Wednesday April 18, 2007 7:00 am Lethbridge Sunrise 6:34 Sunset 20:27 Hours of daylight: 13:53

A. Morning Musings

7:00 am It is +4 C with a high forecast of +4 C. Snow is expected this evening.

Here are the news.

CBC Headline: Virginia Governor Orders Probe Of Campus Response To Shooting

The probe is in response to questions about why it took 2 hours for police to inform the university community that there was a gunman loose on the campus. I am still feeling a kind of numbness about the tragedy.

Canadian Headline: Stage Set For Showdown On RCMP Pension Scandal

This is a continuation of the story about the inquiry into possible misuse of pension funds by senior officials within the RCMP. At the moment there is a direct contradiction between various testimonies.

Australian Headline: (from The Australian): Don't Be Fooled By Rudd's IR Window Dressing: Howard

PM Howard says that Rudd's plan's for Industrial Relations still conform to all of the union's demands. This is part of the lead-up to a federal election expected later this year.

My weight is down 2 to 185. It is a start to returning to where I was before I left for Edmonton.

From rear window	South patio
Both images taken at 11:30 am

B. Plan

Immediate
Mathematics	Continue reading "Algebra: Abstract and Concrete" by Frederick Goodman	1 hr
Literature	Read & make notes for book 4 of "The Brothers Karamazov" by Fyodor Dostoevsky	1 hr
Birds	Update database to include 2007 Mexico trip	1 hr
Later
Technology	Convert LPs to MP3 format
	Make notes for chap. 4 of "Switching to the Mac"
	Burn backup of images onto DVD
Mathematics	Read & make notes on The Humongous Book of Calculus Problems
	Read "Symmetry" by David Wade
	Make notes for "Mathematics: A Human Endeavor" ch 1
	Read "Fearless Symmetry" chap 9: Elliptic Curves
Model Trains	Add ground cover to oil refinery diorama
	Follow tutorial for version 8 of 3rd PlanIt
	Continue assembly of coaling tower
	Purchase DCC system
Birds	Create notebook pages birding in Mexico
History	Begin reading "Maya"
	Read Watson "Ideas"
Philosophy	Read & make notes for "Breaking the Spell"
	Begin reading "How Are We To Live?" by Peter Singer
Literature	New York Times easy crossword puzzles
GO	Complete reading "Lessons in the Fundamentals of Go"
Puzzles	The Orange Puzzle Cube: puzzle #10
Major Goals
Learning	Review week's pages each Sunday
	Review all pages for the month at the end of each month
Technology	Review & edit iPhoto files for 2006
Model Trains	Become proficient with 3rd PlanIt software
	Install DCC on model train layout
GO	Learn to play GO at something better than a beginner level
Drawing	Learn to draw!! (I keep saying this, yet I have yet to put a pencil to paper).
Mathematics	Continue to play with mathematics.
Literature	Continue to read Literature
Bird Watching	Continue to engage in bird watching activities.

C. Actual/Note

7:40 am The sky is dull and overcast this morning. Temperatures are about 10 degrees below normal for this time of year, and have been for much of March and April. When the warm weather finally arrives it will feel like summer. I am having some difficulty getting myself up to speed this morning. Maybe a coffee will help. I began updating my birding database yesterday. That will be another of these tasks that will take a week or two to complete.

11:40 am Here are two more photos showing the beginning of the spring activity of the May tree in our backyard. There is more snow forecast for later today, so I may have an opportunity for another image of white on green.

D. Reflection