Back to the "Deep South" in Duluth GA

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I get a kick out of hearing the term "Deep South" in 2026. It is a crazy incredibly outdated label. I think maybe I should start saying the "Deep Northeast". I am a Yankee. My family came over on the Mayflower and moved to Upstate NY via Connecticut. Terms used in the revolutionary and Civil war days are generally inappropriate. My family is all but totally out of NY State now. I find the term "deep south" to be of the same thinking that the movie "Heidi" is what contemporary Europe is like. Watching the fireworks in Rochester, NY from the back yard of a house in the city made it look like a real war zone. It is a long drive between Berkshire, NY and Duluth, GA. Most of the 35K miles on the truck were spent in between. I drove the truck about 3k miles in 2-1/2 weeks. It was great to spend time on the farm. It was good to make some progress on needed repairs and improvements. I also felt good about making some new friends up there. I will be...
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I am headed out to the Polar Sea today by helo. We are going to install a couple of radio telephones so folks aboard ship can use the station satellite link and to call into town. It looks like we are really going to get stuffed in on the helo with some other folks.

I will be heading to pole on the 15th. I will get some Diamox from medical before I head down there to help fend off altitude sickness. I am ok at altitude usually. I get a headache and I will not be able to sleep at all for the first night, but it is all part of the experience. The pole is at approximately 10000 feet above sea level, and the polar air is quite thin which makes the altitude equivalent higher. It is a stress on your body making extra blood cells and learning how to breathe for sufficient oxygen uptake.

I have watched more movies on the ice than probably have in the last five or ten years. The thing that consistantly strikes me is the level of violence in these movies, really. I remember Taxi Driver was a really graphically violent movie 20+ years ago and now that would be pretty tame. Even movies like King Kong have graphically violent scenes with people getting eaten by giant bugs. I am of the mind set that folks *wanting* graphic scenes of violence that perhaps maybe a visit to a slaughtherhouse or something will make their day. Where is all this going?

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