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My stephen Hawking book finally arrived at the local library. Not wanting to have to request it a second time (or, heaven forbid, buy it), I'm in the process of scanning the entire book onto a CD. So far I've only read the first chapter, and it's not covering anything that wasn't in the first book, but I've peeked into later chapters and it looks like interesting stuff. Hawking, or someone on his team, decided that books would make more sense if they had lots of pictures. The new book is extensively and creatively illustrated, but I can't help thinking how well the first book explained things without all the graphics. Early on in this book, Hawking admitted that the first two chapters of the first book turned people off, and many read no further. I've met a few people who have told me that they stopped reading after the first chapter, so I could relate. I probably got through those first two chapters mainly because I had paid for the book and wanted to get my money's worth. At any rate, I found the book to be a real eye-opener, without tagging on an insulting title like "The Universe for Dummies". The "Dummies" label really does apply to me, but it's still off-putting. For the record, Hawking's books are: A Brief History of Time While at the Library, I picked up a couple recent issues of Fine Woodworking Magazine. That's something else I'll scan to CD, which is one of the original reasons for wanting a CDR and scanner in the first place. Ideally, I'll end up with a ready reference of CDs chock full of things that interest me. I've even found complete books online through Morpheus. Most are in PDF format. This could put parchment mites on the endangered list. * Friday, December 21, 2001
Miranda, I responded to your email, but you probably won't get it until you get back to work. Hope it helps, Jeff * Thursday, December 20, 2001
Long day. I was on intake today at work. The local media has been running stories about our kids, so we got a lot of calls today, including two from people who wanted to have a foster child over for Christmas dinner. For the record, we don't do that. Over all, we got more than the usual number of people willing to take older kids, so it was a good day. I had planned to sail this Saturday, but the chances of rain are increasing. This morning they predicted a 70% chance. Other sources said 80%. Yes, I'm still tinkering with Flash, but don't expect anything major here until I do somemthing really worthwhile. I don't have much time to mess with it right now. * Wednesday, December 19, 2001
It’s 9:55 PM and I’m just getting back from work. I attended the annual Christmas party for the adoption kids. There were about three dozen or so kids there and several potential adoptive parents. It was a skate party at a local rink. The kids seemed to have a good time. One child, “A”, came to sit with me and a couple who were hoping to adopt. She was very precocious and told the couple that she was eleven years old, going on twelve. I hadn’t met “A” before, but I had seen her pictures and knew that she was eight. I joked with her about it until she admitted her real age. She didn’t understand. An adoption event is no place to pretend to be older. She was definitely playing to a younger-is-better audience. Then there was “C”. The last time I saw “C” I was her caseworker, and she was in diapers. Now she’s in her teens, a half head taller than I, and still in foster care. I hope she does well. I didn’t bother to introduce myself to her. Maybe she doesn’t even know she had a caseworker when she was so young. Why point it out . I remember bringing my post-hole digger to her house to install a new mailbox in her front yard so they could get their food stamps. The next time I went to the house the mailbox was gone. C’s father ripped it out so the family couldn’t get to the food stamps without him. He needed some degree of control. The party ended with Santa and lots of gifts and new bicycles. It was a pretty good event and I hope it was a success. * Tuesday, December 18, 2001
I just got off the phone with Katherine, the wildlife lady. She drove out to the spot where the owl was, and it was gone. She searched the roadside and later called around to other wildlife rescue people to see if anyone had picked it up. No one had seen it. I could have handled it better if I'd only known what to do. She told me that I could have covered the owl with a towel, which would make it more docile (though it looked pretty dazed to begin with), then pick it up. She said to tell people to do that, then either contact a wildlife rescue pro, or call the local Wildlife and Fisheries office. Leaving it on the roadside increases the possibiliity that Bubba would come along and pick up a nice trophy for himself. She was encouraged by the fact that she saw no blood or feathers. This increased the odds that he had been dazed by a brush with a vehicle and needed some quiet time to recover. She said that birds recover quickly from concussions. One warning. If you come across a dead owl or hawk, you can get in serious trouble for taking it home. Even possession of a feather can land you in hot water with the law. She said that the law is a bit extreme, even for her taste, but it helps keep the birds in the air. Last time I went sailing, we saw bald eagles flying overhead. That's the payoff! * Monday, December 17, 2001
Busy, Busy week! During the holidays we seem to always be visiting. For unpopular people, we get our share of social engagements this time of year. After working Saturday (again), we went to Shane's for dinner. He and Linda were gracious hosts and we had a very nice time. They have turned their back yard into a small botanical garden. They lit a fire and candles on the patio and we had a great time. Linda's brother Randy demonstrated his latest project. He had built a remote control model airboat. Real airboats are used around here quite a bit. They have the ability to move over land as well as water. Randy cranked the motor and sent the thing zooming all around the yard. It worked great until it hit Janice's car and jarred something loose (on the boat, not the car). We got home around midnight and set the alarm for a full day on Sunday. Sunday we had my uncle's family over for dinner. They drove in from Baton Rouge and brought the extended family. There were their two daughters, the daughters' husbands, and two children, one of whom is my godchild. After a few hours of lively conversation, good food (crawfish etoufee) and digital photography, they gathered up the kids and headed back across the swamp to Capital City, USA. After they left, we got in the car and headed to Wilda's for her party, it was winding down when we got there, so the atmosphere was relaxed. When we left there, it was almost 7 PM and we were beat. Neither of us wanted to fall asleep so early, so Janice watched TV while I messed around on the computer until bedtime. Today, I had my monthly public meeting for Iberia Parish people who want to be foster parents. Afterward, on the road back to my office, I spotted a large owl on the side of the road. It didn't look dead, so I made a U-turn to get a closer look. I got out of the truck and approached it. It didn't seem to notice that I was there. I could tell it was alive, because it straightened up when the wind blew it. He never opened his eyes. This isn't the first time we've dealt with owls in distress. When we lived on the bayou, we had a large owl whose leg was in a trap. It had carried the trap to a high branch of a cypress tree, but could not go any farther. We called the local wildlife rehab enthusiast, a young girl in her 20's, who came to the rescue. As luck would have it, this woman still lives at the same address, so she was easy to find today. I gave her directions and she says she'll let me know what happens. One more holiday gathering tonight, at a co-worker's house. Just a little get-togeter, but I'm looking forward to it because her husband is an accomplished portrait artist and I've been wanting to see his studio. * Archives |