Erika, has been performing in the Mystique production of Peter Pan here in Pocatello. She's WENDY, and is absolutely fabulous. I've gone two different nights and she has been consistently wonderful in both. I think she has the best female voice in the production and one of the best for the show as a whole. I gotta admit that I really was fond of the voice on Hook.
The first time I went I got this call from Nan asking if I want to about an hour before showtime. She had two extra tickets cause her sons had decided to go do something else. Shanna wasn't around and Nick had homework so Robin and I went. Nanette, Rebecca, Hanna, Brady, and the two of us had a great time. We were sitting off to the side so we were able to see the Wendy Bird hanging from the rafters waiting for her death scene. It's so cool that Erika has been flying through the air.
The second time I went we planned a little further ahead. So Melinda and Shanna and I were able to attend along with Nanette, Sydney (who's seen it a lot) along with Mick and his mom. Mick had graduated that day with his bachelors degree so that was cool. We had a lovely time. Once again the lullaby that Erika sings is the most touching part of the show.
I highly recommend this production and the pasta entry for dinner.
After later
Jenny
Friday, May 19, 2006
Monday, May 15, 2006
The South Menan Butte
Sunday morning, Melinda and I got up early and hit the road. She was working on a presentation about her home town for one of her classes. Menan is a very small town and we lived she did most of her growing up there. I’m hoping I will be able to add some of the stories and pictures she collected about Menan to my scrapbook. If I’m really lucky I’ll be able to post some of them here. In any case, we hit the road to go to Menan and take some pictures.
We still have relatives in Menan whom we love very much. However, this was a quick hide and seek mission. Hide from the obligations and seek good pictures. Between us we got quite a few. We photographed, the churches, rock houses, main street (site of The Parade), the park (site of The Fireworks), the town hall, the buttes, the Snake River and of course the bank. We even went over to Anis and photographed the church and cemetery there. Menan is 1.5 hours north of my house. We were able to get there by 9:15 a.m. and be back here in time for a nap around 12:30.
Of course we saw a lot of birds too. The red-winged blackbirds were out in full force showing off their bands of red, trying to lure the females. There were also dozens of mourning doves, magpies, kestrels, brewer’s blackbirds, goldfinches, and even a quail. Later we ate lasagne, watched episodes of Remington Steele and talked about life on the Butte.
The scariest part of the adventure was the taking of pictures of the neonazi guy’s house. We only took a few pictures then turned around taking a couple more and were about to drive off when I saw him watching us, hidden by trees. EEEEEEEEEeeeee…. We drove away then. He’ll definitely bring a little local color to her report.
Fun weekend all in all.
Jenny
We still have relatives in Menan whom we love very much. However, this was a quick hide and seek mission. Hide from the obligations and seek good pictures. Between us we got quite a few. We photographed, the churches, rock houses, main street (site of The Parade), the park (site of The Fireworks), the town hall, the buttes, the Snake River and of course the bank. We even went over to Anis and photographed the church and cemetery there. Menan is 1.5 hours north of my house. We were able to get there by 9:15 a.m. and be back here in time for a nap around 12:30.
Of course we saw a lot of birds too. The red-winged blackbirds were out in full force showing off their bands of red, trying to lure the females. There were also dozens of mourning doves, magpies, kestrels, brewer’s blackbirds, goldfinches, and even a quail. Later we ate lasagne, watched episodes of Remington Steele and talked about life on the Butte.
The scariest part of the adventure was the taking of pictures of the neonazi guy’s house. We only took a few pictures then turned around taking a couple more and were about to drive off when I saw him watching us, hidden by trees. EEEEEEEEEeeeee…. We drove away then. He’ll definitely bring a little local color to her report.
Fun weekend all in all.
Jenny
Sunday, May 14, 2006
Snake on the Water
Nick, Melinda and I went birding/fishing on the Snake River at Massacre Rocks on Saturday. There were Grebes, Coots, Ducks of all kinds, Pelicans, a Great Blue Heron, swimming Pronghorns, and even a Mountain Lion. We’re looking out over the water at enjoying the voyage when Nick asks, “Is that a Snake?”
I had no idea what he was looking at. He turned the boat and headed in the direction of his curiosity. Sure enough there was a squiggly line moving in s shapes across the water. It was moving fast and as the boat approached it headed right for us and then lifted out of the water looking like he was trying to get in. Nick moved the boat and we evaded the snake. Why was the snake in the middle of the Snake River? I don’t know. While I wasn’t exactly sure which variety of snake it was, I knew it wasn’t one of the poisonous ones. We really only have rattlers, and this wasn’t one of those. Turns out we found a gopher snake.
We watched the snake. It stopped moving forward in the water and seemed stall out. He stopped and hung in the water. Snakes are cold blooded, the water was very frigid, it looked to us like he was hanging out to be food for birds of prey. I teased Nick about using his fishing net to help the snake out. Next thing we know, Nick is fishing the snake out of the river. Then he has to untangle the snake from the net. Remember, he’s the one driving the boat and now he has his hands full of snake.
I end up driving for a while, the problem is that the river is full of shifting sand bars and Nick has all of these cool gadgets that he monitors to find a clear path. I eventually decided I’d rather hold the snake than continue to drive the boat. It would be faster too. So I ended up holding on to the snake. The snake had a real preference for Nick. He had taken off his shirt and was quite warm. I was wearing a silk shirt and was not quite so warm. Nick said that when he pulled the snake from the river it was very cold. It also didn’t move much. As it warmed up it definitely got a little friskier.
I was very, very happy when Nick beached his boat and let the snake out off the front of the boat. That was one fast moving snake as it slithered it’s way up the rocky beach and out past the brush as fast as it could. It was also one lucky snake. The tally of rescued animals is now 1 kitten, bunches of dogs, and 1 snake.
After later,
Jenny
I had no idea what he was looking at. He turned the boat and headed in the direction of his curiosity. Sure enough there was a squiggly line moving in s shapes across the water. It was moving fast and as the boat approached it headed right for us and then lifted out of the water looking like he was trying to get in. Nick moved the boat and we evaded the snake. Why was the snake in the middle of the Snake River? I don’t know. While I wasn’t exactly sure which variety of snake it was, I knew it wasn’t one of the poisonous ones. We really only have rattlers, and this wasn’t one of those. Turns out we found a gopher snake.
We watched the snake. It stopped moving forward in the water and seemed stall out. He stopped and hung in the water. Snakes are cold blooded, the water was very frigid, it looked to us like he was hanging out to be food for birds of prey. I teased Nick about using his fishing net to help the snake out. Next thing we know, Nick is fishing the snake out of the river. Then he has to untangle the snake from the net. Remember, he’s the one driving the boat and now he has his hands full of snake.
I end up driving for a while, the problem is that the river is full of shifting sand bars and Nick has all of these cool gadgets that he monitors to find a clear path. I eventually decided I’d rather hold the snake than continue to drive the boat. It would be faster too. So I ended up holding on to the snake. The snake had a real preference for Nick. He had taken off his shirt and was quite warm. I was wearing a silk shirt and was not quite so warm. Nick said that when he pulled the snake from the river it was very cold. It also didn’t move much. As it warmed up it definitely got a little friskier.
I was very, very happy when Nick beached his boat and let the snake out off the front of the boat. That was one fast moving snake as it slithered it’s way up the rocky beach and out past the brush as fast as it could. It was also one lucky snake. The tally of rescued animals is now 1 kitten, bunches of dogs, and 1 snake.
After later,
Jenny
Thursday, May 11, 2006
The Strawberry Shortcake and The Stellar's Jay
Melinda and I went down to Big Sur to see all the redwoods. We stopped for lunch at the Big Sur River Inn. This is one of my favorite places in all of the world. The restaurant sits in the middle of the redwoods. We were seated at the outside dining room, gorgeous. Several birds were around, checking for crumbs, hanging out. One beautiful blue stellar's jay was on the lookout for food.
The jay kept flitting around eyeing our food. Our table was right at the railing where the bird was hanging out. We really got to watch him as he was watching our table. Then came our desserts. As you can see, they were ASTOUNDING. I've never seen a strawberry shortcake look like this before. They were also yummy.
Don't forget, the Jay was still winging about. We took our time, talking, eating, listing birds in our notebook. Our desserts were mostly demolished and the Jay just couldn't take it any more.
Suddenly there was a swoop and my plate was full of wings as he attempted to carry off a large chunk of the strawberry shortcake. All of us (stellar's jay included) were quite startled. He flew back to his perch leaving most of his ill almost gotten gains on the table. It was so funny!
Definitely one of the high points of our vacation.
-- Jenny
The jay kept flitting around eyeing our food. Our table was right at the railing where the bird was hanging out. We really got to watch him as he was watching our table. Then came our desserts. As you can see, they were ASTOUNDING. I've never seen a strawberry shortcake look like this before. They were also yummy.
Don't forget, the Jay was still winging about. We took our time, talking, eating, listing birds in our notebook. Our desserts were mostly demolished and the Jay just couldn't take it any more.
Suddenly there was a swoop and my plate was full of wings as he attempted to carry off a large chunk of the strawberry shortcake. All of us (stellar's jay included) were quite startled. He flew back to his perch leaving most of his ill almost gotten gains on the table. It was so funny!
Definitely one of the high points of our vacation.
-- Jenny
Gulls on Rocks
In November of 2004, Melinda and I went to Monterey. We birded all over the area and saw everything from Oystercatchers to Peregrine Falcons. We went to San Jose, Santa Cruz, Pacific Grove, Carmel, and Big Sur. We had the best time. I love this picture. I like how each gull has his own rock. -- Jenny
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Sydney in Hat
This is another photo from Melinda's camera and visit in May/June 2005. Sydney was (and probably still is) a HUGE fan of The Wizard Oz. She really loved this Dorothy dress. Erika got to be a Munchkin in the local production of The Wizard of Oz. Sydney loved to watch the show, sing the songs, say the lines and meet everyone. She wanted to be Dorothy.
It was soooooo cute.
Jenny
It was soooooo cute.
Jenny
Lilacs
Lilacs are one of my favorite flowers and spring is here again. Right now my lilacs are just beginning to bloom. The buds are masses of dark purple just waiting to spring forth. Melinda came to visit Pocatello last year and our lilacs were in full bloom and she took this picture. Thanks Min!
Jenny
Jenny
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Favorite Library T-Shirts
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Nick as Captain Jack Sparrow
This is the infamous costume from Halloween 2004, when he still had long hair. We had such fun that weekend. We attended a party at a friends house the first night of Halloween. The second night of Halloween we went to a club where he won "Best Male Costume." The third night of Halloween we stayed home and gave out candy. We were supposed to have still another party, but were too tired.
After later
Jenny
After later
Jenny
Last Weekend
I left Idaho Friday morning and met up with Annie at the parking lot of the State Library. We then spent a very enjoyable afternoon shopping at Sam Weller (books), Asian Market (food stuffs), and The Dancing Crane (imports). For dinner Jessica and I ended up at an upscale restaurant named Pine. The food was very tasty, which was a surprise since it was trendy, complicated and could have been overwrought. That evening I found out that the manager who was to speak to Annie’s class wasn’t going to make it the next day. After talking it over I volunteered to do it, if they wanted me.
The next day dawned with Hannah coming down the stairs saying, “Mom wants you upstairs now.” Not a good moment. Apparently Rebecca is very allergic to mold, specifically the mold from her plants in the garden. After a trip to the urgent care center we grabbed some breakfast and then started shopping for something for me to wear to speak in. Neither of us thought that my tie-dyed, beaded t-shirt was appropriate. I found a lovely blue velveteen jacket that fits like a dream, a white tank top with butterflies and sequins and a pair of high heeled sandals, a’la Candies from the 1970’s.
I looked good, though I regretted the high heels after standing, walking, swaying, and leaning there for an hour and a half. I ended up talking with the co-coordinator of the program for an additional 30 minutes. She’d been having difficulties with job interviews. I explained that the most likely cause of her not being hired had nothing to do with her and could just as easily be about an inside candidate or someone who just moved to the state with 10 years of experience in the same job. You really can’t second-guess why you weren’t hired. If it is a real concern, asking is a possibility. OF course, having someone proof your resume and cover letter along with a short course on interviewing skills is always in order. I highly recommend that librarian use their gift of research to find answers to any kind of hiring, or management problem.
Rebecca, Annie and I went to dinner at the Olive Garden and then Annie and I watched a dvd of Eddie Izzard. He is hysterical. Unfortunately the sugar and caffeine of the day before caught up with me and I slept through a large chunk. I did wake up and watch the end with the very funny big about technology and printing. I accidentally hooked Annie on my Boggle game. I’ll have to keep an eye out for another copy of it in the stores.
Sunday I got up really, really early, packed and was on the road by 7:00 a.m. I had told our friend Kris that she could come over and use my kitchen to make medieval candies. I had a great time talking, smelling and laughing as she cooked and I played/updated/mucked about with my Library Thing database. I’m a librarian, what can I say, I had to get my subject headings corrected.
So that was my fun filled weekend.
After later
Jenny
Friday, April 28, 2006
She's a Star
The Party, Pt 1
Nick spent most of Friday afternoon hunting down awards, prizes, trophies, crowns, medals, diplomas and ribbons. Sunday, morning we started wrapping and attributing who gave her what.
Sunday afternoon around 5:00 p.m. we all converged at Nan’s house. It was so great to see everyone and to meet my nephew Sam. We had 21 people fill the house. The fun had started by the time I got there, everyone was talking and laughing and small children were happily running around.
Rebecca started off the presents, by presenting Nan with a blue garland crown, for being the “communication nexus” of the family. Nan then began on the big bag of presents from us. The bag included:
* #1 Foam Finger (like the ones fan have at football games), from Shanna
* Mug, Worlds Greatest Musician from Keith Richards
* Mug, Worlds Greatest Dancer from Ginger Rogers
* Plastic crown, from Amy
* Statue, Worlds Greatest Golfer from Chi Chi Rodriguez
* Package of paper ribbons with WINNER in the middle from Mister Rogers
By now everyone had realized that we had, not only a theme, but a great deal of silliness. Nick, Shanna, and I just couldn’t resist the urge to call on all of our friends and acquaintances (alive and dead) to help with this….
* Mug, Worlds Greatest Secretary, from Dad
* Banner, Worlds Greatest Mother, from Joan Crawford
* Medal, 1st Place, from Stacy Dragila
* Bib, Baby of the Year, from Sam and Aubrey
* First Place Wrestling Belt, from the WWF
* Gold Stars, from Jenny
Then came the 23 certificates and diplomas (hopefully I'll be able to list them in a "The Party, Pt 2 entry)
And yet there was still more in the endless bag.
* Blue ribbon, First Place, from Seabiscuit
* Blue ribbon, I’m a Winner, from Nanette
* Blue ribbon, #1, from Melinda
* Blue ribbon, 1st Place from Nadia
* Blue ribbon, Greatest Coach, from Igor
* Button, Best Mother, from Sydney
The bag was finally empty. Now for the high point, Jessica’s big present, a large, piñata, shaped and styled in gold, a replica of the Oscar, with Best Actress on the label. After much laughing, and a few pictures. We settled back down. Nanette did receive a couple of real presents.
Next we moved on to cake and ice cream. We had two cakes, thanks to Jen. One was a regular store bought cake and the other was a beautiful, gluten free, dairy free confection that Jen made. We had earlier discovered that Dave’s birthday was only two weeks away, so Nan dug out some candles and they both got serenaded with Happy Birthday. Most startling for me was the single puff Dave uses to blow out his candles. WOW. He wins the award for, hmm don’t know what to call it… In any case, he wins it.
We all talked for awhile longer then left for home. We’ll have to do this again soon.
After later
Jenny
Nick spent most of Friday afternoon hunting down awards, prizes, trophies, crowns, medals, diplomas and ribbons. Sunday, morning we started wrapping and attributing who gave her what.
Sunday afternoon around 5:00 p.m. we all converged at Nan’s house. It was so great to see everyone and to meet my nephew Sam. We had 21 people fill the house. The fun had started by the time I got there, everyone was talking and laughing and small children were happily running around.
Rebecca started off the presents, by presenting Nan with a blue garland crown, for being the “communication nexus” of the family. Nan then began on the big bag of presents from us. The bag included:
* #1 Foam Finger (like the ones fan have at football games), from Shanna
* Mug, Worlds Greatest Musician from Keith Richards
* Mug, Worlds Greatest Dancer from Ginger Rogers
* Plastic crown, from Amy
* Statue, Worlds Greatest Golfer from Chi Chi Rodriguez
* Package of paper ribbons with WINNER in the middle from Mister Rogers
By now everyone had realized that we had, not only a theme, but a great deal of silliness. Nick, Shanna, and I just couldn’t resist the urge to call on all of our friends and acquaintances (alive and dead) to help with this….
* Mug, Worlds Greatest Secretary, from Dad
* Banner, Worlds Greatest Mother, from Joan Crawford
* Medal, 1st Place, from Stacy Dragila
* Bib, Baby of the Year, from Sam and Aubrey
* First Place Wrestling Belt, from the WWF
* Gold Stars, from Jenny
Then came the 23 certificates and diplomas (hopefully I'll be able to list them in a "The Party, Pt 2 entry)
And yet there was still more in the endless bag.
* Blue ribbon, First Place, from Seabiscuit
* Blue ribbon, I’m a Winner, from Nanette
* Blue ribbon, #1, from Melinda
* Blue ribbon, 1st Place from Nadia
* Blue ribbon, Greatest Coach, from Igor
* Button, Best Mother, from Sydney
The bag was finally empty. Now for the high point, Jessica’s big present, a large, piñata, shaped and styled in gold, a replica of the Oscar, with Best Actress on the label. After much laughing, and a few pictures. We settled back down. Nanette did receive a couple of real presents.
Next we moved on to cake and ice cream. We had two cakes, thanks to Jen. One was a regular store bought cake and the other was a beautiful, gluten free, dairy free confection that Jen made. We had earlier discovered that Dave’s birthday was only two weeks away, so Nan dug out some candles and they both got serenaded with Happy Birthday. Most startling for me was the single puff Dave uses to blow out his candles. WOW. He wins the award for, hmm don’t know what to call it… In any case, he wins it.
We all talked for awhile longer then left for home. We’ll have to do this again soon.
After later
Jenny
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
The Sartorialist
Here's a blog for all ofyou fashionista's in the family. I've learned a lot about the cut of a man's suit just by looking at the pictures.
The Sartorialist
:)
Jenny
The Sartorialist
:)
Jenny
Monday, April 24, 2006
We're going to have a party...
Nanette came over a week ago and we’re hanging out chatting when she describes a conversation she had with Uncle Harry and Aunt Susan. The gist of it was ‘that the real reason to participate in beauty pageants was to win a crown and/or get dressed up in fancy clothes’. Since Nanette is a former pageant girl, this is probably very true. Nanette went on to talk about how she’s always been motivated by awards, trophies, and crowns. Recently she has discovered that diplomas also motivate her. I then had an idea, … a wonderful idea, … a wonderful awful idea. The Idaho and Utah siblings were going to Nanette’s house on Sunday the 23rd to celebrate her birthday and to get together. What if, everyone brought her an award, trophy, crown, or diploma as a present?
I ran the idea past Nick. After all they have the exact same sense of humor. If he thought it would be funny, then so would she. For several years I had explained first to Nanette and then to Nick that the other one was trying to be funny. I wasted a lot of energy doing this. Just because I’m somewhat humor impaired, didn’t mean that they didn’t get it. Instead what I have found is that they are on the same wavelength in many areas. I sent out an email to the tribe letting them know that we now had a THEME for the party.
Anticipation grew as we all prepared for the party day…
Friday, April 21, 2006
Cataloging Books
We had a very interesting education hour today. My friend Annie taught us how to use the webpage http://www.librarything.com It's a webpage where you can organize or catalog your books. You create entries by typing in the name or ISBN. The site then searches Amazon, the Library of Congress and a few other sites to match your book to a record. It then imports the cover art (where available) and puts it in your catalog. You can add tags (aka subject headings) either at the time you add the book or later. What's really great is that you're able to access the catalog from anywhere. I've started adding my geology books and I added a marklet to the blog on the left side so you can see what some of my books in the catalog are. Very fun! Annie's brother uses her site to find books to read based on the tags and what he knows he already likes. Eventually, if I felt really dedicated, I could write book reviews and add them to the site. Wheeeeee.... gotta love technology.
After later
Jenny
After later
Jenny
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
Faculty Senate
Here's a picture of us at one of our Faculty Senate meetings from last year. I can tell by my braid that this is from 2005. In 2006 I tipped the ends of my hair with bright red. Vitit Kantabutra from the Engineering department took this picture. He is an amazing photographer. More of his photos can be found at: http://www.pbase.com/vkantabu/root
After later
Jenny
After later
Jenny
Meetings
I have no idea how I got this. Actually, I probably received it from one of my friends via email. It’s been in my computer’s funny file for at least 6 years.
---
British Librarianship's finest hour:
Q: I read somewhere that a large group of librarians on their way to a convention had all perished on the Titanic. Is that story true?
A: Sadly, it is. The cream of British Librarianship was wiped out in a single blow. We know the full story because the minutes from their meetings were found floating on the water by rescuers. Just twenty minutes after hitting the iceberg, the librarians had already swung into action. They'd divided into two committees, one discussing "The Sink/Swim Paradigm" and one discussing "Sinking: Is It REALLY Necessary?". The second group spun off a subcommittee to discuss In The Event Sinking Proves Necessary, Should 'Titanic' Be Given Its Own Subject Heading In The Card Catalogue?". One hour later, the groups combined for a seminar: "Lifeboats: Access Or Ownership?" Debate was fractious, and several subcommittees were formed to discuss protocols for further meetings.
One hour later, the entire group drowned, only ten minutes into the "Steaming To Excellence" seminar, and without having once left the meeting room. But it isn't all in vain -- "Titanic" WAS eventually given its own subject heading, in tribute to those who gave their lives in committee.
---
For the last few years I have been on a lot of committees. My current roster looks like this:
1. Faculty Senate
Meets every other week and occasionally more often during times of crisis. This year we had the crises of Administrative Salaries, No Confidence in the President, Early Resignation of said President, announcement of new Interim President (who’s been great), and finally the hiring process for a new President.
2. Academic Standards
Meets once a month. This is a subcommittee of the Faculty Senate.
3. Library Faculty
The Library’s Faculty Senate representative chairs this library committee.
4. Library Administrative Council
Again, I’m on the council as because I’m the Faculty Senate representative for the library.
5. University Bookstore Committee
Meets only once a semester and for various and sundry reasons I was unable to attend at all this year. I had a colleague go in my place.
Four of these committees end in May sometime. WHEEEEE
However, I’ll still be involved with these library committees:
- Public Services Meetings (once a month)
- Instruction Meetings (once a month)
- Reference Meetings (every now and then)
- Education Hour (a learning session 2-3 Fridays per month)
- General Library Staff Meetings (once a month)
- Library Events (as needed, once a week through August)
- Library Web Development (every other week or so)
- Library Space Committee (every other week) I’m chairing this one
- Library and College of Education Development Committee (once a month), I’m facilitating this one, taking minutes, etc…
- Library Electronic Resource (as needed) I’m chairing this one too. We don’t have a budget so we haven’t been meeting this year.
- Law Library Committee (3-4 meetings per year plus one "event")
- Library Travel Committee (meets in the late spring and through the summer)
And then of course there are the impromptu meetings for every other decision. I’m tired just listing all of these. So if you want to know why it is hard to get in touch with me, assume I’m in a meeting.
After later
Jenny
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Geology: Lake Bonneville - Timeline
Nick said I needed to add a timeline to the Bonneville Flood entry, so here it is.
The Timeline Addendum:
Lake Stansbury 24,400 - 20,000
The waters of the surrounding ranges began to collect in the basin. Apparently there was a climate change of some kind that held the level stable for approximately 3000 years.
Lake Bonneville 18,000 - 14,500
The basin began collecting more water. With no outlet it grew and grew until it reached the rim of the Red Rock Pass and began overflowing as a small stream.
Flood 14,500
Catastrophic erosion of the softer layers of rock at Red Rock Pass allowed the waters of Lake Bonneville to flood through Pocatello and on into the Snake River.
Lake Provo 14,500 - 13,500
Outflow through the Red Rock Pass stabilized as erosion came to a screeching almost standstill. Lake Provo was stabilized until the end of the last major ice age. The reduced flow of water into the lake caused the lake to retreat.
Lake Gilbert 11,000 - 10,000
Resurgence in water flowing into the basin created this level, before finally shrinking to the Great Salt Lake level.
Great Salt Lake Present
The Great Salt Lake is still in a basin. It is no longer large enough to flow out through the Red Rock Pass. Water can only escape through evaporation.
See earlier post on Lake Bonneville for Internet Resources
Friday, April 14, 2006
Geology: Lake Bonneville
Lake Bonneville
Lake Bonneville was sited in the Basin and Range Province. It is called the Basin and Range province because water does not leave the Basins, which are bounded by Ranges. There’s no outlet such as the Snake River for the water to use to get to the ocean. Lake Bonneville was nestled all snug in its Basin filling valleys and flats over a large portion of Northern and Western Utah. The only outlet for the water was a small stream that flowed North into Idaho. Lake Bonneville retained its level until the stream eroded through the harder rocks into soft rocks. Once the stream hit the softer rocks it eroded quickly and the dam that had retained so much of Lake Bonneville was broken. Water poured through this gap for months. It flooded North through Downey, the Portneuf Gap, Pocatello and on into the Snake River. The volume of water was about 600 cubic miles in total. The maximum discharge exceeded the total fresh water flowing into all the oceans of the earth today. Another way to perceive the flow is to compare it to the Amazon River. The Lake Bonneville flood flowed at 3 times the rate of the Amazon. The Snake River, engorged by this additional water raced to the sea. Months later, Lake Bonneville was no more. In its place was the new Lake Provo. The little stream heading into Idaho had hit harder rocks again. It stabilized Lake Provo at its new level approximately 350 feet below the Lake Bonneville mark. If the climate were to change and water rained down on Utah, Lake Provo could refill.
Take a look at the map here:
http://geology.utah.gov/online/PI-39/pi39pg01.htm
It's really hard to get a grasp on how large the lake really was. To really get an idea, look for Logan. North of Logan is Red Rock Pass then find Provo, Wendover (over in Nevada) and South to Milford. This lake was HUGE.
Other Interesting Lake Bonneville Web Sites:
Lake Bonneville -- Digital Atlas of Idaho Project
http://imnh.isu.edu/digitalatlas/hydr/lkbflood/lbfdex.htm
http://imnh.isu.edu/digitalatlas/geog/rrt/part2/26.htm
http://imnh.isu.edu/digitalatlas/hydr/lkbflood/lbf.htm
Final Report - GIS 18 (Utah State University, College of Natural Resources)
http://www.nr.usu.edu/Geography-Department/rsgis/Projects/RSGIA96/gis18/gis18.html
History of Lake Bonneville (University of Houston)
http://geoinfo.geosc.uh.edu/VR/idaho/index.htm
I'm working on a field trip guide for Nick and I to use to really understand the scope of Lake Bonneville and the effects of the flood.
Jenny
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Photos...
I work with this amazing woman named Kris. She is so smart and on top of all things technological. She did an education hour on social software on the web. Education Hour is a library activity where we teach each other about new databases, reference books, web stuff, and generally work on our skills. Melinda attended a recent one where we discussed the library's disaster plan. But back to Kris and social software, she showed us this wonderful web site called Flickr. Flickr is a free site for hosting photographs. I thought it might come in useful as part of this blog since you can interlink the two.
I’ve added a few recent photos, and they can be seen at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/
Next I'm going to have to create a post that includes the pictures. :) Something to look forward to.
Jenny
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
April 8th, My Anniversary
Saturday, April 8
Nick and I have been married (this time) for 10 years, today. So what do we do for our anniversary? We go shopping. Of course, we're not shopping in normal stores like normal people. After dropping Erika off at Wendy practice we headed for Idaho Falls. Um, Erika (Nan's daughter) is playing Wendy in the big Mystique production of Peter Pan. Back to Idaho Falls, we stop at the Army Surplus store where Nick bought another wool watchcap.
I had hoped to find another gorgeous thick green wool blanket, but no luck. I found one there earlier this year and am going to turn it into my new camping cape. In the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism – medieval re-creationist group) I discovered that a cape was far more useful than a coat. It is easy to put on in the middle of the night when you are stumbling out of a tent in search of the nearest shrubbery. It keeps your back warm when standing in front of a fire. It makes a handy blanket when it gets really cold. And it’s shareable if you want to snuggle with your honey. The blanket I already have probably has enough fabric, I just wanted to be sure. I’m going to line it with a brown cotton velvet upholstery fabric that has a diamond pattern. I used a candle to burn scraps of fabric, looking for one that didn’t catch on fire easily. I did not take the candle to the fabric store. Instead I went through the boxes of fabric in my own home. I have way to much fabric and I don’t really sew much anymore. I just can’t seem to part with it though.
After the Army Surplus store we headed in to downtown Idaho Falls to the Gem & Mineral Show. It was quite disappointing. Pocatello’s has more vendors and a larger venue. Still, it was fun to watch Nick (Geology student) look really closely at all of the mineral specimens. I didn’t buy anything here. Nick however got rooked into buying a polished stone to which someone glued eyes. It’s now riding around in my car watching the occupants.
Next, since we were so close, we went to the D.I. (thrift store). Nick had been hoping to buy a Dutch oven (he’s taking a Dutch oven cooking class this semester). I walked him out to the back yard part of the store and there it was, a 10” Lodge for $15.00. This was much cheaper than from a regular store. We also found more amber glass serving dishes. Mom shipped me all of the amber glasses we had as kids in Taylor. It’s been fun collecting serving items to go with. I figure I can use the amber with one of my white sets of dishes or the clear glass set of dishes when having a party.
Going to thrift stores is addictive. We have a hard time stopping at just one, so we headed to the large Salvation Army. There instead of finding anything to purchase we found Susan & Jeff Crandall. Susan had called me earlier in the week and I had not gotten back in touch, even though I had wanted to. When Melinda gets out of school I think we’ll try to go to Menan, Market Lake, Mud Lake, and Camas on a big birding trip and include Susan. We had a lot of fun last year when we did this.
Next we went to the Youth Ranch and Humane Society thrift stores, but found nothing of note. There were a couple of interesting candleholders that I picked up. Candles make great Christmas presents for work colleagues.
Lunch was a fast stop at the nearby Taco Bell. We were on a timetable. I had promised to be at work by 3:00 so Nick dropped me off at the Ross Dress For Less so I could continue my hunt for the perfect purse. He went over to the Sportsman’s Warehouse to see what their prices on Dutch Ovens were. Remember the family motto of “if it is worth doing it is worth over doing.” Now apply it to cooking outdoors. We’ll certainly need more than one Dutch oven.
Nick met me back at Ross. The Dutch ovens were reasonably priced, but I had the credit card. I found a purse. I wasn’t sure if it was perfect. I now know it is, absolutely, positively perfect. It is lightweight, with a long shoulder strap, black leather with lots of pockets for all of my electronic gadgets and best of all it will fit a small notebook and a novel. On our way back to Sportsman’s Warehouse he decided we should wait on buying another one until later.
To continue my fun-filled anniversary day, we went to the library. Here, I had promised to weed the science and technology books. Every two years we have a huge book sale. The books that are not purchased are boxed back up and saved for the next sale. The problem with this is that we end up with a lot of dreck coming back out year after year. It took me a dusty hour but I removed about 75% of the remaining science and technology books from the book sale round. This 75% will now be put out in the library for the public to take free of charge.
For dinner we had Kentucky Fried Chicken. Somehow this has become a tradition. For the past two years Nick has been embroiled in heavy classes and studying. We cook better than any of the “fancy” restaurants in town. So it’s not exactly a treat to go to one of these places. Nor do we really want to cook for our anniversary, so we’ve ended up with KFC. This year we might have done something different, but why mess with tradition?
April 8th is on a Sunday next year. I hope I’m not on sabbatical.
Jenny
Nick and I have been married (this time) for 10 years, today. So what do we do for our anniversary? We go shopping. Of course, we're not shopping in normal stores like normal people. After dropping Erika off at Wendy practice we headed for Idaho Falls. Um, Erika (Nan's daughter) is playing Wendy in the big Mystique production of Peter Pan. Back to Idaho Falls, we stop at the Army Surplus store where Nick bought another wool watchcap.
I had hoped to find another gorgeous thick green wool blanket, but no luck. I found one there earlier this year and am going to turn it into my new camping cape. In the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism – medieval re-creationist group) I discovered that a cape was far more useful than a coat. It is easy to put on in the middle of the night when you are stumbling out of a tent in search of the nearest shrubbery. It keeps your back warm when standing in front of a fire. It makes a handy blanket when it gets really cold. And it’s shareable if you want to snuggle with your honey. The blanket I already have probably has enough fabric, I just wanted to be sure. I’m going to line it with a brown cotton velvet upholstery fabric that has a diamond pattern. I used a candle to burn scraps of fabric, looking for one that didn’t catch on fire easily. I did not take the candle to the fabric store. Instead I went through the boxes of fabric in my own home. I have way to much fabric and I don’t really sew much anymore. I just can’t seem to part with it though.
After the Army Surplus store we headed in to downtown Idaho Falls to the Gem & Mineral Show. It was quite disappointing. Pocatello’s has more vendors and a larger venue. Still, it was fun to watch Nick (Geology student) look really closely at all of the mineral specimens. I didn’t buy anything here. Nick however got rooked into buying a polished stone to which someone glued eyes. It’s now riding around in my car watching the occupants.
Next, since we were so close, we went to the D.I. (thrift store). Nick had been hoping to buy a Dutch oven (he’s taking a Dutch oven cooking class this semester). I walked him out to the back yard part of the store and there it was, a 10” Lodge for $15.00. This was much cheaper than from a regular store. We also found more amber glass serving dishes. Mom shipped me all of the amber glasses we had as kids in Taylor. It’s been fun collecting serving items to go with. I figure I can use the amber with one of my white sets of dishes or the clear glass set of dishes when having a party.
Going to thrift stores is addictive. We have a hard time stopping at just one, so we headed to the large Salvation Army. There instead of finding anything to purchase we found Susan & Jeff Crandall. Susan had called me earlier in the week and I had not gotten back in touch, even though I had wanted to. When Melinda gets out of school I think we’ll try to go to Menan, Market Lake, Mud Lake, and Camas on a big birding trip and include Susan. We had a lot of fun last year when we did this.
Next we went to the Youth Ranch and Humane Society thrift stores, but found nothing of note. There were a couple of interesting candleholders that I picked up. Candles make great Christmas presents for work colleagues.
Lunch was a fast stop at the nearby Taco Bell. We were on a timetable. I had promised to be at work by 3:00 so Nick dropped me off at the Ross Dress For Less so I could continue my hunt for the perfect purse. He went over to the Sportsman’s Warehouse to see what their prices on Dutch Ovens were. Remember the family motto of “if it is worth doing it is worth over doing.” Now apply it to cooking outdoors. We’ll certainly need more than one Dutch oven.
Nick met me back at Ross. The Dutch ovens were reasonably priced, but I had the credit card. I found a purse. I wasn’t sure if it was perfect. I now know it is, absolutely, positively perfect. It is lightweight, with a long shoulder strap, black leather with lots of pockets for all of my electronic gadgets and best of all it will fit a small notebook and a novel. On our way back to Sportsman’s Warehouse he decided we should wait on buying another one until later.
To continue my fun-filled anniversary day, we went to the library. Here, I had promised to weed the science and technology books. Every two years we have a huge book sale. The books that are not purchased are boxed back up and saved for the next sale. The problem with this is that we end up with a lot of dreck coming back out year after year. It took me a dusty hour but I removed about 75% of the remaining science and technology books from the book sale round. This 75% will now be put out in the library for the public to take free of charge.
For dinner we had Kentucky Fried Chicken. Somehow this has become a tradition. For the past two years Nick has been embroiled in heavy classes and studying. We cook better than any of the “fancy” restaurants in town. So it’s not exactly a treat to go to one of these places. Nor do we really want to cook for our anniversary, so we’ve ended up with KFC. This year we might have done something different, but why mess with tradition?
April 8th is on a Sunday next year. I hope I’m not on sabbatical.
Jenny
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