“That is exactly what you think it is: Phoenix descending to the Martian surface underneath its parachute. This incredible shot was taken by the HiRISE camera on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. You can easily see the ‘chute, the lander (still in its shell) and even the tether lines!”
Go see the Best. Image. Ever.
It’s the idea that such an image is possible, not the picture itself that is so amazing.
James Arness — Marshall Dillon — is 85.
Brent Musburger is 69. ABC must have some sort of mandatory retirement age.
Levon Helm of The Band is 68.
The Band, more than any other group, put rock and roll back in touch with its roots. With their ageless songs and solid grasp of musical idioms, the Band reached across the decades, making connections for a generation that was, as an era of violent cultural schisms wound down, in desperate search of them. They projected a sense of community in the turbulent late Sixties and early Seventies – a time when the fabric of community in the United States was fraying. Guitarist Robbie Robertson drew from history in his evocative, cinematic story-songs, and the vocal triumvirate of bassist Rick Danko, drummer Levon Helm and keyboardist Richard Manuel joined in rustic harmony and traded lines in rich, conversational exchanges. Multi-instrumentalist Garth Hudson provided musical coloration in period styles that evoked everything from rural carnivals of the early 20th century to rock and roll revues of the Fifties.
Stevie Nicks is 60 today. A moment of silence please.
Finally, the platinum edition of Fleetwood Mac came together in 1975 with the recruitment of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. The San Francisco duo had previously cut an album together as Buckingham-Nicks. Drummer Fleetwood heard a tape of theirs at a studio he was auditioning, and the pair were drafted into the group without so much as a formal audition. This lineup proved far and away to be Fleetwood Mac’s most durable and successful. In addition to the most solid rhythm section in rock, this classic lineup contained strong vocalists and songwriters in Buckingham, Nicks and Christine McVie. Male and female points of view were offered with unusual candor on the watershed albums Fleetwood Mac (1975) and Rumours (1977).
Sally K. Ride is 57. Ride Sally Ride.
Lenny Kravitz is 44.
Shakespeare is 38. That’s actor Joseph Fiennes.
If you’re looking for anyone at home in Texas this weekend, forget it. They’re all in Ruidoso, Cloudcroft, or at the Inn of the Mountain Gods in the Sierra Blanca Mountains of New Mexico.
Every little New Mexico town has a funky but authentic bar and grill with lots of character — an old, often historic bar; somewhat rickety tables and chairs; pool tables; lots of taxidermy; some bikers as customers; etc. There’s the Owl Bar and Cafe in San Antonio, The Outpost in Carrizozo, Los Ojos in Jemez Springs, the Mine Shaft in Madrid, and so on. You think this could actually be some sort of chain-franchise deal?
White Sands National Monument is one of the best places in the world. Why? The beautiful white gypsum sand dunes? The amazing vegetation that seemingly survives without water and soil? The spacious skies and distant mountain views? The stunning sunsets? No. It’s because you can go sledding and not get cold and wet. Scores of children of all ages were riding down the slopes — in 80-degree weather.
White Sands is one of New Mexico’s greatest attractions. If you’ve never been, go soon — though best when the weather is moderate. I recommend arriving before sunset for the best light, then returning the next morning before the sun is too high. Be sure to take a hike — the mile long Dune Life Nature Trail was excellent. (Click image for larger version. That’s not snow you see plowed along the edge of the road — it’s sand.)
Visiting Smokey Bear’s gravesite in Capitan is a little freaky. Why did I feel I had to be so quiet and respectful — he was just a bear. (Click image for larger version.)
And, seemingly some things never change. The not-to-be-missed Lincoln State Monument in — duh — Lincoln, New Mexico, tells the story of the famed Lincoln County War. President Hayes referred to Lincoln’s main street (now Highway 380) as “the most dangerous street in America.” I had never given this part of New Mexico history much thought, though I had the outline in mind — two factions, Billy the Kid, and so on. I just guessed the fighting erupted over land or sheep vs. cattle like it did in so many places. Nope. It was over government contracts.
The short film at the Lincoln SM visitor center gives short shrift to the Mexican settlers who founded the community. Worse, the film is downright disrespectful to the American Indians in the area, past and present. The film needs to be redone.
“Protocol for flying the American flag on Memorial Day includes raising it quickly to the top of the pole at sunrise, immediately lowering it to half-staff until noon, and displaying it at full staff from noon until sunset.”
In 1868, Commander in Chief John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic issued General Order Number 11 designating May 30 as a memorial day “for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land.”
The first national celebration of the holiday took place May 30, 1868 at Arlington National Cemetery, where both Confederate and Union soldiers were buried. Originally known as Decoration Day, at the turn of the century it was designated as Memorial Day. In many American towns, the day is celebrated with a parade. …
In 1971, federal law changed the observance of the holiday to the last Monday in May and extended it to honor all soldiers who died in American wars. A few states continue to celebrate Memorial Day on May 30.
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