I received some links today by email that I wanted to share with you all. The first one is interesting, in a "Wow, I wonder how the Bubonic Plague started" sort of way. It's a map from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) showing where influenza is currently popping up in the USA. Forty-four out of 50 states are reporting it as "widespread". That's maddening, isn't it? To think of all the people who could've washed their hands, used hand sanitizer, coughed into their elbows or a tissue, or gee, I don't know...stayed home but didn't, it's no wonder this thing has spread like it has. The biggest contributor to the fast-and-far nature of this flu, I'm sure, is air travel. Illnesses are no longer confined to one geographic area. Anyway, check out the map, and show your kids. Tell them, as I did with my kids today, "This is why you have to take precautions when you're sick (and after you've been around other possibly-sick people)." It's a good reminder for us adults, too, to practice personal responsibility.

The next links pertain to a very cool meteor that appears to have landed in a sparsely populated area of our great state of Washington. A pilot with Horizon Air says he saw it go down in the southeast corner of the state, and an Idaho National Guard security camera actually caught it on tape. The meteor explodes twice in the sky and seems to burn out before making landfall. Maybe it's in a bunch of little pieces and that's why they can't locate where it landed...just a thought.

And last but not least: On Wednesday, February 20, there will be a fantastic lunar eclipse -- the last one until December of 2010. The moon will turn a "delightful shade of red" over Europe and the Americas. I'm hoping we'll be able to get a glimpse and not have to wait two more years for the next one. This link will give you the best idea of when you'll be able to witness it in your area. If you do, let me know.