Outside This Box

Amazing Things.

A friend sent me this.

Very cool.  Check it out.

This is unacceptable.

This is unacceptable.  I don't know what else to say about this article other than it is absolutely unacceptable.  We will have 2/3 less polar bears by 2050?

This is why:

Without enough sea ice, polar bears would be forced onto land, but they are inefficient hunters once they get out of the water and ice, the researchers said. The bears' disappearance would probably take place as young cubs failed to survive to adulthood and females were unable to reproduce successfully.

There can't be any compromise on this.  It is becoming more and more evident that our elected officials are not going to do what is needed to reduce carbon emissions.  It is up to us.  Reduction of our own personal carbon footprints is necessary.  What is a carbon footprint?

A Carbon Footprint is a measure of the impact human activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of green house gases produced, measured in units of carbon dioxide.

You can calculate your carbon footprint here.

Looking for simple solutions?  Take a shopping tote with you when you go to the grocery store.  It is easy to get past the paper and plastic addition we have when we go to the store.  Use energy saving flourescent lightbulbs in your home.  Don't just use one but change out every bulb you have in your home. Turn your TV off when you're not watching it. 

I want my future grandchildren to be able to see a live polar bear.  Don't you?

Pregnancy diaries: get your hand off my tummy!

I don't know why but there are some people who really get off on touching a pregnant woman's belly.  They know no boundaries.  They will touch your obviously pregnant belly without any concern for personal space.  This happened to me, at work, all the time.

One guy, in particular, felt it was necessary to touch my belly any time he saw me.  He would walk right up to me, his arm outstretched, and plant his open hand right on my person.  Sometimes the hand landed on the top of my bump, sometimes it landed more towards the bottom of the bump which was way too close to an area that only my husband and gynecologist had any right to wander towards.  It didn't matter how many times I pulled back, moved his hand away or outright told him to beat it...his hand was like a pregnant belly magnet. 

Management knew he was doing this.  Management thought it was funny...they thought it was cute.   This was one of their "boy wonders" they had recruited to work in the office.  You know, the "boy wonders" that are drop dead gorgeous and/or had played some type of high profile sport in college.  The kind that move up through the ranks like a hot knife cutting into butter.  Super smooth transitions into jobs that they were not qualified for or had experience in performing.

Those kind.

I still will never understand why someone feels they have the right to walk up to a pregnant woman and touch her belly without permission.  I guess there is some twisted psycho-social need to touch something that is growing in another human. 

At 30,000 feet.

I have seen heaven and it was on the way to Vegas. 

Earlier this week I flew from Albuquerque to Vegas for a clothing show.  I don't normally get a window seat (even though I love window seats) but this flight I did.  I was by myself and sat on the side of the plane where I knew I would be able to get some fabulous views of the Grand Canyon.  I wasn't expecting the incredible thunder heads that we ended up flying through. Digital camera in hand I started taking some pictures.

It was almost like I was having an out of body experience.  The ride was smooth; absolutely no turbulance.  I was floating through the atmosphere right by the most incredible clouds I have ever seen in my life.  Occasionally I would see a spark of lightning shooting down towards the Earth.  The clouds were enormous.  Fluffy.  Colorful.  Incredible shades of blues, grays and pure whites.  They had pockets in them...almost cave like.  I could almost imagine seeing my loved ones who have passed on setting on the edges of the storm, waving as the planes sailed by.  I don't think I will ever look at the sky the same way again.

Another thing of beauty that is certainly not to be ignored.

Cat calls and whistles.

Cat calls and whistles.  You know what I am talking about.  If you are of the female persuasion and have ever been walking out on the street, jogging down the road or just minding your own business while being in close proximity to a roadway where there are moving cars, you have probably had to endure a cat call or a whistle from some unknown driver or car passenger. 

They started for me in high school.  I would be out running along a dirt road by my parent's house and a truck full of construction workers would buzz by.  One of them would always have their head out of the window, like one of those goofy dogs that loves to have the wind blown in their faces, and their mouths would be moving with calls of "woo hoo" or "shake that thing".  Sometimes I would even get a "hey baby".  Whistles would compliment the cat calls.  They would come before or after the cat call.  But they were always present.  The guys would be any age but mostly in their early 20's.  At least that is what they looked like in the blur of the moment when the truck or old Chevy would speed by.

At first the cat calls scared me.  The roads I ran on were isolated...a scary place for a young girl.  Add a car full of men to that lonely patch of roadway and you've got a perfect combination for some serious paranoia.  I got over the fear.

In my mid 20's I became hostile to the cat calls and the whistles.  I was tired of not being able to walk down the street without some guy calling out to me from his car making suggestions about my body or my sexuality.  I fought back.  I would yell back at them.  My first reaction was to suggest they do something to themselves with an inanimate object.  Or I would shoot back a sign of radical female independence using one of my fingers held up high in the air.  A woman I met in Santa Fe was also a runner. She too was tired of the horns, the whistles and the constant comment from the construction workers when she ran in her neighborhood.  She had a tee shirt that was screen printed with a photo of our Lady of Guadalupe on it.  She decided to wear that tee when she ran and the cat calls, whistles and horns stopped dead.  I guess when a woman wears a religious symbol on her chest it isn't as easy to sexualize her.

Despite my overt objections, the cat calls and whistles continued into my 30's.  During the work day my friends and I would take walks around the block to ease the stress of working.  We would walk in groups on the sidewalks.  We discovered there is no strength in numbers when it comes to a car horn.  The honks continued.  Some of us would be agitated by them, others would laugh.

Now that I am in my 40's the cat calls and whistles have begun to subside.  Occasionally when I am out running I will hear a single car horn.  Last week I was walking downtown.  I was enjoying the Summer day and minding my own business when an older man, walking towards me, said "Good Morning Gorgeous." 

Hmmm.  All kinds of thoughts instantly ran through my head about how to handle this situation.  But I went with the first thought I had.  I thanked him.

He made my day.  I took his gesture as a compliment.  The evolution of a cat call, whistle or honking horn has officially come full circle in my world. 

Sustainable Food.

Last week I went to Albuquerque's Biopark for a "sustainable food" event.  I was invited by a friend so I didn't know much about what this "event" was going to be like or, what it was about.  I was pleasantly surprised!

We decided to take the bus downtown to the Biopark instead of driving multiple vehicles.  We rode on the Rapid Ride which was...rapid.  Really rapid.  I had no idea that a bus could drive that fast in between stops.  But it was cool and reminded me, again, of my desire to be able to utilize public transportation instead of driving my car.  After the buzz ride on the bus we walked from the bus stop to the Biopark entrance. 

The air was full of wonderful, belly happy aromas!  Tables were set up in the courtyard where samples of sustainable foods were being passed out to the revelers.  Mouth candy!  Sustainable foods are basically those that are local and seasonal.  Instead of buying fruits and vegetables that are trucked in from different parts of the country, the idea is to eat what is growing near you.  By eating what is grown locally you support indie farmers, organic farmers which translates to more jobs locally and a boost to the local job market.  The local stuff tastes much better and more than likely has less pesticides. 

We tasted excellent wines made from locally grown wineries.  We ate fabulous goat cheeses, honey glazed vegetables, cheese biscuits, stews and fruit cobblers.  We also got to sample lemon cucumbers, sweet nectarines, grapes, heirloom tomatoes and local honeys.  My palate was extremely satisfied and, yes, my belly was happy.

Our addiction to processed foods is contributing to an overall health kill.  We are, literally, eating ourselves to death.  I notice that I feel much better when I eat nothing but fresh food.  Fresh veggies, fruit and meats. 

Want more info on sustainable foods?  The Slow Food USA site has some great information about where to find great fresh solutions close to you.  In New Mexico?  Try Farmers Markets of New Mexico for local info.  Support your local Farmers Markets!

Want to see some beautiful Mosaics and catch some great sky pics?  If you are in Albuquerque go check out the Rio Grande Botanical Gardens.

A thing of beauty is not to be ignored.

Yesterday while out running a song I haven't heard in a long time started looping in my brain.  A thing of beauty is not to be ignored.  Over and over again.  I guess certain situations remind us of music past and looking at the Sandia Mountains certainly did that for me.

This is what I see everyday.  The Sandia Mountains run along the east side of Albuquerque.  We all get to see this majestic view everyday that we open our eyes and pay attention.  Some of us just don't appreciate it so I thought I would give it some love today.  I run on the 365 trail several times a week.  The trail runs north/south in the foothills.  The foothills are full of pink and yellow granite, chamisa, cholla cactus, flowers, rabbits, bobcats, cougars, black bear, deer and snakes.  A living, breathing museum of sorts full of surprises and breath taking beauty. 

The paths in the foothills are shared by hikers, runners and mountain bikers.  Most days we all get along although occasionally I will run into an overzealous biker who wants to run me over.  Recently I caught a mountain biker making a new path which is definately uncool.  Anyone who hikes knows that you stay on the path, take only pictures and leave only footprints.

As I start my run the path twists up and down.  It then goes into what I call the Cholla Forest, a flat eluvial fan looking area that leads to more small hillls.  I see cholla cactus, scrub pine, acorn bushes and pinon trees.  The range continues south.

As beautiful as the Sandias are, they are equally dangerous.  This past weekend while running we ran into a rattle snake.  It gave us ample warning by shaking its tail.  We left each other alone.  I have never run into a black bear or cougar; something I hope will never happen.  I have run into bobcats. 

My mountain.  Our mountain.  A thing of beauty is not to be ignored.

Heartbreaking news.

Another extinction for our planet was announced today.  This was a biggy.  Not a bug or a small fish but a mammal.  Each extinction will have grave consequences on many different levels.  Each inhabitant of Earth is interrelated; extinction affects each of us.  Maybe it won't affect us today but it will at some point in our not so distant future.

What is so heartbreaking about the Yangtze River Dolphin being gone is that Dolphins are so closely related to us.  Aside from being extremely intelligent, Dolphins have communication systems that are highly evolved.

This particular Dolphin was referred to as a "living fossil:"

The baiji was described as a ‘living fossil’, remaining as it had, unchanged for at least 3 million years since it first left the sea to swim into the Yangtze River.

It is forever gone.  After 3 million years of doing no harm and existing as it did we have exterminated it.  Not just the Chinese, but all of us bare responsibility for the demise of this amazing mammal.

What's next?  The corral reefs in the Pacific and the Polar Bears.

Truly heartbreaking news.

A moment of silence.

Today is the anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.  Roughly 80,000 innocent Japanese citizens (women and children included) were instantly vaporized.  More died shortly after and thousands more suffered the horrible affects of radiation illness for decades later.  I haven't seen much in the mainstream media about this today.  The blogs are full of stories and remembrances though.  This makes me thankful.

I won't get into the politics of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but I will say this.  I am reasonably sure that 80,000 Japanese had nothing to do with Pearl Harbor. 

For these souls that were instantly turned into the wind on that day I take a moment of silence.  More information about Hiroshima can be found at the Hiroshima Peace Park site.

What kind of flower are you?

My friend Janet sent me this cool quiz.  Looks like I am a Snapdragon.

I am a Snapdragon What Flower Are You?