NICU Prayers

On this day please join me for a moment of prayer for little ones born into this world with health complications. Thousands are in hospitals under constant care of doctors and nurses. The photo is of the place I volunteer one day each week. The dedication of the professionals who work here is amazing and yet they can't always be by the crib of a baby crying for the comfort of human touch. Parents sometimes can't be there because they have other children that need them at home. So my job is simply to cradle a little baby in my arms for a few minutes. All they ask for on this holiday is a little love and to get well soon.

Thank you for stopping by John's Island.

Through the Clouds

Darkness and clouds don't deter this jet enroute to landing at SeaTac
Nov 28th  4:48 PM

The first pic is loaded with noise but we thought worth sharing anyway. When the weather conditions are right we are in the flight path for SeaTac, but fortunately, sound isn't a problem due to the plane's altitude. A few sunset pics are below. These are some of the earliest sunsets of the year. Now that we have passed solstice they will start getting later and moving north on the western horizon.

Dec 4th  4:10 PM

Sunset sail.
Dec 21st  4:08 PM

Dec 18th  4:20 PM

Linking up with Skywatch Friday  Thanks to Yogi♪♪♪ for hosting!

Closing thought ...
An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.
     Benjamin Franklin

Winter Solstice

Today is the shortest day of the year. 

Here's how it looked in Fairbanks, Alaska, in 2012 ...

December Solstice (Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere) happened today, Wednesday, December 21, 2016 at 2:44 am in Seattle. Today day is 7 hours, 34 minutes shorter than Summer Solstice in June. In most locations north of the Equator today is the shortest day of the year.

A great article on the Web, including some really neat maps (for North America) published by Vox.com, worth checking out if interested is 7 things to know about the shortest day of the year. The article includes the video of Winter Solstice in Fairbanks Alaska, in timelapse, we included above.

Hope you have a good shortest day of the year!

Skywatch Friday and PCFW #16

Recent December Skies ...

December 15th  4:03 PM
A few minutes before sunset.
Sun behind cloud bank to the west.

December 15th  4:16 PM
Another day is done.

In the first photo above, notice the little sliver of clearing along the distant horizon. We were pretty sure a sweet sunset was on the way. We were not disappointed! Look carefully right above the sun in the second picture to see the sun pillar rising into the sky. "Light pillars occur when natural or artificial light reflects off flat ice crystals in the air close to the Earth's surface. Light pillars caused by the Sun are called Solar or Sun pillars." TimeandDate.com

Be sure to check out more sky photos at Skywatch Friday! Thanks to Yogi♪♪♪ for hosting!

December 14th  4:20 PM
Big canvas of yellow, orange, pink.

Postcards for the Weekend #16 ...

The theme this week on Postcards for the Weekend is "December Holidays." We are linking up with Maria and have this from our collection, a determined Santa ... 1920s? ... signed Twelve trees .. and this little card inspired our Closing Thought for today.

Merry Christmas
I had no reindeer
And I had no sleigh
But I got in there
Another way.

Back of the unused card.

If you would like to see other folk’s postcards on "December Holidays" please visit Maria's blog and follow the links.  They are always well worth viewing. Thanks to Maria for hosting PCFW!

Closing thought ...
If you want to get somewhere you have to know where you want to go and how to get there. Then never, never, never give up.
     Norman Vincent Peale

Season's Greetings from Seattle

December 14th  6:10 AM

The Space Needle is all dressed up for the holidays. It is quite chilly in Seattle this morning ... 29F (-1.6C). Only one week until Winter Solstice on Wednesday, December 21, 2016 at 2:44 am in Seattle.

Moonset this morning in a sliver of clear sky.
Looking northwest over the Olympic Mountains.
December 14th   7:58 AM
99.2% Waning Gibbous

Closing thought ...
The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.
     Isaac Asimov

What to See in Seattle

We recently enjoyed lunch at Ivar's Acres of Clams restaurant on the Seattle Waterfront. It's a classic seafood restaurant and has become a Seattle landmark. In the front lobby you'll see one of those brochure stands common to all places popular with tourists. There you will find all kinds of information on the attractions of the Seattle area. We found one publication that seemed especially well done showing 33 Premier Attractions around town. Worth checking out if you're planning to visit the Emerald City.

One side shows a regional map with the 33 attractions ...

Here are the details ...

Here's our pic of #1 on the list.
Highly recommended, very popular.

Most people say #8 is "Amazing"

#21 The Seattle Aquarium is the ninth largest aquarium
 in the U.S. by attendance and among the top five paid
 visitor attractions in the Puget Sound region.

#25 If you see one thing in Seattle, see everything ... Space Needle!

The other side is a map of downtown showing the location of the attractions ...

We don't get any compensation for recommending Ivar's, but we'll do it anyway. It's one of the best seafood restaurants in the city. An added bonus is watching the cross-Sound ferries come and go. Their Seattle terminal is right next door.

Ivar's Acres of Clams Restaurant
Seattle Waterfront
(Photo Courtesy of Ivar's)

Have you visited our city?

Closing thought ...
Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.
     Malcom Forbes

Texas Arrived in Washington

E R Texas Container Ship Arrives in Seattle ...

December 10th  2:07 PM
Arriving in Elliott Bay, Seattle, from Busan, South Korea
[4607 nautical mile voyage]

We were quite surprised to see this container ship arriving here in Seattle, yesterday, December 10, for two reasons. First of all, it is the only ship we've seen named TEXAS and that state holds a special spot in our heart. Secondly, it's the first time we've spotted an E R Schiffahrt Shipping Company vessel. VesselFinder gave us the voyage as being from Busan, South Korea, and the calculator at Sea-Distances.org gave us the distance of 4607 nautical miles, taking 8 days.

Spotting this ship caused us once again to reflect on the amazing value of the World Wide Web as we were able to find all about the ship and the company that owns it at their website. They are based in Germany. They have an excellent website and if you are interested in shipping be sure to check it out. Ship spotting is a fascinating hobby!

Yes, it's the TEXAS

E R Schiffahrt Website
[Screen capture]

Propeller as seen on Schiffahrt website.
An amazing image!

Technical Data for M/V E. R. Texas
[From Schiffahrt website]

The voyage as calculated on SEA-DISTANCES.ORG

Closing thought ...
The quickest way to double your money is to fold it over and put it back in your pocket.
     Will Rogers