The camera featured in y’day’s post has a history, which I certainly looked up. Didn’t everybody? This is the first “space photo”. The originals (October 24, 1946) were taken by a motion picture camera slowed down to one frame in 1.5 seconds. The camera shown y’day is not damaged by age, rather it was allowed to crash back to earth along with the V-2 rocket payload. The film survived in the steel canister behind the lens housing. Most of the other screws and cabinet parts were removed from the camera to save weight which might explain how it got so banged up. Clouds were considered a nuisance.
It is now 9:30 AM and the heat is baking the east side of my building. I’m outta here. Not before I made a spicy turkey soup, soon to become a stew. I like turkey because carrots taste better when boiled in the broth. Try it. The old wive’s tale that carrots help you see in the dark is a WWII falsehood to mislead the German’s about British night radar accuracy. Good move, for carrots were never rationed and were in such surplus the tonnage allocated for animal feed was dyed purple to prevent sale to humans. Here’s a carrot museum in England with all you need to know, carrot-wise.
Miami’s looking at a car-share program. For once, I say they are thinking. The urban density has changed in the decade I’ve been here. The mini-cars are licensed and insured. You drive the car until done, then park at any designated spot and walk away. The next user finds the nearest car on his cell phone and drives away. I have no doubt they will vastly overcharge for the service but it will still be cheaper than owning a vehicle and getting gouged every day.
Myself, I don’t have a bicycle-share program. I once developed a redneck anti-joyriding bike alarm system. While you might think this would only work in the pitch dark, I swear to you this alarm is kid-brother-tested and did the job faithfully year after year. It works on not only on deterrence, but, if you sit back and listen, on sound as well. Shown here is a faithful reproduction of the original.You’ve heard me mention Artie’s, the pub. Artie died, I never met the guy. But I’ve been to the pub a few times so my condolences. All this happened y’day, mind you, as my source is currently in the Caribbean. Artie’s was locally famous for not changing a thing in 50 years. Like no live bands, no female waiters and open 23 hours per day. Wallace and I went there a couple years back at 4:00 AM when he got off the airplane.
To the blonde lady with the white Apple in the library. I saw you watching me, I saw you impressed by my handwriting and the books on my table. But I saw the ring, even if it is meaningless. I saw you look at ten other tables with single men before you sat down here. Under the circumstances, you weren't near pretty enough so you could have at least smiled. The answer would have been yes.
The morning off, since even the bakery is closed Mondays. But in case I never mentioned, they give me free poppy seed or cheese pastries to take home so I am as absolutely comfortable as possible every day of the week. I’ll miss them. See below for trip details.
News has it Fedzilla is planning to seize guitars at this summer’s rock concerts. So far, country guitars are safe. Guys, none of this surprises me, I’ve seen the same types of laws in other countries long ago. They are going in with SWAT teams and shotguns. At a rock concert that is just looking for trouble. Andrea Johnson accused Gibson of using wood obtained “illegally”. After the raid she apologized stating she had meant “legally”. Oops, my bad.
Andrea, we’re so sorry your rock guitar boyfriend dumped you for a groupie half your age. And that’s an old picture of her. These days she looks like maybe she’s been spending too much time facing upstream in the rain forest.
ADDENDUM
In general, trip planning should be easier today with available computerized tools. Ha, that’s a laugh. Even the AAA home page begins by suggesting it is a good idea to have enough money for gas and don’t expect everyone to speak English--good advice for those heading to San Diego. Or how about them Google map roadside attractions (shown here)? Anyone for a fun afternoon at the gravel pit? “Daddy, Daddy, there’s a sewage treatment facility!”
Colorado is now planned to the intermediate stages. I enjoy planning ahead. While the trip is spontaneous, the logistics are not. I allow generous hours every day for the unexpected. One complaint I have is that most places along the road don’t put their signs out where I have time enough to both decide and decelerate. It’s rare I’ll go up to the next u-turn and come back. What say you to the prospect of taking a $681 scooter on a 5,000 trek to the mid-west? I say don’t discount the idea. As the money rolls in, every possible breakdown including replacing the whole vehicle remains the most economical way to travel. I will need wheels when I get there and I’ve already considered another electric bike. The scooter isn’t the only plan. I had originally wanted to buy that sidecar but somebody else came up with the money.
My history shows that I will drive more than ten hours a day to get past turf I’ve already seen, then slow down. Top scooter speed of 40 mph makes a leisurely jaunt through the woods. After my semi-famous Trip Across America in 1999, I no longer drive the Interstates. They’ve become nothing but truck routes under constant repair.
Making the assumption it will be a motorcycle trip, the amount of gear packed becomes important. I calculate the average scooter to motorcycle speed would creep up to nearly 55 mph, comparable to a car ride. While I like camping, I don’t like pitching camp. And even then, I zip into town every third day anyway. Motel, hot shower, and meal for not much more than the campgrounds charge nowadays.
Today I focus on the route. I insist on four lanes as speeders are constantly passing. Large scale maps are expensive, so I am looking at GPS for the first time since my canceled motorcycle tour of Australia in 1997. Is there a smart phone that mounts on a scooter dash? They have a GPS app but I instantly balk at the two-year contract. The dominant model is Apple, so I’ll be taking a much closer look on that basis alone.
