Tag Archives: writing

Human Health, Nature & Garden

Influenza and Zoonosis

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In my last post I used a photo of an old (positive) test result for COVID (this is also an old photo of my sweet baby, hence the grainy appearance) and I noticed it included Influenza A and B as possible results as well, which got me thinking about the flu and wondering how much people know what the flu even is. The question also ties into vaccines and how experts decide on which “strain” to use – and do people even know what they mean by strain?!

Ok, that’s a LOT to cover, so I’ll try to keep it all simple. First, let’s define what zoonosis is – this is a hot topic for One Health.

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Human Health, Nature & Garden

F*ck. Does This Mean I’m Getting COVID This Year?

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Now that our Department of Health and Human Services (D-HHS) is being run by someone with no scientific background or training and touts pseudoscience and fringe ideas, we are facing a potential health crisis.

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Food and Nutrition

Eggplant!

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  1. Origin
  2. Modern Cultivation
  3. Impact
  4. Nutritional Profile
  5. Dietary Concerns
  6. How to Eat it
  7. Recipe: Stuffed Eggplant

Origin

This was a little easier to parse out than the broccoli origin story. Turns out, wild type aubergine originated on the eastern parts of Africa1 (notably, from Kenya to South Africa) and spreading outward towards the west. In a single event, however it made its way to India and East Asia where the cultivated strains predominately begin. This certainly explains why there are so many amazing dishes featuring eggplant/aubergine at Ethiopian restaurants, as well as Indian and Chinese restaurants.

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Human Health, Nature & Garden, Opinion piece

“Artivism”

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UPDATED: I was floundering in one of my unfocussed days, typing a million disparate thoughts, unable to make them meld properly. This is, perhaps, partly to do with the inherent abstract nature of art and the subjectivity surrounding it. I want to say something, but I am unable to find the right words in the right order. I’ve not rewritten, but I’ve tweeked a few lines to make them more cohesive.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how we use art in activism lately. We create signs for protests, write songs and stories, make documentaries…. City streets are littered with graffiti – everything from murals depicting a civil rights event to simple written messages.

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Human Health, Nature & Garden

What is Public Broadcasting?

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I thought I knew – but it seems I’ve opened up a can of worms that is taking way more effort to digest and understand. I thought “hey, let’s help spread the word about the importance of public broadcasting!” Now I need to figure out how we communicate across the nation. Either way, let’s also see if we can figure out what this administration just cut funding for, shall we?

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Human Health, Nature & Garden, Opinion piece, Travel

A Haggis Hiatus

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Hi, everyone! How have you been?

I just returned from my vacation in the UK (all around Scotland and then a stint to London) and decided to disconnect while I was gone, hence my silence over the past two weeks..

Can’t say I’m super thrilled to be back – the second we touched down in D.C., reality pelted us hard, right upside the head like a noxious smell you weren’t expecting. One sad or embarrassing story after another about the happenings in the grand U.S. of A. came flooding into our phones and I realized coming back was a terrible idea.

Sigh.

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Nature & Garden

I Think We Are Being Invaded by Aliens

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First there was one pile. Then a second. A third, fourth, fifth….I’ve lost count. I’ve stopped paying attention to how many piles I am finding, and have grown more interested in the color changes this life form is experiencing. From yellow to orangish to white. This extra terrestrial looking creature seems to bleach in the sun like coral in the reefs. It even looks like coral – well, up close it does. When you see it splattered about in a pile when it first appears, it definitely brings to mind the look of bile and foam that’s just been hacked up by your canine companion. The species: colloquially known as Dog Vomit Slime Mold.

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Human Health, Opinion piece

What It Means to be American: Part One

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It feels like the world is burning around me, literally and figuratively. Wildfires, wars, and hate-fueled politicians riling up their base to spread more hate…and an occasional Waymo car – that was us. Well, not me, specifically, but that was ‘team left of the middle’, burning with their own rage against the Federal police-state in Los Angeles. They call it a victimless crime to burn a driverless car, but there is no such thing. I can, at the very least, understand their anger, if not their actions.

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Human Health, Opinion piece

Brick and Mortar Brought us Back

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The other night I was invited to watch a friend present some poetry at a local bookshop. Every second Friday of every month the bookshop hosts a Poetry and Prose night where anyone can come and present their work. As I sat there listening to the thoughts, emotions, and personal stories of the lives of strangers, I started to hear a theme weave through the words of these writers. A theme of advocacy for human rights, environmental justice, and political cries against our current Federal administration, writ large.

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Human Health, Opinion piece

A Look Back on 2020: What I Learned

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I could probably write a book on this subject. I generally don’t think we talk enough about the positive things that come from tragedy and disaster. It’s probably why our culture is so fearful and morbid about death or why we are always suffering from “never enough” syndrome. I’m not a psychologist, just an internet expert, so don’t take my word for it – I’m just over here, speculating. That said here is my (not quite complete, but who has time to read these days) list of positive lessons I learned from the pandemic.

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