optimism photos on Flickr

In a medium bowl, mix Knox unflavored Gelatine with sugar*; add to hot fruit and stir until gelatine is completely dissolved. Pour into a two-cup bowl, mold or individual dessert dishes; chill until firm. Makes four servings.

When adding fruit (up to 1 1/2 cups), first chill the mixture until the consistency of egg whites. Fold in fruit and pour into 3 cup bowl. Chill until firm.

Young optimism 1982 by Global Youth Village

Optimism by nikond61

about to explore a new town

optimism by Kfxposure

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Hope and Optimism by Alan Green

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Optimism. by Afnan-Latheef

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It's dark, yet he smiles! :)

sm NSD_1227 by Gordon Howe

Optimism

The Courage & Optimism* by Loi Pasion Nuestro Olivar

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The Colour My World Series # 3

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“May the pain you have known and the conflict you have experienced give you the strength to walk through life facing each new situation with courage and optimism.”

(Anonymous)

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Optimism by Dances in Storms

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New flower bud on a rose bush in early November.

Optimism by Sudha..

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“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.” - Rabindranath Tagore

Christmas Trees Provide Coastal Optimism by Laura Guertin

Louisiana is reported to be losing 25 to 35 square miles of coastal wetlands each year – one football field of land per hour. The causes of the land loss are from natural causes and human interference, and include reduced sediment flow from the Mississippi River and its tributaries, land subsidence, and sea-level rise. To combat the diminishing and degrading coastal habitats, Jefferson Parish instituted a program that found a role for discarded Christmas trees to lessen wave energy and to combat erosion. Wooden cribs are constructed parallel to the shoreline to hold the trees. Volunteers, the Louisiana Air National Guard, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and others have coordinated the collection and placement of trees in these pens to lessen the impact of waves and storms. The calm water between the cribs and coast traps sediment and allows for plants and aquatic life to establish. Jefferson Parish has been tracking the impact of this Christmas tree recycling project. Between 1998 and 2015, an unprotected area of shoreline lost over 23 acres of habitat, while a section protected by trees only lost 3 acres. The Christmas tree recycling program not only assists coastal habitats but generates awareness among Louisiana residents and provides an opportunity for participation in making a difference for the coast.

The quilt is to be viewed from the top to the bottom, representing a relative sequence over time as viewed at one location. No quantitative data is implied in terms of spatial or temporal patterns sewn. Each horizontal gray strip of fabric represents breaks in time. At the top of the quilt, one sees a wide strip of “plant” fabric representing a marsh coastline, and a smaller piece of “water” fabric representing the coastal water. As one moves down to the next row of plant/water fabric, there is less of the land fabric and more of the water fabric. This is to represent erosion occurring along the Louisiana coast, where marsh habitat is being lost from wave energy, subsidence, seal-level rise, etc. As one moves down the next several rows, there is a continued loss of the coast with an increasing encroachment of water. In the middle of the quilt, a Christmas tree crib appears. The successive rows show a reduction in loss of the marsh over time, reflecting the results shared by Jefferson Parish (still marsh loss but less volume when the Christmas trees were put in place).

This is my story of coastal optimism – a story of habitat loss and degradation that is slowed by the placement of discarded Christmas trees.

Optimism by Samantha G 82