Dance Break

Kate sends this:

I’m a big fan of dance-off scenes where warring factions express their differences in dance, like in West Side Story, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and many more. I wish all disputes could be resolved that way. In The Umbrella Academy, a wonderfully inventive dark-comedy sci-fi series on Netflix, two super-powered families face off to do their interpretation of “Footloose.” It’s funny and fun to watch. And the song itself will energize you.

FAFO in Bernalillo

I feel sorry for the family, but good luck getting any relief from a lawsuit:

A New Mexico family rushing to try and save their dog’s life was stopped and held at gunpoint by the cops. ... Did Bernalillo Police officers take things too far? That’s what attorneys with the ACLU believe, and now the family plans to file a lawsuit.

...Albrecht drove down 550 through Bernalillo from their Rio Rancho home, toward the nearest 24-hour emergency vet. He spotted a Bernalillo police cruiser.

“I imagined if he was going to pull me over for speeding, I’d pull over,” Albrecht told KRQE. “He’d say something to me and then maybe even help us get there. You know, I’ve heard of stories like that before, but that didn’t happen.”

Police video from the officer’s lapel footage shows what did happen. Officer Jeramie Nevarez is seen pointing his gun at Albrecht as he shouts, “Driver, step out of the vehicle!”

The officer continues shouting commands at Albrecht, who has his hands in the air. “Face the f*** away from me!” The officer shouts. Lapel video shows Officer Jeramie Nevarez ordering Albrecht out of the car at gunpoint, and telling him to walk backward toward traffic.

“Step back! Step f****** back! Go to your left!” Officer Nevarez is shouting, as cars pass by them on the busy road. “My dog’s gonna die!” Albrecht tries to explain to the officer, who doesn’t approach the family’s vehicle.

...“I’m thinking, this is unbelievable,” Tara Albrecht recalled. “I can’t believe – it’s like, why didn’t someone just come check with us, find out what the reason our speeding was, and help us?”

Ready For The SWPACA Conference, But It's Only September

I started looking at Native American influences in "Breaking Bad" and discovered something quite striking. I've excitedly prepared my presentation for the next Southwest Popular/American Cultural Association meeting. But they won't meet until February.

All dressed up and nowhere to go....

My Neighbors Are Back From Burning Man

They apparently got an early start compared to the others. Now they've got their hose and are cleaning camping gear. My alleyway is running with alkaline mud. Most importantly, they look happy.

"I'll Send a Plane"

"Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul" Casts on the Picket Line

Trying to get proper pay:

“I don’t get a piece from Netflix on ‘Breaking Bad’ to be totally honest and that’s insane to me,” Paul said. “I think a lot of these streamers know that they have been getting away with not paying people a fair wage and now it’s time to pony up.”

 

Cranston said they chose Sony for their reunion as the studio behind the Emmy-winning hit, along with its spinoff projects, the AMC prequel series “Better Call Saul” and the Netflix film, “El Camino.” 

“We’re not making them the enemy. They are not villains. These are people that we all will be working with once again at some point,” Cranston said. “We just want them to see reality.”

An Octopus Garden Off The California Coast

Mysterious!:

But then, just as Hercules crossed over a ridge, a curious sight floated across the screen: small, almost iridescent bulbs clinging to the seamount wall. The scientists directed Hercules down, farther into the depths.

“And sure enough, that’s where we ran into thousands and thousands of these octopus,” King said. “And we were just absolutely floored. We were just giddy.”

The scientists, led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, had alighted upon what they called an “octopus garden.” The images they captured revealed nearly 6,000 octopuses — leading scientists to estimate the total population of the area could exceed 20,000.

The discovery of the thousands of Muusoctopus robustus — or “pearl octopus,” as researchers dubbed it for the animal’s shape and opalescent shine — led a team of scientists on a five-year quest to solve the mystery: Why are there so many thousands of pearl octopuses at the foot of the Davidson Seamount, and how did they come to be living there?

The researchers visited Octopus Garden more than a dozen times to find out, and a study published last week in the journal Science Advances shows they solved one part of the mystery. The pearl octopus came to the Davidson Seamount, they discovered, to nestle into the warm crooks of its wall and brood eggs.

The ambient temperature of water around the seamount is about 35 degrees Fahrenheit, according to Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute scientists. But by using sophisticated marine thermometers, the researchers found that the octopuses were settling into crevices warmed by spring water, where the temperature reached nearly 51 degrees.

“So we’re still unsure exactly about what kind of geological circulation drives these springs, but essentially water’s getting heated somewhere underground there,” said Steve Litvin, a marine ecologist at the institute. “And just like a warm spring, you know, I don’t want to say ‘Old Faithful,’ but it’s bubbling up there out of the rocks.” 

“They’re in warm water, the metabolism is much faster,” King said, “so their life history has been very compressed relative to most deep-sea animals.”

Anticipating More Lunar Hijinks

Things are getting interesting lunar-wise. We are heading to what's called a major lunar standstill in January, 2025. So, for the next two years or so, the moon will appear to wander in the sky from where we are used to seeing it. For example, lately, the moon has been pretty far south of the ecliptic. For the next two years or so, the moon will move around and get caught in eclipses, and entertain, before settling down again.