Clean Clean Clean

Oh how I love the smell of a clean house.  I finally got around to buying the goods and making my own cleaning supplies and I absolutely LOVE them!  They smell and clean great. 

 My shopping cart, I felt like people might suspect me of building a bomb!

Why not try the switch to all natural ingredients which are not only environmentally friendly but also human health friendly.  A lot of the chemicals found in pre-made cleaning supplies are harsh on our bodies and can be carcinogenic.  Some of the chemicals found in cleaning supplies are chlorine, crystalline silica and butyl cellosolve which are irritants to our lungs and eyes and can pose serious health risks. 

Click here to read about a recent study that states fragrant cleaners may be bad for your health.  More than a third of products tested and some that were labeled organic emitted a carcinogen such as formaldehyde.  The article makes a great point that, if these chemicals were coming out of a factory they would be regulated and fined but since they are coming out of an air freshener there are no regulations.  

Not only is it better for your health to make your own cleaning supplies but it is better for your wallet!  It is incredibly cheap, so why would you not do it?  It is also fun to mix up the ingredients.  I kind of felt like I was making a bomb! 

So let's get you set up.  I don't follow recipes exactly to perfection.  What I like to do is research whatever I am trying to make and then use what I have read to build my own perfect recipe.  This is exactly what I did with cleaning supplies.  So here are the general ingredients, mix them up how you would like and shake up the bottle.  It really is not rocket science. 

General all purpose cleaner recipe:
- I used this to clean the kitchen, and wow it cut through grease!  I cleaned the refrigerator with a dried spill in it, cleaned the bathroom toilet, shower, sink and I cleaned the floors!
- In a spray bottle (mine is pretty small - probably only holds 10oz of liquid).
     Borax - about one spoonful
     Baking soda - about one spoonful
     natural soap (ie: Dr Bronners) - about one spoonful
     white vinegar - about one spoonful
     lavender oil - a few drops
     tea tree oil - a few drops
    peppermint oil - a few drops
 And then fill the rest up with warm water and shake!

Ok so that looks like a lot of ingredients but you really don't need that many.  I probably went a little overboard but it cut through a lot of grease and removed stains.  But all together one bottle of cleaner that I made probably cost me less than 25 cents.  The most expensive items on the list were the essential oils that were about $5 but will last a long time because you only need a few drops. 

So give it a go in your house.  Clean with items that when they wash down the drain into our rivers, aquifers, and oceans are not going to affect the quality of the water which comes back around to us and we drink.

And don't forget old rags and towels work great for cleaning, no need for paper towels!  Wash your used cleaning rag and throw it in the dryer, if it has some left over essential oils on it, it will become a great dryer sheet! 

Clean!

What is your favorite insect?

A BUG filled weekend it was!  This past weekend at the El Paso Zoo was Bugfest.

 "Mac" the Blue and Gold Macaw hanging out at the front gate of the zoo waiting for some guests.  Check out the cool BugFest sign in the background.

At the zoo, there was a chance to learn about insects, see lots of live insects (my favorite the Emperor Scorpion), play insect games, view animals that eat bugs, enjoy a bug cooking demonstration, try your own chocolate-Chirp-cookies and other insect treats, and make your own bugs with recycled materials!!  I was in charge of the insect crafts made of recycled materials and it was a hit.  Although what child doesn't like arts and crafts?  I collected egg cartons from anyone that would give them to me as well as used toilet paper rolls and paper towel rolls that the zoo already had, and the kids and I turned them into caterpillars, spiders, butterflies and bumble bees!  I wish I had taken some pictures but I guess I was busy because I ended up with no pictures of the cute creations.  The moral of the story = re-use your materials at home and let your kids be creative.  One child this weekend made a praying mantis out of pipe cleaners.  I was thoroughly impressed.  If you want to find out when these events are being held at the zoo sign up for the Zoo Education email list by clicking here.

I had some great high school students volunteer their time and help me with arts and crafts.  Thank you very much to those helpful teens!  I also learned some Spanish from them.   I am working on my Spanish but it is coming along slowly.  Most people just assume I speak Spanish, and I don't blame them, I should!   Rosetta Stone here I come!

Although we did not have any honey bees on exhibit at the zoo this weekend they were still all around us outside.  I was reading a recent article that looked at the number of bees in urban areas as compared to rural.  It found that many bees were in towns more due to the plant diversity among backyards and parks.  At the zoo, the horticulture department does a great job creating lots of different sources of pollen for our friendly honey bees.  For some reason, honey bees and bees in general catch my interest.  Maybe it's their crazy social structure, or the fact that they pollinate a third of our food supply, or that they can increase the production of agriculture crops, or that we eat their throw-up (honey), or that I fancy the new country song "Honey bee" or that they are just dang cute.  Without bees we would be lacking in fruits and vegetables such as: apples, fruits, berries, almonds, melons, cucumbers, clovers and alfalfa.  I don't know about you but I could not live without fruits and vegetables! 

Also it is interesting to me, that lately it seems everyone is becoming a bee keeper and enjoying the benefits in their own backyards.  Honey bees are not native to the U.S. although we have grandfathered them in as belonging here.  I really can't think of another species that we have accepted with open arms like the honey bee.  Honey bees are so crazy and most people don't know much about them.  For example, did you know:  There are about 20,000 different species of bees.  Queens can live up to 3-5 years, while others workers, drones, etc only live for a few weeks.  Bees have their own dancing language.  When they find a good food source or a great place for a new hive, they orient themselves to the sun and do a little dance.  The stronger and more emphasis on the dance, the better the new home site or food supply is.  They can travel as far as 2 miles away from their hive in search of food.  I could go on and on but that is just a taste.  To find out more visit some bee sites here, here or here.   And of course they can be dangerous and sting although mostly they are not aggressive and harmless.  Not all species die after they sting but some do.  Their temperament is based on a few things:

• weather
• time of day
• season
• genetics
• vibrations
• colors
• odors
• how you react to them

So don't hang out near a bee hive when it's cold and rainy or in the dark or winter or smell bad or swat them away.  If you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation simply walk into some brush.  They don't like that and will leave you alone.  Also if you don't have a forest to walk into (ie: you live in El Paso), break off a branch or piece of a plant and wave them away with the plant, not your hand.  

So happy beekeeping to all you beekeepers and everyone else, don't be scared of insects.  If you are scared do some research to learn some more so you can appreciate what you have in your own backyard.



BUZZZ





 

The best way to stay cool is to think cool.

Temperatures across the country are HOT.  It has been a tough year for farmers, wildlife, and people in general.  I personally don't mind the heat but I do mind what it does to the fruits and vegetables I like to eat as well as what it does to the plants and animals I like to catch glimpses of in the wild. 

The animals at the zoo are relatively used to the heat.  The African lions are very playful and people always ask, aren't they hot?  I respond with, African lions are used to the African heat.  The four lions at the El Paso Zoo were born at the Oklahoma City Zoo but they still have the same genes.  I relate it to myself, my father is from Tunisia in North Africa and I like to say that is why I love the heat, I am half made for it! 

The African lion exhibit allows people to get face to face with the lions.  Kids and adults both love to be awed by how large these animals are.  I am fully captivated by the lions as well.  There are two sets of twins born within three days of each other.   They have different mothers but the same father.  The four resident lions are: Malaika (meaning "Angel"), Zari (meaning "Golden") and Kalliope (meaning "Beautiful Voice").  The male cub was named Xerxes, a Persian name meaning "Monarch." Here is a  quick lion picture:

100 degrees and still looking for some playtime!

There are less than 20,000 African lions in the wild and they currently listed as Vulnerable although their status is in question.  Their numbers are declining due to habitat loss and human conflict. Many farmers use cheap pesticides to poison lions to protect their livestock.  National Geographic Big Cat Initiative works locally to protect lions and solve the human/lion conflicts.  Do you have a house cat?  You can send in your picture of your cat and donate $5 to the Big Cat Inititiave and have your cat's picture on the National Geographic website!  Make fluffy famous!

I walked by the Andean Bears on Saturday and noticed they found a way to stay cool:

 Can you see the Andean Bear?  I love how I was capturing the sign and perfectly got the Andean Bear as well!  Here is a better look:

 Taken with my old Iphone so a little grainy but at least you get the idea.

A bear in warm weather?  Yup, these bears do not need to hibernate because they live in the rainforest where it stays warm year round.  It is really not the weather that makes bears hibernate but more the availability of food.  In colder climates there is not much food available during winter months so they sleep through till the arrival of Spring.  Because there is year round food in the rain forest these bears do not need to hibernate.  These bears inhabit the mystifying cloud forests. 

Not much is known on their ecology but the Andean Bear Conservation Project is working hard to study these bears.   The more we know about an animal the better we are equipped to be able to protect it.  There are also less than 20,000 Andean Bears in the wild.  An easy way to support them is to "like" their cause on Facebook.  If you don't have funds or the ability to volunteer a simple "like" can help.  When non profits write for grants and approach companies for financial support it is helpful to show how much support the public has given them.  Simple helps. 

Speaking of help, on July 28th the El Paso Zoological Society held its annual Members Night.  To become a member of the Zoological Society simply stop by their office at the zoo or go online.  With membership you receive free entrance into the zoo any day as well as opportunities such as members night.  Membership shows your support for the El Paso Zoo and its mission to celebrate the value of animals and natural resources and to create opportunities for people to rediscover their connection to nature.  We appreciate all of our members and their support of the El Paso Zoo and worldwide conservation!

Members night was a couple hours after the zoo closed, opened for members only to enjoy activities such as rock climbing, face painting, water games, ice cream, animal encounters, animal presentations, live music, dancing and so much more!  Basically it was a Zoo at the Zoo!  There were about 2500 attendees.  Here is a picture of the popular rock wall:

Rock climbing for Members Night!

Ok I am thinking I will spend the day like an El Paso Zoo Andean Bear and go hang out in the apartment pool for a while!  Oh, and my older neighbor said, "the best way to stay cool is to think cool!"  So think cool while you are sweating out their today and enjoy this day!


COOL!