Inspirational Mountain

"If you are faced with a mountain, you have several options.

You can climb it and cross to the other side.

You can go around it.

You can dig under it.

You can fly over it.

You can blow it up.

You can ignore it and pretend it's not there.

You can turn around and go back the way you came.

Or you can stay on the mountain and make it your home."

-Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration

Bonnet House

When I looked up things to do in Fort Lauderdale I hardly imagined I would be visiting historic gardens. Nonetheless that's exactly what happened when I visited an old friend in Florida last week. Bonnet House is now basically a museum and garden located at 900 North Birch road in downtown Fort Lauderdale just by the coastline. It was declared a historic landmark by the city in 2002 and hopefully will remain that way as per the wishes of Evelyn F. Bartlett. Definitely worth a visit if you are planning a visit to that part of Florida and interested in doing interesting activities beyond going to the pool and/or beach. 

From the Bonnet House: The Life & Gift

"The Bonnet House is the legacy of Frederic Clay Bartlett's vision and talent which translated his years of exposure to the arts and architecture of Europe into a native Floridian house. Built in 1920, Mr. Bartlett's personal interpretation of a plantation house was designed to promote a gracious indoor-outdoor lifestyle filtered by coastal breezes from the Atlantic Ocean and to express his sense of whimsy with decorative delight. The life and love shared at Bonnet House radiates from within the artistry of the home and tranquility of its thirty-five acre setting. Bonnet House, named after the yellow water lily that once grew in the property's marshland, exemplifies the lives of the families who owned the property for nearly a century."

For more fascinating background information: Bonnet House

Chinese Gardens

On the last stretch of my East Asian adventures in 2009 I stopped in Beijing for a few days. Like most people who travel alone to foreign destinations I stuck to the trusted tourist destinations. On the day I was visiting the Forbidden City I stumbled upon this lovely garden that I would like to think was also forbidden. There were hardly any people around and it was so peaceful despite being in Beijing. Here are some photos from that day and although they reveal more structures than plants that in no way reflects the garden beauty just my personal taste. 

  

Monsanto Protection Act

While North America has been busy worrying about gay marriage and gun control a new law quietly slipped into effect at the end of March. Bill HR 933, or the "Monsanto Protection Act" as it has become to be known since it pretty much gives immunity to Monsanto and other large corporations to continue genetically engineering crops regardless of certain risks to human health. Obama and Congress approved this "opaque" 78-page bill that was apparently drafted with the help of Monsanto and basically allows for farmers to continue growing GM foods even while an investigation into health hazards may be ongoing. If at the end of the (often lengthy) investigation the crop is proven to be harmful, production will be ceased. In the past as soon as an investigation began regarding the safety of a certain crop, farmers would either cease or temporarily halt production of whatever product was being engineered. This caused major financial losses for farmers and mainly large biotech corporations such as Monsanto in the 2000's. Now sales of such crops are immune from court intervention and can continue to grow and be sold regardless of risk. According to Monsanto this bill:

           "is a positive step to ensure US farmers and our food chain are shielded from supply disruptions caused by litigation over procedural issues unrelated to sound science or the safety of biotech crops. This legislative solution ensures that national agricultural policy is not being decided by the court system while providing a level of certainty that is critical to ensure that our agricultural producers continue to lead the world." 

So why would the government sign such a law into effect? [Money] The European Union strictly controls the use and labeling of GM foods so why can't North America? What are the long term effects of consuming GM foods? To learn more about this troubling law: HR 933 and other reactions: Tea Party

Man vs. Nature Conflict

Although the Botanic Diaries started off as a blog about my own garden, it quickly spread to include other national and international ones. From time to time I also like to explore issues related to health and the environment since they are technically an extension of our gardens. This post has absolutely nothing to do with any of those topics/issues. There are four different types of conflict in a narrative:

1. Man vs. Man
2. Man vs. Society
3. Man vs. Self
4. Man vs. Nature

For the purpose of this blog I will just briefly bring up the fourth conflict. A conflict with nature occurs when a character(s) must overcome some kind of natural obstacle or condition. Most assume that "man vs. nature" is about a character fighting the elements such as Lieutenant Dan in the 1994 movie "Forrest Gump" holding on to the mast of a ship in the middle of a torrential storm while cursing and laughing at mother nature. While storms, floods, tsunamis, insects, and animals would be accurate representations of conflicts between man and nature, there are others that generally get less attention. Lesser known examples include things like the plague or a famine. Most recently the trend of global warming could also be seen as an example of the man vs. nature conflict. In short, stories involving man against nature usually have the potential to be epic as long as we realize the entire scope of possibilities out there!!