My name is Norm Benson and I'm currently researching and writing a biography of Walter C. Lowdermilk.
In addition to being a writer, I'm an avid homebrewer.
I'm also a registered professional forester in California with thirty-five years of experience. My background includes forest management, fire fighting, law enforcement, teaching, and public information.
View more posts
7 thoughts on “Weekend Postcard: 2012 – The Road Ahead”
Beautiful!
And happy new year! I usually try to identify the species in your pics. Not today. OMG, I hope hangovers are good new year´s omens 🙂
Happy New Year to you, too! Yes, Alicia, hangovers have always been great omens. I thought the trees were black oaks (Quercus kelloggii), but this was in the Columbia River gorge area on the Oregon side. And, that is too far north for kelloggii.
Thanks a lot!!! That´s a superprivileged info I do not deserve 🙂
Happy merry brand new christmas (hanukkah?) year birthday!! (??) If it weren´t for this insidious hangover that should have been almost a cosmic event. Accept my excuses if I´m a bit late. I´m also aware of some of your new posts, but I´m really overwhelmed for the quantity of info I´m receiving from everywhere. It was easier to follow the world, and specially some of my fondest of you, from Twitter, and I´m eager to go back there soon. But for the time being i´ll be only able to say hello in this clumsy way and remind you I´m still here and i love you. See you soon (i hope) 🙂
I´m not dead at all. Spanish & EU political and economical situation has changed dramatically in a few weeks; suddenly everything is upside-down, I´m sure you´ve read something about it. Not very different from the US, but maybe there things are somewhat more stable. Not sure about that. Europeans are very, very heterogeneous(?), not like US citizens.
That adds to my personal chaos (which doesn´t improve, but it´s quite “colourful” and didactic, but hurtful and these christmas days have been like hell). That doesn´t matter. I´m strong enough. But I cannot deal with the amount of info I´m getting from everywhere. I also have a lot of support (specially from FB where I deal with even Don Quixote, for instance, who is always an unrelaxing but relativizing character).
Sometime ago, it was easier. It looked as if there was something common to every country and all of us were playing the same game. None of that is the same now. Each region has centered fiercecly in it´s own troubles from their political (energetic) point of view (which I think is OK). Australia is shitting on their recently approved tax (and curiosly fiercly supported by cannadians…Durban…? )… everything is amazing. I´m sure you´ve heard of the 2nd release of the UEA e-mails (climategate 2.0). OMG!!!!!!! Sometimes I can read you but sometimes I cannot “sincronize” what we´re talking about (It is just i need some time to read you well to know where are you).
Things are going very complicated and I can almost follow them. I follow my reference spanish blog (http://plazamoyua.com/) ((Plaza nows you, so do I, most references are international, in english, and we´re both eager to help you) , I´ve been also contacted by italian peers but still dont know how to help them , brits are the best organized, even they´re too centered in their causes http://www.facebook.com/groups/fayrepealtheclimatechangeact/ (don´t forget they´re the people fighting with Royal Society & all the mess of the inquieries from the beginning, involving some MEPS & other “prominent” figures”). You´re closer with the Cuccinelli/Mann thing; that´s very importnat now and maybe you could be more supportive that we could be now.
And yes, I´m more concerned with genetics, and food safety, and Calvyn cycle and all those marvellous oaks out there, or even spanish sonnets but… God, I´m too small, I cannot deal with all of it.
I´ll be back full force whenever you less expect it. Meanwhile I´ll be standby (but don´t trust your instincts (& with every family permission). Love you,
Alicia
(PS.- Yes, please, now that you´re an expert on it, invent some kind of brew without hangover that makes you feel next day like God 🙂 ) (specially for Rio+20; we´re going to have a lot of fun then) 😀
Nullius in Verba 
Beautiful!
And happy new year! I usually try to identify the species in your pics. Not today. OMG, I hope hangovers are good new year´s omens 🙂
Happy New Year to you, too! Yes, Alicia, hangovers have always been great omens. I thought the trees were black oaks (Quercus kelloggii), but this was in the Columbia River gorge area on the Oregon side. And, that is too far north for kelloggii.
One of the conifers is Douglas-fir (Psuedotsuga menziesii).
Thanks a lot!!! That´s a superprivileged info I do not deserve 🙂
Happy merry brand new christmas (hanukkah?) year birthday!! (??) If it weren´t for this insidious hangover that should have been almost a cosmic event. Accept my excuses if I´m a bit late. I´m also aware of some of your new posts, but I´m really overwhelmed for the quantity of info I´m receiving from everywhere. It was easier to follow the world, and specially some of my fondest of you, from Twitter, and I´m eager to go back there soon. But for the time being i´ll be only able to say hello in this clumsy way and remind you I´m still here and i love you. See you soon (i hope) 🙂
I miss your commenting on posts. Let us hope you get a breather from the hectic pace.
Hangover? You? Haven’t seen you on Twitter for quite some time now.
As for info and data, I know what you mean. Information and data avalanche on us every minute.
I´m not dead at all. Spanish & EU political and economical situation has changed dramatically in a few weeks; suddenly everything is upside-down, I´m sure you´ve read something about it. Not very different from the US, but maybe there things are somewhat more stable. Not sure about that. Europeans are very, very heterogeneous(?), not like US citizens.
That adds to my personal chaos (which doesn´t improve, but it´s quite “colourful” and didactic, but hurtful and these christmas days have been like hell). That doesn´t matter. I´m strong enough. But I cannot deal with the amount of info I´m getting from everywhere. I also have a lot of support (specially from FB where I deal with even Don Quixote, for instance, who is always an unrelaxing but relativizing character).
Sometime ago, it was easier. It looked as if there was something common to every country and all of us were playing the same game. None of that is the same now. Each region has centered fiercecly in it´s own troubles from their political (energetic) point of view (which I think is OK). Australia is shitting on their recently approved tax (and curiosly fiercly supported by cannadians…Durban…? )… everything is amazing. I´m sure you´ve heard of the 2nd release of the UEA e-mails (climategate 2.0). OMG!!!!!!! Sometimes I can read you but sometimes I cannot “sincronize” what we´re talking about (It is just i need some time to read you well to know where are you).
Things are going very complicated and I can almost follow them. I follow my reference spanish blog (http://plazamoyua.com/) ((Plaza nows you, so do I, most references are international, in english, and we´re both eager to help you) , I´ve been also contacted by italian peers but still dont know how to help them , brits are the best organized, even they´re too centered in their causes http://www.facebook.com/groups/fayrepealtheclimatechangeact/ (don´t forget they´re the people fighting with Royal Society & all the mess of the inquieries from the beginning, involving some MEPS & other “prominent” figures”). You´re closer with the Cuccinelli/Mann thing; that´s very importnat now and maybe you could be more supportive that we could be now.
And yes, I´m more concerned with genetics, and food safety, and Calvyn cycle and all those marvellous oaks out there, or even spanish sonnets but… God, I´m too small, I cannot deal with all of it.
I´ll be back full force whenever you less expect it. Meanwhile I´ll be standby (but don´t trust your instincts (& with every family permission). Love you,
Alicia
(PS.- Yes, please, now that you´re an expert on it, invent some kind of brew without hangover that makes you feel next day like God 🙂 ) (specially for Rio+20; we´re going to have a lot of fun then) 😀