Happy Fourth of July!

We drove out to Lancaster to watch fireworks with Mike and Lauri, the kids and some of their friends from Lauri's "mommy club." It seemed so strange to be able to just pull off any of the streets and park in basically an expanse of desert. No curbs, no buildings, just dirt and Joshua trees. But the sunset was beautiful and the temperature was perfect. It was very relaxing.




Already learning my gangsta signs








Aside from the fireworks, barbecue and a day off of work, we should remember why we celebrate the fourth.

Americans sometimes forget the history surrounding the date. The Fourth of July commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence which serves as this Nation's official certificate of birth. Interestingly, the Declaration was actually ratified on the the second of July, not the fourth, 1776).

According to researcher Kenneth Davis, as early as 1676, a man named Nathaniel Bacon wrote the "Declaration of the People." This document criticized the British for levying unfair taxes, placing favorites in high positions and not protecting the western farmers from Indians. Americans boycotted the taxes; the British sent in troops. What ensued was the Boston massacre, which turned out to be the beginning of the end of British rule.

In 1773, the colonists decided the British would not monopolize and tax the sale of any one item, such as tea. On the night of December 16th, men from all ranks of society clandestinely boarded three, tea-filled Royal Navy ships and dumped cases and cases of tea into the harbor (the Boston Tea Party). Shortly thereafter, the Revolutionary War began and when America won the War, (and after the ratification of the Declaration of Independence) it was deemed a glorious occasion worthy of an annual celebration. John Adams - one of the authors of the Declaration of Independence - said: "I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance; it ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more."

Recycle, Re-Use, Reduce.

About six months ago, I was at the Red Cross donating blood and noticed one of the volunteers collecting the tabs from the little orange juice cans. She donates them to some charitable organization, who then turns them in for cash. This made me wonder if the same could be done with water bottle caps.

I didn't really find a good way to handle the caps, but did learn that quite a few bottles that are put in the recycler with caps on are simply tossed out because it is too time consuming for workers to remove the caps.

Here is one explanation found on wiki.answers.com: (Most sites I looked at pretty much said the same thing.)

I've seen this question answered both ways. However, my research shows that plastic recycling is very complex and requires that the same types of plastics be seperated from other types so as to not ruin the meld. Also, just because plastic has the "chasing arrows" doesn't mean that they are recyclable. This just tells the trained eye what type of plastic they are. That being said, I've read that the tops of the water bottles are often made from a plastic resin which is obviously different from the plastic used to make the bottle. When plastic is recycled and melted down it is crusial that all the plastic is the same type. If one cap gets mixed into a batch, the batch is ruined. To be safe, I would at minimum remove the plastic bottle cap from the bottle to make the recycling process easier. Some people even throw the caps away in the garbage. http://www.gcbl.org/forum/can-i-recycle-the-caps-to-my-plastic-water-bottle.

I also learned that if a bottle still contains soda or is soiled, it can contaminate the batch as well. So those bottles cannot be recycled.

I have three recycle bins in my side yard. One that is provided from the city, where we toss all cardboard, milk cartons, newspapers, cereal boxes, etc. One that is mine for only plastic bottles and another for only aluminum cans. We clean everything out - but that is mostly to avoid attracting ants and rodents. Now I will start removing the caps as well.

So if anyone has a good art project for those bottle caps, let me know :-)

As a side note, I'm planning to go kayaking at Castaic Lake on Monday and this whole subject has reminded me of how filthy that lake is due, in large part, to the number of dirty diapers in it. How disgusting is that?! Come on people, use a trash can!

Seven Layers of Skin

Welcome to the world of mountain bike riding! Brandon was hauling butt around a bend, came upon a hiker, couldn't stop and, well, this is the result. Funny thing is that this didn't bother me nearly as much as the reports that a rattle snake and a coyote had crossed their paths. This happened yesterday (as did the coyote) but Drew was with them and that gave me a little sense of security, albeit probably a false sense of security.

Catching up

All dressed up. Here are Brian, Brandon and the neighbor girls (from left - Taylor, Nicole, Samantha, Jenny and Jaime) ready to go to Paige's Bat Mitzvah.






Dad does not approve. Ginger got this pink tank for summer but dad feels it shows too much cleavage. Hey, his little girl is growing up.

Ichiro

I never thought I'd see this day but my mom, who has never been a fan of animals in the house (meaning refused to let any dogs I brought home stay in the house at all), has gotten a dog for my dad.

His name is Ichiro, which means "the first boy" in Japanese. She rescued him from the pound. He is 8 years old, has a cataract in one eye and has two missing teeth. But he is so sweet and the perfect pet for my dad.

In my mini-van trying to sneak him home :-)

Darn Coffee!

At last night's game, Drew and I went to grab a cup of coffee because it was soooo cold out there and when we got back, Brian was on 2nd base. We were promptly told how his hit was about 5 feet short of going over the fence. I can't believe we missed it - for stale coffee!

Brian had a great game. Got up to bat 3 times and had 3 hits, although one of those hits wasn't strong enough and resulted in a double-play. But he got one of the three "game balls" that were given out.

I love to see his skills improve as he gains confidence.

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As an added boost to Brian's confidence, he received the following kudos by his coach via emai:

"It was good to see us hit last night, but only Brian had more than one. He had two hits including a long shot to the left field fence, so of course he earned a game ball. Brian has not played much baseball before except for a little at Parks and Rec., but he is very athletic and a fast learner. He has really developed into an asset to the team. Great job, Brian!"

He only mentions 2 hits because the one that resulted in two outs doesn't count - but it counts in my book!

Helper

Brian decided he wanted to help out, which is great, and although he's old enough, still made me worry. I get extremely nervous when they use anything involving blades and/or gasoline.

Monty's turning into an old man. Look at those grays!