2011 in review
WordPress.com prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog!
Here’s an excerpt:
In 2011, there were 11 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 87 posts. There were 88 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 13mb. That’s about 2 pictures per week. The busiest day of the year was September 6th with 63 views. The most popular post that day was Planning a Puget Sound Sailing Trip.
That tree isn’t dead: it’s a western larch!
Western larch is one of my favorite trees. It seems like every year at this time, someone points at a yellowing tree and says something like “that tree is dying!”
That tree is a western larch (Larix occidentalis), and it is not dying. It is simply losing its needles like it does every fall.
Western larch violates the rule we learned in school: deciduous trees have leaves and lose them in the fall, while coniferous trees have needles that stay on the tree through the winter. Read More…
My MemWall
Wall of memories
I’m going to run a little experiment by posting a key memory or two from every year/age I can remember.
This should be a good technique to begin daylighting some of the tapestry of my life that has receded into dim memory.
I’ll update the post date when I update the post so it will pop to the top of my blog whenever I make an addition. I think I’ll call this my Memory Wall…or MemWall 
Read More…
So nice to revisit memories, both good and not so good
Wine grapes
Yesterday Janis and I visited a person who befriended us in 1984-86 while we were in Tembagapura, Indonesia. Back then, he was dreaming of someday owning his own vineyard and producing his own wine. Today, his vineyard is established and expanding every year, and his grapes are bottled by other vintners nearby as well as under his own label. It was wonderful to see the satisfaction in his eyes as we viewed the fruits of his long labor. (In case you missed my post about the not-very-secret hot tub, that story is a key point in common with this one. Jump to The not so hush-hush hot tub for more.) Read More…
