Election Day 2008

Freedom is liberty; it is not being under someone else's control. It is having the right, indeed, the responsibility, to take a stand on issues that affect our nation. There is no greater way to exercise our freedom, to ensure that freedom, than to vote. Nevertheless, many Americans do not take that freedom seriously, as evidenced by the lack of strong participation in elections.

People use a variety of excuses to rationalize why they do not vote. Some say that they are too busy to vote. Still others say they do not vote because small numbers cannot make a difference, or because one vote will not matter at all. There are also those Americans who do not vote, because they simply are not concerned about doing so.
The most important right citizens have is the right to vote.

My Ride Today, Pismo Beach, California

Met up with a bunch of people today in Delano, California for a ride to Pismo Beach, California. The map shows the route that I took.

The ride was a fund raiser for a guy at work that is fighting cancer.

The skies showed some threatening clouds, but the weather was absolutely fabulous.Of course, if you go to Pismo you've got to have some clam chowder from Splash Cafe. This chowder has been voted the "BEST CHOWDER" on the Central Coast for many, many, many years.Across the street from Splash is the "Famous Harry's Bar". Some people think that if you go to Pismo you have to enjoy a cold adult beverage in Harry's to make your trip complete.Pismo Beach, looking North. The weather was perfect, mid 60's.

The Pismo Pier.The grunion are running now on the Central Coast. These guy's were getting their quota.
Grunion are sardine-sized fish. They are found only off the coast of California, USA and Baja California, and Mexico. Grunion are known for their very unusual mating ritual. At very high tides the females come up on sandy beaches and dig their tails into the sand to lay their eggs. A male then wraps himself around the female to deposit his sperm. For the next ten days the grunion eggs remain hidden in the sand, but at the next set of high tides the eggs hatch and the young grunion are washed out to sea.

This guy was also getting his fill.

If you were inclined you could take a ride up and down the coast in this vintage bi-plane.

I think this coup is a kit car, looked like they were having fun.

Columbus Day, October 12

Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492. At least that is what all elementary school children were always taught: "In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue." Of course, Columbus never did "discover" North America, and the regions he did explore were already inhabited. He only discovered them from the viewpoint of the Europeans. Yet his first voyage did prove one thing for sure, that the earth was not only round, but also that it was bigger than he had thought.

Columbus, the son of a wool merchant and weaver, was born in Genoa, Italy and went to sea at the age of 14. Following a shipwreck off the coast of Portugal in 1470, he swam ashore and settled in that country. Between 1477 and 1482 Columbus made merchant voyages as far away as Iceland and Guinea. But in 1484, his "Enterprise of the Indies" idea fell on deaf ears when he presented it to King John of Portugal. Shortly thereafter, he moved to Spain, where King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella became more interested in his adventuresome ideas.

Columbus and 90 crewmen boarded the three ships that were to make the first voyage to the New World, the Niña, Pinta, and the flagship, Santa Maria. On October 12, 1492, Columbus first saw the islands of the new world, landing in the Bahamas. Later in the month, he would sail to Cuba, and to Hispaniola (now Haiti). He thought he had reached the East Indies, the islands off Southeast Asia.

Contrary to popular belief, most educated individuals in the 15th century, and especially sailors, already knew that the earth was round. What was not realized by Columbus, however, was just how big a globe it was. Columbus seriously underestimated the size of the planet.

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

I took today off from work, October 9, 2008, to enjoy a ride that I have been wanting to take for awhile. I left Bakersfield early around 9:00AM returning home at 7:30PM, having traveled 290 miles. I took the loop that I have outlined on the following map. The route took me through Sequoia and Kings National Parks.
This is the southern entrance to Sequoia National Park.

The road at one time traveled under this rock.
In the very far distance in the picture below is Moro Rock. Moro Rock is a granite dome located in the center of the park, at the head of Moro Creek, between Giant Forest and Crescent Meadow. A stairway, built in the 1930s by Civilian Conservation Corps, is cut into and poured onto the rock, so that visitors can hike to the top.
Zoomed in shot of Moro Rock,Sequoias grow naturally only on the west slope of California's Sierra Nevada range, most often between 5000 and 7000 feet of elevation.
This picture is also the Sentinel from a different side.This is the General Sherman Tree, the world's largest living tree, standing over 275 feet, whose trunk weighs an estimated 1,385 tons and has a circumference at the ground of nearly 103 feet.
This guy was on a cross country trip that started in North Carolina.
Sequoia National Park is our second oldest National Park.
The General Grant tree is called "America's Christmas Tree" In volume of total wood the giant sequoia stand alone as the largest living tree on earth.
Looking up to the top of the General Grant tree.
These little critters run all over the park.