How Do Butterflies Mate?

 I never thought about this question until recently.  We have established a monarch butterfly sanctuary in Ocean Hills.  It is an area set aside to help this endangered butterfly thrive.  Two of my friends are intimately involved in its success, and they're doing a great job.

Diane came into the dog park one afternoon (we meet there most days to solve the problems of the world!!) with exciting news.  Rona had videotaped the mating of two monarchs!  The video is 8 minutes long, too long for this blog, but I have included a short U-Tube showing the mating process.  Careful, you've been warned, it is X rated.

I was exhausted just watching the process.  Apparently the butterflies can engage in copulation for as long as an hour.  No wonder they have such a short life span.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLBJFAHJ5gE

I was unable to pull up the video, but click here and you should be able to view it.  Pretty interesting.

You've Heard Of FOMO. Do You Know About JOMO

 I wrote awhile ago about FOMO, or fear of missing out.  Some people are afraid of missing any activity with friends or family, which often keeps them from enjoying anything!  I was recently at a WW meeting (Weight Watchers) where we discussed.  FOMO can create stress.  You're not enjoying your breakfast with friends because you're concerned about whether you'll have enough time to get to your yoga class.  You're not enjoying Happy Hour with a group because you've got a 7:00 movie scheduled.  Do we really have to do everything.

Then Melanie, our WW leader, talked about JOMO, or joy if missing out.  Relieve the stress.  Don't schedule so much in a day, and enjoy what you're doing.  Linger over a second cup of coffee at breakfast with friends.  Give up the yoga class for a day.  They'll be another one tomorrow.  JOMO takes the stress and anxiety out of doing too much.  It allows us to enjoy the choices we make and to be present and connected with what we are doing, not worrying about getting to the next event.  Those things will all be there another day, and we will be happier and healthier limiting our activities so that each one is enjoyed to its fullest.

Red Cross Gives Home Fire Safety Tips

I was at a health fair in July, and the Red Cross had a booth, telling visitors that they would come out to your house and install smoke detectors.  I thought that was a great idea, so I signed up, and about a month later, the Red Cross came to my house.  They will install a minimum of one smoke detector on each floor of your house, but recommend one smoke detector for every bedroom.  That's what I did.  I also had them install a carbon monoxide detector in the den.  I'm all set.  The batteries in the smoke detector should last for ten years, but they advise checking them once a year.  The carbon monoxide batteries have to be changed every year, or whenever the damn thing chirps.

Besides installing these life saving detectors, the two gentlemen that came over, gave me great information on fire safety, escape plans, safety checklists, and wildfire safety checklists.  Here are a few things I learned.

Every home should have a home fire escape plan.  Your family should practice your escape plan at least once a year.  The goal is to have everyone out of the house, including pets, in two minutes.  Practice makes perfect.  

Everyone in your home should know two ways to escape from each room.  One might be crawling out a window, another might be a door.  Yes, if your life depended on it, you could get out the window.  Make sure the window can easily be opened.  I had a dresser in front of the window which I have now moved.  If you hear the smoke detector go off, get low and go!  Decide with your family where you will all meet once outside.  Do not go back in the house.  Call 911 AFTER everyone is safely out of the house.

I was also given information on how to keep my home safe, and what to do in case of a wildfire.  Great information, and thank you to the Red Cross for providing this service.  It is probably available in your area too.  Just call your local Red Cross office for more information.

 

Alaska's Glaciers Retreating At Record Pace

 When my mom and I recently cruised in Alaska, she was remembering the way the same landscape looked 25 years ago.  She kept saying, "Where are the chunks of ice in the ocean, where is the calving of the glaciers?"  The answer is that they're gone.

Alaska is on pace to break their record for warmest year.  Alaska's glaciers account for far less than 1 percent of the world's land ice, but their melt contributes 7% of the water that is raising the world's sea levels.  The local impact is great.  Glacial melt affects salmon-spawning streams and harms marine fish and animal habitats.  It is creating new lakes where ice used to be, and outburst floods from those lakes are happening more frequently.  

Changes in the glaciers and the ecosystems they feed has been so fast that they are hard to track.  Glacier after glacier is melting at record levels, pouring waters into rising global seas.  Just an example of the drastic melting is Kenai Fjords National Park.  There, Bear Glacier, a popular tourist spot, retreated by nearly a kilometer in just 11 months!!!  Hopefully the new bill passed by congress to address climate change will get us back on the right track.  Let's hope it's not too late.

Depression In Seniors Is Common

 Clinical depression in seniors affects about 6 million American age 65 or older, yet only about 10% get treatment.  The likely reason is that older people often display symptoms of depression differently, and many clinicians read the symptoms of depression to be the result of drug interactions or the effects of multiple illnesses, and may not treat the depression.

Depression in older adults is tied to a higher risk of cardiac diseases and of death from illness.  Depression reduces an older person's ability to rehabilitate.  Studies show that nursing home patients with physical illnesses and who also have depression have a greater likelihood of death from those illnesses.  Older people may exhibit depression in one or more of the following ways:  tired, trouble sleeping,  grumpy, confused, struggle to pay attention, not enjoy activities they used to enjoy, move slowly.

Depression, and as a result suicide, is higher in people 80-84, more than twice the general population.  The National Institute of Mental Health considers depression in people 65  and older to be a major public health problem.  

Risk factors for depression in seniors include being female, single, unmarried, divorced or widowed.  Physical conditions like stroke, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, dementia or chronic pain can further increase the risk of depression.  

A primary doctor should regularly ask questions to check for depression, and treat accordingly.  Many drugs are available that may help depression, in addition to psychotherapy and support from friends and family, or support groups.  Left untreated depression at any age will not end well.  There is help for those with depression.  It's a matter of finding the right treatment.

Bear Hunting in Alaska

 As an animal rights advocate, one of the things that bothered me in Alaska, was the nonchalant attitude toward killing aggressive bears that the locals seem to have.  I realize that hunting is in the blood of most Alaskans.  Bear hunting, both black and brown, is allowed, with a license.  Either 1 or 2 bears per year is the limit, yet it was how they are hunted that bothered me.

Bears can be lured from their den by food or light, and then killed.  Mother bears with cubs can also be killed in their den or in the wild.  To me, this is not hunting, but then, what do I know about hunting.  In 2020 the Trump administration reversed a policy enacted under the Obama administration which banned the practice of hunting predators, by luring them with food.  The Trump administration rules allow hunters in Alaska to shoot bears and wolves, and their cubs and pups, while they are in their dens.

Many bears are killed each year by rangers who consider them dangerous.  I could not find an actual number that are killed each year, but it is many.  Our driver in Sitka told us that several bears had been killed this year by rangers who considered them aggressive.  They had either attacked a human or tried to attack.  My understanding is that in most cases the bears are taunted, act aggressively to defend themselves, then are shot.

People that hike, hunt, camp, or just enjoy the outdoors, need to be educated in the proper way to protect themselves, and to keep wildlife safe.  There's got to be a better way to protect these magnificent animals.  In California, when aggressive animals become a problem to the general population, they are usually tranquilized and transported to another area.  This seems to me a more humane approach.  The goal should be to protect wildlife while keeping us safe.  

Sitka, Alaska Was My Favorite Port

 Everything about our Alaska cruise was great, but Sitka might have been our favorite stop.  We enjoy taking private tours, either by a local taxi or Uber driver, or booking a local tour when we arrive in port.  We did just that in Sitka.  

After disembarking, we took a short walk to the local free shuttle, that dropped us off in the center of town, after giving us a short history of the town.  From there, we walked across the street, saw a sign for local tours, and called.  In 10 minutes our driver arrived, and began our day of fun.  He was a wealth of knowledge, so he gave us a good history of the area.  

We got a nice tour of town, visiting the fishing area, a big totem park, and many old museums and schools.  He then took us to the bear sanctuary, just outside of town.  We loved it.  They had three black bears, and about 4 brown bears.  These are all bears that were either injured in the wild or were found as cubs, without a mother, and taken to the sanctuary.  They have viewing platforms, so you get a great view of the animals.  

Next, our driver took us to a restaurant where he thought we could get crab chowder.  However, they did not have it, so we left, and walked back to the shuttle.  I remembered there was a nice waterfront restaurant right near our ship.  Evidently crab chowder isn't a thing, so we ended up with delicious clam chowder, and a basket of corn fritters with honey butter, that I will not soon forget.  Here's the recipe for the corn fritters, which, if I wasn't really watching my weight right now I would make today.  You will love them.

                                                        Corn Fritters with Honey Butter

1 1/3 all purpose unbleached flour

1/2 c. yellow cornmeal

1T. baking powder

1tsp. salt

2tsp. sugar

2 T. oil

1-8 oz. can cream style corn

1-12 oz. corn

oil for frying

Combine dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then add together.  Heat 3 inches of oil to 365 degrees, then drop fritters in oil.  Fritters should be round and about the size of golf balls.  Cook 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown, drain and serve hot with softened butter mixed with honey.  These are to die for.  What a great way to end our day in Sitka.