What Book Are You?

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I am Dune! by Frank Herbert

You have control over a great wealth of resources, but no one wants to
let you have them. You've decided to try to defend yourself, but it may take eons before
you really get back what you feel you deserve. Meanwhile you have a cult-like following
of minions waiting for your life to progress. This would all be even more exciting if you
could just get the sand out of your eyes.

Take the Book Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

A visit to the Doctor's Office

Earlier this year, I developed a small lump on the back of my neck. The doctor said he thought ot was a fatty cyst. About three weeks ago the lump grew from marble size to golf ball size and began to hurt. Turns out it is a Sebaceous Cyst which usually are harmless but can become inflamed and painful - like mine. The Doctor drained the fluid and packed the hole with gauss to keep it open to allow drainage and sent me home. I will be going back tomorrow to have the packing changed.

R*E*M*E*M*B*E*R

R*E*M*E*M*B*E*R

"Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary
Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." - Benjamin Franklin

TV: Eureka - SciFi Network

I spent Saturday watching 7 episodes of the SciFi Channels show "Eureka." It's pretty good. It's no Battlestar Galactica or Lost but is is entertaining in a nerdy sort of way. I suspect it won't gain the following like other shows and will die an early death. It's a SciFi drama with some comedy elements. It's a cop/fish-out-of-water show that sometimes comes down with a case of technobabble (a condition every Star Trek fan is quite familiar with). That will probably be it's downfall. The nerdy story lines will drive away the non-geek and the shallow techno jargon will turn-off the geek. The result is no audience and a cancellation after first season. Will this stop me from watching? Probably not. My many years of watching Star Trek has thickened my skin against badly written tech storylines and nerdy material fuels my imagination.

Peru - Uros Boat

Sometimes, its the simple things that are important. When we visited the floating Islands of the Uros, as we were getting ready to leave, we were given a small reed boat necklace as a parting gift. It is a very simple gift - nothing fancy or expensive. It is not even unique since all twenty of us received one. But for some reason, that small boat meant more to me then all the other treasures we bought in Peru. Maybe it was the altitude - Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world at 12,507 feet. Maybe I was tired of the non-stop traveling we had experienced over the last 10 days. Maybe I'm just weird. That little boat, which now hangs from my desk lamp, represents the awesome memories I collected of our 2006 vacation and will always have a special meaning for me.


People have asked me why I had such a great vacation, what made it so memorable? I don't have an adequate answer. I've thought about it and I just can't put my finger on it. My memories have that dreamy, happy glow to them. Even the bad spots, and there are always bad spots, are remembered fondly. I returned from that trip with a new outlook on life - I want to travel more and experience more. For some weird reason, I feel new.

Happy Labor Day!

I hope you all have a happy Labor Day!

Peru - Sin Gas

When I went to Cancun and Mexico City back in 2003, I had the misfortune of getting Montezuma's Revenge. Actually, since I probably got it near Chitzen Itza, I probably had the Mayan Trots. Anyway, when we went to Peru, I wanted to make sure that I didn't come down with anything that might ruin my experience. I had my Imodium and I was carrying Cipro but it turned out that I didn't need them. I credit the Sin Gas. For those who may not be familiar with spanish, Sin Gas has nothing to do with Christian misdeeds. Sin Gas simply means without gas i.e. non carbonated bottled water. The other option was Con Gas. So you could be a sinner or a con man - we all had a little laugh about drinking Sin Gas. I also credit the great hotels we stayed at. They made sure that everything was clean and safe for our weak american intestines. A few in our group weren't as careful but, all in all, we made out pretty well.

Peru - Birthday Llama

I had my 43rd birthday while I was in Peru. I started the day getting up at 4:30 am and catching a flight to Cusco. After arriving in Cusco, we took a bus to a market in the town of Pisac, our Hotel in Yucay for lunch, and finally a visit to the ruins at Ollataytambo. Our guide in Lima (and Nazca and Paracas as well) was on the ball and, having seen my birth date on my passport, arranged a small celebration in Paracas the night before. We celebrated my birthday with a gift and cake. My birthday was shared by a fellow traveler (from Sioux City, Iowa) who had a birthday three days earlier. Our gifts were crystal and silver Llama figurines - very cool. The Chocolate tort was very yummy as well. Everyone sang happy birthday but, since not everybody knew each other's first names, when it got to the part of the song where your name was suppose to be inserted, the song became a mumble, which made everyone laugh.

Peru -That's not a Simon and Garfunkel song!

On our second day in Peru we took a bus down to Ica where we were going to fly over the Nazca lines. Since our plane was not ready, we stopped at a nearby resort to have lunch. While we were eating, the musicians started playing a song on their flutes that sounded like a Simon and Garfunkel song. After that, everywhere we went I heard the same Simon and Garfunkel song. It was driving me crazy. Someone was even whistling it at the Gate of the Sun at Machu Piccu. I wanted to hear Peruvian music but instead I got Simon and Garfunkel. We were all laughing about it after hearing it repeated so many times. Finally, while taking a boat ride on Lake Titicaca, I heard the song again and it occurred to me that maybe Simon and Garfunkel 'borrowed' the melody from Peru. When I got back home, I did some investigating and , sure enough, the song, "El Cóndor Pasa", is based on a Peruvian musical play.

Makes me smile just thinking about the misplaced frustration I felt listening to that song. But then, everything about Peru makes me smile. What a great vacation.

Book: Jared Diamond's Collapse

The latest book I've read is ""Collapse" by Jared Diamond. The book attempts to explain why some civilizations die while others thrive. Essentially, he posits that environmental decay resulting from both man-made and natural causes is the primary cause of civilization collapse. This sounds like a major oversimplification to me. Then again, I am not an anthropologist and my opinion may be useless.

I read Mr. Diamond's previous book, "Guns, Germs and Steel". That book was interesting but very dry and difficult to read at times. Collapse is written in a more readable style but, near the end, started to dry out too.

All in all, I enjoyed it.