Good day on this beautiful Tuesday.  Temp on the patio at a bit over 50 and predicted temp in the mid 70s.  No rain for today.  I should water containers later today.  I didn't get the lettuce transplanted yesterday so that is on the agenda for today.  It is cool enough that I don't feel any urgency about doing all the gardening now.

There are some lists on which we should not be proud of a high ranking.  But, given the current political climate, I don't expect any improvement.

I found this Atlantic article by way of Green Prophet and it has us thinking.  We changed our habits late  last year when we switched from a large glass of milk with our afternoon meal to a pot of tea.  Our usual formula is to use two bags of green or black tea and two of various herb teas.  Out of curiosity I checked the boxes on our shelf and none of them mention the composition of their bags.  We have decided to empty the bags and brewing the tea without them.  I looked for loose tea a couple of times but our local supermarkets but haven't found any.  We know of a small shop that deals in bulk tea, herbs and spices in a nearby town.  We may visit it again.

Another interesting story from Green Prophet parallels some I have been reading in our media, or more likely on ecological/health blogs, concerning the increasing pollution of water supplies by waste pharmaceuticals.  And by 'waste' here I mean filtered through our kidneys or passed through our bowels.  Most water treatment plants don't treat for pharmaceuticals.

This almost makes me want to hang my Indiana University diploma in the bathroom over the toilet.  But, considering how things have gone in Indiana on the labor front over the last few years, I am not entirely surprised.  It reminds me of the title of a book I read some two decades ago: When Work Doesn't Work Anymore.

I have questioned economic statistics from both government and private companies.  They just seemed too good to be true and this piece indicates my skepticism is justified.