The halo
April 15, 2008 at 11:23 am 21 comments
My little brother of 14, Babi/Daniel, took this video at around lunch time on Sunday and kept it to show me. I posted it on you tube yesterday because I thought it was cool (was at class, so have missed on the actual event). This morning, a friend sent me a link to BBC news saying there was something I would find of interest. Guess what it was? The same Sun halo my brother took a video of! It appears there was more to it than meets the eye [of the camera ;-)].
Check both of them out! The video only takes 16 seconds!
Here is Babi, looking handsome:
The Video
or:
Babi’s Video of the Sun Halo
BBC news:
Sun halo wows Ethiopia amid poll
Entry filed under: Cool Stuff Off the web.
My e-Shoe Box 
1.
Daniel | April 15, 2008 at 12:35 pm
Nice to c it recorded like this, thanx 2 ur bro.
What is the reason behind this ring around the sun.Have u heard of any explanation from somewhere other than the Pope( Abune P.) -:) ?
2.
abesheet | April 15, 2008 at 1:06 pm
No! I only heard about it after checking out your facebook post. Lol. I don’t know why I was under the impression that the Abunn thanked God for his reconfirmation that the bi-election was “of Him” (I must have been reading too many nazret.com comments). Noticed only now that the Abunn didn’t actually got down and political. He was more or less doing his duty as the spiritual leader of the people, thanking God for signs from above. I mean, give the dude credit! He can’t really say he thought the ring of light “was caused by sunlight refracted by ice crystals” as did the BBC guy, can he?!. He’s gotta find a “spiritual” meaning to everything in the world, whatever he himself thinks. Isn’t that why religions were created to begin with? To give meanings (and comforts) for things unexplainable (and scary). And saying something is a sign from God (even when it isn’t) should come as no surprise from a person who does “God” for a living, and is supposed to be the Almighty’s “Mouth-piece”. I just wish he’s englightened us as to what the sign was supposed to *mean*. Assuming he knew!
3.
Daniel | April 15, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Not to mention the ‘case’ with Beyounce. No Abune can look away when she is around -:)
4.
abyssinia | April 15, 2008 at 2:07 pm
Our people are so desperate for change…they will translate anything like this (especially from high and above) as a sign from God.
5.
abesheet | April 15, 2008 at 2:14 pm
That’s the sad truth, abyssinia. Welcome back, btw! 🙂
6.
sistu | April 16, 2008 at 10:16 am
well ingideeh Daniel,
according to wiki, the halo is formed when sun light hits ice particles in the atmosphere (small ice particles that we do not see). The main idea is that sunlight is made up of different colors that look white when they are all together. But all the colors of the light have different “wavelengths”.
For now, think of wavelength as being the length of one’s leg. So when the light hits the ice particle, its like inkifat memetat. So the inkifat slows the light down, in the same way that it would slow you, Daniel, down. OR think of it as chika wist medefek (right word?). You would try to continue walking in a straight line but the chika is bound to slow you down and also make it difficult to u to walk in a straight line. So you end up losing ur straight-line direction somehow and would start changing direction slightly.
The same happens to the light as it hits the ice particles. The light loses its straight line path and starts to bend, thats called refraction. But the amount of bending is dependent on the individual colors. If you had long legs, you can walk thru the chika in a better manner than somebody with short legs because the one with the short legs has to take more steps to walk the same distance as u. If you take more steps you are more bound to lose your direction more than if you were taking long steps (if you had longer legs, mts).
Same with the light. The ones with the short wavelength would end up being affected more by the inkifat and in the process bend more. In the process, the colors that had been traveling bandinet and landinet end up at different positions (roughly) and become visible to us separately (as in a rainbow)…
next time, why the sky is blue and/or why the atlantic ocean is blue and poor old langano is stuck with that chika kelem…. Yes, thats right, sciencim yadalal…. diha aywedim
7.
abesheet | April 16, 2008 at 10:29 am
Welcome back, sistu. Beselam new yetefashiw? Beteseb, tmhirt dehna new woy? BTW, i’ve been having a hard time blogging due to a technical error (on my part) that “masqotate”d Aksimet spam blocker, the “nech lebash” over here. So if you were having trouble reading the links to my latest posts, or watching the video, that’s why. But I’m back now. Thanks to Mozilla Firefox and the person who recommended it. Having problem getting used to it’s features, but getting there.
Anywho, thanks for the “halo” explanation! Isn’t Babi awesome? I’m proud of that kid as if he was my own. He goes to Kebena Adventist by the way.
8.
sistu | April 16, 2008 at 3:52 pm
Babi is brilliant. I am not saying it as something to say to a sister, but it is very hard not to be impressed by his video. (did you notice the no menketketing on his video? I think 14yrs olds have come a long way from the 14 year olds of our generation). Please pass him our collective appreciation from this end, even if he is attending our tekenakagn school. (why not the school down the road, Abesheet, I feel duty bound to ask?) BTW, its interesting how you big sisters all tend to claim your younger ones “as if s/he was my own”. Minew itE. (for the record, I am sure the young ones look at you lot as if you were their own mother)
My disappearance…. akurufE new. Belelehubet kilit yale werey iyawerachu. Ine kemotku serdo alech an old friend… and i thought Abyssinia was replacing me as the new commenter… bicha hulum tederaribo hod basegn. By the way, abesheet, kAbyssinia ga astewawikign, I am shy to say hi (and there is my pride too) but she reads like a hake of a lady.
9.
abyssinia | April 16, 2008 at 4:04 pm
Hi sistu, I’m not replacing you at all. I am a big fan of you. I love your comments…Besak new ye’metegeyign. Atetfi benatish.
10.
addislife | April 16, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Thx for the explanation Sistu.
11.
abesheet | April 17, 2008 at 7:54 am
Sistu, this is abyssinia! Abyssinia, this is sistu. Addis life, this is sistu and abyssinia. Abyssinia and sistu, this is Daniel. I am grateful to you all for being here. Sorry for the long post of this morning. Thought I should write it and get it over with [the fear, I mean]. I’m a real chicken!
Hope to hear from you soon,
With Love
12.
abyssinia | April 17, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Thanks for the intro abesheet. We are now one-big happy family.
13.
sistu | April 17, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Hi Abitis,
temekakirachu new, the similarity in your names? (I obviously missed out on the discussion about names).
But Abyssinia (mind if i capitalize you?), nice to meet you. You know just the thing to say to lay the foundations of a long lasting friendship. I am grateful to our host for giving us this opportunity.
Addislife, you are most welcome. I obviously love talking. I hope you mazewter. Now I am inviting people into yesew bet. yekereme ingida betu yimeslewal. Is there such a saying? There should be if there isn’t already.
14.
abyssinia | April 17, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Viva for long lasting friendship!
Bezih agatami mesganayene le abesheet aqerbalehu. If it wasn’t for you/abesheet, this wouldn’t be possible.
sistu, you are welcome to cap A or abyssinia however you wish. Ye biere sem senaweta balemenorish azinalehu. But our names (abesheet, abyssinia, sistu) represent something special to each of us and somehow relate to others. Aymeselishim?
15.
abesheet | April 18, 2008 at 5:46 am
*worries if the girls started swaping e-mail addresses, nobody is coming back to check out her mediocre blog* 😦
BTW, thank you so much for your comments on “Hard Times”. I don’t know if it’s because the post is rather long or something gone askew in my account, but my attempt to comment on *your* comments failed. The box seems to have disappeared on that particular post. So.. anywho.. I’m glad you loved the post. I won’t promise to try to live upto your expectations. But I promise to be as honest as I can about my observations. How does that sound? :-).
Abby: I feel you, darling. BTW, did you know the Head Librarian (forgot his name) opened a book shop infront of the British Council? Africa Book Shop, I think. And the first time i was there, i saw many books with tattered covers that I seem to recognize. That’s why i referred to the library in past tense. Who knows, right ;-)? So.. which unit leader did you live under the “zemene mengist” of? “Jibo”? That mean guy who wore black leather jacket? Or that other guy who walked silently around with a “limich” that “biteth like a serpent”, as Bertie Wooster would say :-)?!
Sistu: Lol about the Kebele “wore”. I have a feeling that post wound’ve sound more interesting if you wrote it. Now, ewnetun awchi, do you have a weblog? If yes, can i please please please (pretty please) pay it a visit? If no, why on earth not?!
Regarding the Fanta! It must have either been too expensive or too heavy, or plain ridiculous to carry over to Assefa photo bet but i don’t remember seeing it on my old birthday photos (which always were my brother’s, ewnetun lemenager, i just tagged along so i won’t feel left out — I did!!).
Have posted Babi’s photo. Check it out.
Nice weekend y’all. I hope to see you on Monday!
16.
abyssinia | April 18, 2008 at 7:32 pm
Gee, your brother is so cute. Thank you for posting his picture…it’s nice to put face to the name. Look forward to seeing more of his talented video and/or photographs.
abesheet, I honestly don’t remember the librarian or his name. I graduated 1989 and left right after. But I will never forget the unit leader “mekonnen” who used to call me names coz I used to stand outside our classroom every time a class ends. His exact words were “min echi ende shermuta ber lay tekomalech” and I used to just laugh at him. Its silly, but I used to stand outside to get aduster from the next teacher, clean the blackboard, and be excused to go wash myself. Ene gin…instead I used to go to “aseb wedeb”, where they used to have a bunch of containers le were. Min yahil weregna lij endeneberku bezih tawQialesh. Ayadres new!
17.
sistu | April 19, 2008 at 5:17 am
Abesheet,
No such luck for you (for your first line). We intend to stalk you for life, i am afraid.
Babi… wow. wat a dignified gentleman. Was he not a baby a short 14 yrs ago? He wasn’t even born on Ginbot haya (thats my benchmark for timelines). btw, i love how you talk of your siblings. you are a great big sister!!! So, but where is Blen then? zeraf yesetoch mebt… But its great to see that the days of “lijina chama…” are behind us. btw, did they take after you in the reading/writing department? I would imagine you are a big fer kedaj in that department, legnam terfeshal. The blog…ay abesheet, izeem anchee fit seteshign new injee… (i can’t imagine standing on my own two feet)
Well, i am sad I don’t have anything to contribute to your highschool conversation, except that thats where i used to take yarat kilo taxi. And that until recent years i understood unit leader as “unique leader” and used to wonder abt what made them so, esp given the invariable nature of the stories that circulated abt them from every school. Forgive me but i loved his ber lay comment. now thats transparency.
And i never thot abt it but you are v right abt the special meanings to our names….v right.
the fanta, abesheet, well i guess i am being ever the negade. the first rule of marketing i suppose is to bring up the subject so that people would feel like [drinking] it. Gabzeshalew, btw. And you didnt miss out coz you didn’t have it on the pics. Leslasa doesn’t have the same grace in black and white pictures as it does in real life. how are the prices now, btw? my metric for waga gishbet was/is when and by how much the price of leslasa and ambowiha increases.
Abyssinia, bado bet iko new titalin yehedechiw until monday. min tiyalesh? inamesekakilew?
18.
abyssinia | April 21, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Ayeee sistu, bet yemiamesekakile mechae tefto (you know who am talking about).
As you would say, zeraf yesetoch mebt…beye linesa neber. But it’s not worth to intervene, as our sista handled it very well. Beza lay degmo le enkia selamta megabez yehonal.
Next to the wound, what women make best is the bandage.
~Jules Barbey d’Aurevilly
abesheet, look forward to your next delightful post.
19.
abesheet | April 22, 2008 at 5:56 am
Thank you girls! As my friend Daniel advised, I tried to see the silver lining: that somebody is following my posts faithfully and the blog stat has reached an all time high of 3,000 (although it includes my own “wetaa gebaa”s, and have noticed some blogs mastenageding in hundreds of thousands. Well.. all in good time :-)). What’s more, our friend has started communicating his arguments less violently. So i’m glad I didn’t report him.
By the way, I won’t be around for almost 2 weeks (April 25-May 6) due to a forced leave, bla bla, our organization has “metaal” on us (sewu ereft alweta eyale aschegere). I’ll try to connent from an internet cafe, and make a post, or two, if the system allowed. But i can’t promise I’d be as around as I have been this past month. Hope you’ll miss me. For I sure as hell will miss ya ;-).
Melkam Himamat to all.
20.
abyssinia | April 22, 2008 at 8:36 pm
besheet, I’m glad to hear that you and buddy have put your differences aside and reached to a peaceful agreement. Temesgen!
btw, congrats on your blog stat! Erdata kasfelege, I can always link your blog whenever I would go visit other blogs. I thought it wouldn’t be appropriate without your permission. And I’m confident a lot of people will find it entertaining as I have for the past month. Oh yeah…lately my work ethic has decreased 35%.
Lemehonu…min aynet company new begid vacation hidu yemil! Eshi…may be you need this leave, and of course, I would be happy for you. Egna gin endet new hulet samint yemenikermew. sistu tefeleg! Enena esuwa bezih gudaye lay meweyayet alebin.
Anyways, I will miss you tremendously!
Melkam Fasika.
21.
abesheet | April 23, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Thanks, abbyye yene Konjo. You have my permission to post my blog address wherever you feel it might attract attention. Yaa aydel the main reason sewoch “blog” yemiyadergubet? Lemenebeb?!
Well.. the forced leave thing has been a shock to many of us (internet addicts). But apparently some of our staff have been saving their “ereffts” for a rainy day and have managed to accumulate almost 2 months’ worth leave days. So somebody thought now or never, etc. MeQatel new ebakishin.
I’d be looking out for Sistu to wish her Melkam Fasika. As I do you.
Love, abesheet