May 2nd is Fire Day. I recently showed you some really cool clouds, and during that research, discovered a really cool, and very rare atmospheric phenomena…  Time to share!

Fire rainbows , or circumhorizontal arcs, are the rarest things you’ll ever see in the skies.  Well, except for affordable First Class seats.

If you see a fire rainbow, you are looking at quite a combination.  It takes cirrus clouds 20,000 feet or higher, filled with hexagonal shaped ice crystals angled exactly horizontal to the ground.  The Sun, in turn, has to cast its rays of light at precisely 58 degrees into these crystals.

As the Sunlight comes into the vertical side of the crystals, it leaves through the bottom, refracted.  This refraction causes the rainbow color effect.  Because the cirrus cloud is wispy, the rainbow looks like it is on fire.

No more, no less than this, or you don’t get a fire rainbow.  Just another pretty, cloudy day.

Well, enough talk – let’s sneak a peek!  Here are 10 fine examples of this incredible atmospheric effect!

10 Incredible Fire Rainbows

April 29th is Greenery Day – time to recommit yourself to the beautification of the world around you by planting things everywhere.  Preferably in places you own.

For most of us, this means laying in some new sod, casting some overseed, or simply spray-painting the dead stuff out front, because your neighbor refuses to make his dog pee in his own yard.  Perhaps you are considering a bush or two, or some nice flowers.

If you love to step out of the ordinary, here are 8 strange options to add not only some green to your yard, but possibly some green in your wallet, as people line up to take a look at what you’ve got growing…

8 of the World’s Weirdest Plants

Rafflesia Arnoldii – a parasitic plant with the largest single blooming flower in the world.  Looks like what’s left over after the squishy Alien baby  has jumped out on your face.  It holds six quarts of very stinky water in the big hole in its center. Yummy.

Voodoo Lily (Dracunculus Vulgaris) – another stinky plant.  Loooove the name.  This one smells like a dead body is rotting away nearby – you might want to plant this one closer to the home of the guy whose dog keeps peeing on your lawn.  It has a very beautiful and large wine-colored flower, and what looks like a pokey English Cucumber growing in the middle.

Hydnora Africana – A flower that eats insects, has flesh-tone colors, and actually attacks other plants’ roots.  This one is a plant for men.  If you let this one blossom, you can expect a crap-ton of dung beetles to come herding your way and hanging out, due to the god-awful smell.  The beetles help pollinate these guys.  This one has “Feed me, Seymour” written all over it.

Corpse Flower (Amorphophallus Titanum) – Okay, the scientific name has the word “phallus” in it, so you know this is going to be worth a look, right?  Giant green and purple flower, gi-normous growth in the middle – some protrude a couple of feet high, and some look all wrinkly.  Am not. Going There. Very stinky. Seriously, who invents these things?

Watermeal (Wolffia Augusta) – After showing you the big and stinky, how about the tiny and cute?  This one is the smallest flower in the world.  Two of these plants, all grown up, will fit in any letter o in this sentence.  Awwwwww…

Welwitschia Mirabilis – This one looks like Cousin It’s dread-locked friend.  A hold-over from the Jurassic Period, it enjoys a 1,500 year lifespan, and can grow to 24 feet wide and 6 feet high.  I guess you’ll be leaving it to a loved one in your will someday, but I’m not so sure anyone will accept it…

Lithops - This one is a succulent, and hails from Africa’s deserts.  Also known as “living stones” because some varieties have colorings and shapes just like a bunch of rocks in a pot.  This one is in full bloom.  Unlike the next plant, don’t water this one too much…

Giant Water Lily (Victoria Amazonica) – Dude!  Can you imagine the frog family that comes across your big backyard pond?  There would be toady legends written about your garden!  And yes, that is a baby sitting in one….

Know any other wild plants, or have some photos to share of your own?  Please feel free to share your stories in the comments below!

Today is World Vegetarian Day. Although the word Vegetarian was in existence previous to its formation, the Vegetarian Society is credited with making Vegetarianism a household word.  The Vegetarian Society has a somewhat purist definition of the term, stating that those practicing “semi-vegetarianism” are not true Vegetarians.  The term semi-Vegetarianism (or Flexitarianism) exists due to the multiplicity of choices individuals have made in their diet, whether based on ethical, religious, health, economic or other reasons.

What forms of Vegetarianism (and Flexitarianism) are there?

• Vegan – excludes all animal products and products that are produced from animal labor such as honey and eggs.
• Pescetarian – A Vegan who includes fish in his diet.
• Lacto-Vegetarian – includes dairy products but not eggs in his diet.
• Ovo-Vegetarian – includes eggs but not dairy.
• Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian – includes eggs and dairy.
• Fruitarian – eats only what can be harvested without harming the plant, including fruits, seeds and nuts.
• Su Vegetarian – eats no animal products or “fetid” vegetables such as onions, garlics, scallions, leeks or shallots.
• Macrobiotic – eats largely whole grains or beans.  Some also consume fish.
• Raw Veganists – eat only fresh and raw fruit, nuts, seeds and veggies.

The earliest records of Vegetarianism exist among the peoples of Ancient India, as well as Ancient Greece around the 6th Century BCE, both as a result of philosophies regarding nonviolence towards animals. As Christianity became prominent later in the Roman Empire, Vegetarianism disappeared across much of the European continent, as fish began to make its way into the common diet.  During the Renaissance, Vegetarianism began to rise in popularity, becoming more widespread in the 19th and 20th Centuries.

The Vegetarian Society was founded in England in 1847, and soon thereafter other larger nations joined the bandwagon, forming the International Vegetarian Union in 1908.  Vegetarians in the nation of India make up more than 70% of the World’s Vegetarian population, largely due to Centuries-old religious and economic necessities.  The U.K. has roughly 11% of its population Vegetarian (as defined by the Vegetarian Society,) and the United States has only around 3% Vegetarian.

Health and Vegetarianism

The American Dietetic Association has succinctly stated that a proper Vegetarian diet satisfies all of one’s dietary needs, significantly lowering one’s risk of Cancer, Heart Disease, Hypertension, Diabetes, Osteoporosis, Dementia and Alzheimers. The Association goes on to state that Vegetarians tend to have less excess fat in their bodies, therefore less illnesses commonly associated with those that have high Body Mass Indexes (BMIs.)

To ensure a balanced Vegetarian diet, one must include with a good supply of fruits and vegetables plenty of greens, soy, lupin, hempseed, buckwheat, amaranth and quinoa in their diet. Particularly Westerners, who tend to eat a diet high in Carotenoids but low in Vitamin B and Calcium. Include beans, peas, cereals, seeds, whole-wheat breads, nuts and tomato juice to keep your iron intake high, but be prepared to have to eat quite a bit often, as iron stores in Vegetarians tend to be lower than in those that consume red meats. Various oily nuts and seeds can help with Omega 3 fatty acids.

The Seventh-Day Adventists did a study on its members in California, and found that extended Vegetarianism added approximately 8 more years to a man’s life, and 3.5 more years to a woman’s life, on average.  Studies in France (where a high plant and low meat diet is predominant) showed a significantly higher life expectancy.

Environment and Vegetarianism

Those that choose Vegetarianism based on environmental interests do so largely because they believe that the large-scale raising, slaughtering and consumption of animal products has a deteriorating effect on the environment. According the United Nations, the livestock industry is the second or third largest contributor of global air, land and water pollution, climate change (almost 20% of greenhouse gasses – more than all transportation sources combined) and loss of biodiversity (one hamburger = 6.25 square meters of rain forest lost.)

Grain-fed animals consume far more water than merely growing grain crops themselves.  The United Stated Department of Agriculture states that growing the crops necessary to feed animals requires 50% of our water supply, and 80% of our currently used agricultural land.

Animals raised for slaughter consume 90% of our soy crop, 80% of our corn crop, and 70% of our grain.  The index used to measure the efficiency of conversion of eaten plant matter to bodily substance incidates that 10% of what a cow eats is converted to body substance by cattle (which means 90% of all of those crops eaten by our cattle turn into cow poop.) Trophic Dynamic theory states that it requires 10 times as many crops to feed a production animal as it would to feed one person on a Vegetarian diet.  Many of these same researchers admit that to tend smaller bands of animals grazing on unusable lands would be beneficial, and only take umbrage with large-scale animal farms.

Economic Justice and Vegetarianism

Many groups, including the controversial PETA, decry Vegetarianism as a method to offset poor working conditions in the meat industry, citing psychological damage caused by working in the slaughterhouse.  Agricultural in general is one of the most dangerous forms of work in the World, and having to raise less crops to feed animals would lower the rate of injury, they say.  Health advocates add to their argument that eating less meat would lessen the burden on the health care systems.  The lower need for grain would also likely make more available to poorer nations.

Religious Vegetarianism

Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism practice Vegetarianism to one degree or another as a form of morality.  Judaism and Islam have a long-standing tradition of animal welfare in how its farmers raise and slaughter animals, and many have moved to Vegetarianism as a moral stance in favor of animal welfare.  Many of the disciples of Jesus were rumored to be Vegetarian, and some Christian scholars argue that the allowance for eating of meat following the Great Flood was due to the dearth of plant matter available.

Considering Vegetarianism?

Making the swap to something you may’ve gotten so much culinary pleasure from is daunting, to say the least.  Should you be considering the choice, here are some tips for you on this journey:

• Vegetarians all agree that to successfully make the transition from omnivore to one who consistently turns down meat, you must find within yourself and agree upon a strong reasoning.  You must be absolutely sure as to why you are doing it, or risk temptation at every turn, from family, friends and co-workers.  Think cold beer and BBQ on a hot summer day…
• Next, read up on Vegetarianism.  I mean really read up on it.  Make yourself your own personal expert on it.
• Find tons of recipes and organize them for use.  Try out one Vegetarian recipe a week and keep the ones you like.
• Begin the process of substitution in your meals by purchasing and using meat substitutes in your recipes.
• Give up red meat while keeping white meats and fish for awhile.  Then slowly cut out the others, and figure out for yourself what you’re going to do about dairy and eggs.
• Tell everyone you know about your choice; those that care about you will support you.
• Find as many ways as possible to make your choice fun, in the foods you eat, how you eat them, and the rate at which you take on Vegetarianism.
• Find Vegetarian restaurants and convenience foods in the Supermarket.
• Join a support group.  Look up Vegetarian on Twitter and FaceBook and join groups and talk, talk, talk!
• Download the free eBook Vegetarian Starter Kit

If you choose to make this journey, good luck!  Let me know how it goes!