Tales of Seven

Sunrise This Morning

A San Francisco morning looking east over the city.

The fog is just pulling away to allow our spring sun some room.

Thursday

The fog is thick and glows orange from city lights.

A glass of wine...the roofdeck...some camera play.

An Underwater Lake

Another fascinating and otherworldly discovery from the deep ocean...check out this underwater lake.

Thought Sharing in Two Flavors (BIL and TED)

Flavors:  Caviar and Champagne  (flavorful, rare and exclusive)

The Organization: TED (Technology Entertainment and Design) "brings together the world's most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives. We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we're building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world's most inspired thinkers."

Admission and Events: $6000, invite only, event registration closed through 2009. Check out their site for recorded talks!

Flavors: A Nice Microbrew and Chips  (tasty, accessible, and filling)

The Organization: BIL is "an open, self-organizing, emergent, and anarchic science and technology conference that was created in response to those interested in but unable to afford TED. BIL has been created as a free space for people with ideas to come together and share them."

Admission and Events: Free, March 1-2 2008, Monterey

BIL and TED

Flying....Boats?

From time to time, we get a sort of 'grayout' over the Bay, where the water is totally calm and exactly the same color as the sky above it. Add a dash of mist and we get the interesting visual misconception that boats are 'floating' in the air.

Pictures of the Lunar Eclipse

February 20, 2008 - San Francisco

Pictures of the lunar eclipse as seen from my roofdeck in Cow Hollow. The last shot is the dark sky under the full eclipse.

Lunar Eclipse Tonight - Feb 20, 2008

"[NASA] is predicting that "the moon will probably take on a vivid red or orange colour during the total phase" because there have not been any recent gas and dust emissions which block the sunlight and cause "dark" eclipses."

See estimated times for the eclipse here.

(2007 eclipse take in Germany, Winfried Rothermel/Associated Press)

Beauty in Three Sizes

Measured in light years

Measured in millimeters

Measured in micrometers

Repeating colors and patterns from the largest to the smallest.

Two nebulae, two jellyfish, two bacterial colonies and one globular cluster.

The Anatomy of a Plane Ticket

In a recent search for flights, I found that my ticket price was often 30% to 50% higher with taxes included. Never having seen prices so inflated, it seemed worth a closer look. What I found was a baffling and long list of fees and taxes including the:

• Travel Facilities Tax     $7.70
• U.S. Excise Tax     7.5%
• U.S. Federal Segment Fee $3.50
• Passenger Facility Charge (PFC)    $4.50
• September 11th Security Fee     $2.50
• U.S. International Transportation (Arrival/Departure) Tax     $15.40
• U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Fee  $5.00
• U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Fee     $7.00
• Foreign Taxes      Up to $299
• International Surcharges Up to $260 each way

While I do appreciate the Animal and Plant Inspection Fee as the only one that is self-explanatory (that covers the cost of the beagle that sniffs my luggage when I fly in from Florida with a suitcase of oranges), I wonder why the income taxes we pay our respective governments can't cover all the things they need to do (including buying food for the beagle)?

Sia at the Fillmore

Children's drawings, 5-foot-tall neon lights in the shape of flowers, and stuffed animals...delicious multi-colored stage.

A taste of KT Tunstall (melodic) and Joss Stone (sassy) wrapped into a strong, quirky presence (a la Bjork).. a presence adorned with sparkly, glitter-ful suspenders and a green tiara.

A crowd of complex and varied ingredients that mixed well for unexpected flavors.

Best known for Breathe Me and Destiny, I thought Sia was actually better live than on her CDs given a fantastic, 'I-feel-every-note-of-my-music-with-passion' presence.