Please Vote for Me!

MKSupplies is hosting a jewelry designer contest on her blog. I am one of the five competitors, and I need votes! My "Smokin' Smokey Quartz Necklace" is entered.



Please visit her site and vote for me by either selecting my name in the poll or leaving a comment on the post!

MKSupplies' Blog

Thank you!

EFA Blog Feature

Check out today's Etsy for Animals blog! My June challenge entry, "Celebration of Junebugs" is featured! You can also see all the other great entries this month. Most EFA members donate a portion of proceeds to the EFA charity of the month or other animal charities. This month's charity is Angel's Gate, a hospice for special needs animals.

Quotation of the Day

"If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete."--Buddha

Weather

Agck! Which is worse?

Ellis Paul on NPR!

Today, on NPR's "Here and Now" program, Ellis Paul was interviewed about his children's music album "The Dragonfly Races." I have enjoyed the album--particularly the song "Abiola" which is about making one's own decisions and confronting authority. He also included "Nine Months to Save the World" which I was happy to see since it wasn't on his last album. George and I heard Ellis Paul perform the song, which he wrote when he learned his wife was pregnant, several years ago. Though the songs are geared towards children, they aren't silly or dumbed down as a lot of children's music is. Instead, they have the same trademark Ellis Paul sensibility, but told through narratives that make sense to younger souls.

I sent a copy of the CD to Frances, and Anna reported that they enjoyed it and had fun dancing to the music. So it's a thumbs up from adults and from kids.

Here and Now Website

Ellis Paul Website

No ANWR Drilling!

Photo by Jo Goldmann, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
http://images.fws.gov

After writing my last post, I decided I needed to remind folks how strongly and vehemently I oppose drilling in ANWR. Often, the knee-jerk response to the $4.00/gallon gas is to call for more domestic production and drilling in ANWR or off-shore. Neither of these approaches is the solution to our dependence on oil--our dependence on oil is the problem. As the article "ANWR is Not the Answer" outlines, oil is a declining resource, and there is little we can do to adjust the supply. Instead, we must focus on the demand. Simply, we must use less oil.

When I was working in publishing, I met a guy named Christian at the trade shows I went to for work. At the time, Christian lived in Brooklyn and commuted to Manhattan by bike. He said something that has stuck with me for years... He talked about being annoyed with friends or coworkers who called, late to appointments or work, because they were stuck "in traffic." Christian scoffed, "They aren't in traffic. They are traffic!" I thought that was so brilliant--we do think of traffic as being apart from us, something we can't control, not something that we actually create. Well, we have got to stop being traffic and look for other transportation alternatives.

Furthermore, drilling in ANWR would have little effect on the current energy crisis, something we've known for as many as four years. Any oil from ANWR would not be on the market for 10 years, and then, that oil may ultimately decrease the cost of gas by just ONE CENT per gallon. Destroying ANWR for a measly cent per gallon? It's just not worth it.

Defenders of Wildlife explains how drilling in ANWR would affect the wildlife who depend on the area:

• The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the largest wildlife refuge in the United States, encompasses 19 million acres and provides habitat to a diverse array of wildlife including millions of migratory birds, caribou, three species of bears (polar, grizzly and black bears), wolves, Dall sheep, muskoxen, arctic and red foxes, wolverines, plus many more. The nearby continental shelf provides the coastal waters with a rich nutrient base, which in turn supports a variety of marine mammals including the endangered bowhead whale.
• The Arctic Refuge contains one of the most fragile and ecologically sensitive ecosystems in the world. It represents the only protected area in the world that includes an intact arctic, subarctic, and boreal ecosystem, thus retaining the natural dynamics that have existed for thousands of years. The Arctic environment is extremely vulnerable to long-lasting disturbance because the harsh climate and obviously short growing seasons allow species that have been harmed little time to recover.
• The proposed oil and gas development would occur on the 1.5-million acre coastal plain found along the Beaufort Sea. This area is the most sensitive in the entire refuge and habitat loss that occurs here will impact the entire Arctic Refuge. The coastal plain habitat within the Arctic Refuge is also unique from other regions of the North Slope of Alaska because it is relatively narrow (only 15-40 miles across), limiting the alternatives for animals using these areas.
  

Save the Artic Wildlife Refuge
msnbc.com Article

Painful Car Culture

Today, CNN/Money published an online article, "Oklahoma's Painful Car Culture." In a survey of fifty cities best able to deal with the high gasoline prices, Tulsa and Oklahoma ranked 49th and 50th respectively. (San Francisco, New York, and Chicago were the top three, due to the public transportation infrastructures these cities enjoy.)

In Oklahoma, people often drive long distances to work (Lynnie spent several months commuting from Ardmore to Oklahoma City--100 miles, and I drove from Oklahoma City to Norman when I worked at the University of Oklahoma Press). Few alternatives to driving exist. In Oklahoma, folks LOVE their vehicles, and, usually, it's the bigger the better. Oklahoma City, due to its large area, makes creating a public transit system difficult. And, in Oklahoma, we don't really bike or walk, even for a couple of blocks--and watch out if you do. (One time, Anna visited me when I was living in Norman. I had to work one day she was there, and she went out walking. I remember her reporting that she saw no other pedestrians and that people looked at her askance.)

Several years ago, Grandma said that Oklahoma's economy was inversely related to that of the rest of the country. When oil prices are high, it's good for Oklahoma, but the rest of the country often suffers. Now, it seems that the gas prices are affecting Oklahomans as well.

Perhaps the car culture in Oklahoma is changing. One commuter from McLoud started organizing carpools to and from Oklahoma City. Tulsa and OKC are investigating ways they can increase public transportation options. These alternatives are promising.

Dissertation Deposited

Yesterday, I schlepped nine copies of my dissertation to the bookstore, in the very final step of this process. (My family is very excited about my Ph.D., so they all want bound copies, plus we have to provide two copies to the school for the library.) It was a total relief to hand them over and to know that now I am totally, finally finished.

I did, however, have serious sticker shock. I knew that I had to pay a $55 charge to deposit the document, as well as a $20 per copy binding fee. I did not anticipate all the other little charges that made me drop my jaw. Each of the seven copies for myself and my family cost $5 for a mailing charge. I also had to pay for mailing envelopes. The worst charge was for the length of my title. I went one character over the limit for the second tier ($5/book), so I had to pay an additional $13 per copy for a freaking "s." All total, I paid the bookstore $388. (I should say Grandma paid the bookstore, since she helped fund this operation.)

I will officially graduate in August 2008, and the bound copies should arrive in approximately 4 months.

Hooray!

Quotation of the Day

"Love until it hurts, then there is no hurt, but only more love...."--Mother Teresa

Three Little Pigs

Look at these cute little pigs! Aren't they adorable? I love the expressions they are wearing. The sculptures were hand-sculpted from polymer clay, fired, and glazed by Betty at lvsbeadsnthings. (You can see more of her clay critters on her blog.) Betty was kind enough to trade these (and some of her patented puppy poppers) for a pair of earrings and some gemstone pendants.

Pigs are amazing animals: smart, funny, and expressive. I love to have little piggy things around the house to remind me of the pigs at the Farm Sanctuary. The Farm Sanctuary is my favorite place on earth, and the pigs are my favorite animals there. Having my own little pigs makes me happy...thanks Betty for contributing to my joy!

Restoring Virginity

The New York Times reported that many Middle Eastern women living in Europe are undergoing plastic surgery to restore their hymens and provide the illusion of virginity on their wedding nights. Sometimes, women are required to go to gynecologists before their marriage to receive a confirmation of virgin status.

This is happening in Europe, in particular, because of the clash of European and Middle Eastern sexual values. While sex before marriage is often accepted or tolerated by those living in Europe, the religion definitely restricts sex outside of marriage. One couple, the article reported, had been engaged four years and had been sexually active, but they decided to have the woman undergo the surgery to placate the man's family, who was requiring the woman go see a gynecologist.

While I think this is extreme, the consequences for sex before marriage for Middle Eastern women can be more severe than Westerners might imagine. What do you think?

New York Times Story

Quotation of the Day

From Newsweek (June 16, 2008):

"The largest proclamation of one's faith ought to be in how one lives one's life" --South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford

Newsweek explains that Sanford gave this quote "sounding a note of dissent after his state, over his objections, became the first in the nation to offer license plates displaying the phrase 'I believe' and a Christian cross on a stained glass window."

Pretty in Pink Pig Gets a Purple Friend

My pretty in pink pig was so cute and so fun to make that I got another paper mache pig! They must be quite popular because Ornamentea, the only online shop I know of that carries them, is almost always out of stock. For the second pig, I used pretty purple and teal Decopatch paper. They are having great fun together and are looking forward to cooler weather in Ithaca.

The Health and Safety of Race Horses

Today, the Diane Rehm show discussed the horseracing industry and the calls for reform that many critics voice to improve the safety and welfare of the horses.

Diane Rehm Show Site

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes

Over 150 people in 16 states have been diagnosed with salmonella linked to the consumption of raw tomatoes of the Roma and round red varieties. As a result, many restaurants including McDonald's and Jack in the Box, have pulled tomatoes and are not using them in any of their dishes.

Information from the Center for Disease Control

"Animal Love" Treasury

Thanks to Enchanted Foundlings for including my "Trendy Vintage Purple Lucite Teardrop Earrings" in her "Animal Love" treasury. All the artists in this treasury are members of Etsy for Animals and most if not all give a percentage of sales to animal organizations.

The treasury will be available online until June 11, so please click it!