Earthquake

It's been a long time since I posted anything.
Today we had the second earthquake that I could feel since living here in Southern California.
The epicenter was near Chino Hills, California, so I guess just about 20 miles from here. Magnitude 5.4. What we could feel here was not very much, though. A second after I had realized it was an earthquake and had jumped under my desk, the shaking was already over. Official info on the earthquake on the USGS site

Back and on the road again

I've returned from Australia. But I'm already on the road again. Berkeley is different from Pasadena in many ways. I'll blog about that in more detail later.

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Happy Australia Day

Happy Australia Day
Originally uploaded by swan4.

January 26 is Australia Day. There was a regatta with all kinds of sailboats here on the West Lake of Lake Burley Griffin. The sails looked so great in the wind. There's the Parliament House in the background.

Red and Yellow

"Superhero"
Originally uploaded by swan4.

Since I've come to Australia, I've heard a lot about surf lifesaving - There is an exhibit here at the National Museum of Australia and they show some stuff on TV. I think people like this and also firefighters etc. and those who don't have a description like that are the real superheroes. They just go out and save people's lives.

Merry Christmas!

Frohe Weihnachten!

Yesterday, we had a picnic at the National Carillon, listening to a two hour long recital.

So for those of you who don't know yet, we are in Canberra, Australia for three months - one month so far. It's great!

Pittsburgh has more urban sprawl than Los Angeles, new maps show

Pittsburgh has more urban sprawl than Los Angeles, new maps show

This is an interesting link about a new study from the U of Toronto using GIS and satellite images to compare urban sprawl. The conclusion was "Miami, San Francisco and Los Angeles were the most compact major cities, while Pittsburgh and Atlanta were the most scattered. " Citing from the press release, they report "their findings in the May issue of The Quarterly Journal of Economics, in a paper entitled Causes of Sprawl: A Portrait from Space. Heavily illustrated with Geographic Information System images, the paper challenges conventional wisdom about urban sprawl and presents a vivid and detailed picture of land consumption in America's cities."

I find it especially interesting since I have lived in Pittsburgh, Atlanta, and an now living in the Los Angeles metro area.

Smarties

Smarties,
originally uploaded by Your Teacher.

I wonder if Smarties would work as well as M&Ms for the artist in my previous post.

Behind Bars, He Turns M&M’s Into an Art Form

A fascinating article about a prisoner who paints with M&M colors on postcards:
Behind Bars, He Turns M&M’s Into an Art Form

Mercy and Justice - Homelessness

Please have a look at my homeless blog and consider contributing a postcard there. The project is just starting, so there's not much to see there yet.

Your postcards are most welcome for this project. We are for mercy and justice for everyone. Postcards will be scanned and posted as time allows. By sending your postcard to Swan (Mercy and Justice), you are giving your permission for your artwork or writing to be used both in the blog, and in any other projects put together by Swan about care for the homeless. If your name is included on your postcard, you will be credited by that name. If no name appears, the work will appear anonymous.


Please send your card to:
Swan
Mercy and Justice
P.O. Box 61215
Pasadena, CA 91116
USA