There's a bear in my car!

Can you imagine what it must be like to find out a bear has hijacked your car and drove it down a hill? All for the love of a PB & J sandwich? To me, it sounds like an episode of Yogi Bear and Boo boo on a hunt for the elusive pic-a-nic basket.

I know that deputies are trained to be ready to handle everything, but can you imagine the surprise they must have felt after shining their flashlights into the car and seeing a mighty cranky big black bear staring right back? Not exactly what you'd expect to find in a car in the middle of the night on someone's property!

CNN reported, "Somehow, the bear had either opened the unlocked back door or pushed a window down to get inside. Understandably agitated, it bumped into the horn repeatedly and eventually knocked the car's gear into neutral. The Toyota rolled down the hill. The door added to the bear's indignity by closing at some point during the ordeal."

After brainstorming on what the best option would be for everyone, including the Yogi Bear wannabe, the deputies decided to tie a really really long rope to the door handle and pull it open and let the bear escape the car. The bear was happy to be free, but annoyed about being trapped in a car for two hours, left a little present on the car seat for everyone. Not to mention, the bear left quite a bit of damage in his/her wake.

For the full story, check out CNN.com!

Here's a video with interviews and a couple of great snapshots of the shredded car.



My conclusion?

The trailer for the Yogi Bear movie just got a whole lot more believable!

My open letter to Mother Nature.

Dearest Mother Nature,

I'm writing because I fear you might be a bit hot under the collar. Our current weather is what brought this potential problem to my attention. We have finally picked up on some of the clues you've been dropping. For example, we've noticed that it's sort of hot here in Chicago. Like really hot. Today it feels like 104 degrees. 104 dear Mother. 104! We haven't had just one day like this, we've had a couple. The most days above 90 degrees since 2005.

I'm not sure what's got your blood boiling but I'd like to know how we can fix it for you and when you might be ready to cool down. Or at least soak up some of this humidity. We are practically swimming through the heavy air out there and while my arms could use the work out, I'd love to see a decrease in our muggy atmosphere.

I have a few suggestions that might help you in your time of need.

Maybe try Yoga? Deep breathing exercises might help you and us out. Deep breath in, deep breath out. Feel free to blow all over Chicago while you do your exercises. We don't mind the wind, we're used to it.

Maybe you are dehydrated and therefore a little cranky? Please fill up your cup of water and then let that cup overflow and rain down on us. We could use a little cold water to help keep the sizzle at bay.

Perhaps take a small vacation? To a nice cool place? It doesn't have to be really cold there, just below 80 would do you a world of good.

And most importantly, if you have a problem with something or someone, please address it rather than stewing and simmering in anger. This is not good for you or for us. We can feel your anger radiating everywhere. We're sorry if we did something to upset you. We are trying our best, and finally lots of people are on board with being Green. That's gotta count for something, right? A for effort? Ok, fine. B- for effort? We are trying to get the whole world on board but it takes a while.

Please think about what I said. We love you Mother Nature. Really we do. We love all you give us. The cool crisp Autumn days (we miss Autumn, please bring her back whenever you feel like it!), the beautiful rainbows, waterfalls, spring flowers, lush forests, the perfect warm, but not too crazy hot, days of summer. The list could go on and on!

We hope you take our apology and my suggestions seriously. Thanks for all you do!

Love,
The People of Earth.

PS - Sometime soon we do need to talk about what's happening in Milwaukee with all the flooding. And of course, we need to have a sit down about earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes and some of your other areas that could, ahem, use some tweaking.

Drink beer to save the Gulf!

Wondering what you can do to help bring relief to the Gulf? Crack open a bottle of beer and chug-a-lug! Only if you are of legal drinking age of course (Duh.).

Abita Brewing Company has done something genius. On Friday, July 16th, they introduced Abita SOS-A Charitable Pilsner. The brewing company, in Abita Springs, LA, has said that they will donate 75 cents for every SOS bottle sold to a charitable fund (established by Abita) that will assist with the restoration of the environment and aiding the industries and individuals that are trying to survive the horrendous spill.

How will you recognize the bottles in your store or at the bars? Easy. Look for the Gulf Coast. Or rather iconic images of the Gulf. The bottles have hand drawn illustrations of pelicans, fish, shrimp, marsh grass and fishing boats which all form into the distress symbol: SOS.

Abita also has merchandise you can purchase online and a 100% of the proceeds go to the SOS fund. You can also give donations directly to the fund online.

I feel pretty confident in Abita's abilities because this isn't their first time at the rodeo. To help with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Abita introduced Restoration Pale Ale (along with other merchandise).

Abita ended up raising over a half a million dollars for Hurricane Katrina victims. That is amazing to me!

Let's do it again, shall we? Think about what you can do to help them raise the same amount one more time. Ask your favorite bartender if they plan on carrying the beer. Hunt for it at your local grocery store. If you can't find it, ask a store manager if they plan on carrying it. Give the beer as a host/hostess gift at a BBQ. Use it as a great excuse to get all drunkity drunk (if you are legal..do I have to say it again? Sadly, I probably do need to repeat it.). Or buy yourself a SOS Gulf T-shirt to help spread the word. Those are just a few ideas to get you started!

For more info, check out Abita's website. Please please take the time to help out, or at least start spreading the news!

Thanks to NBC 5 Chicago for sharing the story!

The Cove. You need to watch it!

Have you watched The Cove yet?

If you haven't, you really should. It's important for everyone to watch, even if you don't consider yourself an animal lover (If you love one type of animal, for example your cat, your dog, you're an animal lover in my book!). This movie is sad and touching and yes in parts hard to watch, but it's also extremely inspiring. Makes me want to do my part. Which is why I'm spreading the word right here. I truly think it's crucial to take the time to watch this movie. Not to mention, it's just a well made, captivating documentary. A keep you on the edge of your seat movie! You seriously cannot believe some of the things that happen in this movie! It has also won award after award, most notably an Oscar for Best Documentary.

Now to be open and honest about where I am coming from, I have always been a huge animal lover. One of my favorites without question is the dolphin. They are such interesting creatures, brimming with intelligence, love and a quiet understanding. But like I said, even if you don't consider yourself an animal lover, this movie is still important. The movie is described really well on their Facebook page:



The Cove exposes not only the tragedy of dolphin slaughtering in Japan, but also the dangerously high levels of mercury in dolphin meat and seafood, the cruelty in capturing dolphins for entertainment, and the depletion of our ocean’s fisheries by worldwide seafood consumption. We also see how the mandate of the International Whaling Commission has been manipulated by the Japanese Fisheries Agency for its benefit and its subsequent effect on the rest of the world.


So it's not just about the dolphins. It's also about a cover up and how it's effecting our health and politics across the globe.

Please please take the time to at least watch the videos posted below. And fair warning, some of the images are not kid-friendly. This is not a movie (or preview) for children. I want to also say that I'm not implicating Sea World or any other similar place in this blog. That's not what I'm talking about or wanting to address. I am only saying that I don't agree with what's happening in the town in Japan where this is taking place.

If you are inspired and want to learn more or help out, check out The Cove on Facebook. Or check out their website or the movie website.

Mmm, tasty but I think this book needs ketchup!

Ever read a good book and decide that it's just not doing it for you? Ever think about adding ketchup to see if that makes a difference? Yeah, me either. But apparently Joy Cassidy of Boise, Idaho has had that thought. Or a similar thought because this lady was pouring all sorts of condiments down into a library drop box. This condiment cuckoo has tried maple syrup (around breakfast time I can only assume), corn syrup, ketchup and mayonnaise.

Ok, someone has to ask the tough questions here. Why in world would you waste your time (and the condiments) to deface library books? What did Catcher in the Rye ever do to you? Or did you think Rye tastes so good with mustard and you just couldn't help yourself? Now to be fair, I've never tasted a book, so I have no idea if it needs ketchup or maple syrup. If only I could ask Ms. Cassidy! I'm not the only one that wants to hear what she has to say for herself. The court system has been anxiously awaiting her explanation and perhaps recipes.

According to the Chicago Tribune, there were warrants out for 74 year old Cassidy earlier this month because she failed to appear in court. Lucky for the cops, they won't have to follow a mayo trail because Cassidy decided to turn herself in.

My favorite bit from the article:

(This is after the article mentioned that Cassidy turned herself in on Monday.)

"That's after police say she poured mayonnaise in the library's book drop box that day — and was a person of interest in at least 10 other condiment-related incidents at the Ada Community Library in Boise since May 2009."

"Condiment-related incidents." Makes me laugh every time. I shouldn't be laughing though. We need to take our condiment crimes seriously. We have to think about the victims. Atleast now the library books can rest easy. No more fear of being drenched like a hamburger on July 4th. Whew!

The tea that changed my life. Ok, so that's a little dramatic but this tea is good!

I recently discovered the most amazing thing. Wait for it.....TEA! Yes, that's right, tea. Not the fountain of youth, the cure to any disease or anything of real importance but still a mighty fine discovery in my world.

I have never liked coffee and I didn't want to drink pop (soda, soda pop, Coke, fountain beverage-whatever you want to call it!) early in the morning and I didn't want to drink it on a regular basis. So what was I left with? Tea. I didn't like any of my previous encounters with tea. I was ready to just give up (especially when I found out that all the stores I frequent stopped carrying the Diet Coke with Splenda-the only kind of pop I'd let myself drink on occasion) when I was organizing one day and I found a magazine recipe that had an article on the back of it. The article talked about a study that discovered if you drank something you didn't like for 7 days straight, your chances of liking it improved by 70-something percent! I liked those odds and decided to give it a go!

Now my husband is an tea enthusiast, so we had plenty of choices but I went out and bought another kind-just to have options. Well my options stunk. I wasn't sure how I was going to make it the full 7 days. It just tasted flat and slightly woody and bland. I was in trouble. But thank goodness for my husband. We were out shopping and he wanted to stop at the mecca of all things tea, Teavana.

I was still skeptical when we walked in but after I started tasting their samples, I was a changed woman. The saleswoman probably thought I was certifiable because I pretty much went crananas over how good it all tasted. I couldn't believe this was tea! Full of flavor and thicker than the watery stuff I drank on the way there.

We've since bought three different Teavana tea blends and have loved them all. Everything is loose leaf and that's the way you want it trust me. It makes all the difference. Check out what Teavana has to say about that here.

I was so happy to find the answer to my caffeine prayers here. They have maté teas, which have as much caffeine as a cup of coffee! Take that coffee! And of course all of their teas, and tea in general, have health benefits too. Think antioxidants out the wazoo!

The tea that I got to help with my caffeine needs was their mix of White Ayurvedic Chai and Samurai Chai Maté. YUM. We also purchased Youthberry and Wild Orange Blossom tea and Strawberry Lemonade and Apple Lemon Pomegranate tea. Both delish but sans caffeine.

Check Teavana out on Facebook or take a look at their very informative website. You can buy tea from their stores or online! They also have a tea of the month club, a blog all about tea (check it out here), and even an iPhone app that can give you advice on blending teas! There's no excuse for you not to like tea anymore!

Will denim diapers make your baby cool?

A baby boy struts confidently into the playground in the newest coolest denim diaper. Jaws drop everywhere. Babies eyes are drawn to this fashion plate. The baby boy gives two girls on the swing set a wink. The girls begin whispering to each other.

"OMG. Check him out. He looks so cool. I love that diaper he's wearing."

"Yeah, he's so dreamy. He's totally gonna be the most popular baby on the playground. What should we do?"

"We need to go share his sandbox. Like yesterday."

I was so inspired by the Huggies Denim Diapers commercial that I thought I would work on a pitch for the next one. This is all I have so far, but my mind is reeling with possibilities. Because, whether I think it's a good idea or not, the commercial and the slogan are pretty creative and smart.

"The coolest you'll look pooping your pants." Come. On. That's hilarious! You have to give the marketing people some credit. They took a unnecessary and ridiculous product and made it work. It's like when you give a gag gift, you know no one is really needs the gift or takes it seriously but it's just too funny to pass up. It's all in the way you spin it.

That said, I wouldn't buy this diaper and I think it's slightly odd and wasteful to have a disposable diaper look "fancy" when you are just going to throw it away. I don't know if I could talk myself into spending more money for something like that. I could see maybe if it was a cloth diaper or another type of reusable diaper. It also doesn't make much sense to me because most people cover up the diapers with clothes and babies don't really care about what their clothes look like. I suppose a toddler might and that might be an argument for the fancy smancy diaper.

In the end, it doesn't really matter. This commercial give me the giggles and I appreciate that. They aren't taking themselves seriously and we shouldn't either!

If you haven't seen the commercial, never fear! I have posted it below!