Now that I've got this new full-time job, I'll be posting in this blog twice a week - on Monday's and Wednesdays.
So the next post for this blog will be on Monday.
Thanks for your patience.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Sunday, December 9, 2012
WY Authorities Warn of "Grandparent Scam"
From CBS5: WY Authorities Warn of "Grandparent Scam"
(Cheyenne, WY) Con artists are scamming Wyoming grandparents out of thousands of dollars by posing as grandchildren in distress. The Wyoming Attorney General's Office has recently seen a rise in the number of this type of scam and suspects that the number will increase even more over the holiday season.
The typical scam occurs when a grandparent receives a telephone call from someone who falsely identifies themselves as their grandchild and tries to persuade the grandparent to quickly wire money to get the grandchild out of a bind. The supposed grandchild claims to be involved in some type of trouble while traveling in Canada, Mexico or overseas, such as being arrested or in a car accident or needing emergency car repairs, or sometimes the supposed grandchild even claims to be in the local jail.
The grandchild asks the grandparent to immediately wire money to post bail or pay for medical treatment or car repairs or a return plane ticket. The scammer typically asks for several thousand dollars, and may even call back again several hours or days later asking for more money. The caller will tell the grandparent not to call the grandchild's parents, and not to talk to anyone about the matter.
A variation of the scam may involve two scammers -- the first scammer calls and poses as a grandchild in distress. The second scammer, posing as a law enforcement officer, lawyer or governmental authority then gets on the phone with the grandparent and explains what fines need to be paid. Alternatively, the scammer may pretend to be a family friend or neighbor.
The scammer typically requests that the grandparent wire money through Western Union or MoneyGram or provide bank account routing numbers. Typically you cannot recover wired money.
If you receive a call like this, resist the pressure to act quickly, and take steps to verify the status of your grandchild with another family member. Be suspicious when you receive a telephone call where the grandchild calls from a far away location, asks for money to be wired or starts the conversation by saying, "it's me" or "it's your grandson" instead of stating their name.
(Cheyenne, WY) Con artists are scamming Wyoming grandparents out of thousands of dollars by posing as grandchildren in distress. The Wyoming Attorney General's Office has recently seen a rise in the number of this type of scam and suspects that the number will increase even more over the holiday season.
The typical scam occurs when a grandparent receives a telephone call from someone who falsely identifies themselves as their grandchild and tries to persuade the grandparent to quickly wire money to get the grandchild out of a bind. The supposed grandchild claims to be involved in some type of trouble while traveling in Canada, Mexico or overseas, such as being arrested or in a car accident or needing emergency car repairs, or sometimes the supposed grandchild even claims to be in the local jail.
The grandchild asks the grandparent to immediately wire money to post bail or pay for medical treatment or car repairs or a return plane ticket. The scammer typically asks for several thousand dollars, and may even call back again several hours or days later asking for more money. The caller will tell the grandparent not to call the grandchild's parents, and not to talk to anyone about the matter.
A variation of the scam may involve two scammers -- the first scammer calls and poses as a grandchild in distress. The second scammer, posing as a law enforcement officer, lawyer or governmental authority then gets on the phone with the grandparent and explains what fines need to be paid. Alternatively, the scammer may pretend to be a family friend or neighbor.
The scammer typically requests that the grandparent wire money through Western Union or MoneyGram or provide bank account routing numbers. Typically you cannot recover wired money.
If you receive a call like this, resist the pressure to act quickly, and take steps to verify the status of your grandchild with another family member. Be suspicious when you receive a telephone call where the grandchild calls from a far away location, asks for money to be wired or starts the conversation by saying, "it's me" or "it's your grandson" instead of stating their name.
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
23 and 25 May, 2012: Scrabble Tourney
Mark your calendars - there will be a scrabble tournament at the Laramie County Library on Thur 23 May and all day Saturday.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
I'll be getting back to this blog, never fear.
Time goes by so fast, I can't believe I've missed so many days posting here.
Will get my act together and start posting regularly tomorrow.
Will get my act together and start posting regularly tomorrow.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
CLTP: The Butler Did It
Every year, the Cheyenne Little Theater holds a new play contest. The winner gets to have their play given a staged reading the next year.
This year's staged reading was for The Butler Did It, by Todd Wallinger.
It ran only 2 nights - Nov 9 and 10, and tickets were only $5. Took place at the Atlas Theatre.
I went yesterday with a friend and enjoyed it.
Tip #1.
At the Atlas Theatre, always try to get seats in the balcony. Those are "theatre seats" which are much more comfortable than the straight-leg chairs they have on the ground floor. Also from the balcony you get a much better view of the stage and actors.
The Butler Did It!
As the title implies this was a mystery play, taking place in the 1930s in an isolated mansion (there's heavy rains that wash out roads leading to the house). Someone is killed and only someone in the house could have done it.
It's a comedy mystery, and there were a lot of amusing lines. I actually guessed who the murderer was halfway through - there's one line that just gives it away to someone who has read every Agatha Christie book four or five times... - but the person I was with didn't get it so maybe it wasn't as obvious as I thought. Having an obvious murderer isn't necessarily a drawback, you still want to learn how and why they did what they did, and you still enjoy watching the characters since you care for them.
The CLTP is made up of amateur actors, and they all did a good job. In all the CLTP plays I've seen the actors have been at least competent, some have had a professional gloss. That was the case here. No one let the play down, but some actors were better than others - in gradations, not stark contrast. The guy who played the butler had a perfect British accent, which always pleases me.
The actors sat in a row on stage. They were dressed in appropriate costumes, but did no stage action. There was a "butler's butler" who made the noises when appropriate - dropping suitcases, dropping a tray with dishes on it, tying up the butler, and so on. I think it was pretty clear who should have been doing the action, when each of these actions occurred. One funny bit was when the murder occurred (halfway through the first act) the stage goes dark, when lights go on the victim's chair is turned over and his legs protrude over the top. I don't know if the actual actor was still there, being extreeeeemely still for another 20 minutes or so, or if they just draped a pair of boots in stuffed jeans over the top of the chair. If the actor was lying on the stage for 20 minutes - with his shoes not moving at all - he must have great body control!
I think this will be a good community theatre play - the addition of one more -totally unsympathetic- character might help keep the mystery a mystery - although I don't know how the playwright could introduce such a character. (It's a fair play mystery. Clues are scattered throughout the play to give you an idea of who the murder might be. Also of course everyone has a motive for killing the guy, Or if not motive, at least opportunity. With the addition of another, totally unsympathetic character, the audience can spend their time hoping he/she is the murderer, instead of someone they've grown to like. (As an aspiring playwright myself, ideas are bubbling... but I'd better stick to working on my own mystery play!)
There was only one flaw on the night. The playwright was there, and at the end of the play the butler called out his name - but only the folks on the bottom floor could see him. They should have had him come up on stage for his bows.
Exit the Body
I think this is another staged reading - of a different mystery play, obviously. This one will be Dec 10 and 11 at the Mary Godfrey Playhouse (a theatre with all-theatre seating).
I urge everyone who likes the theatre and/or likes mysteries to go see it!
Cast of The Butler Did It!
Jenkins (the butler) - Joe Batson
Sarah Jane (a maid) - Shelley Russell
Colonel Nigel Covington - Glenn Shaffer
Lady Miranda Covington - Pat Lauber
Gram (Lady Covington's mother) - Vickie Jarvis
Kat Covington (daughter, aspiring pilot) - Shauna Miller Best
Trevor Barstow - a philandering wastrel - Justin Earnshaw
Edwina Corry (mystery writer) - Alisha Perkins
Father Timothy - Peter Steiger
The Butler's Butler (the one who did all the stage "business" - Samantha Fairbairn
Directed by Shawn Casey, Assistant Director Luana Krause
This year's staged reading was for The Butler Did It, by Todd Wallinger.
It ran only 2 nights - Nov 9 and 10, and tickets were only $5. Took place at the Atlas Theatre.
I went yesterday with a friend and enjoyed it.
Tip #1.
At the Atlas Theatre, always try to get seats in the balcony. Those are "theatre seats" which are much more comfortable than the straight-leg chairs they have on the ground floor. Also from the balcony you get a much better view of the stage and actors.
The Butler Did It!
As the title implies this was a mystery play, taking place in the 1930s in an isolated mansion (there's heavy rains that wash out roads leading to the house). Someone is killed and only someone in the house could have done it.
It's a comedy mystery, and there were a lot of amusing lines. I actually guessed who the murderer was halfway through - there's one line that just gives it away to someone who has read every Agatha Christie book four or five times... - but the person I was with didn't get it so maybe it wasn't as obvious as I thought. Having an obvious murderer isn't necessarily a drawback, you still want to learn how and why they did what they did, and you still enjoy watching the characters since you care for them.
The CLTP is made up of amateur actors, and they all did a good job. In all the CLTP plays I've seen the actors have been at least competent, some have had a professional gloss. That was the case here. No one let the play down, but some actors were better than others - in gradations, not stark contrast. The guy who played the butler had a perfect British accent, which always pleases me.
The actors sat in a row on stage. They were dressed in appropriate costumes, but did no stage action. There was a "butler's butler" who made the noises when appropriate - dropping suitcases, dropping a tray with dishes on it, tying up the butler, and so on. I think it was pretty clear who should have been doing the action, when each of these actions occurred. One funny bit was when the murder occurred (halfway through the first act) the stage goes dark, when lights go on the victim's chair is turned over and his legs protrude over the top. I don't know if the actual actor was still there, being extreeeeemely still for another 20 minutes or so, or if they just draped a pair of boots in stuffed jeans over the top of the chair. If the actor was lying on the stage for 20 minutes - with his shoes not moving at all - he must have great body control!
I think this will be a good community theatre play - the addition of one more -totally unsympathetic- character might help keep the mystery a mystery - although I don't know how the playwright could introduce such a character. (It's a fair play mystery. Clues are scattered throughout the play to give you an idea of who the murder might be. Also of course everyone has a motive for killing the guy, Or if not motive, at least opportunity. With the addition of another, totally unsympathetic character, the audience can spend their time hoping he/she is the murderer, instead of someone they've grown to like. (As an aspiring playwright myself, ideas are bubbling... but I'd better stick to working on my own mystery play!)
There was only one flaw on the night. The playwright was there, and at the end of the play the butler called out his name - but only the folks on the bottom floor could see him. They should have had him come up on stage for his bows.
Exit the Body
I think this is another staged reading - of a different mystery play, obviously. This one will be Dec 10 and 11 at the Mary Godfrey Playhouse (a theatre with all-theatre seating).
I urge everyone who likes the theatre and/or likes mysteries to go see it!
Cast of The Butler Did It!
Jenkins (the butler) - Joe Batson
Sarah Jane (a maid) - Shelley Russell
Colonel Nigel Covington - Glenn Shaffer
Lady Miranda Covington - Pat Lauber
Gram (Lady Covington's mother) - Vickie Jarvis
Kat Covington (daughter, aspiring pilot) - Shauna Miller Best
Trevor Barstow - a philandering wastrel - Justin Earnshaw
Edwina Corry (mystery writer) - Alisha Perkins
Father Timothy - Peter Steiger
The Butler's Butler (the one who did all the stage "business" - Samantha Fairbairn
Directed by Shawn Casey, Assistant Director Luana Krause
Saturday, November 10, 2012
10 Nov 2012, Cheyenne Weather
From the Weather Channel, 8:41 am
Weather for Cheyenne, WY
 | 30°F | °C | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | |||||
 |  |  | | |||||||
| Overcast | ||||||||||
| Wind: N at 16 mph | ||||||||||
| Humidity: 92% | 43° | 14° | 28° | 19° | 41° | 27° | 50° | 32° | ||
Monday, November 5, 2012
Nearly 2/3 of Wyo. statehouse candidates unopposed
From SFGate: Nearly 2/3 of Wyo. statehouse candidates unopposed
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Nearly two-thirds of the candidates for the Wyoming Legislature are unopposed in Tuesday's election.
The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reported Monday (http://tinyurl.com/aon43hs ) 48 candidates for 75 seats in the state House and Senate have no opponents. That's 64 percent of the total.
In most races, the reason is because no Democrat is running.
Wyoming Democrats are trying to improve their showing, but it's a long-term project, party spokesman Brodie Farquhar said. The party is focusing on getting potential candidates some experience in city, county and school board offices, he said.
State Rep. Dan Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, said he was surprised that no one ran against him in the primary or the general election.
"I'm still going door to door to say 'Hi' and talk to people," he said. "I know I need to keep up my work ethic to maintain the trust people have in me despite the absence of an electoral challenger."
Zwonitzer said he's been helping his father, Rep. Dave Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, in his campaign.
"So I'm still feeling some of that stress through my family, for sure," he said.
Republican state Sen. Tony Ross, of Cheyenne, who also has no opposition, said he has been using the time he would have spent campaigning to plan for the 2013 session. Ross is in line to be the Senate president.
"I've been lining out who will be on what committees and what the agenda will be," he said. "There is a lot of work to be done."
Ross said he's also been advising some newer Republican candidates on their campaigns.
The nonpartisan Wyoming Women's Foundation is trying to encourage more women to run for office.
The foundation released a report Friday saying 30 percent of the candidates statewide for city, county and legislative positions are women.
The foundation is offering leadership courses and mentoring opportunities for women, regardless of party.
"A big part of it is just raising awareness," said Rebekah Smith, the foundation's program director. "We want them to stand up and say, 'I can do this' and to help them realize there is no reason why they shouldn't run."
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Nearly two-thirds of the candidates for the Wyoming Legislature are unopposed in Tuesday's election.
The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reported Monday (http://tinyurl.com/aon43hs ) 48 candidates for 75 seats in the state House and Senate have no opponents. That's 64 percent of the total.
In most races, the reason is because no Democrat is running.
Wyoming Democrats are trying to improve their showing, but it's a long-term project, party spokesman Brodie Farquhar said. The party is focusing on getting potential candidates some experience in city, county and school board offices, he said.
State Rep. Dan Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, said he was surprised that no one ran against him in the primary or the general election.
"I'm still going door to door to say 'Hi' and talk to people," he said. "I know I need to keep up my work ethic to maintain the trust people have in me despite the absence of an electoral challenger."
Zwonitzer said he's been helping his father, Rep. Dave Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, in his campaign.
"So I'm still feeling some of that stress through my family, for sure," he said.
Republican state Sen. Tony Ross, of Cheyenne, who also has no opposition, said he has been using the time he would have spent campaigning to plan for the 2013 session. Ross is in line to be the Senate president.
"I've been lining out who will be on what committees and what the agenda will be," he said. "There is a lot of work to be done."
Ross said he's also been advising some newer Republican candidates on their campaigns.
The nonpartisan Wyoming Women's Foundation is trying to encourage more women to run for office.
The foundation released a report Friday saying 30 percent of the candidates statewide for city, county and legislative positions are women.
The foundation is offering leadership courses and mentoring opportunities for women, regardless of party.
"A big part of it is just raising awareness," said Rebekah Smith, the foundation's program director. "We want them to stand up and say, 'I can do this' and to help them realize there is no reason why they shouldn't run."
Nearly 2/3 of Wyo. statehouse candidates unopposed
From SFGate: Nearly 2/3 of Wyo. statehouse candidates unopposed
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Nearly two-thirds of the candidates for the Wyoming Legislature are unopposed in Tuesday's election.
The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reported Monday (http://tinyurl.com/aon43hs ) 48 candidates for 75 seats in the state House and Senate have no opponents. That's 64 percent of the total.
In most races, the reason is because no Democrat is running.
Wyoming Democrats are trying to improve their showing, but it's a long-term project, party spokesman Brodie Farquhar said. The party is focusing on getting potential candidates some experience in city, county and school board offices, he said.
State Rep. Dan Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, said he was surprised that no one ran against him in the primary or the general election.
"I'm still going door to door to say 'Hi' and talk to people," he said. "I know I need to keep up my work ethic to maintain the trust people have in me despite the absence of an electoral challenger."
Zwonitzer said he's been helping his father, Rep. Dave Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, in his campaign.
"So I'm still feeling some of that stress through my family, for sure," he said.
Republican state Sen. Tony Ross, of Cheyenne, who also has no opposition, said he has been using the time he would have spent campaigning to plan for the 2013 session. Ross is in line to be the Senate president.
"I've been lining out who will be on what committees and what the agenda will be," he said. "There is a lot of work to be done."
Ross said he's also been advising some newer Republican candidates on their campaigns.
The nonpartisan Wyoming Women's Foundation is trying to encourage more women to run for office.
The foundation released a report Friday saying 30 percent of the candidates statewide for city, county and legislative positions are women.
The foundation is offering leadership courses and mentoring opportunities for women, regardless of party.
"A big part of it is just raising awareness," said Rebekah Smith, the foundation's program director. "We want them to stand up and say, 'I can do this' and to help them realize there is no reason why they shouldn't run."
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Nearly two-thirds of the candidates for the Wyoming Legislature are unopposed in Tuesday's election.
The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reported Monday (http://tinyurl.com/aon43hs ) 48 candidates for 75 seats in the state House and Senate have no opponents. That's 64 percent of the total.
In most races, the reason is because no Democrat is running.
Wyoming Democrats are trying to improve their showing, but it's a long-term project, party spokesman Brodie Farquhar said. The party is focusing on getting potential candidates some experience in city, county and school board offices, he said.
State Rep. Dan Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, said he was surprised that no one ran against him in the primary or the general election.
"I'm still going door to door to say 'Hi' and talk to people," he said. "I know I need to keep up my work ethic to maintain the trust people have in me despite the absence of an electoral challenger."
Zwonitzer said he's been helping his father, Rep. Dave Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, in his campaign.
"So I'm still feeling some of that stress through my family, for sure," he said.
Republican state Sen. Tony Ross, of Cheyenne, who also has no opposition, said he has been using the time he would have spent campaigning to plan for the 2013 session. Ross is in line to be the Senate president.
"I've been lining out who will be on what committees and what the agenda will be," he said. "There is a lot of work to be done."
Ross said he's also been advising some newer Republican candidates on their campaigns.
The nonpartisan Wyoming Women's Foundation is trying to encourage more women to run for office.
The foundation released a report Friday saying 30 percent of the candidates statewide for city, county and legislative positions are women.
The foundation is offering leadership courses and mentoring opportunities for women, regardless of party.
"A big part of it is just raising awareness," said Rebekah Smith, the foundation's program director. "We want them to stand up and say, 'I can do this' and to help them realize there is no reason why they shouldn't run."
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Friday, October 19, 2012
Wyoming in Motion website
I've started a new website which I call Wyoming in Motion because it will have lots of video.
Right now I'm concentrating on documenting all the sculpture in Cheyenne.
http://wyominginmotion.com
Right now I'm concentrating on documenting all the sculpture in Cheyenne.
http://wyominginmotion.com
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Wyoming in Motion
Wyoming in Motion is a web magazine I've just founded, which features videos of all the tourist places in Wyoming worth visiting.
http://wyominginmotion.com
You need to check it out via a computer to see the videos.
Also subscribe to my twitter feed: twitter.com/wyominginmotion
http://wyominginmotion.com
You need to check it out via a computer to see the videos.
Also subscribe to my twitter feed: twitter.com/wyominginmotion
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Daytrip to Estes Park, Fri, Oct 5
Estes Park, Colorado is a town, not a park...but it is the gateway to the Rocky Mountain National Park.
It is very much a tourist town. The main drag is full of candy stores, tee shirt stores, and so on.
I was the chauffeur for a friend of mine and her niece and niece's son. Therefore Maleficent didn't accompany me. However, I enjoyed the drive so much that I will return later on this year - if we get a warm day - or for sure next year....
About 10 miles before you get to the town of Estes Park is Big Thompson Indian Village. The only thing that makes it deserve the name are the two mannequins of a male and female Native American, and a teepee, which looks very nice.
Inside the store is a lot of nice stuff. Jewelry, pottery, walking sticks, leather goods, and snacks.
Just a mile or so past the Indian Village, we saw a few cars parked and people taking photos. These mountain goats were high on the hillside.
Don't remember why I took a photo of this, I think just to show the rock formation...
Another photo, I guess just to show the scenery... and the twisty turny road through the canyon
We didn't go into the visitor center, but we did go into the shop right next to it. Two floors of stuff to buy!
I was trying to get the statues - there's a moose on the left and a bear I think on the right...but you can also see the mountains and the fog.
This location was PAST Estes Park by about five miles or so, the absolute gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park
We turned back and parked in Estes Park, and wandered around. Got a fudge-covered apple, various other snacks. Why I didn't take photos of Estes Park proper I do not know.
It is very much a tourist town. The main drag is full of candy stores, tee shirt stores, and so on.
I was the chauffeur for a friend of mine and her niece and niece's son. Therefore Maleficent didn't accompany me. However, I enjoyed the drive so much that I will return later on this year - if we get a warm day - or for sure next year....
About 10 miles before you get to the town of Estes Park is Big Thompson Indian Village. The only thing that makes it deserve the name are the two mannequins of a male and female Native American, and a teepee, which looks very nice.
Inside the store is a lot of nice stuff. Jewelry, pottery, walking sticks, leather goods, and snacks.
Just a mile or so past the Indian Village, we saw a few cars parked and people taking photos. These mountain goats were high on the hillside.
Don't remember why I took a photo of this, I think just to show the rock formation...
Another photo, I guess just to show the scenery... and the twisty turny road through the canyon
A front-on view of the Fall River Visitor Center.
We didn't go into the visitor center, but we did go into the shop right next to it. Two floors of stuff to buy!
I was trying to get the statues - there's a moose on the left and a bear I think on the right...but you can also see the mountains and the fog.
This location was PAST Estes Park by about five miles or so, the absolute gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park
We turned back and parked in Estes Park, and wandered around. Got a fudge-covered apple, various other snacks. Why I didn't take photos of Estes Park proper I do not know.
Sat, Oct 6, 2012: First snow in Cheyenne of the Winter
Maleficent checks out the snow in back of my house. (The first floor doors open onto the back of the house, the second floor door opens onto the side of the house.)
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
And Then There Were None: Torrington
Torrington is about a half hour drive north on I-25
TORRINGTON, Wyo. — The Goshen Community Theater will present “And Then There Were None,” Oct. 11–14 and Oct. 17–20, at the Eastern Wyoming College Auditorium.
The GCT production will feature an Agatha Christie detective story without a detective, in the production of “And Then There Were None.” Ten people, each with something to hide and something to fear, are invited to a lonely island mansion by an eccentric host who, surprisingly, fails to appear. On the island, the guests are cut off from everything but each other and the inescapable shadows of their own past.
All performances will be at 7 p.m. with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, Oct. 14.
Ticket prices are: adults, $9; seniors/students over 12, $7; children under 12, $5; and EWC students with student ID, $2 at Thursday performances. Wednesday, Oct 17, is discount night and all seats will be $5.
Tickets may be purchased in Torrington, Wyo., at Main Street Market, Pinnacle Bank, Vandel Drug, and the Torrington Telegram and in Scottsbluff at Cappuccino & Co. and Plaza Foods.
TORRINGTON, Wyo. — The Goshen Community Theater will present “And Then There Were None,” Oct. 11–14 and Oct. 17–20, at the Eastern Wyoming College Auditorium.
The GCT production will feature an Agatha Christie detective story without a detective, in the production of “And Then There Were None.” Ten people, each with something to hide and something to fear, are invited to a lonely island mansion by an eccentric host who, surprisingly, fails to appear. On the island, the guests are cut off from everything but each other and the inescapable shadows of their own past.
Ticket prices are: adults, $9; seniors/students over 12, $7; children under 12, $5; and EWC students with student ID, $2 at Thursday performances. Wednesday, Oct 17, is discount night and all seats will be $5.
Tickets may be purchased in Torrington, Wyo., at Main Street Market, Pinnacle Bank, Vandel Drug, and the Torrington Telegram and in Scottsbluff at Cappuccino & Co. and Plaza Foods.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Watching the Ryder Cup
I'm dedicating myself to posting here every day.... starting tomorrow.
Right now, Sunday, I'm watching the Ryder Cup.
I only care about Phil Mickelson's match.
For the rest, I don't care if the Americans win or lose.
IT's golf, for heaven's sake!
Right now, Sunday, I'm watching the Ryder Cup.
I only care about Phil Mickelson's match.
For the rest, I don't care if the Americans win or lose.
IT's golf, for heaven's sake!
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Posts resume Sep 24 2012
My mom, who is 75, wants to go up to teeny tiny town near Rapid City,
to see her sister, who is 80. They live in a house in the boonies and
have no internet.
I'll be back online on Monday the 24th and promise not to miss another day.
Please bear with me, your patience is appreciated!
I'll be back online on Monday the 24th and promise not to miss another day.
Please bear with me, your patience is appreciated!
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Another hot and windy day in Cheyenne
I'm biking to get fit - I'm not fit yet. So I couldn't face biking 4 mph into a steady wind, for even half a mile (on Terry Ranch Road) . Sure, if I turn the other way around the wind carries me along and I barely have to pedal...nevertheless it's not pleasant.
I did five miles yesterday - half into the wind, half not, but the wind wasn't so powerful yesterday.
Or maybe it was because I was biking at 6:30 pm when it was cooler and my legs had had several hours to get stretched out and warmed up.
Anyway, I gave it up and came home - didn't bike more than a mile, total.
I did five miles yesterday - half into the wind, half not, but the wind wasn't so powerful yesterday.
Or maybe it was because I was biking at 6:30 pm when it was cooler and my legs had had several hours to get stretched out and warmed up.
Anyway, I gave it up and came home - didn't bike more than a mile, total.
Friday, August 17, 2012
Homeless population in Cheyenne
I never see the newspaper until about 2 weeks after it's too late for me to do any good, but a couple of folks in my Scrabble club yesterday were commenting about an article in the Cheyenne Tribune on Thursday, all about how Cheyenne has become a magnet for homeless folks.
This happens during the summer and I saw it last year, too. I didn't realize the people were homeless, I thought they were just passing through on their way elsewhere - hitchhiking.
Anyone who goes into our Walmart will see them, standing on the corner of Dell Range and the entrance way to the store, holding up a sign with a variation of Broke. Hungry. Anything will help. Some will say Stranded and out of gas.
They're even up on College at the exit from Highway 25 to the various gas stations and restaurants.
Occasionally there's an old person - but usually they're young and fully capable of working. But they prefer not to, obviously.
Watch out for a variety of scams, by the way. If you're in a store parking lot and someone points out their van to you and says, "Hey, we're travelling and we're out of gas, could you lend us a $20 - rest assured they're scamming you." Those folks who really need money will be at a church or something - not begging in a store parking lot.
This happens during the summer and I saw it last year, too. I didn't realize the people were homeless, I thought they were just passing through on their way elsewhere - hitchhiking.
Anyone who goes into our Walmart will see them, standing on the corner of Dell Range and the entrance way to the store, holding up a sign with a variation of Broke. Hungry. Anything will help. Some will say Stranded and out of gas.
They're even up on College at the exit from Highway 25 to the various gas stations and restaurants.
Occasionally there's an old person - but usually they're young and fully capable of working. But they prefer not to, obviously.
Watch out for a variety of scams, by the way. If you're in a store parking lot and someone points out their van to you and says, "Hey, we're travelling and we're out of gas, could you lend us a $20 - rest assured they're scamming you." Those folks who really need money will be at a church or something - not begging in a store parking lot.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Little America Resort and Conference Center
Little America resort, located way out on Lincolnway past "hotel row" is a very nice, large place. Very classy. All the servers seem to be foreign - Russia or somewhere of that nature, with a smattering of British...
Sumptuous decorations in all the meeting rooms.
I was there for the AARP spelling bee and saw someone teeing off behind the building. I didn't take the time to go there to look to see if I could see the rest of the golf course (hidden by trees) but one day I shall.
Sumptuous decorations in all the meeting rooms.
I was there for the AARP spelling bee and saw someone teeing off behind the building. I didn't take the time to go there to look to see if I could see the rest of the golf course (hidden by trees) but one day I shall.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
60 is the new 40
On August 10, 2012, the Cheyenne chapter of the AARP hosted a seminar
called Gray Matters - which was free and provided a free lunch -
unfortunately fish and cheesecake, blech - from 4 to 6 was a reception
for all travelers who had come in for the AARP National Spelling Bee to
be held on the 11th.
I attended that and it was a lot of fun. The emcee introduced a few folks, we talked about words, there was a "mock" spelling bee (which only consisted of about 20 people getting up and being questioned on one word...._ and so on. And there were finger foods there - Chinese food to be precise. Don't know where they got it from or if they cooked it on site (Little America is a hotel and resort where people come to play golf among other things) but it was delish.
The spelling bee started at the ungodly hour of 8:30 am (Well...8:30 is not so ungodly but I had to get up at the ungodly hour of 6:30 to get there in time for registration, etc.) It started with 4 rounds of 25 words each - which was a Written Test.
The first 25 words were extremely easy. They asked words like "Greetings" and "Navel" and "Mince." I suppose a few might have been considered difficult... "Animus" and "Lacuna."
The second 25 words were equally easy, but I did miss MUGWUMP.
I assume they did this just to help everyone settle the nerves and get new people used to what was going on. People had trouble hearing some of the words (hey, they were all over 50 and most over 60) and the Pronouncer would come down and tell them the word face to face and have them say it back, etc. Indeed, the Pronouncer did an excellent job.
Third round was where they started asking the difficult words.
I missed:
QUESTIONARY INERCALATE
TUATARA
SKOSH
VIRIDITY
WIMBLE
The fourth round was the real killer. I only got 12 out of 25 right. I missed:
FELICIFIC
DOVEKIE
FLYTING
NAPERY
COTYLEDONARY
WELTSCHMERRZ
OPPUGNER
AECIOSPORE
SYNCYTIAL
KNUR
IRIDIUM
TUYERE
HYOSCYAMINE
I then stayed for the Oral rounds and was joined by one of my friends from my Scrabble Club. (I think an audience could have assembled for the Written rounds, too. There were chairs there and family were in them...but I think most people only wanted to come see the Oral rounds where you actually saw the speller's faces as opposed to their backs, etc.)
Two of the people I met last night at the reception made it to the Orals. One of them it was his first trip to the Bee and he was successful his first time out. Made it through about 10 rounds. (In the Orals, you miss two words and you're out.) Another one was an elderly woman from Minnesota who also got through about 10 rounds before being knocked out.
There were three sisters and a brother who had come as a sort of family reunion. The eldest sister made it to the Oral rounds but was bounced after only two rounds. This was too bad and it was because she was a bit unlucky - she got two 6-syllable words in a row while some of the others were getting much easier ones (but still, not ones I could have spelled). But she was disqualified along with several other people in the same round, so hopefully she didn't feel too bad.
The words in the Oral Rounds were extremely difficult. Several times more difficult than the toughest words in the final round of the Written.
But, had I studied for a year, I think I could have handled them.
And it is my intention to study for a year and get into the Orals next year.
So, why is the title of this blog entry 60 is thenew 40?
Because it is.
People are living longer. You don't want to outlive your money and more importantly you don't want to outlive your sense of enjoyment of life. And learning new things every day is enjoyment and keeps the mind active.
The AARP Spelling Bee is held every year, and it gives you an excellent reason to travel to Cheyenne and see The Cowboy State. You'll meet lots of interesting people.
You do have to study.
I studied very desultorily for about a month...combine all the time I studied and it was about 10 hours. Not nearly enough, but then, I'm a good speller so the Written Rounds were relatively easy - except for that killer last round.
Why learn words that you'll never, ever say in real life?Well, because they're interesting. And the concepts of what you'll learn, you can apply in other areas. So it's a win win.
So start planning to live a long, healthy, active, intellectual life, and do it now, however old you might be!
I attended that and it was a lot of fun. The emcee introduced a few folks, we talked about words, there was a "mock" spelling bee (which only consisted of about 20 people getting up and being questioned on one word...._ and so on. And there were finger foods there - Chinese food to be precise. Don't know where they got it from or if they cooked it on site (Little America is a hotel and resort where people come to play golf among other things) but it was delish.
The spelling bee started at the ungodly hour of 8:30 am (Well...8:30 is not so ungodly but I had to get up at the ungodly hour of 6:30 to get there in time for registration, etc.) It started with 4 rounds of 25 words each - which was a Written Test.
The first 25 words were extremely easy. They asked words like "Greetings" and "Navel" and "Mince." I suppose a few might have been considered difficult... "Animus" and "Lacuna."
The second 25 words were equally easy, but I did miss MUGWUMP.
I assume they did this just to help everyone settle the nerves and get new people used to what was going on. People had trouble hearing some of the words (hey, they were all over 50 and most over 60) and the Pronouncer would come down and tell them the word face to face and have them say it back, etc. Indeed, the Pronouncer did an excellent job.
Third round was where they started asking the difficult words.
I missed:
QUESTIONARY INERCALATE
TUATARA
SKOSH
VIRIDITY
WIMBLE
The fourth round was the real killer. I only got 12 out of 25 right. I missed:
FELICIFIC
DOVEKIE
FLYTING
NAPERY
COTYLEDONARY
WELTSCHMERRZ
OPPUGNER
AECIOSPORE
SYNCYTIAL
KNUR
IRIDIUM
TUYERE
HYOSCYAMINE
I then stayed for the Oral rounds and was joined by one of my friends from my Scrabble Club. (I think an audience could have assembled for the Written rounds, too. There were chairs there and family were in them...but I think most people only wanted to come see the Oral rounds where you actually saw the speller's faces as opposed to their backs, etc.)
Two of the people I met last night at the reception made it to the Orals. One of them it was his first trip to the Bee and he was successful his first time out. Made it through about 10 rounds. (In the Orals, you miss two words and you're out.) Another one was an elderly woman from Minnesota who also got through about 10 rounds before being knocked out.
There were three sisters and a brother who had come as a sort of family reunion. The eldest sister made it to the Oral rounds but was bounced after only two rounds. This was too bad and it was because she was a bit unlucky - she got two 6-syllable words in a row while some of the others were getting much easier ones (but still, not ones I could have spelled). But she was disqualified along with several other people in the same round, so hopefully she didn't feel too bad.
The words in the Oral Rounds were extremely difficult. Several times more difficult than the toughest words in the final round of the Written.
But, had I studied for a year, I think I could have handled them.
And it is my intention to study for a year and get into the Orals next year.
So, why is the title of this blog entry 60 is thenew 40?
Because it is.
People are living longer. You don't want to outlive your money and more importantly you don't want to outlive your sense of enjoyment of life. And learning new things every day is enjoyment and keeps the mind active.
The AARP Spelling Bee is held every year, and it gives you an excellent reason to travel to Cheyenne and see The Cowboy State. You'll meet lots of interesting people.
You do have to study.
I studied very desultorily for about a month...combine all the time I studied and it was about 10 hours. Not nearly enough, but then, I'm a good speller so the Written Rounds were relatively easy - except for that killer last round.
Why learn words that you'll never, ever say in real life?Well, because they're interesting. And the concepts of what you'll learn, you can apply in other areas. So it's a win win.
So start planning to live a long, healthy, active, intellectual life, and do it now, however old you might be!
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Attend the AARP SPelling Bee Aug 11
The written rounds take place ridiculously early - from 7 am! to about 1, then it's the oral rounds where they let in spectators. That starts at 1 pm.
It's at Little America.
It's at Little America.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Re-O-Na Sushi & Thai Restaurant
My sister and I went to Re-O-Na yesterday for lunch..
Ambiance - wonderful. Long tanks of water with paper flowers floating in them. Very large building. Each booth had curtains one could draw if one desired.
Presentation - the Japanese always present their food well. White, square plates, lots of food, etc. Sturdy black chopsticks. (presumably washed after every meal - as opposed to the cheap ones you get at other restaurants.)
Service - Very good. Everyone smiling. attentive, eager to please.
Food - sucked.
I had the chicken teriyaki. Lots of little unbreaded chicken pieces, in a teriyaki sauce. Unfortunately, it was dark meat and I do not like dark meat. Also found it rather tough. I also had tempura vegetables. Now, if I'd liked fish I might have liked these, the batter had a very distinct fishy smell. But since I hate fish... I couldn't eat them.
My sister had chicken pad thai. She found the chicken bland...and over all the dish was mediocre.
They also served little pieces of sushi for a dessert. My sister ate both of them - surprised they didn't come with wasabi to dip them into, and was not impressed.
So overall, a disappointment. We might go back and try another dish, just to see... but for now, we cannot recommend it for the food.
Ambiance - wonderful. Long tanks of water with paper flowers floating in them. Very large building. Each booth had curtains one could draw if one desired.
Presentation - the Japanese always present their food well. White, square plates, lots of food, etc. Sturdy black chopsticks. (presumably washed after every meal - as opposed to the cheap ones you get at other restaurants.)
Service - Very good. Everyone smiling. attentive, eager to please.
Food - sucked.
I had the chicken teriyaki. Lots of little unbreaded chicken pieces, in a teriyaki sauce. Unfortunately, it was dark meat and I do not like dark meat. Also found it rather tough. I also had tempura vegetables. Now, if I'd liked fish I might have liked these, the batter had a very distinct fishy smell. But since I hate fish... I couldn't eat them.
My sister had chicken pad thai. She found the chicken bland...and over all the dish was mediocre.
They also served little pieces of sushi for a dessert. My sister ate both of them - surprised they didn't come with wasabi to dip them into, and was not impressed.
So overall, a disappointment. We might go back and try another dish, just to see... but for now, we cannot recommend it for the food.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Cheyenne Frontier Days
I went to the rodeo one day last week, and attended the pancake breakfast...
I have tons of photos to share...
BUt no time now...
Soon...very soon..
I have tons of photos to share...
BUt no time now...
Soon...very soon..
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
My First Pancake Breakfast Tomorrow - I Hope
The Depot serves pancakes from 7 to 9... I usually don't get up until 9.... but it's something I'd like to experience...
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Cheyenne Frontier Days are under way
And will go on until the 29th.
And as you might expect, the weather is in the 90s and probably will remain so for the rest of the summer.
;(
And as you might expect, the weather is in the 90s and probably will remain so for the rest of the summer.
;(
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Do you like getting up at 5 AM?
If so, go to Casper and stay overnight on July 27, so that on July 28 and July 29, at precisely 6 AM, you can see a mass launch of hot air balloons at the Casper Balloon Roundup.
http://casperballoonroundup.com/
*I* would love to be there, but I couldn't get up at 5 am to save my life...
http://casperballoonroundup.com/
*I* would love to be there, but I couldn't get up at 5 am to save my life...
Friday, July 13, 2012
Tidbits from Traders newspaper
The Traders newspaper comes out every Friday. I pick up mine at the liquor store on Greeley Highway. (I don't drink, but they usually have the cheapest Pepsi in town.)
The paper consists of classified ads, things for sale, and Community Activities - unfortunately scattered throughout the newspaper instead of all put in the front or back.
Anyway, what's in the issue from the Week of July 13?
Parade Days Brerakfast
During Frontier Days, the Oak Leaf Chuckwagon at the Historic Masonic TEmple,will be serving breakfast from 7:30am to 9:30 am on PARADE days. This breakfast isn't free - funds benefit Oak Leaf Chapter 6, Ordr of the Eastern Star.
Address: 1820 CApitol Avenue, corner of 19th and Capitol.
July 21
5th Annual Benefit Motorcycle Show
Held Saturday July 21 at Frontier Park, at the Buckin a Saloonm tent. Entry fee is $10 per motorcycle. Show is open to the public.
Governor's Mansion Extended Hours
Extended hours and guided tourts through Frontier Days. 9 am to 6 pm each day.
Guided tours: at 2 pm on the 21st, 24th, 26th and 28th
All tours are FREE
Buffalo Bill Boycott's Western Show
Monday July 23 and Friday July 27
After the pancake breakfst (free, I believe) at the Depot, Buffalo Bill will yodel, play music and tell great stories It's at the Laramie County Library.
The paper consists of classified ads, things for sale, and Community Activities - unfortunately scattered throughout the newspaper instead of all put in the front or back.
Anyway, what's in the issue from the Week of July 13?
Parade Days Brerakfast
During Frontier Days, the Oak Leaf Chuckwagon at the Historic Masonic TEmple,will be serving breakfast from 7:30am to 9:30 am on PARADE days. This breakfast isn't free - funds benefit Oak Leaf Chapter 6, Ordr of the Eastern Star.
Address: 1820 CApitol Avenue, corner of 19th and Capitol.
July 21
5th Annual Benefit Motorcycle Show
Held Saturday July 21 at Frontier Park, at the Buckin a Saloonm tent. Entry fee is $10 per motorcycle. Show is open to the public.
Governor's Mansion Extended Hours
Extended hours and guided tourts through Frontier Days. 9 am to 6 pm each day.
Guided tours: at 2 pm on the 21st, 24th, 26th and 28th
All tours are FREE
Buffalo Bill Boycott's Western Show
Monday July 23 and Friday July 27
After the pancake breakfst (free, I believe) at the Depot, Buffalo Bill will yodel, play music and tell great stories It's at the Laramie County Library.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
World War II bomber tours skies over Casper
From Wyoming Tribune: World War II bomber tours skies over Casper
The engines chug to life. A brief bit of smoke and then a steady rumble.
Inside the B-25 Mitchell, David Bronson straps his seatbelt and waits. Lightning flashes outside the window. There’s thunder too but no way to hear it, as the aircraft — nearly seven decades old — rumbles down the runway.
Bronson hates jets. The turbulence mostly. It makes him nervous.
The B-25 is different. It might be loud and cramped, barely wide enough at the waist for a man to stretch out his arms. But to him, the old bomber is a hot rod.
“It’s a stock car, with oversized engines,” he says.
For three years now, he’s been touring with the Commemorative Air Force, an Arizona-based nonprofit that restores and flies WWII aircraft. The group flew its B-25, the Maid in the Shade, to Casper on Monday.
It’s a homecoming of sorts. After he retired, Bronson moved to Riverton. A few years back, the group visited the town with its B-17, a four-engine bomber that’s more like a sedan to the B-25’s coupe. He got a ride, and afterward, the volunteers convinced him to join.
Bronson was born in 1944, the same year the Maid in the Shade bombed railroad bridges in Italy and Yugoslavia. Growing up, he built models of World War II planes. Now he flies around the country in them.
“To get the chance, as old as I am now, when I only dreamed about it when I was a kid, you just can’t imagine,” he says.
He sits in the narrow fuselage, just behind the bomber’s two .50-caliber machine guns. Hat backward, with a blue flight suit.
The job is simple. Clean the aircraft. Help the passengers through the tiny belly hatch. Let them know when it’s OK to explore the airplane, and corral them when it’s time to land.
The plane flies low and fast over Casper, not even eye level with the mountains. It banks north and down over the river, shoving the riders backs into their seats. Downtown passes by and then the runway comes back into view.
It doesn’t take long to descend. A bump when the wheels touch down. Bronson pulls off his harness and opens the hatch below.
“This is class now,” he says. “Anybody can ride a jet.”
The engines chug to life. A brief bit of smoke and then a steady rumble.
Inside the B-25 Mitchell, David Bronson straps his seatbelt and waits. Lightning flashes outside the window. There’s thunder too but no way to hear it, as the aircraft — nearly seven decades old — rumbles down the runway.
Bronson hates jets. The turbulence mostly. It makes him nervous.
The B-25 is different. It might be loud and cramped, barely wide enough at the waist for a man to stretch out his arms. But to him, the old bomber is a hot rod.
“It’s a stock car, with oversized engines,” he says.
For three years now, he’s been touring with the Commemorative Air Force, an Arizona-based nonprofit that restores and flies WWII aircraft. The group flew its B-25, the Maid in the Shade, to Casper on Monday.
It’s a homecoming of sorts. After he retired, Bronson moved to Riverton. A few years back, the group visited the town with its B-17, a four-engine bomber that’s more like a sedan to the B-25’s coupe. He got a ride, and afterward, the volunteers convinced him to join.
Bronson was born in 1944, the same year the Maid in the Shade bombed railroad bridges in Italy and Yugoslavia. Growing up, he built models of World War II planes. Now he flies around the country in them.
“To get the chance, as old as I am now, when I only dreamed about it when I was a kid, you just can’t imagine,” he says.
He sits in the narrow fuselage, just behind the bomber’s two .50-caliber machine guns. Hat backward, with a blue flight suit.
The job is simple. Clean the aircraft. Help the passengers through the tiny belly hatch. Let them know when it’s OK to explore the airplane, and corral them when it’s time to land.
The plane flies low and fast over Casper, not even eye level with the mountains. It banks north and down over the river, shoving the riders backs into their seats. Downtown passes by and then the runway comes back into view.
It doesn’t take long to descend. A bump when the wheels touch down. Bronson pulls off his harness and opens the hatch below.
“This is class now,” he says. “Anybody can ride a jet.”
Monday, July 9, 2012
CLIMB Wyoming receives Nonprofit Impact Award
From Trib.com: CLIMB Wyoming receives Nonprofit Impact Award
ServeWyoming recently awarded CLIMB Wyoming with the Nonprofit Impact Award, which is given twice a year to one nonprofit organization in Wyoming.
CLIMB Wyoming trains and places low-income single mothers in careers so that they can successfully support their families. Graduates of the program work in fields based on Wyoming's workforce needs, such as office administration, health care, welding and short haul trucking. Training sites in Cheyenne, Laramie, Rock Springs, Casper, Jackson and Gillette have served more than 1,500 women.
“CLIMB Wyoming has the opportunity everyday to see the impact that training and support can have on the lives of single moms and their families,” Ray Fleming Dinneen, executive director of CLIMB Wyoming, said in a media release. “It is gratifying that ServeWyoming recognizes the visible impact our evidenced-based approach makes for families in Wyoming.”
ServeWyoming is a statewide nonprofit that promotes service and volunteerism. It created the Nonprofit Impact Award in 2012 to honor Wyoming nonprofits that make a lasting impact. This year, the focus was on nonprofits that successfully create, maintain and demonstrate measurable outcomes.
“CLIMB Wyoming truly embodies the strategy of utilizing outcomes in all areas of their operations and programming,” Rachel Chadderdon, executive director of ServeWyoming, said in a media release. “Their program achieves results and life-changing stories of success that demonstrate meaningful, lasting impact on the participants within their program and on our state.”
CLIMB Wyoming was honored with an award banquet June 14 in Cheyenn
ServeWyoming recently awarded CLIMB Wyoming with the Nonprofit Impact Award, which is given twice a year to one nonprofit organization in Wyoming.
CLIMB Wyoming trains and places low-income single mothers in careers so that they can successfully support their families. Graduates of the program work in fields based on Wyoming's workforce needs, such as office administration, health care, welding and short haul trucking. Training sites in Cheyenne, Laramie, Rock Springs, Casper, Jackson and Gillette have served more than 1,500 women.
“CLIMB Wyoming has the opportunity everyday to see the impact that training and support can have on the lives of single moms and their families,” Ray Fleming Dinneen, executive director of CLIMB Wyoming, said in a media release. “It is gratifying that ServeWyoming recognizes the visible impact our evidenced-based approach makes for families in Wyoming.”
ServeWyoming is a statewide nonprofit that promotes service and volunteerism. It created the Nonprofit Impact Award in 2012 to honor Wyoming nonprofits that make a lasting impact. This year, the focus was on nonprofits that successfully create, maintain and demonstrate measurable outcomes.
“CLIMB Wyoming truly embodies the strategy of utilizing outcomes in all areas of their operations and programming,” Rachel Chadderdon, executive director of ServeWyoming, said in a media release. “Their program achieves results and life-changing stories of success that demonstrate meaningful, lasting impact on the participants within their program and on our state.”
CLIMB Wyoming was honored with an award banquet June 14 in Cheyenn
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Cheyenne to install 5 new surveillance cameras
From KULR8 : Cheyenne to install 5 new surveillance cameras
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The city of Cheyenne will install five new surveillance cameras in the coming weeks to help investigate crimes.
The Wyoming Tribune Eagle (http://bit.ly/MAHlXj ) reported Thursday that the downtown cameras will cost about $20,000.
City special projects manager Bob Bradshaw said they're a deterrent to crime and will be used to help investigate incidents such as vandalism.
Signs will be put in some areas notifying people that they are under surveillance. He said authorities won't watch the camera footage around the clock but will instead look at the footage as needed to investigate specific incidents.
Cheyenne already has several security cameras, including at the downtown parking garage and various city buildings.
The city has applied for a Homeland Security grant to buy another two cameras.
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The city of Cheyenne will install five new surveillance cameras in the coming weeks to help investigate crimes.
The Wyoming Tribune Eagle (http://bit.ly/MAHlXj ) reported Thursday that the downtown cameras will cost about $20,000.
City special projects manager Bob Bradshaw said they're a deterrent to crime and will be used to help investigate incidents such as vandalism.
Signs will be put in some areas notifying people that they are under surveillance. He said authorities won't watch the camera footage around the clock but will instead look at the footage as needed to investigate specific incidents.
Cheyenne already has several security cameras, including at the downtown parking garage and various city buildings.
The city has applied for a Homeland Security grant to buy another two cameras.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Cheyenne Frontier Days is a Truly Historic Event
From YahooNews: Cheyenne Frontier Days is a Truly Historic Event
Summertime means rodeos to the boots and hat set and you can take in all sorts of western fun and excitement at a rodeo near you. But where do you go if you want to see the biggest and best rodeo in the country? Well, according to most folks in the know, the answer to that question would be Cheyenne, Wyoming. The annual Cheyenne Frontier Days celebration takes place from July 20 - 29 and promises to be a heck of a show. Here's what you need to know before you go.
A truly historic event
The ever exciting Cheyenne Frontier Days event has been taking place in Wyoming ever since 1897. That means this year's festival is the 116th for the event dubbed "The Daddy of 'em All." The event features a world class rodeo, country western music legends, a carnival, an air show and both educational and recreational activities for visitors of all ages.
Cheyenne Frontier Days has been voted the Large Outdoor Rodeo of the Year by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) for eight years running. This year looks to be no exception. The Championship Bull Riding (CBR) World Champion will be awarded during this year's event. This bull riding spectacular is part of the daily rodeo and features dozens of the country's best bulls. Tickets start at around $14 per day with rodeo events taking place June 21 - 29.
Big name music acts
I visited the Cheyenne Frontier Days event during a childhood vacation. We watched the rodeo during the day and saw country music superstar Barbara Mandrell in concert that night. That was my first big concert, and it was a lot of fun. This year, visitors can see Merle Haggard, Reba McIntire, Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Hank Williams Jr., the Zac Brown Band, Journey, Pat Benatar and more. Tickets for nightly concerts begin at about $38 per person.
Thrills and chills
In addition to the rodeo and music events, visitors can check out a thrilling air show by the USAF Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds have been flying at the Cheyenne Frontier Days since 1953 and will be back again this year. This event is free to the public.
Visitors looking for a little more excitement can enjoy the rides and attractions at the carnival. Single ride tickets are available, but armbands that allow unlimited rides can be a better deal, especially if you are staying for multiple days.
Those are some of the thrills, now for the chills. One of the things that took us by surprise when my family visited the Cheyenne Frontier Days event many years ago was the weather. We were used to summertime in Oklahoma, where the average highs were in the upper 90's to low 100's and the evenings were still sticky and hot. Things are usually a lot cooler in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Average highs in July are only in the low 80's and the nights can get downright chilly. Make sure you bring a jacket if you will be sticking around for evening events.
Summertime means rodeos to the boots and hat set and you can take in all sorts of western fun and excitement at a rodeo near you. But where do you go if you want to see the biggest and best rodeo in the country? Well, according to most folks in the know, the answer to that question would be Cheyenne, Wyoming. The annual Cheyenne Frontier Days celebration takes place from July 20 - 29 and promises to be a heck of a show. Here's what you need to know before you go.
A truly historic event
The ever exciting Cheyenne Frontier Days event has been taking place in Wyoming ever since 1897. That means this year's festival is the 116th for the event dubbed "The Daddy of 'em All." The event features a world class rodeo, country western music legends, a carnival, an air show and both educational and recreational activities for visitors of all ages.
Cheyenne Frontier Days has been voted the Large Outdoor Rodeo of the Year by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) for eight years running. This year looks to be no exception. The Championship Bull Riding (CBR) World Champion will be awarded during this year's event. This bull riding spectacular is part of the daily rodeo and features dozens of the country's best bulls. Tickets start at around $14 per day with rodeo events taking place June 21 - 29.
Big name music acts
I visited the Cheyenne Frontier Days event during a childhood vacation. We watched the rodeo during the day and saw country music superstar Barbara Mandrell in concert that night. That was my first big concert, and it was a lot of fun. This year, visitors can see Merle Haggard, Reba McIntire, Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Hank Williams Jr., the Zac Brown Band, Journey, Pat Benatar and more. Tickets for nightly concerts begin at about $38 per person.
Thrills and chills
In addition to the rodeo and music events, visitors can check out a thrilling air show by the USAF Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds have been flying at the Cheyenne Frontier Days since 1953 and will be back again this year. This event is free to the public.
Visitors looking for a little more excitement can enjoy the rides and attractions at the carnival. Single ride tickets are available, but armbands that allow unlimited rides can be a better deal, especially if you are staying for multiple days.
Those are some of the thrills, now for the chills. One of the things that took us by surprise when my family visited the Cheyenne Frontier Days event many years ago was the weather. We were used to summertime in Oklahoma, where the average highs were in the upper 90's to low 100's and the evenings were still sticky and hot. Things are usually a lot cooler in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Average highs in July are only in the low 80's and the nights can get downright chilly. Make sure you bring a jacket if you will be sticking around for evening events.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
I Wonder if anyone will be fired or fined for this ineptness?
Today's Wyoming Tribune had the following headline: Coroner: New Morgue Plagued with Problems.
Now - no funniness because the building in question is a morgue. This is much more serious than any CSI jokes.
In reading the article, I could not help but shake my head. Sounds like the whole thing was done ineptly from beginning to end. This is something that you would think would happen in Mexico, or some third world country, not in the USA in the heart of the midwest.
But such ineptness is nothing new. Boston's Big Dig was apparently a fiasco. In Hampton Roads, Wyoming, a section was added onto Highway 35. (I think it was 35, some major highway, anyway) and the camber of the whole thing was wrong, so it all had to be torn out and done again. Under this same contract, the Construction Crew putting out orange cones were paid individually for doing so, instead of having that included in the contract price, which up until that point had been normal. So they made out like bandits on that...
Here's the problems:
Now - no funniness because the building in question is a morgue. This is much more serious than any CSI jokes.
In reading the article, I could not help but shake my head. Sounds like the whole thing was done ineptly from beginning to end. This is something that you would think would happen in Mexico, or some third world country, not in the USA in the heart of the midwest.
But such ineptness is nothing new. Boston's Big Dig was apparently a fiasco. In Hampton Roads, Wyoming, a section was added onto Highway 35. (I think it was 35, some major highway, anyway) and the camber of the whole thing was wrong, so it all had to be torn out and done again. Under this same contract, the Construction Crew putting out orange cones were paid individually for doing so, instead of having that included in the contract price, which up until that point had been normal. So they made out like bandits on that...
Here's the problems:
1. Computer equipment stored in a biohazard room
2. Ventilation system "could" have problems. [What is this "could"?]
3. Inadequate pedestrian access
4. No road into the back of the facility
5. The bay where bodies are dropped and picked up "could be larger."
6. The floor on one area of the building is cracked.
7. Sinks were improperly built
According to the paper, "Commissioner Chairwoman Gay Woodhouse said the problems should have been addressed in the buildings orginial design - in other words, why didn't the coroner, who is doin the complaining - do his complaining before the buildinh was built???
The cutting side of the sinks should be reversed with the faucet side.
The morgue is currently at the Cheyenne REgional Medical Center, which apparently had a $700,000 remodel a few years ago. (So why build a whole new building just a few years later...and one that is ineptly built?)
The coroner said "there was no reason to move out of a facility that works into one that doesn't."
Saturday, June 23, 2012
June 23 was Superday
This was, I think, the 16th annual Superday here in Cheyenne. I couldn't go to any of the events because I had to get some work done...but hopefully next year.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Bells in Wyo. sensitive in US-Philippine relations
From Federal News Radio: Bells in Wyo. sensitive in US-Philippine relations
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Military veterans are stirred up and speaking out against the possibility that the U.S. might return three church bells seized as spoils of war from the Philippines more than a century ago.
Such a simple gesture would go a long way toward demonstrating goodwill to an old and steadfast U.S. ally in the west Pacific.
The U.S. veterans' opinion on returning the bells? Don't even think about it.
"We oppose the return of the bells, period," said John Stovall, director of national security and foreign relations for the national American Legion.
Two of the three Bells of Balangiga are displayed at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne. They're part of a memorial to 46 U.S. troops killed by Filipino insurgents in 1901. A third bell is with a U.S. Army regiment in South Korea.
Last week, the U.S. Defense Department sent U.S. Marines Brig. Gen. Richard Simcock to Wyoming to talk with veterans about the bells. The visit was the strongest indication in years, if ever, that U.S. officials are giving serious consideration to returning the bells.
Recent discussion about repatriating the bells has prompted Wyoming's governor and congressional representatives to tell the Obama administration to keep the bells where they are.
"I strongly oppose any efforts to deconstruct our war memorials that honor our fallen soldiers," Gov. Matt Mead wrote Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on May 3.
Last month, the American Legion passed a resolution referring to the bells and calling on Congress to pass laws to protect military monuments from foreign governments seeking their removal.
Filipinos revere the bells as symbols of their long struggle for independence. The bells gave the signal for insurgents to attack American soldiers who were occupying Balangiga after the U.S. took possession of the Philippines following the Spanish-American War.
The issue could come up at the highest levels as Philippines President Benigno Aquino III visits the U.S. this week and meets with President Barack Obama and others.
Veterans worry the bells have become something of a bargaining chip in U.S.-Philippine relations, said Stovall with the American Legion.
"We think that one, that the bells represent a memorial to these fallen comrades in the Philippines. And two, were we to return the bells, it sets a dangerous precedent for other war memorials around the United States," he said.
Messages left with the Philippines Embassy in Washington, D.C., weren't returned, but a senior White House official said the bells are an important and emotional issue in both countries.
"We will only have an announcement when we have good news, and we will only have good news when we have completed the process that is under way," the official said Thursday on condition of anonymity.
The modest brick memorial housing the bells at F.E. Warren _ a base inaccessible to civilians without advance arrangements _ is the only place where the U.S. troops killed at Balangiga have been memorialized as a group, veterans point out.
"That is what represents their death," said Todd White, an American Legion member from Worland in north-central Wyoming.
Some 400 machete-wielding rebels attacked the 75 or so U.S. troops in Balangiga. Another company torched Balangiga the next day and took the bells as revenge. The reoccupying soldiers took the bells home to Fort D.A. Russell, which eventually became F.E. Warren.
An old English cannon taken from Balangiga also is displayed at Trophy Park in F.E. Warren, a base that oversees dozens of nuclear missiles in underground silos scattered across the prairie. The base doesn't have any runways but is home to a herd of relatively tame antelope.
Talk about returning the bells has been a perennial issue in U.S.-Philippine relations. Whether the idea moves beyond mere talk this time remains to be seen: The White House official said he didn't know if the Bells of Balangiga would be discussed during Aquino's visit.
More than 10 years ago, around the centennial of the massacre, former Philippines President Fidel Ramos suggested to an AP reporter a Solomonic solution.
Send one bell from the base to the Philippines and keep the other one in Wyoming. Cut each bell in half and send half of each bell to the other country. Weld the bells' halves together.
"And then we end up with two pairs that are almost identical to the original," Ramos said.
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Military veterans are stirred up and speaking out against the possibility that the U.S. might return three church bells seized as spoils of war from the Philippines more than a century ago.
Such a simple gesture would go a long way toward demonstrating goodwill to an old and steadfast U.S. ally in the west Pacific.
The U.S. veterans' opinion on returning the bells? Don't even think about it.
"We oppose the return of the bells, period," said John Stovall, director of national security and foreign relations for the national American Legion.
Two of the three Bells of Balangiga are displayed at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne. They're part of a memorial to 46 U.S. troops killed by Filipino insurgents in 1901. A third bell is with a U.S. Army regiment in South Korea.
Last week, the U.S. Defense Department sent U.S. Marines Brig. Gen. Richard Simcock to Wyoming to talk with veterans about the bells. The visit was the strongest indication in years, if ever, that U.S. officials are giving serious consideration to returning the bells.
Recent discussion about repatriating the bells has prompted Wyoming's governor and congressional representatives to tell the Obama administration to keep the bells where they are.
"I strongly oppose any efforts to deconstruct our war memorials that honor our fallen soldiers," Gov. Matt Mead wrote Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on May 3.
Last month, the American Legion passed a resolution referring to the bells and calling on Congress to pass laws to protect military monuments from foreign governments seeking their removal.
Filipinos revere the bells as symbols of their long struggle for independence. The bells gave the signal for insurgents to attack American soldiers who were occupying Balangiga after the U.S. took possession of the Philippines following the Spanish-American War.
The issue could come up at the highest levels as Philippines President Benigno Aquino III visits the U.S. this week and meets with President Barack Obama and others.
Veterans worry the bells have become something of a bargaining chip in U.S.-Philippine relations, said Stovall with the American Legion.
"We think that one, that the bells represent a memorial to these fallen comrades in the Philippines. And two, were we to return the bells, it sets a dangerous precedent for other war memorials around the United States," he said.
Messages left with the Philippines Embassy in Washington, D.C., weren't returned, but a senior White House official said the bells are an important and emotional issue in both countries.
"We will only have an announcement when we have good news, and we will only have good news when we have completed the process that is under way," the official said Thursday on condition of anonymity.
The modest brick memorial housing the bells at F.E. Warren _ a base inaccessible to civilians without advance arrangements _ is the only place where the U.S. troops killed at Balangiga have been memorialized as a group, veterans point out.
"That is what represents their death," said Todd White, an American Legion member from Worland in north-central Wyoming.
Some 400 machete-wielding rebels attacked the 75 or so U.S. troops in Balangiga. Another company torched Balangiga the next day and took the bells as revenge. The reoccupying soldiers took the bells home to Fort D.A. Russell, which eventually became F.E. Warren.
An old English cannon taken from Balangiga also is displayed at Trophy Park in F.E. Warren, a base that oversees dozens of nuclear missiles in underground silos scattered across the prairie. The base doesn't have any runways but is home to a herd of relatively tame antelope.
Talk about returning the bells has been a perennial issue in U.S.-Philippine relations. Whether the idea moves beyond mere talk this time remains to be seen: The White House official said he didn't know if the Bells of Balangiga would be discussed during Aquino's visit.
More than 10 years ago, around the centennial of the massacre, former Philippines President Fidel Ramos suggested to an AP reporter a Solomonic solution.
Send one bell from the base to the Philippines and keep the other one in Wyoming. Cut each bell in half and send half of each bell to the other country. Weld the bells' halves together.
"And then we end up with two pairs that are almost identical to the original," Ramos said.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
New Wyoming supercomputer expected to boost atmospheric science
From the Los Angeles Times: New Wyoming supercomputer expected to boost atmospheric science
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Here in the shortgrass prairie, where being stuck in the ways of the Old West is a point of civic pride, scientists are building a machine that will, in effect, look into the future.
This month, on a barren Wyoming landscape dotted with gopher holes and hay bales, the federal government is assembling a supercomputer 10 years in the making, one of the fastest computers ever built and the largest ever devoted to the study of atmospheric science.
The National Center for Atmospheric Research's supercomputer has been dubbed Yellowstone, after the nearby national park, but it could have been named Nerdvana. The machine will have 100 racks of servers and 72,000 core processors, so many parts that they must be delivered in the back of a 747. Yellowstone will be capable of performing 1.5 quadrillion calculations — a quadrillion is a 1 followed by 15 zeros — every second.
That's nearly a quarter of a million calculations, each second, for every person on Earth. In a little more than an hour, Yellowstone can do as many calculations as there are grains of sand on every beach in the world.
The study of climate and weather patterns has always been hamstrung by volatility — by elements of chaos in the seas and the air. That challenge is most famously summed up by the "butterfly effect," the idea that the flapping of a butterfly's wings on the coast of Africa can determine whether a hurricane will strike New Orleans.
The sheer speed of Yellowstone is designed to burst through the limits of chaos theory — the difference, allegorically, between predicting the odds of blackjack after playing five hands versus playing a million. The machine is expected to give scientists a clearer image of the state of the planet, and its future, revolutionizing the study of climate change, extreme weather events, wildfires, air pollution and more.
"These are chaotic systems, but it's just math," said Richard Loft, director of technology development at NCAR's Computational and Information Systems Laboratory. "We play statistics in the climate game. We feed in the basic laws of science, and out comes something that looks like the Earth's climate. It's an instrument. This is a mathematical telescope."
NCAR is in the business of research, not forecasting, but the tools and advances produced from its research could have a profound effect on forecasting. Armed with a high-fidelity portrait of Earth systems, scientists around the United States can begin to pinpoint the regional impact of changes in the weather and atmosphere.
Rather than warning of a tornado risk in the central U.S. between noon and 9 p.m., scientists might one day warn of a tornado risk in Woodson County, Kan., between 1 and 3 p.m. Rather than warning of a hurricane striking the coast of Texas, they hope to be able to warn of a hurricane striking the town of Freeport, with a top wind speed of 90 mph and a tidal surge of 4 1/2 feet.
That regional accuracy is particularly critical in the study of climate change. "The disaster of climate change happens on a regional scale," Loft said. "Everything is connected."
For example, once scientists use Yellowstone to help predict the melting of ice at the North Pole, which means significant change in nearby waters, they can better predict the patterns of storms that form in the Gulf of Alaska. Then Yellowstone can help predict how those storms will deposit snow atop the Sierra Nevada, down to precise changes in elevation on individual faces of mountains.
That snow will melt, and the water will run downhill — which means Yellowstone can help predict how much water California will have to drink, even the most efficient locations to build the state's reservoirs.
"It's taking the macro information and applying it to the things that matter," said Richard Neale, an NCAR project scientist.
The computer will be housed in a futuristic, $70-million compound west of Cheyenne. The National Science Foundation, which funds NCAR, is paying $50 million of the tab. The state of Wyoming will pay for the rest. In exchange, the state will occupy a dedicated chunk of the computer's power and memory. University of Wyoming scientists hope to use Yellowstone to advance "carbon sequestration," a promising method of storing harmful gases underground to combat climate change and open new avenues in industry.
Yellowstone will replace NCAR's Bluefire system, a supercomputer in its own right, though this one will have roughly 30 times the throughput of the old system.
Yellowstone will hold 600 sets of atmospheric data in its vast memory bank — temperatures, humidity, wind motion, rainfall. Information gleaned from the world's data-collection systems — buoys in the ocean, wind monitors fastened to the top of telephone poles — will be added to the archive.
The Wyoming compound is one of the most energy-efficient sites of its kind. Heat generated by the computer will be recycled to warm workers' offices, and pipes carrying the coolant water will have few 90-degree angles; pumping water through pipes that bend at gentle angles requires less energy.
The bulk of the machine will arrive at the 24-acre compound this month. Once the racks are lashed together, scientists will spend weeks "basically trying to break the system," said Anke Kamrath, director of operations and services at NCAR's systems lab. If they can't, they'll open it to researchers from across the nation, probably in August. Scientists will make proposals to book an "allocation" on the computer, similar to using minutes on a cellphone plan. Most will access the computer remotely.
Many are champing at the bit. Some hope to predict migration patterns of animals, others the success and failure of certain farm crops, others specific hillsides that would be the most efficient spots for wind turbines.
NCAR scientist Michael Wiltberger studies solar flares, superheated gas that emanates from the sun, with the potential to be enormously disruptive on Earth.
"Right now, we don't know why a particular configuration of the magnetic field of the sun is going to erupt," Wiltberger said. "We need to know — and now we can run millions times more models to provide meaningful predictions."
Armed with better predictions of what will happen when solar flares reach Earth — and where, precisely, they will occur — scientists could warn energy companies to protect against power surges. Global positioning systems could be disrupted, so farmers that use GPS to map crops could be warned to suspend planting operations.
NCAR senior scientist Morris Weisman specializes in a tricky corner of science: severe, high-impact weather events, which are by definition so rare that they are difficult to predict. "Scientifically non-satisfying" is how Weisman puts it — but with such a leap in computer modeling, he said, scientists could theoretically predict an extreme weather event "within an hour, within a few kilometers."
"We can conceive of that now," he said. "It's really exciting."
Loft marveled that such a dizzying array of experiments will be done using time-tested and sometimes rudimentary math — 19th century laws of thermal dynamics, rules of mechanics devised by Isaac Newton after an apple supposedly bonked him on the head and got him thinking about gravity. Yellowstone will use the same, just a whole lot of it at once.
"Newton was thinking about apples, and the moon. He never would have imagined that the same principles would have dictated the behavior of hurricanes," Loft said. "This science stuff works."
The scientists behind Yellowstone shrug at a bitter reality: cutting edge doesn't last long in their world. The Wyoming facility was built with enough space to accommodate the next generation of computer, which is already being contemplated, before this one is put together.
"We won't be cool for long," Loft said. "This business is ephemeral. There's not much room for nostalgia."
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Here in the shortgrass prairie, where being stuck in the ways of the Old West is a point of civic pride, scientists are building a machine that will, in effect, look into the future.
This month, on a barren Wyoming landscape dotted with gopher holes and hay bales, the federal government is assembling a supercomputer 10 years in the making, one of the fastest computers ever built and the largest ever devoted to the study of atmospheric science.
The National Center for Atmospheric Research's supercomputer has been dubbed Yellowstone, after the nearby national park, but it could have been named Nerdvana. The machine will have 100 racks of servers and 72,000 core processors, so many parts that they must be delivered in the back of a 747. Yellowstone will be capable of performing 1.5 quadrillion calculations — a quadrillion is a 1 followed by 15 zeros — every second.
That's nearly a quarter of a million calculations, each second, for every person on Earth. In a little more than an hour, Yellowstone can do as many calculations as there are grains of sand on every beach in the world.
The study of climate and weather patterns has always been hamstrung by volatility — by elements of chaos in the seas and the air. That challenge is most famously summed up by the "butterfly effect," the idea that the flapping of a butterfly's wings on the coast of Africa can determine whether a hurricane will strike New Orleans.
The sheer speed of Yellowstone is designed to burst through the limits of chaos theory — the difference, allegorically, between predicting the odds of blackjack after playing five hands versus playing a million. The machine is expected to give scientists a clearer image of the state of the planet, and its future, revolutionizing the study of climate change, extreme weather events, wildfires, air pollution and more.
"These are chaotic systems, but it's just math," said Richard Loft, director of technology development at NCAR's Computational and Information Systems Laboratory. "We play statistics in the climate game. We feed in the basic laws of science, and out comes something that looks like the Earth's climate. It's an instrument. This is a mathematical telescope."
NCAR is in the business of research, not forecasting, but the tools and advances produced from its research could have a profound effect on forecasting. Armed with a high-fidelity portrait of Earth systems, scientists around the United States can begin to pinpoint the regional impact of changes in the weather and atmosphere.
Rather than warning of a tornado risk in the central U.S. between noon and 9 p.m., scientists might one day warn of a tornado risk in Woodson County, Kan., between 1 and 3 p.m. Rather than warning of a hurricane striking the coast of Texas, they hope to be able to warn of a hurricane striking the town of Freeport, with a top wind speed of 90 mph and a tidal surge of 4 1/2 feet.
That regional accuracy is particularly critical in the study of climate change. "The disaster of climate change happens on a regional scale," Loft said. "Everything is connected."
For example, once scientists use Yellowstone to help predict the melting of ice at the North Pole, which means significant change in nearby waters, they can better predict the patterns of storms that form in the Gulf of Alaska. Then Yellowstone can help predict how those storms will deposit snow atop the Sierra Nevada, down to precise changes in elevation on individual faces of mountains.
That snow will melt, and the water will run downhill — which means Yellowstone can help predict how much water California will have to drink, even the most efficient locations to build the state's reservoirs.
"It's taking the macro information and applying it to the things that matter," said Richard Neale, an NCAR project scientist.
The computer will be housed in a futuristic, $70-million compound west of Cheyenne. The National Science Foundation, which funds NCAR, is paying $50 million of the tab. The state of Wyoming will pay for the rest. In exchange, the state will occupy a dedicated chunk of the computer's power and memory. University of Wyoming scientists hope to use Yellowstone to advance "carbon sequestration," a promising method of storing harmful gases underground to combat climate change and open new avenues in industry.
Yellowstone will replace NCAR's Bluefire system, a supercomputer in its own right, though this one will have roughly 30 times the throughput of the old system.
Yellowstone will hold 600 sets of atmospheric data in its vast memory bank — temperatures, humidity, wind motion, rainfall. Information gleaned from the world's data-collection systems — buoys in the ocean, wind monitors fastened to the top of telephone poles — will be added to the archive.
The Wyoming compound is one of the most energy-efficient sites of its kind. Heat generated by the computer will be recycled to warm workers' offices, and pipes carrying the coolant water will have few 90-degree angles; pumping water through pipes that bend at gentle angles requires less energy.
The bulk of the machine will arrive at the 24-acre compound this month. Once the racks are lashed together, scientists will spend weeks "basically trying to break the system," said Anke Kamrath, director of operations and services at NCAR's systems lab. If they can't, they'll open it to researchers from across the nation, probably in August. Scientists will make proposals to book an "allocation" on the computer, similar to using minutes on a cellphone plan. Most will access the computer remotely.
Many are champing at the bit. Some hope to predict migration patterns of animals, others the success and failure of certain farm crops, others specific hillsides that would be the most efficient spots for wind turbines.
NCAR scientist Michael Wiltberger studies solar flares, superheated gas that emanates from the sun, with the potential to be enormously disruptive on Earth.
"Right now, we don't know why a particular configuration of the magnetic field of the sun is going to erupt," Wiltberger said. "We need to know — and now we can run millions times more models to provide meaningful predictions."
Armed with better predictions of what will happen when solar flares reach Earth — and where, precisely, they will occur — scientists could warn energy companies to protect against power surges. Global positioning systems could be disrupted, so farmers that use GPS to map crops could be warned to suspend planting operations.
NCAR senior scientist Morris Weisman specializes in a tricky corner of science: severe, high-impact weather events, which are by definition so rare that they are difficult to predict. "Scientifically non-satisfying" is how Weisman puts it — but with such a leap in computer modeling, he said, scientists could theoretically predict an extreme weather event "within an hour, within a few kilometers."
"We can conceive of that now," he said. "It's really exciting."
Loft marveled that such a dizzying array of experiments will be done using time-tested and sometimes rudimentary math — 19th century laws of thermal dynamics, rules of mechanics devised by Isaac Newton after an apple supposedly bonked him on the head and got him thinking about gravity. Yellowstone will use the same, just a whole lot of it at once.
"Newton was thinking about apples, and the moon. He never would have imagined that the same principles would have dictated the behavior of hurricanes," Loft said. "This science stuff works."
The scientists behind Yellowstone shrug at a bitter reality: cutting edge doesn't last long in their world. The Wyoming facility was built with enough space to accommodate the next generation of computer, which is already being contemplated, before this one is put together.
"We won't be cool for long," Loft said. "This business is ephemeral. There's not much room for nostalgia."
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Posts resume SaturdayI've procrastinated on a big job and now it's come home to bite me in the butt. Posts resume Saturday.
I've procrastinated on a big job and now it's come home to bite me in the butt.
Posts resume Saturday.
Posts resume Saturday.
Monday, May 28, 2012
May 23, 2012: Hail at Crazy Horse Memorial, SD
It's a 5-hour drive from Cheyenne to Rapid City, South Dakota. On the way, via I25, you go up to Highway 16, and turn east. First you come to the Crazy Horse Monument, then the exit for Mt. Rushmore, then various camping resorts, such as Rushmore Shadows where I stayed for 2 nights (23rd and 24th May, 2012) and then Rapid City.
Since I was passing by Crazy Horse Monument on my way to Rushmore Shadows, I stopped there for about 3 hours. Had to wind down my window to pay for the parking, and for some reason forgot to rewind it.
It was a grey day, kind of drizzly, but I figured since I'd be spending most of my time inside the buildings, I'd go for it.
After about an hour, took a $4 bus ride up to a photogenic spot to take photos. It was cold, but not raining at this point.
On way back, the bus drove through the parking lot and I discovered my open window. Dropped off at museum entrance, walked back up to my car.
No theft, but this is what I saw:
Fortunately, I had some towels in my trunk. So after scraping away most of the hail, I put the towels down when I resumed my drive to Rushmore Shadows.
Since I was passing by Crazy Horse Monument on my way to Rushmore Shadows, I stopped there for about 3 hours. Had to wind down my window to pay for the parking, and for some reason forgot to rewind it.
It was a grey day, kind of drizzly, but I figured since I'd be spending most of my time inside the buildings, I'd go for it.
After about an hour, took a $4 bus ride up to a photogenic spot to take photos. It was cold, but not raining at this point.
On way back, the bus drove through the parking lot and I discovered my open window. Dropped off at museum entrance, walked back up to my car.
No theft, but this is what I saw:
Fortunately, I had some towels in my trunk. So after scraping away most of the hail, I put the towels down when I resumed my drive to Rushmore Shadows.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Damn time zones!
I'm sitting in a cabin near Rapid City, South Dakota.
I've got the cabin for 2 nights, free, dependant on my attending a 90-minute presentation this morning.
Last night, my cell phone was right. It said 6 pm, and indeed at 6 pm the store I was in closed.
This morning, my cellphone is an hour fast.
So instead of getting up at 8 am, so I could attend the presentation at 9 am, I got up at 7 am!
Turned on my laptops - *THEY* said 7 am! (Yes, I travel with two lap tops One to work on, the other to show a netflix movie full screen while I work).
The office is only about 50 yards from this cabin, and they are supposed to open at 8 am... but when I got up it was POURING with rain and I wasn't going to drive up there. (It's now drizzling, and is supposed to drizzle through Tuesday. Just my luck.)
Anyway, that's the story of my morning.
I've got the cabin for 2 nights, free, dependant on my attending a 90-minute presentation this morning.
Last night, my cell phone was right. It said 6 pm, and indeed at 6 pm the store I was in closed.
This morning, my cellphone is an hour fast.
So instead of getting up at 8 am, so I could attend the presentation at 9 am, I got up at 7 am!
Turned on my laptops - *THEY* said 7 am! (Yes, I travel with two lap tops One to work on, the other to show a netflix movie full screen while I work).
The office is only about 50 yards from this cabin, and they are supposed to open at 8 am... but when I got up it was POURING with rain and I wasn't going to drive up there. (It's now drizzling, and is supposed to drizzle through Tuesday. Just my luck.)
Anyway, that's the story of my morning.
Monday, May 14, 2012
You don't know what you don't know...
I had thought I was buying landscape fabric that would keep weeds from growing but let water go through. I had had my doubts a few days ago after a brief rain -the water puddled on top of the black sheeting instead of going through...and today confirmed it when I was watering my newly planted flowers, some wter got on the sheeting where the rocks go, and just stayed there.
I hadn't bothered to read the directions - I'd seen this stuff at Lowes and at Walmart in their garden aisle, there were no other choices, so of course I assumed there was only one kind - the kind that would let water go through.
So tomorrow I'll go and but 4 more pots, shovel all this dirt into those pots, and in another montrh or so when I've got some more discretionary money, buy more tree bark to cover these water-proofed containers.
So kind of annoyed today...
Sunday, May 13, 2012
My Garden
I live about 9 miles away from the outskirts of Cheyenne (I'm on the outskirts outskirts!) in a housing development. Most of the houses in this area are located pretty close to each other, but my own house is on its own acre of land.
Clay-ey land. Impossible to grow anything decent. Scrub grass in the back, full of rocks under the dirt/clay. In the front, mostly clay, with a little bit of grass.
There's a wooden frame work of a room, that eventually I'd like to actually build and use as a room for model trains or something, but that will be some years in the future.
The garden that I'm setting up - and to tell the truth I'd prefer that it be all rock - nice red rock - runs from the very edge of the bottom "patio" to that room. Next year I"ll put in another layer of cinder block from the edge of the room., running in a curved manner to the patio.
So, below are the photos. The final photos, from May 12, show dirt (or rather, potting soil) in the two boxes flanking the center box, into which I put a bag of decorative bark, and two pots. My plan is to plant flowers in the pots, and perennial plants in the other two containers. Perhaps only a couple of plants in each, to see if they survive.
April 30, 2012, Monday
The first idea was to have three separate areas, divided by my cinder blocks. But then I decided that would require too much dirt and bark, so I asked my dad to put together the wooden boxes instead, and got the idea to surround them with the rocks from the other side of the house.
May 2, 2012
May 7, 2012
Below - the rock pile on the back side of the house. This rock pile was here w hen we moved in. When the garden is done, all these rocks will be in the front, surrounding my boxes with the flowers and plants.
2 views of the rocks that infest the grounds under the grass - small rocks, medium sized rocks, even a few big rocks.
5/8/12 - As you can see, the rocks are being added to the back first. Slow going because they are so heavy!
5/10/12 - slowly but surely the rocks are being added
5/11/12 - more rocks being added
5/12/12 - The dirt has been added, as well as the bark and the pots.
Clay-ey land. Impossible to grow anything decent. Scrub grass in the back, full of rocks under the dirt/clay. In the front, mostly clay, with a little bit of grass.
There's a wooden frame work of a room, that eventually I'd like to actually build and use as a room for model trains or something, but that will be some years in the future.
The garden that I'm setting up - and to tell the truth I'd prefer that it be all rock - nice red rock - runs from the very edge of the bottom "patio" to that room. Next year I"ll put in another layer of cinder block from the edge of the room., running in a curved manner to the patio.
So, below are the photos. The final photos, from May 12, show dirt (or rather, potting soil) in the two boxes flanking the center box, into which I put a bag of decorative bark, and two pots. My plan is to plant flowers in the pots, and perennial plants in the other two containers. Perhaps only a couple of plants in each, to see if they survive.
April 30, 2012, Monday
The first idea was to have three separate areas, divided by my cinder blocks. But then I decided that would require too much dirt and bark, so I asked my dad to put together the wooden boxes instead, and got the idea to surround them with the rocks from the other side of the house.
May 2, 2012
May 7, 2012
2 views of the rocks that infest the grounds under the grass - small rocks, medium sized rocks, even a few big rocks.
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Sale of Wyo. hamlet for $900,000 is official
From KULR8: Sale of Wyo. hamlet for $900,000 is official
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The sale of a remote, unincorporated area in southern Wyoming to a man from Vietnam is now official.
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The sale of a remote, unincorporated area in southern Wyoming to a man from Vietnam is now official.
Cheyenne broker Rozetta Weston says the sale of Buford was closed this week.
Located along busy Interstate 80 in southeast Wyoming, Buford advertised itself as the smallest town in the United States with one resident.
It was sold at auction for $900,000 last month to Vietnamese businessman Pham Dinh Nguyen (WIN).
Buford includes a gas station and convenience store, a 1905 schoolhouse, a cabin, a garage and a three-bedroom house on 10 acres between Cheyenne and Laramie.
The town traces its origins to the 1860s and the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad.
Friday, May 11, 2012
Wyoming Special Olympics torch delivered to Laramie
From Boomerang: Wyoming Special Olympics torch delivered to Laramie
As David O’Malley, Albany County Sheriff, appeared on the hill running down 15th Street toward Deti Stadium, “Flame of Hope” torch in his hand, a roar of excitement ran through the neighborhood.
As David O’Malley, Albany County Sheriff, appeared on the hill running down 15th Street toward Deti Stadium, “Flame of Hope” torch in his hand, a roar of excitement ran through the neighborhood.
Hundreds of people from around the state welcomed the law enforcement group running to the stadium to officially open the Special Olympics Wyoming Summer Games. The group picked up the torch a few hours earlier from Cheyenne law enforcement to deliver it to the opening ceremonies for the event.
“It touched my heart. It brought tears in my eye,” Brenda Ocheskey, Cheyenne resident, said. “Special Olympics always had a special place in our hearts.”
For many years, Ocheskey has been attending Special Olympics in Laramie with her brother John Patton, an athlete who has participated in the event since its inception in Wyoming 40 years ago.
This year also marks the 25th anniversary of the Law Enforcement Torch Run (LETR) in Wyoming. The largest grassroots fundraiser and public awareness vehicle worldwide, LETR started in Kansas in the 1980s to give law enforcement agencies an opportunity to get engaged in Special Olympics.
Since its inception in Wyoming, LETR has raised more than half a million dollars to support Wyoming athletes.
Having several law enforcement agencies engaged in the run (including police department, sheriff’s department, Wyoming Highway Patrol and Wyoming Game and Fish Department) helps the Special Olympics reach many communities around the state, Priscilla Dowse, president and CEO of Special Olympics Wyoming, said earlier.
It is also an opportunity to build a positive relationship between law enforcement and the community, Officer Melinda Miller said.
“It’s an amazing experience to do what we do and to feel so welcomed. And we feel so honored to be able to do this for the community,” she said. “A lot of people may think law enforcement (representatives) are kind of scary but it’s a positive thing, for sure. It makes us more approachable, too.”
About 40 law enforcement officers from Laramie participated in the run, Mike Samp, coordinator of the run in Laramie and assistant chief of the UW Police Department, said.
“It was great and I had no idea how many people were going to be here until we came over the hill. It’s just phenomenal. It gave me goose bumps. I didn’t expect that many people,” O’Malley said. “Mike (Samp) asked me to do it this year and I really appreciate him for doing that because it’s been a really good experience. When you come over the hill, you see the stands are full and you realize what efforts are put forth by people to make sure these athletes get to compete. And it’s pretty emotional.”
For more information about the games go to the Special Olympics Wyoming website, www.specialolympicswy.org.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Coors Field, Denver
More photos to come shortly.
If you're going to drive from Cheyenne down to Denver to see a baseball game at Coors Field, the easiest hing to do, if it's just one or two of you, is to drive down about 50 miles to exit 223 (on I25), park in Wagon Road Park and ride (actually on some street named Melody), and take a bus the remaining 15 miles/15 minutes to the stadium. The bus takes you right there and right back.
It does cost - $4 each way. If you're with a group of people so you can split the cost of parking, you could go all the way in to town, but if you're don't want the culture shock between driving "downtown" Cheyenne, where there is no traffic and two one way roads in and out of the city, and Denver, which is five times and large and has twenty times as many people driving around on any given day.... take the bus!
Only soft sided bags allowed in the stadium. Interestingly, they had vendors outside selling discount food - peanuts and pop, about half the price of what was on offer inside.
There were also people selling tickets outside - not the normal ticket people, but "scalpers" - although I don't think that that's the right term since they seemed to be offering expensive tickets for cut rate prices. It must have been legal because they were walking around quite openly, holding up tickets fanned in their hands, and there were about 4 cops around - on the stadium side of the street, who would presumably have arrested them if they were breaking the law.
So if its just one or two of you....maybe try one of these folks. I'll be doing that when I return in a couple of weeks to see the Mariners play, all on my lonesome.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Cheyenne Home and Garden Show
I went to this today...for about 30 minutes. The hazards of bringing an elderly, mobility-impaired relative along with you.
It was very much more about the home than the garden - although there was a small section where flowers were on sale, from somewhere called Grants Farm, which sells organic eggs...I'll have to dig out the brochure later and share more info.
The show is on tomorrow as well. If you've got a house with room for a deck, or a hot tub, or need landscaping, or a new roof, or want a fire pit - check it out.
*I'd* go back tomorrow for a more leisurely look except my brother is in town and we're going to drive down to Denver for a Rockies game tomorrow.
(And on Monday he'll drive back down to see a pink Floyd concert. Anyone want to take a bet on whether or not my brother, who makes 10 times what I make, will fill up the car before giving it back to me, or let it sit on empty? (I made the mistake of putting in $30 today - 6 gallons. That's enough to get us to Denver and back tomorrow, and him to Denver and back on Monday, with at least a gallon left over, and if he's not afraid of running out of gas you can bet he's not going to put any gas in...)
Well, but I digress. Hopefully the Rocckies will win tomorrow, and it will be my first time seeing a Rockies game in their stadium.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Wind-ee
Walked outside the house this morning and almost got blown off my feet!
Yeah - I know I've been promising for a while to post in this blog on a regular basis and then not doing it... b ut now I will.
Starting tomorrow.
Yeah - I know I've been promising for a while to post in this blog on a regular basis and then not doing it... b ut now I will.
Starting tomorrow.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Easter Pause
So sorry to have missed so many days of posting - unexpected family matters cropped up.
And now it's Easter, so more family matters.
Will get back on track Monday.
Thanks for your patience.
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