Tag Archives: sustainable living

Gas Station Sticker Art . photos by Alice B. Clagett

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Imaged on 8 December 2020; published on 11 January 2021

Dear Ones,

Here are some fun photos of a gas station sticker. I thought they might represent the eighth chakra, astral thuggees, gas pump sticker shock, the fossil fuel debate, and a ghost. Maybe you will interpret them differently from me.

Composite Image: “Astral Thuggees Attacking the Eighth Chakra,” compiled by Alice B. Clagett, 8 December 2020, CC BY-SA 4.0, from “Awakening with Planet Earth,” https://awakeningwithplanetearth.com … CREDITS: Images of devils: “Devil 2” in wpclipart … https://www.wpclipart.com/holiday/halloween/devil/devil_2.png.html … Public domain … DESCRIPTION: Sticker from a Los Angeles gas pump adapted by Alice B. Clagett, and compiled with Devil 2 images. The sticker is a white rectangle with what seem to be black eyes and a mouth gouged into the sticker. Above the white rectangle is a blue and white circular object with the writing blurred out. . Inside the white circle are tiny devils prancing about … COMMENTS: The white rectangle with the black eyes and mouth looks a little like a surprised person. The blue and white circular object above the white rectangle I take to represent the eighth chakra We can visualize that we are send away these tiny devils when we do a meditation or visualization to clear the energy of our eighth chakra.

Composite Image: “Astral Thuggees Attacking the Eighth Chakra,” compiled by Alice B. Clagett, 8 December 2020, CC BY-SA 4.0, from “Awakening with Planet Earth,” https://awakeningwithplanetearth.com …

CREDITS: Images of devils: “Devil 2” in wpclipart … https://www.wpclipart.com/holiday/halloween/devil/devil_2.png.html … Public domain …

DESCRIPTION: Sticker from a Los Angeles gas pump adapted by Alice B. Clagett, and compiled with Devil 2 images. The sticker is a white rectangle with what seem to be black eyes and a mouth gouged into the sticker. Above the white rectangle is a blue and white circular object with the writing blurred out. . Inside the white circle are tiny devils prancing about …

COMMENTS: The white rectangle with the black eyes and mouth looks a little like a surprised person. The blue and white circular object above the white rectangle I take to represent the eighth chakra We can visualize that we are send away these tiny devils when we do a meditation or visualization to clear the energy of our eighth chakra.

Symbolic Image: “Gas Pump Sticker Shock,” by Alice B. Clagett, 8 December 2020, CC BY-SA 4.0, from “Awakening with Planet Earth,” https://awakeningwithplanetearth.com … DESCRIPTION: Portion of a sticker from a Los Angeles gas pump. In the center of the image is a white rectangle with what seem to be black eyes and a mouth gouged into the sticker. On either side of the white rectangle are yellow rectangles indicating minimum octane ratings of 87 (left) and 91 (right). A big black hole is gouged into each of the yellow rectangles … COMMENTS: I take this to represent the high price of gasoline, and the high toll that use of fossil fuel takes on our global environment. I myself am for sustainable fuels, which seem to me to make a good deal more sense in terms of ecology than do fossil fuels.

Symbolic Image: “Gas Pump Sticker Shock,” by Alice B. Clagett, 8 December 2020, CC BY-SA 4.0, from “Awakening with Planet Earth,” https://awakeningwithplanetearth.com …

DESCRIPTION: Portion of a sticker from a Los Angeles gas pump. In the center of the image is a white rectangle with what seem to be black eyes and a mouth gouged into the sticker. On either side of the white rectangle are yellow rectangles indicating minimum octane ratings of 87 (left) and 91 (right). A big black hole is gouged into each of the yellow rectangles …

COMMENTS: I take this to represent the high price of gasoline, and the high toll that use of fossil fuel takes on our global environment. I myself am for sustainable fuels, which seem to me to make a good deal more sense in terms of ecology than do fossil fuels.

Symbolic Image: “Ghost,” by Alice B. Clagett, 8 December 2020, CC BY-SA 4.0, from “Awakening with Planet Earth,” https://awakeningwithplanetearth.com … DESCRIPTION: Portion of a sticker from a Los Angeles gas pump. In the center of the image is a white rectangle with what seem to be black eyes and a mouth gouged into the sticker … COMMENTS: I take this to represent a startled ghost. Could this mean that fossil fuels are on their way out, and that the tide of public opinion will turn in favor of sustainable fuels?

Symbolic Image: “Ghost,” by Alice B. Clagett, 8 December 2020, CC BY-SA 4.0, from “Awakening with Planet Earth,” https://awakeningwithplanetearth.com …

DESCRIPTION: Portion of a sticker from a Los Angeles gas pump. In the center of the image is a white rectangle with what seem to be black eyes and a mouth gouged into the sticker …

COMMENTS: I take this to represent a startled ghost. Could this mean that fossil fuels are on their way out, and that the tide of public opinion will turn in favor of sustainable fuels?

. . . . .

In love, light and joy,
I Am of the Stars

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astral rascals, astral thuggees, drawings by Alice, ghost, fossil fuels, composite drawings by Alice, transportation,

Water Your Garden with Bath Water? Here Is What the Pragmatic Prophet Says …

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Written and published on 24 July 2020 by Alice B. Clagett
Location: Los Angeles, California

Image: “Man Carrying Two Buckets,” by TriviaKing at English Wikipedia, 22 June 2008, in Wikimedia Commons … https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Man_carrying_two_buckets.JPG … CC BY-SA 3.0

Image: “Man Carrying Two Buckets,” by TriviaKing at English Wikipedia, 22 June 2008, in Wikimedia Commons … https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Man_carrying_two_buckets.JPG … CC BY-SA 3.0

Dear Ones,

Water prices are so high here in Los Angeles these days the wild surmise goes round that the LA Department of Water and Power has been purchased by the mob to grow marijuana in the sewage treatment facilities, and that we homeowners are footing the tab! What with the COVID lockdown, there are no bar tabs to be footed today. Wilder urban legends have gone the rounds, over the years. Who can say?

Until the truth be laid bare, water in LA is costing up to $600 a month for a person with a backyard lawn and a modest home in the ‘burbs. How are we to afford to water even a container vegetable garden when water prices are so high? Here is what I came up with; it is cost effective, offers a little daily exercise, and feels just right for sustainable living …

I thought if I could find a very good stopper for my bathtub, and tough, flat-bottom buckets such as are used to feed horses in horse stalls, then I could scoop up the water in the tub after a shower and use it to water the vegetable garden.

I needed a water-tight drain stopper for the bathtub, and that was hard to come by. I found that, because of the age of my house, the tub drain I needed was not a standard size sold in the local hardware stores. Online I found 3 sizes of drain stoppers, and none of them fit the bathtub drain.

Finally I found at Amazon … http://www.amazon.com … a multi size bathtub stopper (1-1/8 inch to 1-7/8 inch). The brand was Silyconyc, it came in a two pack, and I found it offered a firm seal at the largest size graduation. If you cannot readily get a snug drain stopper for your bathtub, then the multi size drain stopper may work for you as well.

The next thing was to find durable buckets that would conform to the flat bottom of the tub. That was a little easier, as feed stores and Amazon sell ‘flat back’ plastic feed buckets with strong metal handles. I picked two buckets, each with two-gallon capacity, as very large buckets full of water would be too much for me to carry.

It turned out the buckets I picked were perfect for the job. One side was flat, so that the bucket would lie flat when the handle was attached to the wall of a horse stall. That flat side, laid against the bottom of the tub, allowed me to scoop up almost all the water in the tub.

I placed the partly full buckets on an old towel next to the tub just before taking the water outside, so that water would not drip through the house. This has proven a no muss, no fuss way to water my container garden using shower water.

In addition, I keep a regular bucket in my kitchen sink for dishwashing and daily use that water to keep up those outdoor plants that are not able to survive with the amount of landscape water allowed Los Angeles homeowners by the LA Department of Water and Power.

Hope these tips help green the gardens of LA!

In love, light and joy,
I Am of the Stars

Link: Silyconyc Multi Size Bathtub Stopper (2 pack) … at Amazon.com … https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B087ZQXVVX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ..

Link: Little Giant Plastic Animal Feed Bucket (2 gallon) … at Amazon.com … https://www.amazon.com/LITTLE-GIANT-Flat-Back-Dura-Flex-Plastic/dp/B000HHLHPS/ref=sr_1_23?dchild=1&keywords=little+giant+feed+bucket&qid=1595617642&sr=8-23 ..

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sustainable living, survival, water conservation, gardening,

How Much Food and Water Should We Buy to Wait Out the Coronavirus? . by Alice B. Clagett

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Written and published on 3 March 2020

Dear Ones,

I took a look at the World Health Organization daily situation reports for the Coronavirus (COVID-19) today …

Link: “Coronavirus Disease (COVID-2019) Situation Reports,” bky World Health Organization (WHO) … https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports ..

I see there is a decline in confirmed cases of the virus in the day prior to 2 March 2020 for Hubei, China. According to WHO, the virus broke out there on 31 December 2020. We have 42 WHO reports from 20 January 2020 through 2 March 2020.

Thus we have 20 unreported days and 42 days reported on by WHO, since the outbreak in Hubei. That is a total of 62 days.

If the decline in confirmed cases in Hubei continues in the days to come, then the people of that city will have seen the worst of the outbreak last week. Should this be so, then we can anticipate the epidemic will tail off in Hubei over an equal period of time, which is to say, an additional 62 days.

Thus, in this reasonable scenario, the outbreak will have lasted 4 months in Hubei. Taking that as a touchstone for the duration of the epidemic in other countries, I suggest that we lay in a 4-month supply of food and water supplies (or means of disinfecting water, in case the local water supply might be compromised).

That will allow us to avoid interacting with restaurant and supermarket personnel and customers who might be infected. As well, it will suffice in case food supplies become scarce (as have face masks globally).

Food needs can be supplied at reasonable cost through purchasing big sacks of rice and of beans, which I feel ought to be kept from rodents by being placed in durable plastic storage bins.

The food can be purchased at Walmart or Smart and Final Iris. It is difficult to find durable plastic storage bins that fasten securely enough to deter rodents; Walmart or Target might have these. Of course, sturdier storage, such as metal containers with metal lids, would be better, but these may be available only in rural areas.

For more on the topic of survival see …

Link: “Pioneer Skills: Planning for Tough Times Ahead,” by Alice B. Clagett … published on 19 September 2017; revised … https://wp.me/p2Rkym-7H3 ..

Link: “On Planning with Family for a Natural Disaster,” by Alice B. Clagett … published on 11 September 2017 … https://wp.me/p2Rkym-7Db ..

In love, light and joy,
I Am of the Stars

P.S. It might be good, as well, to purchase a supply of vitamin C, which might help bolster the immune system. My preference is buffered vitamin C powder, which I find to be more agreeable to my gastrointestinal tract. If that is not available (as with the face masks) then whatever may be had must suffice.

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community health, coronavirus, health, COVID-19, survival, sustainable living,

Homed Who Live Next to Homeless Encampments in Los Angeles . by Alice B. Clagett

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Written and published on 11 September 2019

Dear Ones,

It seems to me there is concern for personal safety among homeowners and their families who live next to homeless encampments in Los Angeles. On mulling over this issue, I came to understand the depth of despair of fathers and husbands who have invested their life savings in providing homes for their families, and whose wives and children can no longer safely leave home at night, because of homeless encampments on their sidewalks or in treed or grassy areas nearby.

It occurred to me that passive defense systems might offer an alternative to taking the law into one’s own hands on behalf of family safety. Along these lines, I thought homeowners might consider installing floodlights that illuminate terrain between them and the homeless encampments at night, so that their families could feel safe to walk out of their houses. I also wonder if high fences around homeowners’ yards might help.

Housing codes regarding the height of property fences can cause trouble with safety in these times, as those who wrote the codes could not have foreseen the current difficulty. Maybe property fencing codes could be got round by using temporary construction fencing in the yard? Maybe it might be sensible to go ahead and put up high fences around the home, with the agreement of one’s neighbors, since getting the codes changed may take some time.

In addition, I thought, it might be possible to install perimeter electronic alarms, that would provide a warning if the yard is trespassed on? Maybe others will come up with passive defense systems for homed families as well.

I know it is not fair to think about putting walls up and protecting our homes. It’s not something we have ever had to do before. Why should we have to do it now? Why should we go to the expense? Why does not the City of Los Angeles just fix the problem? It seems to me that is what folks are wondering, and I have been wondering that too.

Finally it came to me that the City of Los Angeles may not have a solution for us. They may not have the staff, the financial resources, or the flexible problem-solving ability to deal with the question. I say that because the problem has been before LA for 10 years now, and the City has not come up with a solution.

It seems to me that we Los Angeles homeowners must come up with our own solutions. But what will those solutions be? Some feel angry; they feel like hurting the homeless. Others feel afraid; again and again, they ask the Los Angeles Police Department to remove the homeless from their block.

I myself feel that we ought to do my best to find physical deterrents, such as high fences, perimeter alarm systems, and camera surveillance systems to protect our homes from the unhomed, and from roaming felon gangs.

When our homes are as protected as possible, we can feel safe to continue to work with our communities towards good solutions.

I recently went to a meeting of the West Hills Neighborhood Council Committee on Homelessness. It seemed to me they work with the office of the Mayor in a political way. The political approach involves jockeying with the powers that be for application of the City’s very limited financial resources to a problem for which we are lobbying, in our own interests.

Politicking takes time. More than 10 years … that is patently clear. I feel we need to find other grassroots ways to solve this problem.

Right now, I am thinking we could approach West Hills churches, civic groups, clubs, and businesses we belong to or patronize, and ask them what they can do to help. Could be we the people can together find a solution to the problem of West Hills homelessness … a solution that so far has eluded City Hall.

In love, light and joy,
I Am of the Stars

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community health, Los Angeles, West Hills, homelessness, safety, law enforcement, protection, crime prevention, survival, sustainable living, politics, West Hills Neighborhood Council,

Saving on Home Cooling and Heating Costs by Planting Trees . by Alice B. Clagett

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Written on 6 April 2016; published on 3 July 2019

Dear Ones,

I read, on the internet, a few years ago, that by planting a tree next to the place where you live … if it is positioned right …

Link: “How to Plant Trees to Conserve Energy for Summer Shade,” by Arbor Day Foundation … https://www.arborday.org/trees/climatechange/summershade.cfm … This page has links to pages on planting trees for winter warmth and as windbreaks.

… you can save a lot of money on your heating and cooling bill. According to the Los Angeles Times, trees can save 10-15% of summer cooling costs in inland areas of Greater Los Angeles …

Link: “Free Shade Trees Help Save Energy,” by Dennis McLellan, 15 July 2001, in the Los Angeles Times … http://articles.latimes.com/2001/jul/15/local/me-22725 ..

Deciduous trees are a good choice; and of course, drought-resistant trees are a good choice for Southern California. The reason deciduous trees are good is because in the summertime they have their leaves, and their leaves will shield your house from the Sun. And in the wintertime they lose their leaves; so then the Sun can get to your house and warm it up.

It looks like the City of Los Angeles is offering free trees to residents! …

Link: “We Provide Free Trees for LA Residents,” by City Plants … https://www.cityplants.org/ .. 

That is my tip for the day,

In love, light and joy,
I Am of the Stars

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saving money, thrift, planting trees, Los Angeles, cities of Earth, economics, real estate, sustainable living,