Author Archives: beth

About beth

Ann Arbor-ite writes about enjoying life with all of its ironies and surprises.

Jul14

the french connection.

Posted on July 14, 2022 by beth

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Washington and Lafayette at Mt. Vernon

In honor of the anniversary of Bastille Day-

The Marquis de Lafayette, 19, arrived in the new world to join America’s revolutionary cause in 1777. Right off the bat, he made a powerful friend: George Washington instantly took a liking to the Frenchman and within a month, Lafayette had effectively become the general’s adopted son. Their affection was mutual; when the younger man had a son of his own in 1779, he named him Georges Washington de Lafayette.

The day after the storming of the Bastille, the Marquis de Lafayette became the commander of the Paris National Guard. In the aftermath of the Bastille siege, he was given the key to the building. As a thank-you—and to symbolize the new revolution—Lafayette sent it to Washington’s Mount Vernon home, where the relic still resides today.

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“Rien.”

(nothing)

-Diary entry of Louis XVI on Bastille Day

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Bonne fête nationale!

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Source credits: Mark Mancini, Mental Floss, Google Images

Jul13

balancing act.

Posted on July 13, 2022 by beth

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two of the six-pack of grandies finding their balance.

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“we’ve just learned how to balance ourselves a little better

so that we’re happier way more of the time than not,

and,

you know,

being happy is a radical and desirable act if you ask me.”

-anthony kiedis, red hot chili peppers

Jul12

way out.

Posted on July 12, 2022 by beth

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The first publicly released image from the James Webb Space Telescope, showing countless galaxies and multiple arcs where the combined gravity of those galaxies magnifies light from background objects, bringing even more distant galaxies into view. NASA—

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson described the image to President Biden, saying all the stars and galaxies it encompassed were located in an area of space the size of a grain of sand held at arm’s length by someone standing on Earth.

“We’re looking back more than 13 billion years,” he said. “That light that you are seeing has been traveling for over 13 billion years, and by the way, we’re going back farther. This is just the first image. They’re going back about thirteen-and-a-half billion years. And since we know the universe is 13.8 billion years old, we’re going back almost to the beginning.”

NASA plans to release additional “first light” images Tuesday, photos designed to showcase Webb’s ability to chart the details of stellar evolution, from starbirth to death by supernova, to study how galaxies form, merge and evolve and to probe the chemical composition of atmospheres around planets orbiting other stars.

This initial Webb deep field released Monday promises to rewrite the astronomy books yet again, providing the data needed to fill in many of the major gaps in the history of the universe, perhaps even providing the framework to determine when — and how — the first massive stars formed, exploded and seeded the cosmos with the heavy elements that make life possible.

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“the size and age of the cosmos are beyond ordinary human understanding.

lost somewhere between immensity and eternity is our tiny planetary home.”

-carl sagan, cosmos

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source credit: nasa

Jul11

so close.

Posted on July 11, 2022 by beth

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so close to that first morning cup…..

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“coffee smells like magic and fairytales.”

-allison czarnecki

Jul10

sun.

Posted on July 10, 2022 by beth

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The one moment when 99% of the world’s population can see the sun

For a single minute at 7:15am, EST, on Friday, July 8, 99% of the world’s population was (7.688 billion people) either in sunlight or twilight and could simultaneously spot the sun in the sky. It’s a minute in time that only happens once a year. The only countries not under sun in that minute were New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Antarctica.

It’s hard not to see, but admittedly if someone wasn’t watching for the phenomenon that unfolded Friday morning, they could have definitely missed it. This does call into question what it means to be seeing the sun. According to the website timeanddate.com, while the claim is technically true, the number of people perceiving sunlight is a bit lower – about 93% of the world’s population.

Jul9

because i read.

Posted on July 9, 2022 by beth

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oh, how i love these tiny places

filled with books are just waiting to be discovered.

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“i have lived a thousand lives and have loved a thousand loves.

i’ve walked on distant worlds and seen the end of time, because i read.”

-george r.r. martin

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glen arbor, michigan, usa – summer 2022

Jul8

tracks.

Posted on July 8, 2022 by beth

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young girl in her finery

waits her turn to perform

at the grand traverse band of

ottawa and chippewa indians pow wow.

a beautiful display of

dance and drumming

from days gone by.

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“we will be known forever by the tracks we leave.”
– Dakota Tribe

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traverse city, michigan, usa – summer 2022

Presented by the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. See the colorful display of the dance and drumming from days gone by. Taste Native American …