Do you need to be a little bit crazy to be a volcanologist? I used to show a video to my Geography / Earth Science classes that featured a French couple named Katia and Maurice Krafft. As he talked about what it is like to work on an active volcano, Maurice described the chaotic environment […]
It has been a while since we did a quiz to shake up the old grey matter, and thanks to our friends at AARP magazine, we have another fun one to share. We tacked on a few questions with local appeal and (as we have done in the past), the answers begin near the […]
We begin this month’s observations with a term that was unfamiliar to me. Maybe it has just slipped my mind as it only takes place every 18.6 years, but the event is known as ‘lunistice’ (also called a ‘lunar standstill’). Lunistice is kind of like a ‘solstice’ only it involves the Moon and not the […]
When the St. Lawrence Seaway was constructed in the 1950s, it opened a whole new era of commerce stretching from the Atlantic coast all the way to Duluth, Minnesota. It also rolled out the red carpet for a host of invasive species. Some (like the sea lamprey) were already here by then while others […]
From the Vaults: First Heard In August of 2025, I was reading an interesting article by ‘Metal’ Tim Henderson. He was interviewing Dave Meniketti from the band Y&T when the subject of Ozzy Osbourne’s last performance with Black Sabbath came up. Meniketti told Henderson he missed the big show in Birmingham on July 5, […]
One of my favorite Steve Earl songs is Copperhead Road. If I had an ounce of song writing ability in me, I would put the Earl touch on a tune called Papin Road, but I don’t. Everytime I drive down that stretch of gravel road, Earl’s song pops into my head. That name no […]
In the late spring of 2025, we ordered the last pieces of our puzzle. The ‘puzzle’ was our four year quest to obtain a new frequency (91.5 FM) for WOAS-FM and the equipment we would need to go forward. Losing the old frequency had been quite a shocking surprise back in 2021. In the […]
“Don’t Make Promises You Can’t Keep,” was written by Tim Harden and it became one of Gary Puckett and the Union Gap’s many hits. Technically, it was the B-side of Woman Woman, but it was still a great song and ended up on their Greatest Hits LP. The title is also a line I […]
In the summer of 2025, we said ‘good bye’ to a Monarch. No, not the royal kind. I am talking about our trusty Monarch wood burning furnace. They discontinued making these amazing units some time ago, but we were blessed to have had such a reliable workhorse of a heating unit for 46 winters. Perhaps […]
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers enjoyed the ride of a lifetime. There are only so many rock ‘n’ roll bands that can ascend into the rarified air of stardom as they did over their 41 year run. It all came to a screeching halt when Petty died in 2017 thus ending the long term partnership […]