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Photo: Lacy Leaf 17 y
I'm enamored of Nature's Fall beauty. Photograph of a leaf "skeleton" reveals the leaf's delicate intricacies of structure.
Photo by Liora Leah 12-04-2007
Close-up; Photo by Liora Leah 12-04-2007
Related Blog: Impression of Autumn
http://curezone.com/blogs/fm.asp?i=1048917
read more Salamander Shuffle 17 y
Why am I posting this? Because I LOVE amphibians and reptiles!! Interesting study indicates salamanders walked across the world's continents during the time of the dinosaurs. To be sure, it took them a LONG time to get anywhere!!
Cave Salamander Photo by Michael Cravens
Long Tailed Salamander Photo by Michael Cravens
To see more of Michael Cravens’ photos of amphibians and reptiles go to:
http://michaelcravens.com/id94.html
Ancient salamanders: world travelers?
A DNA study sheds light on how certain North American species landed in eastern Asia through an intercontinental migration about 80 million years ago.
By Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
December 1, 2007
Go west, young salamander!
New genetic evidence suggests a ... read more Eco-XMAS Trees!! 17 y
The Holidays are almost here! How about an eco-friendly Christmas Tree this year? Here are some resources to guide you:
1) Annual Question: http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2004/12/08/umbra-tree/
What should we get this year, a fake tree or a real tree? A cut tree or a live tree? The most eco-friendly tree: Avoid plastic trees made from petroleum, and buy a real tree from a small-scale sustainable (organic) grower to avoid pesticides and herbicides. If you live in a city or if an evergreen tree is inappropriate to your landscape, buy a cut tree and recycle it after the Holidays. If your environment can support a live tree, be sure to plant it with care after the Holidays! Or, consider not buying a tree ... read more ART: Autumn 17 y
Artwork: "Impression of Autumn"
”Impression of Autumn”
Watercolor wash and ink on watercolor paper 9” X 12”
Created 11-23-2007 by Liora Leah visit the page Pollution Hurts Fetuses 17 y
Mounting evidence suggests that fetuses are surprisingly susceptible to outside influences such as environmental pollutants, pesticides, and other toxins.
NOTE: Edited Article below. Emphasis added. To read the entire original article go to: http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-fetal12nov12,1,3444811.story?coll=la-headlines-health&ctrack=2&cset=true
Living for Two
By Shari Roan, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
November 12, 2007
If Aly Hartman could have placed herself in a protective bubble for the duration of her recent pregnancy, she would have done so.
The Marina del Rey woman, 28, cut out alcohol, sodas and caffeine... and began stocking up on organic fruits and vegetables. She ducked ba ... read more Progress:Bee Collapse 17 y
Some warned of crop disaster when honeybees started to disappear. Crops didn't fail, but farmers and beekeepers aren't out of danger yet.
At work: Honeybee lands on an almond blossom. Casey Christie/The Bakersfield Californian/AP
Progress on ’collapsing’ beehives
By Moises Velasquez-Manoff | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
from the November 8, 2007 edition
New York - Last fall, honeybee hives began showing up mysteriously vacant. Entire adult bee populations seemingly vanished without a trace, often leaving the queen, juveniles, and honey behind.
By spring, what beekeepers had called "autumn collapse" or "fall dwindle dis& ... read more Butterfly Visitor 17 y
Last night, a butterfly, perhaps disoriented from the wildfires, flew into my house and visited for a while.
In this photo, it looks as though I’m pinching the butterfly’s wing; actually, my thumb is pressed against my fingers and there is a ”space” where the butterfly is lying quietly within my hand, ”unpinned” as it were. Photo by Liora Leah, 10-22-2007
Last night around 11:00pm I went outside to push shut some stubborn windows because the house was filling up with the smell of smoke and soot from the wildfires in Orange County, California.
This butterfly was beating its wings frantically against the back screen door, then against the porch light, so I turne ... read more Toxic Tobacco 17 y
We all know that smoking is bad for our health, but did you know that smoking is bad for the health of the planet? The growing, processing, and use of tobacco causes deforestation, land erosion, contributes to global warming, releases toxins into the environment, leads to habitat destruction through forest fires, and poisons wildlife and people through increased use of pesticides.
The World’s Growing Number of Smokers
By Bryan Farrell, In These Times
Posted on October 4, 2007, Printed on October 5, 2007
http://www.alternet.org/story/64222/
The past decade has seen a remarkable shift in the way Americans view cigarette smoking. Since the massive tobacco litigation settlements began in 1997, the federal government has phased out support for tobacco farming, states and cities have enacted public smoking restrictions, and the number of smokers has steadily declined.
Meanwhile, the tobacco industry’s manipulative advertising tactics have become part of th ... read more Protect Calif. Condors 17 y
CALIFORNIANS: Help protect California condors by urging Governor Schwarzenegger to sign legislation that limits the use of toxic lead ammunition thoughout the condor's range.
Governor Schwarzenegger is deciding right now whether to sign a
crucial bill that would help ensure a healthy future for the
magnificent California condor.
Fewer than 200 of these giant birds soar free in the wild today.
But powerful gun industry lobbyists are pressuring Governor
Schwarzenegger to abandon them.
Please go to
http://www.nrdcactionfund.org/condor_action
right
now and urge Governor Schwarzenegger to sign pending legislation
that will limit the use of toxic lead ammunition throughout the
condor’s range.
Condors routinely ingest shot and bullet fragments from ... read more Support Organic Farming TODAY!! 17 y
The U.S. Senate Ag. Committee is working on revising the Farm Bill October 4th. Urge them to provide support for organic farming and conservation--Email or call your U.S. Senator TODAY! Deadline is OCTOBER 4th!
Urge Senators to support organic farming and pesticide alternatives
In July the House of Representatives passed a version of the Farm Bill that takes some steps to support organic farmers and conservation, but didn’t go nearly far enough. Overall the House bill will keep in place a system of wasteful crop subsidies, expand mega farms, support use of pesticides and continue to drive small farms out of business.
The Senate can and must do better. The Senate Finance and Agriculture committees are marking up the Farm Bill this Thursday, October 4th!
ACT TODAY
http://action.panna. ... read more Cockroach Totem! 17 y
My kitchen has been inundated with cockroaches lately--the huge "water beetle" kind, and also their numerous smaller offspring...What could this all mean?
YUCK! GROSS!
I’ve been so nice to the darn things, catching them and putting them outside...well, yesterday I had to strip everything out of my kitchen drawers and lower shelving, smash a bunch of roaches hiding in convenient places like an old styrofoam container--convenient for them, anyway--throw away a bunch of stuff they’d pooped on, clean up their poop, wash all of my cutlery and kitchen gadgets, take all of the kitchen drawers outside to bake in the sun--you’d be surprised how many bugs came out of the woodwork--literally!--when the wood got too hot for them--now I ... read more Help! I have to Move! 17 y
Woman with MCS seeks safe housing! This is a very very very challenging time for me and I need HELP!
Dear Curezoners:
My old house is falling apart, and on top of that it has mold problems that are exacerbating my health challenges (MCS/CFIDS/allergies) It is too costly to fix, and I can’t live in it during any kind of renovation. My two siblings and I own it although I live in it. It will be put it up for sale as a ”tear down” as soon as my children and I find a place to live.
I am looking for a rental house/townhome/duplex that is suitable for someone with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity/Environmental Illness. Will also consider buying a home if the price is right ($4 ... read more Kid's Health at Risk 17 y
ACT NOW! President Bush threatens to veto bipartisan legislation that calls for renewed and expanded funding for low-income children's health insurance. ACT NOW by CALLING your U.S. Senators and U.S Representatives to support SCHIP and override a Presidential veto!
TAKE ACTION NOW!
Call your U.S. Senators and your U.S. Representative, urging them to support the current SCHIP Legislation (State Children’s Health Insurance Program) and to override a threatened presidential veto. DO IT TODAY!
to find contact information for your U.S. Senator:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
to find contact information for your U.S. Representative:
http://www.house.gov/
Thank you for supporting healthy kids!
Liora
***************************************************** ... read more Are Plastics Safe? 17 y
Chemicals from common plastics are found in the bodies of nearly all Americans. Two of these chemicals--biphenol A and phthalates--may be linked to asthma, diabetes, obesity, decreased fertility in men, reproductive anomalies in male babies, reproductive cancers, and early-onset puberty in girls.
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-plastics10sep10,1,4895907.column...
ARE PLASTICS SAFE?
"Phthalates are added to normally rigid PVC to make soft products, including the plastic bags that store blood, plasma and intravenous fluids; feeding, breathing and dialysis tubes; catheters; respiratory masks; and exam gloves. Phthalates are also found in children’s toys, vinyl floors, wallpaper, shower curtains, vinyl bibs and countless cosmetics, including lotions, shampoos and nail polish."
"More than 6 billion pounds of bisphenol A are produced ... read more Do ya like BUGS? 17 y
Check out this great website! I posted my photos of backyard bugs on the site, and entomologists identified them for me!
BugGuide; Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
http://bugguide.net/node/view/15740
These are the images I posted for identification:
http://bugguide.net/node/view/144522
Giant Swallowtail--Papilio cresphontes
http://bugguide.net/node/view/144520
my son’s bug: Glassy-winged sharpshooter--Homalodisca vitripennis
http://bugguide.net/node/view/144519#187732.
What type of Coreidae (leaf-footed insect) are these?
possibly Leptoglossus zonatus
http://bugguide.net/node/view/144525#18742 ... read more Photos:Bugs Bugs Bugs!! 17 y
I took these photos of insects in my backyard today! A bee, butterfly, and some unidentifiable insects that look like jewels! (They may be Coreidae--"leaf-footed bug")
Giant Swallowtail Butterfly, full view
Butterfly, side view
Butterfly, "face" view
Butterfly, under the wing view
Busy bee
Same busy bee, different flower
Invasion of the Bug People!
Invasion of the Bug People, close-up #1
Invasion of the Bug People, close-up #2
Invasion of the Bug People, close-up #3
Liora’s Notes:
I’m not very good with a digital camera, and never manage to s ... read more Video:Amazing Hippo!! 17 y
South African game warden "adopts" wild hippo! She's great! I just want to hug her!
Watch til the very end. This hippo is amazing!
You have to watch this one!
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