New addiction #2: Google Earth

Holy cow, have I been having a good time with this thing or what!

If you don't already have this and use it, I recommend giving it a go. You'll find yourself sitting at your computer for hours (or for those of you already at their computers for hours, you'll be there longer, if that's possible), looking up places all over the world like crazy!

It almost makes you feel a little godlike. Not in the sense of being able to change anything, but just having the power to see anything, anywhere in the world in a snap. It's kind of like playing Civilization and being restricted to a level of "nosy landlord"...except you can't evict anybody. I tried looking for the "kill" button, but it just ain't there.

So, all in all, I'd say Google is really outdoing themselves with this application, and it's worth it. Well, I can't even say "worth it", since it's FREE! That's right, a free download that gives you tons of images and information about anyplace in the USA or the world. In fact, there's so much stuff to explore that I can't even sit here and type it all out. You'll just have to download it for yourself and see. It's like having an atlas, phone book, road map, world encyclopedia, and your very own high-speed helicopter all in one, right at your fingertips! Very, very cool.

http://earth.google.com/

(On a personal note, pretty much all of SE Illinois, where my cohorts and I grew up, is totally blurred out. It's almost like some kind of "hick haze" covering the area, hiding its dark secrets from the rest of the world. Spooky.)