Happy 50th Earth Day, Despite Things Currently Being a Hot Dumpster Fire on Our Planet

Earth has had its climate quite possibly forever ruined by our refusal to try and protect the environment and currently we are all facing a massive pandemic. This makes it a little tragic that today is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and things are arguably a lot worse now than 50 years ago in a number of ways. Let's not be wholly negative, however, because I hate those people who say things like, 'Humans are the virus," and act like COVID-19 is some magical way of Earth repairing itself by wiping humans out or (even worse) a punishment from God.

This pandemic just helps illustrate how we need to care for our planet and make a better effort to try and plan for things like a Pandemic--something which Trump wholly messed-up to the degree America is now suffering from COVID-19 worse than any other country. Let's try and treat our planet better while also being ready for when things go totally wacky due to how unpredictable this crazy ball of rock and water we call Earth is.

I Was Oddly Fascinated by this Article on Washing Laundry in Cold Water

I like odd little random facts and information. My affinity for things that are strange is probably one reason I enjoy talking about Duck-Billed Platypus in all its idiosyncratic glory (a venomous mammal that lays eggs is quite quirky), or why I once spent hours reading-up on the complex ownership history of the Dr. Pepper brand (hence why sometimes places that only serve Coke or only serve Pepsi will both have Dr. Pepper). Therefore, when I saw this piece about why it is foolish to continue to wash clothes in warm water it caught my eye.

The article goes in-depth about concepts such as the energy conservation we can achieve from using cold water to wash clothes, how it helps protect clothes, and that while warmth is needed to clean things, advancements in all kinds of chemicals create the sort of, "Heat," needed by the friction of washing using something called surfactants.  The key surfactants not too long ago were created by Proctor and Gamble and appeared in the then-novelty, "Tide Cold Water," detergent that now lots of other companies have created versions of as well. The piece goes into polymers, enzymes, and is otherwise really technical about something most of us probably never consider when we toss our clothes in the washer, add some detergent, and start it up. In conclusion, I like weird bits of trivia, which the article is full of, and also illustrates why we should all wash our clothes in cold water. Now, if you excuse me I'm going to crack-open this book I got from the library about the history of pinball that I hope to enjoy reading for no other reason than it looks fascinating--at least I'll read it as long as my son continues to enjoy his nap.