Perspectives: Emergency Room Bills
Important reads!
Tis The Season…
Tis the season -- to share love and laughter among friends, family and furcritters...
With Only 8.6 Percent Of The Sun …
A total solar eclipse happens about every 18 months, but rarely in the U.S.
And, yet, we didn’t join the masses traveling to the Great American Total Solar Eclipse of August 21, 2017. We stayed home. A place, according … Read more...
Martin Molin and the Musical Marble Machine
There is something so utterly fascinating about mechanical music machines. I don’t know what captivates me the most — whether it is the complex timing involved, the thousands of little intricacies and artistries, or the idea that so much thought, … Read more...
President Lincoln, Inventor and Proponent of Wind Power
In 1849, Abraham Lincoln conceived of and successfully patented a system of air chambers and bellows to lift boats over shoals and obstructions in a river. As a U.S. Congressman (House of Representatives 1847-1849), Lincoln was a frequent boat traveler … Read more...
The Lure of Comic-Con
Out of my element at Comic-Con 2015, where 250,000 movie fans, comic devotees and techno geeks gather, I had an expectation of being trampled in a sea of humanity. Instead, I found enthusiastic, welcoming people whose entry badges were like … Read more...
Lost and Found News: Probiotic Beer, Gut Checks, Toxin Heroes, Team Gut
A round-up of recent, ponder worthy gut health (yes, gut as in part of our digestive tract) news you may have missed:
Probiotic Beer may become the new yogurt
If you have never gotten on the probiotic (healthy bacteria for … Read more...
The Pain And Glory Of Being A Nature Nerd
Back in October, I experienced a bit of a surprise as I was weeding our rock-wall shelves. Perhaps more surprising to some may be my reaction to what happened – a true indication of just what a nature nerd I … Read more...
Even The FDA Doesn’t Know What’s In Our Food
Eating and drinking is about as basic to our survival as it gets.
While we might debate whether various manufactured foods are the healthiest choices we can make in a day, we assume the FDA has approved their ingredients before … Read more...
Beating Back the Drive-By Media In Politics
As nature abhors a vacuum, so the drive-by media is hungry to control and define any public figure whose impact might supersede their own.
How do we beat them?
Whether we believe that Hillary Clinton’s “email-gate” is empty click-bait or … Read more...
Lost & Found News: Human Migration, Solar Impulse, Discerning Dogs
News to ponder that you may have missed:
Lost: Holiday Vacation Travel to Human Migration Mapping
When someone says “holiday vacation travel” what comes to mind?
Do you envision new sights and familiar haunts? Do you remember the hustle bustle, … Read more...
Behind the Scenes
At night I’ve been known to stare into the quiet darkness beyond our windows, so different from the fierce sunlight of the day and its illumination. And I wonder: what really happens out there, after the sun slithers behind the … Read more...
Quotable You: “Not All Were Sprinkled With Happiness…”
A dear friend has a favorite saying she shares as needed. Words of wisdom told to her by a boss early in her work life. Since she had her 99th birthday a few months back, one can assume she knows what she is talking … Read more...
Book: THE SECRET WISDOM OF THE EARTH by Christopher Scotton
THE SECRET WISDOM OF THE EARTH by Christopher Scotton has received a great deal of pre-release accolades – all well deserved. I suspect, however, the spell it cast over me is a bit different than the one cast for others, … Read more...
Words: Steve Jobs “Bicycle For Our Minds…”
The common everyday bicycle is one of the most underrated inventions. In the US, we mostly consider it as a toy for kids. But the invention and wide use of bicycles, a simple tool of transportation, became a major force of … Read more...
A Disgruntled Snowman’s Snow Fight
We may be disgruntled by the snow, but it is here to stay — at least for a couple of months. So we might as well find humor in it where we can.
I’ve long been a fan and follower … Read more...
Does Hollywood Reflect Our Struggle With Aging?
I recently asked if we are now a Botox Nation, preferring Barbie and Ken’s wrinkle-free faces, boobs of steel that say Hi! to the ceiling and six pack abs to a less glamorous reality. It was both surprising and … Read more...
Komen Pink Camouflaging “Bit For The Cure”
One in eight women will develop or die from breast cancer. Having a mission statement to end breast cancer is noble in words. How an organization goes about achieving that mission shows whether it is noble in deed.
Susan G. … Read more...
Freezing Eggs, A Perk For Female Employees?
When I read the headline that Apple and Facebook are now offering to freeze female employees’ eggs as a perk of employment, I thought I had entered the Twilight Zone!
Is that taking progress a bit too far? Is this … Read more...
Success In An Elusive F2 at The Knoxville Zoo
Once upon a time, an interesting species of turtle became extinct. Last seen in 1908, the Arakan Forest Turtle, Heosemys depressa, disappeared and was never seen again. (This seems like a sad story, but stick with me.)
About 100 … Read more...
Invisible Desert Dwellers
Desert dwellers are accustomed to the monsoon season and the rain it ushers in, a glass of water raised to cracked, thirsty lips.
We also know that with rain, the normally dry riverbed near our home begins to ebb and … Read more...
Words: “… Poke Life …”
"The minute that you understand that you can poke life...
that you can change it, you can mold it.
That’s maybe the most important thing.
It’s to shake off this erroneous notion that
life is there and you’re just gonna
… Read more... Has Comic-Con Cosplay Become Sluts vs Creeps?
At the recent Comic-Con Convention in San Diego, costumed female cosplayers were on the receiving end of much sexual harassment and are fighting back against the creep factor.
Jerry and I get into it over the concept of “personal … Read more...
Words: “Anybody Can Be An Agent Of Change …”
… Read more..."Anybody can be an agent of change... People think that if they can't tackle all the world's problems and make it all better overnight, there's no purpose. I totally disbelieve that. I believe that every action really does contribute to
A Second Mother To Nature
Mother Nature has seen it all! But sometimes we can’t help wondering if she needs a back up too. Please welcome new contributing writer Melissa Crytzer Fry, who experienced all the anxiety of a hovering second mom as she watched … Read more...