Well, now I've done it!

Joined Facebook, that is...Getting snowed in the way we did last week will probably do that to anybody. The cyber-space antidote to Cabin Fever.

But it is really pretty amazing how quickly people find you out there. People I haven't heard from in years are now sending "friend" requests. It's actually pretty cool. As of right now I have 42 friends (39 if you don't count family).

The young folks are very gracious, allowing me to share in their goings-on. Please continue to keep the geezer entertained. I promise to do my best to not embarrass any of you...

Round 2...and records fall!

Well, if nothing else we've set a record for single-season snow fall at all three area airports. The latest bout of snow came in at around 10 inches at home, but it was hard to measure since there aren't any good flat bare surfaces to start from!

This storm also brought high winds, so we had near white-out conditions during much of the day. There were interesting little "snow-nadoes" whistling down the street on several occasions. Apart from a power glitch this morning, everything seems to be online for now. Hope it stays that way.

I've done a round of shoveling the sidewalks, and this time the snow is pretty powdery, so it's a bit easier on the back. We'll see how things hold up tomorrow for the second dig-out. I've also spent quite a bit of time attempting to break ice dams on the gutters before they all come a-crashing down. Looks like quite a bit of work is going to have to be done once this stuff all melts.

Six more weeks to the equinox...maybe we'll see the ground by then!

I'm getting too old for this...

Memo to Ol' Man Winter: I give up. You win.

I was going to take a day off and go skiing this week. How ironic.

I am pretty sure that I have singlehandedly moved at least three tons of show over the last few days. I used to like snow. I'm from New England, for chrissakes. Growing up we had storms measured in feet. But we also had a Gravely Tractor with a snowblower attachment and a plow. We had awesome hills for sledding. I owned a set of snowshoes which got pretty regular workouts. One winter we had 10 feet of snow piled up against the fence at the lower end of the driveway. My friend Mitch and I made a snow fort, complete with secret entrances, tunnels, etc.

In college up in Worcester, MA we also had massive snowstorms measured in feet. Inconvenient for a day, maybe two, but you could drive a rear-wheel drive car down any street in town within 2 days of the show ending.

I've experienced some pretty big dumps of snow since moving to the DC area in 1977, but this officially takes the cake. I measured 20 inches in the side yard last Saturday after that storm wound down. Now we're scheduled for another 10+ storm with winds, etc. just to add to the fun. I don't like snow anymore. I hurt for all the wrong reasons. I've done nothing but shovel for the last three days. Looks like I'll get to do it all over again. Getting old sucks.

Another great bumper sticker

I used to have one that said "Of All the Things I've Lost, I Miss My Mind the Most".

That was my fave until I was given a "Republicans For Voldemort" sticker back in 2004.

Wednesday night at the gym I saw another "must-have". It said "We Have the Fossils. We Win!" followed by a running "Jesus fish". My birthday's in June...

Happy New Year (but not the end of the decade!)

What’s so special about a year ending in “9”? Well, the vast majority of us seem to think that it is the end of a decade, century, or millennium. If nothing else it gives news organizations and list-makers plenty of fodder, which can then be re-hashed next year as the “true” end of the decade. While there is no “official” determinant to a decade’s end I personally follow the practice of counting ten items such as stars or years from “one to ten” as opposed to “zero to nine”.

Consider this. In the Gregorian Calendar there is no year "0". The first year of the first decade/century/millennium was the year "1". The last year of the first decade was "10", century was "100", etc. So, sorry, folks, we've got one more year to put a positive spin on the "aughts" before the decade of the "teens". Call me a pedantic curmudgeon. Go ahead...I've been called much worse things. But dem's de facts, Jack.

This mindset actually proves very handy for those “milestone” birthdays; when I turned fifty I thought of it as the last year of the decade of my “forties”, which softened the blow until the following year, when I finally couldn’t escape the inevitable. So, for me, the decade lasts one more year. It can only get better, right?

How I almost killed the Vice President's dog...

Those of you who know me know that I work at the U.S. Naval Observatory. Since 1976 the Observatory has also been the home of the Vice President of the U.S. Since 1997 I've had the chance to show three VP's and their families the various sights of the Observatory. The new tenants, Vice President Joe and Dr. Jill Biden, have been quite actively visiting us since moving into One Observatory Circle.

Dr. Biden in particular brings people up fairly often. Today she hosted a reception at the Residence for 5th & 6th Grade students from a DC Charter School and a military school from Quantico. One of the activities that was planned was a quick visit to our 26-inch "Great Equatorial" telescope, with yours truly as the host.

Between the students, Secret Service, teachers, & VP staffers there were about 35 people who eventually wandered up from the house, along with Champ, the Bidens' year-old German Shepherd dog.

Champ was having a grand ol' time cavorting on the lawn with the kids. As we all filed into the telescope dome he made a number of attempts to come in as well, until he finally escaped a staffer and found his way inside.

We've just refinished the floor in there, which happens to be an elevating platform to gain access to the telescope. It's nice and shiny and slick. Champ was darting between people, skidding into turns, and generally having a ball. Until he skidded once too often. There's a large hole in the floor where a spiral staircase gives access to the basement. Out of the corner of my eye, amid all the confusion, I see Champ's rear end disappear down the hole. He hangs desperately onto the lip for a brief instant with his front paws, then Whoosh! Down he goes like Alice down the rabbit hole.

My first thought was "Oh, shit! He's either dead or has a broken back! Either way this doesn't look good..."

Several agents and Dr. Biden rush down the steps. I at least had the presence of mind to turn the light on and got Bill (one of the real astronomers who works with the telescope) to clear access to the more conventional basement stairway.

Then one of the aides says "OK, Mr. Chester, we're all ready for your presentation!"

Well, somehow I pull it together, do my speil, during which Dr. Biden comes up to indicate Champ's OK. Does that qualify as "Grace under pressure?"

Greatest C&W Song EVER!!

My favorite used to be "Drop Kick Me, Jesus, Through the Goalposts of Life". Now it's "I Just Got Flipped Off by a Silver-Haired Old Lady Who Had a 'Honk If You Love Jesus' Sticker on the Bumper of Her Car".

'Nuff said...