Nature Boy

” How do we sleep while our beds are burning . . .”

Do you remember that song?   It was sung by Midnight Oil in case you couldn’t think of it and are one of those people who has to know.  Anyway, California is on fire, as is usual for this time of the year.  Some of that water that is washing away towns elsewhere in the country would come in handy around here.

I guess if our homes are neither threatened by fire nor floods we should consider ourselves grateful; I do.   I  heard  there are hundreds of wildfires currently burning, but I think that includes small fires caused by larger ones, so the number is exaggerated.   If you want to see where the  major fires are (something I had to do this morning since I couldn’t keep track) you can visit one of these two sites.

While the closest fires to me are about seventy miles north and fifty miles south, I can smell them the minute I walk out the door.   But it could be a lot worse–we are currently in the yellow.  That is yellow on the air quality index, which is sort of like that terrorism risk index except that the latter was invented by an idiot.  In my little corner of the Bay, the air quality is considered safe except for those who are unusually sensitive to pollution.

I am not really bothered until it gets to orange, which it was for the first part of the week.  This reminds me, did you hear that Amy Winehouse has been diagnosed with Emphysema–how much crack and cigarettes do you have to smoke to lose thirty percent lung capacity before you are twenty-five?  I know that has nothing to do with this, but it was on my radio station this morning and I felt the need to share it.

A good portion of the fires are nearly contained but the low air quality could remain in those areas for a while.  Can you imagine how frustrating that must be, not to be able to leave your house because the air will get you.

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“Where have all the flowers gone . . . “

I know you know that song.   Although my real question is “Where have all the bees gone?”  Like other environmental hot-button issues, people are arguing over the cause of the drop in the bee population, but unlike those other issues, no one can argue that it is indeed happening.  Look around–you see all that many bees?  Okay then.

I’ve read a few things about the missing bees, most of which I did not understand, but from what I gathered it couldn’t hurt to put a few things in your garden that have blooms which bees find particularly appealing.  I’m going to try to get a few lavender, rosemary, and mint plants going in my yard since I have limited space (and no direct sun which cuts down on blooms), but if you have the room, plant a whole bee garden.

I don’t know if individuals encouraging bees to pollinate and flourish will help, but it’s the best I can come up with at this point.  And since about thirty percent (according to this article) of our crops rely on bees, I think I should at least try.