My Daily Smile

Life is short - begin every day with a smile!

Guess what? Those ‘twinkling’ stars you see in the night sky aren’t actually twinkling at all

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If you’ve ever had the opportunity to view the night sky out in country where there’s no light pollution you probably noticed how the stars seemed to be twinkling.

The thousands of twinkling stars that shine down from the heavens have been fascinating and mesmerizing us humans all throughout our long history.

But there’s a strange truth about those twinkling stars: They don’t really twinkle at all.

[Read more…]

Video: Relaxing sights and sounds of a Redwood forest

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As you probably know, most of the videos I feature on this blog are relatively short.

In fact, it’s rare that I feature one that’s longer than about 30 minutes in length.

But every now and then I’ll find one that’s a lot longer, but well worth the time it takes to watch it. This is one of those rare occasions.  [Read more…]

Awesome Video: Highlights of one man’s “thru-hike” of the Appalachian Trail

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At roughly 2,200 miles in length, the Appalachian Trail is the longest hiking-only foot path in the world.

Thousands of adventurous souls take to the trail every year, but only a relative few have the stamina, will and desire to make the hike all the way from the AT’s trailhead at Springer Mountain in Georgia to its end point at Mount Katahdin in Maine (or vice-versa).  [Read more…]

Video: Shady Valley, TN and Backbone Rock

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A little over a year ago I shared this short video that my friend Jim Hayes created while visiting Backbone Rock in rural Johnson County, Tennessee.

That video prompted a bunch of questions and comments because “the rock” is such a fascinating natural feature. It also happens to be located just a few miles from my home.

Today I’m going to share yet another short video featuring Backbone Rock, but this one includes a scenic drive across Holston Mountain and through the beautiful community of Shady Valley.  [Read more…]

Video: The striking beauty of autumn in New Hampshire

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Our wonderful planet is home to a wide array of absolutely stunning scenery, and right at the top of the list has to be the rich colors of autumn leaves.

Here in the southern Appalachians we are blessed with plenty of autumn beauty, and there’s no other place on earth where I’d rather live.

But when it comes to fall colors I have to admit the New England states are in a class all their own.  [Read more…]