DYK? Ice Citations

Wow! Apparently, I am a lawbreaker. Last weekend, I drove with some snow and ice on the hood of my car, only to see it fly over the roof of my automobile and onto the roadway behind me. Thankfully, no one was driving back there at the time, so the “ice missle” broke apart on the roadway. If someone had been travelling behind my car, that individual may have had an eye-opening experience, like this woman who was discussed in a recent news story on WTNH Channel 8:

Mary Jacques of Wolcott was driving on I-691 when a piece of ice shattered her windshield, “I heard a loud crack and realized my whole windshield was shattered, realized it was a hunk of ice that hit my car, not snow,” she said.

A piece of ice that launched off an oil truck hit Mary’s windshield like a rock, even pushing shards of glass into her SUV.

Automobile drivers are not the only victims of flying ice. Truck drivers can succumb to these “missles” too. From the same article on Channel 8:

Dominic Simeone of Lombard Motors towed a big rig Tuesday after ice from a truck slid off and severed its air brakes. His company has been busy towing cars and trucks wounded by ice and he’s even been a victim himself.

- snip –

“Last year I was on my way to a call on Middletown Avenue and a sheet of ice came off a car the opposite way and it took my mirror off one of the wreckers.”

I don’t know about you, but I must confess I didn’t think much about flying ice doing that much damage, which is rather strange given that I am a native Minnesotan and my elementary school custodian was killed by ice that fell off a building. I was only thinking about my hurried holiday schedule and the fact that I didn’t want to risk scratching the paint on my car by chipping away at the ice on the hood.

Did you forget to finish cleaning the top of your car last weekend? Is it still displaying patches of snow and ice on the hood and roof? If so, watch out for those state troopers. The fine for an ice citation is more than $100.00.

Now That’s Original!

I was checking my Google Reader feeds this afternoon, when I came across this website, Unusual Hotels of the World, posted by Judy of Consent of the Governed, who was led there by Helen H. (sorry, no website or blog for referral).

My daughter and I spent over thirty minutes exploring the various descriptions and photos on the site. Let me tell you, when the website creators used the term “unusual hotels,” they were not kidding. We found everything from historic churches to tree houses to converted prisons to concrete sewer pipes. Yes, you read that correctly folks, concrete sewer pipes. Truthfully, I cannot imagine myself wiling away a relaxing afternoon in a drainage tube but, hey, different strokes for different folks, I guess.

For example, my sister may find this to her liking, seeing as she is the owner of a young canine --- the Dog Bark Park Inn:

The world’s largest Beagle, offering unique accommodation inside [its] 2-story body.

Rates: $92.00/night includes breakfast. Double occupancy.

With two big dogs signaling your arrival to Dog Bark Park visitors may walk the ground, browse the gift shop and artists’ studio featuring the whimsical chainsaw artwork of husband/wife artist [Dennis J. Sullivan] and [his wife] Frances. Canine carvings are a specialty although visitors are apt to find fish, feline, bear, moose and Lewis & Clark themed carvings as well. At Dog Bark Park the artists enjoy sharing dog, travel and life stories as well as assisting visitors in planning their vacations. We are husband and wife artists working at our studio at Dog Bark Park since 1997.

I, on the other hand, am intrigued by The College of the Holy Spirit in Britain and Thorngrove Manor in Australia. My friend, Koalagirl15, would probably enjoy Saugerites Lighthouse near Albany, New York. Katherine the Great prefers the Beckham Creek Cave Haven near Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Check out the site for yourself and select your dream hotel. Which one will it be?

The Ship Is In

Yesterday morning, just after sunrise, the largest ship ever to moor in New London Harbor arrived under the watchful eye of many local residents, including me. I headed to Eastern Point Beach at around 6:00 AM, hoping to get a picture of the Explorer of the Seas before taking my husband to work. Unfortunately, the sunrise photo was not to be. The lovely lady was a bit slower than my schedule allowed and by the time I returned to the river, she was already nestled safely at the State Pier, piloted into position by Captain Sverre Ryan of Royal Caribbean and Captain Vincent Cashin of the Connecticut State Marine Pilots. I took the picture at right from the parking lot of Proto-Power, a business across the river from the berth.

The Royal Caribbean luxury liner is quite impressive. Just look at these statistics:

- maiden voyage: October 28, 2000
- passenger capacity: 3,114
- gross tonnage: 138,000 tons
- length: 1020 feet
- maximum beam: 157.5 feet
- height: 208 feet
- draft: 29 feet
- cruising speed: 23.7 knots (~25 mph)

So, she is seventy-two feet shorter than the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), the ninth Nimitz-class supercarrier. She also has a shorter beam, 157.5 feet vs. 252 feet for the “Gipper.” However, she exceeds the aircraft carrier in gross tonnage by almost 34,000 tons. I guess the descriptor “big” is kind of an understatement.

What is not an understatement when referring to the Explorer of the Seas is the label “luxury.” This evening, I briefly explored the Royal Caribbean website for the ship and, let me tell you, the only word I uttered for a while was “wow.” The largest guest room onboard is 1114 square feet, only 214 square feet bigger than my house, and it comes with a baby grand piano! Other amenities for cruising travelers:

- ice-skating rink
- rock-climbing wall
- in-line skating
- Royal Promenade mall (open 24 hours)
- Johnny Rockets® ‘50’s-style restaurant
- Portofino Italian restaurant
- various themed bars & lounges
- a casino
- golf simulators
- miniature golf course (9-hole)
- Adventure Ocean® youth facilities
- ShipShape® Day Spa & Fitness Center
- basketball court (full-size)
- three swimming pools
- a jogging track
- a five-story theater (complete with orchestra pit)
- a conference center
- a library
- an art gallery
- a wedding chapel

Yet, amidst all that opulence, I found this:

This cruise ship is so high-tech, it even features the University of Miami Ocean Lab, a state-of-the art oceanographic and atmospheric science lab.

Apparently, this effort is quite active because I found descriptions of presentations that will be given onboard during the month of August (check this link). The talk for the current cruise to New England and Canada:

Weather --- A Slice of Life by Christy Crosiar
Weather’s slice of life has been described as everything between the mud to sun. Weather is the common denominator for everyone who spends part of their life outdoors. As an outdoor creature, come and participate in the science you know and learn about normals, currents and satellites.

Not being a fan of cruising (probably because of too much time spent around Navy ships), I am at least pleased to see that all that luxury is also being put to good use as an educational platform.

If you missed the Explorer of the Seas this time around, don’t fret. The ship will return three more times this fall as part of a schedule of weeklong cruises to Canada: September 15, September 29, and October 13. Bon voyage!

Museum of Picture Book Art

One of the members of a homeschool support e-loop that I joined recently contributed this interesting link yesterday: The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. Being a picture book fan and the daughter of an artist-mother who dabbled in children’s book illustrations, I could not pass up the opportunity to share this information. I plan to put this museum on my list of places to visit.

Thank you, Laurel.

Dinner and a Drive

Last Wednesday (10/18/2006), my daughter and I went to the Historic Triangle of Virginia --- Jamestown, Yorktown, and Colonial Williamsburg --- for a homeschool field trip, planned to coincide with a Colonial Williamsburg Electronic Field Trip (EFT) offered to our homeschool support group. The EFT was actually scheduled for Thursday (10/19/2006), but we decided to arrive in Virginia a day early.

The drive there took nine hours, thankfully driven by my husband who took the train to Connecticut from Norfolk, Virginia, just especially to act as the family chauffeur. He is an expert at navigating the heavy traffic encountered on the I-95 corridor between New England and Virginia, having driven it almost weekly for over two years while stationed aboard the USS Emory S. Land at Naval Station Norfolk.

The day began at 6:00 am with a visit to the Amtrak station to collect my husband. He was home just long enough to shower, vacuum the Subaru, and perform the all-important pre-travel checklist known to all husband mechanics. You know the one: oil level, windshield wiper fluid, properly inflated tires, etc. After a quick stop at the gas station for fuel, coffee, and bagels with cream cheese, we hit the road at around 9:30 am.

Much to my astonishment, traffic was fast and relatively clear, causing my husband to choose a route that carried us directly over the George Washington Bridge in New York City and down the New Jersey Turnpike. I never take this route because I hate the combination of high speed (~70 mph) and tight traffic. I opt for the longer route through western Connecticut, over the Newburgh Bridge, and up into Pennsylvania, thereby avoiding any semblance of traffic that could be described as “heavy,” much less barely congested. Having grown up on the flatlands of southern Minnesota, I much prefer the wide-open road where my only companion is the scenery and some road noise.

Our route continued over the Delaware Memorial Bridge and down the Delmarva Peninsula, crossing the eastern shore areas of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. If I wanted to see flatlands, I certainly got my fill on US Route 13. I was amazed to see such level plowed fields, much like those found in southwestern Minnesota or northern Illinois. Even my family commented on the uniformly horizontal topography. Actually, I think the word my daughter used was “boring.”

Her stagnant state of mind was eventually assuaged by our arrival at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. She had been over this bridge years ago, as a very young child, but apparently remembered nothing about it, so it was important to create a new memory that would definitely be retained now that she is fully sixteen years old. We pulled into the first overlook around sunset (hence, the lovely photograph taken by my husband) before heading over the bridge proper. A bit of fog was hanging near the shoreline, making it difficult to see the other side, a detail that only made the view more captivating. It was definitely serene, just what we all needed at the end of a long drive and before arriving in Chesapeake for dinner with our friends.

Dinner, by the way, was BLT sandwiches, Jell-o salad, and macaroni and cheese, with chocolate crème pie for dessert. Added to the fellowship of good friends, it was a great way to end the day.

Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart. --- Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 NASB