OMW to Port Townsend

Mom has taken a serious turn downhill and I'm needed at home ASAP.  On the KLM nonstop tomorrow, will be in Port Townsend 2-4 weeks.

Vantastic

Robin Van Persie was on fire at Stamford Bridge as he scored 3 of Arsenal's 5 goals while the Gunners drubbed Chelsea on their own ground. First time Chelsea has given up 5 goals at Stamford Bridge since '89.

CAR2GO

New electric car-sharing program in Amsterdam with electric Smart cars.  13 euros an hour, 40 euros a day ... free parking in the city.

No that isn't the parking lot! Just a promotion in Dam Square this week.

Japan's next big export: tsunami junk

Interesting news from the New Zealand Herald

Up to 20 million tonnes of tsunami debris floating from Japan could arrive on Hawaii's shores by early 2013, before reaching the West Coast of the United States, according to estimates by University of Hawaii scientists.

A Russian training ship spotted the junk including a refrigerator, a television set and other appliances in an area of the Pacific Ocean where the scientists from the university's International Pacific Research Center predicted it would be.
The biggest proof that the debris is from the Japanese tsunami is a fishing boat that's been raced to the Fukushima Prefecture, the area hardest hit by the March 11 disaster.

Jan Hafner, a scientific computer programmer, told The Associated Press that researchers' projections show the debris would reach the coasts of Oregon, Washington, Alaska and Canada around 2014.

They estimate the debris field is spread out across an area that's roughly 3,200 kilometers long and 1,600 kilometers wide located between Japan and Midway Atoll, where pieces could wash up in January.

West Seattle, Elliot Bay, Port of Seattle

View of the bay and my former neighborhood of West Seattle across the bay, from my hotel room on Saturday night before returning to Europe:

Billions and Billions

As The Guardian reports, the U.N. now believes over 7 billion human beings are on this rock, and we're on our way to 9 billion before 2050.  Barely 60 years ago, there were less than 3 billion people here.

Better start saving some canned goods.

Views From Mom's House

Typical winter weather in Port Townsend ... grey morning, blue skies by afternoon.