adventurous dreams + the future of energy[again]

It is that time again...
Every once in a while I feel a deep and unquenchable craving for an adventurous outing into the realm of the outdoors for the purpose of retrieving some primary material for my industrious activity of choice: photography. That material which I speak of is none other than raw pictures, ready to hatch their JPG or RAW shells and develop into saturated contrasty coloured works of art.

Alright alright, enough poeticness. I crave to go out photoshooting and I melancholically remember past photoshooting trips that I have been on in the past year and am trying to decide which location to re-visit, or whether to attempt something more bold and to discover some new locations. Available companionship for such an endeavour is also scarce these days *sigh* so the outlook seems kindof bleak at times. But I shall not lose hope, instead I will take the time to share some memories and ideas below.

Hilton Falls, Ontario.
An hour hike through a maze of trails takes you to the waterfall. Nothing earth shakingly mindblowingly breathtaking; but definitely a place worth the hike on a hot summer day. The lookout point offers firewood for those craving a barbecue, and the water is always fresh and cool, ideal for a refreshing sprinkle.

The green fields at the old garbage dump by the Hydro Trail in West Kitchener (end of University avenue).
The fields are green and photogenic (in summer) and the trail that leads through the woods is long, adventurous and filled with thirsty, dying to bite you, mosquitoes. If you are dying to give blood and the walk-in-clinic is already closed for the day, don't panic, just take a bike down there and you'll be guaranteed satisfied!

Westfield Heritage Village, Ontario.
A far hike, but only a moderately far drive from Kitchener. If you take Homer Watson Boulevard down and out of Kitchener and make a right turn on Blair Road at the roundabout just when you enter the city of Cambridge, then you're definitely taking the scenic route. Follow the road to downtown Cambridge, then down Main street to HWY8 and make a right turn on that heading East towards Dundas. Eventually there will be a road turning left (552 - Kirkwal St.), that will take you to Westfield. The place is full of a magic that can not be explained easily. Try watching the movie "The Village" and you'll want to visit this place for sure!

Elora Gorge in Elora town, Ontario.
In Elora, there is a stairway that leads down to the river. It is steep and it goes down deep, but the sightseeing is worth the trip (the trip back up that is when you return). Just look for the old mill and follow the river shore looking for the stairway down. The river is never too deep and if you know to keep your balance you can cross it and find your way down it. There are plenty of these little caves around to explore, plenty stony cliff-sides to climb and definitely many landscapes to photograph.

Webster's Falls, at Spencer Gorge, West Flamborough, Ontario.
Webster's falls is located on the Niagara escarpment, near Tew's Falls on the Bruce Trail. The hike is pleasant and filled with many lookout points. There is also a cliff of considerable size which can be reached by one who not necesarily is a great climber, but one who is not afraid to get a little earth on his/her pants. Great panorama opportunities there for sure.

Tew's Falls, by Webster's Falls at Spencer Gorge, West Flamborough, Ontario.
A nice height and walkable, yes even in winter, and yes it is indeed a miracle that I am still alive.

The Future of Energy[Again]

The original article is from the Official Google BLOG. I am posting this because I not only find the topic to be interesting and relevant to my own philosophy, but I believe it is a topic that affects all of us, since we all share the planet and its future.
Original link: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/back-to-energy-future.html

1/21/2009 03:36:00 PM
In 1979 President Jimmy Carter installed 32 solar hot water panels on the roof of the White House. Recently a Googler from our Washington D.C. office asked the question, "What ever happened to the Carter panels?" After a little digging, we were able to track down the original panels to Unity College, an environmental college in Maine, and bring one of them back to Washington D.C.

So what ever happened to the panels? It turns out that during President Reagan's administration the solar hot water panels were removed from the White House in 1986 and placed in storage. In 1992, Unity College located the panels and transferred them from a General Services Administration warehouse to their campus in Maine. After restoration,16 panels provided their cafeteria with hot water for the next 12 years. In cooperation with Unity College, Google was able to bring one of these panels down to our Washington DC office for display throughout the next year.

At the panels' dedication in 1979, Jimmy Carter stated:

"This dependence on foreign sources of oil is of great concern to all of us. In the year 2000, this solar water heater behind me, which is being dedicated today, will still be here supplying cheap, efficient energy. A generation from now, this solar heater can either be a curiosity, a museum piece, an example of a road not taken, or it can be just a small part of one of the greatest and most exciting adventures ever undertaken by the American people." (To watch video of the dedication, check out this trailer for a movie about the panels) here: http://www.roadnottaken.info/ .

As we welcome our new U.S. president to office this week, we wanted to share this piece of this history with you. Google is committed to a clean energy future and we hope that you will join us in supporting the creation and adoption of renewable energy technology — what could still be one of the greatest and most exciting adventures for all of us.