sedentary...

A year and a half of inactivity has rendered me 25 lbs. overweight.  90,94,73,0,B

children bearing gifts...

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palo verde

Was getting a little worried about my palo verde trees but they finally started leafing out about a month ago.  Nice little shower this afternoon with rain falling straight down for a change - usually our storms include wind that blows it sideways.  77,88,72, .14",B

stochasticity...

Listened to this story from NPR's Radio Lab this weekend and found it very revealing in our perception of the world - or as they phrased it, "random acts from an indifferent universe".  When you look at the big picture without focusing in too tight on your own selfish experience with a tendency to only acknowledge selective details, "real randomness when you see it just doesn't feel random enough".  Selective information only dissolves the real truth - be it the examination of chance events...or the news you are fed.  When taking into consideration a broader context, "What feels spooky and almost twilight zonish in the moment is really not that improbable.  What can feel so special in the moment is not so odd in its' real context."  80,89,72,0,B

false prophet...?

A Born-Again Donald Trump?  

Watch his behavior and listen to the things he says in the coming months and you will know if it is true.  

laundry day...

Chupa is in charge of the drying cycle.  87,99,78,T,B

inventory...

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the end of that longest day...

June 21, 2016

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Moe's Meat Market

Was chatting with one of my old NYC neighbors from Elizabeth St. the other day.  Her building which was across the street from mine got turned into a low income co-op about 12 years ago.  The city ended up relocated all the tenants so they could completely renovate the building.  She is just moving back in this week after waiting for 8 years!  She said it will be strange being back in the hood with a bunch of strangers on the block.  The old street is totally gentrified now with hipster tenants and expensive shops in almost every store front.  The building right next door to mine was owned by a nice old Hawaiian artist named Robert Kobayashi.  It still has the original sign out front from when it was a butcher shop.  His store front was a gallery of sorts for his paintings and sculpture.  He was always good for chats about when he first moved to the neighborhood when it was a drug infested wreck - and he loved talking about my crazy landlord that ended up going to jail while I lived there.  Did a little digging online and found out Kobi (as he was known) died last December.  His wife still owns that building and is sitting on a gold mine.  Kobi bought the building in 1977 for $35,000 and it is worth well over a million now.  My crazy landlord bought his building for $45,000 around the same time.  It sold in 2004 near the height of the housing bubble for $1.8 million.  92,101,78,0,C    

big day coming up

Big Ben is lonely - but you can perk him up if you send him a birthday card.  He will be four years old on July 1st.  90,99,76,0,C

Five years ago, Benita got a total of 85 birthday cards...these are the ones that arrived in time.  Can Ben beat her record?

Big Ben c/o John Wells
2500 Mailbox Rd.
Alpine, TX  79830

The Bob Rose clan...

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it is a dusty world...

Matthew 10

11 And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence.

12 And when ye come into an house, salute it.

13 And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.

14 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.

Cactus Farmers

A big new building off 118 just north of the legion is going to be a cactus farm.  94,104,79,0,B

balloon powered internet

Noticed a couple balloons popped up on FlightRadar24 yesterday.  Quite an interesting story behind them - way up there above 60,000 ft.  93,104,74,0,B

Hydration

Thanks to Ken Clouse from West Texas Realty for dropping off a new addition to The Field Lab.  This is just what I need to keep cool during the hot summer months.  I can't quite put my finger on it, but I think there is a major flaw in this plan... 92,101,72,0,B

Flight Data

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ADS-B

Just got the equipment from FlightRadar24, shipped all the way from Vierkirchen, Gemany.  Mode-S/ADS-B receiver and power supply, external Mode-S antenna, low loss coaxial cable, ethernet cable, and GPS antenna and cable...and a key chain.  Chupa attacked Nikki from FedEx so she had to throw the box at him to defend herself - he gets really cranky when it's hot.  I think she was pleased to hear that my rooster Frank (named after the other FedEx driver) got eaten by a coyote.  Will put the gizmos into service tomorrow if I can beat the heat.  All I have to do is wire it all up and plug it into the modem and it starts looking for air traffic - sending data to their server.  93,100,72,0,B

Summer is here!

Got up to 88.9° inside today.  It's gonna be a hot week and luxury sunglasses won't help.  Time to break out the AC.  91,104,75,0,B

make no mistake...

Every day in the world about 160,000 people die of various causes.  Double that number if you factor in abortions per day worldwide.  The evil that happens in the world is about one thing and one thing only...Satan.

John 8:44Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

the "B" team

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Airbus A380

Been tracking my tracker from Flightradar24.  Due to arrive via TNT on or about the 16th.
Interesting to see how much traffic happens over the US in a 24 hour period.  In the video at 0:37 there is a big plane heading NE right by El Paso.  That is Qantas Flight 7 from Sydney to Dallas.  It passes there every day at about noon.

I followed it into Dallas when it landed using the 3D view in the software.  78,100,72,T,0

TBT

Throw back Thursday from another life.  Having lunch with stylist Tonne Goodman at the Eiffel Tower circa 1986.  I was second assistant to Bruce Webber on a Calvin Klein shoot in Paris. Tonne is now fashion director at Vogue/Conde Nast - New York.  My one year in the high fashion world certainly presented a lot of opportunity - but luckily, I never bought into the hype.  88,98,70,0,B

Medic...

What does a retired Navy medic bring as a gift when visiting TFL?  First aid supplies, of course.  Thanks, Rodger!  90,97,71,0,B

passion

Should you follow your passion, wherever it may take you? Should you do only what you love...or learn to love what you do? How can you identify which path to take?  Mike Rowe shares the dirty truth in PragerU's 2016 commencement address.  When I was in the photo industry, I used to tell aspiring photographers that obviously had no talent that if they really wanted an enriching job they should become plumbers.  It is not rocket science -  you clients will be amazed by the magic you do - and you will retire early and rich.  89,96,69,0,B

18 months...

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no more crosses...

Even as a Christian, I don't understand why the Brewster County Sheriff's office decided to start putting crosses on their vehicles.  I knew from day one that was not gonna fly.  It was only a matter of time before atheists would file and win a lawsuit.  The only part of this whole deal that I find really sad is that the author of this story about the cross debacle (posted on an atheist website) is by the same person that wrote a book called Parenting Without God: How to Raise Moral, Ethical, Intelligent Children, Free from Religious Dogma.  Teach your children well...no self help book will free you from the consequences of denying God.  Christ has always been and forever will be the only hope for this world.

Jude 1:4For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Matthew 10:33But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Situational awareness...

While playing around yesterday with the flight website, I found that you can apply to get a free "Automatic Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast" (ADS-B) receiver.  There are thousands of them all over the planet to help keep track of airline traffic.  The instructions stated that it usually take up to 30 days to make a decision on an application.  They sent me an email a couple of hours after my initial contact asking me to fill out step two in the process...giving a little more info about my location and photos of where the antenna would be placed as well as my views north-south-east-west.  This morning I was notified that my application was approved and they will be mailing the receiver to me in about a week.  That was fast'n'easy.  I imagine I am definitely in an area where they lack coverage.  86,92,68,0,B

Plane Spotting

For the third time in the last couple of months I have noticed a plane turning high above TFL.  Today I had plenty of time to figure it out as it made 4 passes overhead (at 40,000 ft. and traveling over 700 mph.).  The red dot on the flight path image is The Field Lab.  Turns out it was Rolls Royce Boeing 747-200 N787RR out of Tucson continuing testing (which began this year) on a new engine for the 787 Boeing Dreamliner.  Note:  It was not part of a master plan by the illuminati to poison the population making them complacent and infertile nor was it trying to control the weather... 83,91,63, .02",B

dry spell?

Got one last round of rain before an upcoming dry spell.  My new "quick read" rain gauge is the tank off the west side greenhouse roof.  This was from the storm that dropped 1"...250 gallons.  73,76,62, .25",B

tip to tip

Ben just gets more lovable the bigger he gets.  66" tip to tip now.  Made a mad dash south today for some supplies - another storm in the forecast for tonight.  76,84,65,0,C