This is not a typical environmental article. Lets just say it relates because being healthy helps us take care of our environment. Since school just started and everyone seems concerned with the upcoming flu season, I thought I would share the following article from CNN.com:

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Point 1. As things stand now, the vast majority of children who develop flu-like symptoms this fall will have a few miserable days, and nothing more. And those days are best spent at home -- not in the ER or a doctor's office.

Point 2. If you are worried, you should call your pediatrician's office first. Don't take your child in without calling. Two reasons: Your child may not have H1N1, but could become exposed by being around sick children. And, after several hours of waiting, you are still likely to be told the basics -- plenty of fluids, rest and dose-appropriate acetaminophen for a fever. After all, it is still the flu we are talking about.

Point 3. One doctor told me a way to think about things that was helpful. He said "remove the term H1N1 from the equation." If your child had regular flu, would you take him to the hospital? If the answer is no, then don't take him/her to the hospital now.

Point 4. Yes, hearing between 30,000 and 90,000 could die from H1N1 is scary, but keep in mind -- around 40,000 people die from the regular or seasonal flu every year. The numbers may not be that much different, yet there is not panic about the regular flu. As things look now, H1N1 is causing only mild to moderate illness, not the widespread deaths people are worried about.

Point 5. There are some children who should be seen by their doctor. Call your doctor if:
* A baby younger than 12 weeks has a fever greater than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit
* A child, older than 12 weeks has a fever for three days
* A child's fever returns after a 12-24 hour time period
* A child is not passing urine or making tears for more than six hours
* A child does not smile or show interest in playing for several hours
Dial 911 if:
* A child cannot speak while trying to breathe
* Has a blue or dark purple color to the nail beds, lips or gums
* Is not responding to you because he is too tired or weak

One point that was reinforced to me over and over again by the pediatricians is the best place for a sick child is at home. And, with regard to school -- after 24 fever-free hours without the aid of medications, he or she can go back.
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To read the whole article, click the related link below.

Ok, I'm a sucker for a car. Check out this hybrid concept car from BMW.

Click the related link below for more photos and information.

If the logo and/or company claim the material is green, is it?

Three companies – Sami Designs, LLC, doing business as (d/b/a) Jonäno; CSE, Inc., d/b/a Mad Mod; and Pure Bamboo, LLC – have settled FTC complaints, agreeing to stop making false claims and to abide by the Commission’s Textile Fiber Products Identification Act (Textile Act) and Rules. Litigation continues against The M Group, Inc., d/b/a Bamboosa, and its principals.

According to the Commission’s complaints, the companies falsely claim that their rayon clothing and other textile products are “100% bamboo fiber.” They market them under such names as “ecoKashmere,” “Pure Bamboo,” “Bamboo Comfort,” and “BambooBaby.” Rayon is a man-made fiber created from the cellulose found in plants and trees and processed with a harsh chemical that releases hazardous air pollutants. Any plant or tree could be used as the cellulose source – including bamboo – but the fiber that is created is rayon.

By the way rayon does not retain any natural antimicrobial properties of the bamboo plant.

It is difficult to be diligent in this relatively new category, but do your homework if your purpose is to be green.

Check the related link below for more information.

Hi, this is very relevant, an average of 280,000 vehicles cross the bridge on an average work day. Imagine that many cars stuck crowed together and idling because of a lack of planning, CO2 and fossil fuel waste along with hours of peoples lives. This message needs to reach anyone who commutes.

The San Francisco Bay Bridge will be closed from 8 p.m. Thursday until 5 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 8. This is if everything goes according to plan.

Lets hope for the best and be prepared with alternate routes and alternate plans if possible.

Someone very important to me that I do not see often enough has sent me an e-mail reminder about why we must recycle. This is a subject I happen to know a bit about. However, we as humans get lazy and fall into bad habits easily. So this is a reminder of why it is so important to process our waste responsibly as well as minimize it. Reducing waste by minimizing packaging, using your own containers when you shop, finding ways to reuse items or re-purpose items, repair instead of replace and ultimately recycle items is crucial to a healthy environment for generations to come.

The following information may be new to some, but it is certainly a reminder of how important this is and a very real display of some of the mess we have already made.

Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego is currently studying the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch. Follow the link below to find out more about it. I have also included a link to the Wikipedia entry on the subject and a quote from the introduction.

Scripps Institution of Oceanography Site
Wikipedia Entry for the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

From Wikipedia: "The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, also described as the Eastern Garbage Patch or the Pacific Trash Vortex, is a gyre of marine litter in the central North Pacific Ocean ... and estimated to be twice the size of Texas.[1] The patch is characterized by exceptionally high concentrations of suspended plastic and other debris that have been trapped by the currents of the North Pacific Gyre. Despite its size and density, the patch is not visible from satellite photography because most of its contents are suspended at or beneath the surface of the ocean."

Practice your RRRRR's - Renew, Reuse, Repair, Recycle, Re-purpose.