Playing at Playing Trains

This roughly drawn plan is where I indulge my penchant for model railroading. It is a base image used by Train Player, software for animating a line drawing of a track plan.

I expect to never actually build a model railroad; I have so many things I tell myself I want to do - I have to actually pick one as the overriding commitment. I picked photography.

Feet of Clay

I suspect that our disappointments with those we elect to high office stems, in part, from our expectation that they should be better people than ourselves. We use "feet of clay" as a perjorative. Perhaps it is merely acknowledgement of our commonality.

In the biblical book of Genesis, some pretty low people end up as the instruments of God's will. Jacob cheats his brother out of his inheritance, for example, yet goes on to be a patriarch.

We are all to be encouraged by this - we have the example that, as unworthy as we know ourselves to be, we are capable of doing what must be done. In a democracy we hope our leaders do indeed have feet of clay.

Little Colorado River

Vermillion Cliffs, Arizona

North of Perkinsville, Arizona

Dover School Trial

I'm watching NOVA, on PBS, about the case of teaching "Intellegent Design" as biology. I'm having trouble listening to some of the Dover School Board members with any semblence of serenety. It's going to be a long century.

Day 2: North Hollywood to Barstow

We got to Thai Town before anything was open. Breakfast at Denny's Restaurant at Sunset and Van Ness then to Food 4 Less, just down the street.


Somrak was captured by a bookstore right away. All it takes is her native language to keep her captive as much as I by shelves full of books.



Something I noticed.


Now she's content.