Random

What does a storm cloud weigh?

![](http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4740040431_5264a8629f.jpg =320x) Since this is the season around here for frequent thunderstorms.. I thought it might be interesting to look at what a typical storm cloud might ‘weigh’. These things are floating above our heads.. and it’s just not something most people ever think about. They are all unique of course.. so here are some baselines. A storm cloud that is 1 sq/mi and 33k feet tall (medium height for what we get this time of year) with an average density would hold about 563 million pounds of water.

Ideas To Live By

With all the swirl and finger pointing around the oil leak.. I thought it was a good time to revise a posting from a few years ago. People are stupid There are no authorities No one knows what’s going on No one is really in charge There are exceptions of course… but I find that if you live your life with these ideas in mind you will, more often than not, make better decisions and be less confused by what’s happening around you.

My idea for stopping the oil leak

Here is my humble contribution for a possible way to cap/contain the oil leak. Kevlar 149 is very tough stuff. The info I could find says it’s good to about 27 million psi tensile modulus which I would hope would be enough to contain the oil. My idea is to have a short custom riser pipe fabricated with pads to anchor hold-down chains and a short steel cone on the bottom to align the pipe over the existing riser.

The Blame Game

Maybe it’s just me… but don’t you find it odd that Obama can be so quick and certain to blame the oil spill on BP.. but can’t bring himself to link islamic terrorists to the many attempted attacks on our soil since he’s been in office? Whatever this mental disorder is it appears to affect all the top whitehouse staff.. curious no? Oh and lets not forget Emmanuel Goldstein George Bush… this guy must have really been cleverly evil for all the things he’s still getting blamed for.

Top 10 Positive Things About The Greek Bailout

Free grecian formula for all Doing it ‘Greek Style’ now involves rioting First step in destroying the EU and the Euro Vacationing in Europe suddenly affordable Productivity of striking Greek workers not much different than usual Irony of the current biggest failing state bailing out the former seat of the Roman empire lost on most Turns the IMF into a leg breaking loan shark scapegoat Gap between ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ getting smaller Giving investors who missed the rally another chance to buy at low prices Money given to Europe can be given back when the US needs bailed out in a few years.

Foraging for Gas

You might not know this if you live in a reasonable part of the country.. but the entire Charlotte metro area has been hurting for gas for about a week now. Since I work from home and now live near uptown I don’t do a lot of driving anyway but I was getting below 1/4 tank with no sign of things getting back to normal. Some estimates put availability at 20% of normal but during the day you can expect to wait in long 30 car lines to get it.