Sunday, December 18, 2016

Winter Wonderland

Mount Everest, also known in Nepal as Sagarmāthā and in China as Chomolungma, is Earth's highest mountain. Its peak is 29,029 feet above sea level. Mount Everest is located in the Mahalangur mountain range in Nepal.


Death Valley National Park comprises more than 3.3 million acres of spectacular desert scenery, rare desert wildlife, complex geology, undisturbed wilderness and sites of historical interest. Death Valley is unique because it contains the lowest, hottest, driest location in North America. Nearly 550 square miles of its area lie below sea level. Ecologically, its plants and animals are representative of the Mojave Desert.
Death Valley is one of the hottest places on earth, attaining the highest temperature ever recorded, 134 degrees F. in 1913. It contains the lowest point in the western hemisphere -- 282 feet below sea level near Badwater -- as well as numerous high-rising mountain peaks, including Telescope Peak at over 11,000 feet. Death Valley was named by gold-seekers, some of whom died crossing the valley during the 1849 California gold rush.


If you are looking for an amazing place to visit this holiday season, The Winter Village at Bryant Park will do the trick. You can click here to see a live webcam of the Winter Village. Bryant Park is in the heart of Manhattan, an amazing place anytime of the year - but especially during the holidays.

The Rink is the centerpiece of Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park. The 170' x 100' rink features free admission ice skating, in addition to high quality rental skates, skating shows, special events, and activities. Whether you are looking to skate before going to the office, with family on weekends, or for a spin under the stars at a holiday party, Winter Village is the perfect destination.


Members of the NYDLA.org gathered at Bryant Park this past Friday for a holiday celebration. Many of NYDLA's vendors and sponsors had “pop up” stores in the Winter Village. Holidays in New York are always amazing, but the Winter Village at Bryant Park is really something special. The lines were long to check out Facebook's Virtual Reality. NYDLA members has special "front of the line" passes. 

Via VR, there were "virtual tours" of amazing destinations around the world - including Mt. Everest and Death Valley.








The next day, one homeless man shot and killed another early Saturday morning near Bryant Park. Terrance Walker, 27, was gunned down at about 2:20 a.m. at the busy corner of West 40th Street and Sixth Avenue in Midtown. Walker and another man argued as they left a nearby subway station. It was unclear late Saturday why the men feuded.



This was the scene early Saturday morning at the corner of West 40th St. and 6th Avenue. It was grim. Someone pulled a .38-caliber handgun and fired four shots. One bullet struck Walker in the chest. He collapsed to the pavement. Walker was declared dead at the scene. His attacker was last seen fleeing west on West 40th Street. The gunman was still on the lam late Saturday. He is described as 6 feet tall and about 190 pounds, and was wearing a black leather jacket over a blue hoodie. Police are confident security cameras will give them a glimpse of the suspect. “You’re by Bryant Park. Everything is on video. You’re gonna get caught,” a police source said. 

Later yesterday afternoon, as the park brimmed with shoppers perusing the annual Winter Village pop-up shops, some visitors were shocked a fatal shooting occurred just across the street, just a few hours ago. 

New York City during the holidays. Whether you visit in-person or via Virtual Reality - there is no place like it on earth.
I always wondered what it would fee like to go from Mt. Everest to Death Valley in less than 24 hours, virtually or otherwise. 

Real life or virtual reality, life is short. Every magical moment is precious.

Sunday, December 4, 2016

Tree envy



Today we killed a tree and then we dragged it into the house. And I was an accomplice.

There are few debates more lively and spirited than that age old argument about which type of Christmas tree is “better”: real trees, or artificial trees. Ever since the first feather Christmas trees were developed in the late 19th century, a serious divide has developed between those who swear by real Christmas trees, and those who prefer artificial trees. These debates have produced a number of untruths about both types of trees that are still widely believed, and make it more difficult for families to make an informed decision about what type of Christmas tree is best for them.

Coming off the recent election, I felt the need to get the facts. The “true facts” as they say in Washington, D.C.  So, via the power of “the Google” here are the facts. The true facts.

ARE REAL CHRISTMAS TREES CUT DOWN FROM FORESTS?
A small number of wild trees are cut down and used as Christmas trees. However, this type of removal is strictly regulated by the U.S. Forest Service, which limits the number of trees that can be removed. The remainder of such trees are cut down on private land by individuals who prefer to cut down their own Christmas trees.

The majority of Christmas trees are grown on farms (much like any other crop) specifically for the purpose of being harvested for Christmas trees. These trees wouldn’t exist in the first place, if it wasn’t for the public demand for Christmas trees.

ARE ARTIFICIAL CHRISTMAS TREES HARMFUL TO THE ENVIRONMENT? DO THEY CONTRIBUTE TO GLOBAL WARMING?
A consulting company that studies environmental sustainability in numerous industries, did an analysis of the environmental impact of artificial Christmas trees, versus real trees. The study found that, depending on how a real tree is disposed of, an artificial tree would only have to be used for more than 4 years before there was a net benefit with regard to contribution to global warming. This means that if a household uses an artificial tree for at least 4 years, its carbon footprint will be smaller than that of a household that purchases a real tree every year.
In addition, the study found that with both real and artificial trees, no matter how they were ultimately disposed of, Christmas trees accounted for less than 0.1% of the average person’s annual carbon footprint. So, the environmental impact is negligible, and can easily be offset by other lifestyle changes, such as driving less, recycling more regularly, purchasing items that use less packaging, etc.

DO REAL CHRISTMAS TREES TRIGGER ALLERGIES?
Plant-related allergies are typically triggered by the pollen produced by such plants. This is why spring is often referred to as “allergy season,” as the burst of warm weather in April and May triggers the reproduction cycle in many plant species, including tree species commonly used as Christmas trees. But by late November and early December, when such trees are harvested, pollen production has long since ceased. This means that most people with pollen allergies will not be bothered by real trees, except for those are sensitive enough to be bothered by trace amounts.

However, real trees can carry dust, as well as molds and fungi. The best way to deal with this is by cleaning the tree before you bring it into your home. Use your garden hose to spray down the tree, and then leave the tree somewhere warm to dry for about 24 hours. Once it’s dry, then you can bring it into your home. As an added precaution, you can try running an air purifier in the room where the tree is located. { Sounds like…….work }

Additionally, there is a very small percentage of the population that is allergic to tree sap. In this case, the only solution is to only purchase artificial trees for your home, and avoid close proximity to real Christmas trees. { And yet people will STILL do it!!!! Crazy, right??? }

ARE ARTIFICIAL CHRISTMAS TREES “TRADITIONAL”?
The “real tree” fans look at artificial trees with a cynical eye and consider them to be a sign of the commercialization of Christmas. However, Christmas trees as a whole were a relatively late fad in the United States. This is largely due to the fact that Christmas trees are a largely Germanic tradition, dating back to the 1500s. The tradition remained largely confined to that region for several centuries, until German immigrants brought the tradition with them to America in the 1700s and early 1800s. In fact, the first written records of Christmas trees being used in the United States date back to the 1740s, when the children of German settlers in Pennsylvania decorated wooden pyramids with evergreen branches and affixed candles to the branches. So: the first Christmas trees in America were in fact artificial.

Christmas trees actually didn’t gain notoriety outside of German households until the 1830s, when Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, both of German descent, brought the tradition of the Christmas tree to Windsor Castle in the 1830s (though this didn’t gain the attention of the public until the late 1840s). It was only after this that the general public’s appetite for Christmas trees took off.

As the old tradition experienced a resurgence in Germany during this time, some started to worry about the potential deforestation of German forests. This led to the development of reusable feather trees, which were made out of dyed goose feathers bound together with wire and attached to a wooden pole. These artificial trees quickly made their way to the United States, and over subsequent decades evolved into the sturdier plastic artificial trees that we know today. { So, the “real” trees are really the fake trees! Wait, what? }


In the end, history shows that both real and artificial trees are deeply rooted in the history of Christmas, both here and abroad. Neither is more “Christmas-y” than the other. Ultimately, it’s up to you to determine what type of tree best suits you and your family’s Christmas traditions. You get to vote on the tree you want in your homes.




Tom, this blog is not like you………. What’s up?

I was born in 1960, so that makes 56 “fake” and/or “real” Christmas Trees in our home in the history of me. We have had both. But at least 80% of the time, they were fake. Store bought trees. Same goes for Presidents of the United States. We have had many Presidents since JFK.

There will be "fake or real" in many homes this Christmas. However the decision was made, however the logic or facts were interpreted, there will be a tree. Real or fake, there shall be a tree!

Emotional decisions, or decisions purely based on facts. Decisions made by tradition (we ALWAYS voted for a fake tree!) or decisions made by calculated analysis (what is the ROI on that fake tree) and is this tree good for our household economy, long term?

This year, for Christmas 2016, I voted to reuse our fake tree. Everyone in the family agreed. Everyone went along with the logic of using our already purchased, perfectly good tree that we invested $100+ many years ago. We had a proven good tree, a tree that we already paid for. It was a safe decision to use our fake store bought tree, just as we did for many years. Christmas is all about tradition, right?

And then, at the last minute, without warning, there we were. At a local farm, cutting down a tree. Just like that, the polls were WRONG!  Everyone predicted a FAKE TREE for Christmas 2016! But we don’t have a fake tree, do we? We have a real tree, right this second, in our living room. All the while we have perfect good tree in the attic.

I find it fascinating how the polls could be so wrong. We were just talking about setting up the tree last night - we were just discussing at dinner going up into the attic to bring down the tree! What caused this drastic change in logic?

OK, it happened. We just came home from killing a tree, and it is now in our living room. I just find it amazing how fast people can change their minds. You simply cannot trust the polls!

Fake trees or real trees. Well, at least we did not go TOTALLY crazy and put up a metal pole in the middle of the living room. That will never catch on, right? People will never be THAT crazy, right? 

People in the USA will never be that nuts, to see something on television and then copy that crazy stupid behavior, right? 

Hello?