Baby Instructions

In case you are one of the people of expecting new little people in your life, to be on the safe side, here are some instructions and warnings.

Sitting

Today I came across this review of Zody, the chair I sit on all day, when I am at work. Geeks gave it two thumbs up. I like it too. It’s adjustable in many ways, so I make sure that the arm rests are in line with the work surface and at a height that keeps my shoulders broad and relaxed. Most importantly I tilt the seat slightly forward, so that I sit upright and my pelvis is in a neutral position, which maintains the natural lordosis of the lower back: the slight inward curve that helps to avoid compression in the lower back.

After all we don’t want to end up like this guy:

Rrrrussian Mafia

Our special guest Yana from Moscow is in town, so we played a round of Mafia. It's a good party game, especially if played with Russians, they are pros, but I am sure Italians can kick ass too. My skills are improving. I am not being killed off in the first round anymore - yeah!

I believe it was Socrates who said you get to know a person better by playing a game for one hour than by talking to a person for 1000 hours. It's worth a try. You can find the instructions to the game here.

Mafia boss Yana with her Russian body guards - you don't mess with her! ;)

Who is the Mafia? Who is innocent? Who can be trusted?

Rebecca and the Russian Presidents - from Lenin, blurry in the foreground, to Gorbi and Putin further in the back. In the very back, that's Rebecca - not a Russian president.


Brit outing himself as an innocent citizen (red card) after he was killed. I am sorry!

More pictures on flickr!

focus

Really focus on the people in the white shirts:

Kindness

Ram Dass has said, that there are three rules for living a rich life with meaning and purpose:

"Be kind. Be kind. And be kind."

I heart LA

Did I already mention that I love California?

And that despite of 10-lane highways, a 24/7 rush hour (in LA that is), and ridiculously long line ups at LAX.

But it offers everything: people from all over the world live there, fresh food is plentiful and whatever your heart might desire, you can be certain that you will find like minded people. After all, there are 36 million people to choose your friends from.

California

Another trip to sunny California to experience sun, palm trees and to visit with friends. And I am certainly glad I did absorb the heat over the last few days, because in half an hour I will drive to work..in a snow storm.


This time the desert was blooming!

Happy Easter! Easter eggs in front of a mansion in Pasadena.

Battery

Today I found out the City of Calgary doesn't mind that regular household batteries (AA and such) are going in the regular trash, and will end up on the landfill. I was REALLY surprised, because in Europe, or at least in Austria, this is illegal.

In the US, corporations have to collect batteries and pay for their disposal at a special hazardous waste landfill (probably by putting more effort into sealing them), but households, which - by definition - contribute to the use of household batteries, are exempt from the regulation. Which doesn't make any sense: if I recognize the need for recycling in one area, corporations, I understand that its components, the heavy metals are very useful for certain uses, such as in generating energy, but that they should be kept away from our food, water and air cycles. Fresh water is a finite resource and demand is growing by an increasing population. Therefore we have to keep our fresh water supply clean, and we also don't want to incinerate batteries: the heavy metals make the air we breathe toxic.

Taking the raw material and keeping it in a closed-loop cycle, from extraction to end-of-useful-life to re-manufacture and re-use. Where the resource is used and re-used with the least amount of "dirty energy" necessary to run the whole operation. That would be a good tactic - with future generations in mind. Or do we expect from our children's children that they shall mine our landfills? Let's not put the heavy metals there in there in the first place.

Free Tibet

So that this blog doesn't turn into a botany blog introducing all my house plants to you: here is an entry about democracy in action including a picture that is a colour other than green.

Tibetan people are upset. The Dalai Lama is asking for a dialogue. China says: Sure, let's have a dialogue - there is only one condition: do not talk about independence.
Not sure if that qualifies as "dialogue".

I added my 2 cents by signing Avaaz.org's petition: three lines and a mouse click. One person won't have an effect, 1000 won't have an effect either. But if it's hundreds of thousands, then the 2 minutes I have invested might add up. It's worth a try:

Petition to Chinese President Hu Jintao:

As citizens around the world, we call on you to show restraint and respect for human rights in your response to the protests in Tibet, and to address the concerns of all Tibetans by opening meaningful dialogue with the Dalai Lama. Only dialogue and reform will bring lasting stability. China's brightest future, and its most positive relationship with the world, lies in harmonious development, dialogue and respect.

Click here to sign.

Dieffenbachia

I finally found out the name of my tallest plant: he is a Dieffenbachia, and I gave him a first name as well: Hiro, a Japanese name, because I thought he looked like he could grow in Japan. And it's all about postive reinforcement: if he is called Hiro, he will hear "Hero", hence he will grow like a hero! I was wrong though - he is tropical, not from Japan. In Japan he would most likely only be abundant in homes, just like here in Canada.

I also discovered that Dieffenbachia is highly poisonous. It has been used by native Amazonians for the poison used on arrows. During the slave era it was known as "dumb cane", because it would silence un-welcomed visitors. It was used for human torture. The little calcium oxalate crystals damage tissue. I had no idea, that this was such a powerful plant.

Survival of the Fittest

I went to Bow Point Nursery on the weekend. It's just west of the city. They focus on native plants, that don't require watering and that are hardy enough to survive the harsh Albertan climate (cold winters - hot summers).

I found the usual suspects - like lodgepole pine and sage.

I was rather surprised to see yucca, which are plentiful in California and Mexico - but Canada? According to BPN-Ken they grow naturally in Writing on Stone National Park in Southern Alberta and can deal with Calgary's weather just fine.

Who is an Einstein?

Well, according to an interview on zeit.de the probability that you are an Einstein is higher, if you are a man. The speaker references studies on IQ and differences between men and women.

But decide for yourself, here are the findings of the studies:

• The average IQ of men and women is the same
• Men tend to overestimate their intelligence
• Women appear to underestimate their intelligence
• People underestimate the intelligence of their mothers and daughters
• People overestimate the intelligence of their fathers and sons
  
• Women’s IQ distribution is a steeper bell curve
• Men’s IQ distribution is a rather flat distribution

If these studies are right, then this would mean:

• There are more really, really stupid men than really, really stupid women (the bell curve of men's intelligence is flatter).
  

• There are more really, really intelligent men than really, really intelligent women. This could explain why there are more men in higher positions than women. On the other hand, if bullet points 5 and 6 are true, then a feedback mechanism could be responsible for women believing that they are not as intelligent. Just like Henry Ford said:
  

Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you are right.

spring

the ice on the bow river is melting.
the geese are returning from their winter vacation.

spring can't be too far out - bring it on!

Loremo

Loremo stands for "low resistance mobile," which combines an efficient diesel engine with low weight and minimal drag to get upwards of 150 mpg (1.5 (!) liter / 100km). From New York to LA with only 3 times stopping at the pump. Not quite a zero emission vehicle, but a lot better than most vehicles currently on the roads.

German design. Available in Europe in 2009; in N-America in 2010. 15.000 Euro (22.000 US$). Not bad - especially since gas prices have tripled since I came across the ocean in 2000. I'd give at a test drive. Read more here.

Honey

Ronald Fisher, Beekeeper, Davis CA
© Richard Avedon

I L O V E honey. I went on a little shopping spree in Austria and got all kinds of different types of honey. It's a good food to take across the ocean - it does not have an expiry date. It might crystallise, but I was told it doesn't go bad. I wouldn't know, because it never lasts that long in my household.

I hope the little bee guys keep hanging in there - they have a pretty tough life though: mono cultures don't provide food year-round, they bloom only once a year. So some bees also have to commute - hopping on the truck and going wherever the next blossoming is happening. Stressful, because we also take some of their food (honey) and give them sugar water instead. Plus the drugs.

Anyhow, more biodiversity would be beneficial - for both, us and the bees.

Just do it.

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.

Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Mineralwasser

I am wondering: are there no mineral water springs in North America?

My favourite drink these days is fresh lemon or lime juice with mineral water. But I can only find European mineral water like Gerolsteiner or Perrier on the shelves in the grocery store. Mineral water is also called "healing water" in German, I assume the healing properties depend on the mineral content in the water. I also like it because alkaline-forming nutrition is hipp, at least among "tree huggers and bunny kissers" as my Texan boss would say.

I'd buy North American water, if there was an equivalent - i.e. water that contains natural minerals.

North American bottled water brands like Dasani (aka Coca Cola) and Aquafina (aka Pepsi) are tap water (PWS stands for Public Water Source, in the case of Aquafina it's Detroit's public water) that underwent another round of filtering *Eau Dear* and maybe got some additives added, but they are far from spring water.

I'd love to try some sparkly mineral water from North America, if there is one.

Lunar Eclipse

February 20 2008 - Lunar Eclipse in Virgo/Pisces - as seen from my door.

Plants

I think, 2008 will be the year, that Anna finally figured out how to keep plants.

Plants provide more benefits than just being-good-looking and decorating my place. Plants clean the air from CO2, and toxins: in this study philodendron, spider plant and golden pothos were most effective in removing formaldehyde (which is listed as a carcinogen). A different study points out that surprisingly it is the plants' root-soil zone that appears most effective for removing chemicals from the air (I would have guessed that it would be the green parts of the plant). To put it into perspective: good ventilation and avoiding toxins at the source (e.g. choosing low-VOC paints or adhesives) are more important measures than considering your house plants as your pollution control army.

Anyhow, here are a few lessons I learned from my unsuccessful years of being a plant keeper:

• Find a reliable plant keeper for your holidays. Most plants DO need water on a regular basis (yes, it took me over 30 years to realise that).
• Don't be afraid of death. Face it and get rid of the dead leaves (or entire plant if necessary) - it looks prettier.
• Google your plant species and ask your flora-savvy friends and family for tips on watering, light, and special care.
  
• Add plant-food to the water.
• Enjoy your plants!
  

monday

Today was lay-off day. Apparently for the first time in over 7 years, about 20 people from the office were let go. The nice English gentleman, who gave me a ride, when we were neighbours, the funny woman from Jamaica, the guy in Purchasing, who made me laugh: all gone.

Funny, how my perspective changed over the course of the day: on my way to work, I was thinking that the weekend was way too short and how I'd rather be staying in bed than going to work, while on the way home in the evening, I was grateful that I still have a job.

We eventually got confirmation that our department is unaffected, but in the afternoon, when things were still unclear, I was contemplating my options, in case I would have been on the black list; it's always good to have a plan b in the back of your mind. Here were my top 3 Plan Bs:

1. Focus on Yoga - possibly with some intensive training in warm areas around the globe
   
2. Opening a Day Care Facility for Mini-Wexis in St. Poelten (I KNOW that would be a good business)
3. Take a Foot Massage Course..