NO TIME TO WASTE

Its been really weird weather lately. Rain out of nowhere and out of season. Really scorching summer heat. Definitely biting cold spells. More frequent occurences of el niño and la niña.
And this is all brought on by climate change.

I remember when were in Anilao and it was time to sleep, we had the AC on full blast but we had to turn on the electric fan as well just to keep cool (even the dog Fiona was already positioned in front of the electric fan, aba at inagawan pa ako ng higaan!). It used to be that the aircon on low was enough to make me use 2 blankets but now no effect. Mainit na talaga!

Kulang na lang mag prito ng itlog sa sidewalk.

Its really different this time. Before, summer used to be such a breeze to tolerate, but now no more breeze to tolerate the summer heat! (o ha nag rhyme at yon....). Its cloying and it makes you feel difficult to breathe.

And I know for a fact that it will never get cooler in the following years. It will get hotter and hotter and more and more people will get sick, the environment will suffer and we will witness an environmental destruction the likes that nature has never had. All this because of climate change.

According to the Greenpeace website, www.greenpeace.org

"Today, our world is hotter than it has been in two thousand years. By the end of the century, if current trends continue, the global temperature will likely climb higher than at any time in the past two million years. While the end of the 20th century may not necessarily be the warmest time in Earth's history, what is unique is that the warmth is global and cannot be explained by the natural mechanisms that explain previous warm periods. There is a broad scientific consensus that humanity is in large part responsible for this change, and that choices we make today will decide the climate of the future."

This is absolutely no laughing matter. Because once we reach that point where the temperature can never go down, that would be the beginning of our end. A lot of scientists and industrialists are trying to debunk the blatantly obvious evidences documenting and proving that climate change IS happening and it is happening at a more accelerated pace than it was anticipated.
Already the incidence of diseases like malaria and dengue in countries that didn't normally have it has been documented, the lowering of temperatures enables the mosquitoes that spread these diseases to survive in such climate now in the northern hemisphere. Or take for example, the erratic and violent super typhoons that has been ravaging North America and Europe, Hurricane Andrew and Katrina damaging Florida and New Orleans, and the destructive floods

" Heavy rains across central and eastern Europe have created flooding conditions not seen for centuries, killing more than 100 people, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of others, and devastating historic city centres in Germany and the Czech Republic. Flooding also has hit communities in Austria, Slovakia, Russia and Romania."

http://edition.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2002/europe.floods/

The climate IS GETTING HOTTER AND HOTTER. We have also HAVE to curb our use of fossil fuels as this is one of the major contributors of greenhouses gases that causes climate change.

Please take action in your own little way. Petition your governments to go for renewable energy like wind and solar. You can also:

1. Buy high efficiency models of home appliances.
2. Use energy efficient light bulbs
3. Hang your clothes to dry instead of using the dryer.
4. Use water efficiently, water your plants at night. Watering during the day makes it evaporate faster.
5. Car pool or
6. Ride that bike. Not only would that give you nicer legs it will help you tone your tush.
7. Don't burn your garbage. Segregate the biodegradables (to use as compost) from the non-biodegradables (to be sorted to recycbles and sent to recycling centers)
8. Minimize waste, bring a cloth bag with you wherever you go so you would have to minimize using that thin plastic bag you get from the market and groceries. I have gotten into arguments in malls because I didnt want my stuff wrapped in plastic. I know, I know its proof of purchase but whats the use fo the receipt?...
9. Turn off all unnecesary lights and or appliances when not in use.
10. Use rechargeable batteries whenever possible to minimize on toxic waste as well.
11. Use that dishwater to flush the toilet.
12. Last but not the least, encourare your friends to do the same. Never underestimate the power of a small group pf people working together for a common good.

Remember, there is NO TIME TO WASTE. The clock is ticking....