Picardin

Picardin is a next generation insect repellent designed to replace DEET. 🐜Invented in the 1980s, carefully studied for toxicity in the 1990s it became on the market in the United States in the early 2000s after first being approved in Europe first.

I stumbled upon an article a while back talking about the virtues of Picardin over the long standing insect repellent known as DEET. Unlike DEET it won’t stain most clothing, isn’t as greasy, doesn’t cause the same level of allergic reactions and actually smells fairly nice when first applied. Almost like an apple smell or maybe buttery popcorn.

I find Picardin takes somewhat longer to work then DEET but it’s a whole lot nicer to use, and doesn’t give me the annoying allergic reactions like tingling lips that sometimes I have with DEET. Supposedly Picardin is more effective at repelling ticks than DEET but I find it works well with mosquitoes and horse flies too but not so much black flies – which also aren’t that repealed by DEET.

Over the years I’ve bought many containers of DEET so I still use that to a certain extent, because I already have that on hand. But now my go to really is Picardin as it’s much more pleasant to use. Picardin is frequently sold as Repel Tick Defense at Walmart but I’m sure there are other brands out there.

 Weapons in the War On Black Flies

Suicide Culture

Suicide has been in the news a lot lately. The liberal media likes to blame guns and conservative media blames social media but I think there is little convincing evidence given on either side of the debate.

I have a different take – growth of consumer culture and the promotion of immediate gratification over saving, investing and planning for a better tomorrow – is leading to increased suicides. Is there any reason to live if you are not working for a better community and a better tomorrow in your own life?

From fast food to easy credit, it seems like everything is promoting live for today, don’t worry about tomorrow. Your life is busy, says the mass media, so focus on labor savings like drive thrus and trinkets and not a better tomorrow.

Most products you buy today are designed to be disposable, sent to the landfill or incinerator shortly after purchase. In such a culture, why is it not surprising that thousands of Americans view it totally acceptable to throw away their lives like they do their iPhone or overpackaged item from Amazon?

If we became a culture that valued saving, planning for tomorrow and reduction of waste, maybe life could once again become more valuable to more Americans. Too many think everything in this world is disposable, to be consumed and discarded.

 Landfill

We should work to
build a society that is
more inclusive and less disposable.

Canada just approved marijuana legalization

Canada just approved marijuana legalization

"Canada has become the first wealthy nation in the world to fully legalize marijuana. The Senate approved Bill C-45, also known as the Cannabis Act, on Tuesday. The measure was already approved by the House of Commons, so the Senate’s approval means it’s now set to become law. Canadian and provincial governments are expected to roll out different provisions of the law in the coming weeks and months."

The measure legalizes marijuana possession and sales for adults. Home growing up to four marijuana plants is allowed. The federal government will oversee remaining criminal sanctions (for, say, selling to minors) and the licensing of producers, while provincial governments will manage sales, distribution, and related regulations β€” as such, provinces will be able to impose tougher rules, such as raising the minimum age. The statute largely follows recommendations made by a federal task force on marijuana legalization. Provinces are expected to need two to three months before retail sales can begin."

Garfield Turns 40 Today

Garfield Turns 40 Today

"Garfield is a comic created by Jim Davis. Published since 1978, it chronicles the life of the title character, Garfield, the cat; Jon Arbuckle, the human; and Odie, the dog. As of 2013, it was syndicated in roughly 2,580 newspapers and journals, and held the Guinness World Record for being the world's most widely syndicated comic strip."

"Though this is rarely mentioned in print, Garfield is set in Muncie, Indiana, the home of Jim Davis, according to the television special Happy Birthday, Garfield. Common themes in the strip include Garfield's laziness, obsessive eating, coffee, and disdain of Mondays and diets. The strip's focus is mostly on the interactions among Garfield, Jon, and Odie, but other recurring minor characters appear as well. Originally created with the intentions to "come up with a good, marketable character", Garfield has spawned merchandise earning $750 million to $1 billion annually. In addition to the various merchandise and commercial tie-ins, the strip has spawned several animated television specials, two animated television series, two theatrical feature-length live-action/CGI animated films, and three fully CGI animated direct-to-video movies."

"Part of the strip's broad pop cultural appeal is due to its lack of social or political commentary; though this was Davis's original intention, he also admitted that his "grasp of politics isn't strong," joking that, for many years, he thought "OPEC was a denture adhesive"."