Quote Of The Day
Robert Orben
“Quit worrying about your health. It’ll go away.”
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You Don’t See This Anymore
A fascinating series of pictures over at Dark Roasted Blend of the days when being a flight attendant (or stewardess for us Neandrathals) was considered glamorous. I’m sure it wasn’t and the only way they got pictures like this was because the FAs’ union wasn’t as strong as it is now.
Today, most flight attendants are overworked, underpaid and just a trifle grumpy.
Wasaga Winter
Went up to Wasaga Beach today to help Maxine set up her new computer. Took a few minutes to wander around the backyard on a cold, incredibly clear late February afternoon. If you want snow, this is the place to go.
This first picture shows deer tracks leading away from the house into the woods. They love the cracked corn that she puts out for them and have started coming at all times of the day. Unfortunately, they decided to play shy today.
This shot was taken from the same spot looking back at the house. Lots of snow and, if you get off the path, it’s easy to sink almost to your knees. Quite a load on the roof and David has been busy pulling some of it down.
Just Another Sunset?
A nice picture right? Just an ordinary sunset. Not quite. This is what sunset looks like on Mars.
Picture taken on May 19th, 2005 by the intrepid little rover Spirit as the Sun sinks below the rim of the Gustev crater. Time - 6:07pm, Martian time. (click picture for a bigger version)
At Ease Soldier
Lloyd Clemett, one of the last 3 Canadian World War 1 veterans, died in Toronto Wednesday night. Mr. Clemett was 107.
Clemett enlisted in the army in 1916 just after turning 16. He and his 3 brothers all saw battle and all survived the war.
Mr. Clemett lived in his own home until 2 years ago when he entered the veteran’s ward at Sunnybrook Hospital. His death leaves only Percy Wilson and John Babcock as living WWI veterans.
The federal government has stated that they intend to hold a state funeral for the last veteran but Clemett as well as the other 2 really didn’t care for the idea. Lloyd Clemett will be buried after a private funeral service for his family and friends.
Rest in peace Sir, your country mourns your passing.
Quote Of The Day
Mae West
“You’re never too old to become younger.”
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Quote Of The Day
Peter Ustinov
“If the world should blow itself up, the last audible voice would be that of an expert saying it can’t be done.”
Almost Back To Normal
I’m almost caught up on my sleep and I actually feel like my body is back in the right time zone. The Switzerland trip was longer than normal and I really had trouble getting back into the swing of things.
I’ve uploaded a bunch of photos over at Flickr. Most are from my visit to the Swiss Transportation Museum in Lucerne last Sunday. It’s actually a number of buildings, each dedicated to a different mode of transportation. I was pleasantly surprised to see that they had 2 airliners on display. The first is a Convair CV-990, an aircraft that was widely used. The other is a Douglas DC-3 “Skytrain”, beautifully preserved in Swiss Air Lines colours.
Huge thanks to Christian for acting as my tour guide. I had no idea that this museum even existed and it was great fun walking back through time.
Kidnapped?
Passengers on a Cancun-bound JetBlue flight from JFK yesterday were forced to sit on the tarmac for 8 hours because of bad weather.
In what amounts to kidnapping (held against your will?), the cattle sat so long in the full aircraft that the wheels actually froze to the ground. JetBlue officials apologized for the “unacceptable delays” and promised everyone full refunds plus a voucher for another trip.
Someone needs to kick some ass here. The excuse that there were no available gates to unload the passengers is so lame as to be laughable. Ever heard of buses? Somehow they managed to get me from the departure lounge in Paris to the plane that sat about 3 kilometers away on Tuesday. I know the weather conditions were bad but airports do a remarkable job of clearing runways and taxiways.
Time for the FAA to lay a pretty hefty fine against JetBlue and any other airline that treats the paying customer to such criminal treatment.
Lucerne Switzerland
One of my colleagues met up with me today in Lucerne Switzerland and took me on a tour of the city. We saw the normal sights like the Chapel bridge and toured the transportation museum. I’ll be uploading a lot of pictures once I get back to Canada.
One image I did want to share is this one of the Lowendenkmal monument tucked away down a side street. Carved out of a rock face 60 feet high, the monument commemorates the death of over 700 Swiss Guards in 1792. The soldiers died defending King Louis XVI, Marie-Antoinette, and their children.
Mark Twain, upon seeing the monument, wrote “the Lion of Lucerne is the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world” and I have to say I agree.
Falling For Flumserberg
About 1 hour from Zurich lies the little town of Flum. Above Flum lies the ski area of Flumserberg.
We took the train down along Lake Zurich and then up the valley to Flum. A gondola ride up into the snow followed. The group I was with was all about the skiing but I settled for a “little” hike. I’m badly out of shape and walking in snow is never easy so your intrepid blogger was very, very winded very quickly. Luckily, I brought the camera which gave me an excuse to stop every 2 minutes while hardy Swiss hikers of all ages briskly passed me.
Stunning panoramas at every turn.
Find more pictures over at my Flickr page.
Zurich Afternoon
We finished off early today so I had a chance to head down into Zurich. The weather here has finally cleared up and it was absolutely beautiful. Very warm and sunny.
Caught this looking out over Lake Zurich with the mountains in the background. Tomorrow, we’re off to take a trip somewhere up there and on Sunday I’m taking the train down to Lucerne. Check my Flickr gallery for more pictures. (link on the right)
What Form!
The fat old guy tries bowling again. A big A for form but a failing grade for results.
More available at this Flickr slideshow.
Embrach Switzerland
Two quick and dark pictures from Embrach Switzerland. This is where I’m attending meetings this week.
Every morning and night, we board the “Thurbo” train between here and Winterthur for the 15 mintue ride. Very efficient, clean and quite fast. North Americans could learn a lot from the Swiss rail system which has never disappointed me.
The Banhof Restaurant across the station. Looks very inviting but it appears that no one ever eats there.
Speaking of eating, after a long day of meetings it appears that I’ll be spending my evening on a conference call instead of joining the rest of the group out for dinner.
As you can see, the skies are clearing here and the forecast is calling for sun and temperatures about 9 degrees above freezing. Tomorrow we go out bowling once the day is finished. This will be the second time I’ve gone bowling in Switzerland. Stll find it strange that they enjoy doing it.
Snow Is Coming
In meetings here in Embrach Switzerland and caught this on a break. It’s raining here but, just a few hundred feet higher, the snow has started.
Quote Of The Day
Carl Sagan
“Skeptical scrutiny is the means, in both science and religion, by which deep insights can be winnowed from deep nonsense.”
Banana City
The view from my hotel room. Supposedly the shape of the building suggests a banana, hence the name. I guess that makes sense.
Hello From Winterthur
Actually, everything worked out. Smooth trip to Zurich. My bag showed up. Quick train trip to Winterthur and a 5 minute walk to the hotel.
Hotel Banana City. I’m not making this shit up. The fascination that Europeans have for using English words knows no bounds. It’s actually a very nice place and easily twice as large a room as I usually get when I stay over here. Somebody screwed up.
Internet access is fast but oh so expensive. I can never understand why Swiss hotels haven’t taken a clue from their North American cousins. Charging for access on top of already high rates is not the way to win customer loyalty. But hey, it works for them.
Everything is unpacked and I’m beat. Probably going to get a few hours sleep and see if anything is open in the evening. I’m not getting my hopes up.
Not A Good Start
Air France 353 was “supposed” to leave at 4:40pm. Would you believe 5:30? How about 5:45?
After waiting in line for de-icing, the flight crew noticed something wrong with a circuit breaker so it was back to the gate. Much confering and scratching of heads until it was finally decided that we could take off with only 3 engines providing warmed air to the cabin.
The Captain said he would try to make up the time coming across the Atlantic but he fell just a little short. Sailed into Charles De Gaulle airport and made the slow taxi in. I missed my connection to Zurich by 10 minutes. No problem, they booked me on the next flight - hopefully my bag will join me.
Sitting in the Air France lounge having an espresso. Can’t afford the internet connection so these will be loaded in a group.
Just my luck, France banned smoking in public places starting last week.
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