Christmas Latkes

Since everyone went to bed lat last night, this Sunday morning was really quiet.  I slept in till 8 in the morning and then as I contemplated a run, it started to rain.  I decided to eat breakfast, read the paper, and then go for a 9 mile ride on the stationary bike.

Ancient Aliens grabbed my attention, and the ride went by fast.  Kyle has SAT prep at noon, and wanders downstairs at 11.  I make him breakfast and then we head out to pick up Gia.  Today is the last day of Chanukah, and the day we put up the tree, and decorate for Christmas.

The ancient aliens have a part of the show that details how the Jews are cast out of Egypt and live in the desert for 40 years.  Seems unbelievable how so many people can survive for so long in a desolate place.  As history goes, it is believed that the Jews were provided with Manna, as their main sustenance.  Ancient Alien scientists reconstruct the period in time, the written history, and the ark of the covenant.  The belief is that a machine was assembled and manna is actually a form of algae derived from this machine powered by the Ark (has special power or is a reactor of sorts).   Manna (Hebrew: מָ‏ן‎) or al-Mann wa al-Salwa (Arabic: المَنّ و السلوى‎, Kurdish: gezo, Persian: گزانگبین‎), sometimes or archaically spelled mana, is an edible substance that, according to Abrahamic doctrine, God provided for the Israelites during their travels in the desert according to the Bible and the Qur'an.   Really cool stuff.

This day in history "On December 16, 1979, the night before the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' annual price-setting meeting in Caracas, two member states (Libya and Indonesia) announce plans to raise the price of their oil by $4 (Libya) and $2 (Indonesia) per barrel. (The resulting prices--$30 and $25.50 per barrel, respectively--were among the highest they had ever been.) These diplomatic maneuverings were intended to keep OPEC's "price hawks" from raising them even further; nevertheless, by the end of 1979 the cost of oil had more than doubled since the end of the previous year.

This price hike only exacerbated an energy crisis that had been going on since the beginning of 1979. An Iranian oil-field strike and the January revolution had disrupted oil supplies from that part of the Middle East, and an earlier OPEC fee increase had sent prices inching toward an all-time high. By the time the Iranian hostage crisis began in November, Americans were already dealing with the effects of this "oil shock": long lines and short tempers at gas pumps, panics over gasoline and heating oil shortages, and frustration with the inefficient, gas-guzzling vehicles manufactured by American automakers."

We need to stop burning oil.  We need to stop the planet from warming faster than it is.  With Dec 21, 2012 fast approaching, I really thought this would be the year that drastic changes would occur, halting the use or at least curtailing the use of carbon based fuels.  My solar panels have produced 9700 Kwh of energy from the sun.

Gavin and Krista prepare us a great dinner.  Tilapia, wild rice, asparagus.  After dinner we play some pool and ping pong.  Waiting for the final episode of survivor, I make a batch of potato latkes.  We enjoy a batch of latkes and sour cream while putting the ornaments on the tree.

Photo of the day "Christmas Latkes"

Magic Number 54

See you on the dark side of the moon