It Snowed in the Desert Last Night

It snows in Arizona, at least in the high desert it does...

We got maybe an inch of dry snow and a light ice glaze last night.  The locals are fond of assuring us newcomers "As soon as the sun comes up it will all melt."

No TV, No WiFi

Means I have time to catch up on my reading...

Since my arrival in Prescott my book list has been about half serious, half SF.

Ancient Angkor, by Michael Freeman and Claude Jacques

A Layman's Guide to Protestant Theology, by William E. Hordern

The Black Swan: TheImpact of the Highly Improbable, by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Original Sin: Origins, Developments, Contemporary Meanings, by Tatha Wiley, is very readable book about a pretty inscrutable topic. Author Wiley is erudite and even-handed in her examination of topics Christians have killed each other over.

In Deep, by Damon Knight, is a collection of short stories. The first, "Four in One" is an absolute hoot!

The Upanishads, translated by the late Eknath Easwaran, is delightful and rich.

The Black Death, by Phillip Zeigler, is an eminently readable history of one of the turning points of Western civilization.

Downtiming the Night Side, by Jack Chalker is intricately paradoxical and deftly plotted. It's among the very few time travel stories I've read or seen that didn't make me roll my eyes and shake my head. I haven't read any Jack Chalker before but I will be happy to try him again.

Modern Man in Search of a Soul, by Carl Jung, is an interesting time capsule from the interwar years when Freudian and Adlerian methods were still in play. Chapters 9, 10, & 11 were the best in a very chewy read.

The Eye of the Monster, by Andre Norton, is a quick and unspectacular read. About the first time I didn't get my money's worth from the dollar shelf.

Pebble in the Sky, by Isaac Asimov, was an example of his early work. He got much better as the years progressed.

Calculated Risks: How to Know When Numbers Deceive You, by Gerd Gigerenzer, is thought provoking stuff that demands close attention and critical thinking.

To the Stars, by Harry Harrison, is three novels rolled up into a single volume. Turns out I'd read two of the three stories in their solo iterations. Oh well.

I have not made time to read or listen to the Quran, but I'll get back to it after the Solstice...

Seriously, having no TV and no internet is fine inducement to appropriate literary habits. Try it.

My School Has An F-104N Starfighter...

...does your school have an F-104N Starfighter?

In the month or so since I began my cool new job at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott Campus, I've encountered sights didn't quite expect.  I posed in front of the school's F-104N Starfighter NASA chase plane (N811NA) on static display.  I've seen a solid fuel liquid oxygen hybrid rocket come apart during a test at the school's rocket motor test stand.  I attended a public lecture on the history of the U2 spy plane presented by a former U2 pilot and retired ERAU professor.   I've been on three observation flights, complimentary ride-alongs with student pilots and their instructors offered to staff and faculty.  Two were in Cessna 172 aircraft.  One evening earlier this week I got to take a IFR flight in a Diamond 42.  Quite the ride!  Quite the school!

A Monument Valley or The Monument Valley?

There is only one and I visited it Sunday, October 20, 2013: Day Four...

After visiting Arches National Park I drove through Moab, which suddenly seemed crowded and noisy.  I drove south on U.S. Route 191 until I arrived at Monticello, UT.  I passed the night at a roadside motel operated by a Hindu family.  Sunday morning I continued south.  As I crossed into Arizona I chose to not pass up the chance to visit Monument Valley like I had Arches 28 years ago.  It's quite the rugged and time consuming thing to drive into the valley in your own vehicle so I didn't see all of the sights.  But I snapped a few pics before returning to the pavement.  As the hours passed and I closed in on my goal I drove through Flagstaff, Sedona, and Jerome.  Yes, once again I chose the scenic route, this time State Route 89A.  Scenic?  Yeah, mountain goat scenic...

Purple Mountain Majesties

Leaving the fruited plain behind, October 19, 2013: Day Three...

Up before the sun I drove south on Interstate 25 to Denver, where I had breakfast with two friends of my younger days, both named Steve.  Steve Jacksteit was a peer at Signetics in the days before 811 E. Arques, Sunnyvale, California, became the parking lot of a Home Depot.  Steve Belecky was my tenacious investigator during my stint at Silicon Graphics Inc in the days when it still made the go to UNIX box for 3D graphics and other computationally intensive applications.  We enjoyed breakfast and coffee and the retelling of our best and favorite stories.  Then I was back on the road this time headed west on Interstate 70 over the Rockies (and through the Eisenhower Tunnel) to Grand Junction.  There the helpful fellas at the Chamber of Commerce suggested I take an alternate route to the goal of my day's excursion.  In 1985, when I drove from Minnesota to California, I passed the sign marking the turn to Arches National Park, telling myself I'd be back some day.  Well, 28 years later is some day I guess, so this time I made up my mind to visit the park.  The scenic drive the volunteers at the visitor center recommended was Utah State Route 128 and boy, is it scenic!  The nondescript two lane road crosses over land for a time before descending into a deep, winding canyon cut by the Colorado River.  This route through weathered red sandstone treats the sightseer to steep turns, steep cliffs, and blind corners without shoulders.  Scenic indeed, especially if you like watching white knuckles on the steering wheel.  It let me out in Moab, Utah, a few miles south of Arches.  The sun was approaching the horizon as I entered the park so I did not have time to visit the entire place.  Still, I encountered some arches.  I am in the desert now.