Happy Thanksgiving 2019 - Thankful for the Rain and Snow in Southern California Today!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Get My Handmade in my Etsy Shop -- or Privately

This Thanksgiving, Nov. 28, 2019 was a little different in the High Desert of Southern California where I live!  I woke up to a lawn and yard covered in that white stuff - SNOW!!!

Actually, I was thrilled!  

We need precipitation in Southern California - the forecast was for rain, but I had heard on the news Tuesday night that the snow level could drop to the 2000 foot level in Southern California -- and according to the NOAA, where I live in Quartz Hill is at the Elevation of 2513 ft.! ~~~ I figure that if we are getting this much snow, that the San Gabriel Mountains and the San Bernadino Mountains of Southern California will have 1-2 feet of snow -- and snowpack this winter --- and also that the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, which is a major indicator for the whole state of California will have some feet of snow -- and good snowpack for this winter, which makes me shout WooHoo!!!

It is about 8 PM -- and my yard is still white - covered with snow - and can't but wonder how long it will last.  The NOAA forecast for my location tonight is for a low of 32 - with Wind Chill Factor Factors at 20 - so I expect I will wake up to some snow Friday Morning with the Wind Chill Factor below freezing until 11AM or Noon - but with a high of 44, it may all be melted by Friday afternoon.

Decided I had to take some pictures of my yard - front and back - so, here they are!

This is my Back Yard today -- Behind my building where I live is a little Urban Forest that I love!

-- And I took a closeup of the tree in the right of the above photo to clearly show the snow on the branches:

My building (not the one showing in the photo - it is the building to the right) has an Apple Tree (where I picked Apples this late Summer/Fall) - and here it is covered with Snow!!!

And here is the Pine Tree right in front of my apartment - with snow on it:

And -- it snowed on my Rosemary Plant in my little container garden in my assigned Flower bed outside my apartment!!!  Got this photo, but it is a little blurry -- I did not want to go out waking in the snow, so I took the picture through my apartment window (the grid showing over the photo I think is the window glass registering on my photo).  I think the snow is very good for it, as it is an Evergreen Leaf Plant -- and it is a Mediterranean climate plant - and that climate has wet winters - so  this snow is good for the ecosystem I live in - including for the Biodiversity here!!!  (Forests here in California are in the California Floristic Province, a Biodiversity Hotspot !)

So, I am very Happy this Thanksgiving - I'm enjoying staying home and watching the snow - and snow fall outside my apartment!!!

Love Animals! See Wild Eagle Nest Live Cam from Big Bear in California

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Get My Handmade in my Etsy Shop -- or Privately

With my Love of Animals - Both Wildlife and Pets - if you have read anything I have written about that online, you will understand how much I LOVE this Live Cam of a Wild Bald Eagle Nest in Big Bear, California!!!

It is on You Tube:  https://youtu.be/5b2dUgK6VV4  

I have watched it several times since discovering it - with the Eagles doing different things.

You can check it at any time!

I live in the Antelope Valley - southwest of Big Bear and on the southern side / slopes of the San Gabriel Mountains - and a few times, when walking in the fields in Pearblossom - I was sure that I saw either an Eagle or Falcon or other such large bird way up in the sky - I figured that those large birds probably lived in caverns or trees in the Mountains.

But this is the first confirmation I got of Eagles living in and nesting in the Mountains of Southern California - Big Bear, California, where this Eagle Nest is - is in the San Bernadino Mountains - east of the San Gabriel Mountains, where I live.  I spent a week one December winter years and years ago in Big Bear - nice any time of year with a very nice drive up to there - but in mid-winter, like December, it is often covered in snow -- it was that week I was there.  

Apparently, if it is snowing, you can sometimes see it snowing on this Eagles Nest - since it is Live.

I tend to reflect the things I love in Life in my Arts and Crafts - here is a White Eagle I crocheted years ago in Filet Crochet (it sold, too)!

And here are a few more Filet Crochet pieces of Animals that I have made:

Thankful, But Terribly Worried this Thanksgiving - As Some Are "Blind To The Truth"

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Get My Handmade in my Etsy Shop -- or Privately

As this Thanksgiving was approaching - and the day finally came - I was thinking of all the things I am actually very grateful and Thankful for - But I can't help but also being Terribly Worried with some current events.

Big On Loving Nature - and Very Inspired By Nature - different things going on in Life tend to have a huge effect on me.

Going into all of them would take way too much more than one blog post - but, if you are curious you can check the "Nature" Label here on my blog for some that I have done blog posts on!

The most recent event affecting me has been the "Woolsey Fire", and the one thing I am so-o-o Thankful for today was to check that link - and find that it has finally been 100% contained.  The "Woolsey Fire" has been burning in my favorite area of the Santa Monica Mountains mostly - West of Kanan Dune Road to the Los Angeles County Line.  Boy, I have spent so many moments there since the 1980's that I cannot remember how many times - and my favorite hiking place in the Santa Monica Mountains, "Nicholas Flats" is in the "Woolsey Fire" area - and still Evacuated per today's Woolsey Fire Evacuation Map.  Also, still don't know the cause - the fire started over in Simi Valley and somehow ended up blowing all the way to the Santa Monica Mountains and some Coastal Areas.

So, Terribly Worried!!  Just Thankful that they got the "Woolsey Fire" contained - and I hope all the "hot spots" out.  With all the fires in California in forests I love - and having met Fire and Fuel Specialists and Firefighters when going to National Forest Meetings around California - I have learned much more than I ever would have thought I would about fire behavior and the forests of California.

But as a Nature Photography friend of mine said - the Santa Monica Mountains will recover - hopefully naturally regenerate where it burned - and after the Winter/Spring Rains, we may have a wildly beautiful show of wildflowers throughout the "Woolsey Fire" area!  (Got to look for something good in it all - NATURE REGENERATING!)

And speaking of Music I am Thankful for -- having been reading articles - and news about things - what really kept coming to my mind was something Singer/Songwriter Dan Fogelberg wrote a song about years ago.  Like I have mentioned in earlier blog posts - I knew him and his songwriting from our College Days at the University of Illinois - and I followed a lot of the Music he put on albums - and one of his songs on his album "The Wild Places" was something I could so, so, so identify and agree with - to the point that I borrowed his song title for this blog post:  "Blind To The Truth".

I noticed it in College -- and I found it true all throughout his albums - Dan Fogelberg had a way of reaching people with his lyrics and music.

For me, his song "Blind To The Truth" really "hit the nail on the head"!!

I am going to finish the blog post by quoting the last verse and ending Chorus of the song, "Blind To The Truth" - but you can see the full lyrics at "The Wild Places" on Dan Fogelberg's official website.

I agree with him:  

"Now there's laws that we must live by and they're not the laws of man
Can't you see the shadow that moves across this land
The future is upon us and there's so much we must do
And you know I can't ignore it and my friend neither can you"

"Unless you're...
Blind to the truth, blind to the truth
And you can't see nothin'
You're so blind to the truth, blind to the truth
But the judgment day is coming"

FOLKS!  We Really Can't Ignore It - There is So Much We Must Do! 

More Clean Energy - Solar and Wind, Leave Tar Sands in The Ground and No Tar Sands Pipelines

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber

Anyone who has read much of what I have written publicly has come across my writings about my Love of Nature and my concern about this planet, Earth, which is the foundation of writing this blog post.

I am really, really, really concerned about the development of the Tar Sands Oil in Canada and I have been reading about it on and off for years ... and with recent events I went back to reading about it - including some Science articles, all of which I will link to at the end.

Personally, after reading multiple articles from the NRDC to Scientific American to the National  Academies of Sciences, Engineering, Medicines - and information concerning the Ogallala Acquifer - I am firmly and irrevocably opposed to such pipelines as the Keystone XL (Tar Sands) and the Dakota Access (Fracked Oil).

I am on the email list for 350.org - and I would like to  quote from an email I got from Duncan Meisel  at 350.org on Jan. 25th, 2017 (along with a lot of other people on their email list), because of the truths in it, which I think everyone should know!

Quote:

Here's what you need to know about Trump's actions on Tuesday:

• He did *not* approve Keystone XL or Dakota Access. He briefly succeeded in confusing a lot of people on this point (including me, I will admit).

• On Dakota Access, he told the Army Corps of Engineers that the pipeline is in our "national interest" and told them to "consider" revoking the environmental review placed on it by the Obama Administration.

• On Keystone XL, he invited TransCanada to re-apply and if they do, mandated a final decision on the pipeline within 60 days and waived input from environmental agencies.

• And when TransCanada does re-apply, they no longer have permits in Nebraska, and their permits in South Dakota are being challenged.

• Trump also placed conditions on approval of the pipelines -- like limiting oil exports, and determining where the steel comes from -- that the oil companies might not accept.

I also think people should speak up, which is why I am writing this blog post.

I also, based on years of experiences, am firmly aware that there will be differences between people.

I am actually opposed not only to the "Tar Sands Pipelines" - you see, based on the facts I have read about the Extraction of Tar Sands and the Risks of doing it including, it looks like to me, huge destruction to an Ecologically Significant Boreal Forest Ecosystem in Canada - as well as disruption of critical carbon reservoirs and release of all kinds of greenhouse emissions in developing oil from the tar sands -- I think, in terms of  both short term and long term evaluation, it would be much better to just leave the Tar Sands in the forest!!!  

( Reference:  Page 5 of  https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/tarsandssafetyrisks.pdf  )

And I read several different references concerning the Risks of Tar Sands Pipeline and their leaking, which is very likely apparently as every one built and put into service to this date seems to have leaks and accidents in excess of what the company running them estimates.

I am familiar with the Kalamazoo River area in Michigan where the 2010 Tar Sands Oil Spill occurred - and was horrified about it.

How many Tar Sands Oil Spills, which are poisonous, can we endure???

Also - both the Keystone XL Pipeline and Dakota Access Pipeline go through areas over the Ogallala Acquifer - a huge source of water for our USA High Plains - and even though there are differing opinions on how Oil Pipeline leaks might get into and pollute the Ogallala Acquifer and how much of it would be affected - I sincerely doubt we should take the risk.  Remember ---

"Once depleted, the aquifer will take over 6,000 years to replenish naturally through rainfall" --- Quote from:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogallala_Aquifer 

So -- lets encourage growth of Solar and Wind as Energy Sources.

Lets leave the Tar Sands in Canada in the ground and stop destruction to Canada's Boreal Forest -- and no more Tar Sands Pipelines - especially like the Keystone XL - or Fracked Oil Pipelines like the Dakota Access - running through the Heartland of the USA.

References:

NoKXL NoDAPL Pipeline Pledge - Join the Pledge of Resistance:

http://act.350.org/sign/nokxl-nodapl-pipeline-pledge

Tar Sands Pipelines Safety Risks:
https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/tarsandssafetyrisks.pdf

NRDC Report:  Keystone XL Pipeline more of an economic liability than benefit:

https://www.nrdc.org/experts/danielle-droitsch/report-keystone-xl-tar-sands-pipeline-more-economic-liability-benefit

Scientific American - How Much Will Tar Sands Oil Add To Global Warming:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/tar-sands-and-keystone-xl-pipeline-impact-on-global-warming/

Scientific American - The Ogallala Acquifer: Saving a Vital U.S. Water Source:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-ogallala-aquifer/

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, Medicines Project Pipeline Transportation of Diluted Bitumen:

http://www8.nationalacademies.org/cp/projectview.aspx?key=49461

Wikipedia - The Ogallala Acquifer:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogallala_Aquifer

Feeding the Little Birds - Spring 2016

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Get My Handmade in my Bonanza Booth or my Etsy Shop -- or Privately

I've had this Bird Feeder for years - the one pictured above.  That picture was one taken at the place I lived at 2001-2012 in the Antelope Valley of Southern California, but I still have it where I live now in another place - also with Trees and Birds.

Something funny happened yesterday and today, so I thought I would share it.

I periodically fill the Bird Feeder with Wild Bird Seed - it takes a varying amount of time for the birds to find it - and eat it.  In the picture about there are 5 birds around it - if you notice, it is a Smaller Bird Feeder and they are all Small Birds - which is part of my point today!

Yesterday I filled the Bird Feeder up to the top - sometime mid-morning.  A few hours later I checked and low-and-behold, I could see some of the birds had gotten to it because a noticeable amount of the bird seed was gone!

Then this afternoon, I took another look - boy - the Bird Feeder looked totally empty!!  So, this evening, I filled it again!!

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You see, where I live now - there are a lot of Trees and Bushes over about 65 acres and around low, mostly ranch-style buildings.

And - there are Lots and Lots of Birds -- All Sizes and Lots of different Kinds it seems to me.  But one thing that is very noticeable - is that there are Lots and Lots of Ravens - since moving here, I have said some times that "the Ravens Rule the Skies here"!!

Someone I know who runs an environmental group and who I have mentioned on my blog before, John Buckley of Central Sierra Environmental Resource Center wrote an interesting article on their website:

http://www.cserc.org/news/like-humans-ravens-can-cause-major-impacts-ecosystem/

I was surprised to see his article - but I understand his points in it - I find the Ravens here where I live to be very bold - they sometimes whoosh by me very close to my head as I walk through the trees - and they are exceedingly vocal at times!!  I actually like the Ravens, but John Buckley's article drew my attention to the problem between them and the Smaller Birds, which I also like very much - so-o-o-o ---

---- I realized that my relatively Smaller Bird Feeder was a way I could contribute to the survival of the Smaller Birds - my Bird Feeder is way too small for Ravens - and they do not come to feed on it, but Yesterday and Today - I saw and heard a whole bunch of  the Smaller Birds around here - around my little Bird Feeder!!

I have never seen the Ravens around here attacking a Smaller Bird's nest like John Buckley describes in his article - nor eating other smaller animals either -- I just usually see them flying around - or sitting around in trees or on the ground - or even walking around in the grass (what there is of it these days LOL) - very often pecking at something on the ground.  

Most of the Ravens around here seem very fat and satisfied.  I do not feed the Ravens at all - I don't know where they grab their food -, except for the seeds and whatever they find on the ground -- they don't particularly hang around the closed garbage cans on our 65 acres - but I am sure they are getting food somewhere .... but I am now on a Mission to make it easier for the Smaller Birds where I live to get food - my Bird Feeder!!

I have always loved watching birds - ever since I was a little girl, though I am not a real "Bird Watcher" with binoculars and all - I just like to watch them when I am around ... just the other day I noticed a lot of cheeping coming from this Big Bush at the corner of the building I live in -- this bush  is really big and thick - and I strongly suspect that there is a bird's nest in there - it is a rather thick bush, but not the kind Ravens sit on - and thick enough, I think, that the Ravens may not be able to get at that nest - at least I hope they won't!

Every so often I Crochet something with a Bird in it - in fact, one of my current "works-in-progress" is a rather large Filet Crochet picture of "Birds Nesting" (little ones by the way)!!  Here are some photos of completed Handmade projects of mine with Birds:

Bird of Peace

Proud Rooster by Ruth Sandra Sperling - RSS Designs In Fiber

Red Cardinal On A Branch

Lovebird In A Heart

Filet Crochet of an Eagle - Sold mid-2000's

On Earth Day 2016 I Planted A California Friendly Garden Juniper Shrub - and Yes Every Day is Earth Day!

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Get My Handmade in my Bonanza Booth or my Etsy Shop -- or Privately

Every Day is always, always Earth Day for me - but this year April 22nd I thought would be a good time in the spring to start working on my little container garden outside my apartment.

So I decided to add a new plant this year - and with the problems with the California Drought and the water restrictions - I wanted to get something that qualifies for a "California Friendly Garden" - and specifically has Low Water needs -- and I found it in a local Garden Nursery!! 

It is an "Old Gold Juniper" - it was right for me because I wanted something for a container garden - it is a shrub, so it can go in a large container in my apartment flower bed (versus a tree which might grow too tall) - and it is an Evergreen, which I love!!  On the plant tag, it says you can "Water once per week (in lieu of rain)" - which is perfect for our current water restrictions - and also for water conservation even when we do get out of the drought and water restrictions (if ever??)  I read about it several places online - apparently these shrubs have been known to live for 30 years - and they need little maintenance or pruning - my kind of long-term container garden plant!!

Here is my new, "Baby Old Gold Juniper" all planted!!

I'm Happy!!

And - my little apartment flower bed is doing quite well this Spring with the "El Nino" rains we got this Winter and Spring (more than I had ever seen since moving to the western side of the Antelope Valley) - we have Rose Bushes that must have been here for quite some years - last year they hardly bloomed at all - but this year with all the rain, they are blooming up a storm - ended up with some Rose Blooms leaning over into my 4 Year Old Rosemary plant (which winters very well here) - here are 2 photos:

1. Taken Early April 2016 - a Rose Bloom with 2 Buds leaning into the Rosemary Plant:

2. Taken today - with all 3 Roses in Full Bloom leaning into the Rosemary Plant

My Rosemary Plant is not just decorative - it is one of my herb plants that I harvest from on a regular basis for my salads - or other dishes I cook - as Rosemary is one of my absolute favorite spice herbs!!!  I have had one for years and years and years!!

And Rosemary is listed by Bewaterwise.com (Metropolitan Water District of Southern California)  at:

http://bewaterwise.com/pdf/50_Faves.pdf

in:

"Below is a list of the tried and true Favorite 50. They are every-bit-as-beautiful, not-nearly-as-thirsty options for a California Friendly® landscape."

And, Oh!  The Juniper I got is also listed on their website for a California Friendly Garden!!

http://www.bewaterwise.com/Gardensoft/plant_description.aspx?PlantID=6135

- which is not surprising as at that link for the Juniper, it says:  "Water: Low"

So, in my little environment around my apartment in the Antelope Valley - High Desert of Southern California, I think I did something rather good for this Earth Day - adding a beautiful plant that will live a long time - with low water needs for our California climate!!

My Top 10 Parks - The Ones That Really Made A Difference In My Life - Part One

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - Get My Handmade on Artfire and Privately

My Crocheted Tree Tapestry - Inspired By All The Hours and Days I've Spent With Trees

Spending time with Social Media - all kinds of comments pass before my eyes when I am on the computer, but when I saw The Wilderness Society tweet --

'If you put together a "top ten national parks list", what would make the cut?'

-- it caught my eye, because going to Parks and Forests all my life has had such an affect on my life that I cannot really measure it - it helped make me who I am.

So, I thought about it - and I decided to come up with my Top 10, but they cannot all be "National Parks" - because some of the most influential parks for me personally weren't those!

It all really started the summer when I was either 5 or 6 years old and our Summer Day Camp in Chicago, IL went for a hike in a local Forest Preserve of Cook County.  I have never forgotten it because for some reason it made a huge impression on me and I have Loved Forests ever since that time!! ---- I can still remember being this small, little girl with all these other kids and the Camp Counselor who was leading us down this trail - showing us different plants - including the lesson I have never forgotten about: Poison Ivy and how to recognize it to avoid it (and I have never in my life missed recognizing Poison Ivy so I didn't get the rash LOL)!

But my Top 10 reflect certain times in my life.  I am going to list them chronologically for me - as my life went along. This blog post will cover the first 3 of the 10 in the years before I went to the Western United States.

1. Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park

Ontonagon, Upper Peninsula of Michigan

I was a teenager and my family would go there for summer vacations - it was where on a family hike I had the experience of seeing Bear Cubs wild in the Forest - and then there was one August we could see the Northern Lights one night on a Lake Superior Beach somewhere around Ontonagon and Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park (southern part of the Keweenaw Peninsula of the Upper Peninsula of the State of Michigan). -- More unforgettable moments!

2. Allerton Natural Area of Allerton Park & Retreat Center

I was in College at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign when I went to some kind of orientation at "Allerton" where I was immediately impressed with the place - but it was some distance from the campus in the twin cities of Urbana-Champaign and it was some months before I got to go there a second time and just wander.  -----------------Over the years from early 1971 until I moved away (to the St. Louis, MO area), I found ways to go there and explore all areas of what to me was at that time in my life a wonderous place to go walking as shown on this Map  - over on the more "Formal Side" as I think of it, you see Works of Art literally out in the forest:  Beautiful Sculptures such as The Centaur and The Sun Singer - then Adam, The Three Graces and The Girl are more right in the Formal Gardens - and then there is the Avenue of the Chinese Musicians playing all kinds of instruments, which I just loved; and the Walk to the "House of the Golden Buddhas" then over to the Fu Dog Garden - and then down a path to the Goldfish Pond (sort of in the woods) - you just have to go there to know how it is with the Artwork and the woods!!  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------But it was the other side of the Sangamon River - what I call the wild side - that I loved the "Green World" of that Illinois Plains Forest - I would spend hours walking around country roads to get over in there and walk around the paths!  I was very lucky to have a friend who bought a 40 acre farm bordering Allerton's "wild side" - for years I would be visiting there and accessing the paths of Allerton's forest from that farm!  This was my first experiences of hiking in real forest for more than just a short vacation and over and over down the same paths - sometimes alone - seeing all kinds of plants and wildlife: Raccoons and Snakes and Flowers such as "Jacks-in-the-Pulpit" - and, of course, the birds!  Such fun it was for me - and in many ways enlightening.  It was years later I learned that only a small portion of that "Wild Green World" was native, virgin forest - the other hundreds of acres of it were forest naturally regenerated through the work of Biologists from the University of Illinois Biology Dept.!

3. Shawnee National Forest

Southern Illinois

Going to the Shawnee National Forest was my second series of more adult experiences out in wild forest - hiking down paths in real forest.  This was done on weekends when I could go with a friend when I was living and working in St. Louis, MO.  Across the Mississippi River from St. Louis on the southern tip of Illinois, it was a lot of fun to go over there - especially when one of the ways going across the river, we took a ferry across the Mississippi!  Driving down country roads was a favorite pass-time of me and a friend - we did some in Missouri, but it was the hiking in the Shawnee National Forest that was the "wildest" and I appreciated the most - and I remember driving down a road and stopping because of a Turtle sunbathing in the middle of the road!!  Yes - we stopped for Wildlife!!

Well - this is it for now - To Be Continued .... the Top 10 Parks of my Life!

Curating an Artfire Collection Inspired By My Well-Known Love of Forests and All That Lives Within

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - My Handmade Designs on ARTFIRE

Inspired By Love of Forests and Their Wildlife - An Artfire Collection by RSS Designs In Fiber

It was August 2013 -- and I and many others in the world had been watching the Rim Fire in the Central Sierra Nevada - in the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park and the adjoining areas - and frightened and even loosing sleep over it, I was worried about All the Life in that Forest and the ramifications to it from the High Intensity Fire raging there.

I knew of people living in the area - actually in Twain Harte, CA - just northwest of the Rim Fire area - the people of the Central Sierra Environmental Resource Center (known as CSERC ), run by John Buckley, who I had met at a Sierra Nevada Framework Forest Service Science Meeting on Old Growth forests.  On their Facebook Page -- and their website, I read first-hand accounts of the Rim Fire.

For me, this was a major event that was significant to me, though I didn't live there or anywhere near the Rim Fire.  But since early 1999 - and I got involved in environmental campaigns about the Sierra Nevada forests ( such as the Sierra Forest Legacy [formerly the Sierra Nevada Forest Protection Campaign in 1999] ) -- and I learned the Global significance of the Sierra Nevada Forests, part of the California Floristic Province, to Global Biodiversity, as discussed on the Conservation International website:  The World's 10 Most Threatened Forest Hotspots - which mentions the High Importance of the California Floristic Province Forests (which Includes the Sierra Nevada Forests, including the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park - and the Giant Sequoias) for Biodiversity Conservation, Climate Stabilization - I have been paying a lot of attention to many Events, as I can, in the Sierra Nevada Forests.

In other words, this Rim Fire affected a forest with importance to Global Biodiversity - therefore I see it as we should all be concerned in the Restoration after the fire!!!

So-o-o -- to express my Love of Forests and Their Wildlife and show how others express their such Love, I looked to my some of my friends who do Handmade and Fine Art -- and found various items they had made and were selling on Artfire on that theme -- and created the above Collection.

*******************************************

It is now March of 2014 -- and the Artfire Collection, "Inspired By The Love of Forests and Their Wildlife", has over 1,000 views and a few items have sold (replaced by others I had previously chosen).

I love to see creations based on Nature -- and I totally enjoyed curating this Collection!!!

The Rim Fire is in the past, though some of us are following the Recovery Projects in the different areas of it, such as on the Stanislaus National Forest website and the CSERC website.

In the 402 square miles of the Stanislaus National Forest that the Rim Fire ravaged, I am hoping for recovery based on true Ecological Forest Restoration, like that defined by the Sierra Forest Legacy -- for the health of this Forest -- and for its contribution to Global Biodiversity.  Quote from the Dec. 08, 2013 Sierra Forest Legacy Newsletter:  

We take seriously the Forest Service's commitment to ecological restoration and will be challenging them to demonstrate that their salvage logging proposals are consistent with their commitment.

Note:  after a certain number of the Artfire listings in an Artfire Collection sell, the Artfire Collection "expires" -- and disappears from the Internet.  So, I would like to thank the Artfire Artisans who created the Handmade and Fine Art items I put in this Collection -- showing their Love of Forests and Their Wildlife -- and where you can fine such types of Handmade and Fine Art!!!

Conscience Art Studios

4everbeads

Walk In The Woods LLC

RSS Designs In Fiber

Uniquely Jen Quilt Creations

The Art of Amy-Elyse Neer

Jewelry Art By Dawn

Christie Cottage

Honey From The Bee

Berkshire Bowls

Blue Morning Expressions

Specialtivity

Our Conscience - We ALL Must ACT to Achieve a Safe Level of CO2 on our Earth

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber

GLOBAL WARMING, CLIMATE CHANGE, HUMAN-CAUSED, NATURAL -- these are all words in this major discussion about this Condition we have on our Planet.

The Truth must be based on verifiable Scientific Data -- and I have read some of these facts.  It comes down to the measurable level of CO2 on the Planet -- and the level that we need of that CO2 for the environment that our Human Civilization developed in - and is adapted to -- and that has been determined as stated over 2 decades ago by a USA NASA Scientist, Jim Hansen, as quoted below from:  http://350.org/about/science .

"If humanity wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on which civilization developed and to which life on Earth is adapted, paleoclimate evidence and ongoing climate change suggest that CO₂ will need to be reduced from its current 385 ppm to at most 350 ppm."
That will be a hard task, but not impossible. We need to stop taking carbon out of the ground and putting it into the air. Above all, that means we need to stop burning so much coal—and start using solar and wind energy and other such sources of renewable energy –while ensuring the Global South a fair chance to develop. If we do, then the earth’s soils and forests will slowly cycle some of that extra carbon out of the atmosphere, and eventually CO₂ concentrations will return to a safe level. By decreasing use of other fossil fuels, and improving agricultural and forestry practices around the world, scientists believe we could get back below 350 by mid-century. But the longer we remain in the danger zone—above 350—the more likely that we will see disastrous and irreversible climate impacts."

Folks -- that is reality, and he said that over 2 decades ago -- now the current level is stated to be 392 ppm, as is stated on the 350.org website.

Today - Many, many people are marching in Washington, D.C. -- and gathering in other cities across the country -- to show the President (and hopefully Congress) the widespread support from the PEOPLE for actually changing how Life is lived from the Individual level to the highest levels of Government and Manufacturing, so that we can take responsibility for getting back to a level of CO2 on the Planet that is LIVABLE for our Civilization.

But it is a Matter of Ethics - A Matter of our Conscience - in how each one of us Lives our Lives and Works.

Now, it has gotten to the point that we must stand up to the business people who do not seem to realize that business projects they want to do are not healthy for us, the planet -- our "web of life" as we know it on Earth.  (Keystone XL Pipeline - as mentioned in the video above - and the Pebble Mine)

It will take Action - by our President and our Congressional Representatives to set and enforce standards so our life on Earth continues - and by Individuals.  It has become POLITICAL - but it is really HUMANITARIAN!

As stated on 350.org, it means "...transforming our world" (from http://350.org/en/understanding-350#2) :

"How do we actually reduce carbon emissions to get to 350?

     

"Make no mistake—getting back to 350 means transforming our world. It means building solar arrays instead of coal plants, it means planting trees instead of clear-cutting rainforests, it means increasing efficiency and decreasing our waste. Getting to 350 means developing a thousand different solutions—all of which will become much easier if we have a global treaty grounded in the latest science and built around the principles of equity and justice. To get this kind of treaty, we need a movement of people who care enough about our shared global future to get involved and make their voices heard."

So, tho I ask President Obama to take Action - to do what he needs to do as the Leader of the USA - to get the standards set to levels that will result in that transformation - I also ask every single individual to Act on Their Conscience.

We Can - I am sure - and live decent lives.  We need to Understand - Study, Ask Questions, get Educated - see what each of us can do each and every day!!

Note:  I have written about the Issue of "Global Warming" and "Climate Change" here on my blog - click on those links to see the list of my blog posts including about Managing Forests for Climate Change.

Also here are three more links to articles I found written on possibilities from "Climate Change" - including the discussion of what "Climate Change" - not Climate Variability - is.

NASA's HANSEN:  "If We Stay on With Business as Usual, the Southern U.S. Will Become Almost Uninhabitable."

Climate Variability and Climate Change: The New Climate Dice

What Climate Change Will Mean For the California Desert

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Celebrating Earth and Its Nature: Picnic For The Planet 2012

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - My Handmade Designs on ARTFIRE and in the SHOPPING MALL by PAYVMENT on FACEBOOK

PICNIC FOR THE PLANET??

Now what does that mean??

The Nature Conservancy has an Earth Day Campaign this year (2012):  "Picnic For the Planet 2012" -- encouraging everyone to enjoy Nature by having a Picnic this Earth Day.

But "Picnic For The Planet" means, as I understand it -- a lot more than having a Picnic out in Nature on Earth Day.

From one of their emails about "Picnic for the Planet 2012", I got this link:

http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/habitats/riverslakes/explore/balancing-between-food-water-and-nature.xml?e.nature 

The Key Phrase here is:

"Balancing Between Food Water and Nature".

I thought it was kind of funny -- and kind of great -- that it was about a place I have occasionally frequented, traveled through and written comment letters about:  Keeping the Santa Clara River of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties in Southern CA a Free-Flowing River.

Actually, where I live now - in the Eastern Antelope Valley of Southern California - I live a little bit east of the eastern end of the Santa Clara River Watershed - as pictured in this photo, which I found on Wikipedia:

SANTA CLARA RIVER WATERSHED, SOUTHERN CA

I live some miles east of Palmdale in the Map.

But long before I lived in the Antelope Valley, I use to roam the more rural areas of Southern California for several reasons:

1. To do my Landscape Photography

2. Find remote, rural, open spaces with a variety of Nature for Walking and the Joy of it!

3. Buy Local Fresh Healthy Produce

--- and the Santa Clara River Watershed is one of the places I use to go to.

I do believe there were times when I would travel practically the whole length of it from Canyon Country into Ventura County, stopping at Produce Stands along the way or stopping along the way for a Walk (like at Lake Piru) -- sometimes ending up at one of my most favorite places in all of Southern California, just south of the Santa Clara river Watershed in the Western Santa Monica Mountains:  Nicholas Flat above Leo Carillo State Beach (there are no signs to Nicholas Flat - you have to get directions and just be good at going down Santa Monica Mountain Roads).

One of my days out in Nature - seeing and feeling some Wide Open Spaces!!

For me it is really true:  Every Day is Earth Day!!

Read about the Local Farmers in the Santa Clara River Valley Watershed at the above Nature Conservancy link.  You can really buy their Produce in the Watershed -- and have a great trip doing it!!

But there are some things, for me, that mean more than that as part of "Picnic For The Planet " in any year -- I started this blog article with a picture of my very own Rosemary Plant sitting outside my Front Door.  I went out this afternoon to cut off some Rosemary Leaves to put in my Salad I was making - oh, also got some Fresh Oregano and Fresh Basil from my very own plants -- part of "Picnic For The Planet" for me means growing my own fresh herbs to cook with.  The Rosemary Plant I have had for years -- the Oregano Plant is a couple of years old.  Fresh Basil plants I buy every year -- and I bought my first one this year on April 8th!!

My Earth Day Picnic this year:  I think I will take a walk through some local wild fields over to a local park and under some Cherry trees, have my own Picnic all right -- including some dishes made with Fresh Herbs I've grown myself!!

HAPPY EARTH DAY!!

G2 Gallery of Venice, CA - Conservation Photography Gallery

G2 GALLERY

Venice, California

It was through Robert Glenn Ketchum's Blog that I first heard about the G2 Gallery - he had a post about his Exhibit there in 2010 focusing on the Conservation Issue "No Pebble Mine" in Bristol Bay, Alaska, as in the video below!

I loved the whole Gallery - but especially Robert Glenn Ketchum's exhibit and I spent most of my time looking over his Images and reading about his conservation work on Stopping the development of the Pebble Mine in Alaska!


-- More Recently, as in earlier this month (April 13, 2011), I went to The G2 Gallery again - to see several exhibits and I had a wonderful time again - and decided to tell the world!!

Robert Glenn Ketchum on that date (through April 24, 2011) was the Nature LA Photographer at The G2 Gallery -- and one of his Embroideries was on exhibit and I got to see it live (not just a photograph on a computer screen)!! Exquisite is the only word I can use to describe it!! -- And after admiring it from several angles, all I could think was how much detailed work went into the hand-stitching and how admirable the embroiderers' work is!

But there were 2 more Exhibits at The G2 Gallery at the time that I got totally excited about! Both Exhibits were amazing and inspiring to me.

-- The first one I spent time on was Essence of Life: Fresh Water - sponsored by Conservation International and their "sister" organization, International League of Conservation Photographers (ILCP). See the video below from CEMEX, the publisher of Conservation International books, on the book that Exhibit is based on!




You need to go see this exhibit to see the amazing photographs if you can - it is through May 8, 2011.


-- The second exhibit I was so amazed with was that of photographer J. J. Heureux's, Faces From the Southern Ocean (also through May 8, 2011). Her photographs of the Wildlife in the Antarctica are astouding in how they show the life there -- you really need to see the full exhibit including the slideshow, but below are a couple of videos of J.J. Heureux's photography in the Antarctica!


A Bleak Future For Penguins ... video 1 ---





Antarctic Spring - Iris Bay to Gold Harbor South Georgia Island ---





The G2 Gallery has new exhibits all the time -- and a Gallery Store full of Eco-Friendly and Artistic items! If you are in Southern California or passing through at some time, you may want to make a special trip to Venice, CA to see this Gallery -- they have a number of Events at different times in addition to the Exhibits!


Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - My Handmade Designs on ARTFIRE and ETSY

Wildlife Where I Live - the Antelope Valley of Southern California

Ruth Sandra Sperling
RSS Designs In Fiber - My Handmade Designs on ARTFIRE and ETSY

I was walking through the field in the picture above yesterday - on my way to various places in my small town in the southeastern Antelope Valley, when I heard this call!!  Not sure what it was -- a bird or some other wild animal, I figured it was warning others that this 2-legged being was walking through their territory!!

On my way back (this field is just to the east of where I live and I walk through it rather frequently) -- I looked and looked at something in the field -- at first I couldn't tell whether it was a bird or a bush -- it was very still and close to the color of the surrounding vegetation in the field.  As I got closer, I could see it better -- it was some kind of squirrel it looked like - standing up very alert and frozen in position, looking to the left of me -- then there was this screech!  Then it moved and jumped down a hole!!

Ah-hah!!  When it moved, I could see it better!!  I was not quite sure what it was -- but a little bit further on at another place to the right of the path I was walking on was another just like it -- or was it the same fellow popping up through another hole????  Another screech and jump down the hole!!

Well -- not being sufficiently trained to identify it, I decided I was going to have to look up something online to see if I could find out anything about some desert squirrel - or something - that might be burrowing in the fields of my little town!!

Well - I found "him" online -- he looked exactly like this picture, which is a picture of a California Ground Squirrel that I found on the Wikipedia page for:  "Ground Squirrel"!!

And there I found this quote:

"The ground squirrel is especially renowned for its tendency to rise up on its hind legs. It does this whenever it senses nearby danger, or when it must see over tall grasses. The squirrel then curls its paws flat against its chest and sends a screeching call to warn other family members about the presence of predators."

I guess they think us people walking through their fields might be predators, though I am really quite friendly to them!!  As there is no fence between this field and my front yard, I am afraid I may have seen "him" or one of his cousins in my front yard occasionally!! 

I actually think they are quite cute!  I guess they may be one of the reasons there are all these holes in these fields -- you have to watch it as you walk through them, particularly if you go off the un-official "paths" through them!!

To quote one of my favorite Folk Singers/Songwriters, Dan Fogelberg, from his song, "The Spirit Trail" (Wild Places Album copyright 1990):

"Let every creature I see
Be a brother and a friend to me"