Tagged With "Centers for Disease Control"
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Re: November 24, 2016: Enger Tower, Duluth, Minnesota
Did you count the steps up ? Looks like an Olympian task !
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Re: November 24, 2016: Enger Tower, Duluth, Minnesota
Hi Garry I never thought of counting the number of steps to the top of Enger Tower for I was too preoccupied with the beautiful scenery; However, thanks to your question I did some internet investigating and discovered that apparently there are 105 steps you must walk to get to the top of Enger Tower (therefore 210 steps in total to get up and down the tower). You really don't need to be an Olympian to get to the top of Enger Tower. Although the number of steps sounds like a lot, and the...
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Re: November 24, 2016: Enger Tower, Duluth, Minnesota
Thanks Ottoman. Thanks for the reassurance. I did have a fear of a thousand tourists behind me - pushing to ascend the stairway - and all at the gallop. The intervals are all well spaced and welcomed. That's why older people carry a camera !
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Re: Surprising Speke Hall, Liverpool
Great piece! I can't say enough good things about John Lennon Airport that's next door. Not only is does it have a wide array of budget flights for Europe, the passport control is actually friendly there.
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Re: Belfast: An Uneasy City
I think I have to disagree on comparing human societies to plate tectonics; over the latter we have no control, but I would hate to ever think we've exhausted the possibility of dealing with the former. Examining mass religious conflicts generally reveals other issues beneath. That's certainly true of the long and tortured history between the two islands and the two Irelands. While James was a Catholic and William a Protestant, the real issues behind the conflict that set Ireland's future...
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Re: Where Gumbo Was #12. Brasov, Romania
Congratulations Worker Bee! Nice write up PHeymont! The Black Church holds some significant memories for me personally as does the whole city. In the aerial shot, if you look closely, you will also find some drab communist era apartment buildings. The time of Ceausescu and the Securitate was a time no one who lived in the country will forget. It was also Romania's baby boom when a lot people of people were born due to no birth control. The Romanian people are talented and o pen and I...
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Re: Your Favourite Travel Camera (or 2)
I see I'm in good company--I'm joining the two-camera brigade for the first time in years (years ago I traveled with two SLRs, one with color film and the other B/W, and then for a while with a film and a digital). I've been working for the last dozen years with a single compact (been through a Fuji, a Canon, Panasonic Lumix and recently a Nikon S9400 ). All have been good, and on an escalating curve of features. All the left-behinds are still in use elsewhere in the family. I actually...
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Re: Whom did you say was flying this plane?
I don't mind autopilot and I don't mind a second opinion from a computer, but I don't like the computer deciding when to "fly" and override the humans, unless with very clear program instructions (eg. If plane is clearly out of control. JFK Jr could have used such a system to prevent his plane crash because he was completely disoriented when he crashed his private plane)
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Oct. 27: Paris's Stravinsky Fountain
Absolutely wonderful. You can almost hear the music and the splashing water. Thanks for the lovely photos.
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Re: And the tallest US building goes to?
The judges have chosen the "fairest in the land". I would be happy to tour both buildings. The ingenuity of architects and engineers never ceases to impress me. Some buildings that I have particularly enjoyed touring - the World Trade Center and the Rockefeller Center in NY, the dome of St. Peter's in Rome, all of St. Paul's in London, the Reichstag in Berlin and all of the small historical buildings at Greenfield Village, Michigan.
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Re: Whom did you say was flying this plane?
I remember that scene vividly. A terrifying moment in cinematic history because of how completely out of control the fate of those 2 astronauts was. Ever had a computer plotting to kill you? Buy a HAL 9000.
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Re: Whom did you say was flying this plane?
Well, of course Bling is right that a completely automated system wouldn't have resulted in that situation...assuming it was functioning properly (note the Westworld reference above). That's why so many systems (cruise control in your car, autopilot on a plane, driverless transit trains) all have a human override built in.
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Re: Do you Like these Hotel Tipping Tips ?
I just don't know what to think. Does every question to a front office staff or concierge deserve a tip? How many envelopes do I need to carry for three weeks for housekeeping? If you are fortunate enough to get twice daily service do you tip both times? On my last trip because it was low season, we spoiled ourselves with a very nice hotel.... I admit more times than one desperately searching my pockets for change or (gulp) even a five Euro note... I understand that hotel staff does not make...
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Re: Aug. 25, 2016: Fargo Walk of Fame, North Dakota
Some beautiful street art in there Ottoman ! Outside in the sunshine and open to touch. Living Art.
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Re: Italian town bans barking
If this ban will be enforced, it is effectively a ban on having dogs in that town, because by their nature, dogs will bark. Some do it more than others, but they all will bark sometime. You can try to control and discipline them, but that will have limited success. People love their dogs. I know that's true of me and it's true of many others. Doesn't sound like the kind of place I'd want to live in.
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Re: October 26, 2017: A Tribute to Tom Petty (1950 - 2017)
A great tribute! I've always liked the songs of Tom Petty but I listened to them differently when I lived in Gainesville, Fl, his home town. Although a cute town with the thriving University of Florida, part of the town feels like they got left out of that success and dream of escaping to places of more opportunity. In his case he used his talents to escape his father. The city is rightfully proud he was able to make it big in California.
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Re: Sweden, Dominican Republic get pre-clearance OK
All the extra security is just smoke and mirrors. Its made to look like the Security Services are in control of the situation. The passengers are the one's who have saved the day in previous incidents.
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Re: April 24, 2018: Thirsty?
And not the first time for a toilet as a museum exhibit. The Guggenheim in New York last year had a solid-gold working replica by Maurizio Cattelan, entitled America, that could be used by visitors. And, famously, in 1917, Marcel Duchamp challenged concepts of art and esthetics by exhibiting a 'readymade,' a standard urinal turned on its edge, signed as if by an artist, and labeled... Fountain.
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Re: April 24, 2018: Thirsty?
I keep a toilet roll on my work bench. Perfect size for drying WD 40 off my machine parts and grease off my fingers. Everyone who spots it says it's disgusting. Maybe I should call it Bathroom Tissue !
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Re: Passport Woes
Almost disaster. We once purchased a new Volvo back in 1991 and a trip to the factory in Goteborg Sweden to pick up the car was included. We picked up our new car and crossed via ferry into Denmark without a hitch. But at the German customs and passport control station, I was denied entry including our vehicle. I had shaved off my beard a few months prior, but my passport photo still showed the beard. The German officials kept saying that it wasn't my passport and to produce my real...
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Re: Where in the World is Gumbo? #40
Mac -- there are S-o-o-o-ooo many military coups around the world on a nearly everyday basis.... But indeed, the military took control of this place recently
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Re: Is it time to regulate airplane seats? Chris Elliott thinks so!
This debate seems to accept that the profit margins of Trans-Atlantic Flights are squeezed by costs outside the carriers control. The only solution they have is squeeze more seats in to control income. Last month I paid £759 ($1245) for 1 seat UK to Philadelphia - Return - with an American Airline. 7 hours in the sky. Each way. My £759 will also get me a flight to the Caribbean from the UK. 10 hours in the sky. 14 nights in a hotel. Food and drink included. And flight back. The Caribbean...
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Re: Streetscape, Old San Juan
I have a theory about being the descendant of adventuresome immigrants, those brave or restless souls that crossed the Atlantic in the the mid-1600s. It's an impulse over which I, and likely they, have had no control.
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Re: Comics in Brussels
As someone who begins the day with newspaper comics followed by 30 or so online....thank you for this look at a place where "comics are serious!" I especially love the outdoor comics; my favorite above is the surprised gentleman leaving his house.
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Re: Comics in Brussels
Thanks PHeymont. The large murals are my favorites as well, and it was fun to "hunt" them around the city.
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Re: Comics in Brussels
Hey, great pictures, thanks. I have always loved TinTin and the Belgian comic tradition.
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Re: Comics in Brussels
I must admit that this was one of my biggest surprises when visiting Belgium. One thinks of folks in Brussels as people who are obsessed with politics, because it's everywhere around them. I found wonderful, helpful, easy-going folks with a quirky love of their comics. Comics, as Travellinn's piece points out so well, are everywhere and a part of their national fiber. Thanks for sharing this piece!
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Re: Summer Solstice at Stonehenge 2014
Its good to see 37,000 people being able to enjoy the day without the need for the "Boys in Blue" taking control. There are many Stone Circles across Europe. Do they have the same draw on the locals I wonder ? Great photos that I think have caught the "flavour" of the day. Thanks !
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Re: Dismaland - the new 'post-apocalyptic' bemusement park in England
I do like how Disney maintains their parks but prices have really gotten out of control. Parking alone to Disney World is $17.
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo, #104
The control panel says its a Boeing B17 Flying Fortress. The call sign says its N3509G. But there are plenty of examples around the world .. Best get to work on the clues !!
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Re: Florida warned: take action against future flooding
Garry, aside from the fact that climate change involves far more than the question of polar ice caps, we're not in huge disagreement, I think. 1. Climate change is a more accurate term than global warming, because it's not all about warming, and in some cases the change brings colder rather than warmer. 2. The effects are not the same everywhere, nor are they always immediately harmful. It is possible for one area to be threatened with inundation while another benefits from a return of...
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Re: National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta (Where Gumbo Was #109)
I took my photos that i posted for WITW 109 from Centennial Olympic Park Dr. What amazed me is where they placed the front of the building.Below is a photo from the Center.
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Re: National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta (Where Gumbo Was #109)
I was in Atlanta at a convention a couple of years ago, and passed by that site daily...had no idea what they were building behind the fence! Looks like an interesting site...
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Re: May 18, 2016: World Trade Center near dusk
We were just there in October and I was amazed at what a great job they did in honor of all those lost lives that tragic day. I was glad to go and pay my respect. Continued blessings to the familes and firends of those lost that day. Thanks for sharing.
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Re: Santiago Chile
Thanks for the great pictures...and for the info that's going to be my 'guidebook' when we visit in December!
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Re: Berlin: No, the airport won't open in 2017
Oh, there's been plenty of corruption in it; that's known and been investigated. But that doesn't account for the incompetent fire safety system that assumed smoke goes down, not up, etc. And yes, it IS possible to screw up more than this: They could have OPENED it with the bad fire control system and the weak roof and the ....
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
Thank you, thank you, for this, Dr. F. This is an excellent time (November 11, Remembrance Day tomorrow) to be reminded of the D-Day assault. We were in Normandy in 1994, when they were marking the 50th anniversary of D Day, and one night we were having dinner in a restaurant and struck up a conversation with a young couple. They were a bit rough looking, a couple of Brits who were starting on a tour of France on their motorcycle but they had stopped off in Normandy at the beaches to "pay...
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
Thanks for your comment, Arion. It's hard not to be moved by D-Day. The vastness of the assault, the staggering loss of life (civilian and military). What most impressed me is that the local people remember. Not French people away from the coast, but those whose relatives went through the assault make a point of teaching their children and grandchildren the price paid to liberate them from the Nazi fascists. The Juno Beach Center, built by the Canadian Beach, really did a great job of...
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
Thanks DrFumblefinger, It's been way too many years since I've seen the Normandy beaches. Your photos are very moving .
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
My Father received this from Dwight D Eisenhower at the start of D-Day:
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
That's an interesting and historic document, GarryRF. Many of those who landed on the D-Day beaches never spoke of this with anyone -- so horrible was the experience, so many wounded and killed among them. I'm curious --did your dad ever share these experiences with you?
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
Yes - my Dad and lots of other guys told me their stories! My Dad was in the Royal Navy and was taking landing craft full of soldiers from ship to shore - several times - under heavy fire! A guy I was doing work for had lots of photos and souvenirs on the walls of his house. Medals and maps. Newspaper cuttings and Badges. All in frames. I asked him how much he remembered of D-Day. "Every minute of every hour. Me and my mate had been together since the outbreak of war. Nearly 5 years. We were...
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
Several vets I know say that the Normandy beach landings as portrayed in the movie "Saving Private Ryan" are the way they remember it. Madness, chaos, noise, death, fear, adrenaline, more fear. And yet they ran into the madness. It takes a type of courage that's hard for us to imagine in the 21st century. Thanks for sharing that story, Garry.
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
When I was a little nipper and hadn't started school we would visit family at the weekend. No TV. No money. 1950's -you get the picture. So socialising with Dad's 9 brothers and sisters was as good as it got ! If you mentioned the War in some homes you'd be out the front door quicker than a Rat up a Drain pipe ! Others would tell you tales to make your hair curl. Tails of unbelievable bravery, absurdity and stupidity. The Ladies would tell the tale of how the American and Canadian GI's would...
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Re: A visit to Normandy: exploring the D-Day beaches
Thank you mr fumblefinger for your poignant description and photos. Our family lost my uncle at Omaha Beach. He was one of those young men caught up in the drama of war who did his best in a very bad situation. Several times during the 1980s and early 1990s, I made my way to northwestern France to visit the D-Day landing sites. At that time, I was struck by three things - the immaculate grounds and air of respect, the gratefulness of the French people and the fact that there were very few...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Nov. 13, 2013: Jeronimos Monastery
Prince Henry certainly knew how to overnight sailors in style. I have visited this museum and found it just terrific. It is worthwhile for seaman and landlubber alike. The original church on the site was built about 1450 by Prince Henry the Navigator, and became the place where sailors spent the night before leaving on the expeditions that built Portugal’s colonial empire.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Jan. 7, 2014: The "Big Edge", Las Vegas, Nevada
Some "modern art" leaves me cold but that image is thought provoking and lets the mind wander - as it has yours ! Nice piece DrF !