Open Thread – Monday Moment of Zen
Well, it’s been a hectic weekend at Mudflats Central. Hope you had a great one, wherever you are. And Happy Solstice to all! Summer Solstice has a fond place in the hearts of Alaskans who spend most of their year battling cold and dark. We can hardly get enough of the summer light which seems to fill everyone with energy and good cheer.
Here in Anchorage it won’t really get dark tonight. It simply goes from twilight to dawn. And then, after the celebrating, we will once again begin to lose daylight, which nobody wants to think about.
One thing that we can take comfort in here at The Mudflats is that our Forum and Tech gurus, who are located in the opposite hemisphere, will start to get all that light we lose. So happy solstice to Snoskred and the rest of those reading from Down Under, and enjoy the return of the light!
Fair notice though – we’ll be wanting it back in about six months.
The sun finally returned to south central Alaska on Sunday. Hopefully it will continue to stick around. It was a good week despite the rain earlier. Keep up the good mud puppy work.
Listen to the rock growing …
The rock is shrinking . . .
that’s no rock…
it’s a dragon egg!
Summer solstice at Stonehenge
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
Winter solstice with Jethro Tull
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qcPS-J0HTg
…and the seasons, they go round and round…
L’Shalom, all y’all.
so THAT’s where my golf ball went !!!!! I lost enough of them Saturday !!!!
Here is my own bit of Monday Moosiness! May every animal lover enjoy this as much as I did!
http://www.wimp.com/babymoose
So cute! Thanks for sharing; I needed that chuckle. Headed off to doggie duty with a smile on my face.
Good morning, mudpups- may your day be filled with small pleasures.
Gramiam thank you so much for that link. I was the best. I wasn’t expecting twins, how absolutely adorable. And mom getting in the mix also too. Having one of my most favorite songs in the world in as the background music was an extra special bonus. Thanks again.
that should have been “it was the best” not I – geesh how can one proof read it so many times and still get it wrong. LOL
What a great video!
Thank you so much for the video! How anyone could kill these creatures for sport is beyond me. Well, to be honest, killing anything just for sport outrages me.
Questions: what sings this song? what is the title of the song.
I love the song and loved the video. Thanks again!
Alison Krauss is the artist and the name of the song is “When you say nothing at all”.
Wonderful!
Happy Solstice, whichever side of the sircle you are on!
Thank you sooooo much. That clip brought such joy to my heart. Their wonder and happiness just came through so beautifully.
Loved it too.
Good morning! Excessive heat warning here. Yesterday, the temp was 104* at four p.m. with a heat index of about 115*. Somewhat excessive to say the least. *insert eyeroll*
I am spending yet another day inside. Luckily I have many books to read, and that is heavenly! Have a lovely solstice one and all.
Just went for a walk at 9 a.m. here in Kansas – only a third of a mile and I was drenched. It was only 84 degrees, but the humidity is horrendous. Not that I want winter back, but we don’t usually get into this kind of heat/humidity until late July here. Gees, not looking forward to it getting worse. Hope it is cooler for some of the other mudflatters.
That’s one of the reasons I’m glad I live in Washington state. I grew up in Garden City, KS, where it gets hot but it’s dry. Not too bad. Then I was in Lawrence and Wichita, with no air conditioning, and the heat and humidity are unbearable. There are things I miss about Kansas, but it’s not summer and hot weather.
However, don’t hope so hard for us in the Puget Sound area that we have cooler weather. It has felt more like winter than the start of summer. We could use some warmer weather about now.
Sadly, not even the annual Fremont Solstice Parade of naked bicyclists was able to end this cold winter-like weather around here.
nekkid bicyclists…wow. kewl.
AMEN!!! from North Puget Sound. Saturday was nice: sunny and in the 60s. A friend of ours had a garden party in a lovely garden. I don’t know how she managed the third sunny day in June, but she did. Even though we are south of our Alaska friends, I love the long days of late Spring and early Summer. Solstice is both a happy and sad day: summer is here, but now the days grow shorter. Celebrate and enjoy what we have!
I’m still celebrating Summer Solstice, even though it means it will be the longest “gray” day of the year!
(The sun did try to peek out a bit about 2:00 this afternoon, but only for about 2 minutes).
Someone on another blog coined a great phrase for Palin, Bachman, et all….Whacktose Intolerant!
“Whacktose Intolerant” – I like that!…I’m pretty sure I’m SEVERELY Whacktose Intolerant. (Meaning, of course, they are the Whacktose, ergo anyone with even half a lick of sense, suffers greatly from Whacktose Intolerance when exposed to the Whacktosiness of said Whacktose idiots?) beth.
Sunbeams startled me. I am so happy that the sun shines today, even if its only for awhile. I look forward to being on my beach with a big fire and send the spirits on the tide.
Thanx for what you give us.
Hey Mudpups from Home!! Wish I was there!!
(……these Yanks are NUTS!! hahaha……except for the ones that are on this site!)
((HUGS)) to all!
AKM, regarding your worshipping of sunlight, have you read anything about vitamin D3? It is finally hitting mainstream medicine, but the optimal levels are being debated and raised. After years of SAD (yes, even in the desert) I went to a naturopathic doctor who told me that mine was probably low and that 80 was optimal (not the 30 currently touted). I was indeed low and wow! What a difference! Low vitamin D3 can also cause a myriad of other problems and was probably the main cause of me getting cancer. I had no other risk factors. There is only one doctor who tests for this where I live. I get plenty of sunshine and eat lots of dark green vegetables, but I still couldn’t absorb the D3 very well. Low D3 can set you up for cancer, heart problems, and anything affected by poor absorption of calcium.
It sure can. I take it daily because after the big nasty I somehow no longer absorb D either.
I’m afraid to ask but “the big nasty”? Is it menopause?
Glad to hear you are better. People need to use less sunscreen too! Just like plants, people need sunlight!
Except when you live in the desert, have turn-and-burn skin, and pre-cancers removed every year. But , yes, that is a big part of the problem with many people.
I take it every day, since hubby learned about the benefits. I do think it makes a difference – didn’t know about the connection to cancer.
More info on Vit D / Dr. Hyman writes for Huffpo as well.
http://www.ultrawellness.com/blog/not-getting-enough-vitamin-d
My doctor prescribed vitamin D3 for me. I have been surprised how much better I feel. It is one of the only things that has made a difference with SAD for me. So why do I live in northern Wash. when I had severe SAD? I love it here. (Surprising, it stopped the thinning of my hair. I was getting almost bald on top and now the hair is filling in. What do you say?)
I say, “Great!” D3 is the vitamin that is actually a hormone. It is essential for many things. The important thing is to remember that traditional medicine is coming lately to this party. The licensed naturopaths are much more on top of it. Remember, a traditional doctor may tell you 30 is the number to attain, but a naturopath will tell you optimal is closer to 80. The doctor I see is from Bastyr University (medical school) in Seattle. I took prozac for years and the SAD was getting worse and worse. Now I don’t take it at all. She said that the low D3 was most likely a big factor in causing me to have breast cancer. So pay attention to that, girlfriends. I was lucky and escaped a bullet. Mine was caught early enough, and I have been cancer free for 13 years.
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp
Sun exposure
Most people meet their vitamin D needs through exposure to sunlight [5,31]. Ultraviolet (UV) B radiation with a wavelength of 290-315 nanometers penetrates uncovered skin and converts cutaneous 7-dehydrocholesterol to previtamin D3, which in turn becomes vitamin D3 [9,32,33]. Season, geographic latitude, time of day, cloud cover, smog, skin melanin content, and sunscreen are among the factors that affect UV radiation exposure and vitamin D synthesis [33]. The UV energy above 42 degrees north latitude (a line approximately between the northern border of California and Boston) is insufficient for cutaneous vitamin D synthesis from November through February [5]; in far northern latitudes, this reduced intensity lasts for up to 6 months. In the United States, latitudes below 34 degrees north (a line between Los Angeles and Columbia, South Carolina) allow for cutaneous production of vitamin D throughout the year [27].
Complete cloud cover reduces UV energy by 50%; shade (including that produced by severe pollution) reduces it by 60% [34]. UVB radiation does not penetrate glass, so exposure to sunshine indoors through a window does not produce vitamin D [35]. Sunscreens with a sun protection factor of 8 or more appear to block vitamin D-producing UV rays, although in practice people generally do not apply sufficient amounts, cover all sun-exposed skin, or reapply sunscreen regularly [36]. Skin likely synthesizes some vitamin D even when it is protected by sunscreen as typically applied.
The factors that affect UV radiation exposure and research to date on the amount of sun exposure needed to maintain adequate vitamin D levels make it difficult to provide general guidelines. It has been suggested by some vitamin D researchers, for example, that approximately 5-30 minutes of sun exposure between 10 AM and 3 PM at least twice a week to the face, arms, legs, or back without sunscreen usually lead to sufficient vitamin D synthesis and that the moderate use of commercial tanning beds that emit 2%-6% UVB radiation is also effective [10,33]. Individuals with limited sun exposure need to include good sources of vitamin D in their diet or take a supplement.
Despite the importance of the sun to vitamin D synthesis, it is prudent to limit exposure of skin to sunlight [36] and UV radiation from tanning beds [37]. UV radiation is a carcinogen responsible for most of the estimated 1.5 million skin cancers and the 8,000 deaths due to metastatic melanoma that occur annually in the United States [36]. Lifetime cumulative UV damage to skin is also largely responsible for some age-associated dryness and other cosmetic changes. It is not known whether a desirable level of regular sun exposure exists that imposes no (or minimal) risk of skin cancer over time. The American Academy of Dermatology advises that photoprotective measures be taken, including the use of sunscreen, whenever one is exposed to the sun [38].
Definition of skin cancer: Cancer that forms in the tissues of the skin. There are several types of skin cancer. Skin cancer that forms in melanocytes (skin cells that make pigment) is called melanoma. Skin cancer that forms in the lower part of the epidermis (the outer layer of the skin) is called basal cell carcinoma. Skin cancer that forms in squamous cells (flat cells that form the surface of the skin) is called squamous cell carcinoma. Skin cancer that forms in neuroendocrine cells (cells that release hormones in response to signals from the nervous system) is called neuroendocrine carcinoma of the skin. Most skin cancers form in older people on parts of the body exposed to the sun or in people who have weakened immune systems.
Estimated new cases and deaths from skin (nonmelanoma) cancer in the United States in 2009:
New cases: more than 1,000,000
Deaths: less than 1,000
Let’s all be careful out there!
AND no matter how much sunlight you get to your unsunscreened skin, many people still can’t absorb D3. Then you can’t absorb calcium very well, a problem I have had all my life, but no doctor could tell me why.
Do you take a supplement, now? Does it help?
Yes, I take 5000 IU morning and night of D3 as well as a supplement of calcium with magnesium and 8000 IU of vitamin A. Then I will re-test in several months to see if the level is up. It takes a long time to adjust. One other thing the doctor told me was to put each of the supplements I was buying into a tablespoon of apple cider and see if it dissolved. Several didn’t dissolve which means they are useless and passing right through. The low D3 was also a factor in years of not sleeping well. I sleep great now.
This is actually a reply to WakeUpAmerica 10.6.1.1.1:
It’s your body, and I really don’t mean to meddle, but have you run your vitamin A consumption past a doc? Vitamin A is fat soluble, so it excesses accumulate in body fat, rather than being excreted. There is some evidence that high accumulated levels (over time) can lead to some bad side effects.
Just a thought.
Stranglet,
Yes, great question! After having all the blood work and food sensitivity testing done, that was the doctor’s recommendation based on the results, my age, my medical history, and my symptoms. I have to tell you that the first thing she recommended was to stop eating all dairy and gluten. The second thing was to stop eating inflammatory foods (dairy, caffeine, gluten,sugar, potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, onions, peppers, garlic) because of the arthritis I had and muscle pain. I lost 16 pounds in two weeks just because of the reduction in inflammation and felt SOOO much better. I thought it would be hard, but it wasn’t when I realized how good I felt. I do saute in garlic because you can’t give up everything. I also am allowed to eat dark chocolate which keeps me from crying in public. :-} Hope that helps any of you who might be interested.
Bill-O: Socialist wealth distributor?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9YDGcZWotE&feature=player_embedded
Oops..
http://tpmlivewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/06/oreilly-grills-bachmann-on-escrow-fund-stance-youre-dodging-my-question.php?ref=fpa
Woohoo – we have amazing sun in Southeast for solstice and everything else! I’ve been hiking every weekend in great weather since May 1 with only one weekend off for a nasty gale. It’s quite unbelievable. This is one of those summers where people come to visit and say “Hey, I’d like to move here!”. Then in about three or four years, when the summers have been grey, wet and nasty for a couple of years, we get the locals saying “Hey, I wanna move outta here!”.
I still miss Anchorage’s annual “Summer Solstice Doo-Dah Parade”, for which I’d always dress up as Carmen Miranda and join in the crazy parade down Spenard Avenue. The best year was when I marched between the Jimmy Buffett fanclub and a Chinese dragon made of blue tarps, lawnchairs, and a fire extinguisher. The creative juices really get flowing when the sun’s out!
4:34 am “sweetie, sweetie… Wake up…. “, says tallimat.
4:35 am “good morning tallimat, 3 words, human snooze button”, says sweetie.
With those 3 words, I decide to take a walk out to the field. It is 5 am and the dragonflies aren’t even awake. But the morning dew sure glistens in the big open field. And the Robins are everywhere. Loudly everywhere.
5:30 am “sweetie, sweetie, I’m gonna drink coffee at the firepit and watch the dragonflies circle the house, okay, please don’t consider me a ‘human snooze button’, it’s summer solstice! The sun is shining and the clouds are near gone!”, says tallimat.
Coffee grinding, water boiling, loading up the tray with all the essentials: french press, cups, soy and cow milk… I don’t forget the dog and cat treats. The sweetie gives the house eta a goodie every morning.
5:45 am “sweetie I’m going outside with the coffee”, tallimat gently, loudly announces (thinking, “human snooze button, my arse”…
But shucks, the sweetie already made it to the table by the fire pit, with some flowers to boot!
It is gonna be a wonderful day. Thankfully, the sweetie is gonna help me with the garden! He took the day off. He had it all planned out weeks ago…
Happy long summer day everybody!
4:
Reading the unbelievable words of the MS (or is it MI?) Gov. Barbour at:
http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/haley-barbour-meet-press-drilling-mor
And wondering why, two years ago, when we didn’t have an oil spill anywhere in the world (that I recall) gas prices skyrocketed, and now two months of BP not being able to sell all this oil, gas prices have, so far, not gone up much if any at all.
Seems proof positive to me that whatever America drills and puts onto the global market makes next to no difference in the price we pay for gas at the pump. A few cents a gallon is NOT worth risking our environment and the other money-earning industries that rely on that environment.
I think SP should (like all of us) be concentrating on the other two legs of her stool – renewable sources of energy and conservation.
Shhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! {:-[
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/right-now/2010/06/palin_versus_the_gop_on_bp.html?hpid=topnews
Feel free to join in, Mudflatters. JakeD, in particular, states that he has questions that he wants answered (he’s a Palin fan).
Yes, you’ll have to join. It’s free.
I’m posting this in the latest Palin thread, too.
TLC Makes Push For Red America
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/21/tlc-makes-push-for-red-am_n_619252.html
“”We tend to be less snarky, edgy,” TLC president Eileen O’Neill told Collins. ”
So they’ll feature the queen of snark LOL
Yeah, that cracked me up when I read it too.
You can’t be edgy WITHOUT snark, TLC. Morons.
The whole point of being edgy is to push the boundaries. One way to do that is via satire and comedy e.g. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.
But sure, go ahead and push for that programming – the more Real Red Americans you have on parade the better. Especially the Palinbots – they make for great TV!
“We tend to be less snarky, edgy,” TLC president Eileen O’Neill told Collins. [from the linked article.]
Two thoughts:
1) TLC promoting $P as a poster child for their ‘less snarky’ programming is like the oil industry promoting BP as that industry’s poster child for responsible drilling. The *facts* do NOT support the attempted spin…no matter *how* the ‘argument’ for [either] $P or BP is shaped.
$P is the Queen of Snark AND of Divisive Rhetoric; a *fact* has rarely crossed her path that she hasn’t ignored, twisted beyond all recognition, and/or manipulated to meet her *personal* agenda. Hiding behind her FB page and tweets, she’s not held accountable for her misdirects; smoke and mirrors; and out-right lies, though.
2) $P may ‘love her state’, but she has *never* demonstrated she gives two figs for the resources/wildlife and/or ‘little people’ *in* the state. EVER! To $P, the planet/state of Alaska is ONLY as “precious” as it *gives* to HER. Fortunately, she’s left a paper-trail miles and miles long to prove, positively, her total disregard for all things sane when it comes to nature, wildlife, and/or natural resources [thanks, AKM and AK bloggers for revealing her *real* self – you have my unending gratitude for exposing the lies and duplicity of the ______ (< Note: please fill in the blank — what I want to call her won’t pass the mod filter!)
TLC, sadly, did as much vetting of $P before they hired her on as did McCain before selecting her as his VP running-mate…and as McCain had to do *mega*-spin to make her ‘legit’ (and failed — anyone surprised?), so, too, is TLC trying. They, too, will fail. It’s NOT POSSIBLE to spin ignorance, greed, and soul-ugly out of the moran. beth.
What’s the difference between Sarah Palin and her bobblehead doll likeness?
The bobblehead isn’t deadly.
We could make a game of this…
The bobblehead has never shot wolves from an airplane?
The bobblehead could probably stream words together and have them make sense?
The bobblehead wouldn’t deny having a facelift and boob job?
The bobblehead won’t EVER run for president? (although if my choices were between SP and a bobblehead, I’d most definitely vote for the bobblehead.)
i liked your comment.. i kinda think they know very well what sarah is. they don’t care. TLC like Fox News and the rest of the Murdock-Sheikh Talabani holdings are quite clear in their in their intention to make big money and to guide the national discourse to benefit themselves and their shareholders. the great pity is that a significant amount of voting America are ripe for the plucking.
Hey, even Ireland is complying this year. For once, the weather is glorious. Happy Solstice everyone.
Happy Solstice, all. Plant your flag for renewable energy: http://letsmovebeyondoil.org/
Health and peace.
We had a very warm and humid solstice. 95F with 72% humidity. Looks like the humidity actually dropped today.
Happy Solstice! Here’s to hoping its a quiet Hurricane season and a cool summer. Spring has sucked here so far!
i am sorry NOLA. i cannot even begin to take it all in. everyone i talk to in my neighborhood are concerned and worried about you folks.
Okay, I got to post this prayer vigil for the Gulf first. Then I will read all the comments.
http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/event.php?eid=117487561629839&index=1
As we walked back from our barn tonight (after feeding the donkeys and horses) in the twilight – broad daylight for Alaska, my husband and I talked about our prior 28 Solstice’s in Alaska- including our last one in 2002 when we walked along the bike path downtown and watched a fox hunting at 11 at night. It’s not quite the same in Colorado but we enjoy a comparable outdoor lifestyle while missing many of the exotic moments in Alaska. Best wishes to everyone enjoying life there!