Mochitsuki

Had a chilly start to the day at the BioPark before things gradually warmed up to extremely pleasant.  This is not how warm February is supposed to be.

Apart from the evidence of global warming, the mochi pounding was well attended.  I greeted 177 people over 3 hours.  I also caught up with the BioPark's Special Event Coordinator and we discussed the upcoming Mother's Day Bonsai Show.  

Early on in the mochi mushing, a visitor made a careless blow and cracked the wooden mallet on the edge of the huge granite mortar.  

With splintered wood, there was nothing to be done but rely on a handful of mochi machines.

Cranes were seen overhead flying north.  Winter is truly over.  A visitor reported an injured porcupine.  Allison and I investigated and found the little fellow on his back with a gash in his leg.  Sandy thought it might be an injury received during a male territorial fight.  In any event, Allison called the Zoo vet and the guy was taken care of. 

That's more than I can say for our federal employees.  Today it's reported that Musk sent out a government-wide e-mail demanding that every worker justify their work last week in "5 bullet points" or face termination.  The destruction of the United States Government continues apace unless the courts can act with more courage and alacrity.  

DEA at the Bears Homefront Brigade

While the new administration takes an axe to the idea that different people don't have rights, I'm reminded of Travel Schlepp's experience right after 9-11.  That's when they set up the Bears Homefront Brigade.

    Setting up the Home Front Brigade wasn't as easy as you might think.  Of course, Big Brown Bear always guarded the house, so he was automatically part of the Brigade.  And Gussie's bear was pretty big, so she was included.  The BBC told how Britain was helping, so William was in as well.  And Little Brown Bear was definitely a bear in good standing and almost as big as Big Schlepp.
     But then Roberta said, "What about me?  I want to help." 
     At first Travel Schlepp thought she couldn't be in the Brigade because she was a rabbit, not a bear, her ears were too long, and she was from China.  But Big Schlepp reminded Little Schlepp that she was part of  the family, too, and that just because she was different didn't mean she couldn't be part of the Brigade.
     And then Peabody, the pink elephant said, "What about me?  Can I be in the Brigade?"
     Little Schlepp thought about that and said, "Peabody, your history is a mystery and you're not a bear either.  I don't think you can be in the Brigade."
     But Big Schlepp was wise and reminded everyone that just because he was different didn't mean he couldn't be part of the Brigade.  And everyone thought about this and knew that Big Schlepp was right. 
    So everyone was happy and Little Schlepp learned an important lesson--that just because you look different or come from some place else doesn't mean you're not a good friend. 

That still applies today.  

 

ACF Visit

I was fortunate enough to be given a tour of the Aquatic Conservation Facility yesterday.  It's located at the far northwest end of the BioPark, beyond the Garden and the Heritage Farm.  Despite the blustery, chill weather, we got to look at the outdoor tanks for the silvery minnows and the complex of indoor facilities for the minnows and other endangered species.  

A few tanks contained fish that were extinct in the wild in their native range of north-central Mexico.  

There were also populations of the Socorro isopod, in case their native spring and the wild population is lost.  

Fortunately, this facility is largely funded by the BioPark Society and so is buffered from what will likely be an attack on the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Endangered Species Act.  

The Natural World at a Crossroads

No, I'm not talking about Musk's "Fork in the Road."  This is an all-out war against nature by the current administration.  The new Secretary of the Interior is the antithesis of Deb Haaland.  He is a devoted fracker and wants to be sure that federal lands are kept open for the oligarchs.  Or is it oil-igarchs?  I don't see any National Monuments in NM at any immediate risk of being undone by the MAGAites, but the exclusion zone around Chaco is at risk.  If the walls of Pueblo Pintado come tumbling down, they will be to blame.

NM has an amazing amount of biodiversity due to the intersection of five major ecological regions.  The Great Plains, the Chihuahuan Desert, the Sonoran Desert, the Great Basin, and the Rocky Mountains all contribute to the mix of life and the splendor of its landscapes.  How we protect it depends on how we respond to the current anti-life administration, which seeks only to profit off of the destruction of the natural world we depend on.  

Additionally, CO2 continues to be pumped into the atmosphere and the climate becomes even more untethered.  Two months ago I might have bought a fully electric vehicle.  Now the convicted felon has revoked $5 billion in the electric charging station network. 

While the Muskrats under (little 'p') president Musk infiltrate USAid, CFPD, EPA, OMB, and layoff thousands, the courts are moving sooo slowly.  The GOP-controlled Congress is completely compliant and refuses to enforce the Impoundment Act.  Their rubber-stamping of an entirely corrupt and unqualified cabinet shows the depth of their mendacity.  History will not remember them kindly.  

With things at the federal level looking grim, we turn to Federalism in its truest form:  states' rights.  The current NM legislative session is grappling with the oil industry to deal with their desire to contaminate our surface waters with "produced water," the byproduct of fracking.  We can only hope that the Democratic state legislatures stand firm.

Meanwhile, Deb Haaland has received a number of high-ranking endorsements from NM Dems.  The danger here is that NM has a habit of flipping governors.  This is not the time for a change in the governor's mansion.  With a solid Blue majority in both state houses, we need a governor who can see things through to the finish line.

While I type about Deb Haaland, likely the first native American woman to be elected to a governorship, I read with dismay about efforts by the MAGAites to disenfranchise the indigenous vote.  Federal efforts have been made that would interpret the 14th Amendment to remove their voting eligibility.  

There is one small ray of sunshine today:  I was made a volunteer member of the BioPark's Conservation Committee.  Unlike the Mayor's BioPark Advisory Committee, this group actually has fiduciary powers regarding funding of conservation projects.  I look forward to learning more about this group and taking part in their meetings.  At least the BioPark only has a minimal amount of federal funding and can carry out its work with only a minimal (I hope) amount of interference.  

March in February

In a desperate effort to escape Suberb Owl Sunday, I went down to the Botanic Garden this afternoon.  A few things were blooming outside:  snowdrops, hellebore, Siberian iris.  Maybe the winter jasmine would've been in flower, but it's all been dug up by the construction for the new Lebanese Garden.  

Inside the conservatories, there were Amaryllis, Cyclamen, orchids, the beginnings of Clevia, and some new succulents in the desert area.  

 

Outside, I know the Siberian magnolias have large swollen flower buds, ready to go in a month or so.  There were some beautiful berries on the Sapindus, the soapberry. 

All in all, I successfully avoided the game, managed to miss any political news, and snagged some time out in a natural setting.  I'd call that a win.  

I still need to put together some thoughts on the NM Rare Plants Technical Council meetings in Santa Fe earlier this week.  That'll have to wait a bit while I marshal my thoughts. 

Climate Change is Not Going Away

No matter what the climate change deniers say or think, the problem is not going away.  One of the first places that have responded has been insurance companies.  Markets in disaster prone areas are raising premiums in order to offset losses during catastrophic events.  Think recent hurricanes and wildfires, but also midwestern tornados and the Gulf Coast blizzard.  

“Climate change is posing a systemic risk to the financial system, through insurance and housing, and it means it will get harder to get a mortgage and more people will be driven to state plans,” Jones said. “We will have to shore up these plans because they are going to face problems when there’s a catastrophic event.

“None of this is not going to get any better unless we address the climate crisis. We aren’t going to be able to de-regulate our way out of this, as Florida has shown. We have to address the underlying cause, which is climate change.”

Snow in New Bern, SC

Escape from the Dumpster Fire

Today is perhaps the saddest MLK day.  It coincides with the inauguration of a court-adjudicated rapist, a convicted felon (34 times!), an avowed racists, and a thief of national security documents.  No doubt his administration will cause much harm in terms of the economy and international security, it is the 4 years that will be lost to climate change mitigation that will hurt the most, the longest.  

Tomorrow, along with the convicted felon's promise to begin deporting brown-skinned people, we will see a polar outbreak the likes of which we haven't seen since 1983.  Snowfall in New Orleans is forecast to be near a half foot, the most since 1963 (yes, that is six and three).  

Meanwhile, fires in the Los Angeles area continue to burn, although the Santa Ana winds seem to have given firefighters a little breathing room.  The damages in California will be in the many billions of dollars.  

My escape from this dumpster fire:  cooking, home & hearth, gardens, nature walks.