Thane Plambeck

Iberis sempervirens

"Candytuft," according to our landscapers.

I took the photo using a Canon EOS 10D camera with a Compact-Macro 50mm f/2.5 lens.

Scabiosa

A 'perennial pincushion flower,' according to our landscaper, Lesley Peters.

Pearl (our dog) walks by these flowers on her way out the front door for her walks. If I don't get a good grip on her leash, she bites their heads off.

These flowers attract little white butterflies with spots on their wings.

I took the photo with my new digital camera, a Canon EOS 10D, using the Canon Compact-Macro 50mm f/2.5 lens.

Night photo

Putting my digital camera on a little tripod and turning off the autofocus, I was able to take clearer photos at night.

The Andersons came home in their SUV while the shutter was open:

Gardenia

It's windy and rainy today in Palo Alto.

Gravitational wave takeout

Losing Control

From a CNN article, "Cable TV billionaire giving away fortune"

Gerry Lenfest, 73, said he saw many charitable institutions lose effectiveness after their founders died and decided the bulk of the family's fortune should not end up in long-lasting endowments.

"During your lifetime, you can direct how your wealth is spent for the most good," he said. "But after your death, it is problematic. You don't have the control."

7, 8, who's counting?

The cement squares in front of the San Francisco Sheriff's office have a patterned motif on them.

They seem to want to suggest a policeman's badge:

But a real police badge has only 7 stars:

Protection Money

I drove to the Stanford campus three separate times yesterday.

So—three times I faced the decision—should I put money in the parking meters, or just take my chances?

Since the meters are so expensive, I usually just take my chances. But the second visit was over the lunch hour. I had parked in the most "obvious" spot, near the student union.

I decided to pay the man.

One dollar for 30 minutes.

It was the right choice—the meter checker was going through the lot when I returned to my car.

I got away with not buying a ticket on my first and third trips.

Pinto on Middlefield

Text (rescued from the Google cache) from a now-defunct web site:

The Ford Pinto was introduced in 1971 as competition for the new import and domestic subcompacts. [It was] designed to be a simple car that Ford could produce with little time and money spent on redesigning and retooling it every couple of years.

The last model year for the Pinto was 1980.

The art of the escape

OMAHA, Nebraska (AP) -- A prison inmate who escaped by brandishing a fake gun made of toilet paper, tape and black ink was captured four days later after a gunfight with police on a busy Omaha street.

No one was injured in the shootout Saturday, police said.

Michael McGuire, 54, had been on the loose since overpowering two guards Tuesday in the state prison at Tecumseh.

Authorities were led to McGuire by a tip from a man who said McGuire had held him in his apartment for three days, said police Capt. Michael Butera.

The man described a car that McGuire was driving, and a Nebraska State Patrol investigator spotted the car Saturday in central Omaha.

Police surrounded the car but McGuire ran, exchanging shots with officers over about a block, said police Officer Dave Volenec.

Then McGuire entered Mojo's Coffeehouse, stomped snow from his shoes and said "It's getting kind of crazy out there," said owner Keri Casady.

Police stormed in and captured McGuire, she said.

At least one shot was fired inside the coffeehouse, officers said.

McGuire, who was serving time on robbery, kidnapping and rape convictions, escaped Tuesday after brandishing what appeared to be a gun during a visit to the Tecumseh hospital.

McGuire's attorney, James Martin Davis, said the gun was actually a papier-mache prop McGuire had fashioned from toilet paper and tape and colored with black ink.

McGuire freed himself from ankle and wrist shackles using a key from one of the guards, then forced one of the guards to drive him in a prison van to the Plattsmouth area, where he handcuffed the guard to a tree and fled in the van, authorities said.

Police said they were interviewing the man who said he was held captive, but have not identified him.

More art of the escape.

630 AD

Treasures of an Anglo-Saxon king of Essex

From an article at the Guardian

Speculation about the king's identity has highlighted two possibilities: Saebert, who converted in 604 and died in 616, or Sigeberht II, who converted in 653. Little is known about either ruler.

Mr Blair said the Southend find was on a par with the Sutton Hoo burial in East Anglia, found in 1939 and dating from c.630.

In an emergency

Should an axe murderer lock you into the trunk of a 2004 Volvo, simply pull the tab.

click me

It glows in the dark (I checked).