The 2012 Solar Eclipse of May 20th came and went.  What a fun event.  When it first started I joked with a buddy that “Oh my god!  I can see it!  It’s already getting darker!“  But when it got down to it, believe it or not, it was actually a fun neighborhood event!

At the peak of the solar eclipse, neighbors started coming out and tinkering around with their various homemade “pinhole projectors.”  Some had two pieces of small cardboard or their shoebox contraptions.  It was pretty fun, but then I pointed to the ground and showed my neighbors the “poor man’s pinhole projector!”

In fact, we had a huge pinhole projectors all over the place.  One of them made my garage door the magic solar eclipse projector while others made a car a projector!

You see, sunlight coming through tree leaves can, in a weird way, mimic the functions of a pinhole projector.  And the leaves make their own projections… here’s a few images of the solar eclipse of 2012, as seen through tree leaves, here in Menlo Park:

1:

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Today, 5-20-12, starting at 5:24 p.m., a solar eclipse will start and at 6:38 p.m., the max coverage will be in effect.  In Los Angeles, like here in Menlo Park, it will appear that 85% of the sun will be eclipsed into a C-shaped light bulb!  Mt Fuji would seem to be the spot to see it full on eclipsed.

(Seriously???  6:38?  I’ll be 2/3rds through Game of Thrones right then!)

The next total eclipse of the sun will take place in 2017.

Remember to not look directly at the sun.  I did that once when I was in Jr. High and have had a “momento” of that brainless event ever since.

The official warning goes like this:

Never view the sun with the naked eye or with any optical device, such as binoculars or a telescope!

There will be a few online locations broadcasting if you can stand that kind of fast paced excitement.

• Slooh Space Camera
• Panasonic
• Hong Kong Observatory
• Hong Kong Space Museum

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Or you can make your own pinhole projector…  which you can find quick instructions here:  exploratorium.edu

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I was checking out an article or two the other day ranging from wearing hoodies on Wall Street, flexible business practices and an IPO that would seem to be a promising investment!

The Horror of Hoodies

First up was Facebook‘s main man, Mark Zuckerberg, showing up in Wall Street in a hoodie, and the establishment of Wall Street apparently took offense to how he wasn’t respecting the business dress code or etiquette.

Seriously?  If those complaints came from someone who was smarter or made more money then Zuck, I’d give it some credit.  But for the moment, I’d say that’s a moot point they were trying to make!  The hoodie probably cost more than that guy’s suit who whined about it.

Footloose and Fancy Free Business Plans?

Then I saw another piece in the paper about how it doesn’t appear as if the entity of Facebook plans too far out in advance… they see something, like it, buy it up and incorporate it.

They refer to this process and FB as “A fairly nimble company.”  Though I must profess, something that big, moving forward without too many plans, doesn’t seem right.  To succeed, you do need a good outline. With flexibility in the process.

The article even noted you can tell what they’re planning by what they’re buying.

They snagged “Hot Potatoe” and then started developing a “places” datebase of eating and shopping.

They nabbed up Snaptu, Sofa, Push Pop Press and Strobe.  All combined, into one huge info graphic and layout schematic.

They snagged up Daytum… and then we say Facebook’s latest “innovation” with that new TimeLine format.

They recently bought a place called TagTile…  and the premise is that we’ll be seeing coupon services pretty soon on Facebook.

But after the billions made, where to go from there?

As it stands, they are known for having compiled the biggest collective of information on consumers, aka, web surfers.  And they’re going to be going public.  That IPO, looking to pull in billions?  Probably.

But there’s one tiny snag these days.  And in the scheme of things, it probably is tiny.

Some of their advertisers are pulling out.  One of the biggest is the automaker, GM.

GM indicated they weren’t making the money back from their advertising investment with Facebook and questioned the intelligence behind buying ad space from Facebook when all they may really need to do is create their own fan page.

My eyebrows went up on that one because it’s true!  And if GM starts this fad, what’s to say who will follow.  And if enough follow, what Facebook will do to stop the potential funds from slipping out of their fingers.

No worries I’m thinking, because this IPO coming up will net them enough to buy another small country!

But I have to wonder.

If buying up companies signals their upcoming plans, I have to wonder what millions upon millions (Estimated to be at $6 billion) from the IPO in the Mark Zuckerberg coffers might generate next?

These were just interesting tidbits and what not from things I caught in and about the media.

There’s also some interesting perspectives over at ZDNet about how Zuck might be selling stock, but still retaining control and other such tidbits…

[New York Times May 14th Business Day edition.]
[Daily Post, May 16th edition]

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You’ve seen it too often, and that’s a dog sitting inside a locked car, windows up.  Sometimes the windows are closed, sometimes they’re “cracked” open “For the dog.”  Let me make a quick suggestion…  if you’re willing to leave your dog in the car, you should hang out with him/her too and see how it feels.

Then you’ll understand what’s really going on inside that ‘easy bake oven’ on wheels you leave your animal in.

When summer approaches, I’m sure most people think, well, it’s going to be hot, so I won’t take my dog with me when I go places.

Or some might thing that they’ll only be gone a “few minutes.”  A few minutes is three minutes, not thirty.

But none of it can be good, because even on a 78-degree day, the temp inside a car can get to 120 degrees.  On the warmer days, where it hits 90+ degrees, we’re looking at temps in the range of 160 degrees.

On a 72-degree day, it can take a mere 15 minutes for the inside of the car to get to 117 degrees.  Dogs can suffer brain damage when the temps hit 107 and die at 120 degrees.

Did you know that in the UK, the RSPCA is called out to rescue dogs from hot cars, over 6,000 times a year!?

And those “few minutes” may be too many, because it only takes about 15 minutes for an animal to suffer from heatstroke in the oven you leave them in.

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Dogs cool themselves via their panting.  If they’re panting into the very environment that’s killing them, it doesn’t really help them.  Humid environments are especially bad because muggy air also prevents your animal from cooling itself down.

Did you know that

“Brachiocephalic (pug-nosed) dogs are more prone to heatstroke because their nasal passages are smaller and it’s more difficult for them to circulate sufficient air for cooling?”

California has taken steps to remove the stupidity of this act.  Penal Code 597.7 PC makes it illegal to leave animals in an unattended vehicle.

And PETA suggests that if you see an animal suffering from heatstroke affects, that one should gather some witnesses to see/confirm that the animal is in distress, then

“take steps to remove the suffering animal and then wait for the authorities to arrive.”

You can call the cops on animals left in hot cars.

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In closing…  I’d suggest hanging with your dog in the very environment you think is “OK” for them.  See how it really is inside that car.

And here’s an agreement between you and me:

If I see an animal left in a vehicle that’s in direct sunlight and it looks like it might be suffering, I’ll be taking the necessary measures to ensure its safety.

So take a moment and ponder that if you can’t take your dog with you into where ever you’re headed, maybe you shouldn’t take your dog at all, no matter how much he begs to go with you.

(And before you bitch at me about your “freedom of choice,” just know, I’m only reporting what I’ve seen and passing it on.  Freedom of choice, I would hope, includes smart decisions that don’t end in the suffering of your family pet.)

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Info Resources:

Lead image source:  dogstodaymagazine.co.uk

peta.org

weather.com

shouselaw.com

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I saw this sign up and about the neighborhood her in Menlo Park… we have a lost African Grey Timmeh Parrot…  he made a break for it yesterday (5-15-12). If you see the little guy or end up saving him, his name is Peanut and there are the details in the pic below…  I don’t know of the folks, but I feel bad for the escape of their family member, so I thought I’d give this a try!

The phone number is accurate and I have permission from the owner to post/show it.

-Bruce

Yes…  I can and would put up lost or found animal postings if you contact me, no matter where you’re at…

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It’s one thing to decide to become a vegetarian.  You realize that this lifestyle requires a more focused attention to what nutrients one gets.  So one would just think it’s fine to start taking vitamins.  It’s basically what everyone says.

But if you’re vegan or a very, very focused vegetarian and  don’t want to eat the product of your “friends” or cute animals, you might want to know that not all vitamins are vegan or pure vegetarian safe!

The gelatin in some multivitamins comes from cooked bones and organs of animals.  (Or what they might neutrally refer to as as beef and pork by-products.  That’s kind of like when red food dye is noted, but they don’t tell you when specific red food colorings come from crushed bugs.)

It’s bad enough when some friends or family don’t fully understand your decision to be vegetarian, but if you’re not careful, you’ll find yourself tricked by regular, every-day products that don’t always stand out as non-vegetarian.

Heck, I’ve even seen things marked like it’s a vegetarian soup and to find out there’s beef broth base or something like that.  Or the Vegetable Spring Role that uses chicken stock.

So the lesson learned here is to not trust the large print of the labels and to take the time to read the ingredients.

If you’re serious enough, you may want to find resources on the web to help out…  I recommend vegan websites, only because they have a much more critical focus on their lifestyle.  They not only do not eat animal products, their lifestyles revolve around not using products created from animals.

Vegans have the focus to understand all facets of being vegetarian, because from what I’m seeing, though vegetarian based websites say you need to take your vitamins, they don’t all seem to selectively point out vitamins that might be vegetarian friendly.

sources:

thevitaminmag

veganhealth

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Dear Menlo Park, or to whom it may concern:

A few months ago you came along and replaced the old, grungy Fremont Park trash cans with brand new, open-top trash cans that seem to deal with two obvious issues:

-Ease of discarding trash

-They look great

-The good citizens of Menlo Park never need touch another trash can again!

OK, three.  Along with the new trash cans, you also put in new park benches, and I have to say, aside from the homeless camping out in the back corner these days, the place is looking pretty spiffy.

But…

I’m not fond of the handles placed in the middle of the new benches… They are in the way, but that’s minor compared to what the trash cans are doing.

As the weather gets warmer, more and more folk are heading out and enjoying the outdoors.  That’s all great and dandy, and with the warmer weather and more folks out and about, there’s more trash in the new trash cans.

And with the warmer weather, comes warmer trash.  And as my wife and I have recently experienced, with the heat, comes a raging stink from the open-top trash cans that makes sitting on some of the new park benches rather unbearable!

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Wow, That’s One Strong Odor!

Those new trash cans look awesome but have no way of keeping the trash odor in, and on a few occasions, we’ve been forced to not sit at our favorite park bench because of the stench.

What worries me more though is how will this affect the Menlo Park 2012 Summer Concert Series in the park?  People will be lingering around all the trash can installments and that may not work out too well for their olfactory senses!

I guess you will have to deploy workers to clean the cans up just before each concert and as you always do each year, send someone to clean up the park early the next morning.  But will this be enough?  The cans are quite aromatic to say the least just on the weekends, and with warmer weather coming, I’m not sure how eager I might be to test my snout sensitivity each time I want to go to the park.

And in the long run, will the citizenry have to just put up with the stench from here on out?

I hope not!

But that’s my two cents.  I hope it’s worth something!  (What with inflation and all…)

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The city of Menlo Park sent out a public notice this week announcing that the hours of the Downtown Block parties are changing and in that announcement, I derived the dates for the Menlo Park Summer Concert Series in Fremont Park.

The Menlo Park Downtown Block Parties usually mark the start and end of the Summer Concert Series, where they shut down Santa Cruz Ave going through downtown and really break it out for the night.

This year, the party hours are being extended so that now the Downtown Block Party will start at 3p.m. and go to 11p.m..

The dates of the block party, which earmark the first and last weeks of the Summer Concert Series are Wednesday, June 20, 2012 & Wednesday, August 15th, 2012.

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In Other News!

The Menlo Park Summer Concert Series will be running from 6/20/12 to 8/15/12!

At the moment, the Menlo Park Chamber of Commerce website nor the website of the ‘City of Menlo Park’ have any further definitive details beyond the dates noted.

“Summer Concert Series
Join us from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. the last Wednesday of June through mid August at Fremont Park to listen to some of the best local groups. The series features a variety of musical styles from Jazz to Country to hits of today and yesterday. Bring your picnic blanket and dinner, and of course there is always room up front for dancers of all ages.”

As I find out more, I’ll keep you up to date here!

Here’s an outline of the dates (Updated 5-9-12 with Band Names!)

June 20: Block Party & Big Cat & The Hipnotics (Blues)

June 27: The Hot Rods (Early Rock and Roll)

July 4: Hmm.. mayhaps there be no party on this fine night of National celebration!

July 11: Mark Russo and The Classy Cats  (Swing)

July 18: Dream Posse (Rockin’ Country)

-July 21-22:

26th Annual Connoisseur’s Marketplace  (A two-day art & wine festival on Santa Cruz Avenue features a juried art show with 200 west coast artists and craftspeople, a chefs’ demonstration pavilion, gourmet cuisine, wines and microbrews, a kids’ fun zone, and non-stop entertainment.)

July 25: Pat Wilder & Serious Business (Blues)

August 1: The Touch of Class Band ( Old School R&B)

August 8: TinMan (Classic Rock)

August 15: Block Party & The Sun Kings (Beatles Tribute)

-Bruce

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[ menloparkchamber

 ; menlopark.org ]

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Right now I’m mostly recovered from an old lady who pinched me up against a curb with her car while I was on my bicycle.  I got tire scuff marks on my tennis shoe from her right rear tire.  It was like night racing at Bristol baby!!!

I got very lucky and only ended up getting a stress fracture in my leg.  The frustrating part was that I was so trying not to crash hard that by the time I recovered, she had driven on and I never got the license plate of the gold four-door, older molder, Ford Taurus.

It was pretty frustrating.

But now I can live vicariously through a few other bikers.

I don’t know if you’ve seen the video, but check out this deed of apparent stupidity  (Skip to the 2:30 minute mark) and be amazed.

[youtube video link]

I’m rather amazed how far right the car was that hit these guys.  But to be honest, I’ve had three close calls in the last month from some incredibly stupid *ing drivers out there on the road.

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Back to the video:

Turns out, there’s enough data in the video that cops were able to track down the registered owner of the car and arrest him.  He was arrested for,

suspicion of possession of heroin, being a felon in possession of ammunition, violation of probation and felony hit-and-run.

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But get this… the owner reported the car stolen shortly after this hit and run incident.

Curious indeed.

We’ll see how this all pans out over time…  But it was cool that the guy had a camera mounted on his handlebars.  Good idea actually.  I should go nab me a GoPro camera for my bike.  I would have had three license plates to report to police!

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Footnote, Helmets And Your Head!:

Did you notice that the camera owner’s head smacks the concrete?  Good thing he had a helmet on.  Did you know that

91% of bicyclists killed in 2008 reportedly weren’t wearing helmets.

In another set of stats,

Of the 500,000+ emergency room visits by bicyclists every year,

• 67,000 are head injuries.
• 7,000 were serious.
• 12% of these injuries resulted in brain injuries.

They say that 85% of head injuries are preventable with those ugly little helmets.

But I also understand it’s everyone’s freedom of choice to wear or not wear a helmet.  Me?  I consider myself to have some form of smarts and wear my helmet just in case I “run into” some moron making a moron move on me.  The lady who hit me actually passed me and then turned right into me.

Plus, some years back I already escaped an ugly fate once, where I only broke my arm in 8 places and though I didn’t hit my head, still got a whopping concussion whose effects lasted a few days.  That was enough of a warning from “above” to make sure I always wear a helmet.

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[nbcbayarea.com]

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I picked up the April 24th edition of the Daily Post and saw an article about Menlo Park considering, or having proposed two mini-parks, or parklets for the town.

One mini-park or “pocket park” would be on Crane and other park would be located at Chestnut Land at Oak Grove Ave.  The parks will be replacing some parking spaces in those locations.  This idea is motivated by the idea that the city of Menlo Park wants to increase the charm of the town, and I’m sure it will.

The article notes concerned citizens perspective on the “pocket parks” attracting overnight homeless.

The Daily Post article, by Kristen Peters, noted how San Francisco’s attempt at mini-parks became a hot-spot for the homeless.

In an oddly vague answer, the Associate Planner said the small parks will be no different than the larger parks they already have in town.

(This is where I’m asking, How’s that?)

Peters noted that when the planner, Thomas Rogers, was asked about homeless folks in the parks, he’s quoted to saying that,

“The city would take measures to eliminate the potential problems.”

Adding,

“There are ways to deter that sort of thing.”

This is when I lit up and became inspired to add this piece here and I’m wondering what Rogers has in mind.

Because I’m not sure about you, but when the milder weather settles in for the long haul, Rogers and anyone else who might be interested, should take a good, long look at the far back corner of Fremont Park.

If they did, they’d notice the tent or whatever contraption was set up last summer, that stayed there for quite some time through the season, making it unsightly and undesirable.

If that’s the result of deterrents, they need better deterrents and an increased motivation to move the homeless that set up camps, like the nightly camp in front of the church at Arbor and Middle.  Or the folk that wheel their over-burdened shopping carts up the middle of University at 5am in the morning, blocking traffic in the process. (I’ve seen where cars almost hit the woman who plods up the middle of the road… with no lights or no reflectors.  And if no one is looking at the wrong time, well, they’ll have a new package of guilt to carry around with them.)

I know it’s a bit difficult to enforce rules on the homeless.  That would be an endless cycle, so I’m not sure what the right answer would be here.  But to toss out cavalier answers to legitimate questions, when those answers are already ineffectual premises, that just gets my goat.

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