Breakfast of Champions

Most of you who know me, know that I joke about my personal "breakfast of champions..." Diet Coke with Splenda

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But after the next few pictures, maybe we could all agree that hummingbirds are champions in their own right and watching them fight for their breakfast offers us a glimpse of something a bit more heroic than my version.

 Here are a couple of crazy facts from birding.about.com...

• The average ruby-throated hummer 3 grams. In comparison, a nickel weighs 4.5 grams.
• A hummingbird’s wings beat between 50 and 200 flaps per second depending on the direction of flight and air conditions.
•  Hummingbirds do not suck nectar through their long bills, they lick it with fringed, forked tongues. (If you look really carefully, you can see one in the top picture, left hummer...cool.)
• A hummingbird must consume approximately 1/2 of its weight in sugar daily, and the average hummingbird feeds 5-8 times per hour.
• Despite their small size, hummingbirds are one of the most aggressive bird species (probably because they have to eat so much...)

Courageous little creatures. I have yet to see on in Palm Beach. Do they migrate through here?

Anyway, enjoy your day in the mountains or by the shore. Eli

Theory or Razor-tivity

It's fall. In Colorado

that means you start layering, wearing jeans, maybe throwing on a sweater in the evenings. Your wardrobe begins to show off rich fall colors, gem tones and if you are civilized, you put away or flip flops until next summer.

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You venture outside, breath in the cool, crisp air and watch the golden leaves fall from the trees. Then you remember, besides Starbucks bringing back your favorite pumpkin latte, you have one other fall bonus, you can take a few days off shaving your legs. I mean, you won't be showing them off as much.

It's fall. In Florida

that means you continue wearing your Jack Rogers, maybe opting for a slightly richer color like platinum instead of the darling pink of summer. You look longingly into the bright sky and wonder when the days will come when the mercury will dip below 75 degrees. You know these days are payment for all the love the coast will give back during the mid-winter glory.

Right now, though, you pine for the life of a mountain girl who can just cover her legs with cute pants, maybe jeans even and actually stop shaving her legs. I mean, no one ever sees their legs anyway.

In a way, I've lived both lives and that's how I formulated the theory of "razor-tivity".

Undoubtedly you've heard of the theory of relativity...something about time and space folding in on itself blah-de-blah, black hole, yada, yada...watch the Big Bang Theory if you don't know what I'm talking about.

So, here goes, Eli's Theory or Razortivity

Every razor is designed to only cut a certain length of hair. That is the constant. What is relative is the number of times it cuts to get to that total length...but let me tell you, when it is done (and it knows) it starts pulling your hair.

Here's how this works.

In Colorado, during the cold months when mountain women don't shave (I've met a few), the razor cuts long pieces of hair infrequently, when the total length of the average strand cut is equal to three inches...the razor starts to pull and it must be replaced. So you get maybe 8 shaves over the winter and it's time for a new one.

In Florida, however, winter months are filled with showing off legs (darned it). So getting to the three inches takes the same time but nearly 45 shaves before it starts pulling.

I really would have thought you could use the razor 45 times in either place but NOT SO! 

Stupid thing is smarter than it looks.

Accumulation, Part II: Tropics Defined

Now that I live in Palm Beach, I've discovered what accumulation means here {at least what I have noticed}: how deep the piles of overgrown greens, palms and other natural products are.

It astonished me after five months, seeing bushes bloom numerous times. Back in Colorado, many bushes bring out their splendor in the spring or summer but only once.

Blooming tree in the front of the house with a hungry visitor

Early on in my time here, I began to notice piles of green debris in neighborhoods. These piles, comprised of clipped hedge leaves, fallen palm fronds, discarded limbs and dried bits of flora, piled up at the end of driveways all over the island.

Around our block, these piles magically disappeared on Thursday afternoons.
I mean, I know it's a magical place here but that is going a bit far. On the other hand, I wouldn't put it past the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County to make middle-of-the-night round ups.

After weeks of wondering, I finally saw the claw along with his truck and gentlemen who made the magic happen.

Apparently this crew is out on the Island five days a week to keep the accumulation cleared away...all year.

Smiling! I think he couldn't imagine why I was taking these pictures.

What I want to know? Where does it all go when the truck is full? Feel free to comment if you know.

Thanks and see you next time, Eli

Accumulation, Part I: Mountain Defined

Growing up in Colorado, accumulation meant one thing: how deep the snow is! Over many years I've experienced the gamut, from a dusting to the St. Patrick's day Blizzard of 2003. HB was small enough that the mounds of fallen flakes would have covered her head. Here we are sitting in it {pink cheeks and noses included}.

March Blizzard of 2003

The city was shut down for several days. It was dreamy.
I met people walking down normally busy streets that were eerily silent, pristine white and void of traffic. I saw gigantic pine trees topple with the weight of dense snow and frozen, injured roots. We cooked chili and warm cornbread and basically stayed inside for three days. This trash can shows what 2 feet of the white stuff looks like.

Every several years, the skies open up and the snowflakes, quiet, beautiful and harmless on their own decide to gang up for a serious party and BAM! It happens again: furious flakes and flurries.

December 2006

So, how do you get rid of all this mess/beauty?  

Snow plows by the Colorado Department of Transportation, these bad boys can kick some serious drifts!

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On smaller streets and some long driveways, the following boy toy removal system can be found.

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Then there's the two wheel version. Don't be deceived by its size. These can pack some serious power.

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And finally, the grocery store special, break your back, snow shovel.

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 So, if it comes down, is cold, sticks and accumulates better get some good tools to make a path through it.

Next time, I'll be sharing "Accumulation, Tropics Defined"
Until then, Eli

No More "what's your sign" It's "What's Your Plate?"

Growing up in Colorado, we had one license plate. Green mountains with white background...

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Sure, you could customize it with some quippy letters and numbers to actually "mean" something but a solitary image ruled the roads. Recently, the state inverted the design. There are lots of varieties of this plate which tout your university, colonial status or others but the central design of white mountains with a colored background is the way it is.

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When I arrived in Florida, I saw dozens and dozens of plate designs, beginning with the most common:

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Then the list explodes with Universities, Armed Forces and causes. Last month I kept a list of all the different license plates I saw. I think you'll be astounded at the giant diversity and each is designed completely differently. Here goes:

1. Agriculture
2. Air Forces
3. Aquatics
4. Challenger Columbia
5. Choose Life
6. Disabled Veteran
7. Discover Florida's Oceans
8. End Breast Cancer
9. Endless Summer
10. Family First
11. Family Values
12. Fish Florida
13. Florida A&M University
14. Florida Panthers
15. Florida State University
16. Florida Whales
17. The Gator Nation
18. Go Fishing
19. Golf Capital of the World
20. Helping Sea Turtles Survive 
21. Florida Panthers
22. Miami Heat
23. Hospice: Each Day is a Gift
24. Imagine
25. Indian River Lagoon
26. Miami Dolphins 
27. Play Tennis
28. Police Athletic League
29. Protect Children
30. Protect our Reefs
31. Protect the Panther
32. Protect Wild Dolphins
33. Salute Firefighters
34. Salute Veterans
35. Save our Seas
36. Save the Manatees 
37. Share the Road
38. Sportsman’s Natural Land Trust
39. State of the Arts
40. State Wildflower
41. Stetson University
42. Stop Heart Disease 
43. Support Education
44. Support Families
45. Support Law Enforcement
46. Support Soccer
47. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
48. United we Stand
49. University of Central Florida
50. US Army
51. US Navy
52. US Paratroopers

I found this fab link to a gallery on the Orlando Sentinel website. It has images of 114 specialty plates. Cool! They also have a link that includes news on license plates.

On a final note, if you are curious about vintage plates, like I am, check out this site: PlateShack.

While you are out on the road, check out the over 100 funky images on the license plates in Florida...

Until next time, Eli

Color-fall Palm Beach

Being from Colorado and living on old city streets full of rugged deciduous trees and near hillsides packed with a banquet hall of quaking aspen trees, I delight in the colors of fall and the cooler weather that goes with it.

In the Rocky Mounatins, it brings with it their "Season", Ski Season!

Believe it or not, several ski areas are already open: Wolf Creek, Arapaho Basin, Loveland, Copper Mountain and Winter Park {30 minutes from where I grew up}. If you want to know how good the snow is, check out the Snow Report.

Living in Florida, as you might imagine, is a little different. I just shared a post about The Season in Palm Beach but what about the signs of fall here. I can tell you...they are everywhere, you just have to pay attention to see its beauty. Let me help you, below are a number of "Color-fall" images from Palm Beach.

 

Thanks for visiting today and Happy Fall!
Until next time, Eli

Sea Level Baking

 I can't wait to show you what I achieved today, Asiago Cheese Bread!!

mmmmm, and now for the story!!!

Today is a momentous day in our Palm Beach house by the sea...I am making bread...not a quick one and not with the bread machine...I know, right?

I've been a bread machine baker for years. Not a lot of loaves but I did manage to figure it out when we lived in Denver, the Mile High city, and even in Blue River, Colorado, at an elevation of 10,200 feet, just south of Breckenridge and 10 minutes from South Park {the real one, closely related to the  funny one!}

Altitude can dramatically effect the way ingredients work together, as does humidity. {flour is much drier in Colorado...lacking in humidity!!} So trying traditional bread baking is new to me and achieving it would feel like quite a feat. I am thrilled at the prospect of baking bread at sea level. I found a recipe: asiago cheese bread on Betty Crocker.

So excited to give this a go...
I gathered my ingredients: flour, yeast, sugar, salt, hot water, chopped asiago cheese and rosemary...

I love that you can actually pronounce all the items... I followed the recipe and what do you  know??? It worked!

Forming the loaf

It raised beautifully.

A deep cut down the middle and the addition of asiago!

Yummy, indeed!

 Maybe it is your turn to try something new. Find a recipe and make it. Go dancing in the rain. Try a new craft. Hug more...laugh more...give it a try.

Thanks for stopping by today...I wish you could smell my house.
Eli

Until next time, Eli

Sunshine, on my shoulder...

Gives me a sunburn, of course!

 Living in Colorado, everyone talks about how strong the sun is. Did you know that for every 1,000 feet in elevation, there are nearly 5% greater ultra violet rays. Imagine living at a mile high, that's more than 25% ouchier sunburn; sunscreen is always a must!

Moving to Florida, I've been admonished by many folks, "Don't forget the sunscreen. The sun is really strong here." I have to admit I may have rolled my eyes because of all the Colorado training I had...but Floridians aren't thinking about that, they care and want us to be safe. After all, we are a lot closer to the Equator...

Being an inquisitive writer, I wanted find out if one was worse than the other: elevation or equator. (I love Google...)


UV Awaremess is a place to go for detailed info. I discovered many factors affect UV strength, including:

1. Latitude and time of year: Basically, the closer you are to the equator, the higher the UV levels and the smaller amount of ozone that can filter out the harmful rays.
2. Time of Day: "Solor noon" is the issue here. It can be summed up by noting the length of your shadow...shorter shadow? Higher UV!
3. Ozone Levels: We've heard about ozone for years and there is good reason, it helps filter the rays.
4. Reflection: Both water and snow intensify the effects of UV rays. So when you're surfing building a snow fort, be sure to screen up and re-apply if you get wet or sweaty.
5. Altitude: Higher altitudes mean thinner atmosphere yielding powerful rays. So, when you put on your ski boots, be sure to slop on plenty of sunscreen, you've got the double whammy of reflection and altitude.
6. Clear or Cloudy Skies: A cloudless sky obviously provides great saturation of rays but what many people don't know is the amount of UV that can scoot right on through cloud cover, up to 80%. So don't be fooled into being unprotected.

The moral is be aware that UV rays are harmful anywhere. Plenty of sunscreen, covering up skins, limiting time in the sun, especially from 10am to 4pm can help reduce the effects of the harmful rays. For more complete information on sun safety, visit this site, Melanoma.

Until next time, Eli

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No more Gasping for Air!

Jumping out of the car in front of our new house brought me tears of joy and an overload of O2. The heat and wet of the air slapped my face and clogged my confused lungs with an over-abundance of the life-giving substance. I soon discovered breathing at sea level to be a multi-step process:

1. Suck in
2. Chew
3. Inhale
4. Exhale

Repeat!


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As I familiarized my face with the process and kept practicing, it came more naturally. Now, I have come to appreciate a plethora of the stuff we call air. So, does that make it healthier to live here?

Hmmm, after a little internet investigation, I found an interesting article that says living at altitude actually has benefits. Research, as seen in an article from GO2Altitude blog, found that living at high altitude can reduce the risk of heart conditions...leading to a longer life.

It goes on to tell how beneficial Colorado is, "The top 20 counties with the highest life expectancy . . .were located in Colorado and Utah." So having thin air can help you live longer.Good for you high altitude friends.

My little "tiddlywink" above doesn't cover the whole story, so go check it out yourself and see what other life-altering info they share.

Until next time, Eli