Heather Dune Macadam's Blog, page 5

70 Years Ago Today – Jan 22, 1945 #Holocaust #History #Liberation

Death March: Prisoners continue to arrive in German camps and the last columns of prisoners on the death march from Auschwitz arrive in Wodzislaw Slaski–2,223 prisoners that arrive in Buchenwald, after being left in open air freight cars  the night … Continue reading →

70 Years Ago Today – January 21, 1945 – Before Liberation of Auschwitz

DEATH MARCH: The residents of Polish towns through which the prisoners are marched recover the corpses of 1,101 male and female prisoners, and bury them in 29 mass graves along the route (see Friday’s “vlog” as we retrace this route … Continue reading →

70 Years Ago Today – Jan 18, 1945 – Death March Began from Auschwitz #Holocaust

It was one o’clock in the morning when the first women in Auschwitz were ordered into the snow driven night. Men had smuggled extra food and warm clothes to them, even shoes for the pending death march, but for hours … Continue reading →

70 Years Ago Today – Jan. 6, 1945 #Holocaust #Auschwitz #Women’s History

In the evening four female Jewish prisoners: Ella Gartner, Roza Robota, Regina Safir and Estera Wajcblum, are hanged in the women’s camp of Auschwitz. They were condemned to death because they assisted in the uprising that broke out on Oct. … Continue reading →

70 Years Ago Today – Dec. 30, 1944 #Holocaust #Auschwitz

As we head to the end of this historic year in 1944, we head toward the anniversaries of liberation and hope to come in 1945, and yet for many prisoners liberation would not come except through death. Let us remember … Continue reading →

National Geographic Online

Click to view slideshow.

Thanks Nat Geo for helping us get the word out there about conserving the Horseshoe Crab (and our own species)!

Here’s the ending that didn’t get published and what I did after counting only 2 females and 4 males the night of the full moon:

In the back of Bobby’s truck there were at least 100 crabs already piled upside down on top of each other. Their their legs and tails clicked against each other like a thousand knitting needles. Dr. Matt Salvani of the Cornell Cooperative Extension says volunteering “isn’t just for fun. You are really helping. It’s a real hands on experience. All you need to do is walk the beach and count…” Or in my case drive.

On my way to my car, I grabbed two females and three males out of truck. The female’s sides were full of eggs, I could feel them squish between my fingers and I am grateful that now she can lay them.  A little male lies quietly upside down in my lap, as if he knows he’s just been pardoned.

Volunteering is a real hands on experience. As I place the crabs back into the water, they unfold their ancient shapes and slip back into the freedom of the bay and a bashful full moon winks down at us from behind the clouds. Bobby, if you are reading this, I owe you six bucks. I wish I owed you more.

If you want to volunteer to count crabs and tag with us – visit http://www.nyhorseshoecrab.org/ SEE YOU OUT THERE!

Click to view slideshow.

 

 

Horseshoe Crab Spawning Has Started

The season is beginning when I shape shift from a landlubber to that creature that best suits my aquatic and sunny personality – a mermaid. And what better way to greet the season with the magic currently sweeping our eastern shoreboard? The Horseshoe Crab Spawn.

Already, I am finding spawning pairs on the beaches and am reminded that this ritual has been occurring for hundreds of millions of years, a breadth of time in which we appear to be but a speck. A number of major magazines are finally researching the industry too, which my next novel is about. Glad to see The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly and The Huffington Post looking at this amazing creatures who have changed our lives and our medical industry.

Looking for Some Laughter on a Cold Night w/”The Brady Bunch” Skinny Dip

Hard to find much to post of an aquatic nature this time of year. The boats are in dry dock; we didn’t even get out to see the seals. There is a fire in the fireplace and coats and gloves have been pulled out of storage and this memory from the sixties has been pulled out of storage too. Stay Warm!

CONGRATULATIONS “CUBA to FLORIDA” Mermaid #DianaNyad on Never Giving Up!

With a name like Nyad, what can we expect? This woman has topped the tenacity charts and reminds us that sometimes it takes 30 years to achieve your dream, so don’t give up in the meantime! You may have to swim through sharks, stinging jelly fish, and the absolute maddening intellectual boredom of swimming for 53 hours (I used to do multiplication tables when I swam for 3 hours! and I am not good at math), but you can still do it if your desire outweighs all other obstacles–internal and external.

I remember reading the memoir of the first woman to swim the English Channel when I was about 12 years old. I wanted to be just like her. I was dancing in NYC when Diana Nyad swam around Manhattan and knew I would never have the courage to face those mucky garbage filled waters that she did, and I loved her account of that swim. What is it about long distance swims that inspire me? The sheer determination to face such vast solitude – nothing but your body and mind, your breath… I love what Diana said about Swimming the Florida Straits though: “swimming looks like a solitary sport, but it’s a team.”

DON’T MISS THE VIDEO CLIP OF HER ARRIVING ON SHORE – WITHOUT HER LAND LEGS!

What to do on a Rainy Day – Atlantis Marine World!

I love those lovely rainy days that give me a break from the beach and send me into a good book or a long game of Scrabble or pinochle, but if you have company or kids, there are a few other things you can do on rainy days for the more rambunctious in our lives. Atlantis Marine World is a tad expensive for those on a budget but it is worth it. The butterfly room is magical and even in the rain you can spy the otters sleeping in their hole or explore an archeological dig and find fossils.I met a lovely woman and had a long conversation about creativity and fashion–she is a designer. While we spoke, the kids got dusty and kept showing us the things they were excavating.

In the next room was a makeshift mine, where kids can stand by a sluice and find gems and fossils too.  I love watching kids get wet and dirty and find treasures!  On the way out, the hospital and marine rescue has some of the turtles that have been saved or are being rehabbed. (In fact, a great Christmas gift is to give a sponsorship of one of the seal, dolphin or turtle rescues.)

Finally, don’t forget to feed the sting rays!