We Celebrate Sea Otters This Week

Guess what guys?!

It’s the 10th annual Sea Otter Awareness Week!

September 22nd -September 28th we celebrate all things sea otter!

Many organizations have special programs scheduled to educate about the otters and their need for our conservation efforts. Organizations include the Monterey Bay Aquarium, The Oregon Zoo and the Alaska Museum of Science and Nature.

Did you know? :

There are only 2,900 sea otters left in California.

Sea otters are social animals and live in groups called rafts.

Some sea otters eat so many sea urchins in a lifetime that their bones turn purple.

More stuff on otters in a previous HoneyBees post.

Check out this site www.seaotterweek.org for more info on Sea Otter Awareness Week including event listings. Hopefully, there’s one near you, or learn virtually from any of these partner sites www.seaotterweek.org/#!events/c20ug

A Sea Otter Raft

Want more otters in your life? How bout 365 days of “otter raft antics awesomeness”? Back the Wild for Otters Kickstarter campaign here: Wild For Otters . These folks are raising funds to put a camera up which will film the otters everyday and stream it live to your home! The campaign only has 6 days left!! They, and the otters need your help!

Sea Otter Holding Hands
A classic video- search on YouTube if you haven’t see it yet.

*Thank you to the photographers of these fab otter moments for use of your work in this post.

Earth Day, the 43rd Edition

Earth Day is today.

And everyday.

Earth Day is not about plating a tree, or bringing your own cup, or going to some festival.

Sure, these things are great, and important, but it’s bigger than that.

Earth Day allows us to stop and pay respect to this giant being that sustains all we do. I mean, really think about that, there really is no ‘us’ without Earth.

So yes, we give her one day where we are all supposed to stop and say thank you, just like we do for notable people who have changed history for the better.

One day, everyone living on this planet will also be a part of history. The path this history takes is up to us.

We make choices everyday. Thousands of choices. Where to go, what to eat, what to wear, how to get places. It goes on and on. Every time we make a choice we cast a vote. We are saying yes to a product, a way of life. And the choices we make have a consequence for Earth.

We all know there are a myriad of problems. Deforestation, habitat destruction, drought, overpopulation, rising sea levels, oceans full of plastic, etc.

Luckily, there are so many people and organizations working on solutions. But we cannot just think there are ‘others’ working on these problems that are also affecting ‘others’.

No. That time is over.

The state of the Earth is everyone’s problem. But it is also everyone’s opportunity.

We can all do more.

I always use my reusable cup & other utensils, recycle and compost everything I can, drive a low emission vehicle, grow my own food, drink tap water from a stainless steel bottle, turn off lights, always have my reusable bags, have a ‘green’ cell phone company, sign petitions, boycott certain companies, buy organic and local.

I CAN DO MORE.

We can all do more.

I challenge you to find a place in your life where you can do more. A place where you can educate yourself, your family or friends about the issues that affect us all and what things large or small we can do to help. Parents, teachers, commuters, shoppers, bloggers, artists, no matter what role in life you claim, everyone has this opportunity.

Tonight, say thank you to Earth. (And go see the meteor show she’s putting on to celebrate, best visible tonight). And challenge yourself to make tangible change for the better.

Because, really, where are we without Earth?

More Info:

http://www.earthday.org/take-action

350.org

http://earth911.com/

Quarry Hill Botanical Garden in Pictures

Video

This last week I took a trip to Quarry Hill Botanical Garden in Glen Ellen. Quarry Hill is a world renowned Asian themed garden that was all started from wild seed. It’s a great and unique collection. This is a slideshow of my photos from the trip. Lots of macro shots.

What’s in Bloom This Week?

Here we are in the fourth week of March (seriously, how did that happen?) and many more blooms are coming out to play. This unusually warm weather coupled with a few showers didn’t hurt things at all.

1. Non-Fruiting Plum

2. Wild White Lily

Found on a California hillside

3. Daffodils

Have been blooming for weeks now.

4. Tulips

5. Christmas Cactus

No joke, it seems to be confused. Beautiful nonetheless.

Indoors, bright light, well watered.

What’s In Bloom This Week?

Image

The landscape is coming alive! Color is creeping back into the world around us. Feeling down? Seriously, just take a look around for a second.

Let’s see what is in bloom this week, the second week of March:

1. Mustard Flower

Accenting the green hills with bright yellow.

 

2. Cherry Blossoms!

 

3. This interesting ‘weed’ seen on the Bodega cliffs

Please leave a comment if you know what this is.

4. California Poppies (Eschscholzia californica)Showing their strength

5. Tea Tree (Leptospermum scoparium)

February Sunset

Image

Bodega, CA 2013

All rights reserved.

Would you stand in line for 5 hours for 10oz of beer?

Every year around Valentine’s Day, 4th Street in Santa Rosa, California is the scene of a bunch of crazy people beer lovers waiting in line for a chance to taste the current batch of a beer called Pliny the Younger. At peak times the wait to get in the door can be over five hours. Each day a certain amount of the beer is allotted for drinking in an effort to make the brewed beer last for the two week period it is offered. This past weekend some friends and I braved the crowds for a taste of this very special beer.

Why is it special? It is very expensive and time consuming to make so the brewers at Russian River Brewery decide to only make it once a year. And, people think it’s tasty.

Is it worth a five hour wait? You have to decide that. But it is the number two rated beer on Beer Advocate, the spot for all things beer review and ranking in the US and Canada.

The release of Pliny the Younger coincides with SF Beer Week, a 10 day celebration of beer in the Bay Area. Breweries and restaurants around the Bay have many events planned. So if you’re into beer, this is your week and you better find an event that suits your fancy.

Pliny the Younger runs through February 14, 2013, then its gone ’til 2014.

Pliny the Elder, the Brewery’s flagship beer, is on tap year round. If you go, get both and do a little taste test.  I highly recommend the beer bites with spinach and mushrooms.