The Show by Lenka

Good Morning SuperForest!

With the holiday season coming to an end in its usual, busy fashion, life can get pretty hectic.

We have all been there: Last minute shopping, visiting friends and family, all kinds of goodies and sweet treats to make.

Sometimes when we start to get frustrated it is good to sit back and say, "hey, I can't control everything, so I might as well enjoy the ride."

Or, like the talented Australian singer Lenka says: just enjoy the show.



Her official music video doesn't allow embedding, but here is a link to that as well:

Lenka - The Show

I have had this catchy tune stuck in my head for a while so it seems only fair to share that with you all!

Here's to life,
Spoon

Free Hugs!

Hello everyone,
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving radiating with the love and positivity that the Universe is constantly throwing at us. And what is more representative of love and positivity than a big hug from a total stranger!? I'm sure we've all seen the FREE HUGS signs and shirts, and are often hesitant to accept them, but, to quote the Free Hugs Campaign website, "sometimes a hug is all we need".



Love to all,
iman.

And pigs fly...

Pigs take to the skies and the race track as part of the Royal Melbourne Show in Australia. It's an annual event that also features an Animal Nursery lawn, where children can engage in activities and learn about sustainability and the environment. Too cute!

Photos: AFP

Australia - 199, West Virginia - 0

West Virginia!

You slippery eel of a state.

We love you so much and you ignore us.

We'll just have to try much harder.

West Virginia, consider yourself stalked.

Love,

Jackson & Team SuperForest

p.s. Sorry we called you a slippery eel.

p.p.s. And a big "G'day!" to all the lovely people of Australia! 

Aussie! Aussie! Aussie!

Oy! Oy! Oy!

Why is it so?

Between 1963 and 1986 there was a television series named "Why is it so?" broadcasted on Australian televesion. And, as MAKE brought to my attention yesterday, the Australian Broadcasting Corpopration put up some old "Why is it so" fragments on the internet.

A pleasantly mad man named who goes by the name of Professor Julius Sumner Miller presents physical principles to everyone who wants to know about it.
It's wonderful to see such an enthusiastic man doing what he's passionate about.

Here's a youtube fragment I found where Miller explains the Bernoulli principle.

Yeah, Julius Sumner Miller!

-jdh

SuperForester April Presents: Inspiration Grab-Bag!

Boy oh boy!

Jackson here.

Several weeks back, we put up a post asking for people who were interested in writing and contributing for/to SuperForest to get in touch with us, and as a result some very quality people have since joined the Team.

The newest of which is all the way from Sydney, Aus!

We are proudly proud to present SuperForester April, with her round-up of funny, quirky, inspiring finds.

Take it away, April!

G’day Superforest folk!

Hi. My name’s April Smallwood and I live in Sydney, Australia. I’ve just spent the last five minutes chuckling to myself as I, like other newcomer Julius de Hond, also found Superforest via Jason Mraz’s blog. Ah, the beauty of web links.

I work as a copy editor and spend my days writing advertorials for magazines. It’s my first job since graduating and I dig it so far. I am keen to write for SF since it has such a positive message – that change isn’t out of our hands, rather it’s actionable and achievable, and that a little can go a long way. I must confess it’s not until recently that I started to give lots of thought towards making the world a better place, so it was great to discover SF and all the crazy, kooky and wonderful ideas it offers readers.

I recently took up two new hobbies: guitar and skateboarding. I’ve found both are completely splendid ways to spend my time and I hope to improve with more practice. My favorite musician is Ray LaMontagne, my favorite film is High Fidelity and my favorite spread is peanut butter.

SHOW YOUR LOVE

The OneLove project (link to oneloveproject.blogspot.com), created by Fiona Byrne, aims to collect and showcase photos, artwork, illustrations or poems that reveal your personal take on love. Everyone from anywhere is encouraged to strut their stuff, so send a low-res jpeg/ pdf or word document of your ‘love work’ to oneloveproject@gmail.com

(Modern Love by Carrie Lipscomb)

AVOID THE TRAP

I recently stumbled on a passionate article about the way green products have come to signal trendiness. In it, Helen Machalias discusses the rise of the ‘green’ business, and warns against the trap of buying green consumer products as a way to heighten our green status. She stresses that doing our part for the environment involves more than recycled toilet paper and organic cotton tees.

Here’s an excerpt:

Affluenza author Clive Hamilton says that green consumerism allows people to create ‘a noble greenie identity... so it continues to promote the whole idea of self-creation through consumption.’ Our energy saving light bulbs and cotton shopping bags proclaim to the world that we are cool, that we are eco-chic.

(Photo by flickr userAndy Carvin)

To read the full article:

http://www.actnow.com.au/Opinion/Ecochic_fashion_statement_or_real_change.aspx

SAY WHAT?

Here’s a great quote I found while reading The Idler website (link to http://idler.co.uk), which aims to make idling something to aspire towards, rather than reject.

The shrew don’t stagger

Lewis Smith | July 30, 2008

A SHREW with a taste for alcoholic nectar has been identified as the hardest-drinking creature in the world.

Pen-tailed tree shrews have such an appetite for alcohol that each night they imbibe, weight for weight, the equivalent of a human downing as much as nine glasses of wine.

Their capacity to hold their drink and keep a clear head, however, puts human boozers to shame. After a night at the jungle bar, the shrews are not even unsteady on their feet, let alone being copiously sick or starting fights.

They get their drinks from bertam palms, which grow in the jungles of west Malaysia and produce nectar boasting an alcohol content that can match beer.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,24099395-30417,00.html?from=public_rss

The truth really is out there

Edgar Mitchell

July 25, 2008

Former NASA astronaut Edgar Mitchell says aliens have contacted humans several times but governments have hidden the truth for 60 years.

The Apollo 14 astronaut said he was aware of many UFO visits to Earth during his NASA career but each one was covered up.

Dr Mitchell, 77, said during a radio interview that sources at the space agency who had had contact with aliens described the beings as "little people who look strange to us". He said the aliens were similar to the traditional Hollywood image of having a small frame, large eyes and head.

Dr Mitchell was the sixth man to walk on the moon and holds the record, with Alan Shepard, for the longest moon walk - nine hours and 17 minutes.

In an interview conveniently timed to coincide with the recent launch of the second X-Files movie, he said human technology was "not nearly as sophisticated" as theirs and warned: "Had they been hostile ... we would be gone by now".

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,24072558-30417,00.html?from=public_rss

War on waste

You’re not the only one who ends up with a fridge full of wilting lettuce and sunken red peppers at the end of the week. The sad thing is, most of what we throw out is edible. If it goes in the bin, it ends up at a landfill site, with tonnes of other people’s waste, where it’s crushed and compacted. The food then decomposes to produce not only an unholy stench, but a huge amount of methane – a harmful greenhouse gas.

Read on for five ways to cut down on food waste now

• Get a home composter or wormery so food never reaches landfill.
• Understand the difference between a use-by date (after which you could become ill if you eat something) and a best-before date (a quality judgement not a food safety issue). Eggs are an exception – they carry a best-before label but must not be eaten after that date.
• Buy a fridge thermometer and make sure your appliance is operating at optimum 0-5C.
• Measure carbohydrates such as rice and pasta carefully to avoid over-catering. For example, a normal pasta serving is 100g per person.
• Cook in batches. Divide large dishes such as lasagne into portions, freeze and later reheat as an instant ready-meal.

Taken from the June 2008 issue of BBC Olive magazine.

(Jackson here again. Amazing stuff, April. Keep reading SF on the dilly for more inspiring posts from SuperForester April. Our little Team is growing and growing and it's so thrilling!)

Love to All,

SuperForester April & Team SuperForest

MyPOWER Team Cycles Australia, Highlights Sustainability

Hello All,

Just blundered on to this great series of viddys from MyPOWER.

MyPOWER is a team of Aussies who are cycling around mainland Australia, highlighting positive environmental and sustainable actions wherever they go. Four guys, three bikes, and one support Prius seems to be all it takes to produce some deliciously fun and informative eco-media.

Check it out:

Part the first-


Part the second-


Part the third-

(Ooooh nice! We love the Food Forest! Great name.)

They've only got three episodes up right now, but we'll post more as they become available.

It's great work these cats are doing and we heartily support them.

Here's the MyPOWER site.

Go MyPOWER! Pedal! Pedal! Pedal!

p.s. Here's a link to bonus MyPOWER footage

Beyond "Trash"

We just saw this over at wired.com

This is how the Australian company Global Renewables is dealing with "trash"
They've invented a machine whereby trash goes in, recyclables, biofuels and compost comes out.

Here's how the system works:


(illustration for wired by Peter Grundy)

We need this in every city in the US and we need it now.

Happy Tuesday,

Team SF

Thanks to wired.com!