Happy EarthdayFree Download

Happy Earth Day. I prefer to keep it upbeat even though Anderson Cooper
is right that our planet is in peril.
Click here to download a free demo of plastic bottles. This is my gift to you on Earth Day.
This song was inspired by the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn. I used to cross the canal on my way to the recording studio. The water is so polluted that it reflects purple and green shimmers of light and gives off a sulpher smell. If there are fish in this water, they are not what one might call normal and are definitely not edible. It saddens me to see our planet destroyed at such an alarming rate.

We have worked to fight factory pollution in this country only to allow companies to move those factories to China where the problem of pollution is much like the conditions of Europe during the industrial revolution. I watched a program where farmers in china were putting plants in greenhouses because the air pollution is so horrible that the plants were dying if exposed to the air.

The ice caps are melting. The Ozone Layer is being destroyed.
It's time for each of us to make a difference in our own lives. Small acts of conscienciousness can make a huge difference. I hope to be part of the solution and not part of the problem. It takes effort but we can and should get involved. This week I will be highlighting little things that you can do in your own life to be a good steward of this planet.

A trip to the Swanson-Lowry Bed and Breakfast

We drove up to Simon and Jason's country home on Friday for Easter. It is this beautiful 200 year old house nestled between a pond and a dairy farm in upstate New York. There is a fireplace, no cellphone service and a real sense of peace and quiet about the place. It's the perfect spot to drink wine, eat num nums and sleep much too late.

On Saturday we went to the market to buy groceries, wine and pick up a salmon which Jason was preparing to poach via the kindly influences of Martha Stewart using his newly purchased fish poacher. We made a visit to the pond to look at the fish, who gather near the edge hoping for crumbs as tadpoles wiggled around in the water. We watched a woodpecker brutalzing a tree.

We returned to the house and boiled eggs for coloring. The kit came with one of those wax pens and in an adorable display of affection, Simon, Jason, K and I all wrote sweet little love notes on eggs. "I love K" "Jason and Simon 4ever" "Robert is hot" "I love Jason"...if you need a little bag to vom in, let me know. When the eggs emerged from their little plastic dye buckets our secret love notes were revealed along with an egg on which I wrote "jesus is risen" with a little cross.

In the evening we were joined by Lauren, Linda and Kyle and had a Roast with green beans, Yorkshire pudding and my famous wasabi twice baked potatoes.

After a lovely dinner, we sat by the fire until the consumption of wine and brandy turned the kitchen into a disco party. There are photos. If not too embarrassing, perhaps I will share.

On Sunday I made bloody marys and observed and occasionally helped with the preparations for an exceedingly delectable brunch centered around a highly pampered fish cooked with much love and care. I did not want to leave for the city, wishing we had one more day in the country,but alas, all good things must come to an end. With food in our bellies and the warmth of holiday cheer in our corroded hearts, we piled into a car and returned to the urban jungle.

Thank you to Simon and Jason for inviting us into your home and providing the utmost hospitality.

The Rant gives the Swanson-Lowry Bed and Breakfast 5 out of 5 stars.