AIR PLANKTON

Last Walk Around Mirror Lake - Boom Bip (Boards of Canada Remix) from FroschYankee on Vimeo.

Drifting on currents of air and gravity above Norway. 

Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

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If I had to choose…

If I had to choose my favorite house that’s cropped up in blogland over the last year, it would have to be this one. 

The farmhouse’s owner is non other than Emerson from EmersonMade.  See the tell-tale sign on the leopard print coat?  She makes and sells these smashing  colorful blooms. 

White kitchen, open shelving, naked window.  What’s not to like?  Well… maybe the butcher knife and his little scissor friend.  They’re a little scary.

Would you believe this is their pantry?  My daughter would really dig this one.  Ha!

Sweetness. 

And this one = perfection.  Ahhhhh, I love it!

To see more photos of this spectacular home, the article is here at: Designsponge. 

All pictures courtesy Designsponge.

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SEA HAAR

The Unseen Sea from Simon Christen on Vimeo.

I like fog more and more with every passing year. Comforting, moody, cool, quiet, private.

This image, courtesy Wikimedia Commons, is of fog droplets jumping around at just below freezing temperatures.

Here's a high-speed image of the same fog, shot fast enough to slow the "particles" down and stop them in space. Like air champagne.

This beautiful true-color image posted by the Earth Observatory is of sea fog off Scandinavia in March 2003.

This one is too, from a day earlier.

In really cold weather, usually below −35°C/−30 °F, ice fog might form. Sometimes ice fogs triggers light pillars, as seen in this photograph. What looks like a lens flare on the camera is actually a pillar caused by the reflection of sunlight from ice crystals that happen to have nearly horizontal, parallel, flat surfaces. Therefore it really is a lens flare, only the lens is our atmosphere. 

The photograph was shot somewhere in the Arctic, courtesy NOAA.

Some fogs make white rainbows, known as fogbows. Tecnically, a fogbow is just like a rainbow only made of  very small water drops less than 0.05 millimeter in diameter. Sailors call them sea dogs.

The droplets of a fogbow are so small, according to APOD (whence this photograph hails):

"that the quantum mechanical wavelength of light becomes important and smears out colors that would be created by larger rainbow water drops acting like small prisms reflecting sunlight with the best angle to divert sunlight to the observer."

Writing like that is exactly the reason I have a job.

Photo from here.

In Scotland and northern England sea fog is also known as haar or fret. Old Saxon words. 

Most haar condenses around the nuclei of salt particles, which are the by-product of salt spray, which is the by-product of wind and waves.

Photo from here.

In a recent discovery, researchers from Scotland's Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory found that haar also condenses around the iodine particles released by kelp. The kelp emit iodine when stressed by sunlight and evaporation. Thus they help make weather they like better.

Here's the abstract of the paper:

Brown algae of the Laminariales (kelps) are the strongest accumulators of iodine among living organisms. They represent a major pump in the global biogeochemical cycle of iodine and, in particular, the major source of iodocarbons in the coastal atmosphere. Nevertheless, the chemical state and biological significance of accumulated iodine have remained unknown to this date. Using x-ray absorption spectroscopy, we show that the accumulated form is iodide, which readily scavenges a variety of reactive oxygen species (ROS). We propose here that its biological role is that of an inorganic antioxidant, the first to be described in a living system. Upon oxidative stress, iodide is effluxed. On the thallus surface and in the apoplast, iodide detoxifies both aqueous oxidants and ozone, the latter resulting in the release of high levels of molecular iodine and the consequent formation of hygroscopic iodine oxides leading to particles, which are precursors to cloud condensation nuclei. In a complementary set of experiments using a heterologous system, iodide was found to effectively scavenge ROS in human blood cells.

Photo from here.

And since sea urchins stress and control kelp (by eating them), and since sea otters control sea urchin populations (by eating them), then urchins and otters are important players in the fogweb too—at least in the Pacific.

Photo from here.

The paper:

• Frithjof C. Küpper, et al. Iodide accumulation provides kelp with an inorganic antioxidant impacting atmospheric chemistry. PNAS. doi: 10.1073/pnas.070995910.

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How Clean are your Dishes?

Phosphates pose a threat to aquatic life and can end up in drinking-water reservoirs. In response to new laws, more and more makers of dishwasher detergents are reducing the amounts of phosphates in their products. But, according to a recent article published by The New York Times, "Cleaner for the Environment, Not for the Dishes," consumers claim their low-phosphate detergents aren't getting the job done.

Launched in 1991, Shaklee Basic-D was the first patented phosphate-free dishwashing cleanser. Today, our Shaklee Get Clean Dish Washer Automatic Powder Concentrate is a patented, high-performing, phosphate-free dishwasher cleanser. Its enzyme-activated formula removes tough stains without the need for prerinsing, leaving dishes sparkling clean. Shaklee Get Clean products do not contain phosphates—and never will.

Shouldn't everyone you know be using a phosphate-free dishwasher concentrate that leaves dishes sparkling clean?

Learn more about Get Clean products that are both safe for the environment and effective.

Help us get the word out by sharing this with your friends and family—they'll thank you for it!

This was a message from our Shaklee Corp.

I have been using these products for over 11 years and LOVE them!!!

I especially LOVE the dish detergent and liquid.

If I am washing a pot or pan, I seriously only use a couple of  DROPS of liquid and it gets all the grease off!

And for my dishwasher, I use Shaklee’s detergent and I NEVER PRE-WASH/RINSE my dishes. NEVER! They come out CLEAN every time.  I am so grateful for this because it saves me SOOOO much time!

According to this cost comparison sheet, it only costs 18.9 cents of Dish Wash Automatic Concentrate per load of dishes.  CHEEP!  Did you know that Cascade Complete costs 28.4 cents per load and Seventh Generation costs 40.4 cents per load?

To order or learn more about  these safe dish products, please visit my online Shaklee shop today!

Have a great day!

Bonnie :)

 

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Waiting for the leaves to fall

It’s quite a task to prepare for Autumn in 90 degree weather.  So while I’m waiting for the leaves to fall, these inspired ideas help hold me over…

image courtesy BHG.com

I love the mixture of colors and layered textures in this votive jar.  If only it was hanging from a jute ribbon, it might even be better. 

image courtesy BHG.com

I absolutely adore this idea of a baby tree in a burlap sack.  Could it get any sweeter?  I wouldn’t change a thing. 

image courtesy here

A pumpkin vase.  Now why hadn’t I ever thought of it?  Am I the only one?

image courtesy here

And you know cooking’s not my thing, but how could I resist baking itty bitty acorn cakes?  I could not. 

image courtesy here

This is a great idea for a little snack buffet… using a  family of gourds as serving bowls.   Wouldn’t it be even cuter to fill them with different nuts? 

image courtesy here

And last but not least is my favorite of all… a simple display of pale pumpkins with brown thistles and pinecones.  The subdued always seems to win out with me.  (if you haven’t noticed;)

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We Cleaned Out the Garage for Fall

We were busy this weekend!

We entertained some relatives, organized, took the kids finishing and cleaned out our garage.

Here are a couple of pictures of the kiddos fishing…they had a blast!

Now, here is what we did for fall cleaning.

We started out by taking pretty much EVERYTHING out of the garage.

Then we washed the garage floor.  We normally use Basic H to clean it but this time we used Basic G because we found a lot of mouse poop….I know, totally gross!  So that’s why we disinfected the WHOLE garage!

Then we put everything back where is goes.

Ahhh!  It feels sooo good to have a CLEAN garage!

How is your fall cleaning going?

What did you clean this weekend?

<center><a href="http://creatingahouseofgrace.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="FALLCLEANING" src="http://i684.photobucket.com/albums/vv204/bonniejane03/FALLCLEANING.jpg" /></a></center>

What have you been

cleaning/organizing?

PLEASE check out my NEW SHAKLEE SITE!

You cannot order here, it is just for learning about the company and their products!

Don’t forget to come back here tomorrow night for my Twice Owned Tuesday Party.  I can’t wait to show you what I got over the weekend!

Have a great week!

Bonnie :)

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Blue To-Do

On my to-do

Before the year’s through

Is painting the porch ceiling

Blue.

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Turn Off The Tap To Save Water

I thought that I would quickly show you several ways to save water and save green!

We could always use another reminder. And I am pretty sure that we all LOVE saving $money$!  Right?

Turn Off The Tap To Save Water

A few easy strategies. Old habits die hard, but learning to adjust your water use practices could have a decent impact on your overall water consumption. I've got a couple simple strategies that'll get you slowing the flow in no time.

•Water on, water off: Don't let the water run endlessly as you brush your teeth or wash your hands. Instead, turn the tap on "half-blast" to wet your toothbrush or hands, then turn the water off while you scrub your pearly-whites or lather your skin. Turn the tap back on only when you're ready to rinse—employ the half-blast method again.

•Cup-style conservation for shaving and brushing: When brushing your teeth or shaving, try using a cup. Simply fill an average glass with water (and shut the tap off when you're done). Dip your toothbrush or razor into the cup to wet it. Continue as usual, then use the cup-water to rinse.

•Face-washing eco-wise: Get your face clean without gallons of water by using a washcloth. Turn the tap on briefly to wet your hands as well as your facecloth and then shut the flow off again. Apply soap to your wet hands and scrub like normal. When you're ready to rinse, use your wet cloth to remove the soap, then give it a quick rinse under the tap.

•Cool down with a pitcher: If you're in need of a cold glass of water, don't run the tap until you get the desired temperature. Instead, plan ahead by filling a pitcher with water and putting it in the fridge. This way, you'll have cold water on demand without sending many, many gallons down the drain needlessly.

•Water warm-up savings: If you've got to wait several minutes before your shower or tap water warms up, consider using the warm-up water for other purposes by putting a bowl or pail under the faucet. You can water your plants, rinse recyclables, or feed your pets with this otherwise wasted H2O.

•Sensible shower use: If you've got a shut-off valve on your showerhead, use it to turn down or stop the water while you soap up, shave, or apply shampoo and conditioner.

I hope you found these tips as a helpful reminder!

What water saving tips do you use?

Bonnie :)

Please visit my Online Shaklee Site!

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Knock Off

If you are anything like me, you’ve probably drooled over the vintage inspired faucet line from Restoration Hardware.  But the prices!  That sort of craziness is not happening around here.  So, when it came time to replace the faucet for our new (old) sink, I went on a search for a Restoration look-alike. 

I found it!  

And I love it!

The knobs are delightfully chunky, and the spout comes  far enough forward for practical use (the one thing lacking in our last faucet). 

But best of all, it was cheaper than the off-the-shelf varieties at the big box stores.  I found it here at Overstock.com.  Just had to share!

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