BagOfNothing.com

• Keeping this blog updated daily is a lot of work.  Not that it is hard, but sometimes I either am too exhausted to update it or I can’t think of any thing to write.  Thank you for being patient as Keith recovers.  I’m sure some of you check this blog every morning to see if there are any updates and are disappointed when there is nothing new.  Please keep checking and don’t give up on us.  Right now, Keith doesn’t have much energy, but he will get back to providing you with great stories, links, and randomness.
• To Nathan and the rest of you who are wondering…Yes, we are answering your questions from “Ask Us Anything”.
• Keith’s valentine gift to me–writing HOT MOM on the back of LeafGeeding.  I love how he is creative and goofy.  He erased it this evening before I could get a picture.  Guess I’m only “hot” one day out of the year.
• My valentine gift to him–a Coke ICEE and a Kit Kat.  That’s love.
• We had a heart shaped pizza for dinner.
• I’m so over the cold weather.  I DO NOT like to be cold!  If it is going to be as cold as it has been at least give us some snow.
• Love one another.

This small lake outside Stockholm, Sweden, emits otherworldly sounds as Mårten Ajne skates over its precariously thin, black ice. “Wild ice skating,” or “Nordic skating,” is both an art and a science. A skater seeks out the thinnest, most pristine black ice possible—both for its smoothness, and for its high-pitched, laser-like sounds.

Black ice is recently frozen, and can be as thin as 2 inches and still support the weight of a skater. Like a dome or arch, the support comes from the sides rather than the top, and the water underneath prevents the ice from breaking. But, experience and careful advance planning are key. Factors including temperature, atmospheric conditions, and even satellite images of the Earth’s surface are considered. It’s complicated, but appealing to mathematicians like Ajne. Even with preparation, there’s a risk of falling in… So it’s best done in groups, for safety.