Wednesday, September 28, 2005

In The News Today

This has been a very interesting day so far. On the way to school I listened to the BBC, as usual, and heard many eye-opening conversations and reports.

First, I heard about a man in Denmark who is fighting for the rights of handicapped people in his country. Normally, this is a cause that I would feel obligated to support and he'd get my full attention. I would think that it's really too bad that he's in the situation that he's in and I would want to help him out if I could. But today the cause he was referring to is something that I can in no way support. That is, he was (and is still) fighting the government to get tax money to pay the extra charge he gets when he has to have prostitutes come to his house instead of him going to them. When I heard him say that, I thought, "Are you on crack?!" Prostitution is illegal in Denmark. Yet, he says that sex is a basic human need and he can't get it satisfied unless he pays extra due to his handicap. I wonder if he feels that ugly people should be allowed to buy hokkers, too. He was at least trying, albeit in a blatently chauvinist way, to think of the prostitutes themseves in that he wa saying that they should be protected by laws and health insurance and all that. But still...what thinking human being is going to support this kind of thing?!

Second, I heard that a group of Japanese scientists have managed to capture 550 photographs of a giant squid in its natural environment. these are the first images of a living giant squid in its home environment. The photos were taken at a depth of about 900 meters!

Third, a treasure worth $10 billion is thought to have been found on Carusoe Island off the coast of Chile. The only thing I could think of when I heard this is, "what kind of feeling does one get upon such a find?" I think I would start screaming for joy and not stop until I passed out from lack of oxygen!

Fourth, I just read in the paper that some ants in the southern region of the Amazon Forest actually use the formic acid that most (if not all) ants produce as a defense mechanism to kill trees that are not beneficial to them so that their favorite trees will have a better chance of success! And some say that we are the only species that practices aggriculture. I'm sure that some of you can send me comments about other species that grow things for their own use, too. But this is a pretty dramatic example from the mind of an ant.

Monday, September 26, 2005


I spent a lot of time in my early teen years trying to figure out why I am not cool. Then, I gave up on trying to figure it out when I went away to college. Now I have a daughter who is starting to become very conscious of the need to be cool and I'm reminded of my complete bafflement at the fact that I am not cool. I mean, I think I'm cool as a northern wind blowing in off Faxafl�i. But I've never fit into the crowd that is known as the Cool Crowd. More to the point, I don't understand why it seems that most of the things that other find to be cool are things that I cannot understand. I do admit to a certain tendency I've had (especially in my younger years) to rebel against something just because it is said to be cool but it's something that I think is stupid. I've noticed a few things recently, however, who's reason for coolness I just don't understand.

1) Secrets. Many people I know-coincidentally all female-greatly enjoy holding secrets from others around them. I don't understand the desire to shut some people out and have a whispered conversation between two people in a larger group. Now, I know that the secrets are often useless little things about bodily processes or something or boys or whatever. But I just don't understand why people don't just wait until they are alone to have conversations that they don't want everyone to hear.

2) New cool words. From time to time, the Cool (I refer to them as that because I don't belong to their society), get bored with slang the way it's been for years and invent new slang terms or bastardize existing words so they have a new meaning. This is actually a form of number 1. New cool words are used to exclude all those who do not receive the Cool People's Journal and serve only to make me think that I must have missed something and wonder what it is. Herein lies the problem: I don't care about learning how to be cool. I just want to live my life without having to keep up with others. I'm not inventing new words so that only my closest friends can understand me.
The whole rap scene is an example of a culture rife with this sort of thing and it spreads from there into the rest of society.

3) Prank Calls. Today I was asked if I know how to hide a phone number so that it's possible to call someone without the number appearing on their caller id. This was asked so that the girl in question could prank call a boy. I've never understood this prank call thing. I've known lots of people who think it's terribly funny. But what's the point?!
I guess you get the idea: I'm not just a Grinch about Christmas, it's really most things that others find fun.


Is this too bitchy? Well, if it is, TOO BAD because this is my page and I'll write what I want!

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A Few Shots from My Latest Trip


Looking across Þingvallavatn
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Fall foliage
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Beautiful spot for a summer cottage, Þingvallavatn
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Thick moss carpet with Hengill in the background
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The lava field below Nesjavellir
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Thursday, September 22, 2005

Some More Fantastic Photos from Landmannalaugar


Textured landscape
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Mineral staining
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Sigga looking like she's in a 66° N advertisement.
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Strange colored stone formation
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I really have to get off my lazy bum and find the names of these mountains!
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Broken lava flow
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What about God?

Shortly after the infamous tsunami washed such a large portion of the coast of southern Asia into the sea, I began hearing that some people wer suggesting that this was God's judgement for a region rife with impropriety and crime. I was shocked. I couldn't believe that anyone could be so callous. I also couldn't believe that there are still people who think this a way about natural processes. I believe in God and all that, but to think that He's going to use something like a tsunami to kill so many people. I see God as a merciful entity whose love for us can help us and would not condemn so generally-surely there were some decent people in that region!

But the reason I'm thinking of this today is that I just heard about the next hurricane that's going to wipe out one of the most important regions in the American oil production industry. Of course, this one's going to hit Texas-the origin of Geowge Dubbya. This is the second to hit the Gulf in a month. This is the third hurricane, though, or did I miss some news? Anyway, are any of these religious whackos claiming that God is angry with something in the States? Well, I did hear that some of the Muslims here and there around the world said that Allah is getting some revenge.

Why can't people see that these things are just natural processes? The only thing I can say is that I sincerely hope that people are not killed and that you all make it out of there alive. I, for one, don't think this is revenge.

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

Blanco

Selfoss, a little town along the south of Iceland was covered in white snow yesterday! It's not even October yet. I wonder if this is a sign of the way the winter will be this year. I'd be happy with more snow than last year.

Sunday, September 18, 2005

Our Hero's Trip to Landmannalaugar

Yesterday I went on a really great trip through some breathtaking countryside to a place called Landmannalaugar. The views out the window and from our walks were spectacular and I'll definitely return to that region sometime with a back pack and my dear wife. Pictures follow.

Hekla, Iceland's most active volcano, erupted most recently in February of 2000. The eruption was roughly two weeks long. Inga horfði á frá Skálholti

This tourist decided to go for a swim even though a group of around 20 Icelandic students and their teacher were standing there talking about the hot springs and snapping photos. Ég var svo óforskammaður að mér fannst ekkert að því að taka mynd af honum og setja það á netið!

Landmannalaugar

Hlynur að hugsa

Lava field, Landmannalaugar, Iceland

Thick moss carpet

Lava field near Landmannalaugar, Þórsmörk, Iceland

Friday, September 16, 2005

Vogar, The Most Beautiful Town between Eskifjörður and Merrimac


I've heard this type of rock called lava rope. These are rocks on the beach here in my home town of Vogar. If I had a friend who is a geologist, I'd invite them for a visit.

Kelp "roots"

Thursday, September 15, 2005

What

Hmm, what should we write about today? It's been a while since my last post and a bunch of stuff has happened. But today my mind is getting a really slow start due to a cold that's shut off everything but the headache machine and the snot faucet. However, I have a suspicion that punching away at the key board might give me the jump start I need to launch my day...at 13:17!
Ooops, tea cup empty...(our hero is seen wobbling in to the kitchen to make more tea)

Okay. Now, where was I?
oh yeah...

I'm supposed to be out hunting mice right now. The weather is nice and my friend Hlynur and our mouse-hunting guide are out there right now. But I have this cold that refused to let me wake up this morning. Would it have made me feel like more of a man to be out trapsing through tall grass to catch wood mice and weigh them and take note of their gender and size? No. But, being a biology student, I should not miss such opportunities to get my boots dirty and my hands on living critters. The truth is, I'd love to be outside. But that would just make me feel worse tomorrow and the next day and those two days are not worth catching some mice.

I don't want to watch tv, although I hear it calling me. My computer games are few and they hold no appeal today. Writing is what I want to do. But about what should I write? That's the main trouble, isn't it? One needs to have a subject before one starts typing.

One thing that I can write about is my latest, "Well, you wouldn't see THAT in the States," moment. Yesterday, I came downstairs and poured myself a bowl of CocoPuffs (I'm kukoo for them!) and then sat down at my little table to eat. Just as I was taking my first bite, I turned the milk carton around to read the saying on the back. For those of you not familiar with milk containers in Iceland, they do not feature the missing child notices that one finds sometimes on American paper milk cartons. No, Nýmjólk cartons have explainations of expressions and sayings in Icelandic. Well, yesterday, my spoon stopped on the way to my mouth and i thought, "Well, you wouldn't see THAT in the States." The saying was, "Sæt er lykt úr sjálfs rassi." To you poor few out there who do not undertand Icelandic that means, "Sweet is the smell of one's own bum". And there was a line drawing of a person twisting around so its head is above its bum and a wiggly line coming up from the bum is going right into the person's nose. Now, I've heard this sentiment expressed in English as well, though not on a milk carton at the breakfast table and not as an official saying. The one thing that still strikes me about this thought is that it's just plain not true. Never in my 32 years (haven't had the birthday quite yet) have I enjoyed the smell that comes out of my own bum.
The story doesn't end there, however. That evening at the dinner table, Dagbjört poured herself a glass of milk to drink with supper. As soon as she put the milk down she pushed the carton away and turned it and said in a somewhat angry voice, "That makes me lose my appetite!" I was glad to hear this expression of sensibility and propriety from her. I felt proud of the fact that she demands more decency at the table han to have talk of bums and their smells and enjoyment thereof!

Shall we stretch this post a bit longer? Maybe that's unnecessary and unbearable. I'm not a great writer like Þórunn. I don't have Egils' skill with a camera. I don't have Melody's talents to make art. But still you return! Ha ha ha, you are under my spell! Don't worry, my dear thrall, I shall not poison your mind too quickly. More later.

Monday, September 12, 2005

Amazing Abilities

I've never been one of those people with an ability that makes people stop and stare. I mean, I can kick a hacky sack around pretty well, I can name hundreds of different types of organisms. Sometimes I surprise myself with things that I notice or find. But there are people out there with amazing abilities. I'm thinking of this right now because I just watched a video of one such person. Now, before you go to the site and watch the video, I should say that this guy is a world champion exhibition shooter. That's not someone who shoots exhibitions, he shoots for other people's entertainment. Exhibition shooting is not something I have a lot of interest in or anything, but whenever I see someone who has obviously practised long and hard at something I sit back and say, "Wow". Patrick Flanigan is just the most recent one I've seen. So, if you're interested, go to his site and check out the videos there, or you can see it at hugi.

Another amazing show was put on by this dancer...and this dancer...and this BMX biker.

Wednesday, September 07, 2005

Maddox

This post is somewhat related to the post below with a picture of Michael Jackson. There's this guy who's been writing funny shit for years without too much recognition. I know, this is a family site and swearing is not allowed, but the naughty little imp in me is still laughing wholeheartedly after my latest perusal of Maddox's web site, The Best Page in the Universe. I warn you that it's not for everyone, but he makes me laugh. Today I read an article that he wrote about blogs (like this one) and although I have a web log and don't have any of the talent of a real writer (therefore, I am to be lumped in with the people he's making fun of), I had enough fun reading it that I thought it would be impossible not to link to it from here. So, the link is at he end of this sentence.

Monday, September 05, 2005

Link

I noticed that the link to the video clip that I tried to post with the entry about the flooding isn't working. Here it is again.

Saturday, September 03, 2005

Please Help Me

I'm looking for some evidence that Bush should not be impeached. Is there anything that he's done right that would make up for everything he's done wrong?

Friday, September 02, 2005


Okay, I don't understand what the Hell is going on in the South right now. Why is it that a disaster happened and so many people thought, "I'd best get out there and do my part in the looting, raping and destruction!" Okay, to be fair, I understand why the looting is going on and truth be told, in the same shoes, I would make sure that my family was not starving and dying of exposure. But I can't honestly say that I would be featured in this video clip . One reason is that I have some moral values. The other reason is that they are in Walmart! If you're going to steal something, go to a Mercedes dealership or something! They're only saving a few bucks by stealing this stuff.

But my real beef today is with the US governement. Why are they not helping more? Oh, actually, I know the answer to that question: the color of the skin and size of the wallets in he neighborhoods in question. How much do you want to bet that after the dust settles and hundreds of people are buried, land is going to be bought up in the worst hit areas where everything is flattened and rich people are going to move in to rebuild while the people who used to live there have to move elsewhere because they lost everything. Part of this area was a major gambling hub with lots of lights, you know, entertainment for the wealthy. The storm came through and washed everything away (sort of like a re-enactment of a certain song by the band Tool) and now it all has to be rebuilt. I really don't think that this place is going to be rebuilt with the type of cheap run-down homes it had before last weekend. It's going to change and humanity is going to be forgotten.
And what is Bush going to do?! People over here in Iceland are wondering why he's not being more vocal and helpful. I can tell them in one sentence: This problem can't be solved by sending young American boys to die trying to kill brown people. That's what Bush can do. that's his only answer to any problem. "What? The nation is sad because of the deaths of thousands of our citizens? let's go kill some brown people!" "I'm down in the polls?! Saddam is the enemy! let's go kill brown people and force the ones who are left to elect our money-hungry puppets."

So far, most of America has bought his line of crapola. But he's now teetering on the brink of the abyss. I think he's going to fall. I still have faith that there is a large population of moral-thinking decent people ready to vote in my home country. What's going on in the south seems to be just the worst side of a depressed group of the populous acting out against their abandoners. I think they will settle down eventually. But not matter what happens, I think that people elsewhere in the country must see Bush for the loser that he is.

Probably the best sunset picture I have ever managed to capture. This is on a beach on the west coast of Costa Rica. My brother Carl posted this photo on his site adventureliving.com. But I wanted to post it here, too because I am very proud of it.

Thursday, September 01, 2005

Segðu Mér

I wanted to point you, once again, to my new blog site, Tell the World about You. It's a place for you to answer questions (anonymously, if you like) that pop into my mind that I think would be fun for me to answer. Some of them are serious questions and others, well...You can access the site through my profile, by clicking on the name in the first sentence of this post or through the link called Tell Me in the "Sites of Note" column on the right.

Sonrisa


Some faces tell you that the person is kind and has a personality you can only enjoy. My friend Helena has that kind of face.