myretroperspective

It was a ladies day out for Diana, Mary, and myself today so we headed for the Celebrate the Gulf Festival in Pass Christian, MS.  This is a family friendly festival whose goal is to educate the public about the wonders of the Gulf of Mexico area.  Lot’s of hands on activities for the kids, and interesting displays for adults.  The interns from our refuge, and some local volunteers manned the MS Sandhill Crane NWR booth.  You could be banded there like a bird, and there was a live corn snake in that cardboard box on the lower right.  The snake was taking a little rest in between performances.  The US Navy even had a boat and sea bottom investigation monitors on display.  All of these young sailors were dressed in blue and black fatigues, and I had to ask what happened to their ♪ ♫‘Bell-bottomed Trousers and Coats of Navy Blue’ ♫  They assured me that they had about five different uniforms.  I expected to see them in those crisp white ...

It was back to the VC to work for me today.  Most of the time was spent welcoming the 25 visitors throughout the day, and catching up with Doug, the volunteer coordinator.  He has been gone for the last three weeks dealing with health issues with his parents up in Pennsylvania.  We needed to get the schedule for the next month set up with school groups coming in for programs. Also in the plans is a trip for all of the volunteers and interns to Ship Island off of the Mississippi coast in April.  I’m looking forward to that trip.  April turns out to be Volunteer Appreciation Month, so the refuge will probably foot the bill for this trip.  Sweet!! I have found Mississippi Sandhill Crane NWR to be the most willing, of all the refuges I’ve volunteered at, to provide trips and wonderful experiences for their volunteers.  It’s one of those perks that makes volunteering here most memorable. During a lull in visitation during the afternoon, I took a w...

It was time to haul out my rubber boots and walking stick today as we would be on a quest for some carnivorous plants.  The area we were going to required a walk through a very wet and muddy area.  The boots also help deter mosquitoes and chiggers from attacking my legs.  I need the walking stick to help with my stability walking through mucky areas. Before we sloshed through the wet area, we checked out a culvert that we were told had a lot of bladderworts near it. Sure enough, we found them.  They are a carnivorous plant that is aquatic and is usually only noticed when in bloom.  Wikipedia had a pretty good explanation of how this plant operates.   Aquatic species, such as U. vulgaris ( common bladderwort ), possess bladders that are usually larger and can feed on more substantial prey such as water fleas ( Daphnia ) , nematodes and even fish fry, mosquito larvae and young tadpoles . Despite their small siz...

Thank you smartwater for making me your special ambassador for Charleston Fashion Week 2012! I had the most amazing time... your team rocks! XOXO, Marian Disclaimer: smartwater provided travel expenses and compensation for Charleston Fashion Week 2012

Designer Mychael Knight As an official sponsor for Charleston Fashion Week 2012, smartwater offers fashionistas runway ready hydration. As a special ambassador for smartwater I got to cool off in the Charleston heat along with a few noted designers, models and fashion week –insiders with our favorite premium water in hand. As I moved through the tents on Marion Square, I could see smartwater flowing everywhere! Haute hydration mixed with fashion chats made for refreshing talk under the tents. Charleston Fashion Week Creative Director Ayoka Lucas Check out our pictures as we strike a pose with smartwater… the zero-calorie vaper-distilled water with added electrolytes became our haute new accessory. Some might even say vapor distilled is the new black and smart because it’s made that way! To learn more visit http://glaceau.com/ Become a friend of smartwater on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/smartwater and follow on Twitter http://twitter.com/smartwater  Model Cynthia Bailey  

Take a look at some emerging fashion design talent hitting the runway at Charleston Fashion Week 2012. The five-night event is produced by Charleston Magazine and offers young talent a gateway to New York City's fashion week. I had a bird's eye seat with smartwater in hand to capture the latest in style trends. Take a look at a few pieces that caught my eye. What's your haute new fashion accessory for 2012?

i found out shortly before this incident that it is common for boys in korea to be circumcised in their early teens. they believe this is better because the child will understand why they have to get the surgery and they can be put under for it.  one day, i had one of my students who is around the age of 13 walk into my classroom limping. i asked the students what happened and half burst into laughter and the other half set to work trying to figure out how to explain this to me in english. one student volunteered,"teacher, he cut his..." and makes a cutting motion on his finger. i THOUGHT i understood but was confused as to why he was limping. when i asked them they shook their heads and kept making the cutting motion, "no, no, no....a part very important to a man." after i got the awkward "OH!!!!" expression off of my face, i explained that in the states we do that when the boy is still a baby. the conversation ended shortly after that but about 5 minutes...

Atlanta-based fashion designer Mychael Knight introduced his new line of gowns and dresses during Charleston Fashion Week’s Spring Bridal Show 2012. Knight was the featured designer for the much anticipate sold-out show during the sixth annual event. As a special ambassador for smartwater, a premier sponsor, I had a front row seat to all the haute fashion designs coming down the runway. Knight’s collection was tastefully done, but a bit restrained. Although Knight has been making wedding gowns for the past couple of years, this is his first collection to hit the runway. The Project Runway, fan-favorite for season three, showcased an assortment of form-fitting silhouettes. In this collection, he took a bit of a detour from his “club-style” garments that generally merge the future with the present. This collection offers a softer, youthful approach for the girl who wants more simplicity and less glamour for her wedding day. Knight says his dresses are “sleek, sophisticated, and wearable....

Fashionistas, brides and so many others came out to view the spring bridal collection from emerging design talent during Charleston Fashion Week. As special ambassador for smartwater, an official sponsor, I was sitting front row at the celebrated show.     The collections offered something for everybody about to walk down the aisle and say ‘I do.” This year, designers added a bit of color to traditional gowns and dresses. Romantic blush colored gowns and other more passionate collections accented with red accessories offered a modern approach to traditional classics… building on a canvas of white garments for that special day. Featured designer Rachel Gordon offered a first-time bridal collection that simply flows down the runway. Her “One Love” Bridal and ready-to-wear collections were attention grabbers. Silk draping, vintage-inspired creations and the celebration of women down to every detail made Gordon one of my favorite designers. She even ended her showing with an ...

Diana, Emma, and I headed out this morning for a girls’ day at the beach on Dauphin Island, Alabama.  It was about an hours drive away.  I’ve never been much of a beach person (picture an alewife die off on the shores of Lake Michigan when I was growing up in Chicago).  I believe Diana has always been a beach person.  What a pleasant surprise it was for me to arrive at this mostly vacant white sand beach for the afternoon!  The water wasn’t brown, and the waves provided a lovely sound backdrop. As I went about setting up my chair under the beach umbrella that Diana had brought, she took Emma on a little romp in the sand.  I had told her that the last time I took Emma near any sand, she was a lunatic and nearly pulled my arm out of its socket.  Thank goodness she’s calmed down some.  Emma was happy until… Diana tried to coax her into the water.  Emma has always hated getting wet and even avoids small puddles that might get her feet...

Well I sure am.  The older I get, the weaker my wrists seem to get.  Today I tried to open a new jar of marinated mushrooms to go along with my grilled spare ribs.  First I just tried to open it using my hands alone.  Ha!  What was I thinking? So I got out my trusty rubber round thing that I got my first year on the road from the Social Security booth at Quartzsite.  No luck there either.    Okay, it was time to pull out my arsenal. Next up was this handy dandy little opener that works on most every jar, and it’s adjustable to the jar lid size.  Not today, though.  It failed me.  I really like marinated mushrooms so I was getting worried.  I had one last tool to try… …and it worked!  Yahooie!  I believe this antique jar opener was my grandmother’s.  Sometimes in an RV, even a women has multiple tools to accomplish the same thing.    It sure helped with my wrist...