It's Good to be a Packrat

I'm very excited! We found a box in the attic (that we've obviously moved 5 times) with a lot of old Reds' scorecards and World Series books going back all the way back to the 1970s & the Big Red Machine. Some are scored in and some aren't. There are a few from Opening Days in the 80s, including 1983, the last one I went to in Cincinnati (with my sister -- poor thing -- because Jim was already in Philadelphia). My favorite is from 1982 and has this note: "July 24 - Farmers' Night - Baby due Aug. 4" That baby is Charlie, who arrived August 5!

Too Cool!!!

Goodbye, Garden

It looks as though our incredibly warm weather is finally gone and autumn has come. We had our first frost two nights ago, so the garden is put to bed. I'm actually a little glad, since it allows me to turn to some indoor projects I've been putting off. Here are some end-of-the-season pictures, including some of the Turner the Crazy Dog actually sitting still!

What do you do with 130+ little pumpkins?

I wanted him to sit on the bench for a shot for the Michigan Border Collie Rescue 2008 calendar, but he would have none of it!

A classic pose. Doesn't he look calm & composed?

Look out, Crit -- here they come!

Yawns revisited

Back in August, I posted about yawns and how powerfully I'm affected by them. At the end of September All Things Considered did this story about a man at the University of Maryland who set out to create a "doomsday yawn" (sorry about the quotation marks, Bethany ), where NO ONE who saw it could resist. He found that it isn't the sight of the gaping mouth or sound of the "ahhhh" (sorry, again, Bethany) but that some people just can't resist any suggestion of a yawn, while others remain unaffected. Listen to the story, because the research is fascinating!

Now, I know there are lurkers out there -- honestly, how many of you yawned when you read this?

I've yawned 4 times since I began this post!

I hate plastics!

I haven't posted in a while and was planning to update on my garden or what I've been doing lately. But what I've been doing lately is stewing over a story I heard a few days ago on All Things Considered.

Albatross chicks on Midway Atoll , in the Pacific Ocean, are dying because their little stomachs are full of plastic. I have long thought plastic, along with its nearly-eternal lifespan, is almost an evil thing. The thought of PETE 6 cups and disposable diapers piling up and existing forever in landfills is so disturbing! Perhaps, though, I should hate not the plastic, but the truly ignorant and, yes, selfish people who are responsible for all of it -- people who won't wash diapers (disposables) or wash a mug at work (styrofoam cups) or carry an item out of a store by hand (plastic bags) or who drink bottled water when they aren't on the go AND people who won't recycle because it's too much trouble to clean, sort or take labels off AND, most especially, the people who just DON'T CARE!

I would be happy living in a plastic-free environment, even though it would mean no computers or electronics and the end of myriad items I use every day. Our entire disposable-mindset has gotten out of hand and, from what I can see, even the thoughtful and responsible people I know don't care! Everyone would rather throw things out and buy new than restore, repair or clean the old things.

And where, by the way, did the plastics come from that the albatross chicks ate? The mainland -- 1000s of miles away!! The plastic litter (thrown by stupid people) washes down the storm sewers and is washed through water systems until it goes out to sea, where the parent albatrosses think it's food and pick it up to feed to their young.

So, even if you don't REALLY care, do something nice for the environment every day -- reuse a bag, wash out a cup, buy recycled-material products, throw away your trash, recycle EVERYTHING recyclable and, best of all, don't use it in the first place!

Sorry about the rant -- I'll be back to thinking happy thoughts at the next post.