July is sneaking up on us and we're heading into the middle of summer. The days are long, hot, and the kids are beginning to get a little bored. So what's a great way to help pass the time? Find a bunch of fun holidays to celebrate! I mean, really, who doesn't love a good party? July is filled with a lot of fun days...not just July 4th. Without further ado, here's your Calendar of Special Days
JULY
1. National Postal Worker's Day, National US Postage Stamp Day, National Creative Ice Cream Flavors Day
2. This a free day, so shop for your Independence Day celebration or declare this your own personal holiday!
3.  National Eat Your Beans Day, National Fried Clams Day, National Chocolate Wafer Day.
4.  US Independence Day, National Caesar Salad Day, National Barbequed Spareribs Day.
5.  National Apple Turnover Day, National Graham Cracker Day (S'More's please!), National Bikini Day.
6.  National Fried Chicken Day
7.  National Father/Daughter Take A Walk Day, National Strawberry Sundae Day, National Hop-A-Park Day (Anything with "hop" in it has to be good, right?)
8. National Chocolate With Almonds Day
9.  National Sugar Cookie Day
10. National Clerihew Day
11. National Cheer Up The Lonely Day, National Rainier Cherry Day, National Blueberry Muffin Day, All American Pet Photo Day
12. National Simplicity Day, National Different Colored Eyes Day, National Pecan Pie Day, Paper Bag Day, Eat Your Jello Day
13. National French Fry Day, National Beans And Franks Day
14. National Tape Measure Day, National Mac 'n Cheese Day, Collector Car Appreciation Day, and for all you Francophiles, it's Bastille Day!
15. National Give Something Away Day, National I Love Horses Day, National Pet Fire Safety Day, National Tapioca Pudding Day, National Ice Cream Day (YIPPEE!)
16. National Corn Fritter Day, National Personal Chef Day, National Get Out Of The Dog House Day
17. National Tattoo Day, National Peach Ice Cram Day, World Emoji Day, Wrong Way Corrigan Day, National Yellow Pig Day
18. National Caviar Day, National Sour Candy Day
19. National Hotdog Day
20. National Moon Day, National Lollipop Day
21. National Be Someone Day, Toss Away the "Could Haves" And "Should Haves" Day
22. National Hammock Day, National Rat Catcher's Day, National Parents Day
23. National Vanilla Ice Cream Day
24. National Amelia Earhart Day, National Cousins Day, National Drive-Thru Day, National Thermal Engineer Day
25. National Hire A Veteran Day, National Merry-Go-Round Day, National Hot Fudge Sundae Day, National Threading The Needle Day
26. National Aunt And Uncle Day, National Bagelfest Day, National Coffee Milkshake Day, All Or Nothing Day, National Refreshment Day, National Chili Dog Day
27. National Creme Brulee Day, National Get Gnarly Day, National Talk In An Elevator Day, National Systems Administrator Appreciation Day
28. National Waterpark Day, National Milk Chocolate Day, Buffalo Soldiers Day Of the Cowboy, National Dance Day
29. National Lipstick Day, National Chicken Wing Day, National Lasagna Day
30, National Whistleblower Day, National Cheesecake Day, National Father-In-Law Day
31. National Avocado Day, National Raspberry Cake Day, National Mutt Day (The best dogs ever!) 
This is a great month for foodies. I, myself, am in heaven already just thinking about all those ice cream days to celebrate! Maybe I should get a head start to the gym this morning in preparation, before heading to the party store to pick up all my supplies for them month.
Whatever days you choose to celebrate, i hope you have a wonderful and safe July.
See you back here on Monday!
                                                                  PEACE.

Tomorrow is National Camera Day and I thought it might be kind of fun to take a look at the history of cameras. Ever since the advent of the cell phone that also included a camera, humans, and frogs the world over have become obsessed with taking photos of everything, especially themselves, as well as video-recording everything from their dining experiences to routine traffic stops. And, of course, all these pics and videos then get posted on social media. I, for one, recently purchased a new cell phone and made my decision based almost 100% on the quality of its camera.
The camera's early beginnings can actually be traced back to the fifth century B.C....the "camera obscura." This "dark chamber consisted of an enclosed box with a small opening through which sunlight passed, projecting temporary images of the outside world on a wall." Aristotle and others who knew of the "camera obscura" didn't use it to take pictures. The actual mechanism of the camera was lost until the 11th century when astronomers started to used similar devices to protect their vision while observing the sun. It would be many, many years until the technology started to really evolve.
Fast-forward to 1827. It took a lot of centuries but eventually, the "camera obscura" was developed to the point where taking photographs became possible. The French inventor, Nicéphore Niépce,  took the first known photograph in 1827. The title of this first photo is View from the Window at Le Gras. "He captured the image by focusing a camera obscura onto a 6.4x8.0 inch pewter plate coated with asphalt. Thus, the asphalt hardened in the brightly lit areas but could still be easily washed away in the darkened areas." That first image survives today. 
Although Niépce's contribution was brilliant, it had its limitations. It took eight hours for the image to be fully exposed. Capturing a lasting image required a very complex chemical process; for, without immediate treatment, the image would be lost. Along came another French inventor named Louis Daguerre who had also been working on ideas to capture and preserve photographic images. So he and Niépce decided to team up. Together they discovered a solution. Their partnership lasted until Niépce's death in 1839. Daguerre introduced a new method of photography – the daguerreotype.  This is the giant leap that modern camera technology pays homage to.
It wasn't until the 1940's that the camera as we know it came to be. "The first electronic camera emerged from the labs of Eastman Kodak in 1975, partially inspired by Jet Propulsion Laboratory research dating to 1961." Consumer digital camera technology began making an impact in the 1980's. Sony was the first to market a digital camera. And today's smartphones mean that everyone, including a few of us frogs, has digital camera technology with us most of the time, as close as our shirt pocket.
Don't forget that tomorrow is National Camera Day. And Saturday is Social Media Day. You can take your photos tomorrow and post them on Saturday...you'll have both "holidays" covered. Until tomorrow, I wish you all
                                                                     PEACE.​

I've had more than a few things running through my mind lately, troubling things, and they've caused me to have difficulty sleeping. I was awake extra early this morning and decided to get up begin preparing breakfast for my teacher and dear friend, The Dharma Frog. Breakfast was finished and in the oven warming, tea was steeping, and the table had long since been set, when Dharma hopped onto my lily pad. 
As we leisurely ate our meal, Dharma asked me a question, "Irwin, I can tell something's wrong. Perhaps if you tell me, I can help." "Well, Dharma, I've got several things bothering me. I have no control over a couple of the issues, so all I can do is try to accept them and move on. But a couple of the other things, are within my power to fix, yet I can't come up with any workable solutions. It's causing me to lose sleep." "I can understand, my boy. I have found myself in that unenviable position on a few times. I have learned, though, that a frog must adapt the remedy to his disease. Do you know what this means?" Well, um..." I hesitated, "Sometimes we need to only take half an aspirin if our headache isn't very bad?" Dharma smiles, and replied, "Actually, Tadpole, this is a metaphor; by remedy I mean solution, and by disease I mean our problems...what's troubling us. But only taking half an aspirin for a slight headache is kind of the same thing. It's a creative and new solution to the problem we're having with our heads. Today's lesson is on the power of creative thinking."
Creative problem solving (CPS) is a method whereby we use imaginative and innovative ideas for overcoming our difficulties and challenges. CPS can allow each of us to redefine the problems and opportunities we all face and find creative and innovative solutions for them. It's a modern-day version of thinking outside the box. Dharma explained creative problem solving this way,
C = Creative species elements of newness, innovation, and novelty.
P = Problem refers to any situation that presents a challenge, offers an opportunity or represents a troubling concern.
S = Solving means devising ways, to answer, to meet, or to satisfy a situation by changing self or the situation. 
So, how does one begin the creative problem-solving process? According to my wise teacher, we must start with divergent thinking. This means simply coming up with lots of options. At this point, we don't need to worry about how they'll work or if they'll work. The point of divergent thinking is to come up will as many ways as you can think of to solve the problem at hand. Most of you will know this as brainstorming. Brainstorm with yourself, your coworkers, friends, and family. Ask experts if you can. Generate as many plausible solutions as time allows.
Next is convergent thinking. We accomplish this by looking at all of our options and evaluating each of them. Then, we can narrow down our list to include only the ones that have real possibilities. Here, we begin making decisions. Dharma says that he likes to go through his list of top solutions, then list the pros and cons for each. He can then systematically choose the best possible solution to the problem or challenge at hand (or flipper, in our case). 
Oftentimes, necessity is the mother of invention. Creative thinking has led to some of the best innovations and technological advances of our time...of any time throughout history. Somebody sees a problem and dreams of creating a new/better way to approach one, they utilize the CPS process and, voila! That's how we end up getting great new products that make our lives easier and better. Every great idea started as creative thinking.
While not all of us will create things like Apple or the worldwide web, we each have issues in our lives that need fixing. And the solutions we've used in the past may no longer work.it's not just artists, writers, and musicians that are endowed with creative abilities. Each of us, frog and human alike, has the capability to be creative in solving our problems. After Dharma left this morning, I sat down and began some divergent thing in regards to my challenges. I will talk to family and my friends. We'll brainstorm and then I can actively choose which solution will work best for me. And this is a whole lot better than losing sleep and pacing the floor. Creative problem solving can work for you, too. So next time life is bugging you, give it a try! What have you got to lose besides a little sleep?
Until tomorrow, I wish you all
                                                                  PEACE

I think I've written about coral reefs here in the past but since they are in dire trouble, environmentally-speaking, I thought it might be a good idea to once again take a look at some of the world's most spectacular reefs.
"A coral reef is a submerged structure made up of many different polyps, or small marine invertebrates. These polyps are unable to move and cluster with other corals to form colonies, secreting calcium carbonate that binds them together to form a reef." Coral reefs have a mutually-beneficial arrangement with algae that live protected in the polyps while making up much of their food. Each individual animal (polyp) in the reef has a very hard exoskeleton which makes them appear strong and rock-like. Coral reefs cover only one percent of the ocean's floor yet are home to twenty-five percent of the world's marine species.
Coral reefs vary greatly in terms of size and type but all are sensitive to water properties like temperature and chemical composition.  Nearly all world's coral reefs are in the tropics. Following are the nine largest reefs, starting with the smallest.
9.  Reed Bank - South China Sea, claimed by the Philippines but disputed by China.
Area: 3,423 square miles (8,866 sq. km)
8.  Great Chagos Bank - The Maldives (Indian Ocean)
Area: 4,633 square miles (12,00 sq km)
7.  Saya de Malha Banks - Part of the Mascarene Plateau in the Indian Ocean. It's home to the largest continuous beds of seagrass in the world
Area:  15,444 square miles (40,000 sq km)
6.  Andros Island Barrier Reef - Located between the islands of Andros and Nassau. It is home to 164 species and is famous for its deep-water sponges and a large population of red snapper. It sits along a deep trench called the Tongue of the Ocean.
Area:  124 miles long​ (200 km)
5.  Florida Reef - Located in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, near Florida. It is the United States only coral reef and is worth $8.5 billion to the state's economy. It is disintegrating rapidly, faster than scientists first thought, due to the acidification of the ocean's water. Its home is the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary but does extend into the Gulf of Mexico
Area:  360 miles (579 km)
4.  The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef - Located in the Atlantic Ocean near Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. It is the largest coral reef in the Western Hemisphere and is sometimes called the Great Mayan Reef. It is a UNESCO (United Nationals Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) site where species of fish, including whale sharks live. it is also home to 350 species of mollusk.
Area:  585 miles (943 km)
​3.  New Caledonia Barrier Reef - Located in the Pacific Ocean, near New Caledonia. Its diversity and beauty has it listed too, on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list. It's even more diverse than the Great Barrier Reef and houses many threatened marine species.
Area:  932 miles (1,500 km)
​2.  Red Sea Coral Reef - Located in the Red Sea, near Egypt, Israel, and Djibouti. The corals in the Red Sea are being studies, especially those found in the northern part near the Gulf of Eilat because they seem to be able to withstand high temperatures.
Area:  1,180 miles in length (1,900 km)
1.  The Great Barrier Reef - Located in the Coral Sea near Australia. It is part of a protected national park in Australia and is large enough to be seen from space!
Area:  1,553 miles (2,500 km)
I hope you enjoyed learning about the some of the world's beautiful coral reefs. Some of them are well-known while others are a bit more obscure. But all of them play an important role in maintaining  Earth's grand biodiversity.
Please come back tomorrow to find out what lesson my wise teacher The Dharma Frog, has in store for me this week. Until tomorrow, I wish you
                                                                      Peace.

​Briney, Amanda. "The World's Largest Coral Reefs." ThoughtCo, Mar. 16, 2018, thoughtco.com/largest-coral-reefs-4157735.

There's a lot of talk lately about trade wars. It seems like everybody is slapping tariffs on everybody else's products. This isn't new, however, and I recently ran across an article about how a tax on chicken affected the US auto industry. I'm not kidding! Read on and learn about what is now called The Chicken War.
The Chicken tax is a 25% tariff (tax) originally imposed on brandy, dextrin, potato starch, and light trucks imported into the United States from other countries. President Lyndon Johnson imposed that tariff in 1963 after a similar tariff was imposed by West Germany and France on chicken meat that was imported from the US.  The tax was lifted on brandy, dextrin, and potato starch years ago, but still remains on imported light-duty trucks and vans. It is, of course, there to protect the interests of US automakers. As a result, major automakers have found a few very creative ways to circumvent the tax that's still in effect today.
So just how did The Chicken War get started? With the fear of a nuclear Armageddon still fresh in everyone's minds after the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, The Chicken War "played out during the height of the worldwide Cold War tensions. The history of the Chicken tax actually started back in the 1950's. Agricultural production in Europe was still low post-World War II. At the same time, US chicken production was steadily increasing. Chicken was scare and very expensive in Germany at that time. While the price of chicken at the grocery stores in the US was at an all-time low due to an increase in availability...supply and demand. With enough chicken to go around..."A chicken in every pot"...there was a surplus that could be exported to Europe. And the Europeans were more than happy to buy it. By 1961, the consumption of chicken in West Germany alone had increased by 23% because of imported American chicken. European governments began accusing the US of trying to corner the chicken market and forcing their local chicken producers out of business. This was the beginning of the Chicken War.  But that's not the end of the story.
Late in 1961 Germany and France, along with other European countries, imposed stiff tariffs and price controls on US chicken being imported. By early 1963, US chicken farmers were complaining that sales of their product were dropping by at least 25% because of the European tariffs. Through much of 1963, US and European diplomats tried to come to an agreement on chicken and tariffs, but all attempts failed. 
"With festering animosities and fear of the Cold War" influencing politics, Senator William Fullbright of the US gave an impassioned address at NATO regarding trade sanctions and US chicken. He finally threatened to withdraw troops from NATO over the issue. German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer recalled in his memoir that over half of his correspondence with US President John F. Kennedy had been about chicken and not a potential for nuclear holocaust. All I can say is, it's a good thing Twitter was around in those days!
At the same time all this was going on, the US auto industry was having their own trade crisis with more and more foreign cars being imported. In the early 1960's America's love affair with the VW Beetle was in full swing. Things got so bad with American auto company that they threatened a strike on all US auto production just before the presidential election of 1964. President Johnson appeased the auto workers by adding imported light trucks to the list of items covered by the Chicken Tax. The US has rescinded the tax on everything else but still kept the tariff on light-duty trucks and vans.
Even in international trade, there's a will and a way to make a profit. In 1972 Ford and Chevrolet discovered the "chassis cab" loophole which allowed for truck cabs to be imported at a 4% tax rather than the 25%. Once here, the auto manufacturers simply added the bed of the truck. President Jimmy Carter in 1980 closed the chassis cab loophole. Another "means to an end" example come from the German automaker Mercedes-Benz. They ship its Sprinter utility van to the US as parts and the vehicle gets assembled her. Not only do they get to by-pass the Chicken Tax this way, they also get to boast that their vans are "made in America."
The Chicken War has come and gone but the Chicken Tax remains after all these years. It begs the question, which came first, the chicken (tax) or the egg?
Until tomorrow, I wish you all PEACE.

​Longley, Robert. "The Chicken Tax and Its Influence on the U.S. Auto Industry." ThoughtCo, May. 9, 2018, thoughtco.com/chicken-tax-4159747.

Now that summer is officially here and temps are getting steamy, my buddies and I will be spending more and more time in the water. This weekend we're going to do something we haven't done in a while; and that's go scuba diving.  Most frogs snorkel...our general way of swimming just below the water's surface. But every now and again, it's kind of fun to dive deep and see what lies below. I've compiled a short list of fun facts about scuba diving that I hope you'll find interesting and maybe a little fun.
1.  Scuba stands for Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus
2.  Sharks kill, on average, 8-10 humans a year while humans kill over 30 million sharks each year.
3.  Once you get below 10 meters (11 yards) deep, humans cannot see red or yellow. If you should cut yourself, your blood will look blue!
4.  Sound travels five times faster underwater than through air, making it almost impossible to tell where a sound is coming from.
5.  Oxygen becomes toxic when under pressure. At depths greater than 42 meters (46 yards) special gases mixed with low oxygen is used.
6.  In 1943 Jacques Cousteau invented SCUBA gear. He called the cylinder tank an aqualung.
7.  Nitrogen narcosis affects all divers. Essentially, it is when nitrogen is breathed in at depths of more than 25 meters (27.3 yards). It's a little like being intoxicated.
8.  Human children can learn to dive as young as eight years. The limiting factor is that they must be able to manage the weight of the equipment.
9.  The Great Barrier Reef is the largest living organism on the planet, with a surface size greater than England.
10.  The Grey Whale migrates more than 16093.5 kilometers (10,000 miles) every year.
11.  Broken toes are the most common human scuba-diving injury.
12.  The world record for the deepest dive using a standard open-circuit scuba system was 318 meters (1044 feet) accomplished by South African diver Nuno Gomes in 2005. The dive was made off Dahab, Egypt.
Whatever your plans are for this weekend, try to spend a little time cooling off in the water. Even if that means dipping your toes in the backyard kiddie pool. Being around water is a great way to beat the heat and to beat the stress from your workweek. I invite you all back again on Monday but until then, stay safe and I wish you
                                                                     Peace.

Today's a banner day for a couple of reasons. Today is the official first day of summer...the summer solstice...and it's also World Yoga Day. I can't think of two better things to celebrate together! The first day of summer is the longest day of the year, with more hours to enjoy outdoors reading, exploring nature, just relaxing, or perhaps doing yoga. And, speaking of which, let's take a look at the history and benefits of this ancient wellness practice. Notice that I didn't say exercise program because yoga goes well beyond being good for the body.
The beginnings of yoga date back to over 5,000 years ago and were developed by the Indus-Sarasvati civilization in Northern India. Yoga was slowly refined and developed by the Brahmans and Rishis (mystic seers). The most renowned of all the Yoga scriptures is the Bhagavad-Gita which was written around 500 B.C.E.  Next came the pre-classical stage...kind of a mishmash of ideas, beliefs, and traditions.  Classical yoga came about in the second century. Patanjali, of this period, is considered to be "the father of yoga." Post-classical yoga, developed by yoga masters trained in the Patanjali tradition over the next couple of centuries, focused on ways to rejuvenate the body and prolong life. The exploration by these masters into the connection between body and spirit evolved into Tantra Yoga and then Hatha Yoga. Yoga in Sanskrit means union. In the late 1800's and early 1900's yogis began to move westward attracting both attention and followers. This is the considered the beginning of the Modern Period. But the importation of yoga into the West continued at a trickle until Indra Devi opened her yoga studio in Hollywood, California in 1947.  Since then, more and more teachers, as well as their students, have popularized Hatha Yoga and it's many schools or styles which focus on various aspects of the practice of yoga.
But why is yoga so important? Why do so many humans (frogs, too!) practice it? Here are a few of the benefits you might expect to gain by training your body and mind with yoga.
1.  It lowers stress and improves your mood.
2.  Yoga boosts self-confidence.
3.  It lowers the risk of injury by making the body more flexible.
4.  Yoga helps you lose weight!
5.  It improves muscle tone and strength. 
6.  Yoga lowers your blood pressure and improves your lung capacity when practiced regularly.
7.  Yoga improves your posture which generally makes you feel better all over and this improves your sense of well-being.
Yoga may look crazy but it's actually something that's really good for you and not that difficult to learn. The added plus is that is can be practiced outdoors and doesn't require a bunch of equipment.
I think it's safe to say that we all want to make the world a little better. Transformation of the outer world actually begins by transforming the inner self. And yoga is a great way to do that.  
Happy summer everyone! And Happy World Yoga Day! I wish you all
                                                                      Peace.

It's a little cool here in Land of Lily Pad this morning.  A gentle rain was falling when my alarm went off cause me great difficulty getting out of bed. But today is Wednesday and Dharma would be here soon so I forced myself to get up, then stood in the rain for a while to to wash off the the night's dust. I didn't feel much like cooking so I  fixed a very simple breakfast, put the kettle on for tea, and set the table. I was just turning off the stove when Dharma hopped onto my pad. He looked awful like he hadn't slept in days. "Dharma, you look a little peaked! Is everything alright?" "No, Tadpole, it isn't. And I need your help." While I was flattered to think that my wise teacher needed my help on something, I couldn't imagine what it could be.
"Sure thing, Dharma. What's going on? How can I help?" "Son, many years ago Lily Pad was the home to only little green frogs. But, because it's a beautiful swamp and we have such a high standard of living, frogs from other cultures and other places began moving in and much to the horror of many residents, these frogs weren't green. They were brown, spotted, red, yellow...some were large, some were small. Some even lived in the trees! Eventually, the population became divided, not just by color and culture, but by something far more dangerous. As you may well have noticed, Son, there's a great deal of dissent going on; frogs on both sides of the issue are speaking out. Both groups believe their way is the right way. There are a few who want us to once again become a swamp of only green frogs. There's even those openly oppose and hate these new frogs, they resent them, feeling like they're trying to take over. They want to kick out all the frogs and toads that look different or sing different songs. They hate the very idea that these different frogs are moving in, working here, and sending their froglets to school here." I have noticed this, of course, it'd be hard not to. It's in all the newspapers and on the news nearly every day. " I know. I see it too. But how can I help, Dharma?" I asked scratching my head. "Irwin, my boy, you're a writer and you post a blog every day. I need you to be sure and get my message out to as many of your readers as you can. And the message is this. Frogs must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools. Racism, Son, is a disease of the heart. But it can be cured. It's only fatal if it's left untreated." I wanted to know how this terrible, and potentially deadly disease, could be cured. Here's what my esteemed teacher said.
It begins with owning up to your own beliefs. If you can, talk about it openly and honestly...perhaps even with those you think you oppose; those that are different. This is a giant step of faith, of trust and understanding. And it has to come from both sides. Attend workshops in your area. The first big hurdle is to overcome is talking to those you would typically ignore (or worse). Learn a little about what it's like to walk a mile in their shoes. Learn where they came from and ask why they came. Understanding the problems they encountered in getting here and the reasons they often risked so much to come can bring us a little closer to having empathy and compassion for them. Suppose it was you. Wouldn't you do the very same thing?
Next, work to stop bullying. Whether it's at your kid's school, in your neighborhood, or maybe your workplace. Bullying is a form of racism. It stems from misunderstanding and ignorance of those who may be different.
The third step toward curing this dis-ease, is to stop stereotyping. Quite putting others into neat little boxes. Every frog and every human is different. There may be one bad worm, but that doesn't mean the who bucket needs emptying. Learn to look at others as individuals; judge them on their own merits.
Not all food looks the same. yet we like food with different colors and different flavors. Why can't this be true of our neighbors, too? Learning to be open to meeting new people, to judge them on who they are, not by their size or shape or color, is the basis for curing racism. It's about not being afraid to try new things. You'd prompt your child to try out the new insect (or vegetable or fruit) even when it might look a little different, even unappetizing. The same should be true of meeting new frogs or new humans. How do you know who you'll like them until you meet them and spend time with them? Understand that under the skin, every frog and every human wants the same things; the opportunity to live and work in peace; to provide shelter, food, and education for ourselves and for our children.  Only our appearance is different.   Next on Dharma's cure list are bandages.
We've all heard that "sticks and stones may break our bones, but names or words can't hurt us."  This simply sin't true. Broken bones heal. Cuts and scrapes heal. But often time our words wound in such a way that they leave deep and painful scars. Watch your language. Don't say cruel things. The biggest bandage in the world won't heal a wounded soul. And lastly,
The bitter and the sweet. When we were little our parents probably gave us bitter-tasting medicine to help cure our cold or flu. It tasted bad, but only for a moment. In time, however, we began to feel better...more like ourselves. Healing racism is a lot like taking that awful medicine.  We know it's going to taste bad but if we want to cure what ails us, we know we need to take. 
Once we admit we have a problem, that racism is wrong, it can make taking that bitter pill a little easier. The first one is always the worse. But it does get easier over time and eventually, we feel like ourselves. maybe even better! Hate is a terrible and heavy load for our hearts to carry. Alleviating hate makes our hearts function better. We feel more love and life is easier and sweeter when we love instead of hate. Hate is poison. Love is the cure.
I know how lucky we are to live in Land of Lily Pad. We have a great way of life. Is it so hard to believe that others might want to share it with us? Most of these new frogs will do their part in keeping our swamp great. They'll add their own unique flavor, making it a melting pot that's better for everyone. We may love salt, but pepper, garlic, onion and other flavors season our food and make it taste even better. Our life can be just like that if we learn to appreciate diversity. Thanks, Dharma, for this insightful and important lesson. I hope it helps. Until tomorrow, I wish you 
                                                                   Peace.

If you're reading this blog, there's a very good chance you live here on Planet Earth. Earthlings have come to enjoy a day that is 24 hours in length...23 hours and 56 minutes to be exact. Humans break it up into segments; += 8 hours for sleeping, += 8 hours for work, and the rest of the time is yours to enjoy as you will. But what would happen if you lived somewhere else? Do other planets experience 24 hours in their day? It's an intriguing  thought and one that I decided to investigate. Here's what I learned.
The length of a day depends, of course, is based n the time needed for the astrological body to make one complete turn on its axis. The moon, for example, takes 29. 5 days to make one full rotation. This means that any future inhabitants on the Moon will have to adjust to 14 straight days of sunlight and nights that last for a similar length of time. 
Here's a rundown on other planets.
Mercury - It takes 58.6 days for this planet to make a complete spin. That may seem like a long time but consider that their year is only 88 days long. That's because it orbits very close to the sun. But here's a twist. "Mercury is gravitationally locked with the Sun in such a way that it rotates three times on its axis for every two times it goes around the Sun. If people could live on Mercury, they'd experience one full day (sunrise to sunrise) every two Mercurian years." 
Venus - Venus spins very slowly, taking 243 Earth days to complete a rotation. Because Venus is closer to the sun than Earth, the planet has a 225-day year. This means their day is actually longer than a year. Residents, if there were any, would get only two sunrises per year. " One more fact to remember: Venus spins "backward" on its axis compared to Earth, which means those two yearly sunrises take place in the west and sunsets occur in the east."
Mars - A day on Mars lasts 24 hours and 37 minutes making it very close to an Earth day. This is part of the reason that mars is thought of a kind of Earth twin. "Because Mars is farther than Earth from the Sun, however, its year is longer than Earth's at 687 Earth days." This could be very nice when it comes to celebrating birthdays. Everyone on Earth would be only 1/2 as old on Mars. But not so great when looking forward to your annual vacation or raise.
Jupiter - Figuring out the length of a day on Jupiter isn't easy. "On the gas giant planet, Jupiter the equatorial region of the cloud belts rotates at a rate of 9 hours and 56 minutes, while the poles rotate quite a bit faster, at 9 hours and 50 minutes.  The 'canonical' (that is, commonly accepted) day length on Jupiter is determined by the rotation rate of its magnetic field, which is 9 hours 55 minutes long.   If you worked on Jupiter, you'd probably need to ask for a longer lunch hour....
​Saturn - Based on measurements of various parts of gas giant Saturn, planetary scientists have calculated that the official length of Saturn's day is 10 hours and 33 minutes.
Uranus - This place is a weird world. The most unusual characteristic of Uranus is that it's tipped over on its side and "rolls" around the sun laying on it's side. I mean, how lazy can you get! This means, though that either one axis or the other is pointed at the sun during its 84-yr-long orbit. Uranus does turn on its axis once every 17 hours and 14 minutes. "The length of day and the length of the Uranian year, along with the weird tilt of its axis, all combine to that planet a day that lasts about as long as one season here on Earth.
Neptune - This gas giant planet has a day that's roughly 15 hours long. it took scientists several years to calculate the rotation rate of this gas giant. "They accomplished the task by studying images of the planet as features rotated around in its atmosphere. No spacecraft has visited Neptune since Voyager 2 in 1989, so Neptune's day must be studied from the ground." And last but not least,
Pluto - The little "dwarf" planet Pluto has the longest year of any known planet, lasting for 248 years. Their day is shorter but still longer than the one we experience here.  Each day lasts for six Earth days plus 9.5 hours. Pluto is tipped to its side at an angle of 122 degrees with respect to the Sun. As a result, during part of its year, portions of Pluto's surface enjoy either continuous sunlight or bathed in continues night-time.
I don't know about you, but looking at these astronomical facts has made me appreciate Earth a whole lot more. And can you even begin to imagine what jet lag would be like on some of these planets???? Yikes!
I hope you'll join me back here tomorrow when my beloved friend and wise teacher, the Dharma Frog will be here for my weekly life lesson.
                                                                         Peace.

​Petersen, Carolyn Collins. "How Long Is a Day on Other Planets?" ThoughtCo, Jun. 11, 2018, thoughtco.com/day-length-other-planets-4165689.

Yesterday was Father's Day and, like many of you, I honored dad by cooking a few of his favorite foods on the backyard grill. Mom prepared a bunch of tasty side dishes and little brother Quigley insisted there be plenty of his favorite treat....potato chips. We take chips for granted. They've seemingly been around forever. They're plentiful; they can be found at any grocery or convenience store, truck stop and are a staple side dish at most diners. Just order a sandwich and good chances it'll come with chips.
But have you ever given any thought to their origin? I hadn't until yesterday when Quigley, Jr. said that he wished he'd invented potato chips. That got me wondering...who DID invent potato chips...and when did they first appear? Here's what I learned.
​George Crum, born George Speck was born July 15, 1824. George became a renowned chef at Moon's Lake House in Sarasota Springs, New York in the mid-1800's. Moon's Lake House was a high-end restaurant that catered to very wealthy patrons when George went to work for there.  One of those patrons was Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt who regularly forgot Chef George's given surname. He began calling him Crum and it stuck. George Speck was known professionally as George Crum forever after.
Legend has it that the potato chip was invented when a picky customer, many think it was Vanderbilt himself, kept sending his french fries back because they were too thick. Becoming frustrated with the customer's constant complaints, Chef George sought revenge by slicing the potatoes paper-thin, frying them until they were crispy, and topping them off with a lot of salt. As luck would have it, the customer loved them and Moon's Lake House restaurant added them to their menu, calling them Sarasota Chips.
But like every good story, there are a number of notable disputes. Recipes for slicing potatoes wafer-thin and frying them supposedly appeared in cookbooks around the early 1800's...well before Crum was ever born. Several reports and biographies on George Crum are conspicuously missing any mention of his famous invention. His obituary neglected to mention it, as well. The best dispute, however, comes from his own sister Kate Wicks who claims it was she who invented the potato chip. Her obituary published in 1924, lists her age as 102. The obit goes on to say that while she was working at Moon's Lake House, alongside her brother George, she inadvertently let a sliver of a potato fall into the fryer. She let Crum taste it. His "enthusiastic approval" led to his decision to add it to the restaurant's menu. This story is supported by Wick's own recount of the event and has been published in several periodicals. 
Visitors came from far and wide to taste this new treat sensation and Cary Moon, owner of the restaurant, even tried to claim the invention as his own. Moon even went so far as to sell boxes of the now-famous Sarasota Chips. Crum eventually left Moon's establishment and opened up his own restaurant, simply named "Crum's," in 1860. Chef George provided each table with a basket of chips. 
Crum's chips remained a local delicacy until 1920 when a salesman and entrepreneur named Herman Lay began traveling through the south introducing the potato chip to communities all over. Shortly thereafter, potato chips went into mass-production and Lay's Potato Chips were sold nationwide. Bet you can't eat just one...I know little brother Quigley sure can't!
I hope you had a wonderful and safe Father's Day.  Until tomorrow,  I wish you
                                                                    PEACE.

​Nguyen, Tuan. "The Story of George Crum, Inventor of the Potato Chip." ThoughtCo, Jun. 13, 2018, thoughtco.com/george-crum-potato-chip-4165983.