Isn’t this one of the most beautiful pictures of nature you have ever seen? Well, my opinion of course. I would like to share some others.

I know that many people don’t like snakes but once long ago when Mother Nature was the Goddess of humankind and our loving benefactor, they were her totems. The Judeo-Christian-Islamic rulers took that connection and turned it into the evil snake in Eden – what a crock! Check out the beauty of this guy.

 Bush viper

http://bit.ly/2mV0p6n

How about this playful dolphin! Guts ball, no?

A seal getting some chow. Doesn’t look so sweet here eh? Opportunistic Cape fur seals have found a way to both subdue and process large octopuses whenever they’re fortunate enough to catch them. Like energetic dogs with their chew toys, the seals use the speed of their own movements and the resistance of the surrounding water to their advantage. By repeatedly shaking, dragging, and slapping their prey across the water’s surface, the mammals begin to gain the upper hand—stunning the octopus at first and then, slowly, tearing the mollusk’s body into bite-sized bits. Lets have no more talk about the vicious Orca.

 http://bit.ly/2rNtPY7 (Photo by Wim van den Heever Wildlife Photographer)

And how about this beauty. I see it as the epitome of freedom, lightness and grace.

 

Great White Heron. I see them often here.

Ahhh......nature, nature, nature. I love the "wild" critters!!

Speaking of nature, I am lucky to have this view when I walk down to the beach from my trailer.

 Cacachileso Range or maybe the north eastern tip of The Sierra de la Lagunas

I can’t even imagine what people feel when they walk here.

 LA at night

And leave this behind in order to have it.

 

Mining operation hidden from view.

Speaking of cities and/or cultures, here’s one old one to look at and marvel.

 The early (4,000 BC) settlement of Merv in today's Turkmenistan. At the height of IT'S GLORY in the 12th it was the largest city in the world.

http://www.abandonedspaces.com/uncategorized/merv-largest-city-world-12th-century.html

Which kinda gets me into science. You didn’t think I would skip that now, did you?

Here’s a real photo of deep space.

 Deep space: yeah that's what it REALLY looks like out there!

Tens of billions of galaxies containing trillions of planets. How do we know? Well we have been able to identify over 3,500 just in the local part of our own galaxy and we are finding more literally every day. Almost every star is the center of a solar system – it’s about chemistry and if you missed that in school, I’m deeply sorry, it is the basis for understanding the universe. Anyway here’s the famous Drake-Sagan equation for determining the possibility for other life on those trillions of planets. Play with the formula and you will still be surprised.

 

 https://www.universetoday.com/39966/drake-equation-1/

Are we alone??? That’s utterly ludicrous!

Seeing that we are going to Mars relatively soon, check out NASA’s vehicle for cruising the surface.

https://www.universetoday.com/136009/wed-like-one-earth-nasas-new-mobile-mars/

An F16 fighter jet costs 47 million. What do you think this runabout might cost?

Ahhh.....and more mystery around the always delightfully mysterious astronomical Black Holes. Can you even begin to imagine the FORCES at work near these two giants and what mysteries they hold deep in their singularities?

https://www.galaxymonitor.com/astronomers-observe-two-super-massive-black-holes-orbiting-first-time/

One last science thing:

What’s this you ask? How about liquid light! A new form of matter. Big deal?? Hah!

http://www.sciencealert.com/fifth-state-of-matter-liquid-light

OK – back to earth. Check out this guy. My mom, brother and I used to camp at camp 4 in Yosemite before hitting the high country trails. Camp 4 is real close to El Capitan. We saw climbers attack it occasionally. This guy does it solo free climbing (no ropes, pitons etc) up the 3,000’ face in 3 hrs and 56min.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/features/athletes/alex-honnold/most-dangerous-free-solo-climb-yosemite-national-park-el-capitan/

For those who enjoyed the movie, “The Last Samurai”, here’s the true story – really happened – well, most of it.

 http://www.warhistoryonline.com/instant-articles/true-history-behind-film-last-samurai.html

Something a bit more futuristic and certainly a sign of what is to come. Of course if you are an SF fan you have accepted the following as inevitable long ago. Meet "Sophia"!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4584770/AI-good-world-insists-Sophia-humanoid-robot.html

If that interests you then I suggest you read this; SF doesn’t get any better. 

Before that Android business gets out of control, and it will as long as WAR exists, we have the following to take care of. Cartoons but powerful, a little grim but we live in dangerous times.

 

 

REMBER THIS: 

  OK - the political statement I told you I would include at the end of these blogs.