Saturday, December 9, 2017
Thursday, October 19, 2017
Black Tuesday of 1987
Today is the 30th anniversary of the stock market crash of October 19, 1987. On that day, the Dow Jones Industrials average fell 508 points in one day at time when the average was only at 2200 to begin with. It would be the equivalent of a 5000 point drop today.
I remember being worried that another Depression was coming, but since I was young and had only a small amount invested back then, I left my 401k in the market. The good news was that less than six months later, the entire plunge had been recovered ...and more.
What I learned from that experience was never to panic, and certainly never pull out when prices are low. It's a lesson that served me well back in 2008 when the market lost nearly half of its value -- not in one day, both over a relatively short period of a few months. Then too, I did not pull my money out, and I have been rewarded with a near quadruple of the market since the low in early 2009.
The lesson I take from it is this: slow and steady wins the race. if you're in it for the long term, just keep putting money away, and don't fret about the short term movements on Wall Street. Other people want us to sell in a panic ..so they can profit on your losses.
I remember being worried that another Depression was coming, but since I was young and had only a small amount invested back then, I left my 401k in the market. The good news was that less than six months later, the entire plunge had been recovered ...and more.
What I learned from that experience was never to panic, and certainly never pull out when prices are low. It's a lesson that served me well back in 2008 when the market lost nearly half of its value -- not in one day, both over a relatively short period of a few months. Then too, I did not pull my money out, and I have been rewarded with a near quadruple of the market since the low in early 2009.
The lesson I take from it is this: slow and steady wins the race. if you're in it for the long term, just keep putting money away, and don't fret about the short term movements on Wall Street. Other people want us to sell in a panic ..so they can profit on your losses.
Saturday, September 30, 2017
Recipe: Parmesan Penne Sausage Skillet
4 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp chopped garlic
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup sliced red onions
1 14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes
1 cup penne pasta
2 Italian sausages (or 3 sausages if you wish)
1 roma tomato
1/2 pkg (30g-35g) chopped basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tbsp sea salt
In a skillet, add the olive oil, chopped garlic, sliced mushrooms, and red onions, and sautee.
While sauteeing, slice the sausages, and the roma tomato.
Then, add the stewed tomatoes, penne pasta, sliced sausages, roma tomato, basil, oregano and sea salt.
Use the empty can from the stewed tomatoes to add one can of water.
Stir. Cover. Simmer on medium heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the Parmesan cheese and serve
Recipe: Crockpot Creamed Corn
2 lb frozen corn
1 cup whipping cream
2 cups milk
2 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1 stick butter
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp paprika
Cut the cream cheese into cubes, sliced the butter.
Place all of the ingredients into the crock pot. Stir. Stir occasionally while cooking.
Saturday, August 26, 2017
Recipe: Summer Picnic Macaroni Salad
There's no doubt that this pleasing salad packs a delicious, creamy punch with its generous proportion of mayonnaise and sour cream; the creaminess is complemented by crunchy vegetables that make this salad very fresh.
Honestly, although this recipe is easy enough to make, it requires substantial time to cut up all of the ingredients. I usually expect to spend at least an hour in the kitchen.
Tip: Making this salad tends to dirty a lot of dishes, so empty out the dishwasher before you begin so you can put the empty bowls in immediately after use.
Ingredients:
3 cups large elbow macaroni
1/2 pound medium cheddar cheese, cubed into 1/2" cubes
1/2 pound colby jack cheese, cubed into 1/2" cubes
2/3 cup chopped red onion
1 cup carrots, cubed into 1/4" cubes
3/4 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup green onions
1 floret broccoli
8oz package diced ham, yields about 1 1/2 cups
1 2.25 oz can diced olives
1 tub sour cream
equal portion mayonnaise
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Honestly, although this recipe is easy enough to make, it requires substantial time to cut up all of the ingredients. I usually expect to spend at least an hour in the kitchen.
Tip: Making this salad tends to dirty a lot of dishes, so empty out the dishwasher before you begin so you can put the empty bowls in immediately after use.
Ingredients:
3 cups large elbow macaroni
1/2 pound medium cheddar cheese, cubed into 1/2" cubes
1/2 pound colby jack cheese, cubed into 1/2" cubes
2/3 cup chopped red onion
1 cup carrots, cubed into 1/4" cubes
3/4 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup green onions
1 floret broccoli
8oz package diced ham, yields about 1 1/2 cups
1 2.25 oz can diced olives
1 tub sour cream
equal portion mayonnaise
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Cook the noodles. It should take about ten minutes for them to cook to al dente. Strain, run cold water over the noodles to stop the cooking, and refrigerate. I like to apply a little bit of olive oil or pan spray to keep the noodles from sticking together..
Cut all of the veggies and the cheese. The broccoli should be cut down to bite-sized morsels, too.
In a separate bowl, mix together all of the veggies, ham, cheese, and olives. Then, combine this with the cooled noodles.
In another bowl, stir together the mayonnaise and the sour cream. Then, stir in the salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
You are now ready to stir the mayo/sour cream mixture into the noodles. I find that I get a better coating of all of the noodles by splitting the noodlss into two bowls, and then applying half of the wet mix to each.
Cut all of the veggies and the cheese. The broccoli should be cut down to bite-sized morsels, too.
In a separate bowl, mix together all of the veggies, ham, cheese, and olives. Then, combine this with the cooled noodles.
In another bowl, stir together the mayonnaise and the sour cream. Then, stir in the salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
You are now ready to stir the mayo/sour cream mixture into the noodles. I find that I get a better coating of all of the noodles by splitting the noodlss into two bowls, and then applying half of the wet mix to each.
Monday, August 21, 2017
7% makes all the difference.
When I was weighing the decision to take a day off from work to drive up to Idaho to see a total eclipse versus just staying here in Utah where it would be 93% of totality, I almost talked myself into the latter.
After all, 93% was much more than any of the previous partial eclipses I had viewed. It would be almost dark. How much difference could the last 7% make?
And I would have been so very wrong.
Even a 99% eclipse is not a total eclipse. It's not until you get that final 1%, when finally you can remove your cardboard glasses and look directly at the sun with your naked eyes. That's right, during totality, you don't have to peer through a dark lens.
And what you see is beautiful. It's surreal. It's amazing. It's incredible. It's unreal. It's awesome. It's a marvel. You run out of words, because nothing can describe what you see and how it feels to see it. The brilliant white corona contrasts with the tar black disk blocking the sun. it's the whitest of whites and the blackest of blacks.
Before today, I never understood why people came from so far away to see a total eclipse, but now I do.
Like comparing pictures of the Grand Canyon to actually standing on the rim of that incredible canyon, so, too, photos, films, and videos of an eclipse do not begin to capture just what it's like to see one with your own eyes.
I stood along with thousands of people in a tiny town where the centerline of the eclipse path met I-15, Roberts, Idaho. Strangers who had arrived in vehicles bearing license plates from all over North America, gathered together in a county with barely 25,000 residents to share an experience which is common a regular astronomical occurrence but so rarely is as accessible as it was today.
As the moon slid into place and blocked the sun completely, reaching what astronomers call "C2," the beginning of totality, an excited roar came from the crowd of strangers and then cheers erupted along with applause in appreciation of this amazing phenomenon that we all had travelled so far to witness.
Shattering my misconception about a total eclipse, I discovered that it does not result in pitch blackness; I expected it to be completely dark during totality, like it is in the middle of the night. Instead, it's more like the twilight of early dawn or the last moments of light that hang on well after sunset. The thing that you notice though, is that the twilight is not just in the eastern or western horizon as a sunrise or sunset would be, it's all the way around, 360 degrees, way off the distance. It's almost unsettling.
I craned my neck and just stared in awe at the sun's shiny corona ringing the coal black disk. I smiled a giddy smile.
Then, just like that, only 150 seconds later, it was over. The moon continued its march and once again no longer blocked the entire sun. We were back to 99%, and then 98%.
In one instant, all of the strangers who had gathered slowly in this remote place in a field and a gas station next to the interstate, left at once. What had been an orderly arrival beforehand became a mass exodus afterward, overwhelming the two lanes of the half-century old interstate. Picture your worst commute, only this one was on a road without a carpool lane, without ramp meters, and without viable alternatives, on a road where the 80 mph speed limit usually seems too slow.
Even still, despite the traffic and the relative shortness of totality, the experience of witnessing this wonderful phenomenon for the first time, left me wanting more. I must do this again. Roberts, Idaho, was my gateway drug, but now I'm craving a fix.
I've seen 100%, and I now know that 93% won't do it for me. I need that last 7%. I'll be there, for sure, in April 2024, less than seven years from now, to experience this again.
Wednesday, July 26, 2017
My Allure of the Seas Must-Do List
#1 - Sit out in Central Park at night -- They have live musicians. Grab a seat among the trees after dinner and order a drink and enjoy. If you do nothing else on this list, do this one!
#2 - Attend the guacamole class at Sabor. For $20, they show you how they make their awesome guac, plus they'll serve you margaritas and feed you lunch. They'll also give you the recipe to take home. I've made it several times since the cruise.
#3 - Have a drink in the Rising Tide Bar. It's a place on the promenade. Every half hour it rises up three decks. Yes, it's a gimmick, but it's cool.
#4 - Listen to the Latin music and have a mojito in Boleros. It's on the promenade right across from the karaoke bar (Karaoke bar is really fun, too)
#5 - See the Aqua Show. If you haven't reserved it, make a reservation. It runs on only the first two nights and features high divers. On the nights when they're not performing the show, walk by the theatre and see the dancing fountains -- similar to what you'd see at Bellagio.
#6 - Park Cafe - On boarding day, skip the Windjammer buffet and head up to Park Cafe in Central Park. You'll find salads, and sandwiches. So good that you'll be back for more on other days.
#7 - Do the zipline. It's only about six seconds, but, what? Are you not going to do it?
#2 - Attend the guacamole class at Sabor. For $20, they show you how they make their awesome guac, plus they'll serve you margaritas and feed you lunch. They'll also give you the recipe to take home. I've made it several times since the cruise.
#3 - Have a drink in the Rising Tide Bar. It's a place on the promenade. Every half hour it rises up three decks. Yes, it's a gimmick, but it's cool.
#4 - Listen to the Latin music and have a mojito in Boleros. It's on the promenade right across from the karaoke bar (Karaoke bar is really fun, too)
#5 - See the Aqua Show. If you haven't reserved it, make a reservation. It runs on only the first two nights and features high divers. On the nights when they're not performing the show, walk by the theatre and see the dancing fountains -- similar to what you'd see at Bellagio.
#6 - Park Cafe - On boarding day, skip the Windjammer buffet and head up to Park Cafe in Central Park. You'll find salads, and sandwiches. So good that you'll be back for more on other days.
#7 - Do the zipline. It's only about six seconds, but, what? Are you not going to do it?
Saturday, June 17, 2017
Six Things You'll Hate About Living in Utah
Another friend from Fresno is moving to Utah. I've lived here nearly twenty-two years -- don't get me wrong: I love it here, but there are things that take some adjustment, so here are six things that people from California will hate about living in Utah
1. Yellow Light Runners - The Utah Driver Handbook says only that the "yellow light is an indication that the light is about to turn red." (p.24) There is nothing there which indicates whether drivers should attempt to stop when the light turns yellow. Utah drivers have interpreted this one way: yellow means "keep going." You won't find anyone hitting the break pedal when the light is yellow.
2. State Liquor Stores - Picking up a bottle of wine at Vons on the way home from work is a thing of the past once you move to Utah. Wine is available only at stores which are owned and run by the state. These state liquor stores (1) are inconveniently located, and (2) keep limited hours. Salt Lake County, with over a million residents, has only seventeen locations.The stores are open only until 10pm, and they're closed every Sunday and on all holidays -- including Election Day. Plan ahead. By the way, don't think about bringing wine from another state or trying to join a "Wine of the Month Club;" Utah law treats those things as bootlegging.
3. Inversions - Every winter, usually in January, expect at least one stretch when you can't see the sun in Salt Lake City for two weeks. When snow is on the ground, the entire Wasatch Front is afflicted by this natural phenomenon where cold air is trapped by warmer air above, which yields depressing, overcast days. After suffering through ten days or so wherein high temps never gets up to even 32°F, you'll be praying for a snow storm which can break the grip of the inversion and clear the air.
4. Sales Tax on Groceries. It's the ultimate in regressive taxation. In my last years in California, politicians fought about extending the sales tax to snacks and how to define what a "snack" is, but all along Utah was taxing all grocery purchases at the full rate. During his term, Governor Jon Huntsman provided a little relief and cut the sale rate on groceries in half, but you'll still be paying some sales tax even on the most basic needs.
5. Traffic Lights on Mastarms. In all of the neighboring states, including Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, and Nevada, as well as California, traffic engineers mount an additional traffic signal on the support pole. If you're driving east at sunrise or west at sunset, you don't have to stare directly into the sun to see the light; just look at the other signal. Not so in Utah: Signals are mounted only on the mastarm which extends across the street. If you have to squint, so be it.
6. The Broncos and Rockies. According to the NFL and MLB, Utah is in the home market for the Denver teams, If you're a fan of the 49ers, you'll get some of the games, but if there is a conflict, the Broncos game always wins out. Baseball is no different: MLB defines Utah as Rockies territory. If you want to hear Jon Miller and Duane Kuiper, you might want to pay for a subscription to mlb.com. We don't get the Giants network here -- it's Rockies broadcasts only.
1. Yellow Light Runners - The Utah Driver Handbook says only that the "yellow light is an indication that the light is about to turn red." (p.24) There is nothing there which indicates whether drivers should attempt to stop when the light turns yellow. Utah drivers have interpreted this one way: yellow means "keep going." You won't find anyone hitting the break pedal when the light is yellow.
2. State Liquor Stores - Picking up a bottle of wine at Vons on the way home from work is a thing of the past once you move to Utah. Wine is available only at stores which are owned and run by the state. These state liquor stores (1) are inconveniently located, and (2) keep limited hours. Salt Lake County, with over a million residents, has only seventeen locations.The stores are open only until 10pm, and they're closed every Sunday and on all holidays -- including Election Day. Plan ahead. By the way, don't think about bringing wine from another state or trying to join a "Wine of the Month Club;" Utah law treats those things as bootlegging.
3. Inversions - Every winter, usually in January, expect at least one stretch when you can't see the sun in Salt Lake City for two weeks. When snow is on the ground, the entire Wasatch Front is afflicted by this natural phenomenon where cold air is trapped by warmer air above, which yields depressing, overcast days. After suffering through ten days or so wherein high temps never gets up to even 32°F, you'll be praying for a snow storm which can break the grip of the inversion and clear the air.
5. Traffic Lights on Mastarms. In all of the neighboring states, including Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, and Nevada, as well as California, traffic engineers mount an additional traffic signal on the support pole. If you're driving east at sunrise or west at sunset, you don't have to stare directly into the sun to see the light; just look at the other signal. Not so in Utah: Signals are mounted only on the mastarm which extends across the street. If you have to squint, so be it.
6. The Broncos and Rockies. According to the NFL and MLB, Utah is in the home market for the Denver teams, If you're a fan of the 49ers, you'll get some of the games, but if there is a conflict, the Broncos game always wins out. Baseball is no different: MLB defines Utah as Rockies territory. If you want to hear Jon Miller and Duane Kuiper, you might want to pay for a subscription to mlb.com. We don't get the Giants network here -- it's Rockies broadcasts only.
Saturday, June 10, 2017
My Geographic Extremes - May 2017
Prior Entries in this series:
I love to travel! It's fun to keep track of how far north I've been, how far west I've been, etc. I still haven't managed to get out of the northern hemisphere (the closest I've come to South America is the island of Curaçao, about 25 miles north of the Venezuelan coast), but I have really stretched my boundaries over the past couple of years.
2016 was the year I finally made it out of North America! Two separate trips to Europe pushed my "easternmost extreme" point further and further east, so that it is now at the Athens airport is in the far eastern suburbs of the Greek capital, Also, Europe is further north than you might imagine, so my northern extremes also expanded. For instance, did you know that Rome, which is in the southern part of Europe is at the same latitude as Salt Lake City?
In May 2017, on another trip to Europe, my northernmost geographic extreme crept a little further north. Previously, it had been on the northern side of Amsterdam, but now it is in Tegel Airport (TXL) northwest of Berlin.
Interesting oddity: Two of the four compass point extremes are located on islands, and the other two are located at airports.
Here are my current geographic extremes (as of May 15, 2017)
52° 33' 22.1034" N
13° 17' 52.8282" E
Monday, May 15, 2017
Plot on map
SOUTHERNMOST: 12.07° N
Caracas Baai, Curaçao
12° 4' 8.439" N
68° 51' 42.1524"
Plot on map
21° 35' 35.448" N
158° 6' 12.5892" W
Monday, February 14, 2011
Plot on map
52° 25' 31.5552" N
4° 53' 16.0512" E
Saturday, May 14, 2016
Plot on map
51° 27' 30.2652" N
116° 16' 7.3848" W
Saturday, May 23, 2015
Plot on map
Transition ramp from southbound Autobahn 3 to Autobahn 4 and 59, east side of Köln
50° 55' 29.172" N
7° 3' 30.2522" E
Saturday, May 14, 2016
The eastward march of my easternmost point in May 2016
Thursday, May 5, 2016: Heathrow Airport, London
Thursday, May 5, 2016: Tower Bridge, London
Friday, May 6, 2016: Royal Naval Observatory, Greenwich, England
Saturday, May 7, 2016 - 48.88°N 2.36°E: Gare du Nord, Paris
Sunday, May 8, 2016 - 48.86°N 2.39°E: Père La Chaise Cemetery, Paris
Tuesday, May 9, 2016 - 48.87°N 2.78°E: Marne La-Vallée RER Station, Disneyland Paris
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 50.84°N 4.34°E: Bruxelles Midi Station, Brussels*
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 50.84°N 4.38°E: Parlamentarium (European Parliament), Brussels
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 52.38°N 4.90°E: Amsterdam Centraal Station, Amsterdam*
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 52.37°N 4.93°E: Brouwerij t'IJ, Amsterdam
* - Also a new northern record at the time
Conversions from Decimal to Degrees /Minutes/Seconds:
https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/dms-decimal
I love to travel! It's fun to keep track of how far north I've been, how far west I've been, etc. I still haven't managed to get out of the northern hemisphere (the closest I've come to South America is the island of Curaçao, about 25 miles north of the Venezuelan coast), but I have really stretched my boundaries over the past couple of years.
In May 2017, on another trip to Europe, my northernmost geographic extreme crept a little further north. Previously, it had been on the northern side of Amsterdam, but now it is in Tegel Airport (TXL) northwest of Berlin.
Interesting oddity: Two of the four compass point extremes are located on islands, and the other two are located at airports.
Here are my current geographic extremes (as of May 15, 2017)
NORTHERNMOST: 52.57° N
Terminal C at Berlin Tegel airport (TXL)52° 33' 22.1034" N
13° 17' 52.8282" E
Monday, May 15, 2017
12° 4' 8.439" N
68° 51' 42.1524"
Tuesday, June 13, 2007
EASTERNMOST: 23.95° E
Athens International Airport, Athens, Greece
37° 56' 12.1956" N
23° 56' 48.3106" E
Sunday, September 25, 2016
(repeated Tuesday, September 27, 2016)
WESTERNMOST: 158.10° W
Haleiwa, Oahu, Hawaii21° 35' 35.448" N
158° 6' 12.5892" W
Monday, February 14, 2011
Plot on map
PRIOR NORTHERNMOST: 52.43° N
On the A10 Ring Road on the north side of Amsterdam52° 25' 31.5552" N
4° 53' 16.0512" E
Saturday, May 14, 2016
PREVIOUS PRIOR NORTHERNMOST: 51.45° N
On the Trans-Canada Highway, about 8 km NW of Lake Louise, Alberta51° 27' 30.2652" N
116° 16' 7.3848" W
Saturday, May 23, 2015
PRIOR EASTERNMOST: 7.06° E
Cologne, GermanyTransition ramp from southbound Autobahn 3 to Autobahn 4 and 59, east side of Köln
50° 55' 29.172" N
7° 3' 30.2522" E
Saturday, May 14, 2016
The eastward march of my easternmost point in May 2016
Thursday, May 5, 2016: Heathrow Airport, London
Thursday, May 5, 2016: Tower Bridge, London
Friday, May 6, 2016: Royal Naval Observatory, Greenwich, England
Saturday, May 7, 2016 - 48.88°N 2.36°E: Gare du Nord, Paris
Sunday, May 8, 2016 - 48.86°N 2.39°E: Père La Chaise Cemetery, Paris
Tuesday, May 9, 2016 - 48.87°N 2.78°E: Marne La-Vallée RER Station, Disneyland Paris
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 50.84°N 4.34°E: Bruxelles Midi Station, Brussels*
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 50.84°N 4.38°E: Parlamentarium (European Parliament), Brussels
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 52.38°N 4.90°E: Amsterdam Centraal Station, Amsterdam*
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 52.37°N 4.93°E: Brouwerij t'IJ, Amsterdam
* - Also a new northern record at the time
Conversions from Decimal to Degrees /Minutes/Seconds:
https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/dms-decimal
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