Chazd's (Charles Dowdell's) News Burps

I refinished the chandelier. I first refinished and rewired this chandelier when I was 14 or 15 years old. It was originally a gas chandelier, perhaps 100 years old. This time I left more patina and I didn't lacquer it this time. Grace the cat is growing fast and being a kitten. She is well behaved for a kitten, although not as well behaved as I would like. We have travel plans for New Orleans and Hawaii. I figured out if I want to get to all the US states I have to go to Hawaii. It is time for that one to come off the list. I have a plane already booked for rental in Hawaii. Flying between the islands has been a dream for quite some time. We had a nice Thanksgiving. We cooked a traditional bird. We used a roaster pan from the 1950s (I think). It occurred to me that the 11 pound turkey was just right for the pan. Turkeys have gotten a lot larger in the last 50 years! Most of what was sold in the store today wouldn't come close to fitting in that roaster. You can probably tell w...

Anthony Powell's movie from Antarctica premieres on the big screens today in many US cities. It is debuting in Atlanta on Dec 12th. We will go see it, of course. Anthony is/was a colleague of mine on the Ice. We shared the same job. We did not work together in the same shop at the same time, but the same job different times. The movie trailer hit some nerves to be sure. It will all be very familiar to me. I will be able to name the mountains in the film, know what it is like to ride in all of those specific helos, and know the warmth of Big Red (the issued red parka) Movie Website The Youtube original short Youtube short

We had a nice relaxing weekend even though it was a bit rainy and cold. I was in Columbus Ohio for a day or so. I drove by the restaurant I worked at many many years ago. The building is now a Pawn Shop. Being there in winter reminded me what it was like, cold. One of the neighbors houses burned the other day. The news said the resident barely escaped. I snapped the pic of the truck tires at a traffic light. I dont think the driver knew he had a flat even though he was carrying 6 large rooftop HVAC units. I didn't have the opportunity to warn him.

Angie and I flew down to Florida for the day last Saturday. Visited with my Sister and Mom. We had the opportunity to visit the Galeon, San Pelayo from Spain. Much like visiting a cool rare plane. It is an artifact of travel! There is much going on as always. Angie and I also met with Jay Hakes an expert energy/information expert. I read his most recent book coming back from Europe last week. He is a refreshing voice saying that good policy requires thought. Also, we took a stand-up comedy class. We learned and laughed at the same time! We lit our first fire in the fireplace this week in Duluth. Nevertheless, the first fire of the year in Duluth is a lot different than that first fire in Berkshire. Plans for Ohio currently.

We have a new kitty named Grace. Current animal count, 1 kitten.

I am back from Bavaria. The pretzels (and other food) are good to be sure! I contested my real estate tax increase for the house in Duluth and I got an overall reduction. It pays to engage on these matters.

I recently heard of a stronger more sophisticated strain of the ebola virus. It is called ibola.