(See below for “Time Rain” pyrotechnics blossom, an effect created by large, slow-burning stars that leave a trail of large glittering sparks behind and make a very loud sizzling noise. Produces “Oohs” and “ahs” on the National Mall. Show by Pyro Spectaculars, Inc., of San Francisco, CA.) It is quiet in Arlington, except for the […]

I got two increasingly belligerent calls from the Fifth Floor- Big Pink’s party central, and that is what determined how the evening was going to go. I had no idea it would be such a thriller.   I was exhausted and a little pissed off. I rose before the crack of dawn to write catalog […]

God, I love the summer. I wish I was spending more time in it and less writing cheery business fantasy. There are several mysteries in progress, and they need examination. Inquiring minds want to know.   I’ll get off the whole weather thing presently, but you have to admit, with el Nino happening again and […]

(Super Center at Brandy Station)   They say that the abuse of crystal methamphetamine steals your youth and rots your teeth. I had not been in a WalMart in years, so I had no reason to think about it prior to the break in the late afternoon between the visit of the installers, who were […]

  (Climate History)   ‘The surprising result of these long-range predictions is a rapid decline in solar activity, starting with cycle #24. If this trend continues, we may see the Sun heading towards a Maunder-type of solar activity minimum – an extensive period of reduced levels of solar activity.’ – K.H.Schatten and W.K.Tobiska, 34th Solar […]

  (A sequined Glove)   The news spread through Twitter and all the broadcast media late yesterday, and it reverberated in the halls of Big Pink with the speed of electrons. The nerve center is the concierge desk, and the Queen of all information is the Day Lady, Rhonda.   She has been down there […]

(Phases of the Moon)     “THE wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees,     The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas,     The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,     And the highwayman came riding—                       Riding—riding—     The highwayman came riding, up to the old inn-door.”                                                 – Alfred Noyes […]

(The White House Press Briefing Room in better days- Photo Truman Library)   I fell asleep by the pool in the lowering light. When I awoke, the kids were playing a full contact game of “Marco Polo.” You know the one, and it is impossible to get away from it in the summer.   It […]

  (Metro Rail Crash 22 June 2009. Photo by Kristinashan)   We knew it was going to get worse when we turned it off to watch the re-run of he Vampire series on HBO. You can trust that part of things, that the story will get worse before it gets better.   There were six […]

(Orbital Mechanics)   They called the daylight assault on the Normandy Beaches The Longest Day in the cool movie based on the Cornelius Ryan book with the stunning international cast released back in 1962.   The movie, if you recall, was shot in black and white, just like real life.   It must have been […]