I went to Roadside America today in Shartlesville, PA .. if you look close at the photo posted you can see me holding my son Ayden underneath a large but miniature waterfall..

Everything at Roadside America is miniature. Towns, churches, trains.. waterfalls, farms.. The past. 

And that was the striking part. The past celebrated.. the time of peace and prosperity in America seemingly celebrated as though it is long gone.

My wife may say, “Sure take a great day and analyze it.” So, as true to my pattern and habit, I will.

My wife Tara was a child attendee of Roadside America. My mom tells me I was as well, though I don’t really remember it.. Nonetheless, it would appear that nothing, absolutely nothing, has changed at Roadside America since it was created.. And speaking of when it was created: 1935 by Laurence Gieringer in Hamburg, Pennsylvania

When we arrived today, we were just in time for the artificial sunset over the artificial giant indoor town.. As the lights in the room slowly dimmed and finally went black, the wall was illuminated by a flowing American flag and a large portrait of Jesus Christ.. all the while “God Bless America,” the old version, Kate Smith style, filled the entire building.

I felt immediately like Dwight Eiseinhower was President, like people were scared of Martians and Commis.. I wondered, to myself of course, if this fake town had the problems of today? Did dad just read the newspaper while mom cooked? The kids playing somewhere outside not worrying about predators.. Because some think that the world of Roadside America was quaint and perfect.

I don’t.

I think it had just as many problems, many covered up and hidden away, tucked nicely into the closet along with the ghosts of race relations of the past…

I don’t say this because I didn’t like it there. Quite the opposite. I loved it. It was like a step back in time.. where I imagined just what was going on in each and every house, church, block.. farm house.. train.. trolley. Those days are gone. I loved the atmosphere and it all worked. Americana and Christian mixed together as though the founders intended it, though they really didn’t.

But what I really wondered was this: Will someone, like my son Ayden, think that the 21st Century is worthy of creating a brand new ‘world’s largest miniature’ indoor town? 

And what will happen to one of the last vestiges of the 20th Century: Roadside America? 

Before we left today, I dropped 50 cents into the player piano and Ayden happily moved his arms and danced to the ragtime music, while the town once again “went dark” to the sunset and Kate Smith played God bless America. Jesus was proudly on the wall again.

The past is gone.
The future is now.

And forever generations will debate as to who had it best.
And arguably, no one did. 

Ayden Morris and mother enjoy an afternoon of bears, elephants, tigers, and fish. Roadside America and beyond.

The DMZ: Another president, another photo op… The Korean War that never ends continues—now with the threat of nukes..

God bless capitalism.. sure your town is shaking but why not make a buck

Residents of Clintonville, Wisconsin, have been inundated by national and international press for days now.. last week, booms in the night shook houses and caused fear.. town halls featured hundreds of confused residents wondering why their town was shaking.

The USGS said a 1.5 quake did it. Lots of residents didn’t and still don’t buy the explanation.. But…. why not make a buck of it anyway!

The mayor of the town, now famous Judy Magee, is going to sell shirts saying “I survived the 1.5!”

There is some beauty here.. make some money, keep the story alive, and … here is the best: The shirt rhymes!

God bless America.

Shakin’ and all. 

Enter Facebook.. amid news stories of employers demanding applicants' passwords, Facebook warns: Do not do it

Enter Facebook.. amid news stories of employers demanding applicants' passwords, Facebook warns: Do not do it

Dead daughter's voice mails erased by cell phone company

Two major issues arise in my mind here.. first the trauamtic human issue of its… a dad listening to his daughter, who is dead from cancer, telling him that she loves him.. something very emotional with this story.

And the business side: Where do these deleted cell phone messages go anyway? A lawsuit about this case may soon prove where they go…. perhaps into the reservoir of some Homeland Security database.. 

Nonetheless, this story is quite sad..

Dead daughter's voice mails erased by cell phone company

Saturday night in the South.. Santorum pounds Romney in Louisiana.. 

Not only does Mitt Romney love children, but for a vote, he’ll kiss them too. If you’re lucky he won’t even wipe his lips afterwards.

Saturday night live .. bowling for votes..

Santorum wins Louisiana Republican primary: CNN

A FISHING BOAT SWEPT OUT TO SEA DURING THE JAPANESE TSUNAMI HAS BEEN SPOTTED OFF THE COAST OF CANADA

Remember.. this wasn’t supposed to be this fast.. but lots of reports are beginning to be published about debris and wreckage hitting shores much faster than anticipated..

A FISHING BOAT SWEPT OUT TO SEA DURING THE JAPANESE TSUNAMI HAS BEEN SPOTTED OFF THE COAST OF CANADA

Dick Cheney: One step closer to living forever

He had heart attacks for years.. he had a quadruple bypass.. he had a battery powered heart pump. And now at the age of 71, he has received a heart transplant and is recovering tonight.

The name of the donor is not known.. the Cheney family expressed gratitude for the chance to have Dick around longer..
Already the internet is abuzz with many who are thrilled that the neo conservative may live to endorse another war.. opponents say it is another example of  ’Darth Vader’ taking another step closer to living forever..

Space junk: Station scare

The space station crew was forced to seek shelter after fears of debris.. the fragment passed by the station without farm to life or limb, but it showcases the growing issue of space debris circling around earth..

NASA was concerned that the debris was potentially dangerous to astronauts on the International Space Station—so much so that they were warned to seek refuge as the debris passed by.

It was an old Russian satellite named Cosmos 2251. This is now the third time such an incident has occurred.

And it will likely occur again: According to reports, more than 20,000 pieces of MAN-MADE debris circle earth, all larger than a softball. Many pieces are large..

LOOKING LIKE A MAJOR WEEKEND FOR HUNGER GAMES

LOOKING LIKE A MAJOR WEEKEND FOR HUNGER GAMES

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ybh-hs-wMVE?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=281]

The future is now.. how far down this road are you willing to travel? How much of the path is safe.. secure.. Where should it end? It appears it will not have to end therefore only you can choose to lose the amount of sanity you want.

Headline: Nokia has filed for a parent for tattoos that will be able to receive a magnetic wave to indicate when a cell phone call is coming in.

We were supposed to have flying cars and household robots. Not magnetic arms that tingle when someone phones…

The power hour is here. There is not stopping technology.  I have said before, and stand by the prediction now, that cell phones will soon be implanted from birth in your hand.. Google on your fingers.. all knowing and always there.. RFID chips ..hold the salsa.

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

The flare of blinding lights

Space Weather reports:

A flurry of solar activity in early March dumped enough heat in Earth’s upper atmosphere to power every residence in New York City for two years. The heat has since dissipated, but there’s more to come as the solar cycle intensifies. [full story] [video]

That’s a lot of power. The solar cycle, as they point out, is not done. As a matter of fact, more bursts have come off of the sun just tonight.

Sunspot 1429 just produced a strong M class flare—not earth directed.. Another sunspot, AR 11444, is now forming.. 1431 produced a flare, today, too..

We are not out of the wood.. or universe. Not at all. 2012 should prove interesting..

A dry future

Times are going to be grim in the near future, according to the latest government assessments on the future about how water will be used as a weapon of war.

The main areas of crisis will be North Africa, Asia, and parts of the Middle East .. Millions will be affected..

Heatmiser lives: The tsunami factor

Heatmiser lives: The tsunami factor

Lots of eyebrows are raised at the heat  as of late.. while many are enjoying the bountiful weather of warmth, sporting short sleeved Ts and shorts, the back of the mind knows it is a guilty pleasure. Could it be, something wrong with this whole picture? A month where the normal temperatures are often cold and we have heat? Where St. Patrick’s Day is often white instead of green? …where 80s don’t persist this long until April or May? .. Indeed.

 But a new theory has surfaced—in jest—but it may be the best of any!  Call it the tsunami defense.. the wreckage in the Pacific is so extensive after the March 2011 tsunami, that it heated the planet and changed wind currents. The idea was put forth by Henry Margusity of Accuweather in a complete joking manner.  Sadly now he is being mocked for it since Accuweather blew the overall winter prediction for the year.

The worrying part of this whole heat wave is this: If the experts are confounded and the forecasters are stunned, we should be looking outside the box. And that is not to say that the tsunami heated the planet, but the old weather patterns perhaps are truly changing .. why? Global warming? Earth changes.. cooling..

And what if this: The planet moved after last year’s Japan quake. Could that have caused a shift in where certain weather patterns persist?
I don’t know.
And guess what.. no one really knows.
Like forecasters, we just guess.

I like Henry from Accuweather.. I’ll stand by him, regardless of how wacky a theory could be.

The real story here is that it’s scary that we have to guess about why the weather is so absolutely strange as of late..

A note from Clintonville, WI

An Earth Informer reader tonight emailed me, one who wishes to remain anonymous.. But interesting how this person is characterizing the latest explanations from officials on the ‘earthquake’ theory making booms and bangs..

Hello, I’m from Clintonville and stumbled across your website while searching for information on the noises in my town. Believe me, me, and no one else believes that an earthquake caused what we are hearing. We heard this before the day that the government told us the quake even happened! And other towns, too? we are all wondering if it is fracking or something else. We just are not buying into this official story that this mystery is ‘solved’

Thanks.. reader.. Love it. I can’t say I buy it either. Time will tell..
And a note to this, and other readers around the wold who are hearing noises and other strange things: Always email me at bsmolock@gmail.com .. I’d love to hear from you..

Ayden Morris has been fixated on tennis for 20 minutes now .. Is there some kind of subliminal message exuding from Sharapova ?!