Archive for August, 2008

Hercules the Gorilla

August 15, 2008 · Filed under community

If you are a patron to the Dallas Zoo then you knew Hercules. He always sat in the front window of the first gorilla exhibit and watched the kids who were looking at him. I think he liked them or thought of them as silent company. Sometimes he’d even lean up against the window or put his hand up there. He put many a smile on the faces of little kids and I’m sure he was in his share of picture memories of their day at the zoo. He was fun for the kids and was very dependable. You could always count on him to be right there next to that front window. My daughter and I were at the zoo Tuesday and when we got to the gorilla exhibit I thought it was a little strange that “Hercules” was looking straight at us. He seemed a little more caring and gentle (that’s hard to explain, but it was all in the eyes). It wasn’t the hard look he usually gave, it was much calmer. I also thought it was strange that Jenny wasn’t in her usual place. At the age of 55, Jenny is the world’s oldest documented gorilla. So, you can see why I was concerned she wasn’t in her usual place. We went on to also noticed that Patrick wasn’t in the second exhibit with his two new girlfriends. Once we got home I read online that Patrick’s new girlfriends, Tufani and Makena, weren’t quite ready to be joined by Patrick. Not full time at least. I also read about Jenny’s birthday celebration at the zoo. I don’t know how we missed that! But these articles eased my mind about the gorillas not being out.

Yesterday I heard the news that Hercules had passed away due to a heart attack. That saddened me. I know, I’m not a zookeeper or a gorilla expert. I’m just someone who enjoys taking her daughter to the zoo. But when you go to the zoo on a regular basis, you start to at least feel like you know the animals. You start to become familiar with their habits and learn their names. You learn about what they eat and how they like to spend thier time. All of that makes the experience personal.

Turns out that we did not see Hercules Tuesday. I’m not sure who was sitting in Hercules’ favorite spot. I would lean toward Jenny since she wasn’t in her usual place and we rarely see Timbo, but Jenny’s getting old and doesn’t like to come out everyday, so who knows? Hercules has had so many problems with arthritis, especially in his back, that he hadn’t been on exhibit for the last week. It’s sad, but he lived to be 43 which for a male gorilla really isn’t bad. And since he was in so much pain, it’s for the best. Hercules will be remembered and will be missed each time we look through that front window in the first exhibit at the Dallas Zoo.

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Staples

August 2, 2008 · Filed under going green

Why is it that our large chain stores like Wal-Mart and Target don’t carry them? Why is it that most of our local grocery stores, even the chains, don’t carry them? And why is it that Staples does carry them?

Those sound like weird questions when you don’t know what the topic is. Well, I have been thinking about this for, oh, a little over a year and a half now. Why is it that you can find several varieties of recycled garbage bags, paper towels, napkins, and toilet tissue at Staples but not at the grocery store? Now I know, there are a few grocery chains like Publix and Whole Foods that carry recycled brands, but even at those stores, you lack the variety of Staples. It just seems odd.

I appreciate knowing that people who purchase supplies for public and private buildings (such as myself) have the opportunity to purchase eco friendly products. But how come these same products aren’t in the stores that most of us shop at for our homes? Guess we should start making monthly or bimonthly trips to Staples.

:)

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What ever happened to…?

August 2, 2008 · Filed under Politics, myself

What ever happened to integrity? What ever happened to a good work ethic? What ever happened to a good moral conscience? What ever happened to doing something because it was the “right” thing to do? I have found that these are the questions I ask myself almost on a daily basis. When I turn on the television, when I go to the store, even when I step into a church building, these are the questions I end up asking myself. Why has our society pushed these and other core values to the side?

I am a mother, a mother who is trying to teach her child from an early age about what it means to be a good person. I have found that in all our talks I end up saying the same thing to her. “If you have nothing else in this world, have integrity. Have a good moral and ethical conscience. Do what is right even if it costs you something else. Have integrity. Love and passion will come naturally. Money is worthless. Have integrity. Do what is right and stand for justice. Love all you meet and don’t ever fear doing what’s right. Have integrity. Don’t fear those who are different from you. We each have our own strengths. United we form one body. Above all, have integrity.”

She’s only two so she hasn’t quite comprehended all of it yet. But she’s familiar with the routine and likes it when mommy gets worked up and passionate about her. She smiles and laughs and loves the bonding that comes with it. I just hope that with enough of these talks she will truly hear and understand, and that one day she’ll follow through with having her own integrity. I have to say, she’s off to a great start. She’s a happy and friendly child who, as of right now, doesn’t see the color of someone’s skin, or their economic status, or their sexual orientation, or their lack of integrity. She sees people. She waves to all she meets in the store. She says “Hi” and smiles. She makes her parents very proud and sets the example for them.

In a way, my talks to her remind me of what I tell her daddy whenever he is writing a message for our congregation. If he knows how he should preach a text yet is reserved to preach it because of the reaction he might get from the congregation. I always tell him, “Remember, there’s only one person you’ll ever have to answer to.” And just between you and me, I believe that if we keep our integrity intact, we won’t have any problems with doing what’s right at any cost. And we won’t ever have to worry if those questions ever do come.

Our society is messed up enough with corporations running everything and all the social injustice that occurs. It’s 2008 and what has changed? People are still racist, they still want things their way and right away, they are still judgmental of others unlike themselves and they’re so selfishly money hungry that they can’t wait to run up the corporate ladder stepping on everyone and everything that gets in their way. If only those were our only concerns…but they aren’t.

Why are there so many people in this country who can’t afford medical care? Why are there so many people in this country who can’t find a job? Why are there so many people losing their homes? Why is the separation between rich and poor so far? Why is there so much red tape involved in doing something good for needy people in our communities? Where is the integrity of this country? Where is the integrity of this world? And when is it coming back? Yes, I blame the lack of integrity on the downfall of society. If our integrity was first on our agenda, the world would be a much different place. A much better place, a place where all are loved and cherished and respected regardless of who they are. A place where all are educated and given medical treatment. A place where violence ceased and acceptance was abundant.

We’re all people. We all need the same things. We need food, water, sunlight, shelter, personal relationships. We need someone to love and care for us. We need someone who stands for what’s right. We need a change. We need integrity incorporated back into our government, in our schools, in our churches, in our homes. We need to take good care of people. Invest in people. Invest in good medical care and good quality education, both of which need to be “free”. Then, if that education has incorporated integrity and values in it, then maybe, we’ll get the change we all so desperately seek.

Have integrity! Live for justice! Do what is right! Love all! Good work ethic and moral conscience say a lot about a person and a community. Have a good weekend everyone!

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Girl’s Weekend (Recycling and Ammonia-Free Hair Dye)

August 2, 2008 · Filed under going green, myself

Last weekend I had a girl’s weekend with one of my closest friends. I had a blast watching chick flicks, eating chewy chips ahoy cookies and just relaxing. We hit a few of the fun outside activities such as the Abilene Zoo, Fort Imagination, and two parks. One of the parks was built in 1979 and has a three foot brick wall that encases a natural prairie dog habitat. It was really neat! The other one has a bunch of ducks, geese, and one lone pelican you can try to feed.

During our girl’s weekend, we also made an outing to a local recycling drop-off spot. The city of Abilene does not have curb side recycling, so they have designated drop-off spots for people in the community to bring their recyclables. I was surprised by a couple things first off. When we pulled up (in the middle of the afternoon) we were not the only people there. There were a couple other vehicles dropping off their recyclables. I don’t know why that surprised me, but it did. The second was how easy the process was. The drop-off site had a few long depositing bins. Each door was labeled clearly so you knew what you were allowed to put inside it. It was easy and it didn’t take people long to drop-off their goods and be on their way. It was so simple and effective, it was impressive!

When we were leaving, my friend said something to me that has really stuck in my head. She said, “People really don’t have any excuse not to do this. This is so easy. And they certainly don’t have any excuse with curbside pick-up. If they don’t do it when that’s available they just don’t care.” That statement made me do three things. On Wednesday I looked at the streets in the neighborhood beside us. This neighborhood is made up of mostly upper class retired couples. There are a few “yuppies” but for the most part, they are upper class retiree’s. Almost every house had a recycling bag out on the curb. I was very impressed and very happy to see that. (If older people can squint their eyes enough to see the recyclable number on their food containers, so can we!) Then on Thursday, our neighborhood’s recycling day, I looked down the street to see how many bags were on the curb. There were several, but it did not look like the neighborhood next to us. (Please don’t take this the wrong way, I am not one for comparing people, I’m just stating what I saw this week.) There was a lot more trash and a lot less recycling on our street.

I don’t think that recycling has to do with how much money you earn, I don’t think it’s an economic issue. A whole roll of recycling bags only costs $7.70 after tax and even if you recycle most of the items you use, it will last you for months. I don’t know if it’s a lack of understanding and knowledge. Or if people really are so lazy they just don’t care. Our city has a very easy to learn system for recycling and it’s available in several forms, so I am unfortunately leaning toward people really not caring enough to make the effort. The third thing her words inspired me to do is start collecting the one recyclable number our community doesn’t collect at the curbside. In curbside recycling bags here in the city of Irving, you are allowed to put all paper recyclables, glass, aluminum, steel, aerosol cans, and all recyclable plastics #1-#7 (excluding #6) in one convenient bag. VERY CONVENIENT!!! So, I am now collecting my #6 plastic recyclables (Styrofoam) to take to a drop-off bin just down the street. Who knew there was one so close? Now I have no excuse not to recycle everything that is recyclable. Now if only the rest of the street would start increasing their recyclables and decreasing their trash.

Also during our girl’s weekend both my friend and I dyed our hair brown! Two blonde’s with brunette power, watch out world! Just kidding. She did it for fun, but I had other intentions in mind. After all this research on what goes into making hair dye I did not want to continue my platinum reign. But never dying my hair again would cause one problem I wasn’t okay with, two toned hair!!! Scary, I know. I am nearing the big 30 in another year and I really don’t feel that two toned hair is acceptable on someone my age. Mid to late teens, it’s expected. Early twenties, you’re pushing it. Past that, you really should know better. So I had to dye my hair one more time and dye it a more natural color. With the help of my friend, I discovered L’Oreal’s Natural Match hair dying system. It is an ammonia-free formula. (Yay, less of the bad stuff is always good.) We tried to find a shade that would match my roots and eyebrows. I think we did pretty good (shade 6C). I really like it and feel that if I do decide not to dye my hair again, I won’t go through any grow out phase. Whew, what a relief! And that was our girl’s weekend.

That’s all, recycling and ammonia-free hair dye. Have a great weekend everyone!

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