Visiting Home

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We met at Mount Magazine in Arkansas for my family reunion (the Oates family) this past weekend. It was great to see everyone, and I have one the the warmest, loving families anyone could ask for.

While we were there, we also hiked a bit around the Mount Magazine State Park and pulled our sail boat so we could go for a sail at Blue Mountain Lake. When I was in high school, one of my summer jobs was mowing the park and campsites around the lake. My dad had the contract for mowing Blue Mountain Lake and Lake Nimrod, so we spent all summer going back and forth between the parks.

The weather was amazing, and it was nice to get away.

I’m 40. 40 Years Old.

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So no big deal.  I don’t feel any different.

But what is different, is that I spent it in Paris.  More specifically, London and Paris.  We spent 9 days in London, and made a day trip to Paris for my birthday.  I have to say that London is my favorite, though I plan to make another trip to France to spend more time, especially at the Louvre, which was closed on the day we visited.

According to our travel buddy Fred, “During my vacation we walked 70.88 miles (that is equal to walking 2.7 marathons), and climbed 277 flights of steps (or 2.7 Empire State Buildings) … I’m tired just thinking about it. Time to put my feet up and go to sleep.”  Well said, Fred!

The Morse 200

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Morse 200Was walking through antique mall as we do on odd occasion.  I almost always make it through the curiosities and smells of old without buying anything.  So much I see is interesting, but I always wonder, “what the heck would I do with this?”.

But I couldn’t resist the Morse 200 sewing machine I found recently.  With my namesake emblazoned across the enameled blue surface, I decided I had to take it home.  After getting it home, I found in the case the original receipt, sales flyer and manual. I’ve scanned them and shared them here.  For anyone who loves retro-graphics, take a gander.

You can check out the user manual here.

Morse 200 Flyer

Ride a Space Shuttle Booster as it Launches

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This is an amazing video compiled from a camera located on the booster of the Space Shuttle as it launches.  Watch as the booster carries the shuttle into space and then re-enters the atmosphere to fall into the sea.  It’s worth turning up the sound to get a feel for the emptiness of space.  I’m both amazed and humbled by how far we’ve come and how small we really are.