How To

A research-based proposal for greening the world’s deserts

In a TED talk given a few years ago, a scientist named Allan Savory puts forth an interesting proposal for reversing desertification and climate change. After having worked in the field his whole life, the solution he found is an unlikely one: grazing livestock. They are commonly thought to destroy the land and contribute to global warming, but they can in fact, help restore its vegetation and thus begin to reverse global warming, if the grazing process is done correctly. Allan goes into more details in his talk, which I invite you to watch. What he proposes is a low cost solution that involves forming large herds and moving them over the land in a sigmoid pattern so they never overstay in one spot. His methods have successfully worked on multiple continents to reverse desertification and restore grasslands, so they’re proven. And even if his proposal has its detractors, who say the livestock will emit more greenhouse gases, you can’t argue with the results, which are an almost magical revival of plants, trees and water in those places where his methods are put into place.

More details here.

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A 1950s Elton Automatic Watch
My Watch Collection

A 1950s Elton Automatic Watch

This is a 1950s Elton Automatic wristwatch with a 25 jewel Autorotor movement. I purchased it in the winter of 2017. It has a matching metal band and gold plating that has pretty much worn off. It’s a watch that’s been worn a lot, both by its previous owner and by me, because it’s quite comfortable to wear, accurate and fairly shockproof. It was working fine when I got it, but I sent it in anyway for a thorough check and lubrication, plus a replacement of the plexiglass.

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Places

Spring in our garden

As is my custom, I’ve put together a gallery of photographs from this past spring, all taken in our garden at home. They’ll take you from the first snowdrops and late frosts of spring to the roses, foxgloves and ferns of early summer. Our garden is a source of joy and relaxation for us and I hope these photos will evoke the same feelings in you. I have admittedly gone a bit overboard with the number of photos though: there are 429 images in this gallery. You may need to sip from a bucket of coffee, not a cup, in order to get through it all. What can I say… enjoy!

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A 1930s Bulova L4 Watch
My Watch Collection

A 1930s Bulova L4 Watch

This is a late 1920s or 1930s Bulova L4 wristwatch with a 21 jewel movement. I purchased it in the spring of 2017. Serial number is 7351974. It has a matching metal band and a 10K gold-filled case that opens quite easily and is not watertight. It required some cleaning and service, and was also missing its crown. Now it works beautifully.

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