CHOCOLATE TO BLOOD

The headlines are filled with tragedy again. Some days you wish you had never turned on the news at all. And then there are the days when you are privy to so much good and heartwarming items that they bring tears of joy instead of pain. We forget sometimes that there are so many good people in the world doing so many good things. And so many new discoveries to improve and enlighten our world and it's problems.

(Public Domain)

I love to read about the good news online. And I love to share them. Today I read an interesting article explaining how "dark chocolate" reduces depression. I was thrilled to hear something positive about my sweet tooth and my love of chocolate. (Two packages of dark chocolate candy in my fridge right now!) Of course, I shared the article. Most of us chocolate lovers would think about the benefits for ourselves. Then I got the following response from my friend and neighbor, April:

"Since depression is so widespread, if I were Hershey’s or a manufacturer, I would figure out a charity that would deliver large quantities of dark chocolate worldwide to promote peace and understanding! Maybe a way to get Congress to chill and work together!"

Even though April put a smiley emoticon beside it, her idea is not a joke. Wouldn't we all love something so simple to bring peace to our world?

Deepak Chopra said the following in  Peace Is the Way: "Right now there are 21.3 million soldiers serving in armies around the world. Can't we recruit a peace brigade ten times larger? A hundred times larger? The project begins now, with you."

Did you hear about the mother in Arkansas who bought out an entire Payless Shoes store that was closing? She was there to buy shoes for her daughter, who then asked her to buy a pair for her classmate whose shoes were too small. Not only did the mother buy shoes for the classmate, she ended up buying the 1,500 pairs of shoes left in stock. Since then, she and her family have been giving away shoes to needy children. What a beautiful example she is setting, not only for her own children, but also for those who are recipients of her generosity.

Did you know this?
"..The Electrical Reliability Council of Texas, which manages about 90% of the electrical flow in the state, released a report earlier this month stating that—during the first half of 2019—wind power generated 22% of the state’s electrical usage while coal only generated 21%.."Good News

Let's hope the coal usage continues to drop and wind turbines continue to take over the role coal has played for too long. Wind turbines don't contribute to climate change. (I took the above photo on my way to Amarillo in May 2007. There are probably many, many more of these around Texas today.) The majority of electricity in Texas is produced by natural gas, and a small percentage from nuclear energy. Although when natural gas is burned, it produces 45 percent less carbon dioxide than coal, 30 percent less than oil, and 15 percent less than wood, we still need to reduce its usage and replace it with wind power and solar energy farms. (At one point in time, the city of Denton, Texas produced as much as 30% of its electricity from its landfill. I don't know if that is still the case.)

We have all seen the pitiful photos of sea creatures found dead or dying with plastic of all kinds in or entangled on their bodies. While strides have been made in reducing the amount of plastic being used for various things from straws to plastic bags and containers to the plastic that holds together your six-pack cans of favorite soft drinks (really dangerous in the oceans), we still have a long way to go. I was pleased to read the following in an article on Good News..

"..Greenpeace, alongside other investors and organizations, have urged companies like PepsiCo and Coca-Cola to reject the Plastics Industry Association’s secretive lobbying against plastic bans. The association uses a front group, the American Progressive Bag Alliance (APBA), and works side by side with ALEC to push state legislators to prohibit plastic bans across the country. Thus far, 15 states with a combined total of 88 million people have passed these pro-pollution preemption laws.."

We haven't yet passed statewide legislation banning some plastic uses in Texas, however, the City of Austin now prohibits plastic bag usage. This is particularly helpful for use as grocery bags. Most people now carry the reusable cloth bags, some heavy-duty reusable plastic bags, or in my case, paper. I buy my groceries online now for my son to pick up for me. Once unloaded, he takes them to his apartment to put in their "recycle" bin. I live outside the city limits and recycling bins aren't available here. A good article on the issue is at The End of Recycling on The Atlantic website.

China used to take so much of our recycled materials, but now they don't. We are being faced with a bigger problem than just getting rid of plastic bags and such. We Americans are a consumer society and accumulate more "stuff" than we'll ever need. One solution to our landfill problems is to "buy less". Reusable containers are another.  I'm proud of my children and grandchildren who carry their drinks in stainless steel cups and glasses (most of them do anyway). As for buying less, just think of all the money you can put away for your golden years if you adopt this habit of buying less.

KXAN News

But I digress. More good things are happening when we hear of the heroic efforts of those affected by the recent mass shootings who risked their lives saving some of the victims. And the hordes of people showing up all over the country to donate blood for those victims. These are folks from Austin lining up to give blood today:

Houston Chronicle

From chocolate to blood! Isn't there a movie by that title? (No, it's "Blood & Chocolate). May you all become more aware of the good -- even when it's precursed by something bad. Sometimes it takes one to make us appreciate the other. Hold onto the idea that the recent mass shootings are now precursors to something good. Surely our law makers are now going to take heed and make changes to our national gun laws.

Peace,

Marilyn