Category Archives: 4e-3e

Nov
08
2015

Meet the peanut-turtle!

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This turtle (a red-eared slider) was found wandering the St. Louis area in 1993 with a six-pack ring trapped around his mid-section.

Due to the constriction of his shell, some of Peanut’s internal organs (his lungs, in particular) failed to grow properly. He was an easy pray for predators so he could not be released into nature.

turtle Peanut 6 packHe has become the official mascot for Missouri’s Department of Transportation and Department of Conservation’s anti-littering effort, a program called No MOre Trash.

This is what Peanut looks like now:

turtle Peanut 6 pack 2Whether it’s turtles in six-pack rings or squirrels in yogurt containers, what happens to our trash and how we dispose of it matters.

Here are a few other common household items to watch out for: any fishing line, or plastic lines, because animals can get tangledin them, not just in the water, but also birds or squirrels. And be mindful of balloons when they pop outside. Birds and other animals may ingest them and die.

Every little effort counts ! Remember to cut up plastic packaging in small pieces when you put them in the bin, and avoid using plastic bags or balloons.

More here: Upworthy-Peanut story

Nov
07
2015

Undercover policeman in wheelchair sees acts of kindness

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After two robberies of wheelchair-bound people that were carried out at knifepoint, a Vancouver police officer went undercover as a paralyzed man in a wheelchair with brain injury.

Much to his surprise, instead of being victimized, he saw repeated displays of human kindness in this rough neighborhood.

Sometimes he asked people to buy something for him, to see if they would steal his money. At the end of the operation, the officer had $24.75 more than he started with. People chose to give rather than steal.

We usually see news stories about people doing bad things, but those aren’t the only stories.

The reality is that there are lot of kind people in the world who treat others with respect and consideration.

Operation Wheelchair – YouTube.

More detail here:

Upworthy-wheelchair undercover

Nov
04
2015

Making pomanders

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Want to keep your house or your wardrobe smelling of orange and spices? Make pomanders and keep them everywhere you want this nice fall smell in the air…

This is really easy. You just need to pick a firm orange with no blemishes and stick cloves in it, in the pattern of your choice.

It will even be easier if you pierce the orange’s skin with a knitting needle before pushing the clove through!

Pomanders

Ingredients:

oranges

oranges

cloves

cloves

Oct
12
2015

Some American cities abolish Columbus Day

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indigenous day instead of columbusFollowing a growing trend, the city council of Albuquerque, New Mexico has voted six to three to recognize October 12th – typically known to most as “Columbus Day” within the USA– as Indigenous Peoples’ day in a new proclamation. Albuquerque has the highest concentration of Indigenous people in New Mexico.

indigenous womanIn the past two months, eight cities got rid of Columbus Day in favor of adopting Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Three of those cities adopted Indigenous Peoples’ Day this week.

Here are the names of those 8 cities:

Albuquerque (New Mexico), Lawrence (KS), Portland (OR), St. Paul (MN), Bexar County (TX), Anadarko (OK), Olympia (WA), Alpena (MI).

These cities are following in the footsteps of Seattle and Minneapolis.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma City came close to passing it in September and will try to pass it again on October 13th, the day after the holiday.

Indigenous-Peoples-Day-bannerThis name change is a fantastic trend that needs to grow fast, but it needs to be followed up by concrete action and legislation. Nationwide (and worldwide – particularly in Latin American countries that have suffered from US-backed coups), indigenous people suffer from economic inequality, health problems, and human rights abuses. It’s time we celebrate their culture and tradition rather than their oppressors’, and it’s time we give back to those we’ve taken so much from.

From Dylan Sevett, US-Uncut.