Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Darwin’s Dangerous Idea – a book review


“Darwin’s Dangerous Idea” by Daniel C. Dennett is a fantastic book but definitely not for the faint of heart. The book is almost 600 pages long and written in a style that requires college-level analysis to understand. My review can hardly do it justice but hopefully it might encourage you to check it out of the library for a couple of weeks of interesting reading.

Dennett, a foremost philosopher of our time and professor of Cognitive Studies at Tufts University in Massachusetts, says, “Charles Darwin’s fundamental idea [expressed in “Origin of the Species” in 1859] has inspired intense reactions ranging from ferocious condemnation to ecstatic allegiance, sometimes tantamount to religious zeal…. Almost no one is indifferent to Darwin, and no one should be…. Darwin’s dangerous idea cuts much deeper into the fabric of our most fundamental beliefs than many of its sophisticated apologists have yet admitted, even to themselves.” He goes on further to state, “The fundamental core of contemporary Darwinism…is now beyond dispute among scientists. It demonstrates its power every day, contributing crucially to the explanation of planet-sized facts of geology… down to the latest microscopic facts of genetic engineering. It unifies all of biology and the history of our planet into a single grand story.”

I will have to get my own copy of this book because there were so many good quotes that I wanted to underline or highlight but I thought the library might take a dim view of such actions. Dennett takes the time to carefully explain what Darwin’s theory is and what it is not. He chastises those who have tried to “defend” the theory by packaging it in more palatable form and creating a new, non-defensible theory when the original was just fine. In fact, Dennett believes that all the attacks on Darwin’s theory has simply made it hardier, more robust.

In the process of explaining Darwinism, Dennett describes how it covers so many more areas than just biology. Language, culture, “memes”, and even mathematics are explained through natural selection as well. What we’re left with is a richer appreciation for nature and the “tree of life” than we might have had with the mythical explanations that have come to us through religion.

Religion is treated respectfully by Dennett. However, he classes religion with wild and dangerous animals. Kept in a zoo cage or on a preserve, the lion should be allowed to live so that future generations can appreciate the animal. But we cannot tolerate saving the animal in his natural habitat “at any cost” which may entail the death of humans or loss of other, more valuable opportunities. Likewise, religion (if it behaves itself) can be valuable for study and observation. But it cannot be allowed to exist in its wild state where human rights are made secondary to dogma, where human sacrifice or murder is condoned or even encouraged. Even those who, under the guise of religion, misinform children about the truths of evolution, should be condemned as much as would someone who advocated teaching that the earth is flat. The future of our world depends on our children being taught reality as it has been discovered.

Dennett ends the book by claiming that Darwinism can best be described as the Beast in the story Beauty and the Beast. While having a form that appears dangerous and frightening, Darwin’s dangerous idea is really a powerful defender of the truths and values we cherish. Excellent but challenging book.

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Car of the week


With Carolyn traveling almost every week, she's had a great opportunity to try out a lot of different cars. This week it is the Chevrolet Malibu 4-door hatchback. It happens to be fully loaded with a great sound system, power locks, cruise control, etc. When you're going to be driving a couple hundred miles to your destination, you want something that has a few creature comforts.

Carolyn has had a chance to take big SUV's and vans as well as the smaller cars. Whenever three or four are traveling together, it just makes sense to get the larger vehicles because of the luggage. She and her colleagues almost always use rental cars rather than drive their own car and claim mileage.

It is actually cheaper for the state as well. Last week I rented a car to drive myself and three others from the regional center to Redding and not only did I feel better about whether we'd have any car troubles, I figure I saved the regional center at least $50 by using a rental car.

Monday, May 29, 2006

Decoration Day

Interesting how holidays have a way of changing throughout the years. My early recollection of Memorial Day was that it was just as often called Decoration Day and was the day to visit both the Lehi and American Fork cemeteries. I don't recall any connection with honoring veterans who had died serving their country. That was left more to Veteran's Day in November. Instead, it was a time to gather up all the flowers around the house and all the quart jars with chipped rims and number 10 cans or old tomato juice cans. We five kids would dress in our best school clothes and hop in the car for a real day of visiting.

The drive from Springville to American Fork was a good hour's drive at least because there was no freeway between the two towns. At first we didn't even have a car radio but that was a bonus because Dad would lead us all in singing with his wonderful baritone voice. We'd often stop at Grandma's house in American Fork before proceeding up to the cemetery. At Grandma's we'd gather even more flowers and containers.

At the cemetery, we'd clean up any old rusted cans and throw out flowers that had wilted there. We kids would try to remember where each of the family plots was and who was buried in which plot. Most of the headstones were very readable but there were a couple that mysteriously had only a date of a cryptic inscription of "Baby". Cousins, aunts, and uncles would start arriving from all over the valley and we'd have a mini-family reunion right there in the cemetery.

We would, of course, want to docrate the graves that meant the most to us and want to put as many flowers on each grave as possible. But we had to hold back because we still had the graveyard in Lehi to visit. Soon, we were piling back in the car and heading to the neighboring town where we repeated the decorating process while meeting and greeting relatives from the other side of the family.

After what seemed like hours, the adults would finally realize that us kids were bored out of our wits. We'd then go back into town or back to American Fork to eat with some relative or we might even find a park and have a picnic.

Decoration Day is one of the things our kids missed out on because we moved to California to raise our family and traveling 12 hours to decorate graves was just never part of our plans. We didn't have any graves or even that many living relatives in California to make it a day of remembrance or family gettogethers.

Sunday, May 28, 2006

There's hope after all

I went to the doctor recently for a half-dozen (probably imagined) ailments. As a result the doctor ordered some lab tests which I apparently successfully passed. I was very impressed with Kaiser's new system of emailing patients with a notice that the lab results are available and providing a link to see your lab results on their website.

Just in case the patient is not computer literate, Kaiser also mails out the results. What really made me feel good this time was the inclusion with the results of a lab slip for follow-up tests with the notation "Please continue your medicine and do a repaeat blood test in 1 year. Lab slip attached." This shows me that (1) the doctor thinks I'm healthy enough that I'll be around another year, (2) the doctor thinks my health is stable enough that he really doesn't expect to see me before another year, and (3) the doctor thinks my memory is good enough that I'll actually remember a year from now that I have to do this lab test and I'll be able to find the slip ordering the test.

With confidence like that from my doctor, how can I help but not be positive about the next year!

Saturday, May 27, 2006

Grandkid fix

Although we were tired from the Jazz Jubilee, we hadn't had our grandkid fix for a number of days. So we stopped and pestered the kids and grandkids for a couple of hours.

Tim was helping his dad plant a garden in the back yard. It's been such a wet spring that gardens are going in a little later than normal this year.


Jake was doing his part in the watering but it was more playing with the hose than actually getting the plants watered.



Tiffany had just finished Tim's costume for an upcoming dance performance which will have an oceanic theme - hence the blue colors and the wave-like streamers. Tim gave us a little impromptu tap dance show with his new costume.


And Chuck decided he would watch the show from the comfort of the couch and blanket.

Jazz Jubilee

This post is a little later than I had hoped. Sorry about that.

As we have in previous years, Carolyn and I volunteered to help with the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee which is always held on Memorial Day weekend. This is good because it is easy to plan for but sometimes inconvenient because this weekend is such a good time for others to schedule family gettogethers or neighborhood barbecues. Last year, for example, it interferred with our plans for attending university graduation exercises for two of our children. We chose graduation, of course, but it did mean that we needed to find substitutes for the Jubilee.



We actually have a very nice assignment - inside the Sheraton Grand Hotel. The Grand Nave is located on the bottom floor of the hotel. There are several stories about why it is called the Grand Nave. Nave is the name of the central portion of a church and comes from the Latin root meaning "ship". But this ballroom looks anything like a ship or a church. It is large enough for about 400 - 500 people to enjoy a band and have room for a couple of small dance floors on either side of the stage.



Our role is usually quite modest. This year we were posted outside one of the entrances and scanned the badges or wristbands worn by the people who wanted to attend one of the concerts. With tickets costing from $50 a day to $95 for the whole weekend, it is pretty important that we keep people honest. We generally work a 5 hour shift and then have the rest of the day to attend other concerts/events of the Jubilee.



Although it is easier than working the parking lots, it is still exhausting answering all the questions, directing people to the restrooms, and listening to the constant beat of the music. I'm afraid I like my peace and quiet too much to enjoy so much loud music in a day.

Thursday, May 25, 2006

Just another crackpot

I received this from an old friend:


An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the end of a pole which she carried across her neck.

One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments.

But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.

"I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."

The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?"

"That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them."

"For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."



Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.

You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

So, to all of my crackpot friends and family, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path.

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

“Throw away” technology

As much as I’m impressed by the rapid advance in technology, I’m impressed by the move toward “throw away” technology – the idea that it is cheaper and more efficient to simply replace something rather than fix it. Upgrading used to mean making some minor modifications to a piece of equipment but now it is just as likely (or even more likely) to mean replacement of the entire equipment.



A case in point. A few days ago I commented about how much telephone and ATM technology has removed the human element in our transactions with tellers and operators. When doing a little research for that piece I came upon the fact that early telephone switches were designed to “fail 2 hours every 40 years”. Nowadays, we’d probably never state something in those terms because we can’t imagine a piece of equipment being in place for 40 years. Our modern computers are every bit as reliable, maybe even more so as solid state components are usually more reliable than mechanical switches, but we tend to think in terms of days or months.

Today our agency began swapping out the cell phones that various people in the organization have to do their jobs. The reason isn’t that the phones aren’t working. They are showing their age with scratches and such. But the real reason is that our contract calls for a replacement phone every two years. The phone company has planned for the obsolescence so they don’t have to be supporting and maintaining equipment years after it has been placed into service.



The new phones come with features that were cutting edge two years ago but are commonplace now. Things such as backgrounds, animated opening sequences, camera and calendar features. The phone representative explained that they won’t sell phones on contracts like ours that are “end of life” phones. Those will be wholesaled out to retailers who will sharply discount them. She explained that the “end of life” phones will work perfectly fine for another 3 or 4 years but they won’t be maintained in the same fashion as the “current” phones.

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Backyard critters


One of the things we really like about our back yard is the little critters that we interact with (in a very limited way) there. Here's a series of photos I took while sitting on our patio reading the paper. This little squirrel didn't seem to mind that I was watching him as he fence-hopped from the back neighbor's tree to the apple tree in the neighbor's yard to our north. He would stop every 5 or 6 feet to see if anything really threatening had come into view but obviously I wasn't any threat to him.






Monday, May 22, 2006

Oh say can you sing?

We have an interesting situation with our ward choir right now. We're skating right on the edge of having enough people to sing four part songs and there isn't much of a core group. From week to week different members come to rehearsal. You can practice with one group of people for several weeks and then when it comes the Sunday to perform the practiced piece, an entirely different (and unrehearsed) choir shows up.

I'm having probably the most difficult time I've ever had in choir. For one thing, I have been moved to the bass section because I can no longer hit the high notes required of tenors. Also, all our longstanding basses have left us and just because I'm assigned to sing bass doesn't mean I can hit those low notes. I know where they are but when I try to sing them, only a whisper of sound comes out.

Probably even harder on me, though, is not having anyone to help me stay on pitch. No, its worse than that. I have two men who seem to be doing all they can to get me off pitch. One of them usually sings monotone or random notes so he is the easier to ignore. The other usually sings the melody (an octave or two lower than written) modified by some random interval so that he doesn't even harmonize with the melody, let alone with the bass part. I think there's some hope there because when we sing the bass part only he can hear our part and will sometimes follow along. The other fellow still sings randomly or monotone is such situations. Each of their voices is stronger than mine in the lower ranges so I can't even hope to outsing them. I just try to sing on pitch as best I can hoping that I'm at least not contribuing to the chaos.

Sunday, May 21, 2006

Man or machine

In the space of a few short years I’ve seen our society become much more trusting of machines, at least with certain transactions. I’m old enough to remember having to place all phone calls through an operator and all banking operations through a teller.
I remember the first ATM machines installed outside of banks and savings & loans. Banks gave incentives for customers to use the ATMs rather than go inside to get teller assistance. The banks knew the increased efficiency that came from letting machines do what machines do best and letting humans take care of the exceptions.

I was reminded of this change in our society when, just this week, I used ATMs or similar machines to deposit checks, withdraw cash, and pay for parking. I used the Internet to check on flight status, reserve a rental car, check my library account to see if any books were overdue, renew several library books, place a library book on hold, check my bank balance and transfer funds between accounts, pay several bills, and most recently make a reservation at a local restaurant. In each case I could have continued to use the phone or a face to face transaction (except maybe the bill paying) but I chose the automated method because of ease of use and trust that the transaction would be handled correctly. In fact, I’d like to think that our increasing dependence on machine-handled transactions is a tribute to excellent machine design rather than poor human performance in those transactions. But it does point out the importance of providing excellent human performance in those areas where it still can happen.

Saturday, May 20, 2006

Seussical the Musical - a review


Although we've been going to the Davis Musical Theater Center for several years now, we have not until today attended one of their "children's" productions. But when went to "The Wizard of Oz" a couple of weeks ago with our grandchildren Tim and Jake, Tiffany suggested that "Seussical" would be another show the boys would be interested in. She even sprang for the tickets.


And I must say that it was well worth the afternoon. It was a "children's" performance if only because most of the parts were filled by children, or at lest teens. But there were some older teens that might have actually been young adults. The Wizard of Oz cast wasn't much older. Everyone handled their parts professionally, though. Some of the singers could have used microphones as their words were occasionally drowned out by the small live orchestra. The musical itself, which I had not seen before, was absolutely a delightful tribute to Dr. Suess even though there were almost no lines exactly as Theodor Geisel actually penned. Even the stories were mixed and smooshed but in a way that I'm sure the good doctor would have enjoyed. The Cat in the Hat was the center of the production but other well-known characters were there like Horton, Mayze, Gertrude, the Star-bellied Sneetches, and the town of Whoville.


Thanks for a good afternoon's entertainment.

Friday, May 19, 2006

Not just your ordinary typical

We had a presentation at work today on Pervasive Developmental Disorders which include things like Autism and Asperger Syndrome. Many of the consumers we work with have these disorders. Among the many things I learned is the term "neurotypical". It is so wonderful that I finally have a diagnosis that explains the way I am.

From the website of the Institute for the Study of the Neurologically Typical we read the following:

What Is NT?
Neurotypical syndrome is a neurobiological disorder characterized by preoccupation with social concerns, delusions of superiority, and obsession with conformity.

Neurotypical individuals often assume that their experience of the world is either the only one, or the only correct one. NTs find it difficult to be alone. NTs are often intolerant of seemingly minor differences in others. When in groups NTs are socially and behaviorally rigid, and frequently insist upon the performance of dysfunctional, destructive, and even impossible rituals as a way of maintaining group identity. NTs find it difficult to communicate directly, and have a much higher incidence of lying as compared to persons on the autistic spectrum.

NT is believed to be genetic in origin. Autopsies have shown the brain of the neurotypical is typically smaller than that of an autistic individual and may have overdeveloped areas related to social behavior.

How Common Is It?
Tragically, as many as 9625 out of every 10,000 individuals may be neurotypical.

Are There Any Treatments For NT?
There is no known cure for Neurotypical Syndrome.

This site also has some valuable resources such as

The definition according to the recognized Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Normal Disorders: 666.00 Neurotypic Disorder

What You Can Do If Someone You Know is NT

and even Understanding the Humor of Parody

Hope you enjoy this as much as I did. Autism and related disorders are serious problems that society is addressing much better than it did just a few years ago. But it is wonderful when people who have to deal with such difficulties can still take time to have a little fun by "turning the tables" on the rest of us.

For a more serious look at Autism check out this movie.

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Government Technology Conference


There's a computer show in town. I used to really love going to these computer shows. Not only were there lots of new gadgets that I'd heard about but never seen, sometimes they had brand new product announcments. Vendors would do everything they could think of to bring in the crowds to their booths. Of course, the best were live presentations of their new software or hardware that really was going to make a difference in your life but magic shows, puppet shows, even the occasional celebrity signing were also fun.


And the giveaways! I could pick up enough toys and gadgets to keep the kids busy for days. There were frisbees, yoyos, balls, hats, t-shirts, playing cards, toy animals, things that went pop or whirrr or wizz or lit up but had no other real purpose in life. The biggest problem I had coming back from shows like that was getting enough toys to distribute to all the kids at home and a bag large enough to hold all the loot and the computer literature as well.


At the Government Technology Conference going on at the Sacramento Convention Center right now, the demonstrations were modest, there weren't any shows that I could see, and the giveaways consisted of Halloween-sized candy and ball point pens. Insight, the vendor pictured above had about a 20 minute line waiting for a turn at spinning the wheel to get a hat, pen, or flashdrive, none of which were enticing enough to get me to listen to their sales spiel.

Let's hear it for the good ol' days.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

It's Howdy Doody time!


I saw one of those "human interest" news announcements this morning that Clarabell the Clown had died. Clarabell was a regular on the Howdy Doody show during the 13 years the show was on the air. However, he was played by three different men during this time, the first one being Bob Keeshan who went on to play the role of Captain Kangaroo for many years. The Clarabell who just died at age 84 was Lew Anderson, the last Clarabell for the series.

Those of you old enough to remember the series will remember that Clarabell was mute, having only a bicycle air horn (the kind with the rubber bulb you squeeze) to communicate. It was always great fun to watch the kids in the Peanut Gallery (yes, that was what the audience was called) trying to explain to Buffalo Bob was Clarabell was trying to say with his horn. Buffalo Bob was always close enough while off the mark to keep the kids trying. Everyone was so convinced that Clarabell was unable to speak that it was a shock at the end of the final show when he turned to the TV audience and said, "Good-bye, kids."

As I recall the show never had re-runs so if you missed an episode, you missed it for good. I can't begin to count the number of hours I watched Howdy Doody or how many of the show's 2,543 episodes I saw but I know it was a significant part of my childhood. Makes you wonder how much of my philosophy of life might have come from Buffalo Bob, Howdy Doody, Princess Summerfall Winterspring, Phinius T. Bluster, or even Clarabell the Clown.

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

Bumper stickers

I've never been especially fond of decorating my car with bumper stickers. For one thing, they tend to be time sensitive such as the one reading "Redefeat Bush in 2004". After November 2, it would have been totally out of place. And they're usually so hard to remove.

But when my son Lee came up with this bumper sticker, I really liked it. It is timeless because we will always have families and they'll always come in different flavors and configurations. And they'll always need our support. Interestinly, I've had several people comment on the sticker and two ask where they can buy one. I think Lee needs to consider marketing it.

Monday, May 15, 2006

Don't believe everything you see

I thought it was about time for some fun on this blog. Here are some interesting examples of how your mind can easily get confused by what you see and experience. These illustrations are all pretty straightforward but sometimes not what they seem.








This last example will pit your left brain against your right brain - unless you're color blind.

Sunday, May 14, 2006

Tomato report - 2 weeks

Several of you have asked for progress reports on our upside down tomatoes.

These are the Beefsteak tomatoes planted close to the patio and in full sun from mid-day until late afternoon. The picture on the left was the day of transplanting the two seedlings. The picture on the right is two weeks later.


















These are the Better Boy tomatoes planted at the back corner of the house and getting a little less sunlight at this time. Later in summer it will probably get slightly more sunlight. Again the picture on the left is the day of transplanting while the picture on the right is two weeks later.












As you can see, the tomatoes are healthy and growing well although perhaps a bit frustrated with their current orientation. The branches that are more than 12 inches long are having no problem as they are completely out of the shade of the container.

Saturday, May 13, 2006

Quartely Book Sale

Today was the quarterly book sale for the Friends of the Sacramento Public Library, an organization that we joined about a year and a half ago.
One of the main fundraising activities of the Friends is selling used books at ridiculously low prices. We used to have an annual sale in some city parks and recreation space next to one of the uptown libraries but the hassle of moving books from a warehouse to the library/parks space for the sale and back again afterward just got too much to handle. So we decided to skip the moving and just hold the sale at the warehouse.
As you can see we had thousands of books on sale for 50 cents to $2 each. All the space in the warehouse was filled with tables which were filled with books and boxes of books were stored under each table, enough to completely replace the books on top 2 or 3 times as they were sold.
There were also hundreds of people scooping up and buying 2 books to 200 books. I tallied up the book bill for one customer who was buying 171 books but some of my colleagues did even better with some customers carting away 10 or 15 boxes of books.
I was supposed to be a cashier but they needed talliers even more, especially when we got very busy. The people who were keeping track of the sales indicated that we'll probably bring in $15,000 for the weekend. At $0.50 to $2 a book, that's a lot of books.

The Friends will then turn around and donate the money to the library for Childrens Programs (clowns, magic show, readers, poets, etc.), literacy programs, and books and materials. I think it's a worthwhile cause.

Friday, May 12, 2006

Future clarity (more or less)

When I was reassigned as a Project Manager at work last year, one of my prime responsibilities was to shepherd the implementation of CADDIS, the California Developmentally Disabilties Information System, for which the state had spent something like $20 million in hard costs. There have been at least that much in in-kind costs spent by the Department of Developmental Services (DDS) and the 21 regional centers in the state.

In December, an independent assessment of the project reported that there were serious enough problems that the project should be put on hold while DDS and Department of Finance, and other stakeholders reviewed the situation. Suddenly, a deadline of a March 20, 2006 implementation for our center was no longer there. That was a relief but also a big question mark for my future. Other projects have come my way and I have been busy enough. But the question of CADDIS was very much up in the air.

Although DDS put the project on hold, they cannot unilaterally begin again because of the significant costs involved. They along with the Department of Finance are now recommending some additional studies and evaluations as well as a complete revamping of the roll-out plan including training of 5,800 regional center employees. These additional costs would amount to something like $15 million for the contractor and $20 million for state and regional center employees. If these additional studies confirm that it makes sense for CADDIS to proceed, regional centers will again be tooling up for implementation which will take place in early 2008.

So, the future clarity is that I will have little to do with CADDIS for at least another year. The unclarity is, of course, that with $35 million on the table, the legislature may still have second thoughts about going ahead with CADDIS at all. I'm not at all sure how many special projects the regional center can afford for me to get involved with but it looks like I'll have the time.

Thursday, May 11, 2006

You're going to myth me when I'm gone

It looks like I won't win the prize for best title on the Anthropology term papers this semester. That honor will probably go to the person whose title adorns this blog entry. The same person was also the high scorer in the class tests and term paper. As a prize he won this tile trivet:

Regarding the anthropology class, it has certainly been one of the better classes I've taken at American River College. It filled in a segment of my education that I purposely (but foolishly) left open when I was in college the first time. The class was specifically about Archaeology and could best be described as a survey in that it covered a lot of territory but only superficially. It could have been as dry as the bones described in the text were it not for Professor Kristina Casper-Denman and her efforts at entertaining us and keeping us awake until 9 pm each Thursday. She projects a passion for the subject, a quick wit, a tough exterior and a phony "couldn't care less" attitude about students. She, in fact, does care about the students and the students care about her. They all seem to enjoy the banter and the put-downs that make her a favorite, almost a peer of the students. She has a following of loyal groupies that any teacher would be envious of.

I have new-found respect for the science of Archaeology, ironically one of the newest sciences, still struggling to make itself respectable. Technology is making it easier to catalog and discover archaeological artifacts at the same time that population growth and expanding development is making it more important that we capture information about past civilizations before they're forever lost. Archaeologist themselves are torn between the desire to study and know everything there is to know about the archaeological record while at the same time respecting the cultural customs and sacred practices of those who are descendants from the people who once inhabited such record sites. Archaeologists want to balance the record. History is written by the winners while archaeology is more evenhanded, representing as it does both the winners and the losers.

So I'm wondering again as I have after every enjoyable class, what can I take next semester that won't be a let down? Stay tuned.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Top coat

Like a good make-up job for an actor or a good coat of paint on a house, a seal coat on top of asphalt really adds the finishing touch. The private driveway in front of our house was suffering from the weather, poor patches, and even a small sink hole where the underlying fill wasn't compacted and supported properly. We had the asphalt patched professionally a couple of months ago (between rain storms) but they weren't able to finish the job because of subsequent rains.

This morning after we got the garbage and the cars out to the public street, the asphalt guys came in and finished the job. We won't be able to use the road until tomorrow evening. That's a small price to pay for a really good looking and (hopefully) more long lasting surface.

Here are the pictures of the before the seal coat



And after the seal coat



Pretty nice, don't you think?