Lots going on in the world, but not a lot of time for writing. Besides, why reinvent the wheel when others have already done some very good work?
First up, Francis Turner has a very good analysis of the recent Japanese elections. I’ve been keeping an eye on it, but he is very familiar with things and explains things beautifully. Go read.
Second, Behind The Black has a good post on what I will flat out call a very troubling development at NASA. I’m not happy to read this, and believe it a huge step backwards.
If I come across anything else, will add it here but the day is a busy one and I need to get back to my classwork/homework. More soon I hope.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
Iran has been a powder keg for a while now, and I’m truly surprised efforts to end the rule of the mad mullahs didn’t kick off a year or so ago. So I was unsurprised when things did start to blow up and an effort begun to bring back a return of the Shah. Sadly, I now think that may fail and do so because the President did not keep his word. This has implications far beyond Iran as well.
First, let me state yet again that I do not believe we should put boots on the ground. While it would be great to get rid of the mullahs, it is something that has to come from inside, and there are hundreds of thousands who have taken to the street — and tens of thousands who have died. Our support of that needs to be logistical and via eliminating certain infrastructure, preventing troop movements, and related.
Someone is already doing that, on a limited scale, and I have an idea who is doing it. That said, more is needed and we can do such via airpower. Some very good thoughts are over at The Lawdog Files here, here, and here. Think I linked to them before, but doing so again as they are good reads. But, again, and again, and again: freedom can’t be brought in or imposed from the outside via boots on the ground, it has to come from the inside.
Thing is, President Trump told the Iranian public that he had their back, to take to the streets and if the regime tried or started to kill them, he would strike. That was weeks ago and as I said before, the deaths appear now to be in the tens of thousands. Machine guns and more are being used; militia from Iraq have been brought in to help control certain regions; and, Arabic troops/mercs have also been brought in. The revolution is now in danger of failing, at least in my opinion.
Something to consider is this: at the start, when Trump first called for them to take to the streets, America was in a good position both to help and to have a very good relationship with the Shah and others in the new government. Now, we do not and will not enjoy such as the people are remembering that America’s word really isn’t worth much in the Middle East. As the blood flows thicker and deeper, the willingness to trust and work with the U.S. is dropping. If the revolution does succeed without the promised American help, the relationship with the U.S. is going to be rather cool — and there will be plenty of countries helping push that.
Worse, right now the mullahs feel emboldened because Trump/the U.S. hasn’t kept it’s word. They see the desire to negotiate as weakness. If the revolution fails and all they see are games being played with drone tracks, they are going to take that as a go signal to speed up efforts to restore nuclear development and go nuclear, as well as to go all in on terrorism by proxy. The downsides are severe, and the damage to the reputation of both Trump and the U.S. can’t be overstated. It will likely end effective foreign policy for this administration.
I have suspicions as to what has been going on, and I truly hope that Qatar does not have its hooks into certain members of the administration. Sadly, there is a lot of damage done right now regardless of the source. A promise was made, a red line set, and nothing done when the mullahs gleefully crossed it. There is still time, but a lot of damage has been done and it will take more than words to undo it.
What is happening is an unforced error on the part of the administration. One that has serious implications for stability and peace in several parts of the world. If the mullahs fall, it changes the calculus on Russia/Ukraine, it cuts a number of nasty terrorist groups off from major funding and operational assistant (and remember some of them were operating out of Venezuela), and it ends one of the most serious nuclear threats out there. If they don’t fall, and we don’t act, all of that gets put on steroids and we will be lucky if it only redoubles.
Not words I thought I would be writing when this started, but words that need to be said. I think Trump is getting some very bad advice and I have questions about the intel he is getting on operations and the numbers of Iranians killed by the mullahs. It would have been far better if he had kept his mouth shut and not made a promise he wasn’t going to keep. There is still time to turn things around, but it is fast running out.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
Had my six month check-up with my cardiologist, and other than some well-earned comments in regards my having over-indulged in sweets and carbs over the holidays, things are going very well. So well, in fact, that 4.5 years after being hit by lightning, I now only have to see him once a year unless there are problems.
This is a huge milestone in my recovery, and the admonishments were far outweighed by the good comments on my blood work, the workouts I’m doing, and how I plan to proceed with the workouts. His only recommendation was not to do farmer’s carries as they could be very problematic for my shoulders and back. Otherwise, he was quite pleased with things.
It is interesting that about two years ago, when I first switched to him (and am so thankful I did so), the concern was that I would have to have more heart surgery. After my baptism, however, the scans showed that all the damage from the lightning had healed. Doesn’t mean other things can’t happen or I can’t mess up; but, to me it says a lot that things went from bad to fantastic after that significant event.
More to come.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
Not sure how many of you make use of the Blogroll I have as a separate page. Doesn’t look like many from the visitor stats, but at least a few of you do. If so, you may have noticed a new comic added to the Art section.
Gifts of Wandering Ice was recommended to me a while back. I didn’t know anything about it, or the author, but was quickly caught up in the story line and clean artwork. In fact, I was intrigued enough a year or so ago to go back to the very beginning and read up to the then present day.
In many respects, the story is not something I would normally expect to enjoy. It is set in a green post-apocalyptic future where at least this group of surviving humans has turned into a matriarchal society. There is more, but the important thing was that between good story telling and clean, family friendly art, I’ve gotten hooked. I also think the author should have the chance to have her work presented to a wider audience, so this is my attempt to do that.
Oh, and if it comes across as something very different from your normal comics, the author isn’t American and is writing from a different cultural viewpoint. For Americans used to American comics, this can create a little dissonance, but to me it seems to add to the story.
Check it out, and if you like it, share it. If you don’t, don’t. Just something I’m enjoying so far and wanted to share.
Post updated to fix typos in two spots.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
I’m actually hoping the upcoming mission slips not just to March, but into April. Not a detailed post, but here are a few highlights.
First, Congress mandated out-of-date tech and other delights to keep certain companies and production lines open (and donations to politicians flowing). Old tech is not necessarily bad: I almost got to co-pilot a Ford Tri-Motor once (lost out to someone with a bit more seniority) and it was a fun and amazing flight. It works, but no one is trying to repurpose the Ford into a hypersonic aircraft, which is not a bad analogy for all the Shuttle-derived tech required by Congress for Artemis.
Second, there have been issues identified — and fixed in record time. Sorry, having worked at NASA as a contractor I’m not fully buying it. If I haven’t already done so, remind me to tell you about how a NASA safety fix that wasn’t tested ended the first tethered satellite system mission pretty much at the start. Short version is that I wouldn’t ride in that capsule. Your mileage may vary.
Third, the tech involved does not do well with cold weather launches. Challenger. That really should be a period dot thing, but…
Fourth, even if you fixed every issue above, Artemis is unsustainable. The price per launch is beyond ridiculous and is a good example why America would be much better off with NASA out of the launch business. Heck, out of the manned space flight business period. NASA needs to focus on it’s stated mission, which is advancing aerospace technology, not trying to do and control everything related to space (and they and certain political leadership seem to like to ignore the whole aviation side of the picture).
I am very concerned that if Artemis launches this month, that there are going to be significant issues potentially up to the loss of vehicle and crew. I hope I’m wrong, and would love to eat crow on this one. That said, there are echoes of Apollo 1 and Challenger for me, and that makes me very concerned.
UPDATE I: Since I wrote this, a fuel leak has pushed the launch into March. A fuel leak in the same area as the first mission. I suspect that April may be optimistic as fuel leaks have been an ongoing issue for three or so years. See this article for more info. More than ever I think Artemis and the decisions behind it by Congress are going to give us another space disaster. One that could easily have been avoided.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
My apologies for not writing more (and sooner) but I will just say (again?) that the theology course I’m taking is like drinking out of a fire hose. While it will be a few weeks yet before the final report is out on the DCA crash, the items that are going into the report are now released.
I’m going to start with the Safety Data report, which frankly is damning to the FAA and now-former tower management. Short version is that DCA has had problems for years, including the perception that reporting issues would lead to retaliation. There are multiple recommendations in the report for the FAA, and a few for the Army, as leadership at both agencies (and the DoT) was abysmal.
The human performance report is a good overview of the human operations and interactions with onboard technology that is supposed to help prevent collisions. If you want to understand what was happening in each place, the information available, factors that limited the use of technology and prevented adequate warnings, and more, this is it.
The report notes early something I had “seen” early on: the call-out of the CRJ operated by PSA (Piedmont) for American Airlines lacked critical information. There were several planes in the area called out by the controller, and there was no way for the helicopter crew to know which one was being pointed out. There is evidence that they mistook another aircraft for the one they were supposed to be watching. I may not have many hours as a pilot, but every time I had other traffic called out it always specific, as in “you have X aircraft at your Y o’clock high/low/same (altitude). SOP was to locate, then call back and read-back “I have X aircraft in sight at Y o’clock high/low/same” to verify the information.
As a side note, so long as the object was moving relative to you, life was good. It was when things were a dot that you needed to act as the lack of movement meant it was coming straight at you. Therefore you dove or climbed and/or changed course as well. Doesn’t matter if it was a bird (birds can take out a plane and/or pilot) or a plane — by the time it starts to get visually larger it usually is too late to avoid.
There is a lot more in that particular report, and it is well worth reading carefully. As I said earlier, the only people who come out of this pretty much in the clear are the Piedmont crew who were never warned about the helicopter.
Here is the helicopter operations report, and the medical report. On the latter, the controllers on duty that night should have recourse against management for failing to do the proper drug and alcohol tests. While there is no evidence of such, the failure to follow SOP unfairly puts a cloud over them as they have no way to prove they weren’t impaired. On the former, it is worth reading and re-reading. There are a number of issues with Army aviation leadership and operations that need to be addressed. One of which is that a number of the helicopters in the unit involved had altimeters that were/are not giving correct altitude. There’s more, but the altimeter issue is an ongoing major issue that needs to be addressed.
The airplane systems group report is a good primer on ADS-B and collision avoidance — and the limits of technology. This is a good read and I suspect a number of changes may come out of it.
Now, keep in mind that the area around DCA is some of the most congested in the United States. Fact is, there have been a number of efforts to shut down Reagan because of volume, runway length, location, and other issues. Congress has not only prevented closure, but expanded normal operating hours over the expert advice given it simply because it is convenient for them. And make no doubt it is highly convenient. I’ve flown in and out of there more times than I can count because it is right there at the Pentagon, close to downtown DC, etc.
Also keep in mind that there is a lot of military traffic in the area. There have been efforts made to limit military traffic, primarily helicopters, from the area around DCA because of the congestion and safety issues. Those were ignored/overridden on the basis of national security (and convenience as well).
In an ideal world, the helicopter should have been to one side and gone behind the Piedmont CRJ at a safe distance. It should not have been coming up under it as it was landing.
The NTSB has already heavily hinted/indicated that a majority of the blame for the accident resides with the FAA, and I think they are correct. The lack of leadership, poor management (at all levels including the DoT) failed to address a number of issues, technical and human. I would put among them the long-standing failure to upgrade critical systems, a push for DEI over competence in hiring, and other efforts that inhibited recruitment. When you look at all the problems, the FAA failed at every level.
But, there is plenty of blame to go around. I suspect the controllers are going to take a few hits even with staffing/overwork as mitigating factors; and, the instructor pilot in the helicopter is probably going to take a hit or two despite the fact that without an accurate altitude neither he nor the instructee had no way of knowing they were not at the right altitude. Those of you who know aviation also already know that even if the instructee did make one or more mistakes, the failure to correct them (in time) lies with the IP.
As for all the wild speculation that the instructee kamakazied the Piedmont CRJ; that she failed to obey the commands of the IP; that she wasn’t competent as a pilot and shouldn’t have been flying; and all the other junk: the cockpit recorders and radio transmissions (nor her official background) in no way support those claims. In fact, if you look at the voice recordings, it sounds like a fairly typical learning flight. The IP issued guidance as needed, encouraged the instructee, and seemed to have no major issues with the instructee. Yes, the instructee was green in many respects, but that’s sorta the point of doing training flights. And again and again, without accurate altimeter readings in such a congested area bad things are going to happen.
From the reports, along with photos and diagrams released by the NTSB, it is quite possible that the helicopter and the CRJ may not have seen each other until the last second (if at all). The only people who seem to have done everything right and by the book are the crew of the CRJ. When finally did get warning, they did their best to avoid the crash. It is in no way their fault that they were not able to do so.
So, again, I suspect that the FAA is going to get the lion’s share of the blame (deservedly) for failures of leadership and gross incompetence; whether they get called out or not, DoT should catch some of that too; Army Aviation as a whole, along with senior leadership above them, bear a good bit of blame as well; the controllers on duty will be called out; and, it is likely that the IP will take a hit as well. Not named, though they should be, will be Congress who not only continued operations at DCA but expanded them against all informed advice.
Right now, one of my hopes is that the efforts begun in the wake of the crash to finally modernize the FAA systems using Commercial Off The Shelf technology (COTS) are indeed still underway. Elon and some of the DOGE team were providing advice and assistance and I hope his leaving government did not hamper those efforts (which a lot of entrenched interests in DC are opposed to since COTS doesn’t allow for as much graft and power). I also heard that recruiting efforts for controllers and other critical positions had DEI and other hobbles removed and there were a number of people looking to enter the field. Again, I hope that is continuing as it was and is desperately needed.
I agree with the NTSB assessment that this was one hundred percent avoidable. Had FAA management addressed issues and concerns instead of retaliating against those pointing out problems, this would never have happened. If Army aviation and other entrenched interests had not kept the helicopter route open despite strong advice not to, and if they had properly functioning aircraft, this would not have happened. If Congress hadn’t kept DCA open and expanded operations, this would not have happened. I could go on, but what happened is far more the result of an absolute failure of multiple leadership on multiple levels than anything else.
One of the other things I hope does come out of this is improved collision avoidance systems. We need what we have to work, and part of that lies with setting minimums and standards for lower altitudes. We need newer systems that can and will integrate and operate as noted in the report(s). We also need to be sure military and civilian systems will interoperate, especially in areas such as DC and DCA where there is heavy traffic in close proximity. Again the reports make some good points on that.
I hope some good can come out of this tragedy. I also hope that the final report, along with these reports and previous releases, will put to rest the unfounded and reprehensible speculations of a deliberate crash and/or an out-of-control helicopter trainee.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
For those wondering, I did indeed survive the storm and the clean-up. Mostly. Looks like we got 10-12 inches here at the house with a fair bit of drifting. I did do a bit of snow shoveling (with the blessing of my cardiologist) and per agreement kept it slow, careful, and watchful for signs of overdoing it. I was very glad the housemate took over the shoveling duties Monday afternoon once he got up (he works night shift) as I was feeling it on a muscular level.
Since then, we’ve had several days of below-zero lows (-8 to -10 here at the house) with highs in the teens. I did get out yesterday for some quick errands and a meeting with my priest in regards something I’m learning to do. I did have to pick up more distilled water but am still good on most things.
I use distilled water for making beverages, cooking, and drinking. It is also used in the new humidifier for my room. I had based my reserves for the storm on the ‘normal’ use of the humidifier, which turned out to be insufficient when the storm hit. As the temps dropped and the snow fell (and the heat runs almost constantly), the humidifier went to continuous max operation. That proved to be about five times normal usage, which meant I needed to get more yesterday. That proved problematic as my regular store was out and steam-distilled water was hard to find. Got it, and stocked back up, but lesson learned.
For those still paying attention, the NTSB is getting ready to release it’s final report on the DCA crash. As I suggested at the start, there is plenty of blame to go around and the NTSB is mincing no words that a majority of it lies with the FAA. The only people to come out clear are the Piedmont pilots who were NEVER warned of the helicopter approaching them. I’m going to link to some of the recent briefings released here soon and go over what some of them mean. I will note, especially for those who bayed for the blood of the helicopter pilot being instructed, that while she and the IP did make mistakes, one of the things noted by the NTSB is that the helicopter itself — and others within the battalion in question — were not registering an accurate altitude. This indicates battalion and higher issues. It is also why both the instructee and the IP were consistently 100 or more feet higher than they thought they were, with tragic results. Again, more soon with links as it is a sad tale that was indeed 100 percent avoidable that had been known and squashed by FAA leadership multiple times.
Also have some thoughts on Iran. I do wish that action had been taken on day 4 of the uprising, when POTUS urged them to take to the streets. Revolutions have a rhythm, and I think much bloodshed could have been avoided if there had action rather than just words. As it is, I think the revolution can still succeed, but I think the delays in promised actions will change the flavor of things to come in ways that could have been avoided. As it is, read here, here, and here for some good background and takes. I’ll have more soon I hope.
Also, while I think a lot of us saw this coming, do read this in regards the first Minneapolis shooting. Everything there (and in a few other cities) has been rather carefully planned and fully funded. One hopes that DOJ really is looking into this.
Lots to write about that I hope to get into soon, but: still recovering from the respiratory infection; dealing with a lot of snow and some serious cold weather; and, my seminary course is like trying to drink out of a firehose. It is also not quite as “asynchronous” as I had thought, which may ultimately be a good thing.
More soon. Be prepared, keep your friends and family close and your things where you can find them in the dark.
Quick Addendum: Picking up grenades to throw back at people rarely works out well unless they forgot to pull the pin (that does happen). Also, never try for CS or smoke grenades unless you have a heat-resistant glove on as they are exothermic and have been known to cause fires and burn flesh. Knowing is half the battle, and a lot better than half a hand.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
I was hoping the storm might be less than the hype, but from some reports I’m seeing from Texas and beyond don’t look good. I still hope it is far less than the breathless warnings (which are reminding me uncomfortably of early COVID days), but as with anything where the weather guessers give large ranges, we will see what we get. May it be on the low side for all.
A part of me has halfway thought of a quick run to the store, but I fear that way lies madness, not to mention last-minute shoppers gone mad. If I went, it would be for some more heavy cream, a couple of extra gallons of distilled water for the humidifier, and maybe more chocolate. At least I’m not in the boat of someone on X who had to admit she had already eaten all the peanut butter M&Ms she had bought for the storm…
There have been some inquiries as to some of preparations, so thought I might share a couple of plans as they may help others.
We rarely have power outages where I am right now, but they do happen. Since we are a block away from a major hospital, tends to get back on pretty quick. Think the worst in the last few years was several hours, but you never know.
For heat, I have an emergency room heater that runs off propane, and enough propane to run it for several days, as well as enough propane to run the camp stove for several days. I also have a grasshopper stove that uses a different type of propane tank, as well as a butane portable chef’s stove I can bring into play. A goal of mine is to come up with some more large tanks and long hoses so I can run the camp stove and heater off the large tanks. That’s a matter of money, which is tight right now.
For light, I have two hanging lampada that are part of my home shrine; big church candles in the fireplace; lots of other candles at need; multiple good battery-operated camping lanters; multiple not-as-good camping lanterns to fill in the cracks and/or to loan to the landlord and housemate for use upstairs; a solar-powered lantern that is nice (thank you Beege!); and a couple of other options at need. So, bedroom, bathroom, and in between are well lit no matter what.
In terms of batteries, I have both rechargeable and regular batteries. The rechargeable can be done via a solar system I have, via a car adapter at need, and by regular electricity when it comes on again. I also have a solar-powered UPS that will run some basic electronics (or more) and the landlord has a UPS on the wifi and fiber-optic router so we should stay online.
If the power goes out, I plan to move items from the refrigerator into the area between the old garage door and the new interior wall. Problem may be keeping such from freezing. Items in the freezer can go into the big coolers and outside since temps are likely to be around zero.
I remember years ago a bad storm hit Northeast Georgia and a friend and her then-husband were trapped for a good while without power. They had a fireplace, which helped; but, it was so cold in their house that they had to open the door to the freezer to keep the food frozen, and open-and-shut the refrigerator to keep things cold and not frozen. Not going to get into the tale of the flying squirrel that froze to death in one of their toilets…
I have a fair bit of distilled water in place as I use it for cooking, drinking, etc. City water is mostly used for cleaning and such. City water has only gone out once, and not in winter, so we should be good but I do have plans in place should it go out. As long as it is on, if the power goes out, DRIP THOSE FAUCETS! Do not let the lines freeze. Make use of the hot water while you have it and be prepared to boil water at need afterwards until the system is flushed.
Oh, if the water does go out for you, remember the line: yellow is mellow, if brown it goes down. Save your flushing water for absolute need, and remember that you will need to still be able to wash and/or sterilize your hands.
Before I forget, I want to thank Kate of SmallDeadAnimals and Spudislander35 over on X for bringing back some good memories last night. Hard to believe in some ways that I got into preparedness and such while still in high school. My science fair competition project was designing a shelter for a fair sized group of people and a solid core of human knowledge to ride out a full-scale nuclear exchange for five years (or so). With what I’ve learned since then I would pretty much start over from scratch on the design, though it wasn’t bad.
That project led to other things, including getting to do planning (and even some implementation) for the office I was part of at the U.S. Arnold Engineering Development Center and being it’s liaison to Emergency Management/Disaster Preparedness there. Which helped lead to yet more down the road.
Last night also brought back some good memories of dinners and talks with Jerry Pournelle (and the ever gracious Roberta), and with Dean Ing. I think Dean and I were on a panel together at a North American Science Fiction Convention with Doctors for Disaster Preparedness (an organization I wish were still around).
May it be a weekend of good memories for us all. Remember, make the most of any time together as we know not what the future will bring.
Meantime, be prepared. Keep your family and friends close, and your things where you can find them in the dark.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
Well, planned posting isn’t taking place as Tuesday afternoon I had the Upper Respiratory Infection (URI) that is going around try to pay me a visit. More on that in a minute.
For all my friends down South, be careful out there. What a lot of Yankees don’t understand is that the South rarely gets snow (mountains excepted) and when it does fall it doesn’t stay snow for long but turns rapidly into ice. One can and does drive on snow. Driving on slick ice is a game for fools. Worse, instead of snow we often get freezing rain, which coats roads, power lines, tree limbs, etc. and brings the latter group crashing down (if not whole trees and light/power poles). Sleet is better than freezing rain (though not by much) as it isn’t as likely to bring down power lines, tree limbs, trees, etc.
I grew up in the South, but my Dad had spent time where there was snow, so taught me both to drive on snow and to recognize ice and not drive. When living in the South, I did have some fun watching northern-types go blazing out onto the “snow” covered roads only to find out they were ice. Low and slow is the way to go people, and if you are in the South and your state allows chains, use them.
As we’ve talked about before here, I don’t get the milk and bread thing. I had friends who never bought milk and bread in normal shopping rush out to buy gallons and loaves if the “s” word was mentioned on the news. My take is if you buy beef and bourbon, you are better off.
Seriously, if you have even a modicum of preparedness you will get by. The second time I was working (contractor) for NASA, we got hit pretty good. Power was out, but I pulled out a few things (mostly camping supplies) and had coffee, hot food, light, heat, etc. There was a knock on the door, and when I opened it there was a young lady from the apartment complex office there to let me know the clubhouse had been opened as an emergency shelter. She looked at the light, felt the heat, smelled the cooking food, and asked if she could come stay with me.
We are going to have cold and some snow, but it’s not going to hit us as hard as it will down South. We have plows, sand/salt trucks, and while we may lose a few limbs, the trees down south (particularly pine) are not used to that structural load. The South does not have the plows, sand/salt trucks, and other equipment and neither the grid nor the flora are used to such weather.
Be sure to drip those faucets! Sub-freezing weather is not the time to have to be trying to fix a frozen or busted pipe. And please don’t be stupid with how you try to thaw a frozen pipe: every year seemed to bring multiple stories of people setting their house on fire trying to use a torch to thaw a pipe. Also, please don’t try to stay warm by bringing your charcoal grill in and lighting it. Yes, that happens far too often still.
Be Prepared. Be Careful. Be Safe.
As for me and the URI, I’m bouncing back. Tuesday afternoon I started coughing a bit, so when I ran errands I picked up some things for that. I also ate a hot/spicy meal while out; but, by the time I got home I could feel things hitting. Started my normal routine of apple cider vinegar shots, extra C, and such. Chills set in fast, so I went to bed and bundled up to ride things out.
Fever is actually a response by the body to infection, an attempt to kill it by raising the thermostat. Problems with fever come from high-temps (particularly spiking) and high-temp over time. I’m not convinced the modern urge to stop fever at the start is entirely good for us. So, I deliberately roasted a bit overnight, trying to sweat the URI out.
Yesterday, I continued my normal routine for such (AC vinegar, extra C, cough tablets, hot/spicy food, etc.) but added in something recommended by my friend Snarksalot, Cold Calm. It is homeopathic and does not appear to have any interactions with anything else I’m taking, so gave it a try. Even though this is not a cold, it has helped and I plan to add it to my “war chest” for such things.
As for the vinegar and hot/spicy foods, years ago I was told that part of the life-cycle of most colds/flu/etc. was in the gut. Change the Ph even a modest amount, and you disrupt that part of the cycle. Since infections depend on viral/microbial load, breaking or reducing the chain drops the load so your body can finish things off. When it comes to the vinegar, you have some who claim the mother has various properties that help; others say it simply provides amino acids that help; or, that it just helps skew the Ph. I don’t really care which it is, it seems to work and the results are what matter to me.
So, be careful out there. Keep your friends and family close, and your things where you can find them in the dark. More soon I hope.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
NOTE: I wrote this yesteday on X and wanted to share it here as well. Adding a bit to flesh it out a bit.
I’ve been offline a good bit recently because of my “work” at my Church. It’s not a paid job, and while it is work for which I volunteer it is not a typical “volunteer” position type thing. It is very much a labor of love, and a chance to grow in Faith and in knowledge of the Faith. It is also part of why I am going back to school, as I officially started a class (online) at a well-regarded Greek Orthodox seminary today (Monday).
The “work” I do is, on the surface, fairly mundane. I am helping our Deacon (which is almost like an Assistant Priest in a protestant church, though that’s not a great analogy). The Deacon is not a Priest, but is one step below being a Priest. They do a lot of work in the Sanctuary and at the Altar to help the Priest with their duties. Some of that work is fairly mundane, such as taking care of the olive oil lamps (lampadas) and candles.
What I do is go in an hour or two ahead of a service, and take care of the lampadas and candles in the Sanctuary. Quick note: I can only work on those in the sanctuary as I am not authorized to enter the altar area. In the Orthodox Church, there are limits on who can go where and do various things. One has to be tonsured (will explain that in a minute) as an altar server (and/or reader) to enter the altar area and even then you are generally supposed to have the blessing of the priest to do so. You are also not allowed to touch items on the altar proper unless instructed to do so by the Priest. Really, only the Deacon and the Priest can touch or handle items on the altar. That includes any candles or lampada on the altar.
Tonsuring is a special ceremony that is only done by Bishops, Metropolitans, or the Patriarch of the Church. Rather than shaving a head, it involves cutting hairs from different parts of the head and burning them in a censure (incense burner) during a special ceremony/service. There are different levels of tonsure that apply to one’s duties. For example, I am a Chanter and as such I sing in the choir and can read certain prayers, Psalms, and Old Testament readings. To read from certain portions of the New Testament and other prayers, I would have to be tonsured as a reader. To be an altar server and help with the services I would need to be tonsured as an altar server. To read from the Gospel proper, one really needs to be a Deacon or Priest (in most Orthodox Churches, my understanding is that Sub-Deacons can’t read the Gospel). To be moved up and trained takes time (you have to do previous level for various periods) and the approval/direction of the Priest and then earn the blessing of the Bishop (or higher).
Now, to bring this back home, a Sanctuary usually has a number of lampada and candles. This is on top of any lampada and candles on the altar or in the altar area. In our Church, we have ten prayer candle stands with lampadas, service candles, and at least one hanging lampada that are my responsibility. What I am doing is taking care of such in our Sanctuary, which frees the Deacon up for other things and for him to take care of those in the altar area.
It’s not rocket science but it is a bit more than some may realize. I have to prepare wicks for the lampada which takes time. In fact, one of my goals this week is to make about a dozen wicks and have them ready for use. These have to fit into the floating holders in the lamp, and threading them into same can be a bit of a challenge. Part of what I do in making the wicks is ensuring that they can be easily worked into those floating holders.
Of those with wicks already in place, you have to raise up the wick with special tweezers, trim them with a special trimmer, and then adjust things so that you have roughly the same-size flame in each lamp. Since it seems each floating holder is different, you can’t just count on having the wick set to a uniform height. I’m actually OC enough I measure the flame on each lamp to ensure they are all close to the same height.
One also, of course, has to fill the lamps to a uniform depth with olive oil, make sure there are no spills, things are clean, etc. Nor can you just take a paper towel and toss it afterwards as trimmings, wicks, bits of wick, spilled oil and such have to be put into a Holy Burn Bag for proper disposal.
Then there is the fun joy of trying to fish prayer candle ends out of holders when they have burned down into the holder. Before I got to be the person fishing them out, I used to be a lot more willing to let candles burn down low. Not so much anymore. Thing is, certain sized candles are almost impossible to get out, necessitating taking the stand apart, putting the part with the candle holders into an oven, and melting the beeswax out. I’ve gotten fairly good at getting enough wax out using an old pair of hemostats such that we can keep using the stand without having to do that. I mean, we do it twice a year as part of cleaning and polishing, but it is nice not to have to do it more than that.
Service candles can be fun since they are in glass holders. There are a few tricks to making them easy to get out; but, they don’t always work. One is to put some water in the bottom of the holder. Get it right and when a votive or other such candle burns down, it is easy to get that base out. Get it wrong and either the candle will suck up the water and stop burning, or when not enough water is in the holder you have to scrape it out (or melt it out). Trying to work out a recalcitrant candle is also fun in that using the standard tool (a screwdriver) you can break the glass holder and cut yourself. I’ve avoided it so far and would like to continue that.
There is an order to the lighting of the different lamps and candles; and, while there is supposed to be an order for putting them out, enthusiastic volunteers generally make that a moot point. For me, I also do a number of prayers and venerations as I go. One of the more interesting things I’ve found is that I am learning more about some of the saints as I go. I recently found myself drawn to St. Gabriel of Georgia, got curious, and started learning more about him. Neat thing is, he is recent so there are some photos and such of him. The saints are supposed to challenge us, and some do pose quite the challenge to live up to what they did, and did over time.
I also take care of some more mundane things, like being sure our wireless microphone has fresh batteries off the charger. I do some minor maintenance, make sure other things are cut on/off, tissues are out, etc. I also ensure the front doors are open at the proper time and that various things are secure.
Once I’ve done all this and gotten everything lit, I switch to being a Chanter and depending on the service (vespers, matins, etc.) I may be pulling things together so we have what we need for the service. My Deacon is working to teach me how to pull vespers and matins from scratch as it were, which involves about eight different books. Give me a year or ten and I will get there. I’m also working with our Priest on something similar, which is helping to pull together the handouts for Saturday vespers and matins.
Which is why I started a class on liturgics today (Monday) at a seminary. If things go well with this course, and with my journey of Faith, I could end up attending that seminary in person for a degree and certificate. The path I am on can lead to several different destinations (church administration, monastic life, the Deaconate, and Priesthood are the main ones). We will see what happens, as the destination is not up to me.
Right now, I’m exhausted as the last few weeks have seen the Nativity [Jan. 7 as we are old (Julian) calendar] running though to Theophany. I’ve lost track of the number of services this last week but can tell you that yesterday (Sunday) was a marathon of around 14 hours for me. Started with liturgy at the usual time, then a special service to bless the waters (inside) and consecrate/create Holy Water for the year (we can make more later at need, which is good given that our Church is growing and I doubt we have enough). A fun thing we do as part of this is at the end: everyone, everything, and everywhere gets sprinkled/blessed with the new Holy Water: from the attic to the basement and everywhere and everything in between gets it. We all line up to be blessed in a similar manner. It is a time of laughter and joy along with the Grace and Blessing of the Lord. After a short break, we then did about a two hour special service preparing for this morning’s service.
The ice altar was made by a parishioner at the Serbian Church out of ice cut from the river. Photo provided by a friend.
That service as a joint service at the local Serbian Orthodox Church (we are part of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the difference between Orthodox Churches is primarily the language as the same basic liturgy, written in the 400s, is used in all; and, I would mention that in the U.S. many/most Orthodox Churches are using English as the primary language). We did an indoor liturgy (a liturgy is a service where the Eucharist is partaken), and then went down to the White River and did an outdoor blessing of the waters. As typical for such, this may have been the coldest day of the year so far. At least ,unlike last year, the ramp into the river wasn’t coated with slick ice. It was 9 degrees however, with a stiff wind. Chattering teeth were almost as loud as the singing as we did the service. And, at the end, we were once again blessed with the holy water which froze as it went through the air or hit our clothing. It was fun, but I was glad for hot soup and hot coffee afterwards.
Yes, it was a multi-page service with a fair bit of singing and chanting. Photo courtesy of a friend.
One thing I should mention is that after a liturgy there generally is a meal. Since we fast from food and drink for 8-12 hours beforehand (NOTE: I think 6 hours is the minimum, but for a Sunday liturgy many stop after dinner so you end up going 8-12 hours), so we are properly prepared for the Eucharist, we have a community meal (usually a pitch-in) after the service. I admit that the first thing I go for is coffee, as food or anything else can wait as I am craving the Water of Wakefulness at that point.
The Serbian Church is growing to the point they are having to build a new Church. Ours is growing also, and that seems to be a trend nationwide.
So, that’s a bit of why I haven’t been online much the last week. I’m also thankful that there was nothing I HAD to do for the class today, or at least nothing that can’t wait until tomorrow as my brain is fried at this point. I am going to relax, find some cute animal videos, and rest up so I can hit the ground running tomorrow morning on my classwork.
