As I slide down toward another weekend, my feedreader brings me this from Mark Peacock at Appalachian Treks…

Appalachian Treks: Serene Majesty

There is a serene and settled majesty to woodland scenery that enters into the soul and delights and elevates it, and fills it with noble inclinations.
–Washington Irving (1783-1859) American Writer

The beauty of Rocky Fork is not just in what the eyes can see, it’s also experienced in our other senses. But we’ve really got to get out and walk around — slow down and take the time to watch the light filter through the trees, hear the creek rush against the rocks, feel and smell the breeze as it gently rustles the rhododendron and the pines.

And that is where all of us modern city denizens seem to have a problem. Slowing down doesn’t come as easy as it once did. Jobs and family demands have trained us to get more things done in less time. Not included in that training is how to take time out and just be in moment, in the place, as Eckhart Tolle keeps reminding us, in the Now.

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On another note…Texas and Electricity

Texas power price spikes undergo scrutiny | Chron.com – Houston Chronicle
State electric grid operators continue to scramble for ways to fix the causes of recent wholesale power market spikes that helped put four electric retailers out of business.

Rules designed to give the Electric Reliability Council of Texas greater flexibility in how it handles congestion over power lines went into effect on Monday.

But during an emergency meeting of the Public Utility Commission on Wednesday, officials described other causes of the spikes, including shortcomings in the way software systems used by ERCOT calculate market prices.

Those issues helped push the so-called balancing market ” where ERCOT buys and sells power on 15-minute intervals to keep the system in balance” over what was supposed to have been a cap of $2,250 per megawatt-hour.

Typically prices in the balancing market are around the $100 range, but in May it briefly spiked several times, hitting $4,000 on one day, and on June 1 it hit $3,536.

Deregulated power…You just have to love it.