Will The World End?

Many people believe that the world will end someday, but our human tendency is to prevent it. To have control. My garden would be really incredible if I could take control of the weather. What would that do to my neighbors though? Would there be an inevitable butterfly effect and would it be bad or good? How could I possibly know? Would my manipulation eventually create a backlash that would hurt my garden?

I work with meteorogists, climatologists and earth scientists at a privately owned forecasting company. (My preferred science is biology, but sometimes you take what you get.) When I discuss my job with people locally, sometimes I'm asked if I can write a beautiful forecast since I'm an editor; if I could do that, I'd write myself onto a tropical island that never gets hurricanes. If I had that much power, like the character John Murdoch develops in Dark City, I don't know how I would chose what to do. If I could re-create a garden paradise, and keep literal and metaphorical hurricanes from destroying it, does that mean I should? (Note: These are rhetorical questions.) Comic book superheroes experience this conflict, don't they, ie, how to use their special powers?

Anyway, back to the end of the world.


Robert Frost wrote:

Fire and Ice

Some say the world will end in fire.
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire,
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate to
say that for destruction ice
is also great
and would suffice.

--Robert Frost


Opinions about global warming vary among the people who work here. I share the view of at least one forecaster, stepping away from all the politicizing that some on both sides carry out: whether it's natural, human-induced or human accelerated, I will try to do what I can. And other things I do that help the environment in general I will do. Beyond that (Kyoto Accord, etc.,) it becomes difficult to ascertain. Hmm. At my age, I'm getting use to not having all the answers. Hmm.

Carbon footprint? check out:
Mr. Smith Says happy New Year

What else can you do?

An Early St. Patrick's Day

Philadelphia Flower Show 2007

On March 10, my friend Heather and I hope to get to the Philadelphia Flower Show. This year, the theme is Legends of Ireland, so it really appeals to me. Besides the beautiful floral displays, I anticipate some energetic and colorful dance, music and shopping. I went to an Irish fest years ago in Wilkes-Barre, and it was very enjoyable.

I will pray that there are no snow storms!

A Book

I am reading It Started in Eden by Bertha S. Dodge. I borrowed it from the library and its publication date is 1979. A little old, but kind of interesting. The author writes about how important plants (ex, food crops) have been to human history. It has a lot of history of the competition for control of various valuable plant products. She goes into great detail about the "wars" between the Spanish, English, and others over various trade routes. These trade routes transported chocolate, tea, coffee and spices from the East.

As a tea drinker, I found it interesting that many attempts to grow the plant in the U.S. failed. The plant, Camellia sinensis, is grown commercially in Charleston, South Carolina. It also grows in Hawaii and on the East Coast of the U.S.

An interesting fact: spices that make so much food tasty were originally used to cover the taste of bad food. This potentially explains why so many "hot" areas of the world have some of the spiciest foods.