2013 Mid-year update. So, what is new. Not a lot.
Weather has been weird. In February, the ground-hog said it would be an early Spring, but he was totally wrong. We had a late Spring. Did not get warm until well into April. Had a nice short Spring and our cherry trees were in full bloom for well over two weeks(the longest I can remember).
The weather than got like summer in late May and thru a lot of June. Can’t wait to see what summer is going to be like?
In sports, there has been more disappointment, which is typical for the Washington area. First, the Washington Capitals played great in the short strike season, but then again failed in the playoffs. The Washington Wizards, keep teasing us with big wins then big losses, and still did not make the playoffs.
Baseball, which was suppose to be "the season", has not been good so far. The Washington Nationals win one then lose one, and do not look like a World Series contender at all. Still over a half season left, but they need to start stringing some wins together if they are to even make the play-offs.
Everything else is good, so that makes life good. And that is all that really counts, right?
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Happy New Year and 2012 Review
It's a New Year and been a while since I posted. Where to begin? Well, first, the world did noit come to an end on 12/21/2012 as a lot thought it would. So, that is great news!!!
Just to re-cap a few other things the past year. Last year(2012) was the warmest year, ever, in the US. And 2013 is starting off that way, also. Global Warming? I think so.
In music, which is a big part of my life, nothing much new. CD sales are continuing to decline and more people are "buying" their music on-line and playing thru "the cloud". For me, I still like to see and hold my music. I still play music thru "the cloud", but I continue to buy CDs and even an occasional vinyl recording, and I hope those avenues do not go away.
In sports, the Washington DC area has not been a good place for sports recently. Until last year, when the Washington Nationals baseball team finally started winning and made it to the playoffs. With two outstanding drafts of Steven Strasburg and then Bryce Harper, things are really looking good for the Nat's baseball team. And the Redskins, also with a great draft in quarterback RG III, are looking like a team that may be back in the playoffs on a regular basis. But, the Washington Wizzards basketball team has not made the same progress eventhough they had a great draft with John Wall, who has been hurt too much to help this team. Maybe their fortunes will turn with another good draft this year. The Washington Capitals are just starting their season(after a long hockey strike), so will have to see how they do. They have been good the past few years, but not good enough to win anything.
In college sports, the Maryland Terps have been bad in football and not good in basketball. With new coaches in both sports, it is still a "wait and see", althought the basketball team looks like it may have turned the corner and are on the way up, whereas the football team may not have reached bottom. With Maryland leaving the ACC and going to the Big 10 in 2014, overall I feel it was a great move and will help the University of Maryland in the long run.
Well, that kind of summarizes what has been going on the past year. Maybe I can do more frequent posting, but on the otherhand, maybe not. Wait and see.
Just to re-cap a few other things the past year. Last year(2012) was the warmest year, ever, in the US. And 2013 is starting off that way, also. Global Warming? I think so.
In music, which is a big part of my life, nothing much new. CD sales are continuing to decline and more people are "buying" their music on-line and playing thru "the cloud". For me, I still like to see and hold my music. I still play music thru "the cloud", but I continue to buy CDs and even an occasional vinyl recording, and I hope those avenues do not go away.
In sports, the Washington DC area has not been a good place for sports recently. Until last year, when the Washington Nationals baseball team finally started winning and made it to the playoffs. With two outstanding drafts of Steven Strasburg and then Bryce Harper, things are really looking good for the Nat's baseball team. And the Redskins, also with a great draft in quarterback RG III, are looking like a team that may be back in the playoffs on a regular basis. But, the Washington Wizzards basketball team has not made the same progress eventhough they had a great draft with John Wall, who has been hurt too much to help this team. Maybe their fortunes will turn with another good draft this year. The Washington Capitals are just starting their season(after a long hockey strike), so will have to see how they do. They have been good the past few years, but not good enough to win anything.
In college sports, the Maryland Terps have been bad in football and not good in basketball. With new coaches in both sports, it is still a "wait and see", althought the basketball team looks like it may have turned the corner and are on the way up, whereas the football team may not have reached bottom. With Maryland leaving the ACC and going to the Big 10 in 2014, overall I feel it was a great move and will help the University of Maryland in the long run.
Well, that kind of summarizes what has been going on the past year. Maybe I can do more frequent posting, but on the otherhand, maybe not. Wait and see.
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Washington Area Counties Weathiest in U.S.
The Washington region dominates the latest list of highest income U.S. counties. New 2011 data from the Census Bureau show that Loudon and Fairfax counties held on in the top two spots, while Arlington moved into third place, up from fifth the year before. Even better, Prince William rose from ninth to seventh on the list, and Alexandria jumped from 39th to 26th.
Here are the Top Ten weathiest counties in America.
1 Loudoun VA 119,134
2 Fairfax VA 105,797
3 Arlington VA 100,735
4 Hunterdon NJ 99,099
5 Howard MD 98,953
6 Somerset NJ 96,360
7 Prince William VA 95,146
8 Fauquier VA 93,762
9 Douglas CO 93,573
10 Montgomery MD 92,909
Here’s the list of the Top 100 wealthiest counties in America.
Saturday, February 04, 2012
Top Albums of 2011
Top Albums of 2011
1) 21 - Adele
2) Bon Iver, Bon Iver - Bon Iver
3) Born This Way - Lady Gaga
4) Barton Hollow - The Civil Wars
5) King of Limbs - Radiohead
6) Father, Son, Holy Ghost - Girls
7) Circuital - My Morning Jacket
8) Ceremonials - Florence and the Machine
9) Wasting Light - Foo Fighters
10) Any Man in America - Blue October
11) The King is Dead - The Decemberists
12) The Whole Love - Wilco
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Virginia Best Value Colleges
January 3, 2012 — The University of Virginia retained its No. 3 ranking for the sixth time in seven years in the "100 Best Values in Public Colleges" list, released today by Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine.
"As states cut funding for higher education and tuition continues to climb, the word 'value' becomes more significant than ever," said Jane Bennett Clark, senior editor at Kiplinger's Personal Finance. "This year’s top 100 public schools deliver strong academics at reasonable prices. We applaud these institutions for tightening their belts without compromising quality."
According to its press release, Kiplinger's assesses quality and affordability based on a number of measurable standards. This year, rankings were revamped to give more weight to academic value, such as the percentage of students who return for sophomore year and the four-year graduation rate. Cost criteria include low sticker prices, abundant financial aid and low average debt at graduation.
The article says of U.Va.: "This elite institution not only has a competitive admission rate (33 percent), but also the highest graduation rate. And it stands out for its generous financial aid: U.Va. is one of the two schools in our rankings that meet the full financial need of enrolled students (the other is the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill). Students who qualify for need-based aid pay an average annual cost of only $5,138."
For out-of-state students, U.Va. remained the No. 5 best value among public colleges and universities.
UNC at Chapel Hill was ranked first overall for the 11th straight year, followed by the University of Florida and U.Va. The College of William & Mary retained its No. 4 ranking. Rounding out the top 10: New College of Florida; University of Georgia; University of California, Berkeley; University of Maryland, College Park; University of California, Los Angeles; and the University of California, San Diego.
Other Virginia universities ranked in the top 100 were James Madison University, No. 28; Virginia Tech, No. 32; University of Mary Washington, No. 44; George Mason University, No. 50; and Christopher Newport University, No. 94.
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Monday, October 31, 2011
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