Moose...taste like chicken?

Today my youngest son, Rob who lives in Alaska, went out on the second day of moose hunting season.  Looking for that large lumbering animal you see all the time in Alaska.  Well, see all the time, except in hunting season!  These creatures are so huge that you wonder how they are able to negotiate thick wooded areas. 

You will be driving down the highway when all of a sudden a moose will appear on the side of the road, seemingly from nowhere!  It may mosey across the road in front of you, or turn and walk back into the woods, and promptly vanish!  How do they get those racks around the trees?  The fact of the matter is, I haven't the foggiest idea.  They are an enigma to me; almost like UFOs at Area 51. 

But, wait a minute, moose are known to walk down the center of town in Alaska.  As if they didn't have a care in the world.  I saw one hanging out between townhouses right on base at Ft. Greely. How about grazing on the front lawn at the Administration Complex.  However, when moose hunting season is in play; you have to head for the bush country and hunt them down!  So, that is what Rob had to do this morning, seek out and hunt the moose down.

Being a proud parent, and wanting to give support to my son, I proudly posted the picture on my facebook page.  One, to let everyone know of his achievement, and two 'cause I thought it was pretty exciting.  Several posts from friends and family to congratulate him...but, one very interesting question.  "What does moose taste like?" 

Whenever someone asks that question about wild game, you know they have an idea that it tastes awful in their world.  Been there myself a few times.  So, my answer was the same one all parents use to tell kids when they ask this food question, "Taste like chicken!"  Oh, the power of persuasion! 

By the way...it taste like beef.  Unless, someone tells you it is moose, then you try to convince yourself that it taste like chicken!  The mind is a terrible thing to waste.  So too, is a great moose roast.

Congratulations Rob!!!

The New Office Status Symbol - A Standing Desk!

Jim Carlton/The Wall Street Journal

 

Facebook employees Kristen Dallara and Greg Hoy 

Facebook employees Kristen Dallara and Greg Hoy say they manage to stay more alert by not sitting down all day. Silicon Valley's newest status symbol is a humble piece of furniture.  A growing number of workers at Google Inc., Facebook Inc. and other employers are trading in their sit-down desks for standing ones, saying they feel more comfortable and energized. They also are motivated by medical reports saying that sitting for too long leads to increased health risks.

A standing desk sits high off the floor so a worker can either stand at it or sit on a high stool to use it. Officials at Palo Alto-based Facebook say a number of employees asked about standing desks after news articles were published about the health risks of sitting all day.

CloJim Carlton/The Wall Street Journal

Facebook employee Greg Hoy

The stories cited medical studies that tied excessive sitting to increased obesity and other health problems because of factors including a drop in physical activity. A 2010 study by the American Cancer Society found that women who sat more than six hours a day were 37% more likely to die prematurely than women who sat for less than three hours, while the early-death rate for men was 18% higher. The American College of Cardiology released a study in January that found increased mortality among people who sat longer at home than those who didn't.  No one seems to compile statistics on the standing-desk trend. But anecdotal reports suggest Silicon Valley is embracing the movement.

Facebook officials say they have seen an upsurge in requests for standing desks to five to eight a week with a total of between 200 and 250 deployed at the company of more than 2,000 employees. Facebook also is trying out a treadmill station—where a worker can walk or run on a treadmill while tapping at a computer.

Google spokesman Jordan Newman said that "many employees at Google opt for standing desks, and we offer them as part of our wellness program" though he said he didn't know the exact number.

Greg Hoy, 39 years old, asked for a standing desk shortly after joining Facebook seven months ago as a design recruiter. "I don't get the 3 o'clock slump anymore," he said. "I feel active all day long."

Tiffani Jones Brown, 29, said she also requested a standing desk when she joined Facebook two months ago as a content strategist, in part to keep her energy level high. "I get really tired when I sit all day," Ms. Jones Brown said.

There is a learning curve to using standing desks, however. Ms. Jones Brown said that at first it was hard for her to concentrate on writing tasks because she was focused on things like maintaining correct posture. Other stand-up workers use tricks to not be bothered by being on their feet most of the day. "I kind of move my legs around, no real position," said Kirk Everett, one of two standing workers in the 21-employee offices of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group in San Jose, a tech industry trade association.

Mr. Everett is a pioneer in standing desks, having gotten one seven years ago to help recover from a back injury. He said he could never go back. "It is so much better," said Mr. Everett, vice president of government relations for the trade group. "Staying seated all day is your enemy."

Write to Jim Carlton at jim.carlton@wsj.com

Hot As H...E..double hockey sticks!

 

The Blazing Phoenix Sun setting in the west

• By: Allison Miller, Weather at Phoenix, Arizona ABC15

PHOENIX - Lack of monsoon rainfall and an unusually intense high pressure system to our east have contributed to the warmest period on record at Sky Harbor International Airport.
This has led to a record-breaking month! In fact, August 2011 will go down as the hottest August on record -- of all time.
On top of that, August ties July 2009 as the hottest month ever on record in Phoenix. The average daily temperature (average of highs and lows) was 98.3 degrees which ties that of July 2009. The normal for August is 93.6.
In August 2011, the average high temperature was 109 degrees, breaking the old record of 107.3 set in 1962. The average low temperature was 87.5 degrees, breaking the old record of 86.1 set in 2007.
In addition, we broke several other records:
On August 26, 2011 we hit a high of 117! That broke the all-time record high ever recorded in the month of August at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix. The previous August record was 116 set on August 10, 2003, August 4, 1973, and August 1, 1972.
We have already tied or broken 14 records in August -- seven record highs and seven record warm lows.

Our 110+ degree days also are not letting up. We have seen 31 days at or above 110 so far this year, well above the average of 18. The record is 32 days set back in 2007 and it looks like we will break that record by the end of the week, with more 110+ days in the forecast.