Mix It Up!

News Watch: Guerrilla Gardeners

(I'm having troubles of all kind today!  This was supposed to post at 12pm, not 12am.  Sorry about that!)

I found this news item on the Mother Nature Network to be totally wild and wonderful!

If you don't have the time to go read it; in brief the article describes how in London many people are sneaking out at night to plant tiny gardens in the city's roundabouts and meridians.  They plant everything from tulips to cabbages and feel that it's their duty to "liven up places that could really do with it."  

I LOVE the idea of "vandalizing" public spaces with beautiful flowers and vegetables!  If you are interested in their mission, head to the Guerrilla Gardening Homepage and share in the news from the "horticultural front lines"!

Nature Watch: Lichen

Lichen is among the humblest of visible organisms on Earth.  Yet it can survive in some of the harshest conditions, including the arctic, desert regions, and even in the vacuum of space.  They manage this because lichens are not a single plant, but in fact a symbiosis of algae and fungus.  The algal part of the equation provides the food through photosynthesis, and the fungal part provides the living quarters and protects the food-producing algal cells.

Lichens are not only interesting from a survival standpoint; they are also very useful.  In many regions they provide an important food source for some species of animal (such as reindeer in the arctic), or even for humans.  They have been used to create purple and red dyes, and have even served as primitive antibiotics due to the bacteria-killing secondary compounds that some species produce.  

Lichens are a fantastic natural example of the benefits of two distinct entities working together.  Today, think about how working with other people, animals, or even different aspects of your own personality benefits you.  Mix it up and find a way to harmonize that you hadn't thought of before!  Just don't try sitting in orbit for two weeks without a space suit...

(Lichen image from Wikimedia Commons.) 

Mix It Up Musing: Don't Sell Yourself Short

 

Mixing it up is even more about inward change than it is outward.  Just as you examine what foods you eat, what music you listen to, and where you shop; it is a good idea to examine what you believe -- especially what you believe about yourself.

I have never thought of myself as a jogger.  "I'm not built for it" has been my common refrain.  "I prefer to walk."  "Running can be bad for you."  So many stories I kept telling myself about why I couldn't do it.

Last night, I was feeling anxious and shut in.  Even though it was after 9pm, I went out for a walk around beautiful Greenlake.  Listening to The Streets, I found myself wanting to move faster.  Just like, that I was jogging.  I jogged on and off for at least half of the 2.8 mile inner circuit.  It felt great, but better than the physical rush was the empowering mental rush of realizing that I am a jogger.  

Maybe you're secretly a jogger like me.  Maybe you're a writer.  Maybe you're a social activist, or maybe you're someone who actually likes brussels sprouts.  You will never know until you challenge your assumptions.  Don't sell yourself short by continuing to listen to the same stories.  Mix it up, and examine the stories you tell yourself about yourself!

Mix It Up Adventure: Burning Man

It's a city in the desert that only exists for a week.

It's a gathering of adventurous and hardy souls.

It's a celebration of music, art, expression, and life.

It's Burning Man, and I will be going this year!

If you want to participate in community of radical inclusion, self-reliance, and self-expression, it seems like this is the place for you.  I hope it is the place for me!  I'm going as a personal experiment in extreme camping and community participation.  I'm going to clarify my vision, to dance until I fall down, and to see if I can take pictures in a dust storm.  I'm going because it will be an adventure!

I hope you'll join me!

(Photo by wonderlane from Flickr.com's creative commons photostream.)

Mix It Up: Sleep In A Shark

 

This is too cute for words.  If you have a kid (or are a kid at heart), why not put them (or yourself) to sleep in a shark?  

If you do, please tell me what kinds of dreams you have while slumbering in the embrace of an apex predator.  

(As always, I have no affiliation with the creator of this whimsical sleeping bag!)

Nature Watch: Hybrid Fruits

 

It's no secret that I love to mix it up in my life.  I find that it's always more fun when those around me are equally as adventurous -- it makes it easier to get up and go do something new if I have friends willing to do the same.  Sometimes, however, it can be very hard to convince others to mix it up, and I have to depend on myself.  When I am in that position, I like to surround myself with reminders about the joys of mixing it up.

One great and delicious reminder that I use is hybrid fruits.  Hybrids are crosses between two different species or subspecies of plants (or animals, for that matter).  They are often created on purpose to produce improvement in seeds, size, or flavor -- modern wheat, for example, is a hybrid of three wild grasses.  However, wheat (vital though it is) doesn't have quite the thrill factor that many of the hybrid fruits possess.  

Hybrid fruits are often deliciously exotic.  Some of my favorites include:

★Tangelo (tangerine + either pomelo or grapefruit), a deliciously sweet-tart citrus fruit

★Plumcot (plum + apricot), a smooth-skinned fruit that tastes like a perfect mashup of its forebears

★Limequat (lime + kumquat), tasting strongly of lime but able to be eaten whole

★Loganberry (blackberry + raspberry).  Berries!  Yum!

★Grāpple (apple + grape infusion), not a true hybrid, but rather apples treated with a grape liquid infusion.  Kind of weird, actually, but fun on a whim.

So the next time you are feeling like the only one mixing it up, grab a hybrid fruit and enjoy not only the health benefits, but also the knowledge that Nature herself mixes it up!

Nature Watch: Whale Shark

Yesterday's post on news feeds ended up sending me on a long trawl through the internet, and I spent an inordinate amount of time as always reading about the natural world.  I feel that learning about the animals and plants we share our world with is always a worthwhile endeavor.  This planet we're on is the only one we've got, after all!  (Although perhaps not for long; President Obama is calling for a manned mission to Mars in the next 20 years.)  Whether you wish to learn how you can help conserve our natural resources, or seek a spiritual connection with the creatures and ecosystems of Earth; learning more about them is an excellent place to start.

I have a particular fondness for what I call "specialty creatures."  Whenever I see a picture of "the smallest X" or the "only X that can live in Y place" I am immediately captivated.  What appeals to me is that animals that have adapted to fill such specialty niches are a combination of ferocious success and terrifying fragility.  

Whale Sharks are the largest living fish species, and are so called because they are filter feeders like mammal whales.  Having no baleen, they instead filter water out through their gills, trapping their food sieves that line their gill plates.  Whale sharks live in warm water climates, although they do migrate.  They are gentle giants who can grow over 40 feet long and give birth to live young.

Besides their beauty and mysterious habits (not much is known about their life cycle), whale sharks are also excellent subjects for shark education programs; proving that not all sharks are man-eating fiends.  Only a few are kept in captivity -- the only ones in the United States are in the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta where you can even swim with them!

Whale sharks are listed as a vulnerable species, meaning they could easily become endangered if current circumstances persist.  If you would like to mix it up and learn more these amazing fish, you can check out Wikipedia, National Geographic, and the ECOCEAN Whale Shark Photo-identification Library!

(Photo of a whale shark at the Georgia Aquarium by Zac Wolf, from the Wikimedia Commons.)

Mix It Up: Learn the Language of Flowers

Like many people, I highly value good communication with those around me.  Honesty and openness in conversation -- about feelings, intentions, needs, etc -- is a huge asset to a mature and fulfilling relationship with anyone; be they family, friend, or lover.  Almost every time I have had an argument with someone, it has been due to one or the other of us not being clear about our wants or our emotions.

However, communication is not just serious adult conversations about life, the universe, and everything.  In the Victorian era, young men and women used flowers to communicate, picking white clover and red roses to suggest a promise of true love, or buttercup and yellow poppy to infer a wealthy suitor.  The Japanese used a similar flower language called hanakotoba, although theirs also included herbs, trees, and even printed paper to deliver subtle messages along with their letters and poems.  Both the Victorian and Japanese flower languages were ways of communicating not just intent and interest, but also an appreciation for natural beauty.

Communication, therefore, can also (and should!) be fun.  Expressing love or telling a story through flowers is an entertaining and picturesque way to communicate with your friends and loved ones.  Flowers can also serve as a reminder to yourself to be more compassionate (elderflower), have hope (snowdrop), or to work toward your goals (hollyhock).  Mix it up, and fill your home this week with gorgeous communication! 

Mix It Up: Go to the Zoo!

 

If you have young children, chances are you're a regular at your local zoo.  However, when I proposed a zoo outing to a group of friends last month many of them hadn't been for years!  Most cities have a zoo within an hour's drive, so on your next free day, why not visit it?  There are a ton of benefits to a zoo visit:

★Exercise -- walking is one of the best forms of exercise for you.

★Seeing new animals and learning about their habitats -- learning keeps the brain sharp and focused, and you might learn something fun to share with friends and family.

★Getting surprised by new experiences -- I've been to the Woodland Park Zoo many times, but I'd never been to the Willawong Station exhibit until I visited in February.  You can buy millet on a stick for a dollar and get swarmed by parakeets, cockatiels, and parrots!

★Supporting habitat protection and species conservation with your entrance fee -- zoos not only use your money for animal upkeep, but also to help educate people locally and internationally about the need to protect endangered species and environments.

★If you go with friends or family; a great opportunity for social bonding.  If you go by yourself; time to wander exactly at your own pace and maybe sharpen your photography skills.

★Baby animals!!!  Need I say more??

Connect with a piece of nature you may not normally get to experience.  Mix it up and head to your local zoo today!