Change and Time Scales

What impressed me most, driving from south-western Colorado to Mt. Rainier National Park, in Washington, the past few days, was the haze that hangs over the land, heavier along urban strips, such as in the vicinity of Salt Lake City, Utah, and Boise, Idaho. Sixty-six years ago, when I first drove across the West, from Chicago to San Francisco, distant mountains and ridge lines were sharply defined. Now, except at high altitudes, they have a gauzy look at any distance beyond a mile or so. The world is changing. All manner of statistics tell what’s happening. If you’ve lived long enough, you don’t need statistics –– you’re an eye-witness.