But I didn’t! That was close! All my sneakers are wearing out, 2 pair have holes in the bottom. I really need new ones because I wear them to work almost everyday. I was about to give in and buy sneakers from the Evil Empire, but instead decided given a recent report that cheaper shoes are better and a growing concern, or admission, that I am willing to give up a bit of comfort for a better ecological stance, for a reduced footprint.

“…less expensive running shoes not only provide as much protection from impact force as expensive running shoes, but that in actual fact they may also provide more…”

However, these Simple Shoes are pretty comfortable and were not made under questionable conditions nor were they made in China. I try to avoid buying good from China and now when I get ready to go out I will not look at my feet and feel guilty.

I love photos like this one from the English Anti-Semites BBC. We have a full blown humanitarian crisis in Gaza, blah, blah, blah. But some how, some way, they can continue to smuggle in weapons and better yet lots and lots of green Hamas flags. Maybe some of those tunnels should be used to smuggle in the medicine they supposedly have been prevented from obtaining. I wonder if they are, but it simply isn’t in the interest of the BBC, or other outlets to report that part of story.

G-d Bless Rand:

President George W. Bush’s most recent address to the American people on Iraq may be the scariest presidential message since Ronald Reagan announced that he had launched a nuclear strike against the Soviet Union. Reagan was just kidding. Bush is not.

Immediate reaction to the president’s speech has focused on the intended increase in the U.S. troop commitment to Baghdad. However, the greatest danger posed by the Bush plan is not that of horizontal escalation in Iraq, but of vertical escalation throughout the surrounding region.

This is going to be fun to watch unfold. Add these comments to those of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

The terrible and still unprecedented destructive power of nuclear weapons led Albert Einstein to observe, “With nuclear weapons, everything has changed, save our way of thinking.” As we stand at the brink of a second nuclear age and at the onset of an era of unprecedented climate change, our way of thinking about the uses and control of technologies must change to prevent unspeakable destruction and future human suffering.

and

[Scientists] warn that the consequences could drastically alter both the planet and human life. Already, ice packs in Greenland are rapidly disappearing, which, in turn, threatens the existence of hundreds of species such as polar bears and the traditions of whole societies such as the Inuit. The future looks even bleaker, as scientists continue to observe cascading effects on Earth’s complex ecosystems.

Nothing to say on this, I just wonder who is listening and what can I do?

The never ending saga of a tank lost in specific gravity! A 50gal Oceanic saltwater fish tank is located in my living room.

This camera is pointing into the tank from the side into the center of the live rock pile. It is an older Axis network webcam. I chose this spot because the fish and shrimp seem to move through there frequently. For the time being I have set the camera up to be one all the time. However, the image may not be viewable because of the tank’s lighting schedule which is set to start sunrise at 11:30am with full sun at 11:45am then sunset at 11:15pm with dusk at 11:30 with moonlight from 11:30pm until 9am. Also, to allow the tank to have a proper dark cycle, I frequently cover it with black cover. When it is in this state it is know as Special Project F.

I have had this tank setup for over 3 years and it is my third tank - each one increasing in size. You will read people suggesting to “go big” when you start. I can agree with this from personal experience, I wasted a lot of time and money trying to keep it small. Now I am eyeing the ability of a 150 gallong tank to fit into my home! It is simple chemisty: larger water volumes are more stable. Corals like stability!

The tank is a 50 gallon Oceanic with an upgraded lighting system consisting of a 400 watt 20,000K MH, 2 PC actinics, and LED moon lights on 3 separate timers for dawn/dusk simulation and separate moonlight cycle. Water quality is maintained by a RemoraPRO skimmer, CPR Sump, PolyFilter, Algone, and an Aqua UV sterilizer. Circulation is though a Blueline 800 pump circulating water through an Arctica chiller and a separate Mag 9 for the sump.

Livestock: various snails, hermits, urchin, blue maxima and gold teardrop clams, coco tube worm, tiger stripe starfish and tamaria starfish, tiger pistol shrimp, red fire shrimp and skunk cleaner shrimp, various zoanthus polyps, mushrooms, green waving coral, SPS colonies (most with Acro. Crab), Cyloseris tenuis, pair clown fish in a LTA, Centropyge potteri, Plectranthias inermis, Amblyeleotris spp. prawn goby, Macropharyngodon meleagris, Labout’s fairy wrasse, Flame Wrasse

My normal maintenance activities: change about 5 gallons of salt water every 5 days, this is done by keeping the main pump running, siphoning out the water and pouring back in pH, temp and salinity adjusted replacement water. “Top off” water is regulated into the sump by a float switch connected to a small pump in a freshwater reservoir slightly laced with kalk. I find this is a great way to keep pH and calcium up. Every other water change, I replace or wash the various filters to keep the sump flowing properly and remove waste products. About every other day I put in 5 ml of a two part alkalinity/calcium product and about every 10 days dose in a few drops of trace elements. These doses maybe unnecessary, but I have always done it, so I continue to!

View not so complete album of aquaDRAMA!