A great first day of school!

Monday was my first day of Spring quarter and then we had Tuesday off because it was Cesar Chavez's birthday. Thank you Mr. No-short-handled-hoes! (Sorry, Ag reference, there...)

I'm taking a Statistics class...again...the first time didn't go so well. But I'm signed up for a weekly study session and the class meets 4 times a week for an hour instead of 2 times a week for 2 hours.

I'm also taking a Forestry and Politics class, which should be interesting (it's a GE course). I get to read a lot of newspaper articles and write short papers on them. I may be calling up my Uncle D. to pick his ear since he's a retired forest ranger.

My third class is plant physiology, which I REALLY enjoy.

So life is good, the weather is great, I've got a great class schedule, and a good work schedule, and my in-the-field research is DONE for the quarter. Now I just have to crunch the data (which will be fun). Oh! And it's time for putting in the vegetable garden! Boy am I blessed.

Sad but true...

Found this on a friend's Facebook page and had a good laugh. This is truly what my Fall quarter felt like.

(And sorry, you have to be Mormon to recognize the original painting as Samuel the Lamanite.)

Yep, I'm Anne Elliot!

I have known all along that I was Anne Elliot. From the first time I read Persuasion a couple years ago, I immediately connected to her. So now it's nice to have an oh-so-scientific personality quiz confirm it!

On a side note, I'm not a big fan of the 1995 Amanda Root and Ciaran Hinds version. I think Hinds is too old and dull for Captain Wentworth. In the book, he is much more sharp minded. I much prefer the 2007 Sally Hawkins version, although that isn't the best representation, either. Guess it just doesn't translate well to the screen. My favorite Jane movie is the 2007 "Northanger Abbey" with Felicity Jones and JJ Field. The actors, the plot, and the mood were all spot on. And for you "Twi-hards" it even deals with a kind of vampirism, to quote Henry!

Take the Quiz here!

What's Dolly up to these days?

Sorry guys, I have warned you that Dolly is my hero.

Here's what she's up to in the near future...

She has a children's book hitting stores in June and plans to put out a series of children's CDs.

"In my older years, I'm going into that world of children," she says. "That's the way to keep yourself young. Be childlike, not childish."

Amen sister!

Blogging adict

Mechanical failure!!!

I have hit my limit with mechanical malfunctions. I have put HOURS, DAYS, MONTHS into getting this stupid photosynthesis machine working. (No joke on the months part, I've been working on this since at least September, if not earlier.)

And it finally started working "correctly" last week. When I finally got it to communicate with the computer, I had tears of joy form in my eyes (the tech support guy was a little uncomfortable with my jubilation) but was able to hold them back with whoops of Hallelujah!

So we went out and took measurements. And sent the data back to the tech support guy. No good. So the next day, we tweaked our method. No good.

So today, we added a piece to the equipment trying to stabilize the relative humidity so the stoma didn't close but there was still a humidity gradient to prompt the stupid leaf (yes, that's a technical term...) to transpire/photosynthesize.

But after adding that stupid valve (yep, another technical term...just go with it) now I can't get the equipment to calibrate. Put in a call to tech support...again...swapped out the chemicals for some new chemicals. No go. Now I'm desiccating the entire machine hoping to dry it out.

So I'm sitting on my butt all day when we could have been in the field for hours taking measurements. We only have a 5 hour window around solar noon to take measurements, so it's not like once we get this working we can, to quote Michael Bluthe, "put our heads down and power through."

And if it sounds like I'm speaking a lot of technical jargon that I know because of my academic education, nope. I learned it all while dinking around on the machine...oh yeah, and over 20 hours on the phone with tech support. I have become a technical manual reader (something I've always admired in my Aunt J but never had the cahones to do myself). And I've become THE technical manual on campus. (I have no idea why Abbe de l’Epee wanted to be the Living Dictionary and the sole source of Sign Language knowledge...narcissistic and insane if you ask me...)

No one else knows how to use the stupid machine. Which really isn't that bad because the thing is old enough to be my mother if it were a cyborg.

The funny part in all this is that people have used this throughout the recent past (the last person only used it 9 months ago). But they had none of the parts and performed none of the calibrations that I have collected over the past several months. So all their research was hogwash. Which is kind of funny to me, in a sick and twisted way.

The upside of all of this pain is that I'm assisting my professor in her research project, so I'm getting paid to do this. The even better part is that I'm getting paid to assist her. The greatest part is that it's become my senior project, and despite all the thorns in my side it's giving me, I really enjoy it.

So, getting paid to enjoy/complete my senior project whilst helping a professor that I learn a ton from...priceless.

Three down, el-Zippo to go!

and DONE!!!!!!!!

Now off to measure some avocado leaves. Which is actually fun. Thanks for all the encouraging words!

Way to go, Michelle!

Recently someone asked me what my major was and I answered with "Crop Science". She responded, "What are you going to do with that?!" as if I had said I was majoring in Government regulations on basket weaving from ancient icelandic societies. My first response to her was, "Have you eaten today? Then thank a farmer."

No, I do not plan on becoming a farmer. (Although very occasionally I wonder if I'd be able to help out if we all land up on Adam-ondi-Ahman with nothing but the clothes on our backs and a bag of seeds...) But I do plan on being a researcher for crop science.

100 years ago, 50% of the population was somehow involved in farming. This means that one person could grow roughly enough food for 2 people. Today, that same person can grow enough food for 100 people. This is all due to research (and largely thanks to synthetic pesticides, and evem more specifically herbicides).

However, with this dramatic removal from our food supply, a lot of people have no notion of where their food comes from. I remember watching an episode of Survivor (probably one of three episodes I have ever watched of that annoying, evil show) where the team got so hungry, they fried up and ate the chicken meal food. They were surprised when something in the food began to pop like popcorn. They had no idea that chickens ate corn, which becomes popcorn when fried. (Part of me wants to say, Duh! But that's not fair to the other 99% of the population.)

I heard on the radio this morning that First Lady Michelle Obama invited elementary school kids to the South Lawn of the White house where they broke ground for a vegetable garden. How awesome is that?!

I strongly believe kids need to have a connection to the earth, to know where their food comes from. Whenever Briggs comes over to my house, he immediately grabs a little basket I have for him and makes a bee-line for my backyard. I find him out there a half hour later pigging out on various items in my backyard, mostly sugar snap peas. I'm too lazy to use pesticides, and it turns out it's a good thing so that Briggs know he can eat those peas without worry of chemicals. (I should probably be a little more restrained about my "sure you can eat it!" method because Kate has informed me they're eating things like dandelions in places that they shouldn't be eating them...whoops...that's why she's the parent, thankfully!)

The thing I love most about my vegetable garden is that the stuff is worlds beyond better than anything you could ever buy at the grocery store, no matter how lousy of a gardener you are. And you control how much synthetic or organic pesticides and nutrients are applied to the plant, so you always know what you're getting. And you'd be surprised how much more readily your child will eat a vegetable that they themselves have tended (or at least in part tended).

So go plant a vegetable garden! I suggest starting out with Sugar snap peas in the cool season. You can mess those up. I only fertilize at planting and then do nothing else with them but water and trellis (which I stick in the ground at time of planting). Tomatoes are the next easy thing in the hot season. I prefer "indeterminate" types because they produce fruit across the entire growing season, and not all within a two-week growing period like determinate types.

Oh! Time for my next final!

Two down, one to go!

Wahoo! Two finals over with, one more to go. And this one, no matter how poorly or well I do on the final (ie: 50% or 100%) I'll still have a solid B. So that is VERY comforting. Plus I know I'll do decently at least.

This finals week has been a nice change from those in the recent past for one reason alone - less stress.

Back when I was first in college, all my classes had exams every two weeks (mostly math and physics classes) so by the time you got to the final, you really either knew the material or not. And you knew that you knew this way ahead of time. So it wasn't really stressful.

When I changed majors, the material got a bit less sequential, so it wasn't necessarily black or white in the understanding department. Plus we usually only had one or two tests throughout the quarter that were really tough and random, and that's all your grade was based on.

This quarter I finally feel like I'm back on my game regarding tests. All quarter I have stressed over them, but now I finally realize - hey! I know the material. It will be ok.

And that, my friends, is joy!

Big Bang gets renewed!!!!

Yahoo! CBS has renewed The Big Bang Theory through the 2010, 2011 season! So glad!!! Too many of my favorite shows have been cancelled in the past couple of years, so this makes me very happy to see this show successful.

And I'd like to point out that critics in the beginning didn't like this show! They said it just wasn't funny. I think they were too stupid to enjoy the humor and the social difficulties of the characters.

One down, two to go

I turned in the final for one of my classes today. Now I only have two tests, both on Friday. Oh yeah, and spending all Thursday in the field measuring photosynthesis in an orchard. Which believe it or not is actually fun.

And as for those two changes I mentioned earlier...the fish tank is starting to turn around by itself so it's staying for a little while longer.

And I have been having a couple weeks of really good hair days. One good hair day after a threatened hair chopping is not uncommon. But being able to replicate the experiment and get the same results again is unheard of. So the hair is staying long for a little while more, too.

Call if woman's prerogative, call it too lazy to do anything about it, whatever. (OH my gosh! Who knew there it was spelled "pRe"?! I've always pronounced it per-og-a-tive!)

Have a happy almost-officially-Spring week! We're experiencing 80 degree weather here (nyah-nyah from a weather wimp to those of you who chose to live in the tundra...)

Church guidelines on media attention

Another reason why I love my church...

Over the past few years I've come to the conclusion that our gospel must be truthful or we wouldn't have Satan so scared and working overtime to defeat us. I was recently made aware of a cable TV show portraying sacred information. Then after seeing an article on MSN regarding the show, I decided to head to LDS.org to check things out. Here's the article I found detailing the church's stance on how to react.

The Publicity Dilemma

SALT LAKE CITY 9 March 2009 Like other large faith groups, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sometimes finds itself on the receiving end of attention from Hollywood or Broadway, television series or books, and the news media. Sometimes depictions of the Church and its people are quite accurate. Sometimes the images are false or play to stereotypes. Occasionally, they are in appallingly bad taste.

As Catholics, Jews and Muslims have known for centuries, such attention is inevitable once an institution or faith group reaches a size or prominence sufficient to attract notice. Yet Latter-day Saints – sometimes known as Mormons - still wonder whether and how they should respond when news or entertainment media insensitively trivialize or misrepresent sacred beliefs or practices.

Church members are about to face that question again. Before the first season of the HBO series Big Love aired more than two years ago, the show’s creators and HBO executives assured the Church that the series wouldn’t be about Mormons. However, Internet references to Big Love indicate that more and more Mormon themes are now being woven into the show and that the characters are often unsympathetic figures who come across as narrow and self-righteous. And according to TV Guide, it now seems the show’s writers are to depict what they understand to be sacred temple ceremonies.

Certainly Church members are offended when their most sacred practices are misrepresented or presented without context or understanding. Last week some Church members began e-mail chains calling for cancellations of subscriptions to AOL, which, like HBO, is owned by Time Warner. Certainly such a boycott by hundreds of thousands of computer-savvy Latter-day Saints could have an economic impact on the company. Individual Latter-day Saints have the right to take such actions if they choose.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as an institution does not call for boycotts. Such a step would simply generate the kind of controversy that the media loves and in the end would increase audiences for the series. As Elder M. Russell Ballard and Elder Robert D. Hales of the Council of the Twelve Apostles have both said recently, when expressing themselves in the public arena, Latter-day Saints should conduct themselves with dignity and thoughtfulness.

Not only is this the model that Jesus Christ taught and demonstrated in his own life, but it also reflects the reality of the strength and maturity of Church members today. As someone recently said, “This isn’t 1830, and there aren’t just six of us anymore.” In other words, with a global membership of thirteen and a half million there is no need to feel defensive when the Church is moving forward so rapidly. The Church’s strength is in its faithful members in 170-plus countries, and there is no evidence that extreme misrepresentations in the media that appeal only to a narrow audience have any long-term negative effect on the Church.

Examples:

• During the Mitt Romney election campaign for the presidency of the United States, commentator Lawrence O’Donnell hurled abuse at the Church in a television moment that became known among many Church members as “the O’Donnell rant.” Today, his statements are remembered only as a testament to intolerance and ignorance. They had no effect on the Church that can be measured.
• When the comedy writers for South Park produced a gross portrayal of Church history, individual Church members no doubt felt uncomfortable. But once again it inflicted no perceptible or lasting damage to a church that is growing by at least a quarter of a million new members every year.
• When an independent film company produced a grossly distorted version of the Mountain Meadows Massacre two years ago, the Church ignored it. Perhaps partly as a result of that refusal to engender the controversy that the producers hoped for, the movie flopped at the box office and lost millions.
• In recent months, some gay activists have barraged the media with accusations about “hateful” attitudes of Latter-day Saints in supporting Proposition 8 in California, which maintained the traditional definition of marriage. They even organized a protest march around the Salt Lake Temple. Again, the Church has refused to be goaded into a Mormons versus gays battle and has simply stated its position in tones that are reasonable and respectful. Meanwhile, missionary work and Church members in California remain as robust and vibrant as ever, and support for the Church has come from many unexpected quarters — including some former critics and other churches.

Now comes another series of Big Love, and despite earlier assurances from HBO it once again blurs the distinctions between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the show’s fictional non-Mormon characters and their practices. Such things say much more about the insensitivities of writers, producers and TV executives than they say about Latter-day Saints.

If the Church allowed critics and opponents to choose the ground on which its battles are fought, it would risk being distracted from the focus and mission it has pursued successfully for nearly 180 years. Instead, the Church itself will determine its own course as it continues to preach the restored gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world.

Life as a sleepwalker

Thanks to my dad's genetics, I am a violent sleepwalker/talker/screamer/runner/fighter.

And thanks to Mark and Lisa, I found a good example to show you all what it's like to be a sleepwalker...without having to pull a David Beckham and post a video of myself sleeping.

And in case you're wondering, yes, just like Bizkit, I have run into walls and furniture more times than I can count. I have also destroyed several lamps and clocks, one pillow, one electric blanket, and an industrial strength curtain rod. I won't list all the personal injuries I've sustained from these activities.

I'd also like to point out the hackles on Bizkit's spine after he awakens. This should serve as a warning to you all not to try to reason with me when I've just been woken up. I'm a beast.

Check out this awsome flashlight!!!

Yes, I said Flashlight! My brother-in-law, J, is the flashlight aficionado of the family.

Years ago I asked him to research flashlights that would have a long enough battery life to keep on all night as a sort of nightlight when camping. (I was thinking for my nieces and nephews, but let's face it, I don't like to be in the dark when camping, either, even though I like the dark at home).


He just emailed me this product. 130 hours on just 4 AA batteries! And it's only $10! I'm so getting this!

Broken computer angel

My computer power cord broke. Which means no computer. Which is not good the last week of the quarter.

But thankfully, at Media Services on campus, I was able to check out a power cord for free! And lovely Dell will be sending a technician (yes, a LIVE HUMAN AMERICAN! I would have been happy with any North American!) out to replace both my keyboard and my power cord.

On Wednesday!

For Free!!!


Yes, I called them and within 3 days I shall have my own power cable back in my home. Life is good.

No burning in my bosom

Remember in Harry Potter when they were learning to fly? And remember Hermione's annoyed reaction to the fact that broomsticks were not something that you could learn how to manage from books? It was just something that you had to feel your way through.



Well that's me in many things. But the most frustrating of these situations for me was learning how to understand the Holy Ghost. The Lord told Joseph Smith, "But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right." (D&C 9:8)

This frustrated me to no end. If what I was asking the Lord was right, then I would feel a burning in my bosom? I get that when I'm having an anxiety attack! I had enough faith to be certain that promptings from the Lord wouldn't feel similar to an panic attack. So how the heck were they supposed to feel?




I read and re-read Enos's conversion story hoping to understand better. That helped but it still wasn't enough. So I listened to a tape my Aunt Jill lent me about prayer. I can't remember anything about the tape except that I think it was for young adults and it was talks from a sister. But I got something out of that tape that helped my testimony of prayer take off like a rocket.



The sister said that the promptings of the spirit feel different for everyone. So all I had to do was recognize how it felt for me. Once I had the notion of a burning panic attack cleared out of my mind, it quickly became clear to me that when the Spirit was speaking to me I felt relaxed and took deep breaths. For someone with Generalized Anxiety disorder, relaxation and healthy breathing is a rare occurrence, so it was easy to connect the fact that I was conversing with the Lord and that I was feeling peace.




Soon after recognizing this, I was able to go from feelings of good and bad to a couple words of direction. These words in my head sounded most of the time like words I would think normally. They didn't stand out in a different inner voice. But I learned to recognize right after I thought them that, Hey, I feel peaceful. I feel clean and clear and I'm breathing. What did I just think? Oh, Hey! That's a great idea! And that is the answer that I was looking for. Thank you, Lord!

Since this time, I have really made a concerted effort to develop my prayers with the Lord and be open to his promptings. Before I learned what the Holy Ghost felt like to me I always thought people getting entire action plans prompted to them was something only spiritual giants like Prophets and Relief Society presidents experienced. But I learned that if I am open to recognizing the direction the Spirit gives, even little me can be given entire clear directions.

Ever after, the level of diligence I give to my prayers has waxed and waned but I always know that if I open my heart to it, I will hear it. Because I think he's always speaking to me. I just may have the sound turned way down.



Most recently I was praying about two goals I felt like the Lord wanted to me to work on. But I got so frustrated that I started telling the Lord about my disagreement and confusion with him. I knew that he must be right, because I've learned to trust that. But I just didn't see how I was supposed to accomplish something that my patriarchal blessings says I needed to.

Driving home late through Noyes Canyon, I finally had it out with him. "Ok Lord. You want me to do this? How? Because I'm done banging my head against a brick wall. There is NO WAY I can keep this up. But if I stop banging my head against a brick wall, I'm in essence choosing to turn away from this goal you want me to work towards. I don't want to do that. But I CANNOT do this anymore. You better hit me over the head with a frying pan if you want me to continue, because unless I have it shoved in my face, I'm finished. I am NOT doing this anymore."




I then thought to myself, "This kind of sounds like you're letting your anxiety dictate how to accomplish this goal, huh? Perhaps it can be accomplished with less fretting and more just letting yourself accomplish this naturally?" Right around the "fretting" part I caught on that this was an answer to my prayer. And that a frying pan was not necessary.

So how do you feel the Holy Ghost? Just curious.

Update: Just a disclamer. My disagreement with the Lord had nothing to do with any life changing decisions such as school or the like. School is still going great and you'd have to throw more than mono and a full time job at me to make me quit now! It was about something that most normal people have no issue with and wouldn't even give a thought to, normally. It was just something really trivial...that I blew out of proportion...as usual. Just thought I'd all give you some comfort in that direction!

Two changes

I was going to label this two BIG changes, but I didn't want to freak people out. They're not that big. Just big to me.

1) I'm getting out of the fish tank business.
2) I'm hacking my hair off again.

1) I'm getting out of the fish tank business. My 29gal is just too much work and not enough return. The fish are always sick, the plants never look very good, and they're just not taking off the way they're supposed to.

Ashlynn - I will be keeping my 10 gal because, surprisingly, it is stable. It's supposed to be the other way around! The larger the tank, the easier to keep stable. Whatever. But it's still looking good. It's ridiculously easy to care for. And I still enjoy it. Just not the work of the 29 gal. So, sis, your grandfishies will still have a home.

(See, doesn't that look nice? And because of my waves, I don't even have to use a curling iron to get that nice volumizing flip!)

2) I'm hacking off my hair again. I do this about every two years and the past few times I've really enjoyed it. The first time I did it was my 18th birthday. Boy that was a mess. It looked horrible and I had no idea how to manage it. Since then I've learned a thing or two about my now-wavy hair. Isn't it supposed to be the other way around? You have curls as a little girl and they go away when you grow up? Not me! I had stick straight hair but when I got into college it turned curly on me!

(See, straight as a stick and dry as a reed back then! Those waves were from a braid. And how in the heck did mom get me to wear jeans?!)

Anyway, short hair is easier to make it look well-kempt, even if I haven't done anything to it that day. It's time for a trim anyway and lately, all my hair has been is frizzy and ugly. Plus when my long hair isn't looking nice, I feel like it makes me look fat and old fashioned.

So it's back to layers between chin and shoulder length again (but just long enough for a pony tail). I am seriously considering driving up to mom's to have Jenny cut my hair. That woman knows my hair. Honestly. I guess because she's friends with my mother and likes and remembers my hair, she listens to me when I say it's moderately curly. And she cuts it accordingly. And it has always looked nice. I have been to several nice salons here and in Seattle and paid a lot to have it done and it just never turns out as well. But I'm not sure I want to drive a 9 hour round trip just for a hair cut. Seems a little extreme. But hey, it's a hair cut I'm going to have for the next 2 years!

Four of the greatest years!

(The kids in front of the Trickster King, Puck, downtown. We like to race Puck. We always win.)

I looked back through my journal and I realized that the kids and I have been going to Farmer's Market for four years now. Ashlynn and I went for the first time on February 24, 2005. So last week marked our Four Year Anniversary.

(Playing with the "Clicker Man" - they have modified castanets that they click along with his playing...)

Our friend at the Bible Questions booth were chatting with me today and mentioned that he thought it was so cool that we went every week. He was really impressed with the Mormon denomination with it's emphasis on the family and thinks that's why it's really grown.

(Listening for Buzz Lightyear under the elevator at Barnes and Noble...the older two have apparently grown too cool for this but Ty keeps it up)

I always feel a little weird when people praise me for taking the kids to Farmer's because I do it for a selfish reason. I just like going with them! I go by myself if they can't come! But it's always more fun when they come.

(MUST. PRESS. WALK BUTTON. Screaming ensues if someone else gets to press it.)

I'm too tired tonight (darn allergies!) to post more about our traditions, but I have noticed, true to form, Ty makes his own traditions. It's hilarious. He must sing "Twinkle Twinkle" into the alcove at the Presbyterian church. He must run around in circles at the California Bank. He must get Bali's yogurt with cookies in it. He's started wanting to watch the movie on a TV above a store downtown (can't remember the store) after he discovered its existence. And he really likes dancing to any and all music played downtown. Ashlynn and Briggs just watch him, baffled, because they're not THEIR traditions. How dare he make his own!

Now if only I could break them of the habit of wanting to watch the Puppet Show man. I cannot STAND that guy!

Finally some sense!

So, the Proposition 8 debate is back in court and is back in the California Supreme court. That really scares me because it only took four judges last year to over turn the will of the people. But lo and behold! Apparently the justices are listening this time! Here's an excerpt from an article I read on MSN:

"If Proposition 8 is upheld, opponents said, then voters could end mixed-race marriages, too.

But the justices were clearly skeptical of that argument, noting that the state supreme court has never found that such a limit applies to constitutional amendments adopted through the ballot box.

"What I'm picking up from the oral argument in this case is this court should willy-nilly disregard the will of the people," said Justice Joyce Kennard."

Yes, that's what they did last year - disregard the will of the people. Hopefully they've learned their lesson and won't ignore the majority again. Setting aside all the moral questions, that's what irritated me the most about this entire thing.

You know you're a nerd when...

...you quote the philosopher Adam Smith in a simple 500 word essay on farming. My teachers must love me.

Or hate me.

Either way, the darn thing is done and written, be it fair or foul.

Update: My sister wanted to know how I managed to work a "thus quothe Adam Smith" into my paper, so here's the paper. It was only supposed to be from your point of view and didn't need to include any citations. Just so you know...I can and do write more technical papers but this wasn't required so I didn't expend the effort. I'm so proud of me for letting my OCD slip a little!

Non-sustainable farming practices in U.S. agriculture

Even though the majority of the United States population claims to attempt to be sustainable, the nation’s agriculture industry is far from sustainable. Current farming practices are decimating arable land through over-production. Current market trends favor processed foods with excess packaging over raw goods. And we are dependent on non-renewable energy to produce and distribute crops.

The philosopher Adam Smith noted that specialization of tasks increased productivity in pin factories, avoiding the “Jack of all trades, master of none” pitfall of inefficiency. Current farming practices likewise favor large scale farming operations with each grower specializing in a few crop species, often leading to large tracts of monocultures. However, as we saw in the 1970 corn blight epidemic which destroyed 15% of the nation’s corn that year, planting monocultures can lead to a grower’s, and thus an economy’s, downfall. When a pest affects a portion of planted acreage it will quickly spread through all adjacent plantings of the same species, necessitating pest control measures to be applied to the entire field. Even if the crop is spared and is still marketable, significant amounts of chemicals have now been introduced to the environment. If crops were grown on smaller plots interspaced with different species, control measures would only need to be applied to limited areas, reducing the dependence on wide-spread usage of chemicals.

Planting different crops also introduces multiple root structures which means that nutrient uptake is more efficient because of the different roots’ spreading strategies. Certain crops such as corn and alfalfa can reach soil nutrients up to 1.5 meters down into the soil profile where other crops, such as strawberries and lettuce can only access nutrients in the first foot or so of the profile. By replanting with the same crop season after season, farmers have to apply more and more fertilizers to maintain maximum yields. This fills the soil profile with unused and inaccessible nutrients that are eventually leached away causing potentially severe eutrophication and water quality issues downstream.

Growers are not the only ones to blame in the promotion of poor farming practices. The American market demands fresh produce in the winter time, providing an incentive to grow in an area that naturally would not be arable. The Imperial Valley is a good example of how growers have significantly modified a natural ecosystem to keep up with public appetites. Although the area does not receive any significant rainfall to support farming, they have diverted the Colorado River to provide for the irrigation needs of thousands of acres of winter and early season vegetable harvests. Because the water is so cheap, usually under $20 per acre foot, farmers find it more economical in regards to labor to simply flood or furrow irrigate fields. The excess water is then sent downstream to be disposed of in the Salton Sea, a manmade estuary. The salinity of this estuary is already higher than the ocean and is rising at a rate of about 1% per year because both the soil and the water in the Imperial Valley are highly saline. Because of this fact farmers must repeatedly flood crop land in between harvest and planting to push down and flush out salt accumulation in the soil that can damage crop productivity.

Along with wanting produce available in the off-season, American consumers are moving away from wanting fresh, raw produce and toward more processed products. Greater consumption of processed products means an increase in the use of packaging materials that are filling already overloaded landfills. On top of chemicals used to grow the crops, additional chemicals are used in manufacturing the packaging materials needed to sell the processed foods.

Also aiding in flooding landfills are plastic mulches and hot caps that are seeing increased usage as farmers attempt to gain earlier markets. Although research is being carried out to develop biodegradable plastic mulches, current mulches can only be used once. Then, owing to the caked on soil which is labor intensive or impossible to remove, the mulch cannot be recycled so it too must be added to the materials heading to landfills.

The final, often overlooked aspect of why current farming is not sustainable is our absolute dependence on non-renewable energy to produce and transport goods. Dale of Doug Mellon Farms estimated that they use 10,000 gallons of diesel a day in their farming operations. Then considering that 99% or more of produce travels at least part way to its destination on trucks, our industry would come to a crashing halt if we were not able to use diesel.

The earth has spent millennia developing our arable land and we have managed to go a fair distance in destroying it in only about 100 years. We are already seeing consequences from our non-sustainable farming and marketing practices and if we continue with these habits we will quickly use up any natural resources we have left and render any arable land unusable.

Who needs fancy typing tutor software?!

Who needs to purchase expensive, fancy typing tutor software when you have a cat that will sit on your wrists for *free. Vincent is right now sitting on my wrists, blocking my view of the keyboard. Funny thing is, he really had to go out of his way to position himself thus. It's not really that comfortable of a spot but I guess it's his way of telling me I need to stop working on my paper and go to sleep.

*I hesitate using the word "free" in regards to any service my cat provides me. For many reasons. One being that the monthly cost of upkeep of my cat renders him decidedly not free. Second being that any attention he has offered lately has been accompanied by a preponderance of drool and milk-bucket-catting. I can just see that computer insurance call. "I need a new computer because first my cat drooled so profusely on the keyboard that it short-circuited. And then I tripped over him and dropped the sucker when I got up to fix it."

Confused? My dad pronounced Vincent a Milk-bucket cat after watching him weave in and out of my legs as I walked. He said the barn cats used to do that in attempt to make you spill your bucket of milk.

Comments not required

I've been thinking a lot lately about social customs in our more technologically advanced culture nowadays. Who needs to have "The Talk" with your significant other when a Facebook simple relationship status update says it all. How do you unfriend someone from your friends list on Facebook. Is that taboo? Am I required to comment on every post that I read? If I want to comment, but everyone has already said what I wanted to say, so is it necessary to have 10 comments all say, "Hilarious! I agree!"

It's difficult to know how to navigate through society each time we add a new form of communication. So I'm here to simplify it for you.

On my blog, if you feel like commenting, go ahead! I enjoy reading your comments.

If you don't have anything different to say, but still feel like commenting, go ahead! I won't think you unoriginal. I'll appreciate that you wanted to show me you care.

If you don't have anything to say about a post of mine that you read, don't feel bad. I know you still read my blog. That's what Statcounter is for.

And if you stop reading my blog, that's ok too. Life is busy for everyone. My blog is for me to satisfy my need to write and think out loud. So if no one actually reads it, it's still accomplishing its main purpose.

A lot of my posts are totally out in left field and contain nothing of interest to most of you. Honestly, how many of you care where the term Carquinez comes from? And so far as I know only three people (E, R, and L) aren't disturbed by all the Get Fuzzy comics I post.

So in short, I enjoy comments, but I still will enjoy blogging without them.

Thanks, Lisa for reminding me to blog about this! I know you love me! But I also know you have three little kiddos that take up your time. And quite honestly, I might think less of you if you were a proficient commenter but a deficient mother (which you're not).

Wow, two posts in one night! I love my blog. And I love writing. So glad I finally have a forum in which to fulfil that need.

Life sucks...but!

Life in general sucks right now. Just the same old anxiety rendering me incoherent, springtime allergies limiting quality sleep time, medication adjustments (always fun), and final projects for school. I'll survive, just don't ask me how I'm doing because I don't want to talk about it. Or if you feel you must ask, "How are you" because it's a "non-negotiable social custom" don't expect anything more than a flat-out chipper prevarication. "I'm doing great! How are you?"

That being said, there are several things I'm thankful for that always make life bearable.

A kitty that snuggles with you every night at bedtime but knows when to move to his own bed so I can sleep.

Another kitty who snuggles with me every morning as I'm waking up.

A two year old nephew who loves me enough to throw a tantrum when I start to leave (I'm going to see that as a good thing, not that he's just throwing a tantrum because he can't control the whole world...)

A nine year old niece that randomly calls me and always cheers me up.

A five year old nephew that is the best snuggle buddy ever. (I love how he "communes" with me when he talks to me by putting his forehead to my forehead.)

A seven year old nephew that says the wittiest, most hilarious things and takes just about everything in stride.

A seven year old niece who believes everything I say, which always inflates my ego. Who doesn't like their ego boosted?

Sugar snap peas straight from the garden.

How ridiculously easy said peas are to grow. (Really, if you've ever wanted to garden, these are the perfect starter crop. They're hard to not be successful with...)

My queen-sized fleece blanket that feels like the good kind of hug.

The scriptures.

Knowing I am never alone in my decisions because of God (not matter how stupid I mange to be...).

Music like Mark Geslison's "Be Still My Soul" (hymns on stringed instruments like banjo, guitar, and mandolin).

Tylenol.

Modern medicine.

Knowing that in three weeks the quarter will be over and the majority of my stress will be gone.

My general physical health (I don't seem to get colds and flu much anymore. Yay!)

There, I feel a little better.

Help! I'm addicted!

I have suddenly become addicted to Mahjong Solitaire (not to be confused with the original Mahjong game).

And you know what my gateway drug was?

Webkinz!


I sometimes login to Webkinz and do some of the quizzes or games to earn money for my nephew. But then I got hooked on a tiling game and discovered it's a version of Mahjong solitaire.

Webkinz, the seemingly innocuous craze! Should we really be letting our children play such an insidious game???