Monday, May 28, 2007


I wouldn't want you to miss this--even though it's been flowering for the past 2 - 3 months. The orchid flowers are actually at the tail end and fading fast. This was the first year I was able to clip the flower stem and have it grow new blooms without sprouting a new stem. It still took almost a year for them to come. Now that the flowers are going, it's time to repot! I think you're only supposed to have 1 or 2 pairs of leaves and I have 4 with another on the way.


I always enjoy the numerous catalpa trees that flower around our neighborhood. I don't see many of them around other parts of the District. This one is just a few doors down.

i like these little plants that grow on the rocks around the garden.

geranium & basil



Sunday, May 20, 2007

Past time for a real energy policy.



I don't yet know much about Bill Richardson, the Governor of New Mexico, who has been climbing in popularity as a presidential candidate. However I was very happy to hear on NPR that he has proposed plans for a real energy policy that focuses on renewable resources and less on politically unstable, environmentally degrading, polluting fossil fuels. I was ecstatic to visit his web page--the first image you see is this one of the Gov. in front of solar panels.

Richardson seems to have other advantages as well. I like the idea of him coming from the Southwest--I'm not big on candidates from the South--and Texas goes without saying. He also seems to be more of an independent thinker than your typical politico. Past job creds: a United States Congressman, Ambassador to the United Nations, Secretary of Energy, and Governor of New Mexico--now that's experience (especially after the doomed (or missing) energy and diplomatic policies of the past 7 years)! Finally, his Hispanic heritage could have vast implications towards securing the Hispanic vote for Democrats in 2008 and for many, many years to come.

Let's keep our eye on him!

Saturday, May 19, 2007

museum day



Two weekends ago my housemate and I had a day in the city...We chilled out and went down to the National Building Museum. This is the amazing lobby. We saw an exhibit on green building design for homes (the different products and energy-saving devices that could be used) and on how people have attempted to create the orginal Globe Theater, for which no definitive plans any longer exist. They also had some interesting ideas of what theaters of the future might look like.

I was sitting on a planter waiting for her to come out of a store and found this "3" key amusing....

Monday, May 14, 2007

Bumpersticker of the week



I saw this on a vehicle (a g.d. SUV of course) this morning and it made me smile.

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Republican (Mine)Field


So...2008 is coming and you were thinking there's no way a worse President could be chosen for our country? Guess again! Pictured are three Republican candidates who, during their recent debate, raised their hands when the candidates were asked if anyone did not believe in evolution. WTF?!

Check out the entire humorous (and scary) report by Jon Stewart.

Thursday, May 03, 2007

Senate panel OKs bill to increase green power

And from the news this morning:

WASHINGTON/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate may vote later this month on an energy bill that would by 2020 require that 15 percent of U.S. electricity be produced by renewable sources such as wind and solar.

The same bill would require 10 percent of federal power purchases to be produced by "green" methods by 2010.

This is the fourth time a federal "renewable portfolio standard" for electricity production has been attempted in Congress. Three times before it has passed the Senate, only to be felled by a Republican-controlled House of Representatives.

Wednesday, May 02, 2007

The biggest hoax ever perpetrated on mankind

In case you have missed it, NPR is running a groundbreaking year-long series on climate change. They elegantly describe it as "A year-long exploration of how climate shapes people and people shape climate." It's full of interesting tidbits about societies of the past, present, and future and the monumental effects climate change has.

Environmental issues have finally made a few headlines in the news. Only recently did Bush admit that global warming is real (...ten years behind, at least?) and connected to the activities of humans. And with the Democrat-controlled Congress, progress has finally begun again on environmental policy.

This brings me back to the title of this blog. They are the words Senator Jim Inhofe (recently-deposed Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee) used to describe global warming. It perfectly summarizes the past six years of ignorance that have governed our country--policies that have been influenced by radical conservatism far more than science and reasoning. Similar to the evolution debate, conservatives have been dangerously successful in introducing doubt when it comes to major scientific principles. If we had invested more in alternative energies 10+ years ago, we would already have cheap, clean, readily-available power and less oil-driven conflicts.

Anyway, tune in to NPR to hear this series! And let's hope the political tide continues to change. Let's push for a smarter, greener future.