Reptile Party

So, I asked myself, what's a kids reptile party? Do the kids grow scales when they get there? Are they taught how to hunt insects and grubs when they're small, then are weaned over to red meat when they get big?

 

Or, do they just learn how to be reptiles? Or, are they given little lizard and alligator suits and sent out to terrorize the neighborhood?

 

And lookit the sign posted on a Los Gatos telephone pole ... they do stuff with schools and summer programs as well. These reptile people, they sure know how to insinuate themselves into our kiddy society, don't they?

 

Oh, get off my back. I know what a kid reptile party is. Can't an old curmudgeon have a little fun with it?

 

Fanciful Fungi

The wife and I spent some time at the Ferry Building Marketplace, located near Pier 1 on the Embarcadero in San Francisco. I've always enjoyed wandering around both in and out of the building, especially on Tuesdays,Thursdays and Saturdays.

It hasn't changed much in the several years I've been visiting, and one of the stores I always stop at is the Far West Fungi and Wild Forest Products shop.

They had a weird-looking bunch of live Tree Oyster Mushrooms on display today.

Fungi Store Front

Some of the Strange Mushrooms Offered

Tree Oyster Mushrooms

If you've never been there, don't forget to visit the next time you're in San Francisco.

And if you're lucky, valet parking in front of the building will be available. If not, go to the Ace Parking Lot just down the street. And don't forget to get your ticket validated if you make a purchase in the Ferry Buildng Marketplace.

Almaden Winery Park

Almaden Winery Park, the neighborhood gathering place near my son's San Jose home, looks different in the spring. The last time we were here, it was winter, so the rose bushes were bare, the grass was brown, and the air was chilly.

This week, everything is green and colorful. I love it!

A dandelion before the wind blew it apart

Pale gray evergreen weeps for me

Don't know what this is, but it's nice!

Happy Hollow Park

We had a good day yesterday in San Jose, spending it with family and enjoying a nice afternoon at Happy Hollow Park and Zoo, watching our grandson playing and enjoying the kiddy rides.

I was able to replenish my supply of Pinchy the Monkey travel photos (link in the right column of this blog), and was particularly interested in the children's petting zoo (it's fun to see kids interacting with the animals). Here are a few pictures: 


Red-Sided Eclectus Parrot



A Wooly Sheep with a Very Sheepish Look

Bronzed Barn Owl Doo-Doo!



A Zebu Butt (Yep, a Rear View)

 And with that, all I can say is ... THE END!

Green Tea Has Good Stuff

By now, everybody knows that green tea is good for you if you ignore the caffeine thing, because it has lots of cancer-fighting antioxidants.

The thing is, I betcha people are more into convenience and instead of brewing their own tea, buy it already processed and cold in bottles. That’s okay if you buy it primarily as a good-tasting beverage that’s been sweetened.

But the thing is, freshly brewed is better for you. When you brew green tea for yourself, each cup contains from 50 to 150 milligrams of polyphenols (the good stuff). If you drink the bottled stuff, each serving has less than 10 milligrams. Consequently, you’ll need to drink five to 20 bottles to match the amount of polyphenols in freshly brewed green tea.

Me? I drink it both ways. I like the cool convenience, plus I like the warmth it can give one as well. Green tea … it’s good stuff.

Recycled Art

I flew into San Francisco International Airport at the
un-Godly hour of 4:50 a.m. today and was lucky I didn’t fall all over my feet and tumble into a trash bin, I was so sleepy.

One thing saved me. SFO usually has some great displays in its concourse – the latest one is an exhibit of art created from recycled materials.

The display is called “Second Chances” … something that I would have needed if I couldn’t keep my eyes open. Here are a couple of the displays: 

Nice exhibition of creative hands, heart and mind. Yes indeed. Sure beats falling into a trash can.

What is Reading?

What do you consider reading? Sitting down with a good book? Relaxing on the living room couch with your morning newspaper and a steaming hot cup of coffee? Or maybe it’s the Sunday comics, or a favorite magazine, or perhaps something you’ve found in your research on the computer?

Probably … all of the above, and more.

I bet you never thought of texting. But kids 9-17 do. According to Scholastic’s Kids & Family Reading Report, one-fourth (25%) of the kids they talked to say texting back and forth with friends counts as reading. (OMG! RTSS NNWW)

How about social networking postings or comments (i.e., Twitter, Facebook, MySpace)? Even more kids (28%) consider THAT reading.

More than half consider looking for information online reading (55%). I can live with that.

The good news is, nearly 4 out of 10 said texting, social network posting/commenting, and online research are NOT considered reading.

Kiddy Combo Calories

It’s been calculated that kids should consume only about 1,300 calories a day if you want them to maintain good nutritional health. Divide that by three meals a day, and you arrive at about 430 calories per meal.

Now … I know the fast food “restaurants” entice us with kiddy combination meals – all-in-one packages that taste good and make for happy children. But did you know that just one happy mean can deliver almost as many calories in one meal as kids should consume all day?

Here’s a guide as to how the popular fast-food kiddy meals stack up (ranked by the percentage of kids’ menu meals that exceed the 430-calorie limit):

1. Taco Bell – 100%
2. KFC – 100%
3. McDonald’s – 93%
4. Wendy’s – 93%
5. Burger King – 92%
6. Subway – 33%

Choose wisely and eschew kiddy meals, unless it’s to be the only meal of the kid’s day.

Where Hawaii Ranks 3

Here we go again. I’ve seen a few more lists of where Hawaii ranks in various areas, compared to the rest of the nation and (sometimes) the world.

Best Overall Health (United Health Foundation, 2010)

1. Vermont
2. Massachusetts
3. New Hampshire
4. Connecticut
5. HAWAII

Lowest Unemployment (Brookings Institution, 2010)

1. Omaha, Nebraska
2. Madison, Wisconsin
3. HONOLULU, HAWAII
4. Portland, Maine
5. Washington, D.C.

Most Bank Card Debt (Experian, 2010)

1. San Antonio, Texas ($5,177 ave. balance)
2. Jacksonville, Florida ($5,115)
3. Atlanta, Georgia ($4,960)
4. HONOLULU, HAWAII ($4,939)
5. Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas ($4,936)

Most Sleep Deprived (Centers for Disease Control, 2010)

1. HAWAII (44.6%, < 7 hr/24 hrs)
2. New York (40.7%)
3. Maryland (39.9%)
4. Georgia (36.9%)
5. Illinois (36.1%)

Highest Solar Use (Solar Energy Industry Association, 2010)

1. HAWAII (10.8 watts per capita)
2. New Jersey (6.6)
3. California (5.7)
4. Colorado (4.3)
5. Arizona (3.5)

Japan Tsunami Videos

Tsunami Video Capture

Watching the Earth react to an underwater paroxysm as it sends the ocean inland is both horrifying and mesmerizing. These videos, the latest that I’ve seen of the Japan tsunami, will both fascinate and terrify you.

In this first video, the sea surface slowly rises until everything in the beginning of the video is totally destroyed – cars, buildings, boats … everything.

Watch how the tsunami begins with a small stream just this side of the highway, then grows and grows and grows until the entire valley is inundated.

In this next one, you can hear the people on the hill yelling, “Hayaku! Hayaku!” which is “Hurry up! Hurry up!” in Japanese. This is one of the more emotional clips that I’ve seen because you can actually see people trying to stay ahead of the approaching tsunami.

Sorry if the videos upset you. But if they did, maybe they’ll motivate you to make a donation to the American Red Cross’s Japan disaster relief fund: https://american.redcross.org/site/Donation2?idb=0&5052.donation=form1&df_id=5052