The fourth Saturday in October is a day to make a difference.
Today on Make a Difference Day spread kindness and compassion. Take time to smile and be friendly to everyone you have contact with. Kindness creates a ripple that keeps on multiplying! Smile, listen and radiate kindness!
Also, be kind to the Earth. This letter to the editor might give you some ideas:
Thrown away but still there
As a kindred spirit in garbage collection, I both share Ron Currie Jr.’s small sense of accomplishment and often much greater sense of frustration with the vast amounts of garbage we continue to produce and casually discard (“The soothing futility of picking up trash,”StarTribune.com, Oct. 25).
“Out of sight, out of mind” keeps us oblivious to the waste we produce. As someone once encouraged me to question, when I throw something away, where is away? If we all had to dispose of our trash in our yards, might we become more conscientious of our purchasing decisions?
Endocrine disruptors in plastics are associated with a 50% decline in adult male sperm counts over the past five decades and are implicated in the enormous leap in rates of autism and ADHD among children.
Please join Beyond Plastics, the Westchester League of Women Voters, and Bedford 2030 on Tuesday, October 3, 2023, at 7 p.m. ET U.S. for a Zoom conversation about the endocrine-disrupting chemicals in plastics. Our own Dr. Megan Wolff, Ph. D, MPH, will moderate a conversation between John Peterson “Pete” Myers, Ph.D., CEO and chief scientist of Environmental Health Sciences and co-author of the landmark book “Our Stolen Future: Are We Threatening Our Fertility, Intelligence and Survival? A Scientific Detective Story” and New York State Senator Pete Harckham, chair of the New York Environmental Conservation Committee and sponsor of a landmark packaging and plastic reduction bill in New York State. The bill would reduce plastic packaging by 50% over the next 12 years.
In 1991, Dr. Pete Myers coined the term “endocrine-disrupting chemicals” (EDCs) to describe chemicals capable of hacking the human body’s hormonal systems. From the start, it’s been clear that these chemicals that are common additives in plastics can cause harm even at extraordinarily low doses.
More than 30 years later, plastic pollution has become so widespread that microscopic flecks of plastic can be found in snow, soil, drinking water, and even human blood — and what Dr. Myers and others have learned about EDCs has grown even grimmer.
Endocrine disruptors in plastics are associated with a 50% decline in adult male sperm counts over the past five decades and are implicated in the enormous leap in rates of autism and ADHD among children.
Moreover, it is clear that a great quantity of the plastic in our lives was never necessary in the first place. Approximately 42% of plastic currently under production is used for packaging, much of which is discarded as soon as it is used. It is critical that plastic reduction and safer, healthier alternatives become law.
Many of our elected representatives are coming to recognize this reality. This past spring, New York State Senator Pete Harckham, chair of the Environmental Conservation Committee, introduced bold new legislation capable of reducing plastic packaging, strengthening recycling infrastructure, and banning several toxic plastic additives. The bill, the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S.4246-a/A.5322-a), will be considered by the New York State Legislature when it reconvenes in January, and is one of several promising state policy options to reduce the negative impacts of EDCs on human health.
On Tuesday, October 3, 2023, please join us and our good friends at the Westchester, NY League of Women Voters and Bedford 2030 for a webinar discussion between Dr. Pete Myers and Sen. Pete Harckham that will cover what we know about EDCs in plastic, what they are doing to our health, and the most effective, politically feasible ways to reduce these toxicants (and plastic pollution) from our lives.
On this International Day of Happiness, practice compassion, kindness and empathy and strive to make this planet a better place where all can live happily. Please bring Joy to the People around you and have fun!
My ideas to have a happier day:
!. Smile and be kind
2. Appreciate the nature around you.
3. Look at people and listen deeply.
4. Take a break from your phone
5. Go for an outdoor walk
6.Take a deep breath
7. Help another person and give them a big hug.
8. Eat only healthy food
9. Do something good for the Earth, pick up litter, buy nothing, no to plastic, plant-based eating, don’t waste food.
Below is from the International Day of Happiness website:
On this International Day of Happiness 2023, let us remind ourselves and those around us that although it is difficult to be happy in testing times, it is also the only thing that helps us get through the tough times.
This year, you can do your bit by spreading happiness among your social circles. Even simple acts that don’t require much effort, too, stand the potential of bringing great joy to people around us.
Here is what you can do:
1. Spend time doing something you love
2. Do something nice for someone
3. Spend time with your loved ones
4. Do something that will make you feel healthy like working out, eating clean or quitting smoking
5. Help needy individuals by either giving them food or donating to them something you don’t use anymore.
On this International Day of Happiness, practice compassion, kindness and empathy and strive to make this planet a better place where all can live happily.
Pledge to yourself that you will do at least one random act of kindness each day. While these actions might seem small, that doesn’t make them any less important.
You’d be surprised how picking up litter, leaving a review for a favorite local business, or writing a thank you note to a teacher can make a positive impact on yourself and your community.
Celebrate April by spending time outside, pick up litter, and use less plastic. See if you can spot a butterfly or hear birds singing. Plants are sprouting, enjoy! Actions for Happiness has an Active April calendar. Happy April!
“Being kind and warm-hearted is the secret to a happier life and a better world for everyone.” Dalai Lama
Last night as I was purchasing groceries, the young clerk said to me, “I have had such a good day, all the customers have been so nice!”
August is here, and this month subscribes to a kindness challenge.
The Actions for Happiness group has a calendar for Altruistic August with lots of ideas. See their ideas below.
If you still haven’t Your first action a kindness is to get vaccinated from Covid The collective health of all our communities is important. Get vaccinated!
Then…Our Earth needs kindness too. During August I challenge you to drive less, recycle more, buy less, and reuse more.
Make your August into double challenge days! If everyone does a little, it adds up to a lot. Thank you.
Here’s my list of things to do:
Meatless Monday, Plastic-free Tuesday, Walking Wednesday, Transit Thursday, Zero food-waste Friday, litter pick-up Saturday, and finally, Smiling Sunday.
Have a Fun and thoughtful August, Actions for Happiness calendar follows:
Thank you for those who work for healthy communities.
2020 has been a challenging year for everyone, and more challenges lie ahead as we confront more sickness and deaths from Covid-19. As a community we need to work everyday to take care of those around us. We are all in this together, and as individuals, families and communities it is necessary and important to follow the rules so everyone is safe. Our freedoms are not being infringed upon as we work together as a community for one big effort. Cooperation make us one. I am surprised on my walks to see groups or children wearing masks as they run around and play outdoor games together. Do they want to wear masks as they play outside? I am sure they are thankful to have each other, and be outside with their friends.
Live each day with gratitude and look for the good.
I wake up each day with gratitude for a new day, my family, friends, the sunshine, and the beauty of the Earth. I am thankful for the healthcare workers, mail carriers, and people who work with positive energy for peace and justice. Look for the good, it is there! I know I am lucky, and I hope you are lucky too!
I don’t have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness–It’s right in front of me if I’m paying attention and practicing gratitude.” Brene Brown
Yes, we are tired of stay safe rules , but I thought this was a very comprehensive list, and I hope you might get some new ideas. I copied it from an article in Ecowatch.com Please be safe and look for the good.
Always mask up when indoors and around people who don’t live in your household.
Always mask up when outdoors and unable to maintain physical distancing.
Use either disposable masks or a multi-layer tightly woven cotton mask. Single-layer kerchiefs are insufficient.
When you mask up, make sure it fits your face and covers both nose and mouth. Wash or sanitize your hands after touching or removing the mask.
Remember that masks are not a substitute for physical distancing.
Maintain at least six feet of distance between you and others outside of your household.
Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for 20 seconds, or use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
Avoid motions that transfer organisms from your hands to your face. Your mouth, nose and eyes have mucous membranes that are potentially receptive to these organisms.
Clean frequently touched surfaces. Wipe-ups are wasteful, use bleach, water with rags instead.
Do as much as possible outside and keep interactions with others short.
Fortify ventilation systems for more frequent air exchanges. Air should be coming from the outside!
Curtail in-person holiday celebrations with those not in your household
This Actions for Happiness post is about self-care and telling the truth! Living in a pandemic we need self-care and we need truth.
We must demand a higher standard for telling the truth, don’t believe everything you hear!
Part of self-help September is telling the truth, but what do you do when you have elected officials that lie, lie and lie some more, and citizens that believe their lies? People that lie are unhappy, they can’t accept reality. These are strange times with a pandemic, and the need for correct information is enormous. When elected officials have a misunderstanding of the truth, and create alternative facts, and others don’t correct and challenge them we are in big trouble. If we don’t have a set of facts to agree on, people searching for truth make things up and spread theories about what they believe might be true. This is like ancient people trying to make sense of what they don’t understand. We need to have a base of facts to work from and we have lost that. Yes, I misled the U.S.
Democracies can not survive without understanding what is really happening. That is why we have universities, scientists, news media and newspapers to search out the truth. In order to function as citizens in our society and in our democracy, we need to have a common basis of facts.
This is not ancient times, we have science, we have a hard working journalists and educators that are masters at getting the facts correct. At this time in history we all need a active commitment to always tell the truth. Start with telling the truth yourself, and demand truth-telling from all your acquaintances. Telling the truth is easy, demand it from everyone!
How do you start to search for truth?
Get the facts and be open minded. We often think we are correct when we aren’t.
Do additional research, read newspapers, and ask questions.
Make sure your sources are credible.
Ask yourself, does this make sense?
Never spread things unless you know the source and check at least 2 more sources. Facebook, friends, family, and Fox talk shows, are not reliable sources.
From September of 1939:
All I have is a voice
To undo the folded lie,
The romantic lie in the brain
Of the sensual man-in-the-street
And the lie of Authority
Whose buildings grope the sky:
There is no such thing as the State
And no one exists alone;
Hunger allows no choice
To the citizen or the police;
We must love one another or die. By W. H. Auden
Ten more self-care ideas to get you through the pandemic from the Washington Post. Read here.
Here is the Actions For Happiness calendar for September. An important part of self-care involves telling the truth and never spreading falsehoods.
“Extra fresh? Extra wet? Extra extra? Extra beautiful? Extra Great? Extra gitchy? Extra deep? Extra wide? Extra voluminous? Extra fishy? Extra rocky? Extra clean? Extra cold? Extra Superior?” @Lake Superior (twitter)
Monarch on goldenrod
Yes, extra Superior! A world pandemic is still raging, elected leaders incite violence, forest fires and hurricanes are constant, but no drama on Lake Superior. By August the lake has warmed and the contrast between the cold lake and warm air isn’t so extreme causing less drama. This lack of drama makes the big lake more peaceful as the gentle waves ripple to shore.
The loons call, and the eagles screech from their tree towering over the lake. The hummingbirds like little fairies hover and suck nectar from the last of the plants as they prepare for their long journey south.
Frittilary butterfly in JulyAugust garden on Lake Superior.
Plants are turning brown, and yellow golden rod dominates. Blooming plants were early this year so they lose energy and turn brown sooner. Only a few butterflies remain, they have been replaced by grasshoppers, and like the birds the chipmunks are already busy preparing for winter.
July was a perfect time to indulge in watching butterflies and monarch caterpillars. Every new caterpillar was a celebration. Unfortunately, something else found them to be joyful food, and they disappeared. We suspect the chipmunks. Their numbers were too many this year, and they seemed to be watching my treasured caterpillars as much as I was! Every new butterfly I see I hope they were one of my precious fat caterpillars.
Female ruby-throat hummingbird
Surprisingly, in July the lake had a harder time keeping us cool from the hot humid summer south of us, but August brought 70 degrees days while a hundred miles south it was a hot humid 90 degrees.
On to September and more change, turning leaves and intense beauty! Extra beautiful!
Kindness and smiling create a ripple, spread them now!
Smile: A Poem by Spike Milligan Smiling is infectious, you catch it like the flu, When someone smiled at me today, I started smiling too. I passed around the corner and someone saw my grin. When he smiled I realized I’d passed it on to him. I thought about that smile, then I realized its worth. A single smile, just like mine could travel round the earth. So, if you feel a smile begin, don’t leave it undetected. Let’s start an epidemic quick, and get the world infected!
Become mindful how your actions affect others? Smile, turn down the music, sweep instead of leaf blow, turn off your car instead of idle, pick up litter, control your dog, follow the driving rules, and wearing an a mask is an act of kindness. Thirty-one actions below for acts of kindness:
During August the idea is to do one or more acts of kindness daily. Let’s spread a wave of kindness all around the world.
