Everything under the Sun!

Well, OK, not everything.

However, here are some solar energy projects representing solar-powered transportation by land, sea and air.

The first (by land) is by the brother of an acquaintance.

(Battery bank under the hood)

Here's what she (my acquaintance) had to say about it:

"This year's project was to convert an old El Camino truck to an electric car. One of the challenges was, when he finally loaded all 48 lithium batteries under the hood, the old springs sagged and the front end dropped so the roof of the wheel well was just above the tire. A neighbor hauled it off to a guy, who knew a guy, and the new stiffer springs did the trick - adequate lift. Well, it works. Saturday, we took a load of recyclables to the dump."

Check it out: Electric El Camino

Next up (by sea) is the PlanetSolar project.

(Artist's depiction)

From their website:

"In 2010, the first round-the-world trip powered by solar energy will be realized, with stopovers, along the equator, where the maximum amount of sunlight is available. The over 40,000-km voyage will last 120 days, for an average speed of 10 knots. PlanetSolar's two-man crew will cross the Atlantic Ocean, the Panama Canal, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean and finally the Suez Canal, to return to the Mediterranean. After a roadshow with the village that will cross Switzerland in 2009, the boat will stop in cities like Monaco, Paris, Marseille, Dubaï, Abu-Dhabi, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Hambourg, New-York and San Francisco."

And last (by air), but not least, the Solar Impulse project:


"The Solar Impulse project...aims to have an airplane take off and fly autonomously, day and night, propelled uniquely by solar energy, right round the world without fuel or pollution."

Speaking of solar energy, I'm off for some "fun in the sun"...

Where in the world?!

I've been keeping track of all the visitors from other countries who've been looking at my blog; in the past few months there were visits from the following countries:

Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Korea, Lithuania, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, Venezuela, and Yemen.

Many of them are just looking at images, mostly of various aerospace and motorcycle related items.

Anyway, speaking of where in the world, I was just up in New Hampshire last week for Laconia Bike Week:


Next week, I'll be off to the Caribbean again:

(Picture above from a previous trip)

And while I've been enjoying the "life, liberty and pursuit of happiness" that being an American affords me, people are fighting and dying in hopes of gaining their own freedom in Iran. I have been hoping for a revolution there for many years now; I really empathize with them. Of course, we shouldn't ever forget the true costs of revolution...in blood, death and suffering.

May God be with them in their struggle...

Now Let the Vault Of Heaven Resound

Now let the vault of Heav’n resound
In praise of love that doth abound,
“Christ hath triumphed, alleluia!”
Sing, choirs of angels, loud and clear,
Repeat their song of glory here,
“Christ hath triumphed, Christ hath triumphed!”
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Eternal is the gift He brings,
Wherefore our heart with rapture sings,
“Christ hath triumphed, Jesus liveth!”
Now doth He come and give us life,
Now doth His presence still all strife
Through His triumph; Jesus reigneth!
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

O fill us, Lord, with dauntless love;
Set heart and will on things above
That we conquer through Thy triumph,
Grant grace sufficient for life’s day
That by our life we ever say,
“Christ hath triumphed, and He liveth!”
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Adoring praises now we bring
And with the heavenly blessèd sing,
“Christ hath triumphed, Alleluia!”
Be to the Father, and our Lord,
To Spirit blest, most holy God,
Thine the glory, never ending!
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!

In the past few weeks, this blog has been visited by people in Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Europe, France, Germany, India, Israel, Latvia, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Romania, The Russian Federation, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, United Kingdom and Vietnam.

A fair number of them were looking at this:


I posted it for Easter last year; I think it's awesome...

On a hill far away...

...stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain.

(Refrain):
So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross,
Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.

O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above
To bear it to dark Calvary.

(Refrain)

In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see,
For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.

(Refrain)

To the old rugged cross I will ever be true;
Its shame and reproach gladly bear;
Then He’ll call me some day to my home far away,
Where His glory forever I’ll share.

"The Old Rugged Cross" -by George Bennard (1873-1958).

Such a bittersweet song; one of my favorites, although I don't know if it's in the latest revision of the hymnal at my church...I'll have to check, maybe later today if I remember.

I've always had a rough time of it on Good Friday, although of course that is as nothing compared to what Jesus went through on that fateful day. For me, and you...

When you're hot, you're HOT!!!

The Naga Jolokia Pepper

People who know me well are aware of my predilection for spicy food.

Actually, my tolerance for such things is nearly legendary in some circles...if I do say so myself.
(And I just did, huh?)

I was just reading the other day about this Naga Jolokia Pepper, which I was rather amazed to learn is many times hotter than the Habañero Pepper on the Scoville Scale.

In fact, they are the hottest peppers that exist.
(On this planet, anyway)

Now I've just got to acquire some of 'em.

Update!

Look what I found:


They're Scotch Bonnets, not the hottest, but still pretty hot...

I quit!

My blogging here has gone from several times per week to about once a month...it takes that long (sometimes longer) for my personal benchmark of "eleventeen" comments (some of them my responses) to accumulate; occasionally I don't even get that many.

Consequently, I am "pulling the plug" here.

I'll stick to posting comments elsewhere...

This & that...

The following are things I've been reading about recently. I find them of interest, because they're the sort of things I'm thinking of using when I build my retirement home someday. Anyway, read on; each item has a description, a picture and a link to a website.

Swift Wind Turbine:


"Swift is a rooftop mount wind turbine that is quiet. Traditional wind turbines generate some noise as the wind travels the length of the blade. The outer ring on Swift acts as a diffuser as the wind travels down the blades and is dispersed along the outer ring, therefore eliminating the noise and keeping the turbine quiet."

Rainwater HOG:


"The Rainwater HOG is a novel solution to the problem of rainwater or greywater storage in areas where space is at a premium. The Rainwater HOG’s relative small size enables it to fit into many spaced previously not available to water tanks, while its modular design enables it to be extended and capacity increased bit by bit and in multiple locations around your house and property. The Rainwater HOG’s narrow profile makes it the perfect water storage solution along side walls, down narrow passages and underneath decks and house structures. Being able to sit flat, on its side or stand upright on its end the Rainwater HOG is adaptable to almost any situation."

RainTube:


"The patented RainTube material is porous and fits snugly into the body of the gutter keeping debris high up out of the water where it can dry out quickly. Water flows in great volumes around and through the tube via thousands of tiny passageways. In most installations, RainTube "crowns" slightly above the top of the gutter creating a slippery aerodynamic surface that removes most debris with a natual breeze."

Big Ass Fans:


"In hot weather, the fans are operated at the upper range of speed to circulate the air within a facility. The circulation results in an even temperature throughout the area covered by the fans. People are cooled by the breeze, so they are much more comfortable, even though the actual temperature has not been lowered. In cold weather, the fans should be run at slow speeds to slowly push warmer air down to the floor without creating the cooling breeze."

SG Blocks™:


"Using recycled steel shipping containers as the foundation of SG BLOCKS™ coupled with a high tech ceramic insulation make this system a standout in shrinking the environmental footprint. It’s an engineered Safe and Green structural system. It’s the blocks plus the engineering necessary to make it work together. its repeatable, scalable, and so on. We take the container, perform our engineering and fabrication processes, and make it 'Architect and Contractor ready'. It retains its logistic features but becomes a structural building system ready to go. It’s the roughed in, dried in framing package."

Have to plan ahead, right?