Suing a Minister + Hope + Open Mike

Good Morning from Warren Grove, Prince Edward island

I hope you had a good week and are safe. 

"I am not an optimist because I am not sure everything ends well. Nor am I a pessimist because I am not sure that everything ends badly. I just carry hope in my heart. Hope is the feeling that life and work have meaning. You either have it, or you don't, regardless of the state of the world that surrounds you. Life without hope is an empty, boring, and useless life. I cannot imagine that I could strive for something if I did not carry hope in me. I am thankful to God for this gift. It is as big as life itself." ~ Vaclav Havel

Thinking about Weather and Whether

On the Island, we like to talk about the weather, and it seems it is not only a point of local conversation and amusement; the weather has become a global concern. 

I am deciding whether to golf today.

The weather folks are calling for a mix of sun and cloud, a 60% chance of showers, a risk of thundershowers with a high of 25C / 77F, and a Humidex of 30.

So, if I head out to the links, I do so with my fourteen lightning rods, or I should say my golf clubs.

Have you heard of anyone suing someone else because lightning struck his barn?

Thank You goes to the Farmer’s Almanac for the answer….

During a prolonged drought in the mid-1880s, a minister in New York State called a prayer meeting so that all the residents could pray for rain. One farmer, Phineas Dodd, apparently thought prayer was unnecessary, so he did not attend the meeting. Thunderstorms rumbled through the area three hours after the meeting ended, bringing the much-needed rain. Unfortunately, the thunderstorms also brought lightning, which struck Dodd’s barn and burned it to the ground. Dodd sued the minister, Duncan McLeod, whose lawyer pointed out that the minister and the people at the prayer meeting had prayed for rain, not a thunderstorm. Therefore, McLeod could not be held accountable for the lightning strike. Dodd’s case was thrown out of court.

On the environmental front, some local good news.

Maritime Electric plans on getting to net zero by 2030. 

Most of the utility's current greenhouse gas emissions come from buying energy off-Island and delivering it to customers on P.E.I. Maritime Electric. also buys all of the Island's wind energy from the P.E.I. Energy Corporation.

Jason Roberts, CEO of the utility, said the utility needs to find ways to produce more renewable energy on the Island. To reach its reduced emissions target, Roberts estimates the company will need approximately 100 megawatts of additional wind power and 120 megawatts of solar energy added to the grid by 2030.

Maritime Electric also plans to fully replace its light-duty fleet — including pickup trucks and vans — with electric vehicles by 2032. 

"Hope has two beautiful daughters; their names are Anger and Courage. Anger at the way things are, and Courage to see that they do not remain as they are." ~ Saint Augustine

This week I changed search engines. 

Ecosia is a search engine. I have started to use it instead of Google and have had no issues. 

If you are a Google Chrome user, you can add Ecosia as an extension, and it becomes your search engine instead of Google. For every 45 searches, they plant a tree. 

Ecosia is a not-for-profit B corp. They use the incredible profits generated by search to plant trees. 

By planting trees and offsetting its energy use with renewables, Ecosia removes .5 kg of CO2 from the air each time you use it, which makes them a carbon-negative search engine. 

So far, Ecosia has planted 140 million trees. You can join here.

"May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears." ~ Nelson Mandela

I appreciate the Japanese culture. This Washington Post article is an excellent window into this community's efforts to do what they can to help the environment. 

Tucked away in the mountains of Japan’s Shikoku island, a town of about 1,500 residents is on an ambitious path toward a zero-waste life.

In 2003, Kamikatsu became the first municipality in Japan to make a zero-waste declaration. Since then, the town has transformed its open-air burning practices for waste disposal into a system of buying, consuming and discarding to reach carbon neutrality. Now, the town estimates it is more than 80 percent of its way toward meeting that goal by 2030.

In this well-presented article by Michelle Ye Hee Lee and Julia Mio Inuma, there are many photos and a great explanation of how they are attempting to meet their goals. 

"When you do nothing, you feel overwhelmed and powerless. But when you get involved, you feel the sense of hope and accomplishment that comes from knowing you are working to make things better." ~ Maya Angelou

Speaking of hope, after suffering a brain aneurysm in 2015, Joni Mitchell has occasionally made public appearances, but last weekend gave her first live set since 2002.

In light of Joni Mitchell’s surprise visit to the Newport Folk Festival last weekend, I have listened to her music over the last few days. 

River, The Joni Letters is a Grammy award-winning album by Herbie Hancock. In addition to Herbie's piano magic, friends such as Tina Turner, Leonhard Cohen, Norah Jones, and others added their vocals to showcase Joni’s songwriting genius. 

I hope you have a lovely weekend and a great week ahead. 

With love from Prince Edward Island,

Bruce + Millie

ps. Your Morning Smile

I’m really excited about the amateur autopsy club I just joined... 

Wednesday is open Mike night!