Your Smile for Today ~

"A book is not only a friend, it makes friends for you. When you have possessed a book with mind and spirit, you are enriched. But when you pass it on, you are enriched threefold."

~ Henry Miller, American novelist. (December 26, 1891 - June 7, 1980) Tropic of Capricorn, Tropic of Cancer

Air Boats Monitor the Marshlands of the Gulf

Air boats on Boggy Creek, Kissimmee, Florida

Recreational activities, fishing, oystering and many related businesses are becoming a remote reality along coastal Louisiana as crude oil fouls the marshlands ~ with little relief in sight.

U.S. President announced today additional crews will be dispatched to areas of the oil-damaged Gulf. Meanwhile, the President's visit to the disaster area did not include oil-drenched wetlands. He walked along a sunny sandy beach surrounded by BP-clad "extras", bused-in for the photo-op, according to Anderson Cooper of CNN.
Update: On Sat.CNN journalists interview BP executives. The clean-up crews are dispatched each day to different locations. It was a coincident that the crew was on the same beach as the President.

Tragic news 6 PM Sat., May 29: The current attempts to stop the flow of oil has failed. Experts predict that it will be end of the August before the relief wells can solve the well disaster. Meanwhile, the heart-breaking, overwhelming question of reducing the impact on the ocean and coastline remains.

Female alligator guarding her chosen hideaway ~ preparing to build a nest. For sea creatures, it is spawning season.
Photos: Wetlands Kissimmee, Central Florida. Compliments of James Walker, Ontario.

For larger image, click on photo.

Delicious "Clean" Food

Balsamic-Glazed Ontario Asparagus
Serves 4
1 lb Ontario Asparagus, trimmed
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 tsp each of salt and pepper
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp grated Ontario Parmesan Cheese

Toss asparagus w/oil, salt & pepper; place in single layer on baking sheet.
Bake for 8 to 10 min. in 400 degrees F (200 C)
Meanwhile, in small saucepan, bring vinegar to boil; reduce heat & simmer until reduced by half & syrup-like, about 5 min.
Place roasted asparagus in serving dish; drizzle w/vinegar reduction. Sprinkle w/cheese.
Nutritional information 1 serving: Protein: 4 grams; Fat: 4 grams; Carbohydrates: 5 grams; Calories: 67

Foodland Ontario, Calendar 2010 http://www.foodlandontario.ca/
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Fresh Fruit Salad
Serves 12
2 cups cubed honeydew melon
2 cups cubed cantaloupe
2 bananas, sliced
3 kiwi fruit, sliced
2 cups strawberries, sliced
1 cup blueberries
2 fresh peaches, sliced

Combine ingredients in large bowl.
Nutritional information per serving (1 cup): 78 calories, 3 percent fat (0.3 grams), 91 percent carbohydrate, 6 percent protein.

Kim Galeaz, R.D., nutritionist. SHAPE magazine.

WHAT TO DO TODAY*

The month of May has been Health and Fitness Month at The Neat Little Bookshop
Some helpful reminders from Defining Edge, Inc.:

1. Ramp up your nutritional habits to eat "cleaner" than you ever imagined possible.
2. Focus on nutrient quality and density in your food choices. Do not skimp on calories or nutrients.
3. Consider your overall activity ~ exercise frequency, volume and intensity ~ and adjust your intake accordingly.
4. Fuel/feed your workouts. If you enjoy and are pursuing improved performance in endurance sports, you will need more than 1/2 or 1 serving of post-workout, low-GI carbs if you want your body to play along.

"What to Do Today" from Defining Edge, Inc., http://www.definingedge.ca/

Beach Closed signs are going up along the West Coast of the Gulf of Mexico as a result of the oil-well disaster.

Photo: Dusk at Daytona, Florida on the East Coast, Photo compliments of James Walker, Ontario. Thanks, James.

It doesn't feel right today to talk about anything other than the fate of the Gulf of Mexico and all the folks who live and work there ~ all the beautiful creatures who depend on man to clean up their environment.

BP's so-called "Top Kill" is underway to stop the deluge of oil spewing into the Gulf. According to BP, It will be 24 hours before success or failure is known. Meanwhile, entire areas of Louisiana's protected wildlife marshlands are dead according to CNN.

Update thirty-some hours later ~ the outcome of the procedure is still uncertain.

For whatever reason, the process at one point was stopped ~ later restarted.

Photo: Looking into the jaws of an alligator, Gaterland, Orlando, Florida.

Arizona, Louisiana and Mississippi

7:00 p.m. BP has just announced that the "live video feed" will continue throughout the so-called "Top Kill" on Wednesday, May 26.
For what may in fact potentially be the most tragic environmental disaster of all time, let us engage the world's best minds.

These beautiful scenes are from Boggy Creek area in Kissimmee, Central Florida Everglades. We are reminded that three coastal states are now declared Fisheries Disasters by the U.S. Department of Commerce in order to make available Federal Aid.

Photos: by Lorna (You may have to click on photo to see the bald eagle in lower photo.)