Originally was supposed to post in October 2015

Droughts Don't Always Mean Water Shortage Other Things Dry Up Too

According to Merriam Webster the definition of drought is:

1 :  a period of dryness especially when prolonged; specifically :  one that causes extensive damage to crops or prevents their successful growth

2 :  a prolonged or chronic shortage or lack of something expected or desired 

I look at my blog and I see that I too, have been in a drought. My drought started a few years ago and came to a head, then all supplies were cut off. What I'm referring to, of course, is writer's block. 

I have had that and more, within the last few years. Since I was in school, I HAD to read and write and post assignments, but once I graduated this past May 2015, I just collapsed into a vacant evaporation of, "the lights are on, but nobody's home". And for someone who is very conscientious about conserving - you don't leave the lights on when you're not at home,  unless a light or two if you are going to be gone at night and don't want to walk into a dark house. 

In the everlasting sunny state of California that I live in - we are in a drought. We have been in a drought for a very long time, and it's grown to drastic proportions. 

Like, we are told to uproot our lawns and go for the dirt, desert look with cacti and Aloe Vera type of plants. We are given rebates as incentives to go from growing our own fresh green grass to artificial turf. Anything that doesn't require water to live on and watering every day - AKA Fake Turf.

If you are living in Southern California, you will especially be drought conscious, and your city will want you to become, "drought friendly" with conserving water.

As I have put up tips over the years of little nuggets of how to conserve water in what may seem the most trivial of fashion - it really does all add up. It's like throwing your pennies in a coffee can and by the end of the year you have over $300 in pennies. It seems like nothing at first, but in the long-range scheme of things, the big picture -  that's when it shouts - YES!!! This little seed does grow into a huge fig tree.

Now, without further ado - the handy tips. Some are tried and true and you may very well be doing them already as we speak, but just in case. And please, feel free to leave your handy tips on what you do in your home to conserve water. Live a little! Be creative!

1.)  Turn off the water when you are brushing your teeth. This is not a sink shower for your toothbrushing time, so shut it off until you need to swig and spit. Gallons go down the drain to the tune of you brushing your teeth.

2.) Take a submarine shower. For those of us who haven't been in the Navy, let alone submerged several hundred feet below, like the toothbrush tip, turn off the water when you are lathering, shaving, shampooing, etc., then turn it back on when you rinse off. Doing this saves multiple gallons of water, not to mention, your gas bill for your hot water heater. 

3.) Visit your local car wash. Take a break from washing your car outside and take it to a car wash that recycles water. Besides, it's quicker for them to wash your auto than it is for you to DIY. 

4.) When hard boiling eggs or boiling pasta, reuse the water for watering plants, just make sure it's cooled down before you douse 'em with it. 

5.) Washing dishes by hand can use a lot of water, so fill up the sink instead of letting the water run while you're scrubbing your plate. Again, think toothbrushing. You don't need to run the water while you're brushing, scrubbing, shampooing, etc. Get the idea?

So, I'll leave you with these little golden nuggets for now - just for starters. I mean, as they say, whoever "they" are, "Old habits die hard." So, one little baby step at at time. "They" also say it takes six weeks to break a habit and six weeks to create a new one. So, if you start with just these five easy day-to-day steps, and work them out like a new muscle, you will soon be doing this without even realizing it. It will become second nature to you. Then, you can start on the next five. There will be a quiz, so be prepared. I'm KIDDING!

Drought? What Drought? How the 'Amber Alert' Is Now the 'Drought Alert'

 Originally was supposed to post in October 2015

If you live in California, then you are more than aware of the state of emergency we are facing with our massive drought. Thus, the reason I haven't been on my blog post for over a year. Shame on me. Well, I have been dried up. I mean, literally, dried up. The drought got so bad that it affected my writing capabilities, and so much more that is entailed with writing - like researching, and sense of humor. Yes, that was the worst of how the drought has affected me, my sense of humor. It's been nearly dried up to where no recycling program could make me into something more useful and inspiring.

With that said, I am attempting to resurrect my WTG Blog with starting off this year, or rather, ending this year with what has been widely known to all of California kind ... Folks- we are in a drought. Now, if you didn't know it by reading the newspaper - if you can actually find a newspaper - or by watching the daily news, or perhaps when you dined at a restaurant, you may have read their sign that they are trying to do their part and are only serving water upon request - so if you ask for water, you had better drink it. And you may have noticed that the cities are not watering their grass these days, so when you drive down the road you see massive old chia-pet looking grass with a sign that says: "Doing Our Part To Conserve Water" - Nice. Well, if all of that has still left you completely clueless about our California drought, then if you drive on the freeways you might have seen a lit sign overhead in the form of what we typically call an "Amber Alert" displaying: "Serious Drought Help Save Water".  This campaign was launched last year as part of the "Statewide Educational Campaign". So there you have it, that is if you haven't already had it, by now.

I mean, for the last four years, give or take a few months off in between, I have written on how we can do our part to conserve water.  But here's another step you can take. If you happen to see some water gushing from say a broken sprinkler, it's not a water show, or from a fire hydrant as though  it's fighting a fire without a fireman, then you can report this wasteful overflow anonymously at:

 http://savewater.ca.gov/

And you are doing your part and being a water saving hero.  You might now have known just how helpful you could be, so don't drive by and think to yourself, "Someone else will report it." or " Someone else must have already reported it." Remember the very import lesson that you learned from that Gilligan Island episode about ASSUME. Makes an ass-u-me. So there's that ...