My Friend Is Back

After a very nice 3-day weekend in Raleigh, NC, on Monday we came home to an empty bird bath, which I filled. Shortly thereafter, my friend the Cooper's hawk was back. I think that this is a testament to the depth of the drought we have had since the start of August.

I tried to move around and get a picture of the tail from the other side, but it saw me and flew off. It was there again tonight, but it saw me and flew off before I could get another picture.

The taming and domestication of religious faith is one of the unceasing chores of civilization.

Gotta love that tag line.

Another nice post by Christopher Hitchens.

New Yellow Highlighting!

After at least a couple of years of adding no new yellow highlighting to my bicycling maps -- which means I hadn't been on any new roads -- I get to add some today! I wanted to try the brand new Legacy Trail from downtown out to the horse park. So went through Ft. Harrods Park and picked up the Beaumont walking trails and then cut through the baseball park to come out on Parkers Mill. Took that in to Versailles Rd (bike lane from Alexandria in a few blocks), then in to the new Oliver Lewis Way (bike lane) and onto Newtown Pike, which I was surprised to find had a bike lane the whole way out to the Northside YMCA on Loudon Ave, where I picked up the trailhead.

I guess that the 10 or so strips of orange tape blocking the trail in the 1st 50 or so yards should have told me that the trail was not open yet. Oops. Another biker told me that the official opening is next Sunday. There were definitely quite a few "Oh shit" moments due to the ongoing construction. But, made it through OK to the trail's end at the entrance to the Kentucky Horse Park Campground, 14.8 miles from my house.

It looks like Legacy Trail is going to connect with other trails in Coldstream. This is a great addition for bikers and walkers. Now I just need something similar to get me downtown :( I wouldn't want to try Versailles Rd during any daylight hours other than what I just did, 9:15 Sunday morning.

Came back Ironworks Pike to Yarnallton (50 yards on Georgetown Rd) to Elkchester. 34.4 miles, 2 stops, 2h45m, a beautiful cool morning.

Herald Leader had another article on the billionaires who created the Tea Party movement. Here's the FB post:

Some good historical background. Ultra-rich industrialists who have zero use for things like environmental protection, workplace safety, workers rights, unemployment insurance, or social security have been funneling mass quantities of $$$ to "grass roots" groups to fight "big government" since 1934. I think owning Fox News has put them over the top this go-round.

The article mentions The John Birch Society. Man, I hadn't thought of that in prolly 40 years. Of course, I will now be unable to get this song out of my head all day.

Also posted to FB: a nice Roger Ebert post. "Put Up or Shut Up" -- not likely. As I've already observed, Palin and Glenn Dick are making 10s of millions of $$$ just being outraged from the sidelines. Altho, I did see in an article on Dick as huckster, charlatan, and recovering alcoholic which said that he has booked the largest auditorium in Alaska for 9/12/2011. A Dick-Palin presidential ticket? Too good to be true.

Also posted a link to Christopher Hitchens' review of Glenn Dick's rally: "large, vague, moist, and undirected—the Waterworld of white self-pity".

Listening to new The New Pornographers album "Together" now. Also recently got John Legend "Evolver" 2008; india.arie "Acoustic Soul" 2001. The new Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers "Mojo" has some very tasty and creative guitar work on it. New Arcade Fire "The Suburbs" not doing too much for me.

Also went back and harvested the best Rolling Stones albums: "Beggars Banquet", "Let It Bleed", and "Sticky Fingers". Man, I think I've played pretty much every one of these at one time or other.

One I've always enjoyed doing is "Prodigal Son". I was thinking about it, I think that was a parable from the new testament, yes? So, the story is, a young man leaves home to seek his fortune, doesn't do so well, goes back home to a royal welcome from his father. So far so good, yes? Youthful ambition, hardships, parental love -- real human stories and emotions.

But then, if remember correctly, none other than JC himself follows up with "so this is just the way that god is happy when a sinner returns to him". Oops. Real human stories and emotions now followed by meaningless religious blather.

So the thing that I find so annoying in modern religious ceremonies -- shoehorning god in where he has no business (wait, that's everywhere, isn't it) -- goes back to Jebus himself. Well, I guess he was a pretty religious guy after all, not just a champion of rights for the downtrodden.