Lauryn Hill and Microplastics

Lauryn Hill and Microplastics

I edited a paper about the ecological impact and human health risks of microplastics in aquaculture ecosystems. My daughter is currently doing microplastics research at Eckerd University, so it was a rare instance where I had a personal interest in the subject matter. During my subsequent trip down the wormhole, I learned that each time you use a microbead-containing facial or body wash (which, for years, has been most of them), up to 94,000 plastic microbes can be flushed down the drain - each time.

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AJR, Snow, Certitude and Sludge
Children, Inspiration, Music, Sustainability Melissa Rooney Children, Inspiration, Music, Sustainability Melissa Rooney

AJR, Snow, Certitude and Sludge

“We wrote ‘BANG!’ about the weird middle-ground between being a kid and becoming an adult; a time when we’re doing all the things adults are supposed to do, but we don’t yet feel grown up,” says AJR. "The fact is, adulthood is bound to hit us at some point, so the plan we made in the song is to ‘go out with a bang.’" I'm at least twenty years older than these boys, and the sentiment applies to all of us, just the same.

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Robert DeLong, Mark Ruffalo, Barkhad Abdi, and Pope Francis

Robert DeLong, Mark Ruffalo, Barkhad Abdi, and Pope Francis

While learning about shrimp and prawns, I also came across the following quote:

"When no one is to blame, everyone is to blame." ~Pope Francis

... which has given me something to think about for the remainder of my last gray afternoon at Carolina Beach.

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Sunflower, Addiction, and Skating on Thin Ice

Sunflower, Addiction, and Skating on Thin Ice

Addiction has been a key word in my head for months now, along with facilitation, calculated risks, acceptance... so many words, each with so many shades of definition. The question is not whether a behavior is addictive, it's whether you're okay with the consequences of that repetitive behavior…

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#VoiceInMyHead: "Your Rules"

#VoiceInMyHead: "Your Rules"

My #ThemeSong today is Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett's Avant Gardner. I've been sporadically "having trouble breathing in" since I was in middle-school (maybe before) - I know it's coming on again when I have to yawn to get a good breath. This is why, for my (belated) 50th birthday present, I am spending a few days at the beach by myself…

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Senzenina and Calculated Risks

Senzenina and Calculated Risks

I first heard my #ThemeSong today when I watched The Power of One, written by one of my favorite authors, Bryce Courtenay, and starring Morgan Freeman (one of my favorite actors). Since first hearing this song, my ears perk at any mention of African musical influence, and they are far better off as a result…

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Statistician's Blues and Being Ordinary

Statistician's Blues and Being Ordinary

"They say 3 percent of the people use 5 to 6 percent of their brain

97 percent use 3 percent and the rest goes down the drain

I'll never know which one I am but I'll bet you my last dime

99 percent think with 3 percent 100 percent of the time"

~Todd Snider

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Kilby Girl, Incest, Rofhiwa, Electrical Brain Stimulation, and Korean Popcorn Cauliflower

Kilby Girl, Incest, Rofhiwa, Electrical Brain Stimulation, and Korean Popcorn Cauliflower

I asked my 19YO daughter to send me a theme song, and she gave me Kilby Girl by the Backseat Lovers. Though the lyrics make me wish I could remember the days when I could guiltlessly "waste all afternoon," it's a snappy little tune; and I didn't mind having it in my head today…

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17 Jan 2021- 6 days off Facebook (Peter Gabriel, Watched Pots, and Edible Creations)

17 Jan 2021- 6 days off Facebook (Peter Gabriel, Watched Pots, and Edible Creations)

I came upon the Peter Gabriel song below for the first time today, when looking up the lyrics to Bon Iver's Holocene (one of my son's all-time favorites), and it melted my heart. I shared the song with my musically voracious son, who surprisingly hadn't heard it; and we agreed that it's crazy that, though hauntingly beautiful in its own right, Bon Iver's version is more well-known than Peter Gabriel's original…

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16 Jan 2021: Weaning Off Facebook, Day 5 (Hamilton, the NRA, Aliens, and Psychedelics)

16 Jan 2021: Weaning Off Facebook, Day 5 (Hamilton, the NRA, Aliens, and Psychedelics)

My theme song today is my 17-year-old son's favorite song from Hamilton (he likes all the Aaron Burr songs). It seems fitting as we wait for the inauguration of the new American President and its hopeful after math. In fact, it seems fitting for most days…

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15 January 2021- Weaning off Facebook, Day 4 (Maria Ressa, Ruby Ibarra, and Ginger Dressing)
Children, Medicine and Health, Music Melissa Rooney Children, Medicine and Health, Music Melissa Rooney

15 January 2021- Weaning off Facebook, Day 4 (Maria Ressa, Ruby Ibarra, and Ginger Dressing)

I heard Ruby Ibarra's A Thousand Cuts for the first time last week, when I watched PBS's Frontline documentary about Maria Ressa, a well-known journalist who is now a top target of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte. I've always felt that everyone has a little God/Jesus in them, some more than others - Maria Ressa definitely belongs in the latter category…

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14 Jan 2021 - Weaning Off Facebook, Day 3 (Sylvan Esso and Marriage Story)

14 Jan 2021 - Weaning Off Facebook, Day 3 (Sylvan Esso and Marriage Story)

I fell in love with Sylvan Esso when I first heard Coffee, the hit from their debut album. Since then, I haven’t heard a song I don’t like, and many speak to my soul in the most happy way. It helps that most of their songs can be played in the presence of toddlers. And they’re based in Durham!

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13 Jan 2021 - Weaning off Facebook, Day 2 (Coldplay and Excessively High Blood Pressure)

13 Jan 2021 - Weaning off Facebook, Day 2 (Coldplay and Excessively High Blood Pressure)

Cold Play’s album, Everyday Life, was released live at the Amman Citadel, Jordan, on 22 November 2019 and broadcast live around the world. The first half was performed at sunrise, and the second half was performed at sunset. It's the first and only time the album has been performed in full…

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12 Jan 2021 - Weaning off Facebook, Day 1 (Los Lobos and Antifa)

12 Jan 2021 - Weaning off Facebook, Day 1 (Los Lobos and Antifa)

Apparently like many people during this Covid pandemic and election year, I developed anxiety and depression to the point of panic attacks and, as part of my recovery, decided I needed less silence and more music in my life. So each morning I listen to a "theme song" that generally sticks with me throughout the day…

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Voice in My Head Today: Acceptance

Voice in My Head Today: Acceptance

You need to stop doing what you think is expected of you, and start doing what you want to do in your heart (note: drugs, video-games and Facebook are definitively not included). Accept the arbitrary human rules and the fact that they are going to slow you down, and forge ahead despite the hurdles you don’t want to bother with…

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Sustainably 'Wrapping' Your Christmas Presents
Children, Sustainability Melissa Rooney Children, Sustainability Melissa Rooney

Sustainably 'Wrapping' Your Christmas Presents

Here's a great way to get rid of some stuff that’s accumulated in your house, while saving money and reducing your contribution to the 2020 load of Xmas wrapping paper that will soon be stuffing our landfills. It’s also a great craft project for kids of all ages, and you don't have to worry about what to do with your creations once they're finished…

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