The Great Solar Eclipse of 2017 crossed the continent, from Oregon to South Carolina, and gave millions of people the chance to witness one of the most awe-inspiring events in the natural world.

But you had to be within the "path of totality", a narrow band across the earth's surface several thousand miles long but only about 70 miles wide. Outside that band you would only see a partial eclipse, not a total eclipse.

And there is no such thing as a "partial total eclipse", despite the impression blogs and the news media might give. I honestly think that's why so many people misunderstand the utter beauty of the spectacle; they may have seen a partial eclipse in the past that was total somewhere else, and even though they weren't in the path the news kept gushing about it being a total eclipse, so they assume they must have seen a total eclipse and just didn't find it all that impressive.


Posted by Dan 08/29/2017, revised 09/06/2017

This year got off to a fantastic start with my 40th birthday, which I celebrated by organizing a 40x 25 meter butterfly relay with the youth swim team. Two years ago, I was recruited to the project of helping to build this ragtag collection of swimmers into a legitimate age group team. In 18 months' time, with a dynamic and talented coaching staff, we were beginning to gain some real traction with the team's progress. It was incredibly rewarding to see the kids energized by challenge, including this unique format of collaborating to complete 1000 meters of fly.

I worked all week to organize the details of the event, complete with hot cocoa for swimming outside in January! I made posters, silk-screened t-shirts, and butterfly shaped cookies as prizes.

That Friday, the sight of 34 kids swimming butterfly in a massive team effort was the best birthday gift I could imagine. They had a blast and I was peppered with questions after, "When can we do that again?!"

I was on cloud nine.



It was only two weeks later when everything came crashing down.

My employer had recently hired a new manager, one who was fixated on quick profit. He wanted his staff to share his vision and enthusiasm for extracting as much money as possible from the pockets of our affluent members. I had been honest with him about my discomfort with using aggressive sales pitches.


Posted by Kimberly 03/11/2020

Chiang Mai:
Chiang Mai was fun. We stayed for four days. It is much better than Bangkok.

Pai:
We travelled to Pai on the recommendation of fellow travellers, hearing only good things from people who we had reason to trust. We were not disappointed. Pai is a small town nestled in the northern hills of Thailand, very close to the borders of Burma and Laos.

The hills around Pai

Posted by nik 10/31/2008, revised 11/05/2008

While Ecuador and Thailand are two very different cultures in two completely different regions of the world, my previous experiences in the developing countries of Southeast Asia are often brought up in my memory, instigated by sights and experiences here in Ecuador. They are often little triggers: people standing on the roadways selling bags of edibles to you through a car/bus window, banana tree leaves blowing in a breeze, emaciated dogs digging through piles of garbage. But through the countless differences between the two regions, there lies one blatant - and tragic - difference: here in Ecuador, I cannot walk down the street and pay a little Thai woman $5 to give me a one-hour massage! And this, my friends, is a reality I struggle to come to terms with.

Yesterday, my colleague Robbie and I went rock-climbing at a great location about 30-40 minutes from our house. We don't currently have rope or other equipment for climbing, but we bouldered around low to the ground for a few hours. It was great fun, and a good workout for the arms and shoulders. But as it's been months since I've done any climbing, I woke up this morning with a million knots in my back and shoulders. All I want in the world is to be able to plop down on a mat and have a pint-sized Thai woman dig into my muscles with truck-sized strength!

But alas, I guess we just can't have everything in this world... at the same time.

Bouldering around on some cool rock in Ecuador!

Posted by Whitney 02/12/2011