We took a road trip on Saturday through parts of western Virginia and over the mountains, to Lost City, West Virgina. Here are a few of the sites along the way.

United States and Ecuadoran agents captured a new submarine prior to it's maiden voyage. It had been designed and built to smuggle tons of illicit drugs.
The Yahoo Newlink is here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100704/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_narco_sub_seized;_ylt=Aj.3ZM1UFUL02O5sbj2DYlas0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNqamxkdTdoBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwNzA0L3VzX25hcmNvX3N1Yl9zZWl6ZWQEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwMzBHBvcwM3BHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNlY3VhZG9yZWFuc2Q-

Airships...intrigue...adventure! Just another day in the life of Crazy Taylor.

When Charles Morgan inherits an Australian town from a distant uncle, he never dreams what it will eventually lead to. Along with his wife, best friend, and brother-in-law, they set out on the adventure of a lifetime that
will shape their children's future.

Taylor Morgan is her father's daughter. Adventurous and obsessed with flying from an early age, she never imagines she'll find herself helping shape the course of WWII for the Allied forces. Can romance fly in the face of war, or will Nazi forces, a determined spy, and disgruntled government wonks ground "Crazy Taylor" and her Circus?

Contains romance, action, airships, and adventure!

Pick up a copy here!

SJ Willing, one of our favorite people and the author of the frame story for Dunvegas, is in trouble. Five years after pancreas surgery that was supposed to fix things, but didn't, his pancreas has shut down completely. With proper medication, he can thrive. Without it, he will die. Soon. The problem is he doesn't have insurance to cover it and the meds cost over $250 a month.

Thirteen Reasons to help SJ

I just got back from BaltiCon 44 and, as usual, my good friend, Anthony Stevens took a bunch of pictures. If you want to see some of the fun, check out this link:
http://mentilucent.net/BaltiCon2010/BaltiCon44.html

There is a new site devoted to anyone interested in creating videos. This includes everything from short book trailers to full-length movies. If you are interested in anything related to independent video production, join the Creative Commons Film Group.

Via: Online Schools

I'm passing this on as I did not want to be the only old fart receiving it.

Actually, it's not a bad thing to be called, as you will see. Old Farts are easy to spot at sporting events; during the playing of the Star Spangled Banner. Old Farts remove their caps and stand at attention and sing without embarrassment. They know the words and believe in them.

Old Farts remember World War II, Perl Harbor , Guadalcanal , Normandy and Hitler. They remember the Atomic Age, the Korean War, The Cold War , the Jet Age and the Moon Landing. They remember the 50 plus Peacekeeping Missions from 1945 to 2005, not to mention Vietnam

If you bump into an Old Fart on the sidewalk he will apologize. If you pass an Old Fart on the street, he will nod or tip his cap to a lady. Old Farts trust strangers and are courtly to women.

Old Farts hold the door for the next person and always, when walking, make certain the lady is on the inside for protection.

Old Farts get embarrassed if someone curses in front of women and children and they don't like any filth or dirty language on TV or in movies.

Old Farts have moral courage and personal integrity. They seldom brag unless it's about their children or grandchildren.

It's the Old Farts who know our great country is protected, not by politician's, but by the young men and women in the military?serving their country.

This country needs Old Farts with their work ethic, sense of responsibility, pride in their country and decent values.

We need them now more than ever.

Thank God for Old Farts!

Pass this on to all the Old Farts you know.

I was taught to respect my elders. It's just getting harder to find them.

My friend and favorite author, Anthony Stevens decided to share some of his vacation photos with us. You can find them here: http://mentilucent.net/FlaVac/Florida_In_January.html
He also wanted me to remind y'all that the first story in his new shifter series is out from Red Rose Publishing. It's called Shifter Born and is a fun read.

A recent find shows that ancient Hebrew was in use four hundred years earlier than previously thought.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100115/sc_livescience/biblepossiblywrittencenturiesearliertextsuggests

A large tomb, believed to be of the 3rd century General Cao, has been excavated in China.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_china_general_s_tomb

Visit Steampunk Empire

What I continually find amazing is the head-in-the-sand attitude I've run into when you mention the topic of Space War. There are a great many, normally intelligent people that pooh-pooh the idea and say "there are laws against it and besides, the UN will never allow it, etc.".
The first nation to establish a permanent base on the moon will be able to dictate whatever they wish to any other nation on Earth. In military terms, it's called "the ultimate high ground". All it takes is a railgun on the lunar surface and nuclear weapons become the dinosaurs of military technology.
It has been whispered in space research circles for the past few years, that if you want to become a lunar colonist, then you had better learn to speak Chinese.
That is why I'm not really surprised at this news announcement.
http://www.dodbuzz.com/2009/11/04/china-declares-space-war-inevitable/