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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Use Mower To Mulch Yard Leaves

For many years, I have been amused
by people who rake and bag (or burn) yard leaves.
They spend money on fertilizer for their yard
(that isn't totally used by the plants).
Then they get rid off the world's best organic mulch
by not utilizing leaves.
Thus, they hamper the build up of humus in the soil and perpetuate a
cycle of foolishness.

http://m.organicgardening.com/organicgardening/#!/entry/leave-leaves-alone,51c1bd92da27f5d9d0e3f6a2

Preventing Frozen Water Pipes

In the South, homes are not always
built towards preventing water pipes from freezing. For example, my
typical subdivision house has pipes in the unheated garage attic. Other
pipes run through the outer garage wall.  So, when the temperature is in
danger of going below 20 degrees F., I set affected taps to slowly
dripping. Cabinet drawers under sinks are left open.
If I have to be
gone for the days that there's hard freeze danger, I set the taps to
dripping and then shut the water off at the main. The thermostat is no
lower than 55.

http://www.weather.com/activities/homeandgarden/home/hometips/severeweather/pipefreeze_prevent.html

To Be Happy, First Be Grateful

What is the connection between happiness and gratefulness?
Are people who are happy grateful -- or are people who are grateful happy?

Lasting happiness comes from grateful living. That is, happiness comes to those
who acknowledge and appreciate the real value of what makes life worth
living.

As you walk through your daily life, Stop, Look (and
listen) and then Go some more. Allow childlike wonder and curiosity to
allow gratefulness to  grow within. Allow gratitude to rise up within
you.

Listen to:
http://www.ted.com/talks/david_steindl_rast_want_to_be_happy_be_grateful.html

Or -- Perhaps you might prefer reading the transcript. That option is shown.

Global Warming: Plateaued?


No! Global temperatures have not
risen as rapidly as they did in the previous two decades, but the world
is still getting warmer due to man made emissions. 9 of the 10 warmest
years on record have occurred since 1998. 
Overall, the world has warmed by 1.4°F.

What has tempered the rate of increase is that the
deep ocean waters below 2300 feet have heated up since the year 2000,
even as the temperature of surface seawater has remained stable. Warming
over the last decade has been hidden below the ocean surface.
Also,
the sun has not been shining as brightly. Over an average of 11 years,
the sun's energy output rises and falls, subtly influencing Earth's
climate. The last solar maximum occurred in 2000; since then a prolonged
solar minimum has kept the sun dimmer than usual.
Another cause is
due to an increasing influx of sunlight
blocking particles into the stratosphere -- vast quantities of
pollution from coal burning China and several mid-sized volcanic
eruptions. These particles work in the opposite way to greenhouse gases,
reflecting solar radiation away from the Earth.

http://m.theweek.com/article.php?id=248646

9 of 10 Poorest States Are Red States

Mississippi, Arkansas, West Virginia, Kentucky, Alabama, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana and South Carolina.

http://www.politifact.com/rhode-island/statements/2014/jan/12/occupy-democrats/pro-democrat-group-says-9-10-poorest-states-are-re/

http://www.berthoudrecorder.com/2014/01/13/nine-out-of-the-10-poorest-states-are-red-states/

"It should come as little surprise that in the heart of America’s South,
where the marriage of free markets and “traditional values” is
celebrated by the routine casting of votes for red-state Tea Party style
Republicans each election cycle, that the American dream is shown to be
at its weakest."

"Southern red-states consistently ranked at the
bottom in regards to  opportunity for those born in one economic class
to elevate themselves out of poverty or into wealth. The
findings come as little surprise that pro-corporate, anti-union
economic policies lead not to prosperity, but social stratification and
the enshrining of an economic aristocracy"
[My Comment: Remember the
Confederacy's demographics. Also consider their rather medieval
agrarian roots. It's not a surprising statistic.]

http://aattp.org/irony-at-its-finest-pro-business-red-states-see-lowest-economic-opportunity-in-america/#sthash.2cL2pATl.dpuf

http://www.sewanee.edu/faculty/willis/Civil_War/tables/ConfedPop1860.html

Creationists Worry Too Much

Creationists worry too much. If one accepts that God created all things and that God is infinite, how can one vehemently and absolutely deny the possibility that perhaps God put evolution in motion in the first moment of creation. Life is perpetual and everlasting change.

Just as birds evolved over tens of millions of years from theropods during the Mesozoic Era, man has been around an extremely long time. And just as the dinosaurs became extinct, we will also one day disappear -- 100,000 years ago there were 3 species of humans.

Hopefully, we will grow and develop into an improved species more worthy of God's love. Tolerance of each others' differences will be the criterion by which this shall be measured. So, if someone believes that the Earth is 6000 years old, who am I to shun them? But, if I believe that the speed of light is 186,000 miles per second, they need to be tolerant of me.