FRANCE: We were stuck in some epically horrible Seattle traffic this afternoon, and I asked the kids in the backseat to fire up Twitter, etc. and try to find out what was going on. Meanwhile, I dialed up AM news radio. We heard talk of a hostage situation and terrorists, and honestly thought, for a moment, that was what was holding up traffic in Seattle. Not even. Soon, we learned that Paris was under siege. Horrible, terrible. President Obama's statement was spot on tonight, IMHO. ...
"This is an attack not just on Paris, it’s an attack not just on the people of France, but this is an attack on all of humanity and the universal values that we share. We stand prepared and ready to provide whatever assistance that the government and the people of France need to respond. France is our oldest ally. The French people have stood shoulder to shoulder with the United States time and again. And we want to be very clear that we stand together with them in the fight against terrorism and extremism. Paris itself represents the timeless values of human progress. Those who think that they can terrorize the people of France or the values that they stand for are wrong. The American people draw strength from the French people’s commitment to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness. We are reminded in this time of tragedy that the bonds of liberté and égalité and fraternité are not only values that the French people care so deeply about, but they are values that we share. And those values are going to endure far beyond any act of terrorism or the hateful vision of those who perpetrated the crimes this evening. We’re going to do whatever it takes to work with the French people and with nations around the world to bring these terrorists to justice, and to go after any terrorist networks that go after our people." —President Obama on the attacks in Paris
FANTASTIC FLYING MACHINES: On Veteran's Day, we drove north to a place we've been wanting to check out for years - the Flying Heritage Collection museum.
There were a number of knowledgeable, friendly volunteer docents on the floor of the museum. They happily fielded questions and had plenty of personal stories to tell.
We also had a chance to talk to a couple of men who were working on the planes, taking props off to send them to specialists for testing.
Since all of the museum's planes fly, it's important to make sure their parts are all flight worthy.
Here's a Nazi plane missing its nose, propellers ready to ship off to England for testing.
Naturally, I had the kids each write a mini report about the visit to FHC. Here are CJ's thoughts ...
The Flying Heritage Collection is a museum in Mukilteo, Washington, featuring several different planes in two different buildings, mostly from World War II. The museum is one of many collections owned by Paul Allen, including EMP and the Living Computer Museum. One vehicle that particularly intrigued me was the Kettenkraftrad, an odd-looking tank that had the front wheel and handle of a motorcycle, and the rest of the body was like that of a traditional tank.
Another artifact that got my interest was the V-2 rocket, a German missile that was the first man-made object to go into space. Wernher Von Braun, the man who designed the rocket, worked to build the legendary Saturn V later in life. One of the rules of the museum, much like the Living Computer Museum, is that an artifact will not be displayed there unless it works.
And here's what Annabelle had to say ...
On November 11, I went to Paul Allen’s Flying Heritage Collection in Mukilteo. The museum is composed of two buildings. The first building I went into included most of the planes. They had a plane called the P-51d “Mustang” that they were able to reunite with its pilot, Harrison Tordoff. They even had a video of him sitting in the plane, restored to the way it was when he left it last, many, many, years ago. Another highlight that I was interested in was the very first man-made object in space, the German V2 rocket. It was used as a terror weapon, and it was very very large. It wasn’t manned, though. My favorite part of the collection, though, was probably the SpaceShipOne and its carrier, the White Knight.
The SpaceShipOne was the winner of the X-Prize, an award for a non-government spacecraft that is reusable and can be launched twice in two weeks. It was only a replica, but the White Knight was real.
The one unique thing about the collection is that nearly all of the planes can fly and are flown around 2 times a year. It’s free to watch, and I’d love to see it someday. I would definitely come back to see new additions to the collection!
Not quite everything in the museum's collection flies. For instance, this Sherman tank is definitely Earth bound!
Every May, the museum holds an event called TankFest Northwest. Sounds like fun. I hope we can check it out next May! And a super intriguing piece they have in their collection is a bona fide Enigma machine from World War II. The coding devices were used to send encrypted messages. We've read lots about how the Allies finally cracked Enigma's code, and likely shaved couple of years off the duration of the war, saving countless lives.
It came with operator's instructions. If only my German weren't so rusty! And not all of the flying machines on display at FHC are piloted. Check out this sleek, bomb-dropping drone.
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All in all, and amazing collection, to be sure. And it was a great spot to spend some of Veteran's Day, as we got to visit with a number of veterans, and learn about their service.
LABEL MAKER: We've been churning out the salsa verde over the past couple of weeks, each and every batch a bit different. Fortunately, Annabelle has made some labels to help us keep track of which batch is what.
This one's for the mild stuff ...
This sinister looking graphic is for the salsa with Trinidad Moruga Scorpion peppers and ghost chilis.
One batch has Trinidad Moruga Scorpion peppers, ghost chilies, and Carolina Reaper peppers.
And for our 'garden' variety tomatillo salsa, she whipped this up ...
So cute! DANCE OFF: This afternoon we were all cold and lethargic. Best cure for that? A little Richard Simmons, of course. I cued up an old "Sweatin' to the Oldies" video I found on YouTube , and we danced and pranced along with Simmons for a happy half hour.
VETERANS DAY EVE: Tomorrow is Veterans Day and in conjunction with that, tonight we're watching "Debt of Honor," which PBS describes as "an unflinching look at the reality
of warfare through interviews with disabled veterans." An apt description based on what we
saw. It was unflinching, indeed.
Really, as hard as it was to look at at at times, I think the program was the 'perfect' thing to watch as a way to honor veterans and their service.
Trips to The Museum of Flight always make us think about veterans - and active duty military personnel.
Last Friday, while we were listening to Navy veteran John Herrington, the first Native American astronaut and space walker, during his presentation, a military jet screamed into Boeing Field. Herrington, a Navy pilot stopped and smiled and said, "I love that sound."
As I went out to shoot the landed F/A-18E, I noticed that also on the tarmac was this Navy plane.
Its engines were running, and I hoped we'd get to see it take off. We did!
And while out shooting that, I couldn't help but appreciate the sun's rays illuminating the cockpit of the museum's Boeing WB-47E Stratojet.
EYES ON APPLES: Today, I spied a really interesting article all about apples in the Seattle Times. I emailed it to the kids and had each of them read it, and then write a paragraph for me about what they learned from the story.
Here's what Annabelle gleaned ...
I recently read an article from the Seattle Times about new apples that are being bred and genetically engineered to be unique, or, as I will call them, designer apples. According to the article, many of the apples have interesting names, such as "Junami", "Kanzi", "RubyFrost" "Opal", and "SnapDragon". Apples can be bred and genetically engineered for certain things, such as being firm or chewy, or being juicy. Many of the apples are being bred and genetically modified in Washington, but there are also people doing it in Europe. It often takes a long time for apples to get on shelves: For example, a breed known as Cosmic Crisp was apparently hybridized in 1997, but won't be on shelves until 2019.
CJ had this to share ...
The article by the Seattle Times talks about how the apple market is growing. Studies show that although the traditional Red Delicious has fallen 15% in popularity, and Mcintoshes 9% (decline), Ambrosia apples have increased bynearly 50% in popularity. Breeders around the world have been producing newvarieties, such as SweeTango, Opal, and SnapDragon. One of the most promising, however, is the Cosmic Crisp, a breed between the classic Honeycrisp and Enterprise. Experts predict that classic apples may fade out of popularity as new ones come in. I can’t wait to taste one of the ones debuting in 2017!
It's a great article, covering everything from apple DNA to marketing to economics. Apples are kind of a Big Deal in the Evergreen State, as almost two-thirds of apples grown in the United States are a product of Washington.
Here, CJ gleans an apple from a tree he raised as a seedling
THE LEGEND LIVES ON FROM THE CHIPPEWA ON DOWN: Today marks the somber anniversary of the day the Edmund Fitzgerald went to a watery grave on the bottom of Lake Superior, killing all 29 men aboard.
Anyone my age or older likely is familiar with the wreck from a haunting Gordon Lightfoot hit released.
A 729-foot ore-carrier, called the "Queen of the Great Lakes," the ship was carring 26,000
tons of iron ore when it went down on Nov. 10 in 90 mph winds with waves measuring 25
feet.
The National Transportation Safety Board ruled in May 1978 that the "probable cause of this accident was the sudden massive flooding of the cargo hold due to the collapse of one or more hatch covers."
Impressed with the site's design and content, I checked its "About" link and found that it was the creation of a guy named Timothy McCall. He grew up in Indiana, and as an eighth grader, age 14, in the year 2000, when, in history class, he and fellow students were assigned famous disasters throughout history to report on. McCall's task involved the Edmund Fitzgerald. As part of his report, he started the site and the rest, as they say, is history. Now it's arguably the preeminent source of Edmund Fitzgerald info on the WWW. Over the years, McCall has become friends with many family members of Fitzgerald victims.
Pretty darn impressive eighth grade social studies project!
This YouTube video has actual footage of the Edmund Fitzgerald, from it being christened to it sitting on the lake bed. https://youtu.be/hgI8bta-7aw
