Photo taken in Venice Beach, CA. Signs for a beach preservation project.
Showing posts with label ocean. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ocean. Show all posts
Beach Flash Mob for Heal the Bay
Flash mob at the Heal the Bay Coastal Cleanup Day (with a very clever use of Jack Johnson's reduce-reuse-recycle song).
Octopus News: Paul and Mr. Bob
It's been a big week for the octopus. Yesterday, Octopus Oracle Paul was #1 on Google Trends when I checked (I liked the "Seer Sucker" headline on Yahoo Sports). Today, via Boing Boing, comes a sweet story about an octopus set free to mate and finish life in the deep blue sea.
World Ocean Day
Photos taken in Venice Beach, CA.
It's been a busy week and we missed World Oceans Day on June 8. I live where I get to see (and hear and smell) the ocean every day (and think I'm one of the luckiest girls in the world for that). Protecting our oceans is vital; huge kudos to those who make it their mission to do so, like the fine folks who work for Heal the Bay and Surfrider.
Starfish Videos
Via Boing Boing: this videos of a starfish in action, flipping right side up. And a link to more videos, too.
Oil Spill Reaction Online
I saw on Facebook that some friends had joined a group calling for the use of BP executives to plug the hole--and then I heard about this fake BP Twitter account that tackles the subject of the oil spill with razor-sharp satire (we'll see how long it's up before BP takes it down--betting they'll be able to stop this faster than the mess they made in our seas). Of course, it's an environmental tragedy that is breaking our hearts--but sometimes you've gotta use humor to deal with news this bad. Oh, and it also feels good to do something to support those environmental organizations that work tirelessly to protect our seas. (Here in LA, we salute Heal the Bay and Surfrider.)--Stef McDonald
Jack Johnson's Concert to Clean the Beach
Another reason to love Jack Johnson: he's performing a free concert on the Santa Monica Pier to help Heal the Bay, a kick-ass organization that works to keep our sea and seaside clean in Los Angeles. It's billed as a "Concert To Clean The Beach" and that's how you get your ticket to see him perform on the pier -- by participating in a beach clean-up organized by Heal the Bay a few days before the concert.
UPDATE: It was great. Not sure how long this will be live, but the concert was streamed live and can be seen here.
Oil Spill Horror: Taking Action
If you're like us, you've read about the oil spill and felt bad about it, but maybe you have stopped short of looking at too many images or reading deep into how terrible it really is. Take a look at these photos from the Boston Globe. It's horrible. So what can we do? Wind power, people! Read about it and put in your two-cents and write to Congress, asking for a change. --Stef McDonald
Cool App for Art
I've just discovered a cool app for the iPad/iPhone: ArtStudio, which lets you draw on the screen. Mr. MVP made this wave.--Stef McDonald
Mavericks Wave Knocks Over Spectators
The Mavericks surf contest always promises excitement. But spectators expect to witness the excitement from afar--close enough to see but, well, that's close enough. A wave overtook spectators this past week and the several suffered broken bones and while others were bruised and battered. Scary.--Stef McDonald
Cool Gift: Adopt a Sea Creature
Via The Daily Green: If you're looking for a non-commercial gift idea for a loved one who worships the sea, consider adopting a sea creature with Oceana, a non-profit organization that fights to protect the ocean and its inhabitants. The recipient of your gift gets a cookie cutter or stuffed animal as a token and Oceana uses donations to fight the good fight in protecting dolphins, sea turtles, penguins, and more.--Stef McDonald
Whale Tale: Sweet!
One of those heartwarming emails that gets forwarded landed in my inbox today (thanks, Robert) about a whale that was stuck in traps but eventually freed. The story, cut and pasted from the email:
"If you read a SF Chronicle front page story, you would've read about a female humpback whale who had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line-rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, and a line tugging in her mouth.
A fisherman spotted her just east of the Farallon Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed an environmental group for help.
Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so bad-off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her.
They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her.
When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles.
She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, and nudged them, pushed them gently around--she was thanking them. Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives.
The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth said her eyes were following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.
May you, and all those you love, be as fortunate to be surrounded by people who'll help you get untangled from the things that are binding you.
And may you always know the joy of giving and receiving.
I pass this on to you in the same spirit."
"If you read a SF Chronicle front page story, you would've read about a female humpback whale who had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line-rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, and a line tugging in her mouth.
A fisherman spotted her just east of the Farallon Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed an environmental group for help.
Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so bad-off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her.
They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her.
When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles.
She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, and nudged them, pushed them gently around--she was thanking them. Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives.
The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth said her eyes were following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.
May you, and all those you love, be as fortunate to be surrounded by people who'll help you get untangled from the things that are binding you.
And may you always know the joy of giving and receiving.
I pass this on to you in the same spirit."
Photos: Sea Life
David Barr's photos of Antarctica and underwater photos of sea life, including seals, are spectacular.
Wow: Whale Photography
Via HuffPost, a gorgeous gallery of whale photos from Bryant Austin. The photographer is known for taking spectacular photos of endangered species, bringing awareness to their plight with the Marine Mammal Conservation Through The Arts. (Poster pictured above comes from the mmcta.org site, where you can find out more and donate to the cause.)
Cove Drama: Behind the Scenes
Boing Boing has a great post on the director of "The Cove," the documentary on dolphin killings in Japan. Louie Psihoyos talks about the experience of being present for a screening of the film in Japan with those who participate in the slaughter and/or support it right there in the audience.
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