The news just broke that one of my favorite comedians, George Carlin has passed away. George Carlin had a history of heart trouble and apparently that is what took his life. Heart failure {sigh}
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Simple houseplants can be the answer to cleaning your air. That’s right, a clean air garden right in your own home.

Gardening has always been popular with a small segment of the population but recent events has made anyone who is paying attention to the news and world events take a closer look at gardening, not just as a hobby but as a way of life.
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The high price of gasoline is having a great deal of influence on the landscape of America, not just in what cars we are now driving but also in our back yard landscaping. People are tearing up large sections of their formally well manicured lawns in order to plant gardens thanks to the food shortages expected this year and the salmonella tainted tomato scare but also to avoid the expense of mowing.

For people who still want a backyard lawn, there is another option to filling up the gas can… push reel mowers. That’s right, the lawnmower of our grandparents is suddenly seeing a wave of popularity again. Not only does it eliminate the trips to the gas station, it gives you a workout.
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Today is June 21, 2008 and it has a special meaning, other than it being 2 days before my birthday.

The Summer Solstice occurs on June 21st and marks the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. The word “solstice” is derived from Latin (sol=sun, sistit=stands) meaning “sun stands still”. Obviously all days are the same length (24 hours) but the today is the day that has the longest time between sunrise and sunset and the shortest time between the sunset and sunrise. So the Northern Hemisphere has more hours of daylight on June 21st than any other day of the year. The Winter Solstice has the fewest hours of daylight of the year.
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Coming on the heals of stories about the Marine tossing a puppy from a cliff and a driver tossing a bag of kittens into traffic I am very happy to report on a Roto-Rooter employee who went above and beyond the call of duty to save a kitten.

Roto-Rooter excavation supervisor, Kevin Adkins came to the aid of a kitten trapped in an open drainage pipe. He had been flagged down by an employee of the Ziebart Auto Shop in Columbus, Ohio.
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Just the other day I made a post about living in a train area (the Horseshoe Curve is in my hometown) and train accidents being a topic of discussion no matter where they occur. Unfortunately today I am reporting on one that has happened in my own backyard. Luckily however the only real damage was to a building, a truck, and the train cars. Though some of the witnesses may have emotional turmoil for awhile. Some say the sounds of the train jumping the track was just unforgettable. Train cars scraping across pavement is a sound that definitely would stand out in your mind.
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Officials believe that a pregnancy pact is the reason there has been an epidemic of teen pregnancies at Gloucester High School in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It is the end of the school year and 17 female students are pregnant, 4 times the typical pregnancy rate.
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Two big thumbs up to the United States Justice Department for bringing charges against two former Bear Sterns hedge fund managers. Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin have surrendered to the FBI and will face federal charges related to mortgage fraud. They are basically accused of intentionally misleading investors in two funds that collapsed last summer due to poor judgment investing in mortgage-backed securities.
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Ricki Lake is standing up to the medical establishment on the issue of giving birth at home instead of in a birthing center, hospital, or other type of medical facility. Good for Ricki Lake! I’m with you all the way.

Ricki Lake’s documentary, “The Business of Being Born,” is about the maternity care system. In the documentary Ricki Lake is shown giving birth to her second son, Owen, in her Manhattan apartment bathtub. It seems the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists released a statement that says the home is not the safest setting for having a baby and names Ricki Lake specifically.
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Charges against Marine Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani were dismissed earlier today by military judge Col. Steven Folsom. The charges were dismissed without prejudice which means they can be refiled at a later date. However the judge excluded Marine Forces Central Command from future involvement.
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