Long Days

September 20, 2016

When I read, I prefer three types of literature:

Fun, fast fiction – so I can read more than one page before I fall asleep at night.
Well written, lively biographies of historical figures, especially in American history.
Articles and essays about space.

The pieces about space almost always have the effect of putting my world in humble perspective.

For example, this summer astronomers in Chile discovered Planet HD 131399Ab. It’s 320 light years from Earth, in the constellation Centaurus.

This planet is unlike any other in the known world. It has three suns. And the planet takes 600 of our Earth years to orbit its main sun once.

One day on Planet HD 131399Ab is like 600 years on Earth.

So, if you think you’ve had some long days recently, think again. Ponder Planet HD 131399Ab and its nearly 5 million-hour day.

Not Acting Like Grownups

December 26, 2015

Take a look at Fox Sports Detroit today, the second of two days replaying the 2015 MHSAA 11-Player Football Finals at Ford Field.

What I’d like you to see – what I’m most proud of – is the behavior of the players.

Score a touchdown? Then hand the ball to the official, without any childish end zone dancing.

Sack the quarterback? Then head back to the huddle, without any ridiculous pointing and prancing.

So different from the professional game.

But sadly, some of that bad behavior is settling to the college level; and sometimes, there’s even a hint of it in our high school games.

But for now, the players behaving most maturely are the youngest, and behaving least maturely are the oldest.