Flirty Den Mother

One of my many peeves is littering. But the worst kind of littering, specifically, is cigarette butts. Setting aside the fire hazard of butt flicking, and the disgusting aesthetic of dirty ciggy butts everywhere you walk, there is a real and immediate environmental impact from all of those discarded, chemical soaked filters. An article published in 2009 by The International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health states that, "Discarded cigarette butts are a form of non-biodegradable litter. Carried as runoff from streets to drains, to rivers, and ultimately to the ocean and its beaches, cigarette filters are the single most collected item in international beach cleanups each year. They are an environmental blight on streets, sidewalks, and other open areas. Rather than being a protective health device, cigarette filters are primarily a marketing tool to help sell ‘safe’ cigarettes. They are perceived by much of the public (especially current smokers) to redu...

Hello my friends! So many topics to choose from and I just flake left and right! I am for shamed! I think I will blame my ancient iPad that enjoys locking up every other word as it is doing now. Grr. Fear not! For I have come bearing a gift of food! Yes, I too eat food, and usually throw recipes together based on a few staple ingredients I keep on hand. Tonight's ensemble began with wondering what to do with the leftover gluten-free spaghetti noodles that didn't involve the leftover tomato sauce. A quick scan of my supplies lead me to this lovely creation that was both delicious and healthy. The beuty of keeping a variety of your favorite base ingredients (fresh veggies, select frozen, certain canned, and assorted bulk, plus favorite spices) in the house is that you can mix and match all sorts of appetizing meals without having to do all your meal planning ahead of time. And most of what I eat is one or two ingredients away from being vegan, so customizing to your...

Freedom is a word that gets tossed around haphazardly, especially in this country - USA. But what does it really mean to be 'free'? As you might have guessed, I have several thoughts on the subject. THE ONLY WAY TO PROTECT ONES OWN FREEDOM OF AUTONOMY IS TO ALWAYS ADVOCATE FOR THE FREEDOM OF OTHERS TO HAVE THE SAME.   When we attempt to deny basic personal freedoms to anyone, we open the door to having our own freedoms infringed upon. I recently watched the George Carlin special "It's bad for you" on Netflix where he states, "...rights aren’t rights if someone can take ’em away. They’re privileges, that’s all we’ve ever had in this country, is a bill of temporary privileges. And if you read the news even badly, you know that every year the list gets shorter and shorter and shorter." As an example of this, Carlin cites the interment of Japanese-Americans in 1942. "In 1942, there were a 110,000 Japanese American citizens in good standing...

Good Morning! Having my coffee in the backyard while hummingbirds fight over the feeder. Clearly I need to put out a couple more. It is on my shopping list. This years flock is much larger, as we typically have one, maybe two hummers, but this year I have seen at least four, all at the same time. They keep chasing each other away. Hopefully a few more feeders will reduce the competition. I credit the food, having switched from the artificially colored kind to clear. The brand I am using: The Hummers really love it. And if you follow my link to purchase this item for yourself, I will get a small commission from Amazon. So show your hummers some love and me too. I will be back soon with a more serious topic: Personal Autonomy, aka Freedom/Free Will. Until next time, Kisses and Hugs, Peace and Tranquility! ~Nina99

Greetings and Salutations! Thank you for visiting my newest blog. What you might expect from future posts: Strong opinions and commentary on a variety of subjects.  Interesting facts complete with citations. My favorite recipes for eating well without starving. Adorable pictures of my animals.  Humor in all things.  Sarcastic wit and side eyes all day long.  Tips and Tricks for living on a budget. And anything else that pops into my brain. The world is sorely lacking in role models who do not have a political agenda. And while I am certainly liberal, I am definitely not a democrat or any party affiliation. I am also not a member of any bandwagon. Outside of equality and autonomy, most hot button issues require a dose of compromise and level headed common sense. And as I have no children of my own, I have opted to look after everyone. If you find yourself constantly at odds with the media frenzy of the day, you might just have a home here with me. I...