8/13/2011 Coastal Clean up

Did you know that more than 80% of marine debris starts on land? Today, two people in the time span of an hour and 20 minutes, were able to collect over 42 pounds of trash from Carlsbad Tamarack Beach. Most of you who are native to North San Diego often think of Carlsbad as being one of the nicer, well kept of our beaches, and yet it took no matter of time at all to collect that much trash. The number one item picked up was cigarettes; in which we collected over 300! Clothes, blankets, flip flops, bottles, straws, forks, spoons, Styrofoam, paper, plastic, rubber, cans were among the plethora of items we found. It takes a matter of an extra few seconds and a tiny shred of dignity to simply leave nothing but your foot prints when you go to the beach, yet why do so many people find it incomprehensible to take what they bring. Trash cans line our beaches, there is no excuse. Do your part. Those of you smokers looking for a way to carry those used cigarettes? Try pocket ashtrays to carry in your pocket or purse to eliminate waste entirely.

My personal favorites...

I get a lot of questions about what my favorites are so here it is. Please feel free to let me know if you have been inspired to explore one of my favorites and have found it just as enjoyable as I have.

Movie: "The Cove" not only because I got the honor of interviewing the co-found of the Oceanic Preservation Society, but because of the fact that it is the only movie that has brought tears to my eyes and at the same time made me feel so empowered that I wanted to hop on a ship to stop these fisherman myself.


Song: Michael Jackson's "They Don't Really Care About Us" for so many reasons. It is just the right amount of realism without being to sugar coated in optimism or too doused in pessimism. This man is an inspiration to me and many more across the world and his innocence and strength is missed.

Book: This is a really hard one for me because I am a bit of a book nerd but for the moment I have picked my top book, although please excuse the fact that it is very tentative. "The Whale Warriors" by Peter Heller is a captivating text about Peter's exploration on an Eco-pirate ship to stop the slaughter of whales and other sea life. This book also plays into my fantasy of living on a ship for a years length conquering the world with direct activism.

Food: Avocado because it is amazing just plain with a spoon and a little salt. I could live off these delectable morsels.


Animal: Either a whale or a cat. I can't decide. A cat represents independence, grace, beauty, and many cultures even worshiped cats to the extent of preserving them after death. Whales are so majestic to me, living in a place that we as humans know little about, and so in control of there own life that they can decide if it is time to take another breathe of air.

Place to Visit: This is an easy one for me. I dream of visiting Egypt however I have not had the chance to yet, so until then Haiti is the most wonderful place I have ever visited. It is so beautifully rural and enchanting is the best word I can think of to describe it.

Theme Park: Six Flags Magic Mountain. The rides are thrilling and I am beyond proud when I go on them because they horrify and excite me at the same time.

Person you look up to: Bill Maher because he ventures to say what people are thinking but are too afraid to actually say.

Got any more good idea's?

Happy World Ocean's Day

Happy World Ocean's Day! Officially started in Canada and than identified by the United Nations, this wonderful holiday is one of awareness and conservation, with a dash of honor to the worlds most crucial resource. Our oceans face difficult obstacles everyday from pollution to human's over consumption of fish. This year's theme is, Our Oceans: Greeting the Future.

What a better way to greet the future than to take a step in the right direction of conservation. Last week a bill cleared the senate that would prohibit food and other vendors from using Styrofoam products by 2014.  It passed by a 21-15 vote. Styrofoam is an abundant product for consumers and is nearly indestructible, making it the second most common type of beach debris in California, according to the Southern California Coastal Water Quality Research Project.  


"The superior man seeks what is right; the inferior one, what is profitable." — Confucius

A fresh start everyday...

Many of you loyal newsletter readers have been asking where I get the inspiration for all the wonderful quotes that appear on each months newsletters. A lot of my inspiration and push for further research comes from a wonderful daily email I signed up for about a year ago called "Daily Inpirational Quotes and Thought of the Day" from this wonderful website. Everyday (and don't worry, it is literally once a day, you will not be flooded with multiple emails filling up your inbox) an inspirational quote is sent with a matching picture to enlighten and invigorate you. The quotes range accross a very wide spectrum of authors and are sure to make you think. Some of my recent favorites include:

Thinking will not overcome fear but action will.
- W. Clement Stone 

The truly rich are those who enjoy what they have.
- Yiddish Proverb

The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance;
the wise grows it under his feet.
- James Oppenheim 

Thank you  Jonathan Lockwood Huie for the daily inspiration. Everyone feel free to check out his website and make sure you sign up for his daily email!

What is in your Water?

What is in your Water?

Although the information regarding what is in our water is public information, it is not as easy to figure out as pulling up the California Department of Public Health’s website. 

With an over abundance of tables and charts brimming with clever abbreviations and measurements unfamiliar to the average student, it is no wonder that most have no clue as to what is in the water that they consume daily. According to the California Department of Public Health, we should be doing our research.

“Read consumer confidence reports, be informed consumers,” Matt Conens of the California Department of Public Health commented, “What is in water can affect your health if it doesn’t comply with water quality regulations.” 

The Public Utilities Department’s report on water quality relative to public health goals (PHG report) is offered as public domain annually. The most recent PHG report said that San Diego’s water violated only one public health goal; uranium. Although the amount found in drinking water exceeded the goal, it does not “constitute a violation of drinking water regulations or indicate the water unsafe to drink,” according to the PHG report. 

Since this contaminate was found in the drinking water, the PHG report proposed a way to reduce the levels with the best available technology using reverse osmosis. The estimated cost for the treatment plan solely is between $147.2 million and $281.7 million per year for the life span of the system. The PHG report concludes by saying that no further action is proposed for now to reduce the already below maximum contaminate level of uranium. 

While our water here in the United States is often considered the safest in the world, a warning is also issued to individuals who may be more vulnerable to contaminates in the water than the general population, such as those who are pregnant or those who are undergoing medical treatment. In the 2009 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report, individuals are urged to speak to their healthcare providers about drinking tap water. 

Is bottled or vended water any safer? According to the California Department of Public Health’s website, bottled or vended water is regulated differently than standard tap water since the source is different. While tap water comes from places like lakes and rivers, bottled and vended water is derived from approved sources including licensed private water sources. 

Retail water facilities treat approved water to improve the quality. They often use various filtration processes such as reverse osmosis and disinfection such as ultraviolet light to do this. These processes are done mainly to improve the clarity, flavor, and taste. All water is regulated to ensure our safety, but it is up to us as individuals to know exactly what those standards are. 

“I think it’s important to know what impurities are in their water because water is an essential part of human’s lives. We must be informed of unclean water,” Palomar College student Mardee Littrell said, “We have to be aware of our health.”

"Food, Inc." Movie Review

Emmy award winning Director Robert Kenner spent a large sum of his film budget on legal fees to protect himself from the powerful companies he exposed in the captivating documentary “Food, Inc.”

Whether you choose to categorize this film as a documentary or a horror is up for debate while narrators Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser take viewers on an astonishing journey into the corruption behind the American food industry. Participant Media, well known for the production of Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth”, take a blunt approach to divulging the truth behind the cheap and contaminated production of our food supply.

The films begins with an in depth look at the fast paced production of meats by going inside a repulsive chicken farm owned by one of the main producers in the United States.  As the film progresses a theme quickly emerges about the over production and use of genetically modified corn products in everything from meats to sodas and its detrimental affect on the health habits of Americans.

“Food, Inc.” producers interviewed many experts in the field of food production, although the most notable companies such as Tyson and Monsanto declined to be interviewed for obvious reasons that the film unveils. As employees of these large corporations jeopardize their jobs to tell the story of what Americans really are eating, it is enough to make anyone thrash apart their pantry in search for a food item without this infamous genetically modified corn.

This film is a must see for all ages and demographics because it has a factor we all share in common, food. With the startling knowledge and dogged investigative journalism, “Food, Inc.” is sure to be a film that will change the way you look at things that are produced and consumed.

Greatest moments in my life thus far...

I wanted to say a formal thank you to Lauren Ramirez for always being my little helper and Lew Nottke for always loving and supporting me. You both have helped me accomplish so much, you should be proud of yourselves on so many levels. People should aspire to be like you.

Refuse to H8 National Demonstration 11/15/2008

3/12/2011 Coastal Clean up with my dearest Lauren

4/24/2010 Crew for Xmas in April registration

4/24/2010 Lew and I at the Xmas in April house

4/24/2010 Newspaper picture

9/17/2010 Coastal Clean up Day with Dorothy and Lauren.
"California Coastal Cleanup Day is the premier volunteer event focused on the marine environment in the country. In 2010, more than 80,300 volunteers worked together to collect more than 1,100,000 pounds of trash and recyclables from our beaches, lakes, and waterways. California Coastal Cleanup Day has been hailed by the Guinness Book of World Records as "the largest garbage collection" (1993). Since the program started in 1985, over 800,000 Californians have removed more than 15 million pounds of debris from our state's shorelines and coast." (According to the CCC website)

9/17/2010 Lauren and I collecting 27 lbs of trash!

4/25/2009 Lew and I at Xmas in April

4/25/2009 Xmas in April aftermath

Brit and I alongside 25,000 other people against hate on 11/15/2008