is room in your heart at Christmas for all parts of the experience. This is the mystical part of Christmas; Christ will always meet you where you are, not where you think you should be. I hope your Christmas is sparkling and comforting, frantic and peaceful, and that you enjoy every minute of the gift of your life this season.

What I really want for Christmas -Star Trek Doors

I am so impressed this.  An engineer named Marc built a working automatic door like the ones in Star Trek complete with swooshing sound.  I love it! Now if he could just work out that replicator thing.

You can view a view of the door at this link.

Star Trek Door

There is an extended video of the door with more details at

Star Trek Door Extended Version

You can also read about this project on Marc's blog at http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/.

Don't you need one for every room of your house?

Medical Emergency ID Wallet Card

Passed a lot of automobile accidents on my way home from Thanksgiving.  It made me think about personal preparedness.

One of the things we should all have is a medical emergency card.  There is a free site that produces a completed (ICE -in case of emergency) information card that proves invaluable in providing treatment when you are unable to speak for yourself. It is provided by a company that sells medical ID jewelry as a public service.

Follow this link to create your own

Free Emergency Medical ID Wallet Card Link

 I hope you never need this, but it is better to be prepared than to regret your inaction later. Happy travels for the Christmas Season.

Power Tool Saftey

I recently finished teaching a course that included information on developing effective safety lessons for the use of power tools. While collecting materials for that class, I can across an excellent site that contains high quality free safety videos for working with power tools.  The Power Tool Institute  is an organization that works to to building global understanding of power tools and for maintaining high standards of safety and quality control in the industry.

This a an excellent resource for anyone teaching or working with power tools.   The link is for PTI is loacted at  http://www.powertoolinstitute.com/.  I have also linked  four of these videos in the sidebar menu under Links for Teachers. Look for the PTI video links.

Beyond Pots - Wedgwood at 250

I teach a course on the history of work, and since I am ever vigilant to prevent the nap monster from invading my class, I am always looking for interesting and related material. The Wedgwood pottery works was noteworthy in the history of manufacturing because Josiah Wedgwood organized his workers so that they specialized in particular skills. This greatly increased the quality of his products.
Wedgewood is celebrating 250 years in business and they are showcasing the techniques behind their finest work on their web site.

It is easy to forget the artisans behind these works since many of us have a relative or two who has a few pieces of jasperware that we mentally reduce to the category of expensive knick knacks. The methods behind some of their most famous pieces including the Portland Vase and Queen's Ware Orange Bowl were significant advances. Within his lifetime, Wedgewood would replicate in clay famous classical pieces that had previously been made in stone or glass and elevate pottery to a highly collectable art form.

The designs were innovative for their time and are still distinctive. Very impressive work, especially considering how many of these designs were created in the 1700’s. Check out the links on the Techniques page. Pretty fancy knick knacks.

Day Dreams about Arched Doorways

One the architectural features I really love are arched doorways. As I was working on some home improvement projects that are already in progress this weekend, I started day dreaming about possible future projects.

I found this great video on making a square doorway in an arched doorway using a kit.

The kits in the video are located at curvemakers.

There are lots of great choices but I prefer the ones that have the premade columns since these require minimal tools. I am really impressed with how much these add to the doorway. Of course right now I do not have the time or the funds for this type of project but I can build castles in the airs

I can see it now - my home with arched doorways and maybe some round topped doors. A house to make any hobbit proud. It could be wonderful.