A Whale of a Tale!

Ok, not a very original title for this post, but I couldn't resist!

I'm still without my regular desktop computer, and that makes just about anything I need with a computer pretty inconvenient. I just don't often use my laptop and feel restricted because the screen is small, the keyboard doesn't have the same "feel," etc. I am getting used to it, but it's still awkward. However, I decided to muddle through and try to get this post done.

First, of course, I expect everyone is relieved that the election is pretty much over with - except for the lawsuits, recounts and maybe some crying. I know there are some disappointed people out there - but there are also a lot of jubilant, hopeful souls looking for better times in the days ahead. 2020 has been an exceptionally difficult year in so many ways, I think there is the expectation that starting 2021 with a new president may turn things around. There's no shame in being hopeful. One thing I know for sure, President Elect Biden has a whale of a job ahead of him. I guess all we can do is try to support him and the others elected to run our nation; and begin healing by forgiving people who don't think the same as you do and didn't vote they way you did. Everyone has the right to their own opinion. We can still be friends and work together. Now let's see if the folks in Washington, DC can do the same!

Some weeks ago I posted about the new Whales' Tails sculpture recently installed near the Randolph,

Whale Tails, the Netherlands

Vermont exit on I-89. My friend, Mary Whitcomb sent several beautiful photos of them - and of the originals that were moved north to a spot just outside of Burlington. This past week Andy Rudin sent me a story from the Washington Post written on November 2, 2020, I believe it was. The story was about a runaway metro system car that jumped the rails at a terminal in the Netherlands and landed on a Whale Sculpture. The sculpture, made of plastic, was installed near the end of the metro line in 2002. It is remarkable that the plastic sculpture could support the weight of the rail car, and also that the two whale's tails seem to very similar to our sculptures. Nobody was hurt and the engineer was able to walk away, probably scratching his head and wondering how the heck this happened! To complicate things, the tracks are over water and that seriously complicates getting the train off the whale. Not only that, there is a real danger that the sculpture will not be able to support the train indefinitely. That's a real serious situation.