If you want to feel tiny...

...just take a look at today's Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD). It's a picture of  Abell 2744, also known as  Pandora's cluster.

That's a lot of galaxies!

Utha Graduates

About a month ago RuthAnne was awarded her Associate of Arts from Harvard Extension School; I've finally tracked down my SD flash card reader so I can upload the pictures. I expect complaints about this from RuthAnne...

Owen testing out the cap

See, they can smile!

The cap on its rightful dome

The Goods

So - tell me how...

...you really feel.

A final update: the "official" picture.

From RuthAnne 2011-06-29

Henna, again

Last weekend RuthAnne re-dyed my hair with henna. I've been using henna from hennaforhair.com, which is quite expensive; this time I use henna from a local store in Central Square.

It was $3.00 for a 5 and a half ounce bag (of which I used about half a bag, with a lot of what I mixed left over). It's excellent henna; there was a very strong dye release, and I like the resulting color.

So much for the high-priced spread. But The Henna Page (same people as hennaforhair.com) is still a great information source for henna, both for use as a hair dye and for mehandi.

...and the sins of the father shall be visited upon the sons to the third and fourth generation...

Jose Antonio Vargas is a former reporter for The Washington Post and shared a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the Virginia Tech shootings. He was sent by his family to the US. from the Philippines when he was 12. Four years later, he discovered that he is an illegal immigrant.

some of Vargas' papers, from the New York Times Sunday Magazine. 

Vargas went to college and, as noted earlier, became a successful journalist. He has a Social Security number (obtained illegally) and pays state and federal income tax. He did not choose to enter the U.S. illegally. But here he is. What should we do about it?

He has decided he can no longer live this lie and tells his story in this week's New York Times Sunday Magazine (and also at defineamerican.com). If we can't provide a legal, reasonable path to citizenship for someone like Vargas, then what are we?

Update: Vargas is not alone.Recently the government agreed to an unusual deal in the case of an Iraq veteran who was brought to the U.S illegally as a baby. According to the New York Times, the government offered to drop a passport violation charge against the Navy petty officer if he completed a term of probation.

Rant, rant, rant

I can't stand it. I have to vent.

Yesterday the Republicans walked out of negotiations on raising the federal debt limit - because they absolutely refuse to consider any tax increases - not even simply revoking the Bush tax cuts on households earning over $250,000/year.

This is absurd.

I can't bring myself to provide calm, reasoned argument about this. These guys are nuts! The plutocracy owns Washington, and the rest of us are doomed.