Tim Jones (Jones)

My mask has a valve too. The differential pressure inside the mask is so low that the valve never opens.

I was told at the Dr. office that the 'valved mask' wasn't acceptable in the office and they gave me a cheapo paper mask. 

My observation concerning the typical face mask worn today is that it is about 80% effective containing my outgoing breath and 20% effective breathing in. 

I have a 3M respirator designed for painters spraying toxic paints like urethanes. It has a rubber face plate that fits like a scuba mask. Has activated carbon canesters to remove organic vapors. Very effective and if there is the slightest leak when working with urethanes you know it immediately.

I'd say the average cloth or paper mask you see today is only slightly effective. Nice fashion statement though.

Bill Engelhardt

Bill Engelhardt

And five bucks was significant money...

Virginia Wolfe (Scheffer)

We wanted to go see the Beatles in the worst way, but at that time could not afford it.  Also, wanted to see Jimi Hendrix, but we were almost scared of him......he was so dynamic.  Nothing like we had ever seen before and pretty much since. Sadly, how things have changed.  Now I sound old yearning for the "good ole days." HaHa!

Tim Jones (Jones)

I took a date to see Little Stevie Wonder in 1965. Tickets I think were 2.95. Saw Donovan in 68 or 69 at the Opera House. After the intermission, he came out and sat on a big bean bag chair and played Lalena with just an accoustic guitar, no mic. You could have heard a pin drop in that packed venue. Memorable.

Have seen the Moody Blues four or five times. These days I listen to a lot of Van Morrison and Kenny Loggins, who by the way is from Everett. 

The Boomers were (are) lucky to have grown up with so much great music. It keeps me going today and continues to give me hope.  Music, the universal language....

Hope you are all doing well out there. 

Virginia Wolfe (Scheffer)

Absolutely, music is the universal language.  We live in Hernando Beach, Fla and the miss all the outdoor music concerts.  We meet so many great people from all over the country.  Sun, Guitars and Beer!!!  Stay well my friends!

Tom Chavez

Party on! While we can…

Beginning about 3000 BC, complex “Late Bronze Age” civilization developed throughout the Middle East. Bronze was made by mixing copper with tin, which was rare in the mideast. Chemical analyses confirm that tin came from distant Afghanistan. Tin then was like oil in our era.

The Mediterranean, Persian Gulf, Black Sea, Nile Valley, Greece, Turkey, Mesopotamia and other empires formed a thriving international system with trade links to the Himalayas and the Indian Ocean. Powerful militaries imposed order across the Middle East. Fleets of merchant ships sailed the seas, carrying wine, spices, bronze, and other merchandise.

By 1250 BC, the Minoans of Crete had enjoyed chic mansions, masterful art, a rich economy and extensive trade for almost a thousand years. The Egyptians under the New Kingdom pharaohs of the eighteenth and nineteenth dynasties had resurrected their ancient nation into a military superpower.

And yet, by 1100 B.C. international trade, large complex governments, commerce, art and even writing, all disappeared. The worst dark age of Western history lasted for 500 years. What happened? (We have no evidence that it was a virus pandemic.)

Into this wealthy, interdependent world came, says Archaeologist Eric Cline, a ‘perfect storm’ of calamitous events causing total collapse shortly after 1200 BC. Evidence indicates drought, famine, earthquakes, invasions and internal rebellions, all around the same time. 

Tablets and letters from Ugarit up until the city’s final days, around 1185 BC, describe drought, famine, foreign invaders, conflagration, and destruction of orchards and fields. 

Raiding parties and militias were the greatest destroyers of civilized order. Come to think of it, we have militia groups forming today in America, stockpiling guns and ammunition, preparing for the weakening of central governance. Hmmm.

The Bronze Age collapse didn’t happen overnight or in one decade, but cities could be looted and razed within days, and states could dissolve within years. By 1100 BC only Egypt remained, and it was so weakened that it never fully recovered.

Dolphin fresco, the Minoan palace of Knossos, Crete, (c. 1700-1450 BCE)

Tim Jones (Jones)

De Vos before and after face lift

Tom Chavez

The Great Blue Hole and … Atlantis?

    In 2018 a crew of scientists ventured for the first time by submarine to the bottom of a giant underwater sinkhole over 400 feet deep. According to Glyn Collinson of  NASA, this hole originally formed as a solid rock cavern during the last ice age. Within it they found stalactites which can only form by water dripping from rock.

     Analyses of stalactites in the Great Blue Hole* show that formation took place over a period from 15,000 to 153,000 years ago. Most of that time immense glaciers covered large parts of North and South America, Europe and Asia. Mauna Kea in Hawaii was covered by glaciers and Mauna Loa probably also, but younger lava flows cover the evidence.

    All that ice reduced the level of the oceans by more than 400 feet below today’s sea level. When the climate warmed, melting ice gradually raised sea levels until the cave was totally filled with water to form the Great Blue Hole.

    What was human civilization like during this period when large areas of the planet were becoming covered by ice and then uncovered by melting? How did humans handle and survive the precipitous falling and rising of sea levels? Was Atlantis the victim of global warming? 

* The Great Blue Hole is a part of the larger Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, a World Heritage Site.

Tom Chavez

Birth of Lord Kṛṣṇa

As the time came for Kṛṣṇa to appear, an auspicious atmosphere of peace and good fortune prevailed. Rivers flowed nicely, lakes sported lotus flowers, birds sang, peacocks danced and breezes wafted the aroma of flowers. 

Lord Viṣṇu appeared before Devakī and Vasudeva with four hands, dressed in silk and valuable ornaments, with a crown and abundant hair on His head.

Vasudeva bowed and said. “My Lord, You have kindly appeared to kill Kaṁsa and his minions. Anticipating Your appearance, he has already killed Your elder brothers. As soon as he hears of Your birth, he will come to kill You.”

Devakī, the mother of Kṛṣṇa, said, “My dear Lord, the entire cosmos is within you, but You have appeared in my womb. You act like an ordinary human just to please Your devotees. I fear that cruel Kaṁsa will harm You. Please hide this four-armed form.”

The Lord replied, “My dear Mother, in the millennium of Svāyambhuva, you and Vasudeva performed yoga and austerities. With steady mind and senses, you worshiped Me to become your son.”

“I promised to become your son three times. First I was born as Pṛśnigarbha, then as Upendra and now as Kṛṣṇa. To protect Me from Kaṁsa, please immediately take Me to Vṛndāvan and exchange Me for Yaśodā’s new-born daughter.”

Having spoken thus to His father and mother, the Lord turned Himself into an ordinary child and became silent.

Tom Chavez

A Dark and Stormy Night

Being so instructed, Vasudeva prepared to take his son to Vṛndāvan. Just then, a daughter was born to Nanda and Yaśodā. She was Yogamāyā, the internal potency of the Lord. By her influence all the guards and residents of Kaṁsa’s palace fell into deep sleep, and the prison doors unlocked and opened. 

The night was very dark, but as soon as Vasudeva went out with Kṛṣṇa, he could see everything clearly. There was loud thunder and severe rainfall. Lord Śeṣa in the shape of a serpent spread his hoods over the head of Vasudeva to protect from the storm. 

Vasudeva found the Yamunā River roaring with waves and foam, but she gave passage to him to cross. On the other side, he went to the place of Nanda Mahārāja, where he silently entered the house of Yaśodā, and exchanged his son for the newly born baby girl. 

Then, he returned to the prison of Kaṁsa and silently put the girl on the lap of Devakī. The prison doors again closed and locked, so that the guards could not know what had happened.

Mother Yaśodā understood that a child had been born to her, but because she was very tired from labor, she fell fast asleep. When she awoke, she could not remember whether she had given birth to a boy or a girl.

Bill Engelhardt

Aug. 31, 1960.

Nixon injured his knee during the campaign. Kennedy told him he would not hit the trail until Nixon could. This was Nixon's reply. Different times. 

Karen Buck (White)

Sometimes I really miss the "good old" days!!!

Virginia Wolfe (Scheffer)

I too, miss the good old days, when there was some civility, politeness and decorum in our society.  Gads!

Tom Chavez

The more things change the more they stay the same. The good old days were a mixed bag, and nowadays are a mixed bag. The only constant in this world is change. If we see good and bad relative to our own likes and dislikes, we find good and bad everywhere. There is a reason for everything and a lesson to be learned from every experience. If we look for perfection, we will find. If we look for imperfection we will find. Some say, "The devil is in the details." Neils Bohr, father of Quantum Mechanics, said, "God is in the details."

Buffalo at Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone

Gregg Wilson

Tim Jones (Jones)

I miss the 40's and 50's. The entertainment of that era seems so genuine. Real talent. 

This going to sound sexist, but women back in the 40's seem so wholesome. Agreed, we are looking at a very select subgroup of women in this video, but still makes be yearn for bygone days. 

Frances Carroll and the Coquettes from 1940. Lucky we have YouTube and access to these gems today. Enjoy!  Tried to embed the link. 

https://youtu.be/FA-LIYrfK2E

Tim Jones (Jones)

Greg Wilson,

My dad was a Marine.

Marine Corp Air Reservist stationed at Sand Point Naval Air Station on Lake Washington.

The big threat when we were kids (the threat coming from mom) was that when dad got home from work he would break out his big, wide heavy, black Marine Corp belt and whoop us with it. Well, he never did. 

He was what we called back in the day and still call them today....a GENTLEMAN. 

Virginia Wolfe (Scheffer)

Well, how about Fred Asterie and Ginger Rodgers.......beautiful dance moves and music

Tom Chavez

Welcome back, macho man! Nice to see you again!

We try to exploit and enjoy Earth's natural resources only to become ever more entangled in reactions and complexities. Mother Nature can embarrass our puffed-up civilization with a teeny-tiny coronavirus. Many wonderful civilizations have sprouted and dissolved, each thinking itself the greatest ever! We are insignificant in the face of time and nature. We did not choose our planet of birth, our species or our gender. We cannot foretell our death or future life. We are not independent, we are fully controlled by higher powers. The beginning of true knowledge is humility and pridelessness. Or, we can try to enjoy in the temporary illusion that we are the controllers of destiny.

Bill Engelhardt

Karen Buck (White)

Yes! And that service included washing the windows, checking the oil and water while waiting for the pump to fill the car with gas. What a change 55 years has made.

Gregg Wilson

So Tom,

A thinking question for you.

You stated that the sea level rose 300 to 400 feet when the last ice age melted.

In the Great Pyramid there is a Queen's Chamber, about 300 feet above the local terrain. Within the Queen's Chamber, the walls are encrusted with salt (NaCl).

Why?

Tom Chavez

Gregg, you got me. Does it have anything to do with this guy?

Tom Chavez

Kaṁsa's Forceful Power Stymied

When the baby girl cried, the guards awoke and informed Kaṁsa, who quickly arrived. Devakī begged him, “My dear brother, please do not kill this girl. The omen was that you are to be killed by a male child. I beg you to let her live as my daughter.”

With no pity for Devakī. Kaṁsa forcibly grabbed the newborn child and attempted to dash her on the stone. But she slipped from his hands and flew into the sky, transforming herself into the eight-armed sister of Viṣṇu. 

The goddess warned Kaṁsa, “You rascal, how can you kill me? The child who will kill you is already born elsewhere. Don’t be so cruel to your poor sister.” Then she disappeared.

Kaṁsa immediately released Vasudeva and Devakī and tearfully apologized, “I have acted like a demon and deserve to go to the hell. The celestial prophecy was fake news. But I believed it, and committed many atrocities. Please forgive me.”

Devakī calmed down and Vasudeva said, “My dear brother-in-law, we are all born ignorant and hence create enmity or friendship, thinking that the body is our self.” Vasudeva gently enlightened Kaṁsa, who felt relief from his guilt.