The Exotic Sky

I am sitting here in my apartment watching the last rays of the sun paint the dusk clouds. Whenever I travel, it is the sky that makes me realize that I am far from home. My birthplace of Calgary, in the shadows of the Canadian Rockies, has in my opinion the biggest, bluest sky. Even when gazing at wildebeast Serengeti National Park in Tanzania from a 4-wheeldrive truck, the sky did not seem as big. I can clearly recall as a child sitting on the shores of the Red Sea in Egypt, way before it was discovered by developers and tourists alike, and gazing upon millions and millions of stars. In Uganda, I would sit on the banks of Lake Victoria at the start of theWhile Nile, and watch the sun disappear into the lake as the sky turned prematurely black from all the bats waking up and heading out to feast. Last Monday, herein Bangkok, I watched as the darkest storm clouds I've ever seen menacingly moved in obliterating all view ofthe surrounding buildings and dumped an ocean's worth of water on the area.

Next time you travel, take a moment to look up. What you see may be more exotic and interesting then what you were on the verge of photographing.

(Non)interesting fact: The Karen people, one of the many persecuted hilltribes in Southeast Asia, believe that if a pregnant woman steps across a snake, the snake will freeze. They also believe that if you sneeze on your way to doing something that you should postpone your errand since it is a sign that your soul is weak at that particular moment.

Now for a smile. Here are a few Bushisms."Our enemies are innovatie and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004.

"The senator has got to understand if he's going to have - he can't have it both ways. He can't take the high horse and then claim the low road."

"It will take time to restore chaos and order."