Hikipedia

I recently finished a book called In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson. It reminded me of the beauty of Nature... when it isn't trying to kill you.

I would like to spend even more time in the woods this summer than last, but I find great frustration in finding good hikes. A book is quickly out of date and you have no guarantee that you will find what you want on a pay website. And even after you pick the hike you still have to call the ranger.

Now there is Hikipedia. This site is completely free and includes all kinds of great features such as current and projected weather, sunsets times, google driving directions, and phone numbers for the relevant ranger.

It has surprisingly few local hikes and I would like to change that. The key to making this site worth visiting is letting people know it is there, so:
Hey People! Check out Hikipedia!

You can pick this hike and then call a ranger, all for free!

Two Seattley Fun Activities

1. Tour Theo Chocolates.
2. Go to the Seattle Museum of the Mysteries.

If anyone is up for either of these super-fun activities, let me know!

Don't let your brain get all musty.

Look! Lectures! Yay words!

The Future of Health: Dean Kamen

Friday, February 9, 7:30 PM Town Hall pleased to announce a new series, “The Future of Health,” and to kick it off with well-known entrepreneur and inventor Dean Kamen. Perhaps most famous for the invention of the Segway, Kamen has turned his attention to the world’s water supply. An estimated 1.1 billion people in the world don't have access to clean drinking water and 1.6 billion don't have electricity. To solve the problem, Kamen has invented two devices, each about the size of a washing machine, which can provide much-needed clean water and power in the third world. These are technologies that can be distributed by local village entrepreneurs. Town Hall's “Future of Health” series will explore a wide-range of emerging health issues—from global policy to personal health to alternative practices—and continues on February 28 with James McManus talking about stem cell research. $5 Tickets & info
Tickets are $5 at the door only. Town Hall members receive priority seating.

Eric Klinenberg: ‘Fighting for Air’

Monday, February 5, 7:30 PM For the residents of Minot, North Dakota, the demise of truly local media spelled disaster. In the wake of a train derailment that sent a cloud of poisonous gas drifting toward the town, Minot’s fire and rescue department attempted to reach Clear Channel, the owner/operator of all six local commercial radio stations to warn residents of the approaching threat—but there was no one in the studio to take the call. The result was one death and more than a thousand injuries. Opening with the story of the Minot tragedy, Eric Klinenberg’s new book, Fighting for Air, examines how corporate ownership and control of local media has remade American political and cultural life. Klinenberg is interviewed by Michael Fancher, editor at large of the Seattle Times. Also the author of the highly acclaimed Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster In Chicago, Klinenberg is a sociology professor at New York University. Presented by the Town Hall Center for Civic Life with Elliott Bay Book Company and The Seattle Times. Downstairs at Town Hall, enter on Seneca Street. $5 Tickets & info
Tickets are $5 at the door only. Town Hall members receive priority seating.

Look! Music! YAY Music!

Saturday Family Concerts: Math & Physics Club

Saturday, February 17, 11:00 AM ; Saturday, February 17, 1:30 PM The Seattle indie favorites, Math and Physics Club, charm kids and kids-at-heart with their gentle brand of pop. Their acclaimed EPs, “Weekends Away” and “Movie Ending Romance” have received heavy play on KEXP. The Math and Physics Club has appeared at Sasquatch and Bumbershoot and has spent much of 2006 writing and recording its first full-length album. Presented with KEXP and Parent Map. $5 Tickets & info
Free for kids 12 and under/$5 for adults. Tickets required for all attendees. Adults not admitted without children. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Tickets available at www.brownpapertickets.com or 800/838-3006.

Alexi Murdoch

Crocodile Cafe, Seattle, WA
Sat, Feb 24, 2007 09:30 PM

Expiration Date

Shoreline Community College is having a Silent Auction and a screening of the award winning independant film “Expiration Date.” The writer/director, Rick Stevenson, will be in attendance for questions and answers. There will be food, beverages and great stuff to bid on.

DATE:

November 7, 2006

TIME:

3:30 to 7:00 for the Silent Auction

7:00 to 9:00 for the movie “Expiration Date”

WHERE:

Shoreline Community College in the Theatre

16101 Greenwood Ave North

Shoreline, WA

Don't say there's nothing to do in the doldrums.

Things to do (if you are also a dork):

Lee Smolin: ‘The Trouble with Physics’
At Pacific Science Center Eames Imax Theatre
Friday, September 29 at 7:30 pm.
Renowned theoretical physicist Lee Smolin argues that physics—the basis for all other science—has lost its way. The problem is string theory: no part of it has been proven and no one knows how to prove it. Smolin charts its rise and fall and looks at what will replace it. He describes a group of young theorists which has begun to develop new ideas that are, unlike string theory, testable. A former string theorist himself, Smolin delivers this wake-up call in his new book, The Trouble with Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science and What Comes Next.
Tickets are $5 at the door only.

Dead Sea Scrolls: Debates, Questions, and Mysteries
Wednesday, October 4 , 7:30 PM
Pacific Science Center hosts an exhibition featuring the Dead Sea Scrolls from September 23-January 7. Considered by many to be the most significant archeological find of the 20th century, these biblical and sectarian manuscripts date from 250 B.C.E. – 68 B.C.E. Apparently the library of a Jewish sect, they are the earliest known manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), written primarily in Hebrew and Aramaic. A distinguished lecture series presented by Pacific Science Center at Town Hall explores the context and science of this exhibition. Scott Noegel, Professor of Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and Chair of the Department of Eastern Languages and Civilization at the University of Washington explores the “Debates, Questions, and Mysteries” of the scrolls. $15 Tickets & info
Tickets are $15. Visit www.pacificsciencecenter.org for tickets and more information. Tickets also available at Pacific Science Center ticket booths.

Cultural Politics of Race and Rights in Japan
John H. Davis, Jr.
When: Thursday, October 5th, 2006 - 3:30 PM
Where: Thomson 317
Details:
John H. Davis, Jr. (Anthropology, Michigan State University) examines the shifting relationship between race, culture, and rights on display in Japan's first human rights museum and argues that the multi-culturalism central to many human rights initiatives around the world have the (unintended) effect of reinforcing the marginalization of minority populations in Japan.

Dead Sea Scrolls: ‘The Stories They Tell’
Wednesday, October 11 , 7:30 PM
Pacific Science Center hosts an exhibition featuring the Dead Sea Scrolls from September 23-January 7. Considered by many to be the most significant archeological find of the 20th century, these biblical and sectarian manuscripts date from 250 B.C.E. – 68 B.C.E. Apparently the library of a Jewish sect, they are the earliest known manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), written primarily in Hebrew and Aramaic. A distinguished lecture series presented by Pacific Science Center at Town Hall explores the context and science of this exhibition. Martin Abegg, Professor and Co-Director of the Dead Sea Scrolls Institute at Trinity Western University, has created a concordance for the sectarian portions of the scrolls. $15 Tickets & info
Tickets are $15. Visit www.pacificsciencecenter.org for tickets and more information. Tickets also available at Pacific Science Center ticket booths.

Seattle Follies: Rick Steves' ‘Axis of Evil’
Thursday, October 12 , 7:30 PM Travel authority and TV personality Rick Steves co-hosts Seattle Follies, taking attendees on a whirlwind tour though satirical and topical stories of the day, including visits to the stunning sights and sites of North Korea, Iran, and other “Axis of Evil” countries. He’ll be joined by co-host Mike Egan, voted funniest man on Washington, DC’s Capitol Hill—and he wasn’t even an elected oficial at the time!!! Stephanie Pure, making a first run for elected office as a candidate in the hotly contested 43rd District Democratic primary will talk about the experiences and absurdities of running a political campaign. Providing music will be long-time Seattle cabaret favorite songstress Joanne Klein, and Rob Jones, a Follies regular who will tickle the ivories all evening long. Beer and wine available for purchase. Downstairs at Town Hall, enter on Seneca Street. $15 - $10 Tickets & info
Advance tickets are $12/$10 Town Hall members, seniors & students only at www.brownpapertickets.com or 1800/838-3006. $15/$13 at the door.

The Moth Story Tour: Out On a Limb-Stories from the Edge
Sunday, October 15 , 7:30 PM
The Moth, “New York’s hottest and hippest literary ticket” (The Wall Street Journal), makes its first appearance in Seattle! The evening features several well-known raconteurs, including Dan Savage, Sherman Alexie, and Jonathan Ames, as well as other favorite storytellers from New York city including Sherman OT Powell (retired pickpocket), Steve Osborne (NYPD lieutenant), and Michaela Murphy (writer and director of Something Blue). Author and storyteller par excellence Jonathan Ames, hosts the evening. Each participant tells a ten-minute, first-person narrative without script or notes. Audience members and storytellers continue swapping stories over beer and wine (available for purchase) after the show. The Moth Story Tour is presented by TNT. Co-presenters are Kiehl's and The Stranger. $12 - $10 Tickets & info
Tickets are $12/$10 Town Hall members, students, and seniors. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Advance tickets only at www.brownpapertickets.com or 800/838-3006. Visit www.themoth.org for more information.

Modern Japan: ‘Shutting Out the Sun’
Monday, October 23 , 7:30 PM
The world’s second-wealthiest country,Japan once seemed poised to overtake America. But in the 1990s Japan entered a period of stagnation from which it has yet to recover. Its fiscal depression has spread to the country’s political system as well as its national consciousness. An extreme example of the problem is the more than one million young men who have given up on school or employment, spending their days in their apartments. Michael Zielenziger, journalist and scholar, presents a portrait of these “hikikomori” and reveals how they are both a symptom of and metaphor for Japan’s ennui. Seven years as Tokyo bureau chief for Knight Rider newspapers gave Zielenziger the necessary access to this closed society and the resulting book, Shutting Out the Sun, is a fascinating story with implications for the rest of the world. Presented with Elliott Bay Book Company. Downstairs at Town Hall, enter on Seneca Street. $5 Tickets & info
Tickets are $5 at the door only. Town Hall members receive priority seating.

I can't make the first one on physics, but I am definitely very desirous to see The Moth.
Let me know if you want to join.

I got no strings on me.

Last night Cathi and I showed up to the String Theory lecture only to find that it there was not even standing room.
Seattle is totally full of dorks.
I am terribly bitter. Now I'll never be the smartiest person ever.

Luckily, there's a good cannoli place not too far away.

Science on Tap.

"Science on Tap" presents:

Matthew Strassler
UW Department of Physics
"Beyond the Hype: The Weird World of String Theory"
September 25th 2006, 7pm

More information on this talk go to:
http://www.phys.washington.edu/users/strasslr/

• What to expect: meetings usually last about one to two hours. The speaker gives a short talk about their area of interest, followed by a breakto fill up on coffee and a time for small group discussions. Afterwards there will be a question and answer session and general discussion of the topic with the speaker and the audience at large.
• Monthly meetings take place the last Monday of every month at the Ravenna Third Place Bookstore in Seattle at the corner of 20th Ave NE and NE 65th Street. Free parking is available.

Please join me if you have any interest in String Theory. I will admit I'm fairly dorkily excited.

The things that you learn when your pride dies.

Michael Franti and Spearhead play a song called "Never too Late" and I have been meditating on it. The Live at KEXP version has a little story at the beginning about a man trying to turn his life around after having a stroke.
My own grandfather was a hard man. An alcoholic. Late in his life he had a stroke and began to reach out to his children. My mother never accepted his apology before he died. I think a lot about that.
We all make mistakes in life. Sometimes life rides us hard and makes us sour. I think it is an amazing thing for anyone to apologise, to try to move on. I really don't think it's ever too late. I know you can't undue your wrongs, but sometimes all it takes is an apology to move the wronged from a place of wounded bitterness, to acceptance.

Michael Franti and Spearhead are in concert in Seattle at the Paramount on the 13th of October, in case you'd care to join me.

Anyway, I put the lyrics below.
*********************************************

Don't fear your best friends,
because a best friend would never try to do you wrong.
And don't fear your worst friends,
because a worst friend is just a best friend whose done you wrong.
And don't fear the night time,
because the monsters know that you're divine.
And don't fear the sunshine,
because everything is better in the summertime. (summertime)

And it's never too late to start the day over,
it's never too late, pick up the phone.
(pick up the phone and call me)
never too late to lay your head down on my shoulders,
never too late to come on home.
(come on home)

Don't fear the water,
because you can swim, inside you, within your skin.
don't fear your father,
because a father's just a boy without a friend.
And don't fear to walk slow,
don't be a horse race, be a marathon.
And don't fear the long road,
because on the long road you got a long time to sing a simple song.
(sing along, come on)

And it's never too late
to start the day over,
it's never too late,
pick up the phone.
(pick up the phone and call me)
never too late to lay your head down on my shoulders,
never too late to come on home.
(come on home)

Don't fear your teachers,
because if you listen you can hear music in a school bell.
And don't fear your preacher,
if you can't find heaven in a prison cell.
don't fear your own self,
paying money to justify your worth.
And don't fear your family,
because you chose them a long time before your birth.
(yes you did, come on)

And it's never too late to start the day over,
it's never too late, pick up the phone.
(pick up the phone and call me)
it's never too late to lay your head down on my shoulders,
never too late to come on home.

Hold to your children, hold to your children, hold to your children, let them know.

Come to Powwow

1st Annual Indian Summer Powwow

September 23, 2006

A Community Event Honoring All Students
Sponsored by Edmonds School District #15 Title Vll Program and E-15 Nations


*Start 4:00PM Grand Entry at 6:00PM
*Dance Contest K-12
*Host Drum: Nation Singers
*BBQ Cook-Out: $4.00 adults, $2.00 students and elders (meal ticket for registered student dancers)
*Vendors $25.00
* Located at:
Edmonds Homeschool Resource Center
23200 100th Ave West
Edmonds, WA

Contact Information: Gail Morris 425/431-7133 OR 206/719-3314
morrisg@edmonds.wednet.edu

If you have never been to Powwow before, you should totally go. My friend Gail is running it and profits bennefit Indian Education. The food and venders should be great and the kids need the money. A little fry bread, a little fancy dancing, a little promoting literacy- what's not to love?

If you would like to have a vendor booth call Gail at the number above.