Molasses to Run to Slaves

I did remember to load some photos last night. I will start with an establishing shot so you can see where we are.

One of the distinguishing features in the Park is Zabriskie Point. Here is a shot of the Amargosa Range from on top of the Point.

I had a photo of Dad holding the GPS earlier in the week. Here is where we were for that shot, in the Salt Flats in Badwater Basin. It looks kind of like snow, huh? Nope. It's a little warm for that.

Today's title is a song from the musical 1776. That is one of my all-time favorite musicals. I thought of it after I did the following. On some blog yesterday (actually, it was an xkcd comic about having all the money in the world), I read about a molasses storage tank failing and killing 21 people. Naturally, I had to do some research about that. There were a lot of hits in my Google search. I will just share the wiki article about it. It was moving at 35 mph and had a wave over 20 ft high. Go read the details.

So many generations have some touchstone moment where everyone remembers what they were doing when it happened. WW1 (The Great War, The War to End All Wars). WW2. The day Kennedy was shot. The day another Kennedy was shot. The day Martin Luther King was shot. The end of the Vietnam War. However, for me, those pale for us as a nation in comparison to 9/11/2001. I thought about using some reference to 9/11 as the title, but decided to stay with my first idea. I will mention here, though, my memories of that day. I was on an airplane on the way from Guadalajara, Mexico, to Phoenix, AZ. Suddenly, we landed in Hermosillo, Mexico, and were told the US asked us to not cross the border yet. That was weird. We went into the terminal and, at the only TV in the place, watched the amazing coverage. I knew we would not be entering the US that day. They eventually flew us back to GDL, where I stayed for a week until they let planes begin to fly again. I flew back on a plane with only 7 passengers the following Saturday. That whole week, I watched CNN everyday, waiting for clues as to what happened and why. Where were you? This article shares some then-and-now photos from the site(s).

Having worked many times in Scotland, I am following the upcoming vote for secession from the UK with interest. I am not sure it makes sense, but it would be kind of cool. Today, though, Yahoo! is floating a story saying Texas seceding from the US would actually make more sense. And remember, in 2009, Gov. Perry suggested just such a thing. That would be really weird, huh?

Once again, Clarity of Vision doesn't show up in a post until the very end. Maybe I should say I was saving the best for last? Maybe not. It just kind of happens. Everybody, have a great day.