Sunday, December 21, 2008

My Dog Steals My Cream!


I had just gone to the Starbucks where my son works and ordered my usual no-sugar coffee-light Frappuccino. There was a new guy on duty and he forgot you're not supposed to put whipped cream on a light drink (it kind of defeats the purpose). I decided whipped cream just this once wouldn't hurt so I took it out to the car and put it in the cup holder between the two front seats. I then turned around to say hello to someone for just one second. When I turned around again, my dog was using his long tongue to get to the whipped cream at the top of the drink! So I figured he was looking out for me and I let him have it!

The little thief...

Winter Solstice - TODAY - Shortest Day of the Year!

At 7:04 am Eastern Time, the Winter Solstice arrived. One of the things that makes winter more bearable for me, living in a relatively cold climate here in Washington, D.C. (hey, it's in the teens tonight!), is the fact the first day of winter is also the day during which we get the least sunlight here in the Northern Hemisphere. That means from here on in, until the Summer Solstice in six months, the daylight will last longer and longer each day, starting a little earlier and ending a little later every single day. So, it might get even colder over the next few months, but at least we'll get a little more daylight every day!

The image here shows the path that the sun took through the sky the whole winter solstice in 2006. We are here looking down the Tyrrhenian Sea coast from Santa Severa toward Fiumicino, Italy. It was taken by Danilo Pivato. See http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap071222.html.