Before summer ends you can have a little more fun, take one more trip or prepare for the coming winter and hard times. No one is sure if the economy is going to recover or sink even further than it already has. But one thing is for sure. You only have a few more months left before summer is over.

1. Go swimming in rivers and lakes one more time. Right now the weather is still warm enough in most places to enjoy the natural water ways. Soon the air will change and the water will get too cold to enjoy. So go now while it is still a lot of fun.

2. Have one more great outdoor picnic. As the weather begins to cool in most parts of the country, it is the perfect time to have a picnic or family cookout. Gather the family, the friends and even a few strangers and have a good time.

3. Pay off a bill before winter starts and wages take another dive. By paying off one more debt it is one less thing to worry about when money becomes tight and everyone has to cut back a little more.

4. Pay ahead on the heating bill. Even if the winter is a mild one, in many parts of the country heating cost go way up and become difficult to pay within a very short time.

5. Get your car serviced for the coming winter months. Make sure the engine is in good shape, tires are in good condition, the inside is clean and you have your winter emergency box filled and ready.

6. Plan a Christmas budget and stick to it. Buy a few gifts now during the end of season sales. Start making one or two gifts now to fill out the Christmas gift giving list and stay within a budget. Create a second income just for gift buying and do not go over it.

7. Take one more summer time road trip. Go to a fair, go to a rodeo, go to the mountains, go fishing or just go explore a whole new area you have never been to. Explore locally and find the hidden treasure of your own community.

8. Check online courses and decide which one would be profitable for your future. Take at least one course. Choose a course the will improve your future earning power.

9. Gather wood if you have a fire place, wood stove or fire pit. The window is closing fast for gathering firewood. Make sure the wood is dry and ready to use.

10. Plan a winter vacation. Pick up all the information you need and decide if it is affordable. It can be a wonderful trip to the islands or a local stay in a beautiful motel theme room.

You may be thinking to yourself what an odd title for an article. You may be asking why would anyone equate ownership of a lake house with ownership of slaves? If you have ever lived or worked in a major and even minor tourist area you might already know where this article is going from your own personal experience. I live in a mid-line tourist area in Central Alberta near a couple of lakes that attract tourists, as well as, seasonal and year round Lake House residents. The tourist come and go and for the most part are fairly enjoyable to meet and be around. The Lake House residents for the most part are not very pleasant to be around and have become know to many in the area quite disaffectionately as “Lake Lizards”.

The title of “Lake Lizards” is one that has been bestowed on these owners of summer and year round lake cottages because of their nasty demeanor that is often times quite cold to other residents of the area, especially to people working in the service industries. At times it seems as if they think that their purchase of a house on a small plot of land by the lake has given them ownership of the entire area and its residents. These “Lake Lizards” often act as if everyone in the area owes them special privileges because they have “a house at the lake”. At times it gets to a point where they brazenly treat employees of area business as chattel that they personal own.

Additionally many lakes that become over taken by a multitude of lake houses are often killed by the pollutants that run off from lake house properties. The major lake where I live has been ravaged by the run off of these houses. Luckily the smaller lake near my home has not be inundated by lake houses. It is a significant lake that one can see on a map that thankfully has very few houses around it. It is a crime that every lake seems to eventually be over taken with side by side houses on every usable piece of shoreline and laws should be put in place to stop over development of lakes, but that is fodder for another article in the future.

Getting back to the topic of this article, while tying it together with that last little side tangent, it makes complete sense that if these “Lake Lizards” have such lack of respect for the lake that their lake house is on that there is no way that they will have respect for other human beings. I might add that not all people who own lake houses behave in this way and I know many lake house owners who are great people. Sadly the ones that behave in this nasty way make what should be an idyllic life at the lake bad for everyone and everything, including the lake itself.

If you are reading this and you are a lake house owner that finds this offensive it may be because you need an attitude and behavior adjustment. Look in the mirror and find out if you need one and begin adjusting if you do. Stop bullying other people and stop bullying the lake with your pollution. If you are a lake house owner that treats others and the lake with respect I am sure that you will appreciate this article as standing up against those who would ruin your reputation and the lake you love.

Related Links

Don’t Call Her A Bitch When She’s Being a Jerk

If a Subject Upsets You Stay Away From It

Its Not Free So Quit Asking

Sometimes When You Make Fun of Others You Just Look Like Carol Burnett

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02. ___  Titicaca         B.  United States

03. ___  Geneva         C.  Kazakhstan

04. ___  Albert            D.  India

05. ___  Tahoe            E.  Switzerland

06. ___  Baikal             F.  Canada

07. ___  Loch Ness      G.  USA, Canada

08. ___  Victoria          H.  Peru, Bolivia

09. ___  Great Slave    I.  Uganda, Rep. of Congo

10. ___  Erie                J.  United Kingdom

                                    K.  Uganda

ANSWERS:  1-C, 2-H, 3-E, 4-I, 5-B, 6-A, 7-J

                   8-K, 9-F, 10-G, not used-D

If a giant spaceship lands
to rescue many fellowbeings,
dear Lord, let me be unperturbed
and just stand and stare
and take one long and last look
at Nature’s marvels everywhere.

The lovely colorful butterflies,
all my feathered friends,
the furry creatures around
and the not-so-furry ones,
the honeybees and the green grasshoppers
flitting so fearlessly.

The tall trees, their spreading branches
their leaves and flowers and fruits,
the silent springs, the flowing rivers,
the serenading waterfalls, the placid lakes,
the lush green meadows with the cattle grazing,
the purple hills and the lovely valleys.

The blue sky, the white wandering clouds,
sunrays peeping through the canopy of trees,
a multi-hued carpet of flowers in the park,
dewdrops on the petals of flowers and on leaves and
ripples in the pond created
by the softly blowing breeze.

Rain clouds arriving from far and near,
lightning striking as if in warning
and thunder clapping
to confirm the warning,
and a heavy downpour
falling forth like nectar.

Adding an ethereal glow
to the Earth on her last day
would be a rainbow to adorn
her before the appointed hour.
O Lord! Let me just keep watching this sight
until I can see no more.

Let my eyes feast
on all of this and more.
Let me happily bid goodbye
to all of Your creations,
to my near and dear ones,
to all my friends and foes.

Let me write this verse now
for I may not have time
on the day when the world
is about to come to an end.
Let me also secretly hope that
the end heralds a new and bold beginning.

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By Mr Ghaz, May 22, 2010

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Acid Rain: One Nation’s Fuel is Another Country’s Pollution

Dead and stunted trees, clear but lifeless water: the forests and lakes of western Europe are dying.

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In 1984 it was estimated that in Germany alone one-third of the forests were dying and that thousands of Scandinavia’s beautiful lakes were lifeless. North America, too, is suffering the same ecological mortality.

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In the Adirondack region of New York State, more than 200 ponds and lakes can no longer support fish life. Across the border in Ontario, Canada, some 1,200 lakes are already dead; an estimated 150,000 more are dying. And the same bleak pattern is being repeated in the rivers, streams, and forests of many other nations, including Switzerland, Britain, and Norway.

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Nor is it only the natural world that is being destroyed. Ancient buildings, such as the Parthenon in Athens and the Colosseum in Rome, are suffering unprecedented corrosion.

The problem: pollution-acid rain in particular-caused by the burning of fossil fuels. British chemist Robert Angus Smith described the link between acid rain and pollution as early as 1872. But only recently have the effects become the subject of pressing international concern.

How acid is Rain?

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Because raindrops contain dissolved carbon dioxide, all rain is slightly acid. But acid rain is created when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide discharged into the air react water vapor to form droplets of sulfuric and nitric acid. About a tenth of sulfur dioxide emissions are caused naturally by volcanic activity, forest fires, and the decay of organic matter. But the largest volume of sulfur dioxide released over North America and Western Europe comes from the burning of coal, oil, gasoline, and natural gas in power stations, factories, offices, homes, and automobiles. The result: in parts of North America and Western Europe rain is today as much as 100 times more acid than normal.

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Acid rain may be wet or dry. Dry deposits occur when the gases, together with solid particles of sulfate and nitrate from the air, are blown by the wind and fall on the land. These pollutants stick to surfaces, attacking stonework and metals and damaging plants-especially when they combine with rain to become concentrated liquids. Wet deposits occur when the pollutants remain in the atmosphere for some days and react with water vapor to form acid rain, snow, mist, or dew. Both types are equally harmful. Prevailing winds may sometimes transport oxides thousands of miles.

Killing the Planet

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Although gaseous emissions from natural sources have been taking place for thousands of years, today industrialized society is literally poisoning the earth with acid rain. When it permeates the soil, plant nutrients are dissolved and washed away. As a result, trees, plants, and crops die and the soil becomes impoverished. Acid groundwater dissolves metals such as aluminum from the soil; this water then seeps into rivers and lakes. As the level of acidity raises, animal, insect, and plant life vanish. Ironically, acid lakes often look particularly beautiful; because the sterile water is barren of living organisms, it is completely clear.

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Britain, the United States, the U.S.S.R., Germany, France, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Canada produce the most acid rain, exporting much of it to their neighbors. Some estimate that the United States is responsible for 65 percent of Canada’s total acid pollution, and acid rain that falls on Austria, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland comes from beyond their borders.

Preventive Measures

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Various techniques have been employed to reduce emissions of toxic pollutants. The sulfur content of fuels can be reduced before burning, lower temperatures can cut down the amount of nitrogen oxides generated in furnaces, and filters can restrict pollution from power plant chimneys and automobile exhaust pipes. Individuals can also help by conserving energy in their homes.

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In 1984, 20 European nations and Canada formed the 30 Percent Club. The club’s aim is to reduce sulfur emissions by at least 30 percent by 1993. However, experts in some of the countries most responsible for air pollution claim that the formation of acid rain is only partly understood and that many other complex factors are involved in the destruction of lakes and forests. They therefore have asked for further research before agreeing to cost-effective plans.

The research and the concern continue. Unfortunately, so do the effects of acid rain.

Image Credit

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

I was thinking about the two families that died in two separate car accidents lately. I am sure that they didn’t get up that morning and look into the mirror and say today is a good day to die. In fact, they probably never once thought about death as they planned their days activities.

 In the one where the car ran of into a small lake below our house three died on the spot and the the other later killed himself. So you could say that a whole family died that day. You can drive by that lake and its astounding beauty would never give a clue that it swallowed up three lives and sent another plunging into death through nightmares. The crosses give a people a clue that death happened there but the cloud of death has moved on to find other unsuspecting victims.

Not  long after the accident above a young man driving a truck drifted over and hit head on with a car, that five children and two adults were in. Two adults and three children died. Two children left without a father and the lives of these two children forever changed and forever the memories of that day will burn in their minds. Their lives will never be the same and never again will they return to the same home they left. The crosses mark the spot but the cloud of death has again, moved on.

Being a mother of seven children I can imagine how the children may have been playing laughing never suspecting that the grim reaper was waiting just up the road. The driver never knew what was in their future, they plunged into the events so quickly they never had time to think. So fast, the end, swirled around them and snuffed out their precious lives and shocked all that heard of it.

How we all get up every morning and  start our day and never once stop to think about death. We all plan vacations and trips for our families and death never enters the equation. The families above were on vacation and the excitement of all the of the trip, covered their eyes and let the stalker creep in. Death overtakes us in such a unsuspecting manner that we are left in shock when it finds us or finds someone we love and carries them away. How shocking the surprise is and how devastating the results.

The lake system  includes 16 lakes.

Prošćansko jezero, Ciginovac, Okrugljak, Batinovac, Vir, Veliko jezero, Malo jezero, Galovac, Milino jezero, Gradinsko jezero, Burgeti and Kozjak makes a group of Upper lakes.

Milanovac, Gavanovac, Kaluđerovac and Novakovića Brod makes a group of Lower lakes.

The highest of them is Prošćansko jezero with 636  m of altitude, and the lowest is Novakovića Brod with 503 m of altitude.

Name Plitvice was mentioned in the literature for the first time by vicar Dominik Vukasović from Otočac in 1777.

The territory of Plitvice lakes was declared the national park on April 8′th 1949.

In 1979. it was included into a list of world’s natural heritage by UNESCO.

Basic natural and geographical characteristic of Plitvice lakes are constant transformation of  geographical forms, constant change of the  depth of the lakes, and it’s famous waterfalls .

Upper lakes are characterized by a rich wood  vegetation and dolomite valley. Lower lakes are smaller, shallow, with canyons and cliffs.

There is a legend about the names of each lake.

For example, Gradinsko jezero got a name after an old building (in Croatian „gradina“) on the hill between this lake and lake Kozjak.

Lake Kozjak, got the name after goats  who were drowned there while running away from hungry wolfs.

In lake Gavanovac disappeared Gavan’s treasure, Kaluđerovac got the name after the monk  etc.

One of  the most popular and the most interesting is the legend about the name of Prošćansko jezero-the Legend of the Black Queen.

It says that during great heat people were trying to find some source of water and refreshment. They couldn’t find it, so they went to beg the Black Queen to send rain and water for the dry earth.

The Black Queen gave them rain which was falling very hard so there was enough water to form the lakes.

NASA Photos of the Aral sea, from Wikimedia

This inland sea of many lakes was a popular resort destination for family vacations, and recreation. This used to be a sea thriving with fish. There used to be marshes teaming with wildlife along some shores, sandy beaches on others. In fact the Aral Sea, and surrounding area was so teaming with life it was often compared to many places in Africa for terms of biodiversity. When the sea began to die, people, no longer able to make their livelihood on the fisheries, lost their homes, their ways of life, but that wasn’t the worst of it.

The shoreline is now up to 150 kilometers from where it once was in some areas, the depth has dropped by about 17 meters, and climate change has been reported.

Aralsk Harbor, once a common fishing harbor, now littered with dead vessels.  Photo from Wikimedia

To make a sea disappear you simply have to stop giving it water.

Two rivers used to flow into the Aral Sea, the Syr Darya and Amu Darya, bringing with them as much water as the Nile carries. Plans for an intensive agriculture system were about to change all this. The Aral seas road to obscurity began in the 1960’s when water was diverted to irrigate farm land. Cotton production was the name of the game. Millions of liters of water which would normally replenish the sea were being used to grow crops in the surrounding desert regions. Today the two rivers are often so drained they are completely dry by the time they get to the Aral Sea.

Of all the crops grown, grain, melons, and so forth, the largest industry was cotton production. The demand for cotton was high, not only with the area, but for exportation purposes too. It was referred to as “white gold”.

Without new water entering the Aral, it began to shrink, becoming more and more salty every year, eventually fish stocks died, fish were washing ashore in mass numbers, unable to live in the salty conditions. The sea was also becoming a center for concentrated pollution. This Pollution came from several sources, one being weapons testing, but additionally there was fertilizer run off and pesticides.

No more fish and what else?

Any time pollution increases in an area, so too do human health problems. This is particularly the case when the concern is water pollution. It is difficult to determine just how many health problems are due to the pollution in the water, of course such statistics are hard to prove, but it has been seen that mortality rates and rates of health problems have increased in the area since the late 1960’s.

Not just fish and people suffered. Many of the flora and fauna died out. The Bukhara deer which once flourished in the area now number below 500. Certainly some species of wildlife were lost in the area if not altogether.

Moynag Uzbekistan, now 150 kilometers from water, Photo from Wikimeda. 

Can it Reappear?

Actions have been taken to restore some of the damage done, it has been proven that most of the canals and aqueducts are not in good condition and much water is lost before it even reaches the fields, thus more water is taken than is needed. In 2003 a dam was constructed to help retain water in the North part of the sea. You can see from the photos, how little this has done to improve the Aral Sea as a whole.

This photo is from October 2008, from Wikimedia.  It breaks my heart. 

In the grand scheme everyone who buys cotton is contributing to this problem unless they know where it came from, and can be certain it did not come from Uzbekistan, as this is the prime export for the region, and the prime contributor of the problem.

As our population grows, we continue to demand things, we seldom take the time to look at where those things come from. It is time to look.

Other Links of Interest

The Holocene Extinction Event

An Early Mistake in Paleontology

Ghost Nets:  Death in the Ocean

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Cottage Owners Destroying Lakes in Alberta, and Around the World

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Redesmere Lake. Photo by Gary Tacagni.

Close to Capesthorne Hall in the county of Cheshire, U.K., can be found the lake known as Redesmere, this is a man made lake which was made in the eighteenth century as a feeder lake for the ornamental lakes of Capesthorne hall. The name Redesmere is thought to mean marsh or lake at a reedy place, and apart from being the home of Redesmere Sailing Club it is one of the few lakes that lay claim to having a floating island.

Back in the 1930s it was said that when the water level in the lake was low, that there appeared on the surface of the lake a mass of peat and aquatic vegetation known as a “floating island”, similar islands have been known to occur on other meres, and on the Norfolk Broads, these are known as “Hovers”, which ducks use to rest upon.

One of the things that sets this lake apart from others is that it has a legend attached to it in regard to the floating island, the story is as follows: A young Knight, a member of the Bromley-Davenport family that owned Capesthorne Hall and Redesmere, mistakenly believed that the Lady he was due to marry was being unfaithful to him behind his back, when he found out about this he was so angry that he swore that he would have nothing more to do with her until the island on Redesmere lake moved.

Shortly after he had said this he fell seriously ill and the Lady that he had accused of being unfaithful selflessly nursed him back to health, while he was recovering from his illness a tremendous storm tore the island from its roots and blew it across the mere, the young Knight took this as a sign that his fiancee had not been unfaithful and the story has a happy ending as they both went on to get married.

According to the Commodore of Redesmere Sailing Club, he claimed there was a floating island on Redesmere in its earlier days and it did move around the lake in high winds, it was mainly composed of peat and vegetation with trees growing on it, and he claimed that in the 1970s it grounded itself on the east bank of the lake where it can still be found to this day.

This story ties in well with the claim made by local resident Raymond Rush, an author and one of the last remaining people in the area keeping the tradition alive of making Corn Dollies, a tradition that dates back thousands of years, however he claims that he can still remember the chains which were attached to the island which stopped it drifting around the lake, this would have been in the 1970s and unfortunately over the years the chains have rusted away and no trace of them can be found. Even though the chains no longer exist they have given the island a chance to anchor itself in one location, they stopped the island drifting about and has allowed the trees that were growing on the island to put down roots which have attached themselves to the lake bed, thus allowing itself to anchor in one place.

So although in all probability the island had used to move around freely on the lake in high winds, and this is supported by old maps which show the island in a different position, it is a sad fact that the island seems to be a victim of its own demise in that it has ceased to float about, and although 40 years ago the story was a reality, it seems that once again this enigmatic island has been transformed into a legend!

This is a photo of the floating island which has now rooted itself and no longer moves around the lake. Photo by Gary Tacagni.

This is another photo which I took standing on the island. Photo by Gary Tacagni.