Archive for August, 2007

What is it? – Power Flower Lifts Weary Spirits

August 26, 2007

(actually by Virginia Moran)
[photo of flower]“What a perfectly adorable flower!” my friend Lorna said as she bent down to look into the face of this wildflower in the way an adult bends down to talk to a child. Indeed. What a perfectly adorable flower!

If you have not looked into the face of this pretty one, then you must, especially if you are having a bad day. I have never met a flower capable of making people smile as much as this one; it’s in flower by the hundreds right now in our foothill fields.

What is it?

Click here to find out.

What is it? – Alien Feeding Frenzy Conquers Compost

August 23, 2007

writhingpoopymassthumb.jpgNo worms-and-fluffy-soil for this compost bin – a voracious horde of inch-long crawlers moved in, and you wouldn’t want to run your hands through the result. This writhing mass swarms over, engulfs, and – like Midas, only not exactly like Midas – transmutes anything it can reach into gobs of brown slime.compostvisitor.jpg
What is it?

(and why is this black wasp loitering nearby?)

Nevada County’s Agricultural Biologist emeritus Eric Gunderson has an answer: “your compost bugs look like… (more…)

Notes and a view on Sunday’s Global Cooling Cafe

August 20, 2007

gcc_thumb.jpg gcc_conversation_thumb.jpg

“If we continue the direction we’re going, we’re likely to end up where we’re headed.”

How do we help Nevada City citizens act to reduce their carbon footprint and fight global warming? Sunday’s Global Cooling Cafe brought together about 40 people and the Low Carbon Diet workbook to answer this question.

This was the last of three Cafes held after this spring’s Step It Up 2007 “Day of Climate Action” event. The Cafes’ goal has been to engage people’s ingenuity and help them come together to plan and take actions to help our community reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

I’d missed the first two, but a neighbor’s rave reviews brought me to this one. And I figured if I was going to attend, then you, dear reader, should get to come along; hence this account. (more…)

What is it? – The Guest from Hell

August 9, 2007

[photo of obnoxious burr]“It’s that season again. The dog showed up with dreadlocks and soon these little annoying balls of velcro will be everywhere: in the rug, in my socks, in my shoes, and of course, taking full advantage of my dog.”

What is it?

Click here to find out.