For years now we've been watching the terrible chytid fungus wipe out frog populations and now it's attacking frogs on land, too. It makes sense, since these amphibians have to go into the water anyway, but now people are starting to take even more notice since these populations happen to affect humans, too.
As vaccines become cleared for kids and booster shots are approved for many adults--particularly our most vulnerable adults--we can only hope that more and more of them get vaccinated or booster shots. I plan on getting a booster as an immunocompromised person, and I really hope that as many people that are approved for them as possible will also get them.
Although the holidays are months away, it's a good time to get started on shopping and preparation early, especially since the post office is slowing down on deliveries again. It's been a while since I've looked at Grateful Dead ornaments but this year's selection is pretty cool from what I've seen so far.
Tusks that are found on mammals today are pretty impressive all on their own, but their history and evolution are even more incredible. They were first found not on mammals but a "mammal-like" animal known as a dicynodont. They were more like canine buck teeth than tusks at that point, but that's where the walrus's protruding claim to fame began.
Sometimes the best games are the ones you don't expect. Case in point? You're hanging out with friends after dinner or another casual event and someone gets their phone out to try a "first five notes" game where you identify songs based on their first five notes. Or you have paper and pen and someone suggests some "win, lose or draw." These unplanned game nights are often the most fun and you don't even have to prep them in advance!
As many companies are seeing record profits lately without improving employee conditions, any movement in the right direction is celebrated. Some business owners are making big statements with sweeping gestures, like Spanx CEO Sara Blakely, who says she started her company with just $5,000 in savings.
We used some coupons to get one of the Target Treat Boutique Candy Shop cat scratchers this year and I just finished putting it together yesterday. So far, my cats like it, but they don't seem to love it the way they loved the previous one we had. It's much bigger, with a double-decker patio, so I'm wondering if I did something different in last year's box. Maybe I added catnip!
The Wildlife Conservation Society is celebrating Bat Week right now, a time to not only give bats the respect and honor they deserve but also to raise awareness about bat conservation and donate to help keep the efforts to protect bats going. The Wildlife Conservation Society points out that bats are the only mammals that can really fly, making them extra special.
Today I received a couple of notices from Goodreads about books I'm looking forward to reading from Rick Riordan and Brandon Mull and all I felt was anxious about how I haven't yet finished the ones I wanted to read for October! Add to that the fact that I wanted to finish both original series from the authors aloud with my family first and it's been years since we've read a series together and it just made me sad. I think it's time to adjust some priorities!
It's the time of year when we start to bring in a bunch of our outdoor plants to keep them safe through winter, but we have pretty limited lighting in the house. Most of them already have plants in all of their reachable areas. I have a lot of ivy plants, several pitcher plants and Venus flytraps, aloe, succulents, pothos... Basically, I have mostly plants that do well with plenty or limited sun.
Last year when Dalgona coffee was all the rage, I remember playing with a bunch of fun recipes to see what I could create. I made the mistake of making a heavy cream-based beverage that made me pretty sick! I've since learned to use on a little HWC and focus on other alternatives for a simple, flavored whipped beverage instead.
If you're not familiar with GISH, it's an annual scavenger hunt for a charity that was created by Supernatural's Misha Collins. Since its inaugural year, it's taken many forms, including several mini challenges over the pandemic. This year GISH has a special Halloween challenge, Halloweird, with a single daily challenge to do for fun each day.
On Thursday, October 28, Dairy Queen will be holding their annual Treat for Good Day. It's a great way to help a cause while enjoying a treat. For every Blizzard the company sells on Thursday, they will donate a dollar to the nearest Children's Miracle Network hospital.
It's Pumpkin Day, a great day to carve pumpkins and enjoy your favorite pumpkin goodies! This year we were able to get some really big pumpkins to carve and we are still having trouble deciding just what we want to carve!
We also have plenty of pumpkin goodies to enjoy, from cookies and cereal to a pumpkin log we took to one of our Halloween celebrations this month. I've also got some sugar-free pumpkin syrup that we've been using to create all kinds of goodies, from pumpkin lattes to ice cream!
Our government officials are supposed to work for us, but sometimes it feels like a full-time gig just monitoring what they are doing and asking them to stop (or start) something altogether! Thankfully there are lots of nonprofit organizations that help us keep an eye on some key issues. Here are a just a few to take action on today.
Treat Beauty is having a really fun promotion right now for Halloween. It's called 13 Days of Treats, and each day for--you guessed it!--the 13 days leading up to Halloween, the company will have a new promotion to take advantage of for some sweet, spoopy savings. If you're unfamiliar with Treat, they are best known for their jumbo lip balms but they also feature other products, like scrubs, butters, creams and other treatments.
Minecraft is really stepping it up lately with all of the new additions, from all of the new cave finds to my personal favorite, the axolotl. My teen and I spent a whole afternoon just spawning an entire pool of them. Now the company is finally bringing everyone's favorite green creature, the frog!
Fable is my favorite beard oil company. Not only do they have the cutest packaging, complete with stories and wax-sealed thank-you cards that make you feel like you're going on a quest, but their scents are SO good. Right now they have a bunch of fun Halloween scents--as well as other fall blends--but they also have one of their best sales, which is the buy one beard oil, get one free.
For years I've wanted a little office to work out of with giant windows and lots of bird feeders so I can enjoy the many birds in our neighborhood while I'm working. While I love my office and I do have a window complete with a tree and birdhouses, it's not quite the same as being surrounded by the garden and all of the wildlife that comes to visit.
