the world

bug




photo by me

I’m getting the travel bug again. It’s been about seven months since I’ve traveled outside of Arizona (I’ve gone down to Phoenix four times in as many months). I am getting pangs of desire to go see something new.

In the last year (or so), I have been to Vancouver three times. I absolutely loved the city and the Island. I could have stayed there and been perfectly happy.

Now, I’m jonesing for a trip further away. I have been thinking about Spain for the last few years. I’d like to travel around Spain and see the sites off the beaten path. I’ve been reading a book that is set in Barcelona and it makes me yearn to go there.

I’ve also had a craving to visit Italy. I want to walk around the narrow streets of some quiet town, taking photographs of cool doors, windows, and balconies. I want to see colors that are different than the ones I’m seeing here.

I may go to San Diego over the winter holiday break. I’m thinking about Denver over spring break. I’d like to get out to Washington D.C., as well. I’m thinking about New Orleans.

But really, I want to go a bit further. I want to get out there and experience the world, enjoy what it has to offer.

While I don’t necessarily want to travel alone, I don’t have many choices in that arena. And, when I travel alone, I’m able to see the things I’d like to see without having to worry if the other person is having fun.

I’m one of those people who will wander streets of a city for hours. I will take the local mass transit to get a feel for the city. I will go to “hole-in-the-wall” places for lunch. I will visit galleries and museums and parks and bookstores. I will search out places of historical merit.

And now I’m yearning to revisit London. I’d like to go to the National Gallery again. I’d like to walk past John Keats’ house again. I’d like to trip over those cobblestones along the road, past the flat where I used to live.

saving our earth

On Saturday, February 12th, Sister Dorothy Stang was assinated in the rainforest in Brazil.

Sister Dorothy had worked in the Amazon for 37 years. She was a vocal opponent to illegal logging and large corporations who stole land from the small landowners in the Amazon.

It is thought that Sister Dorothy, who was shot three times, was killed by those who did not like her oppositions to the changes in the rainforests.

To read more about Sister Dorothy Stang, please visit Politiscape.com.

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The Kyoto Treaty/Protocol/Agreement went into effect today around the world. The United States and Australia are the only two “progressive” nations that did not sign the Treaty citing economic hardships if the Treaty went into effect. The United States government has claimed that because China and India are not signing the Treaty, it puts undue hardship on the U.S. economy for them to do so.

As an American, I find this so irresponsible. When we are dealing with issues that concern the earth, we are not only affecting the citizens of this nation. We are affecting the rest of the world. As one of the world’s leaders in economic and political arenas, we are also responsible to be a leader in environmental arenas.

Unfortunately, we currently have an administration that does not treat the environment kindly. Our air, water, and forests are under a direct line of attack. The current administration would have Alaska drilled, the forests in the West logged, mountains mined, waters polluted, and the air thick with pollution.

I’m sickened by our mistreatment of the earth. I’m dismayed that an administration that has a blatant disregard for the environment around us has been re-elected.

I hope that this can be turned around and that the United States can be a world leader in environmental issues and not the country that refuses to clean up its act.

global vigil

Two weeks ago southern Asia was bombarded with a tsunami. Communities around the world are engaging in candlelight vigils to garner support for those survivors of the tsunami.

To see if there is a vigil in your area, visit Global Vigil for the Global Village.

Strong aftershocks continue to occur. Armed separatists have taken over survivor camps in Indonesia and violence is erupting in Sri Lanka. Officials are watching children carefully because there have already been reports of the trafficking of children for the sex industry.

The countries that were hit by the tsunami need our monetary, spiritual, and emotional support. Give what you can. Do what you can.

Please.

pearl harbor

It will, of course, be all over the news today.  63 years ago, Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese, bringing the United States into World War II.

My grandfather and his two brothers were in Pearl Harbor when it was bombed.  They served in the Pacific fleet.

One of my great-uncles, my grandfather’s youngest brother, was killed in the bombing.

My family went to visit the Pearl Harbor Memorial 12 years ago.  As we looked through the exhibits, we saw mention of our family name.  We was remnants of our history in those annals.

Today, I dedicated my blog to the men and women who gave their lives in that battle.

I dedicate it to my Grandpa Rusty who was one of the most amazing men I’ve ever known.

I love you, Grandpa.  Rest in Peace.

killing fields

“Ten years ago there were almost no deaths on the southern Arizona border. What they’ve done is created this gantlet of death. It’s Darwinian — only the strongest survive.”
REV. JOHN FIFE, a Presbyterian minister who works on illegal immigration issues in Arizona.

The area of southern Arizona has been called the Killing Fields of the U.S. During the summer months, there are numerous reports of deaths: People who have no water or who are within walking distance of fresh water and have collapsed. Men, women and children are found dehydrated and having suffered from heat stroke in the vast deserts.

There are stories of “wranglers” who will take a person’s hard earned money to get them into the U.S. and who will then abandon that person in the middle of the desert with no means to survive the searing heat. Worse, are the loads of people loaded into unconditioned box vans (the big trucks like moving vans). The heat, the panic, the lack of water and air have killed many people.

I know, I know…more news about death. I think this is important, though, because no one talks about the atrocities that happen within our own borders. This is an awful way to live and die. There is nothing but suffering in this kind of passing.

ramblings

There are a million and one things in my head today that I feel I could write about. There’s so much stuff going on that is going to affect each of us in a myriad of ways.

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Ok, I’m PISSED off about the whole Yucca Mountain situation. The western U.S. is NOT a dumping ground for the rest of the country just because we have space. If you manufacture nuclear waste YOU find a place in YOUR OWN state to dispose of it. DON’T transport it clear across the country where horrible things can happen and expect all of us to be happy about it.

It ain’t gonna happen.

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The Palestinians who were holed up in the Church of the Nativity have been shipped off to various places. It’s no coincidence that 26 of them are being sent to Gaza and the Israeli army is beefing up its military in Gaza. Do we really think that there will be a trial?

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Alabama executes its first woman in 45 years.

Enough said.

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Nearly $400 BILLION dollars has been allotted, by our Congress, to a “Wartime” defense.

Please.

They approved money for a program that Pentagon officials don’t even want.

Yep…you heard that right. The Crusader howitzer program is very controversial and Pentagon muckity-mucks want it killed…not funded.

Have we elected idiots??? Do I want my money going towards a program that 1) I would never support and 2) the Pentagon doesn’t even support???

No.

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And for something interesting, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory wants to award people for finding comets online.

You, too, can try it. The Soho-500 Comet Contest could make you rich and famous. Or, well, maybe just popular with your friends.

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Happy Mother’s Day to all of those wonderful mothers out there. I hope you have the best weekend…and enjoy your kids. They probably don’t realize how lucky they are to have you.

water

In the western United States, water is power.  Water is politics.  Water is life.  We are constantly worried about our levels of water, where our water is going, who is using more than we are and why they are allotted more water.  Along the Colorado River, there are so many agreements and treaties that the disputes over water rights are often in court.

Much of the American West is desert.  We have high mountains, snow covered peaks, oceans, lakes, and ponds.  But we are still in the midst of deserts.  Desert doesn’t mean that you’re filled with cactus or sparse land that grows little of what most people would call lush vegetation.  Desert means that you get very little rainfall in a year.  It means that you must find your water by alternative methods.

I remember a few years ago when it started pouring rain in Los Angeles.  Los Angeles, and the surrounding communities (something like 35 million people) had been under severe drought warnings and water restrictions for 3-5 years.  All of a sudden, it starts raining.  The people there, silly people that they are, decided that because it was raining, the drought was over.  They could use water as they wished once again.  What scientists and meteorologists scrambled to publicize is that although they got rain (for all of 2 weeks out of the year), the drought was not over.  The water supplies had not been replenished and there was still a problem.  Angelinos did not listen.

The Gulf of California (Baja), where it meets the Colorado, has nearly dried up.  It is a wasteland of what it used to be.  Life used to be in abundance as the great Colorado River emptied into the Gulf.  There are now wide expanses of beachfront property without water because the water is recessing further and further into the Gulf.  The Colorado is barely a trickle on good days now.

We have farmers fighting casinos, cities fighting cities, states fighting states over water rights.  We push water by canal over great distances to be able to water pristine lawns where none should exist.   We regulate water, deciding who is more worthy, who gets more because of the money and power they can produce.

My town, which sits at 7000 feet, on top of the mountains, is in the desert.  We are surrounded by beautiful, lush ponderosa pine forests.  We have lakes.  We get snow.  Our aquifer is so deep that we have to drill between 1200-1500 feet to hit water in most areas. 

My town, which is beautiful by most accounts, is on water restrictions beginning on Friday.  This town, which up until 10 years ago was small by any account and has outgrown itself with the sudden influx of new residents from neighboring states, has not taught its inhabitants to conserve water in a meaningful way.  We cannot keep washing our cars in the streets, watering whenever we want, growing lawns that probably shouldn’t be there, letting faucets drip without fixing them.

This is an emerency.  We must understand that water is precious.  It is always precious…not just when the snow hasn’t come, the rains haven’t fallen, and the water levels in our resevoirs are at all-time lows.  It is always precious.

We are in a state of emergency.  We need to take action now.

miscellany

It snows in Arizona. I know a lot of people don’t realize that. I show pictures of the snow and people don’t believe it’s Arizona. This is the road to my house.

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13 people are dead in Venezuela because the President felt threatened. Now he’s ousted and the military has (reportedly reluctantly) taken over the government until a new leader can be found.

I’m not even sure how I feel about this except to say that I worry Venezuela will return to where it once was…military rule and totalitarian governance.

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Bombings are hitting Israel from the Golan Heights, now. That is far removed from Palestine…and is, in fact, from Lebanon. I had a feeling that it wouldn’t be long before the terrorist organizations (Hezbollah and others) began attacking from other areas. Hezbollah is definitely the faction attacking from Lebanon.

Another bombing, six killed and 60 injured in Jerusalem.

Palestinian families held under siege by Israeli troops. 4000 Palestinian men arrested and held by the Israelis.

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30 people were killed in an earthquake in Afghanistan. 100 more were injured. This on top of the losses they’ve suffered the past 6 months.

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Too many numbers, too many dead, too many hurting.

I need some good news.

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It’s spring. It’s actually supposed to get up into the 70s here today…which is really, really warm for us and very rare in April. We’re usually lucky if we get up to 60 in April.

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I wonder if I’m too sensitive. I belong to a few online communities but I have a hard time getting to know people. Well, actually, that’s true in regular life, too. I’m a computer geek. I’m happiest in my dark office working on bugs and issues than dealing with the general public. People scare me. I never know what they’ll do next…whether it will be mean or, more surprisingly, nice.

Have we lost the abilities to be nice? I see so much anger and less courtesy these days.

Why is that?

miscellany

I think my moods are in sync with the weather lately. One day everything is bright and sunny and the next it is overcast. I am vacillating between being cheerful without a care in the world to being completely melancholy. And I don’t even know why. However, whenever the clouds move in, I just feel the cloud descending over me as well.

Did doctors bleed patients for melancholy in the 1800s? Would that help?

There is too much going on around here. We have a team of inspectors coming in to make sure we’re up to grade for accreditation. I’ve got at least one meeting a day. I’m waiting on one person to fix a part of her database so that I can work on my part of the database.

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I’m tired of hearing about people killing one another for reasons that are so varied and difficult to fix that there seems to be no way to end it.

I am also so tired of the polarized views that people take over the middle east. It’s so easy to judge from outside of the area. But there are real people on both sides…many of whom are not involved in terrorism – state-sponsored or otherwise…and they are the ones being caught in the cross-fire.

Can peace come from people who’ve been born and raised within a time of hate and rascism? Who’ve been taught to hate and uphold the status quo? Is it possible?

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I put scented candles on a cup warmer in my office to make it smell nice. It’s better than having an open fire in a public building and it really creates nice scents. My favorites, lately, are those from Gold Canyon Candle Co. in Mesa, Arizona. They have the best scents. Right now, I’m smelling Berries Jubilee. Yesterday, I had Mango. I like the fruity smells.

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My niece, who is 3, has been away for nearly a week. My mom and sister (not her mom) took her to California to visit other family members. My brother (her dad) and I are lamenting about how much we miss her. She’s the cutest little redhead. She just makes me smile. I love that.