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If your birth certificate says dad is “Boto,” have a talk with your mom
From the press release files:
What to make of this with the telepathic animal communicators, strip-searching orangutan and Baby Daddy Botos? Such weirdness usually is confined to Friday communiques but has splashed over to Monday this week.
Monday, August 18, 2008
ENDANGERED SPECIES HELPS CREATE MUSIC Music From The Pink Dolphins CD - Animal communicators translate for endangered dolphins message
Los Angeles, CA- This CD was created with the help of telepathic animal communicators who acted as translators between the endangered pink freshwater dolphins of the Amazon river basin and the Laurel Canyon Animal Company.
In keeping with its policy of creating music about, for and with animals, the Laurel Canyon Animal Company hired telepathic animal communicators Penelope Smith and Eros Christos to contact the dolphins and ask them if they wanted to participate in the creation of the music, and if so, what message they wanted included. The dolphins’ responses as translated by Smith and Christos were used as guides for creating both music and lyrics. The lyrics of one of the songs — Anima Mundi, are comprised entirely of transmissions received directly from the dolphins
The Pink Dolphins, also known as Botos, are native to remote areas of the Amazon and Orinoco Rivers in South America. For centuries, they’ve been a part of Amazonian myths that say at night, Botos transform (shapeshift) into handsome young men who seduce and impregnate young women. Hundreds of children’s birth certificates list “Boto” as their father to this day.
One of the only existing recordings of the voice of a wild Pink Amazonian river Dolphin has been incorporated into the music. The very unique voice of the Pink Dolphin, which has never before been heard beyond the Amazon, is now an integral part of this music.
Laurel Canyon Animal Company also had the music tested at the EEG Institute of Thousand Oaks, CA. The tests found that listening to this music can lower blood pressure and induce a Theta state that relaxes the muscles.
Award-winning author Sy Montgomery (Journey of the Pink Dolphins), animal communicators Penelope Smith and Eros Christos, conservationist Roxanne Kremer, and the Pink Dolphins themselves — helped create Music From the Pink Dolphins.
Skip Haynes, a hit songwriter and artist, and Dana Walden, a hit songwriter and award-winning composer, are neighbors in the Laurel Canyon area of Los Angeles. They started the Laurel Canyon Animal Company in 1999. Music From The Pink Dolphins is their seventh collaboration.
Laurel Canyon Animal Company’s first two projects were Ugly Dogs Need More Love, which was followed by Cat-A-Tonic. Next, they signed a parrot named Carla, and released a single called “I’m A Green Chicken” with Carla’s vocals leading the chorus. Subsequently, they partnered with Koko —the only lowland gorilla in the world who understands English and communicates through sign language — and the result was Koko - Fine Animal Gorilla. Haynes and Walden then sought out a modern-day “Dr. Dolittle,” intuitive animal communicator Dr. Kim Ogden, with whom they created Songs To Make Dogs Happy, the first musical CD approved by dogs for dogs which led to the creation of Music From The Pink Dolphins .
$14.99 at www.petcds.com Amazon.com
For more information, mp3s or review copies or giveaways
Contact: Skip Haynes • 323.822.1764 • skip@petcds.com
Sy Montgomery • Consultant
While researching books, films and articles, Montgomery has been chased by an angry silverback gorilla in Zaire and bitten by a vampire bat in Costa Rica. She has worked in a pit that was crawling with 18,000 snakes in Manitoba, and handled a wild tarantula in French Guiana. She has been deftly undressed by an orangutan in Borneo, hunted by a tiger in India, and swum with piranhas, electric eels and dolphins in the Amazon.
Roxanne Kremer • Consultant
Kremer is the executive director and founder of the International Society for the Preservation of the Tropical Rainforest & Preservation of the Amazonian River Dolphins (I.S.P.T.R./P.A.R.D.). An environmentalist, naturalist and conservationist, she actively works on the front lines of the Amazon basin in Peru, Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador, developing innovative projects and sustainable positive alternative strategies to benefit the indigenous people, flora and fauna of the world’s largest remaining tropical rainforest.
Penelope Smith • Dolphin Communicator
Smith is a pioneer in the field of interspecies telepathic communication and the author of many books and recordings, as well as the editor of the quarterly journal Species Link. She is considered the hub of a growing worldwide community of animal communicators.
Eros Christos • Dolphin Communicator
Christos is a visionary writer, compassionate teacher and guide, powerful sound vibration healer, and dolphin and whale communicator.
Photos available for this release:
Music From The Pink Dolphins Cover Pink Dolphin Doughnut Dolphin Standing Dolphin Profile
To view photos, go to www.enr-corp.com/pressroom and enter Release ID: 161622
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Top 10 Reasons It’s Great for The Daily Sentinel to be downtown
So we’re not building a brand-new office out by the airport.
Big deal. I was already dreading leaving downtown anyway.
What our beloved Daily Sentinel abode lacks in ambiance (windows, mostly), it makes up for in accessibility. Everything I need is within a 5-minute walk from right here.
So, in honor of all-things downtown, and to put off working on a month-end report, I offer:
“The Top 10 Reasons It’s Great to be Downtown”
10. Green Tea Smoothies from Main Street Bagels. Some don’t like its gritty goodness. Those people are wrong. The Green Tea Smoothie is a grown-up milkshake/lunch in a cup.
9. Watching for the first crocuses to spear through the soil in the downtown flower beds in the spring.
8. Hart Music. Where to start: the little cubbies of multicolored guitar picks, the trade-in amps in the back, the drum room downstairs, running into people you know making payments on their lay-ways: It’s ground zero for local music.
7. Colorado Riverfront Trail. There’s no bad day that can’t be improved upon by taking a walk down to the river and scribbling in the sand with a stick. I don’t know why it works, but it does.
6. La Paninoteca’s Main Street move to Coffee Muggers. Panini are served with delicately dressed salad greens. You leave feeling you’ve treated your body well.
5. Pollux’s buy-one-get-one-half-price rack. It’s a fun place to start even if you just end up just buying a T-shirt or $6 pair of Lucite earrings.
4. Blue Moon Bar & Grille, also known as The Daily Sentinel’s Northern Bureau. Greek Lasagna day, Monte Cristo sandwiches, Brad and Becky’s hospitality: It’s all good.
3. The Museum of Western Colorado. Have you ever climbed up in the big purple tower and surveyed your domain? If you haven’t, you should.
2. Brown Cycles and Ruby Canyon Cycles. Who doesn’t need a ding-dong bell or generator head lamp? All those bikes we’re all buying come with all kinds of cool accessories and these shops can hook you up.
1. We’ve been here since 1893. It feels like home.
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Happy birthday, Colorado — you don’t look a day over 131
From the press release files:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FRIDAY, AUG. 1, 2008
GOV. RITTER PROCLAIMS TODAY COLORADO DAY
Gov. Bill Ritter marked today’s 132nd anniversary of Colorado statehood by proclaiming Friday, Aug. 1, 2008, as Colorado Day.
COLORADO DAY August 1, 2008
WHEREAS, on July 4, 1876, at the World’s Fair in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at the 100th anniversary of the birth of the United States of America, Ulysses S. Grant, 18th President of the United States, announced that Colorado would become the Centennial State; and
WHEREAS, on August 1, 1876, President Grant, from the Oval Office at the White House, proclaimed Colorado to be the 38th state of the Union; and
WHEREAS, Territorial Governor John L. Routt was elected as the first Governor of the State of Colorado and the territorial legislature was dissolved, allowing for a newly elected State legislature to be formed; and
WHEREAS, on August 1, 2008, Colorado will celebrate 132 years of statehood; and
WHEREAS, while Colorado Day recognizes and celebrates the history of our state, Coloradans undertake to serve the community on this day through volunteer projects and programs, giving back to the state and preserving its resources, which have provided for our citizens for more than a century;
Therefore, I, Bill Ritter, Jr., Governor of the State of Colorado, do hereby proclaim August 1, 2008,
COLORADO DAY
in the State of Colorado.
GIVEN under my hand and the Executive Seal of the State of Colorado, this first day of August, 2008
Bill Ritter, Jr. Governor
#
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Cubs fans, keep an ear out for this name: Kevin Vicker
Mesa State alum Kevin Vicker is one of those students you don’t forget. When others did the minimum amount of work to quietly get by, he challenged himself and the material, and if something was eating at him after class he’d track you down and want to debate more.
He had a big voice and a big love for the Cubs, so I was pleased to receive this email (posted with Kevin’s OK). With this kind of focus, determination and hard work, I have a feeling Kevin’s going to make it all the way to the big show.
Note to job fair recruiters in Vegas: You want to hire this kid.
Hey Ms. Davis,
So, I landed an opportunity in minor league baseball. It’s a little disappointing in that it took over a year after graduation and it’s unpaid. But there was an immediate opening with the Daytona Cubs, a minor league affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, in Daytona Beach, FL that opened up in mid-July and I took it. It was pretty crazy, in that I applied, was interviewed and was hired in less than three days. I had one day to pack and then I had to drive out here solo because my car is needed. I’ll be all done here in mid-Sept. and then I’ll be going back to Colorado. My hope is to attend a big pro baseball job fair in Las Vegas in December and land a paid position with a new team for the 2009 season, which would mean I would probably start work in January.
They keep me very busy, but, so far, it’s already been a great experience. I work at the stadium offices from 9-5 weekdays and help out w/ media relations stuff, like typing out game notes and preparing program inserts. I also get to do some of the less glamorous work, such as helping the grounds crew pull the tarp on and off the field (and in FL, it rains almost everyday), running errands around town, and cleaning the press box. I’m also working on getting some sales for the team, but I’m still not clear as to how much time I will have to devote to that. I’m still glad that I am learning, though because collecting sales is a part of the job throughout the minors.
All this so I can practice my broadcasting work. After 5, I get a team provided meal (if it’s a home game) and then I have to leave for the radio station at 6, so I can get there and get on air at 6:45 to host the pre-game show, which is 15-20 minutes long. Then I run the audio board for the game. While I run the board, I am responsible for doing two in game updates with scores around the league, so I have to track 11 other games. I also have to be writing the game recap story for the website, which needs to go up as soon as the game ends. Then, after the game, I take callers and host the post-game show, which has to run at least an hour.
One thing that made me think of you is that I made a major mistake my first day. I misspelled one of the player’s names in the game story. I was mad at myself because I know better than that. Yeah, it was my first day and it was on the heels of a three-day, 1800 mile trek across 2/3rds of the country, but those are just excuses. Fortunately, because I was new one of my bosses checked the story after I posted it and corrected the error. They were not as upset with me as I thought they should’ve been, but I’ve been triple checking each name now ever since. And, yes, that incident reminded me of you because I thought, “Jeez, Ms. Davis would’ve slapped me upside the head for that.”
I remember that I had the opportunity to talk to Thomas Harding, who writes the game stories for the Colorado Rockies website, on one of my trips with Prof. Evers and the sports reporting class to Coors Field. I remember Mr. Harding saying that he would write his story and then start writing a comeback story in the last inning, so he’d be ready if a late rally occurred. Knowing that helped me, although I have more going on during the game than he does, but I always keep that in mind. That being said, I hate writing this way. I feel like everything is so rushed and I know I could write better pieces, but the deadline doesn’t allow for much editing at all. The part that bothers me the most is that sometimes I come up with some really clever leads, or headlines or sub-heads, but then something happens in the game to where whatever I wrote no longer applies, so then I have to delete it all.
One thing that I think is really good is that after my first week, my boss said that it felt like I’d been here all season, so I must be fitting in as well as expected. I think I’m picking stuff up relatively quick, but it’s tough because everyone else is in their groove and actually kind of burnt out at this point. I’m fresh, but also unfamiliar with everything. Not the just the job, but the town and surrounding area too. I’ve been here for almost two weeks now and it feels more like two days, but things are starting to slow down, which is good. My actual first couple days felt like all this stuff was just being thrown at me and I was fighting to keep up. But that’s just the nature of how demanding the job is and during the season is the worst and everyone else started in January or is year-round, so under any circumstances it was going to be challenging to start in July.
Being a Chicago Cubs affiliate is an added bonus because I actually have to do a report on around the Chicago Cubs organization during my post-game show. Also, I was told early on that it would be fine, and maybe even encouraged, to include a topic about the Chicago Cubs during the show. I take advantage of that, but have yet to receive any local callers that want to talk about Chicago.
If you want to check out some of my work, you can go to http://www.daytonacubs.com/ a lot of the stories under “News” will have a familiar byline. Also, if you look on the right, and click the “Listen to the Cubs Live on 1380” box, it will bring up a live 24/7 stream of the radio station. The pre-game show is kind of boring because it is mostly me just reading script, but the post-game show is kind of fun because that’s where I get to take over basically all of the editorial content and also I get to interact with callers. If you tune in on a week night between 8-9 mountain time, there’s a good chance the post-game show will be running. The team is rarely off and game times are not as consistent on weekend days.
If you can’t ever peek in live, but still want to listen, you can go to http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t450 to hear archived broadcasts. You must register to listen to the archives, but it is free. Unfortunately, MLB often calls in after my pre-game has already started and they tend to hang up early in my post-game show because they are pretty much just interested in catching the game. Daytona is not a high priority for them, and actually, some teams in the Florida State League don’t even have broadcast teams, and we are one of only two broadcast teams that travel with the ball club. Of course, I never get to travel because I’m the studio guy (back at the “Cubs Den” as we call it). But again, I just hope this brief internship deal leads to a job where I can at least make some money. I think I have some skills and I want to start working for money at some point, even if it’s not a lot at first.
Anyway, it was my name gaffe that made me think of you, so I thought I would take a minute and get you caught up on what I’ve been up to.
— Kevin
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Scooping up after the Mesa County Fair
Sunday morning found my family loading up rabbit cages, stacking up chairs and folding tables for storage at the Mesa County Fairgrounds.
After fair, it’s all-hands-on-deck for all exhibitors to help with clean-up. It’s that kind of work ethic that endears 4-H to me.
Fair Ambassador and ambivalent tiara-wearer Megan McKee, 15, said it best in a story last Saturday: “If you’re in 4-H, you aren’t a high-maintenance girl.”
Reporters Melinda Mawdsley and Samantha Stiles were all over fair coverage this year. (Did you see the video of 5-foot-1 Melinda with a 15-foot python around her neck? Now that’s entertainment.)
Photographer Dean Humphrey was on the grounds nearly every day and brought back some amazing photos of exhibitors and their animals, and bull-riding.
Photographer Gretel Daugherty’s shots of the livestock auction Saturday captured all the conflicted emotion that comes with making money and parting with animals.
Just about everyone in this newsroom had a hand in fair coverage at one time or another.
Enjoy the slide show from this year’s event, and see you at the fair next year.
Fifty-one weeks and counting until we unpack those cages, chairs and tables.
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Mesa County Fair week
This is one busy week at our house, and all across Mesa County it’s the same wherever there are 4-H or FFA kids.
It’s the Big Show for kids who have spent the last year raising animals or making things like this:
That’s my son, Chance. A veteran birdhouse-builder, thanks to the mentorship of his grandpa, he decided to go in a different direction for this project with a funky, crooked-house plan. He had his judge interview yesterday and felt really good about it.
That’s the thing about 4-H projects: Not only do members have to plan, document and complete a project, they also develop their public speaking skills. My kids will be at the fair every day this week for various projects. I’ll be out there as much as I can, too.
There was a great fair schedule of events in the paper Sunday. You also can see the schedule online. Entertainment reporter Samantha Stiles gives the full rundown on how many farm critters there are, where to get tickets and even how to save $1 on admission.
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Check out The Daily Sentinel at Newseum.org
A newspaper’s front page is its first impression, its calling card. Page One is a one-stop-shopping roundup of the most compelling, important, intriguing and engaging news of the day.
All the myriad details of story choice, photo selection, story placement, design, headlines and graphics are constantly produced, shaped and debated throughout the news cycle.
The front page is the last thing we finalize every night and the first thing you see in the newspaper every morning.
Now, more people are looking at our front pages than ever before.
Front pages of The Daily Sentinel available at Newseum.org. The site features daily front pages from 665 newspapers in 59 countries.
(To find the Sentinel, select “Sort Papers by Region, then choose “USA,” then “State Name” and the letter “C.”)
Another nice feature of this roundup of news from around the world is the daily analysis by Kate Kennedy, who looks for trends and features a handful of front pages every day.
Select “View Archived Pages” and you’ll see front pages featuring major news events, such as the war in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, even the Red Sox winning the World Series.
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100 years of G-Men and Journalists
Things I was doing while not posting to this blog the last few weeks:
Taking a family road-trip vacation to the West Coast, which turned out to be a great time despite the fact that we had to rent a car at the last minute because the minor repairs to my car turned into a major overhaul. Once on the road we did three theme parks in four days, drove 1,900 miles and still liked each other when all was said and done.
Touring the Newseum in Washington, D.C., where I spent most of my time in this display:
Artifacts on display included the Unabomber’s cabin (the real thing), J. Edgar Hoover’s desk and the electric chair used to put to death the Lindbergh baby kidnapper. Don’t take my word for it, though.
Tour the online exhibit yourself.
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John Hendricks opens new Gateway Canyons features
The newest developments at Gateway Canyons were ceremoniously unveiled at a ribbon-cutting Monday evening.
The Kiva Lodge has 38 rooms, a workout room and a pool to go with the built-in killer views.
The Summit School Ranch Equestrian Center will host classes, events and trail rides for wannabe cowboys. Real cowboys provided some ambiance during the event.
Maureen Hendricks, wife of John Hendricks, Discovery Channel Founder and developer of the ambitious destination resort, cut the ribbon in front of some 70 people.
Special guests included representatives of state tourism efforts: Don Elliman, director of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, and Kim McNulty, Director of Colorado Tourism Office.
After the ceremony, Hendricks said he was pleased to see statewide support of his efforts, particularly from the governor’s office.
Expect Gateway Canyons to target European travelers. With the exchange rate, U.S. trips are a bargain. And when European vacationers come to the West, they want to see The West.
*John Hendricks speaks at the ribbon-cutting in front of Kiva Lodge. Cowboys and cowgirls were there representing the opening of the equestrian school.
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Think globally, trade locally
My grandmother didn’t use the words “shopping” or “buying,” she would call it “trading.”
For instance, she would not say she “shopped” at City Market, she would say she “traded” with City Market. I always loved the reciprocity that term implied: You give something, you get something.
It’s more than money changing hands: It’s a relationship.
I was thinking about that Saturday, when a bike ride to Palisade for breakfast with a friend at the Palisade Cafe (excellent date-and-almond granola by Mary Lincoln), turned into a more extended “trading” session.
The Blue Pig Gallery on Main Street provided a clever bike rack that looks like a giant potato masher. After using their utilitarian sculpture, the least I could do was walk in.
That led to my purchase of an assemblage by artist John R. Anglim. I like all things printing press-related and was drawn to one piece that featured old printing blocks.
I also got some information for children’s summer art classes and signed up to get notices of adult classes next winter when I might be able to squeeze one more hobby into my life. The woman who helped me was an artist herself and told me about plans the gallery had for additional classes, and the challenges of getting patrons to drive to Palisade. (It’s only 15 to 20 minutes, really.)
From there I pedaled over to Rapid Creek Cycles & Sports. I’m getting a lot of daytime use out of my old beach cruiser, but I want the option of riding at night. Sticking close to friends with head lamps doesn’t seem like a good long-term solution.
The owners ordered a head and tail lamp with a generator that runs off the rotation of the tire. I like simple, self-contained systems. Plus I hate buying batteries, so that was a good solution for me. We also talked about the proliferation of bike-riding in the community, so I also got some good coverage ideas.
I was in Palisade that day, but I “trade” in Grand Junction frequently, and I’ll be “trading” for lunch in Fruita later this week. I frequent the businesses that I want to thrive. That’s the power we all have as consumers.
Loyalty, relationships and accountability are all part of the exchange when you think about “trading,” vs. “buying.”
Grandma was right. She traded in wisdom.
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We need roller derby in Grand Junction
After a week of slugging it out in the news business, I’d sure like to be doing this to relieve a little stress:
If you don’t think that looks fun, I probably don’t want to know you. Ever since I saw 1972’s “The Kansas City Bomber,” I wanted to be a roller derby girl. Much to my disappointment, I found out later it wasn’t a school sport. And I’ve never lived where there was a league.
Maybe, just maybe, I might yet get my chance. Samantha Stiles writes Sunday about a Montrose exhibition game between two teams in the Slaughterhouse Derby Girls league out of Greeley.
There are roller derby leagues in Denver, Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, Monument and Pueblo.
Grand Junction, this is our time.
“RollaRella,” (you even get to make up a cool player name) who started the Slaughterhouse league, said anyone interested in starting a Western Slope league can email her at rollarella@slaughterhousederbygirls.com.
Someone out there must have the organizational fortitude to get this going. Then call me. I’ll try to have a cool name figured out by then.
*Photo of Helena Kallianiotes and Raquel Welch from “The Kansas City Bomber,” a 1972 MGM film.
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On Wally Windscheffel’s big discoveries of tiny fossils
From a friend and colleague of Wally Windscheffel, for whom the Fruitafossor windscheffeli was named:
Ms. Davis… just for the record, here is a picture of the fossil Wally was working on in the ‘big hat’ photo you posted in your blog.
He was gluing a block of matrix with Duco cement so it could be removed from the quarry without breaking the small lower jaw of a mammal which he had uncovered earlier in the day. …
Once in the lab, Wally would use his tiny tools to lift, chip and scrape the remaining matrix material from the jaw. This specimen was unusually well exposed right from the quarry. This is a lower jaw, incisors on the left. You can see how the fracturing bentonite was threatening to destroy this fossil and any other bones still hidden in the matrix.
Chuck Safris Des Moines
Ancient Aardvarks
Popeye arms and aardvark bite, Of ancient lineage long deceased, he Lived beneath the lizards’ might, This late Jurassic tiny beastie;
Simple tubular teeth can munch The termites destined for his belly; Scratching fore claws find his lunch: It’s Fruitafossor windscheffeli!
— Virgil Keys, science blogger
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Bird, bee & beetle podcasts during National Pollinator Week
Any buzz I gave a Bacchic bumblebee on this blog Friday is nothing compared to the podcasting swarm during this, National Pollinator Week, a fact brought to my attention by a press release:
The Buzz on Pollinators: Podcasts Hover Around National Pollinator Week
National Pollinator Week is your chance to listen to a series of podcasts and learn more about the essential birds, bees, bats, and even beetles that pollinate your food and flowering plants, and make our wild areas beautiful and healthy.
From native bees in urban areas to climate change and pollinators, endangered pollinators and plants, and how to make your landscape more pollinator-friendly, these podcasts will give you the inside buzz on North America’s pollinators.
The podcasts were produced for National Pollinator Week by the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) and its federal partners in the Department of the Interior - Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Geological Survey. They will start running on Monday at www.pollinator.org:
Monday, June 23. The Pollinator Partnership: Bringing Together Pollinators and People. Discusses an overview of pollinator issues, The Pollinator Partnership and Pollinator Week events, gardening guides for pollinators, educational curriculum and free posters and pollinator wheels.
Tuesday, June 24. Endangered Pollinators, Endangered Plants. Discusses imperiled butterflies and plants as well as some of the challenges facing their recovery.
Wednesday, June 25. Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Altitudes: Pollinators, Phenology, and Climate Change. Discusses how climate change may be affecting pollinators and their phenology - the timing of their life-cycle events. · Thursday, June 26. Busy Bees in the Beltway: Native Bees and Cities. Focuses on specific studies of native bees in Capital-area national parks and reveals how natural areas in even urban environments contribute to the conservation of native bees.
Friday, June 27. Managing Mini-Fauna: Pollinators on Public Lands. Discusses steps land managers can take to start managing for pollinators.
Also, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will have additional pollinator podcasts available at http://www.fws.gov/pollinators.
Why the emphasis on pollinators? The National Academy of Sciences has reported that not only is there direct evidence for decline of some pollinator species in North America, but also very little is known about the status and health of most of the world’s native pollinators, whether they be beetles or bats, bees or birds, or flies and wasps. Additionally, the recent occurrence of Colony Collapse Disorder has negatively affected managed honey bees, alarming and puzzling the agricultural community and researchers.
As discreet as most pollinators are, their well-being is and always has been necessary to people all across this planet. They are critical to the life cycle of seed-bearing plants. Without them, the ability of agricultural crops and wild plants to produce food products and seeds is jeopardized. Over 75 percent of flowering plants rely on pollinators, and they are responsible for an estimated $15 billion in services to agriculture.
While the importance of a healthy pollinator population to agriculture is clear, pollinators are just as important to sustaining functioning ecosystems and the food supply for wildlife.
DOI has a special obligation to understand and improve the condition of native pollinators on Federal lands. It manages about 500 million acres - or one-fifth of the surface land of the United States, which offers tremendous opportunities for the conservation of pollinators in North America.
Department of the Interior bureaus are working to meet this obligation. The Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Geological Survey are active partners with NAPPC. Three of these DOI bureaus manage millions of acres of federal lands, while the other, USGS, has the scientific expertise to help address pressing scientific questions.
NAPPC, which is managed by the Pollinator Partnership, includes more than 120 partners throughout the United States, Mexico, and Canada, such as government agencies, scientists, academics, farmers, ranchers, and others. Their goal is to build strong public and private partnerships to protect pollinators based on best practices and sound science. To learn more about the Pollinator Partnership and to listen to the podcasts, please visit www.pollinator.org.
*Photo of hummingbird moth by Christopher Tomlinson of The Daily Sentinel
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Sustainable homes and gardens
I put my gardening energies into growing things I can eat. Tomatoes I’ll weed tenderly. Corn I’ll fertilize loyally.
Flowers are pretty much on their own. I’m the litmus test for floral fortitude.
I can attest that iris, mums, lilacs, honeysuckle, trumpet vines and hollyhocks can survive with little to no involvement on my part.
So, nearly accidentally, I grow a few flowers to feed grasshoppers and intoxicate Bacchic bumblebees.
Regardless of my narrow botanical parameters, I love to read about all kinds of gardening. Dennis Hill is a Saturday Home & Garden favorite. He’s helpful, knowledgeable and no-nonsense. Reading Homegrown is like having a master gardener living next door as resource.
With our expanded Home & Garden coverage (tripled) we’ve made room for more local voices in the Sentinel. I’m a big fan of SustainAbility by Adele Israel.
Every Saturday, Adele writes about easy, practical steps all of us can take toward sustainability. She’s written about reducing plastic use (quick and easy: stop using bottled water and plastic bags), where to find a Community Supported Agriculture in our area, and Freecycling resources.
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Windscheffel’s shadow
Wally Windscheffel was a big man who led a big life.
Although he’d been ill for some time, those of us in the newsroom who knew him had a tough time believing last week that we wouldn’t see him this summer digging through the bentonite, volunteering Wednesdays at Dinosaur Journey, or offering a Midwestern-friendly greeting while passing on the street.
Wally Windscheffel died a week ago. He had a lot of friends. I was only an acquaintance who always was happy to cross paths with Wally, who after retiring from the U.S. Navy became writer, paleontologist and volunteer-extraordinaire for the Museum of Western Colorado.
Gary Harmon wrote about Wally’s passing, but really Wally’s life. During the course of the writing, Gary asked me if we had room in the paper for him to write a little longer.
Wally may have squeezed his 6-foot-6-inch frame into submarines, but we weren’t going to squeeze the story of his life into a 6-inch news hole.
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Takin’ it to the streets
As I drove in to work today, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission’s public comment hearing was on my mind.
During my 20-minute commute, I counted nine trucks directly involved in the energy industry.
(That’s the best I could do. Driving and taking photos is a lot harder than driving and talking on a cellphone. I do not recommend it.)
I made a loop around Two Rivers Convention Center to get a sense of how many people were there. Reporters Gary Harmon and Mike Saccone reported early this morning that the place was packed, inside and out. Trust me, that was no exaggeration.
Public comment, 3 minutes at a time, will be welcome all day. We’ll be there all day, too. Check GJSentinel.com for updates.
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Why not in February?
Normally I’d consider it a waste to spend two precious June evening hours watching television, but I couldn’t resist Discovery’s “When We Left Earth” on Sunday.
(I noticed this morning that junction daily blog was equally reeled-in.)
You can’t watch the engrossing NASA footage — from early astronauts surfing together to the earthly view out the capsule window — without feeling, anew, a sense of amazement at the audacity of the space program.
In our race to space with the Soviets, we in essence put a man in a glorified tin can in the cone of a military missile and shot him into the sky. That blind ambition and defiant optimism galvanized the country.
The closest I’ve ever gotten to space is some technical writing I did as a student for a NASA-sponsored rocket program. I’ll just have to tune in for my space fix.
The six-hour series continues the next two Sundays, 7 to 9 p.m.
*Photo courtesy of the Discovery Channel.
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Rained out
What can you do when you can’t paint the shop on a rainy day like today?
Take the kids to see a matinee.
If you believe the critics, “Speed Racer” is “a travesty,” with race sequences “as maddening as choreography with little consideration of dancers’ feet and bodies.”
Fans, however, said the celluloid remake of the popular cartoon “is a fantastic kid’s film,” with “great action, cutting-edge special effects.”
Get movie show times, critic and real people reviews here, along with new DVD releases, movie extras and upcoming releases.
What did you think of “Speed Racer”? Add your review.
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Free fishing this weekend
Outdoors writer Dave Buchanan wrote today about this being National Fishing and Boating Week.
As part of that celebration, Colorado is offering free fishing — no license required — Saturday and Sunday.
If you’re headed west, Utah has free fishing Saturday.
Even though you don’t need a license, other rules apply, such as having a State Habitat Stamp if you’re visiting a state wildlife area.
For all you need to know about fishing this weekend or any other, check out the Outdoor & Recreation page at GJSentinel.com for river flows, an interactive poll of your favorite fishing flies, and quick links to BLM, Division of Wildlife, Grand Valley Anglers and more.
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‘This brave heroine chose to fight back’
These were the tough-girl role models for lots of little girls not very long ago:
Now girls have a new hero to look up to: the 9-year-old girl who fought her 240-pound kidnapper with everything she had, biting his nose as he attempted to blindfold her.
She got away, and police arrested a suspect. It could have gone very differently, if not for two things: this little girl’s “unwillingness to be a victim,” according to Grand Junction Police Chief Bill Gardner, and a well-executed inter-agency law enforcement investigation.
At a press conference Monday, Chief Gardner praised the 9-year-old, saying, “This brave heroine chose to fight back.”
This near-tragedy provides a teachable moment for all parents. It’s a conversation we’re having at our house, and I’ve heard that other parents are doing the same.
“We have to train our children to fight back,” Gardner said.
Thanks to a brave 9-year-old girl, we are.
* Powerpuff Girls image from “The Powerpuff Girls Movie,” distributed by Warner Bros.
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Guarding the nest
This resourceful couple built a nest in a cow skull.
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I’m thinking we could localize this idea with “Music From the Prairie Dogs.”
... read the full comment by Laurena | Comment on If your birth certificate says dad is "Boto," have a talk with your mom Read If your birth certificate says dad is "Boto," have a talk with your mom
Mmmmmm, I love me some magic mushrooms too! I also love my mommy and my Boto.
... read the full comment by Lynn | Comment on If your birth certificate says dad is "Boto," have a talk with your mom Read If your birth certificate says dad is "Boto," have a talk with your mom
I saw some pink, singing dolphins once — or maybe they were pink porpoises — but that was way back in my days of experimentation with chemical enhancement.
There’s a time and a place for everything, and it’s called college.
... read the full comment by Daniel | Comment on If your birth certificate says dad is "Boto," have a talk with your mom Read If your birth certificate says dad is "Boto," have a talk with your mom
Believe it or not there’s a funeral home there now. Seventh Street Cafe is still alive and well on Main Street as Main Street Cafe.
... read the full comment by Laurena | Comment on Top 10 Reasons It's Great for The Daily Sentinel to be downtown Read Top 10 Reasons It's Great for The Daily Sentinel to be downtown