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johnmcnab, roger that.
posted by
majroj
on April 29, 2008 at 7:18 AM
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Majroj
You are forgiven, majroj. I was explaining to Ell today that, the grass might be standing to attention because of the moon. She used her favourite nickname for me after I'd finished - "nut-case."
I know what you mean about the control panel. The pilot has to look around it, and the plane seems to be facing upwards all the time.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 27, 2008 at 6:54 PM
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johnmcnab sorry about the delay
I suppose pilots can get a feeling of omnipotence. The few times I was in a small plane mostly what one could see out front was control panel.
Never thought about human movement as affecting the earth's equilibrium. Or water.
posted by
majroj
on April 27, 2008 at 6:43 PM
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majroj
Wonderful, majroj. The information intrigued me, especially the part about the moon causing waves on land as well as water. I had this mental image of all the flowers, and grass - and buildings I suppose, standing up and cheering as they did the Wave.
And if, as the article stated, that the filling of the Three Gorges dam in China caused the earth to hesitate in its rotation, what happens at Mecca every year and the Olympic games every four?
I'm with you in the steering part. I've had that done to me in a Cessna and a glider. I was slightly miffed.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 23, 2008 at 5:33 AM
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Re: majroj
Mostly I don't ...think, that is. I find neither comfort nor fear in such things. Just so long as someone doesn't hand me the Celestial Steering Wheel and say "Here, you take it for a while".
posted by
majroj
on April 22, 2008 at 8:58 PM
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majroj
You know some fascinating facts, majroj. I'm sitting here reading this at 07.40 and thinking that here we have 'planet heritage tree.' A bit like planet earth, where life conforms to - or causes - its own habitat.
Just finished reading an article about how much the earth's surface moves because of heavy snow or the moon's phases. We are all little bugs floating on top of a pile of moss on a moveable swamp - very comforting, I don't think.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 22, 2008 at 4:45 AM
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Re: majroj (johnmcnab
Yup. And here we have two springs, one now, and onen around November when the rains come and all gets green again.
We have "heritage trees", California Valley Oaks of great span, tortuous branches, pretty good height, but need specific conditions. Look them up in Google images. They have an interesting "fit" into their native grassland/riparian woodland niche; having tough thick bark the adult trees are resistant to fire. The historically small grassfires and mammal browsing kept the branches trimmed up off the ground, and the duff eventually created by dead leave and decomposed ranches etc discouraged high grass under the canopy. Built to burn, a little. Their thich branches develope their own biomes based on dust/bird manure, then lichens and moss, then litle insects, birds, and mammals; ther is even a salamander adapted to living up there, and they can bite. Slow growers for a sunny climate with little rainfall.
posted by
majroj
on April 19, 2008 at 6:07 AM
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Pat_B
Yep, it doesn't take a genius to know that one, Pat. Is it possible that Quebecers don't understand this? Let's face it, one of the Province's laws is that margarine must be coloured white, and not butter coloured. This is so it can't be passed off as butter....Duh!!
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 17, 2008 at 7:41 PM
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Urban dwellers who've never lived in the country are dumb about nature.
But you'd think anyone with a lick of sense would realize water freezes when it's cold enough to snow. Anyone silly enough to hose down a snowbank deserves to slip on the ice and crack their bottoms. And a fine.
posted by
Pat_B
on April 17, 2008 at 6:07 AM
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majroj
I like it majroj. Last week our daughter saw a herd of 20 deer grazing near her house. The crocuses in the back garden are actually flowering. I think everything grows fast up here because the plants can hear the clock ticking down to November - and yet another winter.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 17, 2008 at 5:41 AM
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Krisles
Thank you Krisles. Things are looking up. Since I came to Canada, the weather has been so fascinating that I haven't considered flying south for winter, but after a 5 month winter, I must admit I'm thinking of it for next winter. The guy across the road who tried to attack his snow with a plough still has a four foot drift blocking his front door. We only have some left on the back deck and back garden.
I don't fancy the idea of tornadoes, Krisles. You could lose everything in a twinkling. Snow just weighs you down and then it leaves.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 17, 2008 at 5:39 AM
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The canada geese down here are leading their goslings
"In the bleakest time we can always find inspiration in Nature, given that we look closely enough and keep still."
posted by
majroj
on April 16, 2008 at 10:51 PM
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John
Ijust read your post before this one, and was so glad to read this one and hear things looking up.....must say though......I'm sure there are good things about living there, many of them....but.......I'll take my climate, thank you very much.....hail, tornadoes and all! I can't take much of that cold wet anymore....I like to look at a little, and miss not seeing some for the beauty of it....but, enough is enough! And you, my friend, sound like you have had enough! I hope everything continues to thaw and Spring continues to.....spring!
posted by
Krisles
on April 16, 2008 at 8:57 PM
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Re:Whacky & Bo
I think it is, Whacky, but I must admit that I've witnessed people watering snow - strangely enough, it turned yellow afterwards.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 16, 2008 at 8:38 PM
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Re TAPS
I love it, TAPS. I've done something similar myself and prayed that nobody was looking on.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 16, 2008 at 8:31 PM
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CRShelley
Thanks for the shades, CR.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 16, 2008 at 8:29 PM
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Re: Azur 2
Taken as read.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 16, 2008 at 8:28 PM
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Re: Azur
Thank you Azur. My steps do feel springy - perhaps due to the fact that I'm wearing shoes instead of boots for the first time in yonks.
posted by
johnmacnab
on April 16, 2008 at 8:27 PM
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Watering snow? Isn't snow frozen water...well crystalized?
A rose
from me!
posted by
Whacky
on April 16, 2008 at 7:31 PM
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Johnmacnab, I've never heard of watering your snow to get rid of it. I must admit, though one very cold morning I could not get my car doors open as the night's ice storm had locked them up tightly. I made the mistake of trying to melt the lock on the driver's side by pouring the very hot coffee I had with me into the lock. As you can imagine, that did not help at all. Since I was just getting off work after a long, hard night shift and was desparate to go home, I crawled into the hatchback (miraculously that was not frozen) and up over the backs of the seats while hoping that no one was looking.
posted by
TAPS.
on April 16, 2008 at 2:18 PM
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posted by
CRShelley
on April 16, 2008 at 1:57 PM
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not my people, people nearby
posted by
Azur
on April 16, 2008 at 1:45 PM
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Very good. The first spring in your step for a while
I watch my people here out cleaning their cars. Me I just try to park it in the rain sometimes.
posted by
Azur
on April 16, 2008 at 1:45 PM
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