Mulchkin Land

We spent the weekend moving mulch.

We had six yards delivered, and spread it three inches deep on all four sides of the house.


It took a lot of full wheelbarrows to empty that pile!


Here are some more scenes from around the house.


Let us finish with some "shooting stars". These are my favorite spring flowers in the yard. They remind me of the Rocky Mountains.

Win Half, Lose Half

It was a so so April for the Cubs (10-11). I have had my worries about this year, but every publication, and expert predicted them to win the division. I did not want to be the only skeptic. Last year went so smoothly, with no injuries, and a great team attitude, that it makes sense that this year was going to be much rougher. The first month seems to confirm that.

Players of the month:
1. Ryan Theriot for leading the league in hitting, and still is well above .300. Always will remember his days as a Lugnut, when David was the first to call him "The Riot."

2. Reed Johnson for the CATCH in Milwaukee in front of Cayle and Tracy.

3. Alfonso Soriano for the lead off home runs, wearing his uniform socks the correct length.

Clio: The History Muse

In doing some Civil War research I discovered Clio, the Greek Muse of History, and have pronounced her the official "muse" of the Oak Openings and Observations blog.

The Muses are the goddesses or spirits who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge, related orally for centuries in the ancient culture, that was contained in poetic lyrics and myths. Originally said to be three in number, by the Classical times of the 400s BC, their number had grown, and become set at nine goddesses who embody the arts and inspire the creation process with their graces.

The name Clio comes from the Greek word "Klieo", which translates as "glory."

I discovered Clio at the monument to the 123rd New York Regiment at Culp's Hill in Gettysburg. ( see below) Double clicking on the picture gives you a better view of Clio.

What follows are more visuals of "My Muse."

April Color

It is finally spring. I can tell by the color in the yard.

The Iris have made an appearance.

The Azalea in their purple majesty

The shooting stars are about to appear.

The grass in getting long. In fact I mowed it today.

The tulips are here.

The summer garden flowers are starting to appear.

Some more color.

Then there is this unique little flower.

My 2nd Favorite Astrophysicist

I just finished this book by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. The author writes in a style that I always imagined Brennan doing. He explains science in a clear understandable way, with humor and creativity mixed in. More on the author later in the post.
A few years ago there was quite an uproar when Pluto was demoted from one of the nine planets to a "dwarf planet".
As the New York Times wrote:

It has long been clear that Pluto, discovered in 1930, stood apart from the previously discovered planets. Not only was it much smaller than them, only about 1,600 miles in diameter, smaller than the Moon, but its elongated orbit is tilted with respect to the other planets and it goes inside the orbit of Neptune part of its 248-year journey around the Sun.

Pluto makes a better match with the other ice balls that have since been discovered in the dark realms beyond Neptune, they have argued. In 2000, when the new Rose Center for Earth and Space opened at the American Museum of Natural History, Pluto was denoted in a display as a Kuiper Belt Object and not a planet.

The planets are now put in groups: the 4 Terrestrial planets, including earth, and the 4 Jovian, or gaseous planets. No longer will students be trying to memorize the nine planets in order.

The change in Pluto's status created a lot of controversy, which is covered in the book. Pluto had been a planet all their lives, and they wished for it to continue that way. People are gradually making the adjustment to the new way of looking at our solar system.

Lyrics by Jeff Mondak and Alex Stangel

Since 1930, quite a run

It was always the smallest one

And oh so distant from the sun

But Pluto’s not a planet anymore

Uranus may be famous

But Mercury’s feeling hot

For Pluto was a planet

And somehow now it’s not

Neptune’s nervous, Saturn’s sad

And jumpin’ Jupiter is hoppin’ mad

Eight remain of nine we had

Pluto’s not a planet anymore

They held the meeting here on Earth

Mars and Venus proved their worth

But puny Pluto lacked the girth

So, Pluto’s not a planet anymore

Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson (born October 5, 1958 in New York City) is an American astrophysicist and, since 1996, the Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Since 2006, he has hosted PBS's educational television show NOVA scienceNOW. Keen and charismatic, Tyson is a frequent guest on The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, and Jeopardy!.

Scientific works

• The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet (2009) ISBN 0393065200
• Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries (2007)
• The Sky Is Not the Limit: Adventures of an Urban Astrophysicist (1st ed. 2000 / 2nd ed. 2004)
• Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution (co-authored with Donald Goldsmith) (2004)
• My Favorite Universe (A twelve part lecture series) (2003) ISBN 1565856635
• City of Stars: A New Yorker's Guide to the Cosmos (2002)
• Cosmic Horizons: Astronomy at the Cutting Edge (2000)
• One Universe: At Home in the Cosmos (2000)
• Just Visiting This Planet (1998)
• Universe Down to Earth (1994)
• Merlin's Tour of the Universe (1989)

Madison

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Madison

Madison, Wisconsin: It is a college town, and it is the Capital.





It has five Lakes.





It has over 1,200 restaurants, of which The Great Dane is our favorite.







State Street connects the Capital and campus.





Every Saturday is the fabulous Farmer's Market.






There are bike trails and running trails everywhere.

Summer nights on the Student Union's Terrace.
And our son and daughter-in-law live there!

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Daffodils

Thanks Tracy for the daffodil bulbs. Here is a quick photogenic look at the early spring garden.