Somedays I really feel my age. It may be triggered by one of my many aches and pains or just from watching some young folks do something that I used to enjoy doing. Now days, I’m more of an observer than a participant in sports or athletic endeavors, but I like to think I’ve earned […]
Category Archives: ecosystems
“Bye Bye BirdieI’m gonna miss you soBye Bye BirdieWhy’d ya have to go?(Bye bye) No more sunshine (no sunshine)It’s followed you away (you away)I’ll cry Birdie (Birdie)Till you’re home to stay I’ll miss the way you smileAs though it’s just for meAnd each and every nightI’ll write you faithfully(Bye Bye Birdie ) ~ Lee […]
Our part of town is over a hundred years old with historic houses built pretty close together and aged lawns, flower beds and tree-lined streets. There are plenty of old trees and swaths of ancient shrubbery coursing through the yards and alleys. Our proximity to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains (just a few blocks […]
“If you can’t take the heat, stay out of the kitchen.” ~ President Harry Truman Climate change doomsayers predict inevitable catastrophe due to massive flooding, horrific hurricanes and tornadoes, and years-long droughts. Some of that will occur in some places, but the one climate change prediction most likely to become reality is global warming. Luckily […]
We seem to think that expanding agricultural productivity will require more and more chemicals, and methods that are detrimental to natural ecology. There are, however, all kinds of efforts underway to capitalize on the efficient and eco-conscious use of agriculture without destroying Mother Earth. Journalist Zach Zorich reports, “According to Archaeologist John Hart, Iroquois farmers […]
“For decades, scientists have tried to figure out ways to reverse climate change by pulling carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and storing it underground. They’ve tried using trees, giant machines that suck CO2 out of the sky, complicated ocean methods that involve growing and burying huge quantities of kelp.” ~ Shannon Osaka The prime climate change demon […]
Often, we hunted or fished on underused farm or ranch land owned by one of my Dad’s clients — usually with a field lying fallow or a lightly grazed prairie. There would be old buildings we could peer into, watching for snakes and other nasty critters. Hand-dug wells, dangerously covered by rotting boards, offered an […]
“It’s likely that the first use of compost — or at least manure — took place not long after the start of cultivation … After all, a people who lived close to nature would soon have noticed the grass grew greener where an animal had deposited its poo.” ~ Compost Magazine I’ve been composting for many […]
The cooler autumn weather allows us to turn off the window AC in our bedroom and keep the windows open, instead. Things chill down overnight, causing us to keep blankets handy and encouraging snuggling beneath them. The dog and cats also appreciate the opportunity to snuggle up. Our second-floor bedroom faces the alley, but we […]
And now I lie with them upon this hillMingling with Texas earth as seasons come and go.Chilling northers bend grasses almost to the ground;Low-hung clouds are misty blanketsDropping days of rain upon the earth.Then wild flowers make sweet the air in spring”Old Cemetery on the Hill” — Epitaph by Susanna O’Docharty in Laurel The green […]
Writes of Nature 