Brad 的个人资料Booming Prairie Chicken照片日志列表更多  |  工具 帮助 |
|
11月30日 Last night in Deadwood...Last night in Deadwood...
Tonight is our last night in Deadwood - at least until January. This town is kind of odd on a Sunday night. We have gotten familiar with Deadwood during the times when it is overrun with tourists and the party never ends. Tonight the town is quiet and the loudest noise out on main street is the wind blowing. The staff at the Bullock seems to welcome the chance to catch their breath and get some of the mundane work done. For Laurie and I it is a good chance to get some things done on our laptops in the bar. We are just about the only people in a bar where I have a lot of memories of cowboys during the Days of 76 and costumed patrons during Deadweird.
Next week Laurie and I get to set up our vacation schedule for 2009. It is sort of a yearly ritual for all the craft people at Qwest; you can never be completely certain what you will end up with. I do have a feeling we will find some time in January to make it back here. It doesn't really matter to us when we get back here. We love this little town all year long.
11月29日 Snow!Snow!
Snow in Deadwood
Imagine that...
So here I am sitting in the Deadwood Tobacco Company using their very good wi-fi signal and it is snowing outside. Even looks like it might be snowing like mad. I just pulled up a weather report and this snow might continue into tomorrow. Now they're saying that on Monday we might have sunshine and 50 degree temperatures. Sometiimes the forecasts are wrong. So what does that mean for the staff of the 'Booming Prairie Chicken'? To put it in Qwest talk; one occurrence, two days, see ya on Thursday.
Remembrances of snow past...
Last night Laurie and I got to meet with Mark R. from BHPI. It was a very worthwhile meeting as we consider ways to offer assistance to the excellent work they are doing. I am of the belief that collaboration is the missing ingredient in quite a bit of paranormal research. I really have to endorse BHPI for the efforts they are making. People should really keep track of their endeavors, they have a great future ahead of them.
11月28日 Back in DeadwoodBack in Deadwood
Laurie and I got into Deadwood today around 3pm. It is great to see our friends here again. The only problem we have is that we are staying in a new room at the Bullock - at least new to us. There is no reliable wi-fi signal in this particular room. This is one of the inevitable risks when you travel. So right now we are sitting in Bully's Bar and using the exceptionally reliable signal that travels through there. It is kind of nice to be able to order an Irish coffee while I do my internet thing... 11月27日 Thanksgiving and a run to DeadwoodThanksgiving...
...and a run to Deadwood
Laurie and I are currently sitting at the Hampton Inn alongside I-90 in Mitchell, South Dakota. Today was a uneventful Thanksgiving with my family and then we hit the road west. These day the world seems like it is going to Hell on a fairly regular basis. If we believe the news our national economy is coming apart. News sources in the United States seem to have ignored the fact that according to credible sources Iran might be getting close to having a nuclear weapon. We do know for a fact that they have managed to launch a solid fuel missile of considerably superior performance to their previous missiles. Terrorists seem to be back at it again. Nothing good is going on.
Then I try to take stock of my own life. I have a wonderful wife and a nice home. My job is relatively secure inspite of the economy. Life is good. For this I can be thankful and, for a little bit of time, I will ignore the bad of the rest of the world.
The way I figure it right now we should be in Deadwood around 2:00pm tomorrow...
11月17日 Black Triangle UFOsBlack Triangle UFOsI found this on the 'Unexplained Mysteries' website (http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/) and just had to post it here. I have wondered for a long time about the origin of some of these strange things people keep seeing in our skies. I am not so sure that aliens are sitting at the steering wheel. If you look at the history around the development of various 'Black Project' aircraft the reports around the Black Triangles are consistent with what the government has done before. LATEST: Black triangle UFOs 'not piloted by alien beings'http://www.louthleader.co.uk/news/LATEST-Black-triangle-UFOs-39not.4692215.jp
11月16日 Retirement planning as a hobbyRetirement planning
as a Hobby
I often tell people that it is a bad sign when retirement planning seems like my major hobby in life. The fact of the matter is that I tinker with our retirement plans on an almost daily basis. I don't think I'm alone. I've been told that over 60% of the people in my department at work have over 25 years in the company. I hear these people wondering if they will ever be able to close their personal doors on Qwest? With the recent tribulations of the stock market I wouldn't want to hinge my plans on our company 401K.
Laurie and I don't plan on working for Qwest all the way to the grave. I know a few Qwest employees who have already resigned themselves to this. I have it figured this way; our retirement is currently not based exclusively on the fortunes - and misfortunes - of our company. I count us as fortunate that Qwest still offers a pension for the Union workers. I don't know if this is going to continue if the company hires new people in the future. I am just glad that we base one part of our retirement planning on a relatively sound pension fund.
I am realistic about one potential problem for pension funds; there are a lot of pension funds heavily invested in mutual funds. There seems to be this line of political thinking that it is 'evil' for a company to make what seems like excessive profits. This leads me to wonder how you define what an 'excessive' profit is? Then it makes me want to check how my pension fund is operated. If the Federal government starts taking actions to constrain the profits on companies - particularly companies common to mutual funds investment - how is this going to effect the retirement plans of literally tens of millions of Americans?
I am not a financial expert - I'll leave that to my sister the economist - but it doesn't take a lot of thinking to see how retirement funds could be threatened if the growth of mutual funds is constrained. Luckily Laurie and I are not singularly dependent on our pension or company 401K. Still it leaves me wondering about all the people who were indignant about corporate profits; I wonder when they plan on retiring? 11月15日 The Luck of the Booming Prairie ChickenThe Luck of the
Booming Prairie Chicken
I usually like to put up a fairly substantial update on the blog every Saturday. It has even become a ritual of sorts for me. I settle down at my favorite Caribou coffee shop and try to grind out something.
Not today.
There has been so much happening in so many places that it is difficult to keep up with it all. I am working zealously to be ready for our next roadtrip to the Black Hills. It is less than two weeks off! We will only be in Deadwood for three nights but I am keeping my fingers crossed that I can get a few important things done.
Laurie and I have had amazing luck in our winter travels. I like to think of it as 'The Luck of the Booming Prairie Chicken'. We have encountered relatively little bad weather during our travels. We will be packing a few extra emergency items for this trip. The Black Hills got slammed a little more than a week ago by a real blizzard. As I understand it Deadwood is still digging out from almost five feet of snow. That is right; five feet of snow.
We still have our reservations in and plans in place. I am finding more interesting information around my favorite historical mystery; what really did happen to the German 'Wunder Waffen' programs at the end of the Second World War. I have a feeling, based on some of what I'm finding, that what the official histories report and what actually happened might be two very different things.
This was a German flying wing design from 1935.
The United States was very interested in this bit of aviation technology after the Second World War. It then seemed to fade away by the 1960's. Then that old passion came back and one of the first aircraft the United States Air Force looked at was the Horton 229. The end result was the B-2 Stealth bomber.
I just wonder what other German weapons we might have been interested in? What other late war German experiments, borne of desperation, might have caught the attention of the Allies? 11月12日 Holiday Weekend Coming Soon...Holiday Weekend Coming Soon!
Laurie and I have a holiday weekend coming soon! It isn't just a long weekend but a long weekend! Yes, we are planning a run to Deadwood. It just seems like the thing to do! Of course the biggest potential problem could be the weather. Western South Dakota has already had a heck of November as far as the weather is concerned. We are still going to take a shot at it.
Speaking about the weather out there...
When a blizzard snows you in for three days what do you do? Our friend Vaughn (one of the fine people from Deadwood Tobacco Company) decided to make furniture out of the snow!
11月8日 Heck of a week...Heck of a week...
This was a heck of a week; Laurie and I got back from Deadwood fairly late last Sunday night. The very next day we had to be back to work. The two big topics of the day were the elections on Tuesday and the contract vote due on Friday. We had no idea if we would be out on strike the following week. The emotions were also a bit high with some of the political zealots in our office.
Tuesday came and went with Obama elected and more control passing to the Democratic Party. Friday passed with the our CWA contract being ratified. So now our union has a contract for the next four years. The passing of both these events will hopefully settle our lives down a bit.
So how do I feel about Obama winning the presidency? The fact of the matter is that I wasn't enthused with any of the candidates that ended up running for office. I have a lot of respect for John McCain but I really wasn't sure he was the right person to lead the country at this time. Then I'm not sure Barack Obama is the right person either. I am not in favor of any economic plan that is fundamentally a redistribution of wealth to cover the financial failures of others. I also have serious concerns about our national energy policy and the foreign threats we are very likely going to face.
Let me state this; I believe that every American should support their president. I am little tired of those who insist whoever is in office isn't their president. We still live in a representative democracy and who the people finally elect is the president for the entire United States of America. It is in all our best interests to support our president with the best hopes for the well-being of our nation.
The problem of support only comes when the president doesn't act in the best interests of the nation. We all know how many people were convinced George W. Bush was not doing the job he was elected to do. There were people screaming about him literally from the day he won the election. I really don't want to see that with Obama. I hope people give him the chance to prove his worth. I have a feeling he will be tested almost as soon as he steps into the office.
On the other hand I also have to state that I am a strong Constitutionalist. I don't believe the Constitution is the 'living document' that some politicians contend that it is. If I see any political leader undermine the Constitution then I will feel within my rights to take whatever legal action I find available. One of the real wonders of the technology available to anyone today is the ability to spread dissent rapidly and widely.
Today though I will be spending my time going over some of the data we brought home from our trip to Deadwood. This is going to keep me busy for quite awhile... 11月2日 We made it home safe and, more or less, soundWe made it home safe and, more or less, sound
After a ten hour road trip we have made it home safe and relatively sound. Pretty shot right now. Just taking time to have a cigar and do some laundry. We are home though. 11月1日 Last Night in Deadwood...Last Night in Deadwood...
Tonight is our last night in Deadwood for this trip. I think both Laurie and I find it a bit sad. These trips out here are more than just vacations, we have a lot of friends out here. It is almost as important to us to connect with friends as see the sites. We have also become keenly interested in the events in the Black Hills. It is our intention to retire here after we do our time with Qwest.
We are already planning a return trip here in January. We seem to have an odd luck with the weather; it always works out for us. One year it was great weather coming out, a snowstorm while we were here, and great weather going back. It really didn't slow us down a bit.
Now we even have our favorite hang-out in Deadwood. If you wanted to find us the best bet is Deadwood Tobacco Company. If you are a cigar smoker this is a 'must visit' location. I just love the humidor there. The staff is friendly, knowledgeable and attentive. They also have a great selection of beer and wine alongside a great offering of items for smokers. On weekends they get a lot of great blues bands as well. You just have to love the place!
Now everybody knows our passion for history. This is part of the magic and draw of Deadwood. We always hear tourists that bitch about Deadwood being "nothing but bars and casinos". That tells me right there that they haven't made much of an effort to actually find out the history of the town. If you really want to know what happened in Deadwood, and for that matter the Black Hills, just start with the Adams Museum. We have been so impressed by the preservation and research work that they do that they are on the top of our donation list.
The Adams Museum
Then you have the Bullock Hotel! We love the Bullock! You will get some of the finest service that we have found in our travels. Sure, we are suckers for just about any place that claims to be haunted but there might just be something to the legends around this hotel. We have yet to run into the ghosts here but we are keeping our fingers crossed.
My favorite picture of the Bullock.
Yes, we will miss this town. We always do. The trip home is always a bit somber. You can bet that we will already be planning for our next trip here.
|
|
|
