This is the third year we’ve going to Bridge Day. For some reason I didn’t feel much like watching the base jumpers, but that’s not really the best part of Bridge Day–I love standing on the bridge looking out over the New River Gorge Canyon. It’s a stunning, amazing view.

Here’s a picture of the bridge from the Visitor Center platform. If you look at the bigger picture, you can see the rappelling lines.

In this one, you can see the rappelling lines and the zip line.

(I made notes in Flickr, to point out these lines if you can’t see them.)

Stairs from/to the visitor center to the viewing platform. Michael counted and there were 130.

A view from the bridge–you can see how foggy and overcast the morning was.

A nice gentleman took our picture for us:

Child Labor in the United States

…the reported injury and illness rate for meatpacking was a staggering 20 per hundred full-time workers in 2001…

…OSHA administrators and independent researchers have found a common corporate practice [in the meatpacking industry] of underreporting injuries of all kinds. One recent estimate puts the undercount of nonfatal occupational injuries across industrial sectors as high as 69 percent.“

[Massey Energy] amassed more than 1,100 violations in the past three years, many of them serious. Federal regulators even ordered parts of the mine closed 60 times over the past year.

1911 Triangle Factory Fire and the 146 people, many of them teenage and young women, who lost their lives.

The median personal income from farm work and other work sources combined was between $5,000 and $7,500.

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,
(more…)

Today kicks off the week-long celebration across North America of MY BIRTHDAY!

Today, Canadians celebrate, while in the United States the celebration will be held on Thursday–We can’t have ALL workers in North American off on the same day–the economy would suffer I’m certain.

This day is also celebrated by my friend Kathy, as well as my secret twin, Sarah!

As you can see by this picture, Sarah and I were clearly separated at birth:

Kathy isn’t an internetty-type person, so no pictures of her.

Now, you’ll have to excuse me, I’m off to celebrate this holiday in the traditional manner: going to restaurants and caging free desserts.

On Thursday, June 20th, West Virginia turns 150 years old.

As someone who grew up here, I tend to be (extremely) defensive about the state.

Here are some of the reasons why: these are things I regularly saw when growing up.

I know, you don’t get it. Let’s try a couple close-ups.

I grew up knowing that the people who made kids’ maps couldn’t be bothered to accurately represent my state.

“Panhandles? No one’ll notice if they’re missing! Just make it a weird shaped blob and stick it in there. It’s not like anyone’ll care!”

Why was this so maddening? Because we also grew up with this:

Go to about 9 minutes if you want to see what I’m talking about, though of course, the Pride of West Virginia is always worth watching.

And if you’re wondering why the stands are empty on the east side of the stadium, it’s because this was for the high school Band Spectacular, not a game.

And just for the hell of it, here’s a video of the band from 1978.

From this weekend:

Thank you, to all who served.

Someone posted this on Facebook yesterday, and I couldn’t stop giggling.

Let us be comrades
Because you are great!

(snicker)

See also: Dictator Valentines

Thank you, to those who have served, who are currently serving, and to their families.

Thank you.

Today and tomorrow are the Days of the Dead, a time for remembering those who have died.

I’ve lost quite a few loved ones in the past couple years, so I’m going to take these two days to remember funny stories, and I offer this place to gather to remember your own loved ones who have died in recent years.

The easiest funny stories for me are those of Grandmom. She had no qualms about being silly and ridiculous, which is something I try to remember–what is dignity worth when you could instead be making someone laugh?

Here’s a Grandmom story, that seems good for today.

When her older sister, Sophie, died, she helped her nephew deal with the arrangements and went to the funeral home with him.

We’d arrived at her house while she was still out with her nephew, and when she came in, she was laughing at herself–apparently, many things she thought ridiculous had transpired, and they were coming home, she thought to herself, “I can’t wait to call Sophie and tell her this!” She then realized what a ridiculous thought that was and couldn’t help but laugh at herself.

I think that’s the best lesson for me to remember–if you try really hard, you can almost always find something to laugh at.

I don’t feel like dressing up this year, but I still love Halloween.

I hope the bad weather doesn’t keep my three expected trick-or-treaters away.

Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland

This is a repost from last year.

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. (more…)

Sorry, meant to use this one last week, but got all distracted. Today’s word is: dragon