There are times when we wonder if we could just take a break from the stressors of the day and find a bit of calm to write about. We found that, for the moment, it is nice to look at other things and appreciate what is going on beyond Covid and politics.
So here we go. It seems that scientists are now exploring the theory that humans may have a sixth sense which is being able to sense objects by their vibrations while utilizing the magnetic field of the earth. We are not surprised. Magnetoreception, as it is called, may be the primal sense and one that may be rediscovered in humans. Do you ever wonder why you take the same path or walk through your living room or another part of your house in the same way every time?
It is now an accepted fact that many animals sense the magnetic field of Earth. Birds, fish, and other migratory animals dominate the list. Even lobsters and other small creatures possess this sense. In experiments, wood mice and mole rats use magnetic field lines in siting their nests. Cattle and deer orient their bodies along magnetic fields when grazing and dogs point themselves north or south when they urinate or defecate. Fascinating stuff and, as we find, what a nice distraction from today’s worries.
Along those lines, we have been tracking stories of genetically modified mosquitoes in Florida, crashing space debris, and the emerging Brood X Cicadas in the mid-Atlantic. The current drought in California, the impending gas shortage this summer, and the lack of chlorine for pools seems to dominate this week as well. And there is good news that the ban on dancing at weddings in DC has been lifted. Let’s hear it for the Electric Slide!
And, of special interest, you would not want to miss the Cats at Work Program where Chicago has just released 1000 feral cats into the street to combat the city’s rat problem. And for those concerned about their health and well-being, researchers have revealed that fast walkers can live up to 20 years longer, sleep better, are smarter, less stressed, and burn more calories. We realized after reading this that if we start walking faster, we could possibly live to be 100 years old!
In so many ways our lives are returning to pre-covid “normal” which means that we are once again able to experience the “small stuff.” We can now sit, put our feet up, relax and read a Robin Cook medical thriller, like the one where the virus takes over the world. Well, maybe not! Instead, we think we will follow the magnetic field to the couch and think about walking faster.
My father always said, “don’t sweat the small stuff.” I just can’t figure out what the small stuff is these days. –Maggie
