save gas money

CLICK HERE to visit a link for improved gas mileage.

We built a Solar Oven

Chloe, Lucas and I made a Solar Oven yesterday. It worked and was easy to make. If you want the directions, visit this page,
http://thecraftnanny.blogspot.com/2008/06/make-solar-oven.html

More pics from Justin - San Diego

funny effect of a clean planet.

Black flies surge in Maine's clean rivers

Citing environment's gain, state declines to curb the biting bugs

MILLINOCKET, Maine - Mainers call the black fly the state bird. Residents and tourists have long steeled themselves against the flies' annual warm-weather onslaught, sometimes duct-taping pant legs and wearing screened hoods to keep the deceptively small bugs from delivering bloody bites or crawling into seemingly every body crevice.

But there are now more black flies in more places in Maine, and the reason may be surprising: It's the success of the environmental movement.

Many species of the gnat-sized insects are sticklers for cleanliness. When Maine's rivers were filled with contaminants from paper mills and other industries, only the hardiest black flies laid eggs in them. Now, rivers and streams are progressively cleaner, providing ideal breeding grounds for the annoying pests.

It's an unintended barometer of good ecological health, but Maine officials are adamant they will not mess with nature in any way to provide relief.

"They can be so thick you breathe them in and they get stuck in your throat. They even get under your eyelids," said Julia Brilliott, an Eastport resident who showed off four lumpy red welts on the back of her neck after climbing Mount Katahdin in Baxter State Park last week.

For the uninitiated, black flies are blood-sucking insects with a menacing reputation worthy of a late-night science fiction movie. Not all bite humans - some feed on other mammals and birds - but those that do are relentless daytime feeders. Even the nonbiting flies are often despised because they emerge by the millions in warm months and, lured by the carbon dioxide we exhale, swarm around people.

Here's Some pics from Justin in Colorado!

Funny Excerpt from an articlew in the Boston Globe

This is an excerpt from an article I read in the Boston Globe, http://www.boston.com/ae/tv/articles/2008/06/21/green_screen/?page=1

TV's best-ever cautionary tale about promoting environmentalism arrived on an episode of "South Park" from 2006, long before the advent of Planet Green. Called "Smug Alert," the half-hour ruthlessly parodied the self-righteousness of chic environmentalists. Kyle's father becomes obsessed with his new hybrid car, called a Pious, and that leads to a plot involving not toxic smog but toxic "smug." As Ranger McFriendly tells young Stan, "When people drive hybrid cars they get so full of themselves they spew tons of self-satisfied garbage into the air. That isn't smog - it's smug. . . . You get enough smug in the atmosphere, you know what that leads to? Global laming."

Leah's 5 seconds of fame!

Hey, I was riding the bus today and got interviewed by local CBS channel 8. Here is the video link, you have to go about 1:30 minutes to my short scene. It was really fun. The videos don't stay up for long though so check it out now. I am somewhere in the middle for like 5 seconds, but he interviewed me for like 5 minutes.

CLICK HERE for video

The Green House Project

http://www.globalonenessproject.org/videos/greenhouseproject

In the inner-city of Johannesburg, The GreenHouse Project is turning one urban park into a seedbed for sustainable communities. The program takes a holistic approach to the city's challenges, integrating green building and design, efficient and renewable energy, recycling, organic farming and nutrition.

I think having community gardens in every city would be a great way to improve our way of life, because people would work together, and learn about nutrition.

Learn Russian

If you'd like to learn Russian, here is a site with sound bites of actual words.
http://www.ilike2learn.com/ilike2learn/russian/vocab1.html

Freerice- vocabulary/charity

Andra found this website that donates rice through United Nations to feed the hungry. You answer the correct word- it's like a vocabulary test so grab a dictionary. www.freerice.com

they donate 10 grains for every correct answer.

It's fun!

Protect yourself from Identiity theft!

JoAnne forwarded this to me.

A corporate Attorney sent the following out to the employees in his company and My Accountant sent this to me, so take it for what it is worth to you, but at least you know.

I did it. It is your ID- Protect it! It is FREE.

I strongly recommend doing this ASAP. I did it last year and re-did it again.

Because I did do it - It saved my credit history as well as the time & mental anguish if I had I NOT taken 5 minutes of my life to do this, I could have been spending months, even years trying to clean up my credit.

1. Don't sign the back of your credit cards, instead, put "PHOTO ID REQUIRED". If you want to erase your signature use a Q-tip with a little alcohol

2. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card Accounts, DO NOT put the complete credit card account number on the "For" line. Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels, won't have access to it or be tempted to use it.

3. Put your work or cell phone # on your checks, instead of your home phone. If you have a PO Box use it or get one instead of your home address. If you don't have a PO Box, get one and use it from now on!

4.Never have your SS N # printed on your checks. You can write it if it is necessary. But if you have it printed, anyone can get it.

5. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to Call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place. I also carry a Photocopy of my passport when I travel either here or abroad.

6. We have been told we should cancel our credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them.

7. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).

8. Most important of all: Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations (numbers below) immediately to place a � Fraud Alert� on your name and also call the Social Security fraud line number.

I had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the Internet in my name. The alert means any company that checks your Credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit. If they open the account without calling you it is there fault ONLY if you MAINTAIN every 90 days a FRAUD ALERT

Failure to do this now, WILL be too late to stop the crooks from opening up other accounts and allowing them to continue the damage while you fight to clear your name, they’ll have time to keep you chasing a ghost. DO IT NOW and take 5 minutes of your life.
1.) Equifax: 800-525-6285
2.) Experian (formerly TRW): 888-397-3742
3.) Trans Union: 800-680-7289

4.) Social Security Admin.(fraud-line):800-269-0271

I also called my insurance company about a Credit fraud protection clause added to my policy. It is Cheap to do but worth the money should your credit and ID be compromised you’ll get some help as well as Insurance companies will take an effort to help resolve too by introducing stricter laws against ID Theft.

If everyone did this, it would make it easier to catch the bad guys by narrowing their ability.

I just photo-copied my information on my scanner and made a hard copy for my files as well as save the scanned copy to my hard drive with these instructions too.

Just in case I need to contact the credit reporting organizations.

Weird uses for your cell phone

Grandma sent this email on 3/4/08

THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW YOUR CELL PHONE COULD DO.

There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies.

Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Checkout the things that you can do with it:

FIRST Subject: Emergency

The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked. Try it out.

SECOND Subject: Have you locked your keys in the car?

Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday.

Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their cell phone (not land line) from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock.

Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other "remote"for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk). Editor's Note: It works fine! We tried it out and it unlocked our car over a cell phone!"

THIRD Subject: Hidden Battery Power

Imagine your cell battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370# your cell will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell next time.

FOURTH How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?

To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: * # 0 6 # A 15 digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to Your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phonegets stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes

the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either. If everybody does this, there would be no point in people stealing mobile phones.

And Finally....

FIFTH

Cell phone companies are charging us $1.00 to $1.75 or more for 411 information calls when they don't have to. Most of us do not carry a telephone directory in our vehicle, which makes this situation even more of a problem. When you need to use the 411 information option, simply dial: (800) FREE 411, or (800) 373-3411 without incurring any charge at all. Program this into your cell phone now.

This is the kind of information people don't mind receiving, so pass it on to your family and friends.

Bio-Toilet on Mt. Ranier,

Here's a video Scott found about an eco-conscious toilet.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/06/10/dnt.eco.toilet.komo

Justices Open US courts to detainees

I got this from the Boston Globe. about time!!

CLICK HERE FOR THE WHOLE ARTICLE

Justices open US courts to detainees

Deal setback to Bush; influx of cases expected

By Farah Stockman Globe Staff / June 13, 2008

WASHINGTON - The US Supreme Court ruled yesterday that detainees at Guantanamo Bay have a right under the US Constitution to challenge their detention in US civilian courts, dealing perhaps the final blow to President Bush's policy of holding terrorism suspects indefinitely without charge.

The 5-to-4 court ruling is expected to immediately trigger a flood of hearings in US federal court on behalf of the approximately 260 men who have been detained for years without trial or formal charges. Legal specialists said the government must now present evidence against the men in a US court or release them - a situation the Bush administration and its allies in Congress have fought bitterly to prevent in the name of national security.