The Big Eye in the Sky (Update)

It was just a matter of time. A handful of bloggers have posted some very amusing images from Google Maps Satellite, including an overview of the homes of Bill Gates and Michael Dell, the customary (Alcatraz, St. Louis Arch, White House, Mount Rushmore, etc.) and not so customary (Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch and the Heaven's Gate Cult Mansion) landmarks strewn across the country, and the occasional snapshot of a commercial plane taking off from the airport or, in one of the posts, a small twin-prop plane making an emergency landing on an interstate highway. Here are just a few of the links (here, here, and here). Enjoy.

Windermere-Stanford Crew Classic

This past Saturday, T and I made it out to the inner waterways of Redwood Shores to watch the third annual Windermere-Stanford Crew Classic (link here), purportedly the largest rowing competition on the west coast. The field included all of the top collegiate and club-level teams in various classes (men's varsity eight, women's varsity eight, lightweight, junior varsity, freshmen) and included defending national champions Cal (link), Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Virginia, Washington, Michigan, Wisconsin, Texas, and Stanford. Watching the Henley-style races along the banks of the waterway, just yards from the passing rowers was intense. You could hear the coxswains barking, the oars cutting the air, the seats gliding on their tracks, and the rowers exhaling. While not yet as large a spectator event as the Head of the Charles in Cambridge, Mass. (link), the annual competition will become much more visible in the coming years, for sure. And yes, the Cal men's varsity eight won the men's title (link). Also found out an interesting tidbit. T's aunt was once the coxswain on the Seoul National University collegiate team. That would explain her aunt's unusually high energy level.