Polyphemus moth

                                          vectorimage

This Polyphemus moth was on the deck early one morning last summer.  The wing span was approximately five inches.

Benjaman Kyle

This is such a strange story.  The man has some memories of places he has been and activities he has engaged in, but no memories of people that he has interacted with.  He has spent time in the Denver and Boulder areas as well as Indianapolis, but he can not be identified.  He can not lead a normal life without a social security number and they won't give him one because chances are he already has one and you can't have two.

Howdy Doody

The first episode of Howdy Doody was aired on December 27, 1947.  The last show was September 24, 1960.

I had the opportunity to meet and talk to Buffalo Bob Smith about 15 years (?) ago.  When I told him that my mother told me I should grow up to be like Howdy rather than Mr. Bluster, he smiled and said, " your mother sounds like a smart woman".

Read more about Howdy Doody

Buddy Guy segment of the Kennedy Center awards 2012

iPad users click here to view the video

A video of the entire Buddy Guy segment from the 2012 Kennedy Center awards.  The video quality is not as good as the Led Zepplin segment, but the music still rocks.  What a outstanding group of musicians.

Led Zepplin segment at the 2012 Kennedy Center awards

iPad users click here to view the video

The 2012 Kennedy Center Awards ceremony was televised last night and while looking for the various artists and the numbers they did last night I found that there was a YouTube video of the entire segment.

I think it is evident that even they were moved by the performance of  Stairway to Heaven.

You might also enjoy the video of Led Zepplin's appearance on Late Night with David Letterman which took place sometime after the recording of the awards ceremony.

Summer Garden

There is a blizzard in the forecast.  The current conditions of wind and snow are reinforcing that prediction this morning.  It seems like an appropriate time to gaze back to a more favorable season.  That would be summer.

A long line of orange cosmos plants in our garden attracted a lot of insects including several varieties of butterflys.  The uncommonly beautiful Common Buckeyes were in attendance.  They are the ones with "eyes" on their wings.  Insects do not hold their pose very long. but with lots of exposures you can usually get some decent images.

You can view larger images by clicking on the ones displayed.

Radio Pants

Our family has a rather odd Christmas tradition that got its start over twenty years ago.  At the time Zach and Ben had a collection of small plastic figures that provided a lot of play time with each other.  These figures would sometimes be part of an elaborate array of props and story lines; at other times it would be just a couple of figures taken along to occupy the time while riding in the car.

One of Ben’s favorites was a figure he called Radio Pants.  Radio Pants went missing one day.  Everyone looked for him but it seemed he was lost.  Ben was disappointed. Occasionally there would be a renewed search, but he was not found.  It was the Christmas season and there were other distractions so the missing Radio Pants faded from our memory.

We have an artificial Christmas tree that spends most of its life packed away in two boxes that are stored above the garage with the other decorations.  Each year all the Christmas decorations are brought down and when the boys were small the excitement of the holidays usually began by assembling the tree and putting on the ornaments.

The year following the loss of Radio Pants was no exception in the routine of putting up the tree.  After placing the central “trunk” in its holder, the individual branches would be taken from the box and its twigs would be adjusted.  The color coding on the end of each branch would be checked and then it would be put into place.

During this process we came across Radio Pants clinging to one of the branches.  During their play the previous year he had evidently been placed in the tree.  We hadn’t thought to look for him there, or at least if we did, he went unnoticed.  We had a good laugh when Ben shouted, "Radio Pants"!!!

We were all happy to see him again and since the little group of plastic characters were no longer occupying the boys’ time we just left him on the tree.  He seemed perfectly happy to spend the holiday on the tree after being boxed up in the garage for a year.  When it came time to put the decorations away it was decided that Radio Pants would maintain his place on the branch and he was packed away with the tree and put above the garage.

That routine has been repeated for twenty three years.  Radio Pants emerges from the box along with his branch and spends the holidays with us.  He is a happy reminder of the many Christmas seasons we have spent together.  I look forward to seeing him each year and he doesn’t seem to mind the fact that he spends most of his life in a dark box.  I think he, like me, has to wonder how little boys can grow so quickly into men.

Merry Christmas, Radio Pants.

Merry Christmas

Peacock Spider

                                          mymodernmet.com

On a walk around the bush in Australia, entomologist Jurgen Otto came across a tiny insect he'd never come in contact with before- the Peacock Spider.  The arachnid, scientifically known as Maratus Volans, is a mere 5mm in size and is capable of quickly escaping a scene and jumping erratically.  Yet, what defiines the spider best is perhaps its unusual likeness to peacocks.

See additional images as well as a video of a male peacock spider cruising for chicks.

Ted Talks

A beautiful Ted Talks video The Secret Life of Plankton.   Get familiar with Ted.

Reaching way, way back...

.... to about 1975?  This was one of my students and he had one of the best Afros that I can remember.

Solo Piano, N.Y.C.

There appears to be an emerging music theme for the day.  A short, sweet, and perhaps sad documentary.

Little drummer boy

This video has made the rounds on the internet, but it still makes me smile.  Young musicians always make me smile, as they represent hope.  Honing musical skills is hard work.  A person has to wonder if a young musician will invest the time and have the opportunity necessary to be successful... but we can always hope.

Rock on, Jaxon

Google  provides more results for Jaxon

Road Warriors

                                          The Big Picture

Antti Rahko stands next to his self-made "Finnjet" during preparations for the Essen Motor Show in Essen, Germany on November 22, 2012.  The car rolls on eight wheels, offers ten seats, weighs 3.4 tons and is worth about one million US dollars

                                                     reblogged from thisisnthappiness

It's a trap

                                          vectorimage

                                         

Gone fishing

LifeFormations is a company based in Bowling Green, Ohio.  We are an art and animatronics studio.  I work with them in a part time position.  Our work can be found around the world.

This video is from the 2012 IAAPA show in Orlando.  If you should find yourself in Key West you can go to Ripley’s Believe It or Not and see the fisherman and his supporting cast in person.

You can stay in touch with LifeFormations by reading our blog, following us on Twitter or liking us on Facebook.

This video will not play on mobile devices.  It has nothing to do with LifeFormations but rather some strange twist on music copyright 

Sexy staircase

                                    

In the court yard of an office complex in Munich, Germany.  One of the ten most sexy staircases from Architizer blog.

Serious Duo

                                                           vectorimage

Cute 50 year old

Came across this Ford Falcon in a Cincinnati parking lot today.  It was quite nice throughout and the for sale sign said it was a 51,000 mile example.  Asking price?  $13,500.

Archived Vector images

Thanks to the ease of manipulating and storing digital images I have accumulated a goodly number of photos over the past few years.  I plan on posting the ones that I like in hopes that you might enjoy them as well.

A few years ago a work assignment took me to Jacksonville.  This gentleman and his dog were enjoying the day cruising the neighborhood.

                                          vectorimage

Taking trash picking to a higher level

Recycle.  Reuse.  Refreshing.  

The road is long.........

                                                     reblogged from thisisnthappiness

Skywalkers

Skywalking is a popular adventure with Russian youth.  Mymodernmet.com is a blog that can be counted on to supply beautiful images.

View more stomach turning images!

Young bonobo

Bonobos are members of the chimpanzee family.  They are found in central Africa's Congo Basin in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  The females give birth on average every five years and nurse/carry their young for four years.

Wikipedia will be happy to provide more information on the bonobo.

This image if from The Big Picture at Boston.com.  It was taken by Graham McGeorge and submitted to the National Geographic photo contest.





I have been threatening to start a blog for quite some time, but never really put the idea in motion.  The threat becomes reality today; December 12, 2012.

I have started blogs before to document work/travel experiences, but once the trip was over the blogging stopped.  I hope to make this blog a regular part of my routine.

I would assume that I will post a goodly number of images and videos.  However, since there really isn’t a destination in mind I can’t really say with any certainty where we will end up.

I think this is going to be my alternative to Facebook.  I have been on Facebook for several years and have thought about leaving for the last year or so.  I don’t like what it has become.  It has way too much of a Big Brother feel for me.  I will decide the level of privacy I will enjoy and post accordingly.  Facebook has provided the opportunity for me to reconnect with people who would have otherwise been lost to me.  So while I will maintain my account at Facebook this will be the place I share my experiences.

Welcome to Vectorville !