Delusions of... Everything

This and That Thursday

Saturday, March 27 from 8:30 - 9:30 pm is Earth Hour.  I posted about it last year with suggestions about how to spend an hour with the lights off (hubba hubba!).  This will be the third time I've participated and I encourage all of you to participate and invite others to take part!

What is Earth Hour?  According to the organization’s website:

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million homes and businesses turned their lights off for one hour to make their stand against climate change. Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries participating. Global landmarks such as the, Sydney Harbour Bridge, The CN Tower in Toronto, The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Rome’s Colosseum, all stood in darkness, as symbols of hope for a cause that grows more urgent by the hour.

In 2009 hundreds of millions of people around the world showed their support by turning off their lights for one hour.

Earth Hour 2010 will continue to be a global call to action to every individual, every business and every community. A call to stand up, to show leadership and be responsible for our future.

For more information, visit the Earth Hour website here.

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Remember that first interview I had after being laid off?  The one that caused me to really think about my situation and to have this epiphany?  That position is open again.  Yesterday I saw it advertised on Craigslist.  I am so tempted....

For those of you who watch Lost... Do you really think it's possible they will wrap everything up to our satisfaction in the 7 remaining episodes?  Yeah, me either.

I joined a blogger book review site and received my first book to review.  I'm reading it now and will be sharing my thoughts sometime in April.  Stay tuned!

Our renter moved out yesterday.  The house has been turned back over to us.  Handy Man has already spent some time over there replacing doors.  Full on work starts today to prepare for selling; painting, replacing molding, finishing doors, replacing light fixtures, roof and gutter cleaning, refinishing the hardwoods, going to the dump.  I'm tired just thinking about it.  If everything goes as planned it should be on the market in 2 weeks.

I'm going to visit Asthmagirl tonight for a much needed hair color, in preparation for the job interview I have next week!

The Green River

Once upon a time a dam was built and named for Seattle attorney and state legislator Howard A. Hanson, who heavily encouraged the dam be built.  The Green River Valley was prone to flooding every year, the dam brought relief to the farmers in the valley.  Once the valley was dry (mostly) farmlands gave way to a sea of warehouses, industrial plants, condominiums, and shopping centers.   This is where I work, right on the river.  It really is pretty.

 

Today the Howard Hanson Dam has issues.  The land on the right side of the dam is starting to give way.  This means the dam cannot hold as much water as when it's healthy.  The Army Corp of Engineers will be releasing water during heavy periods of rain to relieve pressure on the dam.  The possibility of flooding along the river is very high, in fact they are telling us to expect it.

I have spent the past two weeks preparing, as much as possible, our office for flooding.  The computers are off the floor, shelves and cupboards have been emptied up to about 20 inches, power strips are off the floor.  Today I will be typing up emergency plans to be posted in each office, so if we have warning there are a few things we can do to prepare.

The fear of the unknown has my boss and I stressed.  How much water will come in?  How often will it flood before the dam is fixed?  Should we pull the carpet up and make do with the concrete floor?  How much time will we have to be shut down?  For the first time flood insurance has been purchased.

I'm hoping for a drier than normal winter!  *crosses fingers*

The Insects

This next one is dead!   I just love the detail on the wing.

Can you tell I'm having fun with my camera and new lens?

Anderson Island - The Scenery

The scenery from this little piece of heaven is spectacular!

The Beach:

For these next shots I used the wide angle lens.  The first on is looking north toward the Olympic Mountains.

Looking west toward the Olympia/Lacey area and the Black Hills.

Looking south toward Nisqually.

The Rocks:

For some reason I love rocks, I always have.  On this beach, if you're lucky and know what you're looking for you can find agates!  I was lucky enough to find one of the largest agates ever captured by my hand!

There are also a fair amount of shells to be found.

I took this shot through the water.  I really like the look of it.

A number of times I sat outside on the deck to read my book and was too distracted by the view.  I dare you not to be distracted!

This picture was taken Saturday evening.  It was still hazy and chilly.

These shots were from Sunday and you can tell there is more sun and warmth!

And finally the view from the ferry on the way home!

I love living in Washington State!

I have many other really great sky shots that I will be using over the next several weeks for Sky Watch Friday, so keep an eye out for those.

Earth Hour

On March 28, 2009 at 8:30 pm, tens of millions of people around the world will
turn out their lights for one hour — Earth Hour — to demonstrate concern for our
living planet and send a loud message to our leaders that they support action on
climate change. Here are a few ideas for things to do in the dark…by yourself or
with others: 

 

1. Enjoy a romantic candlelit dinner with someone special using organic or
sustainably grown food items. 

2. Invite friends and family over for a “lights-out” party and serve green-themed
snacks and drinks—green tea or apple martinis anyone? 

3. Turn off the lights and power down the computer and cell phone. Use the
quiet time to take a break from a “plugged-in” world by meditating or resting.

4. Take a bubble bath by candlelight. 

5. Use the hour for practical tasks that you never seem to have time for. Test
essential items in your emergency preparedness kit like flashlights, radios,
and cell phones. Change out all your light bulbs to energy-efficient CFLs.
Change the batteries in your smoke detectors. Think about how you would
evacuate your house in an emergency in the dark.  

6. Read a book set in an era without electricity. Marvel that the Romans
conquered much of the world without a single cell phone and that
Shakespeare wrote masterpieces without a laptop or the Internet.   

7. Turn off the computer and write a letter by candlelight the old-fashioned way
using pen and paper. 

8. Invite friends over to play charades or Scrabble by candlelight.  

9. View the night sky via telescope--the reduced “light pollution” may make
some stars more visible.

10. Take photos of how you spent Earth Hour and upload them to the Earth Hour
pages on Facebook, Myspace and YouTube. Keep it clean please!

Ten Things to Know About Earth Hour 2009

1. Earth Hour 2009 takes place on March 28, 2009 at 8:30 pm—local time. 

2. The date was set in March because it is close to the Spring Equinox, a period when
the most number of countries around the world will experience darkness in the 8
o’clock hour.  

3. Earth Hour isn’t about how much energy is saved during one hour. The idea behind
Earth Hour is that by working together, each one of us can make a difference on the
issue of climate change. By doing something as simple as turning off the lights, we
send a visual symbol to the world’s leaders that we are counting on them to work
together to find solutions to climate change. 

4. Earth Hour is a non-partisan event. When it comes to caring about the future of our
planet, we all have a stake as citizens of the world regardless of other political
beliefs and affiliations.   

5. Earth Hour turns off non-essential lighting only. Lights necessary for public safety
will not go out. Earth Hour has been conducted safely and without incident in more
than 100 cities around the world.  

6. Earth Hour is an inclusive event and everyone is invited to participate. WWF will
provide tools online to enable any town, community, school, individual or
organization to be part of the event.  

7. WWF has designated a limited number of “flagship cities” in the US where it will
devote resources to make sure the lights actually do go out. In 2009 those cities
include: Atlanta, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, Dallas, New
York, San Francisco, and Washington, DC. In addition, WWF will be seeking the
support of Washington DC and the federal government. 

8. Many US cities will also participate as “supporting cities.”  To become an official
supporting city, a proclamation or some type of official confirmation that the event is
supported by the local governing body of that community must be sent to WWF.

9. More than 750 cities throughout the world have already agreed to participate in
Earth Hour 2009.

10. World Wildlife Fund is the organization behind Earth Hour, but many other groups
and NGOs are supporting Earth Hour in 2009.