Redneck Einstein

My husband, he of the Northern Order of Redneckians, is a genius.

After a power surge annihilated our TV set and his computer, he had to spend an entire evening without two of his three primary sources of entertainment. (I'm the third one.) It must have annoyed him greatly; no TV, no computer, and a whopper of an insurance deductible to replace them. So Redneck Einstein went to work.

I heard the sound of large heavy things being moved, plugs being unplugged and hitting the floor, something metal being pried apart... I did not go anywhere near the living room during this time. I was almost afraid to know what he was doing. He appeared a few times, once to say we no longer had a long enough TV cable to reach across the room and to ask if there was a way to hook his monitor directly to the satellite input, once to show me the power supply from his computer, which he had not only removed but completely disassembled, and once to ask which way the computer fan was supposed to blow and if the fan connector was really necessary. I crossed my fingers and wished I'd bought that fire extinguisher I wanted.

Lo and behold, my determined genius *somehow* got both units working again. (Didn't ask, don't wanna know.) Granted, upon initial power-up, the TV made some horribly pathetic noises and the picture was wonky. But once it warmed up it worked. Ditto for the PC once he got the fan going the right direction. Saved us a deductible, a claim, and at least a week of shopping for new stuff.

Moral of the story: nothing is impossible for a properly-motivated redneck with tools at his disposal and a boatload of determination. And a good fire insurance policy. ;-)

Rainbow Brite!

Yesterday around 6 PM, after yet another rainstorm, I was leaving work and happened to notice that 1) it was dark and drizzly to the east, and 2) the sun was shining low in the west. I said to myself, "there's gotta be a rainbow out someplace!" I looked opposite the sun, just had a feeling that kept me watching the sky, and sure enough I got to see a rainbow form. It started low and faint off to my left, then gradually arched across the sky until it touched down at the other end. I took a couple of pictures (see panorama above). It was a nice bow, the usual kind, just neat to watch it happen. Then I left to go home, driving with one eye on the bow to see if it got any brighter.

And boy did it ever! I went around the curve just past my workplace and the whole road lit up in a myriad of colors. The rainbow ended on the road in front of me! It was reflecting in the wet spots and there, by the stop sign, was the brightest end-of-a-rainbow I've ever seen. Being me, and obsessed with such things, I pulled over, took a few more pictures, and then just watched the show. Enthralling! God painted a pretty picture for me yesterday!

I finally had to leave. The bow seemed to be fading and moving as the sun shifted through the clouds, but I drove through the end of it then watched it the rest of the way home as it jumped from hilltop to field. Longest-lasting series of bows I've witnessed; it was interesting to say the least. My little digital camera doesn't do justice to the intensity of the rainbow. Nor did I get any really up-close shots, since I was craning my neck upwards out of my car window at that time.


In this shot, taken farther away, you can see the beginnings of the secondary bow above the first one. (Factoid: the colors of a secondary bow are always in reverse order of the primary one.) Also, barely visible in both photos (but much more pronounced when I saw it "live") are supernumeraries, extra bands of colors below the violet band of the primary bow. They're green, blue, and magenta, thinner than the main color bands, and there is no scientific explanation for why they occur. An enigma, or God's reminder that we really can't know everything? (See also: platypus)

More about rainbows: click here!

It's Momma's Day!

Hi Mom! :-)

This is for my Main Mom (the one-and-only original), my Step-Mom (self-explanatory) and my Emergency Backup Mom (Mrs. Miller). And also to my Would-Have-Been Momma-In-Law, Harriett B, RIP 1999.

Main Mom is always there to talk (or listen to me ramble, more often than not). She keeps me posted on family goings-on and every day I do or say something just like she does... and that's not a bad thing. I wish I could go kidnap her for a day trip like we used to... "two cities, two towns, five Wal-Marts in one day!" Ugh... maybe just dinner in the city instead. I wish I lived closer.

Step-Mom makes some mean fried okra and puts up with Dad, Brother, Husband and I yapping about cars all the time. She works hard at the hospital and that's commendable. It's a tough job.

E.B.M. Mom is my friend Heather's momma. She's old-school country and a sweet lady.

Momma-In-Law told us before we'd even thought about it that we were getting married. That was a funny day... rarely am I speechless but that was one of those times! And ya know, she was right. Thanks for your blessing, your son is the light of my life.

To ALL my Mommas: I love you! Happy Day today and every day!

STING: REBUGGED

The Real Sting Forum has been hit again. Visit at your own risk. This time I got a lot of attempted downloads through FireFox, so that browser isn't even safe right now.

Webmaster should be moving the board and hopefully ending this virus streak.

More Sand Art!

New one by a different artist up on GVOD... even better, here's the artist's website with a handful of clips. www.sandfantasy.com

So addictive! I just can't help but wonder why I didn't think of it first. Cause, ya know, I could DO that... *grin*