1. Only Three Days Left To File Your Taxes.
April 15th is about here. If you’re not finished with your tax preparation, you’d better get on it. Remember Uncle Sam wants you or at least your money.
2. National Take Back Day. April 27 is national drug take back day. To fin out where you can take your old or expired drugs to https://takebackday.dea.gov
Go to “Site Locator‘ and enter in your zip code, county, city and state. OR go online to ADHS – Rx Drug Drop Off Locations – azdhs.gov.
IT’s FREE
3. Climas. Environmental report on water, temperature and more. February Precipitation
February precipitation was above-average across most of Arizona
January temperatures were normal to abovenormal. Winter storms brought wet and cool conditions to the region. in February – including some heavy snow forecast later in the week of Feb 18. These storms feel like a departure but may simply be closer to normal winter conditions in the Southwest, with expectations having shifted after persistent warm and dry winter conditions over the past few years or decades.
Drought: The Feb. 14 U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) shows modest but widespread improvements in regional drought conditions, with much of Arizona and the four corners region seeing up to two levels of improvement in their drought designation. Persistent drought conditions remain in the Four Corners region, although characterizations of drought extent and intensity are reduced on this map. Accumulated precipitation deficits built up over seasons and years, and weekly snapshots may struggle to capture the nuance of drought conditions that work across multiple timescales. This also applies to drought recovery, where above-normal precipitation in the short term is likely insufficient to make up for years of drought, but above-normal cool season precipitation should help in both short and long-term
The Arizona reservoirs look better than they have for the past few years.We can only hope for more rain this spring.
4. It’s About To Get Really Hot Here In Arizona. Soon All Of us will Have Our Air Conditioning Unit On 24/7. Did You Know We All Have Beer To Thanks For Refrigeration.
It was Coors Brewery who were principally responsible for brewing beer without the use of blocks of ice. Coors hired engineers to construct a refrigeration to keep the beer cold during the brewing process as well as after the beer was bottled.
Later, that same technology was applied to refrigerators for the home. This t T technology was responsible for the death of the kitchen “ice box”. The “Ice Box” had the block of ice removed and replaced with similar technology to what Coors was chilling their beer with.
A few years later, that same refrigeration technology was applied to homes in the form of air conditioning.
So as you sit in your home enjoying an ice cold beer this summer, remember to thank Coors brewery.
5. Diapers and Pads May Be Leaching Chemicals Into Women And Babies Bodies.
In her 1997 book Living Downstream, biologist, mother, and cancer survivor Sandra Steingraber compares the idea that as individuals we can protect ourselves from environmental toxins to buying blueprints for bomb shelters. Steingraber writes that “few lifestyle sacrifices actually offer much real protection. . . . The sooner we quit trying to turn our bodies and homes into fortresses against toxic invasions, the sooner we’ll realize we have no choice but to rise up and demand an end to the invasion.”
Enter one of the most recent examples of everyday products leaving us vulnerable to \toxic invasion: A study published last month in Reproductive Toxicology found that many name-brand diapers and sanitary pads contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and phthalates that are likely being absorbed via the genitals over time. Exposure to VOCs increases risk of asthma, certain cancers, and reproductive functioning. Phthalates, which are commonly found in cosmetics, toys, and other plastics, have been linked to endocrine disruption, cancer, and birth defects.
The study stems from a 2017 investigation by South Korean TV media outlets into whether sanitary pads might be causing menstrual irregularities, infection, rashes, and intensified cramping. Its authors, who studied 11 undisclosed major sanitary pad brands and four diaper brands, wrote, “The physical location of the exposure site, the high absorption rate of the genitalia for chemicals, and the long-term exposure period demand a thorough investigation on the potential impact of the exposure to VOCs and phthalates.”
The findings are triggering broader conversations about societal attitudes toward women’s reproductive health. Alexandra Scranton, director of science and research for Women’s Voices for the Earth, a nonprofit that works to eliminate toxins that harm women’s health, points out that it’s telling that this all started as a media investigation. “The NIH [National Institutes of Health] hadn’t even sponsored any research into vaginal or vulval health since the 1980s,” Scranton says. “Cultural taboos have a lot to do with how things get funded and researched. For instance, when it comes to menstrual products, the question of whether feeling miserable a few days out of the month might have Page 4 something to do with the products women use has never been explored from a scientific perspective.” She adds that industry studies into manufacturers’ products are limited, tend to only look at potential exposure from the top layer of pads and diapers, and often don’t take into account chemicals’ long-term volatility.
Scranton predicts the diapers component, however, will likely bring more urgent attention to this particular study. “Kids are so small that less exposure can lead to higher levels of concern,” she says. “And there’s lots of crossover in terms of the synthetic plastics and technology that go into making these products—many of the same companies make both [diapers and pads].”
Regardless, the larger problem remains, which is that the task of preventing additional exposure will probably fall not on product manufacturers but on women themselves. “This type of information often gets put out there in a way that’s disempowering and puts women at the front lines of yet another toxin issue that could affect their families,” says Sonya Lunder, senior toxics adviser for the Sierra Club’s Gender, Equity & Environment program. “It stands to increase moms’ anxiety. Yet this isn’t a ‘new chemical scare every day’ problem, but rather a ‘things are broken’ problem that affects the women and caregivers in charge of taking care of everyone. We need to end the scaremongering and distractions and fix the problem in a bigger way.”
6. Arizona History: April 18, 1539. Fray Maros de Niza, on his quest for the Seven Cities of Cibola, arrives upon a village called Ojio, north of the present day Oracle. He writes that the villagers offer him food and gifts which he does not accept.
1934: A fire broke out inside the Hotel Congress forcing the evacuation of residents. The evacuation blew the cover for the famous serial bank robber, John Dillinger and his gang into the hands of the law. He later escaped and was finally shot dead in Chicago later that year. Source: Arizona Highways April 2019.
