Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Link: On Prostate Cancer, Placebos and Apathy



Good Morning to all.
This posting is a link to another blog of mine, discussing various political and health issues. I read a posting on the NotMilk Yahoo forum this morning, and it prompted me to give voice to some concerning subjects.

I'm late for my daily goal of a walk around the lake. I must fly.

Link: www.leangreencafe.blogspot.com

See the August 26th posting...

My best,
Pamela

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Green Parrots, Dogs and Cats


I recently joined Twitter, and find the 140 character limit very challenging. A friend of mine said with that short of an entry, he doubted something of value can be shared. Well, I'm up for the brevity challenge. I write novels.
http://twitter.com/leangreencafe

My weekly observations of the lake:
I heard a different bird call as I rounded the last leg of the journey in a morning lake walk. I looked up in the purple plum tree to see a glimpse of a green bird flying up into its branches. There was a tropical parrot, very green and beautiful, with that tough kind of beak. I wished I had some critter food in my pocket, to coax it down. I had to run that morning, and so told Bill Yeo, the caretaker of the lake. He told me to let Larry's wife know. I told her, and she said Larry was gone, and had the phone. I had suggested they call into the city police, etc., as someone may have reported it missing. I don't know if the bald eagle and osprey like parrots for breakfast, but I do know the fellow was more visible and less streetwise than the ducking ducks.

There has been some controversy in the past with a local newspaper reporter walking his dogs at the lake without a leash. One in particular is rather unfriendly. Sometimes even a pet on leash ends up being out of control, so leashes are for safety and courtesy of other park patrons, wild animals and other leashed pets. We are up for a lawsuit for personal or pet injury, when the city-hired caretakers pass without saying anything to this fellow instead of consistently enforcing the rules. No one is entitled to overlook laws and rules of a public domain that are placed for the safety and peace of others. I hope this is taken care of. The City of Vernonia has already had its share of lawsuits.

A neighbor lady passed recently. She loved her cat. I saw it walking around outside the house, when the husband was apparently gone. I wondered if he had tired of taking care of it, or didn't want it in the house any longer. Perhaps it had just gotten out. It was a beautiful animal, with unusual circled markings on its sides. I went down to a garage sale on a walk yesterday, and saw this cat lying dead on the side of the road. It had been hit by some car. It made me sad for the lady who had loved her cat, who was no longer here to protect it. With the economy tanking for so many, pets are at risk for bad treatment, or abandonment.

For me, after raising 7 children by myself, my plants are fortunate to be watered and cared for every week. I believe there is a stewardship for what we choose to own. A friend of mine told me of a non-toxic way to clean pets and kill the fleas and flea eggs that lodge on them. She puts drops of Basic H on a dog or cat's neck area, and gently creates suds to thoroughly bathe them while they are wet from a rinse. She then rinses them well, and watches the fleas float dead in the water. The corn and coconut surfactants in Basic H makes water wetter, and drowns them. Here's a link to look at Basic H and its many uses. It comes with the Get Clean Kit, listed as Oprah's favorite for non-toxic, environmentally friendly green cleaners. If you can replace toxic cleaners with biodegradable green cleaners that cost much less, do as good or better job as the poisonous ones, would you be interested? I've switched, and no longer worry when my hands are in a cleaner that my skin is absorbing.

The $149 Get Clean kit (one of Oprah's favorites) replaces $3400 worth of product. The only product not costing less, is the Basic Laundry liquid, made of corn and coconut surfactants, that cleans your plumbing pipes instead of clogging them and isn't dumping phosphates in our already compromised waterways. I use 1 oz. or 2T. in my laundry loads. It's also a spotter and handwashables laundry detergent. Shaklee also has powdered laundry detergent, good for your clothes, machines and the environment.

Keep 108 pounds of packaging waste from landfills.
Eliminate 248 pounds of greenhouse gas.

Here's a quick link:
http://leangreencafe.myshaklee.com/us/en/category.php?main_cat=HomeCare⊂_cat=GetCleanStarterKit

I visited the Audubon Society in Portland, at the end of Cornell, and watched them cleaning the cages with Dawn Dish Detergent, and one of the caregivers said they disinfect with Clorox. I told her there is only 6% of Sodium Hypochlorite in most Chlorine products anymore, and there is lye in them, which is not good for animals who get that on their paws, feet, etc. and then groom themselves. I need to get back there and offer them a better alternative, in Shaklee products. Basic G is a cleaner, germicidal and disinfectant that costs 97 cents a gallon. You put less than 1/2tsp. (3/8 tsp) in a pint bottle of water. The effects last for about 3 days, instead of a matter of a few hours with bleach, without the lye. Here's the link for a qt. of Basic G. Be sure to get the Basic G pint sprayer. It's not a fine spray, as Shaklee doesn't want people breathing in the mist. This is the only product in the cleaning arsenal not considered totally 'green', as it takes a year for all of this product to biodegrade. I've used it to clean, disinfect and deodorize spots on carpets. I love it.

Call me for the Basic G qt. and spray bottle. It got left off the new website.
Pamela 503-429-0240 or: CALL Shaklee at 1-800-SHAKLEE and give them # WB06068.