So windy, in fact, that we did indeed lose power for a few hours. Most of the area did at some point. All the trees that needed trimming were quickly identified as they knocked down power lines, and a few power poles that needed more support were also discovered when they fell.
I went to work and got there just as the storm really hit. It was quiet and I got a lot done with no customers to interrupt me. Funny how that works. I also wandered around the building at one point to check that everything was securely closed. The winds made a lot of noise in that old building.
On the way home, lots of traffic lights were out. Note to any drivers who don't know this rule: If a traffic light is out, treat it as a four way stop unless there is a police officer directing traffic. DON'T drive right through. Idiots. *ahem*
Power was on when I got home, but not for long. Just as hubby-Eric announced he was going to warm up some leftovers for lunch, the power went away so he couldn't. We went to get the comics, then, and everything on the shipping list came except Sandwalk Adventures. Rapid reviews later, when I start reading them. It was too dark to read properly most of the afternoon, thanks to the lack of power. Anyway...
On that note, let me introduce another image for you:
Yup, that's my comic shop from the same aerial sweep that I found my house in on terraserver. This picture was taken 12 years ago, so it wasn't really the comic shop then, but it is now.
The shop owner and I were discussing this fact, so I found some information for her (Hi Paige!) on the help section of the website. It says the images "are 1-meter resolution images, meaning the smallest object that can be distinguished is about three feet across. That does not mean, however, that everything three feet long or more can be identified in the photo. For example, it is usually easy to identify a driveway in one of these pictures. If a car is parked in the driveway, you can easily tell what it is. But if a car is parked in the middle of a field, where you would not expect to find it, you might not be able to identify it as an automobile. The ability to identify features increases with the viewer's experience in photographic interpretation-a skill for recognizing objects in images." The help site is truly fascinating, as it explains how the images are altered so they can be used as maps, and explains how the images are taken in the first place (no, not satellite images, these came from planes). Read about it here.
Oh well, this blows my conspiracy theory about Bush's "proof" of arms in Iraq right out of the water. See, I was working from the premise that these images came from a satellite (which is what I believed when I first saw them several years ago), and not a plane. If pictures twelve years old are that good, wouldn't advances in technology mean that the US could basically spy on anything Iraq does? Now, I still believe that the US has spy satellites capable of seeing lots of things, but my basis of camparison was completely wrong, and I'm no longer sure how far satellite tech has advanced. This is a good thing. I'd rather not know how easy it is for eyes in the sky to stare down on us.
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