Treehugger Lover

Mammatus Clouds, NYC

June 26, 2009...A preternatural, orange glow lit up the streets of the Lower East Side. Upon reaching Houston Street I looked west, and this is what I saw...

A Little Bit Still Kinda Wild, Maybe

Manhattan's abandoned,  elevated railroad - known as the High Line - has recently re-opened as a park. A very perrrty one at that, with efforts made to retain a bit of its once and former wild beauty...

  

More photos on my Flickr.

Indian Mountain

Indian Mountain, originally uploaded by Irene Roxanne (aka Irena Kittenclaw).

We hiked 20 miles in 2 days, and spent July 4th listening to frogs, coyotes, and the wind...

Catskills, New York

Broken Horse in NYC

Broken Crow and Logan Hicks hook-up forces for a show called Broken Horse.

Went to a sneak preview last night...excellent art all over the walls of the former Hamilton and Savings bank in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn (498 Court Street).

So check it. The show starts tonight, May 1, and runs only three days!! More info here.

Queen of Pain

Queen of Pain, originally uploaded by Irene Roxanne (aka Irena Kittenclaw).

Went to the Gotham Girls Roller Derby. The Bronx Gridlock vs. The Queens of Pain. The Bronx killed it!! Yet another reason to be proud of the borough from which I came...

I took this shot with an ultra-slow shutter (1/20) and a Canon wide angle (16mm)...To see The Gotham Girls play, click here for their website.

Swine Flu and the Grostesque Thing Called "CAFO"

"Half the dogs in America will receive Christmas presents this year, yet few of us pause to consider the miserable life of the pig--an animal easily as intelligent as a dog--that becomes the Christmas ham. We tolerate this disconnect because the life of the pig has moved out of view. When's the last time you saw a pig?"   Michael Pollan

One of the gravest, grossest institutions created by humans is the CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or Confined Animal Feeding Operations). CAFO is a sterile term for a system that confines animals for life in small, dirty cages, injects them with tons of antibiotics to fight off the disease that results from the confinment and filth, and gives them hormones so consumers get more meat for their buck...

It is grotesque - a macabre kind of sadistic and unhealthy system that humans, as supposedly evolved life forms, should recognize as such. But people continue buying meat from their supermarkets, not giving a damn about where it comes from, how the animals suffered, and the dirtiness (literally and metaphorically) of it all.

And then along comes the "swine flu"...Grist reports on how Smithfield Foods, a CAFO, may be the source. 

Human treatment of pigs and other animals needs to be re-examined and dramatically changed. I am not sure how long (or why) people thought they could support a gross "machine" like a CAFO - and not expect to see repercussions.

The Woods

The Woods, originally uploaded by Irene Roxanne (aka Irena Kittenclaw).

The light as we neared the end of the Minnewaska trail...stunning...

(Shawangunk Mountain Ridge, New York, April 2009)

Spring, New York City

Spring, New York City, originally uploaded by Irene Roxanne (aka Irena Kittenclaw).

Feels like it's been winter for 6 months now...Oh wait, it has been. We celebrated the Spring Equinox in late March, but temperatures in New York City remain in the 40s and 50s.

Some trees, like the Linden (pictured above) and Magnolia have been blossoming around town. Took this shot with a Lomo Lc-a. Sunset was falling on the tips of the branches...

Bike Lane Joy

Bike Lane Joy, originally uploaded by Irene Roxanne (aka Irena Kittenclaw).

Biking across Delancey, I scoped the blooming Linden trees on Clinton Street and decided to film the ride with my Elph (sorry, no glorious HD)...All the usual suspects were there, and by "there" I mean in the bike lane...Pedestrians, parked cars, delivery guys riding against traffic, and even a guy strolling with a cart...And as I reached my Houston Street destination, I couldn't have timed a better surprise entry into the lane.

And I'm not being facetious when I say this was a good day on a NYC bike lane. Some days, especially on major thoroughfares like Bleeker, it's like a street fair in the bike lane. But it was Easter Sunday, and a lot of the usual suspects were probably indoors with family.

On a positive note, it was a lovely day and the Linden trees are gorgeous. The video is low-rez and cut down in length (in order to post to Flickr). The original, uncut footage (a tad better in quality) is here www.vimeo.com/4131574

**Music by The Balustrade Ensemble

Younger than Jesus @ The New Museum

My friend Carolina Miranda talks with NPR about the latest exhibit at NYC's New Museum...

Obama Signs Major Land Conservation Law

By Juliet Eilperin
President Obama signed a massive lands package into law today, protecting more than two million acres as wilderness and creating a new national system to conserve land held by the Bureau of Land Management.  Read more here

High on that High Line

I trespassed onto the High Line again. About 2 weeks ago. Fog hovered over the west side, and I saw that elevated trainline and couldn't resist. I took a very easy route, and was alone for about 15 minutes, shooting with the only camera I had on me (Vivitar Ultra Wide and Slim toy cam)...And then I had company. I can't say much more, except that this gentleman basically told me how I could get up there again with nary a problem. The whole experience was surreal.  Here are photos. I can't wait to go up in the spring, on a sunny day, on the very north end that's still wild...Also, I've been checking the Friends of the High Line blog and it looks like they're going to do very cool work with the plants  - "variation is based on the different microclimates that developed naturally on the High Line after trains stopped running on it."  More soon.
 
 

The Wedding

The Wedding originally uploaded by Irene Roxanne (aka Irena Kittenclaw). Photo: All Rights Reserved.

Screw it, I'll ditch any semblance of modesty, and state that I love this photo of mine...

Urgent Action for Yellowstone Wolves!!

From the Defenders of Wildlife website: Last Friday, we received the surprise announcement that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has approved the Bush Administration’s discredited plan to eliminate Endangered Species Act protections for wolves in Idaho and Montana.

 It’s a decision that could lead to the deaths of more than 1,000 wolves -- including wolves in the western Greater Yellowstone ecosystem!

Make your voice heard. Call the US Fish and Wildlife Service at 1-800-344-9453 (between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM Eastern Time, Monday-Friday), select option “3” (for endangered species) and hit “0” to speak with the operator. Once you are connected, just deliver this simple message:

My name is _______ am calling from new york, NY to express my extreme disappointment in Interior Secretary Salazar’s decision to implement the Bush Administration’s flawed plan to eliminate Endangered Species Act protections for wolves in Idaho and Montana.

If this rule is allowed to stand, nearly two-thirds of the wolves in the Northern Rockies could be killed starting as soon as this spring. I strongly urge Secretary Salazar to stop the implementation of this awful decision and reconsider his approach to wolf conservation in the Northern Rockies.

Important: Please let us know that you called. We will be closely tracking the number of calls in order to ensure that all our voices are heard on this important issue. Secretary Salazar and the Obama Administration need to know about how strongly Americans support protecting our wolves.

Our wolves can’t speak out, but you can! Secretary Salazar’s wolf proposal could appear in the Federal Register within the month, paving the way for the slaughter of wolves this spring. Please call the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today at 1-800-344-9453 and let federal officials know that you oppose efforts to eliminate vital protections for these special animals.

Working with our sister organization, Defenders of Wildlife, we’re doing everything we can to save these wolves.

Defenders of Wildlife and Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund are already preparing a legal challenge to Salazar’s decision. And just yesterday Defenders of Wildlife filed a Freedom of Information Act request to determine whether Secretary Salazar undertook any new scientific review before reissuing the same legally and scientifically flawed decision that the Bush Administration previously announced.

It’s up to us to speak out for our wolves. We don’t have much time to prevent the killing, but -- with your help -- we still have a chance to save these wolves before it's too late.

handsome devil

handsome devil, originally uploaded by eva101.

Portrait by Eva101 who works with shelter cats in New York City. Check out the link for more photos...especially if you're interested in adopting. Why support the pet shop industry when so many homeless cats are looking for a loving home? Puppy mills, breeders, and pet shops that sell animals should be a thing of the past; a practice we'd look back at with shame in that we allowed such a thing to exist...

And I probably should have posted the photo of an adult cat, to encourage adopting them as they are more in need of a home, but this was the first cat photo I came across this morning on Flickr and my hand went straight to the "blog this" option. See Eva's link for excellent photos and to adopt a wonderful friend. Consider adopting an older cat.  One of the spunkiest, loving, sweetest cats I've had the pleasure of being friends with was Lula Mae who was an adult when my sister adopted her from shelter in Yonkers.