Daily Loaf

Don’t feel like getting married in one of the six U.S. states that allow same-sex marriages? Never fear! America isn’t the only place same-sex couples can marry. Gay marriage is legal in seven other countries. However, six of those countries have strict residency requirements that make it difficult for non-citizens to obtain a marriage license. But O, Canada! On July 20, 2005, the Canadian Parliament approved a law allowing same-sex couples to marry and there is no residency requirement! Good news, eh? So, Americans, if you want a change of scenery, look to our Northern neighbors. Find the info you need after the break on Canada and other countries’ same-sex marriage rules and regs. And check out Creative Loafing’s Gay Issue 2009 for links to more info on being gay in Tampa Bay — including details on how to win a Big Gay Honeymoon during the St. Pete Pride Parade and Festival. Read the rest of this entry »

Since the mainstream media has shoved off to cover the last moments of America’s Next Top Model and the finals of the American Idol competitions, I want to bring you up to date on the Swine Flu. 

First of all it is important to understand that in the USA’s rush to make the naming of this virus politically correct and to protect the flagging pork industry, they settled on H1N1 virus. H1N1 is a group of viruses, influenza A(H1N1).

Viruses are not typical and change often so by using this general title for this virus, Public Health has dumbed us down. Other groups of influenza viruses are A(H3N2) and B/Yamagata and B/Victoria viruses but the list is massive and complicated. To call this virus H1N1 is like using the term car to categorize a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti. Yes it is a car but, there are many cars and among cars the 612 Scaglietti is most unique.  This “swine flu” is an A(H1N1) but it is not the only A(H1N1) virus. Read the rest of this entry »

Smoking is a habit I don’t agree with, but one I’m willing to tolerate. I silently suck up second hand smoke for the sake of politeness, and place fondness of the company over my own good health. Litter in general, is something I abhor, but cigarette butts are the worst form of it. I always make my friend or companion pick up their butt if they flick it on the ground.

When my boyfriend and I started dating, we went for a long, romantic walk on the beach at night. As we walked, he held my hand in one of his, and the cigarette butt I wouldn’t let him flick on the beach in the other. It may be a little strict, but it’s for a very good reason. If someone else wants to ruin their own health, that’s fine, but I won’t let them ruin the Earth. But it’s just a cigarette butt, you say. Au contraire, say I.Cigarette butts are the most common form of litter, worldwide. In a recent Canadian shore clean up, 323,706 were collected, according to Canada’s National Post. There are a couple of reasons why this is.

Most people don’t realize that they’re littering, and if they are, they aren’t realizing that this is harmful litter. Some people throw an apple core out the car window, and say, “It’s okay, its biodegradable” and hope that an apple tree grows in its place. It’s the same with cigarettes. Cigarettes filters are not biodegradable. They are made of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic, which can take decades to biodegrade. So that ugly butt you drop in the park will stay in that park until some Girl Scout troop does a nature clean up.

But the aesthetics are the most minor concern in the matter. Oftentimes the non-biodegradable filter, full of chemicals left over from the cigarette, manages to make its way into a body of water, or the stomach of some small animal. According to whyquit.com, “The nicotine trapped inside 200 used filters is sufficient to kill an adult human – 50 to 60 milligrams.” What would those same 200 filters do to fish and birds if instead of being put into a proper trash receptacle; they were washed into a lake, or eaten off the beach, mistaken for food scraps?

So the next time you or someone you’re with goes to flick their cigarette butt to the ground, think twice and find a trash can. It’s a small move that could have a big effect.