I have been avoiding discussing this subject for a long time. It makes me sad and sick. I don't have enough words to express my disgust for what has happened. I don't doubt that we will be dealing with it for decades to come.
Having said that , I am sick and tired of dwelling on the negative aspects of this tragedy. I am pretty sure that there are going to be many solutions to this problem over the coming months and years. I am not suggesting that this can ever be a "make lemonade from lemons" situation. I am just saying that we will find a way to repair the damage.
I have a sarcastic sense of humor. I usually try to reign it in. However, today , I will disclose my personal solutions for the oil spill.
1. Cola. Yes,cola,soda pop,could be Pepsi,Coke or generic. They all work on oil spills on my garage floor. I am assuming that would work in the ocean. Hey, probably would not do any more harm than what ever "dispersants" are. And it will probably taste better to the fish. I nominate the head of the board at BP to open and pour each can. Then he can pass out straws to passing Dolphins. If we are lucky, they will use said straws to spray him with his own oil.
2. Giant,industrial filters strung across the Straights of Florida. You know, the kind that they use at Sea World,and such. I nominate the guys who stopped the bill to force BP to foot the bill for the clean-up to remove and change the oil filters. They,then could carry the filters to a mechanic,who will charge them the same fee that the rest of use pay for proper disposal of used oil filters.
These are the two ideas that came to mind immediately,something tells me,I can come up with a few more!
Seriously, I do support organizations that help the ocean. My favorite is Ocean Conservancy: www.oceanconservancy.org
If you can't find any other way to help, try to make a donation. This is our future that we are talking about.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Scuba Diving Movies
O.K., so typically, movies that involve diving are more about the romantic adventure of diving,than the technical accuracy of the sport. Having said that, these are my top five picks. Lets just say that these movies are more of a guilty pleasure!
5.Into the Blue(2005); Jessica Alba,Paul Walker. A group of divers discover a crashed plane containing drugs. Well, some of these movies really are just eye candy.
4.Fool's Gold(2008);Kate Hudson,Matthew McConaughey,Treasure,romantic adventure on the high seas, and diving. A bit zany,at times, but good for the pure escapism of it all.
3.After the Sunset(2004);Pierce Brosnan, Selma Hyak, Woody Harrleson. More of a comedy about retired jewel thieves. Nice scenery, and of course,diving.
2.The Deep(1977); Jacqueline Bissett. Kind of a tie between this and Thunderball, for me! This one was shot on the RMS Rhone,so, brownie points for authenticity.
1. Thunderball(1965);Sean Connery as James Bond. One of the best. The dive scenes are pretty improbable,what with the knife fights,and all. Still, just good fun. And you can actually dive some of these sights,in Nassau!
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These were just the movies that came instantly to mind, when the subject came up. I am guessing that you can come up with a few more!
5.Into the Blue(2005); Jessica Alba,Paul Walker. A group of divers discover a crashed plane containing drugs. Well, some of these movies really are just eye candy.
4.Fool's Gold(2008);Kate Hudson,Matthew McConaughey,Treasure,romantic adventure on the high seas, and diving. A bit zany,at times, but good for the pure escapism of it all.
3.After the Sunset(2004);Pierce Brosnan, Selma Hyak, Woody Harrleson. More of a comedy about retired jewel thieves. Nice scenery, and of course,diving.
2.The Deep(1977); Jacqueline Bissett. Kind of a tie between this and Thunderball, for me! This one was shot on the RMS Rhone,so, brownie points for authenticity.
1. Thunderball(1965);Sean Connery as James Bond. One of the best. The dive scenes are pretty improbable,what with the knife fights,and all. Still, just good fun. And you can actually dive some of these sights,in Nassau!
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These were just the movies that came instantly to mind, when the subject came up. I am guessing that you can come up with a few more!
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Earth Day
When I woke up yesterday morning,I didn't really plan on doing anything for Earth Day. Not that I don't think it is a great idea, I do. We should all try a little harder to do good things to help the Earth. Other than planting seeds in the garden with my children when they were small, I can't say that I have every really thought about doing anything. As there had been patchy frost over night, I knew that I would not be doing any seed planting.
So, I went about my day,starting with my usual trip to the Mega Grocery store near my home. As I rounded the corner of the aisle across from the sea food case, I noticed 4 men in suits, with clip boards. They, along with the store manager were inspecting the cases and taking notes. Ahh,the Big Wigs,from headquarters. Suddenly, a light bulb went off in my head! I remembered that I had put a copy of the safe seafood list from the Monterrey Bay Aquarium in my purse. I walked up to the nearest man and said "I see from your signs around the store,that you are interested in being more organic and green,yes?" He was polite ,and replied that he was very interested in any suggestions to help the store in this area. I put the list in his hand,and, he did look a little puzzled,at first. I explained that the columns on the page represented fish to choose,and fish to avoid. He said,"That's great, but I am not sure what to do with it?" I suggested that he take the list and give it to the fish buyers back at HQ. That way, they can make better informed choices.too He asked to keep the list,so maybe that is a sign that he will actually do something about it.
I do know that it made me feel like I had actually done something for Earth Day! It seems like a pretty simple thing to make more informed choices. Especially with the internet. Information is only a click away. And let's face it, as divers, we have a front row seat to all the beauty in the oceans. Making informed decisions is one thing that we can all do,everyday!
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/download.aspx
So, I went about my day,starting with my usual trip to the Mega Grocery store near my home. As I rounded the corner of the aisle across from the sea food case, I noticed 4 men in suits, with clip boards. They, along with the store manager were inspecting the cases and taking notes. Ahh,the Big Wigs,from headquarters. Suddenly, a light bulb went off in my head! I remembered that I had put a copy of the safe seafood list from the Monterrey Bay Aquarium in my purse. I walked up to the nearest man and said "I see from your signs around the store,that you are interested in being more organic and green,yes?" He was polite ,and replied that he was very interested in any suggestions to help the store in this area. I put the list in his hand,and, he did look a little puzzled,at first. I explained that the columns on the page represented fish to choose,and fish to avoid. He said,"That's great, but I am not sure what to do with it?" I suggested that he take the list and give it to the fish buyers back at HQ. That way, they can make better informed choices.too He asked to keep the list,so maybe that is a sign that he will actually do something about it.
I do know that it made me feel like I had actually done something for Earth Day! It seems like a pretty simple thing to make more informed choices. Especially with the internet. Information is only a click away. And let's face it, as divers, we have a front row seat to all the beauty in the oceans. Making informed decisions is one thing that we can all do,everyday!
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/download.aspx
One of my pet peeves
This has been a pet peeve of mine for quite some time. Plastic bags. Yes, plastic grocery bags. How many divers have seen them on a dive? Caught up in a reef, half buried in the sand, or floating free, like a jelly fish? Maybe the correct question is, how many haven't seen them?
Here, in the north, when the snow thaws, they are everywhere. Blowing across fields, caught up in trees, in ditches, flowing in streams on their way to lakes, then oceans. They are the single most visible form of litter everywhere.
This isn't a plea for all of us to start bringing re-usable bags with us to the store(although, that is a great idea). From what I see, many people are starting to do that on a regular basis. What I am wondering is if we could get the stores to stop carrying them completely. No more plastic grocery bags, ever!
I am just thinking out loud here, but can a bag be manufactured out of something bio-degradable? Some of the carry-out containers are now being made from bio-degradable products.
Maybe, it isn't as serious of a problem as I think. I just envision future archeologists digging up whole layers of earth that contain nothing but plastic bags. I wonder what they will think of us?
Here, in the north, when the snow thaws, they are everywhere. Blowing across fields, caught up in trees, in ditches, flowing in streams on their way to lakes, then oceans. They are the single most visible form of litter everywhere.
This isn't a plea for all of us to start bringing re-usable bags with us to the store(although, that is a great idea). From what I see, many people are starting to do that on a regular basis. What I am wondering is if we could get the stores to stop carrying them completely. No more plastic grocery bags, ever!
I am just thinking out loud here, but can a bag be manufactured out of something bio-degradable? Some of the carry-out containers are now being made from bio-degradable products.
Maybe, it isn't as serious of a problem as I think. I just envision future archeologists digging up whole layers of earth that contain nothing but plastic bags. I wonder what they will think of us?
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