Syzdekistan

One year ago, two weeks before our 9th wedding anniversary, my wife sat me down and said she was leaving. By the end of February, she had moved out. Her decision caught me completely by surprise.

The first half of 2009 was a painful blur: there was the unexpected blow of her unilateral decision, some painful counseling that was focused on how a divorce works and nothing about reconciliation. There was negotiation about splitting assets. We walked around the house deciding who took what. Early on, I decided to seek joint custody of the two children. I wanted more than anything to shield them from my pain and ensure that they had the best opportunity to be kids and to grow up in a loving environment. It was critical to me that I take a

As time went on, I found my footing again. The pain and shock receded behind me. Every once in a while it would come rolling back like a ocean swell moving in the night, but it would always ebb away. The children proved their resiliency and are fine. My family, friends, and coworkers were always there for me, supporting me and loving me unconditionally. I reconnected with old friends. I began dating an wonderful and amazing woman who listens to me, understands me, and we have already had many adventures.

Exactly one year ago, I had no idea how my life would change when Nancy sat down across from me at the kitchen table and said “We need to talk.” My life has changed for the better.

First of all, I am thankful to Nancy for being fair and reasonable during the divorce process. I am especially thankful for my family, who are always there for me with a hot meal, help with the children, and a million other things. I am thankful for my friends, both old and new, for their fun, laughter, and advice. I am thankful for my girlfriend, who has been my angel, my advisor, my companion, and my best friend during some tough times and, more importantly, some amazingly fun adventures. Finally, I am thankful for my children, Caroline and Andrew, who bring my such joy and vibrancy to my life.

Life goes on. And I thank God for that.

You may have heard of today’s tragic accident in Laughlin Nevada where a man drove his Pontiac Vibe through the front doors of the Edgewater Casino killing two guests and injuring several more (link).

Interestingly, not 10 minutes before the accident, I walked through those doors to a work conference (Yes, here in Nevada, biologists meet in casinos. Usually, meetings are in the conference rooms but I have also done important work in casino bars, lounges, swimming pools, and hotel rooms.)

Anyway, it wasn’t that close of a call. I didn’t even hear the wreck. The meeting organizers made an announcement to stay out of the casino that there was an accident and later they announced there was two fatalities. I took a few pictures:

The casino entrance is at the end of a long driveway. There is a covered valet area. This casino is an older property and doesn’t have bollards to prevent vehicles from striking the entrance. Truthfully, I spend little time in casinos and don’t know if newer casinos have bollards. The ladder truck is from the Clark County Fire department. With the large casino towers in Laughlin, the county does have a serious fire fighting presence there.

Police cordon on the driveway. The driveway is pretty long and there is a traffic signal on the main street. Across the street is a road called Bruce Woodbury which, if I remember, is fairly steep. Apparently, the driver came down Bruce Woodbury, ran the signal, and went into the casino.

View Edgwater Accident in a larger map

I’m guessing about one third to one half of the casino was cordoned off and this black curtain was quickly installed to block the view of the accident.

Another view of the entrance area with cones marking the supposed path of the car.

In any case, this was a real tragedy. I feel terrible for the families of the victims, the injured, and the driver. There isn’t much that can be done to prevent these types of accidents. Police are thinking it was a medical issue with the driver and have charged him with felony reckless driving. I wonder if that charge is to keep in custody while the investigation continues. I think that is reasonable.

A long-shot scenario is that it was a sudden acceleration problem. That could be a accelerator/ brake confusion problem. Also, the Vibe is a Toyota-GM joint venture car. I’m sure investigators will look at the possibility of a stuck or malfunctioning accelerator pedal.

I’m not terribly scared or upset by the fact that I was rather close to the accident. These things happen, and I know the world can be a uncaring and dangerous place (heck, I was frightened by an avalanche I witnessed last weekend).

I’m glad I kissed my kids this morning. And it is a very good reminder that I need to get my ex-wife off of one of my insurance policies!

I’m loving this NASA image of a frozen, snow covered Britain and seeing a lot of it online. A town in Scotland reported a record low of -8°F and the country is running low on road salt (link). But at least Ireland looks green!

Storm total in Syzdekistan was 0.45 inches. The Flood Control District gauge at Rainbow and Oakey is close to my house and recorded
0.35 inches so I wonder if my gauge needs to be mounted a little higher on the fence post. It could be that large raindrops hitting the top of the post are splashing into the gauge causing it read high. I’ll check it against my electronic gauge later.

Or maybe I just got a little more rain.

This morning the puddles had skins of ice and the mountains around the valley are covered in snow. I love this time of year.

640 am PM PST Tue Dec 8 2009

… First widespread precipitation event of the cold season…

An area of low pressure moved southward across California and into Nevada on Monday bringing the first widespread precipitation event of the 2009-2010 cold season to the Mojave Desert and southern Great Basin. Precipitation fell as all snow over the higher elevations. In the lower elevations… precipitation fell as all rain in most of the Mojave Desert while over the southern Great Basin fell mostly as snow.

Many locations saw their wettest day since the monsoon season and in some instances since the last major wet cold season storm in February.

… Las Vegas Valley…

Widespread rain fell across the Las Vegas Valley Monday afternoon and evening before tapering off. Isolated showers fell in the valley shortly after midnight. This was the most rain to fall in the valley since thunderstorms brought rain to parts of the valley back in early September. In some cases the rain that fell this evening was the most since June or July since the thunderstorm event on September 4th primarily affected the southwest part of the Las Vegas Valley.

At McCarran International Airport…

Total rainfall Monday… 0.28 inch
total rainfall so far this year… 1.58 inches

Last time at least a tenth (0.10) of an inch of precipitation fell at this location… July 20th when 0.24 inch of rain fell

Wettest days this year so far…
1. February 7th… 0.58 inch
2. December 7th… 0.28 inch +++
3. July 20th… 0.24 inch
4. June 24th… 0.10 inch
5. February 9th… 0.08 inch

Some other rainfall totals from across the Las Vegas Valley…

Henderson – Wagon Wheel… … … 0.90 inch
Vandenburg basin – NE valley… .0.79 inch
east Henderson… … … … … … 0.67 inch
North Valley #2 ccfcd gauge… ..0.59 inch
range wash at Las Vegas Blvd… .0.59 inch
Tule Springs State Park… … … 0.59 inch
Summerlin north… … … … … ..0.54 inch
Craig & Decatur – nlv… … … ..0.52 inch
west aliante… … … … … … ..0.48 inch
Centennial hills… … … … … .0.47 inch
North Las Vegas Airport… … … 0.46 inch
downtown Las Vegas… … … … ..0.39 inch
Rainbow and oakey… … … … … 0.35 inch
mountains edge… … … … … … 0.32 inch
NWS Las Vegas office… … … … 0.32 inch
the lakes… … … … … … … ..0.31 inch
anthem… … … … … … … … ..0.28 inch
Nellis Air Force base… … … ..0.26 inch
Henderson Executive Airport… ..0.24 inch
Pittman wash at wigwam… … … .0.24 inch
Rhodes ranch… … … … … … ..0.18 inch

… Elsewhere…

… Southern Nevada…

… Clark County…
Rainbow Canyon snotel… … … ..2.10 inch
bristlecone Pine trail snotel… 1.00 inch
Laughlin – spotter… … … … ..0.88 inch
Boulder City – cemp site… … ..0.54 inch
Mesquite – cemp site… … … … 0.46 inch
Bunkerville – spotter… … … ..0.42 inch
calnevari – mesonet site… … ..0.39 inch
Overton – cemp site… … … … .0.38 inch

… Central and southern Nye County…
Pahrump – cemp site… … … … .0.25 inch *
Beatty – cemp site… … … … ..0.17 inch
desert rock Airport… … … … .0.07 inch
Amargosa Valley – cemp site… ..0.06 inch

… Southeast California…

… Inyo County…
Shoshone – cemp site… … … … 0.33 inch

… San Bernardino County deserts…
Morongo Valley north co-op… … 1.20 inch
Joshua Tree mesonet… … … … .0.94 inch
Yucca Valley mesonet… … … … 0.86 inch
Needles Airport… … … … … ..0.70 inch
Landers mesonet… … … … … ..0.65 inch
Trona co-op… … … … … … … 0.58 inch
squaw Springs RAWS… … … … ..0.54 inch
Twentynine Palms mcas… … … ..0.43 inch
Opal Mountain RAWS… … … … ..0.33 inch
Barstow-Daggett Airport… … … 0.20 inch
Mojave River Sink mesonet… … .0.11 inch

… Northwest Arizona…

… Mohave County…
Cedar Hills M.C. Mesonet… … ..3.62 inch
Gold Road crest M.C. Mesonet… .2.80 inch
pinion pines M.C. Mesonet… … .2.28 inch
Cedar Hills mesonet… … … … .1.89 inch
Willow Spring M.C. Mesonet… … 1.81 inch
Wikieup M.C. Mesonet… … … … 1.70 inch
Bull Mountain M.C. Mesonet… … 1.54 inch
Mineral Park M.C. Mesonet… … .1.46 inch
Cave Spring M.C. Mesonet… … ..1.42 inch
Wikieup mesonet… … … … … ..1.25 inch
Union Pass RAWS… … … … … ..1.20 inch
Coyote Pass M.C. Mesonet… … ..1.19 inch
Golden Valley M.C. Mesonet… … 1.18 inch
Bullhead City M.C. Mesonet… … 0.99 inch
Olaf Knolls RAWS… … … … … .0.95 inch
Mohave Valley – spotter… … … 0.90 inch
Beaver Dam co-op… … … … … .0.68 inch
havasu RAWS… … … … … … … 0.55 inch
Kingman Airport… … … … … ..0.53 Inch
Lake Havasu City co-op… … … .0.35 Inch
Lake Mead city M.C. Mesonet… ..0.28 inch

* indicates Guage likely froze and not all precipitation was
measured.

I really enjoyed a nice rainy day today. I recorded 0.42 inches of rain here in Syzdekistan and got to spend a couple of hours doing field work in the rain. Since I was doing aquatic invertebrate sampling, my bottom half wearing waders was (mostly) dry but my top half got drenched. With temperatures in the upper 40s, it was a bit chilly and changing into warm, dry clothes and blasting the heater for the hour long drive home was nice.

This is the first stratiform (non-thunderstorm or showery) rain since early February and hopefully the Colorado river basin will get lots of wet, deep snow this winter to help recharge our aquifers and reservoirs. Tomorrow, the mountains will be covered with snow and I can’t wait to see it. Tomorrow and Wednesday should be chilly and sunny and then two more storms should swing through and make the next few days after that quite rainy. Our annual Christmas tree trip on Saturday may be very snowy this year.

The National Weather Service forecast for tomorrow includes a 70% chance of rain, highs in the 40s and snow mixed with rain and snow levels down to 2500 feet tomorrow night with light accumulations possible.

If any of those things happen, I will be happy. For Syzdekistan, our last heavy rain was in February when we got 1.27 inches of rain (mostly on the 7th (0.88 inches) and the 16th (0.26). Our last measurable rain was on September 4 with 0.02 inches. The good folks at Accuweather are predicting a 0.79 inch rain event on Monday which is a downgrade from roughly 1.3 inch range they were predicting for the last few days. I’ve been enjoying the nippy days with highs in the 40s and always get excited to see snowflakes in the air. We had a couple of snow events last December (and even in April 2009) including one that closed the schools (The Snowpocolypse), so it’s not too exciting but I always enjoy hearing everyone freak that there are snowflakes in Vegas. It happens every year.

Of course, working outside on an aquatic invertebrate project will probably be a little unpleasant but it will make for some good stories later.

Caroline, we had a great year this year. You are an amazing young woman that brings joy to everyone you meet.

We went sledding. Several times.

You have an amazing smile.

You had not one, but two broken arms this year. They never slowed you down and you were the best patient (also, I am thankful that both your broken arms and your brother’s were not on my watch!)

Yes, we went caving. You loved it.

You performed in Alice in Wonderland.

You had a lot of fun times with your dad.

You learned to swim.

You went on your first camping trip and had a great time in the mountains.

You won your first game of air hockey.

You love the outdoors as much as I do.

It’s 63° and you have a new dress. It would be crazy not to go swimming.

You started kindergarten and love it.

You loved the Iron County Fair in Utah.

You also like good food such as Wolfgang Puck.

You lost a bunch a teeth and grew some new ones.

You are a great big sister to Andrew.

Thanks for being such a great daughter!

I can’t remember the last time I voted for a Republican. I know I have in the past but it has probably been 5 or 10 years. In each election I carefully look at all the candidates and read their statements, websites, and I look at various organizations that I trust for their endorsements.

I look for candidates whose values match my values. And for the past several elections, the Republican candidates on my ballots seem to be getting more divergent from my values. Although on many topics, I lean towards the ideals of Democratic candidates, on several topics I lean conservative (for example, I support nuclear power, a strong military, free trade, and a flat tax).

I agree with Andrew Sullivan, who, in his blog, lists 12 reasons why he cannot support most current Republican candidates (thanks to Louis for pointing out this article):

I cannot support a movement that claims to believe in limited government but backed an unlimited domestic and foreign policy presidency that assumed illegal, extra-constitutional dictatorial powers until forced by the system to return to the rule of law.
I cannot support a movement that exploded spending and borrowing and blames its successor for the debt.
I cannot support a movement that so abandoned government’s minimal and vital role to police markets and address natural disasters that it gave us Katrina and the financial meltdown of 2008.
I cannot support a movement that holds torture as a core value.
I cannot support a movement that holds that purely religious doctrine should govern civil political decisions and that uses the sacredness of religious faith for the pursuit of worldly power.
I cannot support a movement that is deeply homophobic, cynically deploys fear of homosexuals to win votes, and gives off such a racist vibe that its share of the minority vote remains pitiful.
I cannot support a movement which has no real respect for the institutions of government and is prepared to use any tactic and any means to fight political warfare rather than conduct a political conversation.
I cannot support a movement that sees permanent war as compatible with liberal democratic norms and limited government.
I cannot support a movement that criminalizes private behavior in the war on drugs.
I cannot support a movement that would back a vice-presidential candidate manifestly unqualified and duplicitous because of identity politics and electoral cynicism.
I cannot support a movement that regards gay people as threats to their own families.
I cannot support a movement that does not accept evolution as a fact.
I cannot support a movement that sees climate change as a hoax and offers domestic oil exploration as the core plank of an energy policy.
I cannot support a movement that refuses ever to raise taxes, while proposing no meaningful reductions in government spending.
I cannot support a movement that refuses to distance itself from a demagogue like Rush Limbaugh or a nutjob like Glenn Beck.
I cannot support a movement that believes that the United States should be the sole global power, should sustain a permanent war machine to police the entire planet, and sees violence as the core tool for international relations.

Tonight I listened to President Obama’s speech to the cadets at West Point. In general, I was very pleased to hear that he is planning on increasing our effort in that country to go after terrorist organization Al Qaeda and the Taliban who support them. I agree that our efforts in Afghanistan have been adversely affected by our mistaken focus on Iraq. I think we took our eye off the ball by going into Iraq and it ended up being a huge and costly distraction from getting the terrorists that attacked us in 2001. I agree that we need to work closely with the Pakistanis on their side of the border to avoid giving Al Qaeda and the Taliban a refuge.

The one problem I had with the speech was the plan to begin returning troops in 18 months during Summer of 2011. I’m concerned that is not enough time to get the Afghan troops on their feet. Hopefully, his following statement indicates we go longer in needed (emphasis mine, link):

But taken together, these additional American and international troops will allow us to accelerate handing over responsibility to Afghan forces, and allow us to begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011.  Just as we have done in Iraq, we will execute this transition responsibly, taking into account conditions on the ground.  We’ll continue to advise and assist Afghanistan’s security forces to ensure that they can succeed over the long haul.  But it will be clear to the Afghan government — and, more importantly, to the Afghan people — that they will ultimately be responsible for their own country. 

I hope this indicates that the troops will come home only after Al Qaeda and the Taliban are run into the ground. I’m sure some people will complain that the troops aren’t coming home yet and others will predictably attack the President for taking too long to decide or having a plan for withdrawal but this war has been going on for eight years. This war is older than both my kids. We need to get serious, go after the enemy, and finish them off.