Around 6:00 am, I awoke to the sound of helicopters circling the neighborhood. The happens occasionally, so I didn't think much of it. They continued to circle, so I finally moved to the couch, knowing that true sleep was over.
About 7:00 am, the helicopter sounds hadn't waned, so I turned on the TV and discovered that there was an apartment building fire in Rogers Park. The building on fire was a close three blocks away and firefighters were having a difficult time with it because of the extreme cold. This is a building I walk by regularly.
As soon as that report was over, the newscast quickly mentioned that for those viewers just tuning in, David Bowie had passed away in the night.
That truly shocked me. I ended up watching the Today Show (which I haven't done regularly in quite some time) to hear details, tribute, and flashbacks. I grew up with 70s/80s David Bowie, but didn't really appreciate his early work and creative genius until college. What an elegant man! I love that he was able to keep his personal life private and only reveal what he wanted others to know. Many celebrities (really and reality) could learn a ton from his legacy.
I look forward to listening to Bowie and reading more about his life over the next few days.
Now -- on to the intended topic of the day --
Learn Your Name in Morse Code Day
Today, Morse Code is celebrated because Samuel Morse and Alfred Vail first demonstrated it on January 11, 1838. Soon after, it became widely used in the military and aviation worlds. SOS continues to be an internationally recognized distress signal. It also adds drama to many movie and TV show plots when someone is trapped in a contained space and needs to subtly communicate a message.
I have never delved into Morse Code, so thought it would be fun to participate in this day and learn my name in morse code. Thanks to the internet, it's easy to find a code chart and figure it out.
SONJA = - - - -- -- -- -- - - -- -- -- - --
Curious about your own name? Check out Learn Morse Code
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