Sites I Bookmark

Among the sites I am most prone to drop into when I need or want a real different and invigorating experience, there are 3 which move me most. The three sites I include here can make a difference in a day, simply by clearing the mind and providing some of the most interesting thoughts.

http://www.avo.alaska.edu/ The Alaskan Volcano Observatory

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If you don’t think volcanoes are interesting, then Heaven help you. Having lived near Mt. St. Helens in Washington, seeing it every day from Portland from the highway, and having heard it erupt when working in Vancouver, British Columbia, 250 miles away (“What was that?” “Wow, dunno, must be dynamiting for roads.”)  😉 – having been around the North West cluster of geological events, this site offers every possible thing a person could want. Information on recent eruptions and tendencies, plus live web cams one can tune into at any hour of the day, just to see what’s going on in the Alaska Chain. Those web cams are live, by the way, streaming in real time. I watched Redoubt go through some interesting pulsations, complete with a bit of bright orange, last summer. There is some “dome formation” going on at another, usually a precursor to an eruption.

OK, I may as well give up another source of Volcano Love right here -but it’s almost like cheating:  http://www.volcanolive.com/volcanocams.html In here, you get Fuji, Mt. St. Helens and many more, including Redoubt.

http://hubblesite.org/gallery/ The Hubble Site Gallery Page

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What can one say about the Hubble telescope that has not already been said? The pictures here on this site are stunning – simply amazing. Anyone with the slightest scientific interest in the world around them, and in the Heavens above us has to look in total wonderment at the glories of space. How rich, diverse and incredibly active and colorful it all is! This should be a bookmark for everyone, just because of the killer wallpapers it can yield.

http://oxblue.com/pro/open/ksfb/louisvillearena The Louisville Arena Construction Project Web Cam

Louisville is building a fascinating new basketball-primary arena, right out on the riverfront and smack in the middle of its downtown. An Adobe Flash presentation, I can’t really download a ‘screengrab’ picture, but I absolutely insist you check it out while this construction project is ongoing. Constructo-philes like me will especially love the cranes and the new roofing being applied. Don’t forget to check out the time lapse scenario presented at the top of the page. You can see every single step of the construction from the initial cleanup, the excavation and the resulting progress, all scrolling at rapid speed. Maybe too rapid, actually. As well, the calender on the left can allow one to scope out the progress at the recorded different months and days as well as times. You can scroll through the months to see all the stages at your own pace.

http://www.blotanical.com/ Blotanical

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I absolutely adore this site. Started up by Stuart Robinson, an engaging, popular and smart Aussie from THIS WEBSITE, Stuart’s great original idea and his engaging ways have coalesced a massive influx of garden bloggers, all of whom share the wealth with relish. It is a wonderful way of introducing oneself as a garden blogger and also a fascinating stroll through all the very best gardening bloggers in the world. I should pay more attention to the site, myself, but I sure have zero compunctions about sending folks there. This is the perfect starting point for anyone interested in gardening and in seeing what others do. The tips and information flow as freely as the good vibes and the incredible photography. I feel very lucky to have found Blotanical, the truth is.

Other Sites of Interest

http://chinesegardenscene.com/ –   The Resource for Chinese Gardens the world over.

http://www.bewaterwise.com/ww_landscaping.html It is exceedingly rare to find such salient and relevant information in such a surprising place. This is put out by a bureaucracy – which, for me, usually means various peter Principled persons battling for air – but the Metro Water District of Southern California really pulls it off. A must-read for people out West.

http://pruned.blogspot.com/ –  I just like this place. He seems smart and super interesting. Some candy, I guess.

http://www.shrinkpictures.com/ This is where I go to shrink my photo’s. Easy as pie and loadable directly from my own files, this takes just moments. Like most of us, my camera takes immense pictures. I like that because, when I download them intact, they can be enlarged in great detail. But when I need something less than Gigantic, this is where I go.

http://www.astronomyforkids.net/ Astronomy For Kids

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OK, shameless plug here. This is a site I had ignored for a while and am bringing back up to speed. Having had a kid who was an avid Heaven’s watcher and, having lived out West, where the night skies can simply be other-worldly and maybe, somehow even closer – I have developed a real “thing” for astronomy and the stars. For those with children, allow me to acquaint you with another resource of which I am in much admiration as well – this is someone else’s site, but it is perfectly constructed, IMO, and very kid-friendly. Check out this: http://www.kidsastronomy.com/

Anyway, I bet a few of those people find entertaining. I know I sure have.

4 thoughts on “Sites I Bookmark

  1. Oh man, volcanoes! Bring it on! If there’s anything geological that I really have this weird fascination for it’s volcanoes. I remember a night when I spent over an hour peering through binoculars at a lava flow from Kilauea from three miles away. Teeny tiny little strands of orange goo dripping into the ocean, so far away but still amazing. (The road closer to the flow had been overrun by the lava.) And I’ll admit to having something for hurricanes too.
    .-= lostlandscape(James)´s last blog ..vinyl resting place =-.

  2. Yeah, James. In Reno, there are vents all over the place, South of town. I mean sulfurous, nasty-smelling real live hotter than heck vents that puff up steam and stuff when it’s colder. Pretty cool. Actually, I believe the entire town is now run on completely geothermal energy.

  3. Steve, Bob Hill & I are planning a star party at HH sometime this spring – saw your comments on skygazing and thought you’d like to know.
    My main scope is a 15″ Starmaster and it delivers stunning views. also, if you get a chance, check out my birdhouses and other critter homes at my site; http://www.coopsdvillas.com

  4. I love those birdhouses and I look forward to almost anything involving Bob, lol. The telescopic event sounds as if it is right up my alley.

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