Earth Hour

On March 28th at 8:30pm, there is a global event called Earth Hour. It is an hour in which people are asked to basically be off the electrical grid and for an hour I hope most Americans take part in this event as all it requires is to turn all your lights off for an hour and do a small gesture for he fight against global climate change. For all of you who say you can”t make a difference, well this is your chance to do something positive.

is this for real?!

The State of Arizona wants to close 8 of our state parks because of budget issues. And the Director gets an 11% salary increase? Wha..wha..what? Are you kidding me? Where is the logic is this? If someone can explain it to me, I’m all ears.

bad chlorine, bad

I don’t think anybody ever thought chlorine was a good thing.  But most of us probably thought it was a necessity.  I actually refuse to use bleach when doing my laundry and I have minimized cleaning products in my house that have bleach or chlorine. For cleaning and doing dishes I instead try to use brands such as Method and Seventh Generation.  I also utilize Clorox Green Works.

One thing I have not thought about is bleached paper.  I think I am currently using bleached coffee filters, which after reading this article from Care2, I am now in fear off.  But I hate to waste things so I will probably continue to use them and then once gone, buy unbleached filters.

and people still deny global warming?

Two news articles I read recently are painting a very scary and urgent picture for the world. If we don’t start making drastic changes in the next 20 or 30 years we will potentially see severe results such as species extinction and continued severe weather. I live in Arizona. I am not looking forward to having 110 plus degree weather more days than not. Yesterday I think was the 12th straight day of over 110. I can only imagine that this trend is going to continue and we will remain in a drought. As a country, we need to start making the changes that scientists and other professionals have been demanding for years and we need to do it soon.

this can’t be good

A large chunk of Antarctica’s Wilkins ice shelf has started to break off. This ice shelf is a permanent ice sheet that apparently, due to being in a fast warming area, is not going really so permanent. This is a huge sign- in case all the other signs weren’t working -that the Earth cannot withstand the warming.

do Arizonans really care?

It’s possible that we will see a ballot initiative this November regarding the state trust lands. While I know where I stand on this issue, I am not sure that the majority of citizens feel the same way. We are still a society that think if there is empty land we must build. I hope that I am wrong and that if we do see this initiative, it passes without issue.

but its a dry heat

Well, as if it isn’t bad enough that our summers last for like 6 months and we get way too many days of 100 plus degree weather, a recent study reports that the West -which obviously includes us here in AZ- is showing a higher rise n temperature than any other place int he world. Fabulous! With global warming this is only going to get worse and this drought we’ve been having? — Yeah it’s going to be with us for a really long time.

Phoenix to celebrate Earth Hour

Wow! I had to blink rapidly and rub my eyes when I read that Phoenix is one of the flagship cities in th US to participate in this years Earth Hour. The concept is totally cool and well-worth it. But as someone living in Phoenix, it just seems too good to be true. I am very happy to hear the city wants to be more Earth friendly and to make changes to minimize global warming. We are int he desert here so we should be able to do way more to promote Earth friendly things such as say, solar energy. That way when it’s 118 degrees out, we can say “yeah it’s hot, but look at all the solar power we’re creating.” As for this event, I think it is a great statement to have downtown blackout for an hour. It makes a statement and I hope it is one that the citizens ill listen to. We use electricity like it is going out of style, without thought to the impact it has on the environment. Good start Phoenix. Let’s keep up the momentum.

worth reading

Thanks to Dooce, I had a chance to read this letter to Mother Nature. No truer words were ever spoken. I may not live in a cold weather state anymore, but I remember what it’s like as I lived most of my first 18 tears of life in Massachusetts. Living in Arizona for the past 13 years, I can just change some words here and there and the sentiment fits us in the hot desert as well.

interesting idea

An artic seed fault opened its doors today to house seeds from all over the world in an attempt to maintain food crops in case of extreme climate change due to global warming. Very interesting concept. Glad to see something like this in place.