Just A Few Laughs

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bowling, Cara Reynolds, Happiness, hedgehog, inspiration, laughs, laughter, lesbian, Maria Emilia Borja, Mensa, Mushpa, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, Pepper vs Tuck, queer, The American Hedgehog Bowling Association, The American Hedgehog Bowling Association - Pepper vs Tuck

Hedgehog bowling and not in a bad way… Please it’s us.

So cute.

-Mushpa

Don’t Plant Invasive Species In Coastal NC

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Audubon, Beach vitex, Cara Reynolds, Carman and Brotherson, coastal nc, coastal NC invasive plants, coastal north carolina, Cortaderia selloana, invasive shrub, invasive species, Maryland, Mushpa & Mensa, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, Native Plant Finder, North Carolina, Pampas grass, Salt cedar, Saltcedar, sea turtle, Tamarix spp., U.S. Forest Service, Vitex rotundifolia

Kudzu – The Vine That Ate The South

If you are not looking for another Kudzu disaster, I would recommend NOT planting these 4 invasive species in Coastal North Carolina or anywhere in the United States honestly.

Let us start with the infamous Saltcedar (Tamarix ramosissima). Tamarix ramosissima has naturalized and become a major invasive plant species in parts of the world, consuming large amounts of groundwater in riparian (relating to or situated on the banks of a river) and oasis habitats due to the density of its stands. The high salt level in tamarisk infiltrates the soil, preventing other plants from growing, creating a tamarisk-dominant forest with no understory, void of important habitat for pollinators and other native species. Tamarisk forests also tend to burn hotter than most native riparian trees, worsening the fire hazard of acres of uninterrupted tamarisk and their risk to human structures.

Native To:
Eurasia (Carman and Brotherson 1982)
Date of U.S. Introduction:
Early 1800s (Carman and Brotherson 1982)
Means of Introduction:
Ornamental (Carman and Brotherson 1982)
Impact: Lowers the water table & creates large deposits of salt in the soil (Di Tomaso 1998)

Next on the list is the Thorny-olive (Elaeagnus pungens).

This exotic invasive species (native to Asia) has become a serious ecological pest in North Carolina, displacing native vegetation in many forested and forest edge habitats.  Exotic invasive from Japan, this shrub to small tree grows along wooded edges in suburban areas in the eastern half of North Carolina.

Pampas grass (Cortaderia selloana) is coming for you North Carolina!

What problems does pampas grass cause?

It forms dense, often impenetrable, stands that can damage grazing lands and affect visibility on roads. Pampas grass increases its density and colonizes semi-natural areas in a short period of time, being a threat to native plant diversity. Due to low decomposition rates of standing dead leaves and senescing panicles, it increases fire risk. The sharp leaves can produce superficial cuts and flowers may provoke allergies in summer. Their large size significantly reduces light availability, blocking out native species.

Beach vitex (Vitex rotundifolia) is sea turtles’ enemy!

Beach vitex is a salt-tolerant, perennial, invasive shrub that has naturalized in coastal areas of the southeastern United States. Since its introduction in the 1980s, this Pacific Rim native has invaded many fragile beach-dune ecosystems along the Mid-Atlantic, Southern Atlantic, and Gulf of Mexico. Large-scale monocultures of beach vitex supplant native species through rapid vegetative reproduction and seed production. Fruits are capable of water-based dispersal, allowing for potential rapid range expansion in coastal areas. Ecosystem damage resulting from exclusion of native plant species by beach vitex and fears associated with potential negative effects on sea turtle nesting have served to promote the control and survey efforts presently underway in coastal areas of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Maryland.

Here are some sites that will help you find native plants to your area.

Audubon – https://www.audubon.org/native-plants

Native Plant Finder – https://www.nwf.org/nativePlantFinder/plants

U.S. Forest Service – https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/Native_Plant_Materials/Native_Gardening/index.shtml

People remember, before you seed, read! :] Knowledge is power.

– Mushpa (aka Cara)

Suwannee Spring Reunion

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artisans, Awesome Event, camping, Cara Reynolds, clothes, DONNA THE BUFFALO, eco-friendly, fashion, Florida, Food Trucks, Habanero Honeys, http://annabellelyn.com/, Jon Stickley Trio, Larry Keel Experience, Live Oak, Maria Emilia Borja, Mushpa Y Mensa, music festival, on my way home, organic, Rice Dream, Rice Dream Jon Stickley Trio, Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park, Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park and Campground, Suwannee Spring Reunion, suwanneespringreunion.com, Swing That Thing, t shirt, t shirt designs, The Adventures of Annabelle Lyn, the mammals

A beloved tradition is reborn as the picturesque grounds of the Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park play host to a new take on a classic gathering with the 2nd Annual Suwannee Spring Reunion at the end of March. For decades the onset of Spring meant gathering at the park for a weekend of fun, family, Bluegrass and string music. The intial Line-Up included artist with storied histories of epic Suwannee performances like Donna the Buffalo, Peter Rowan, Jeff Mosier and many, many more…. Matching the history on the stage, long time park hosts, Randy and Beth Judy are partnering with the Spirit of the Suwannee to make sure that every piece needed to make an epic weekend of music and fun is in place and ready to write the new entries for this new legend.

Once again the beloved tree lined amphitheater is home to early morning sing-a-longs and night time musical pyrotechnics from the park’s stellar cast of alumni. Placing a strong emphasis on embracing on the traditions that made the park a national treasure, there will be a wide array of arts & crafts, food that ranges from healthy to decadent and of course the grandeur of the park itself. It’s a place where kids of all ages can remember why they fell in love with the magic mixture of sights, sounds and sensations that constitutes a weekend of paradise that is the Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park.

For four days in March, you can slip your shoes off and dance under the bright blue vistas and star studded skies. Wander the endless trails along the Suwannee River, tell stories around the crackling campfire or simply lie back and watch the Spanish moss that drapes the sheltering Live Oaks that sway in the breeze. Dance the days way at the Stages and wile away the night hours around the “Picking Parties” that spring up along into the dawn’s early light. There are no wrong choices when you arrive at your home and the place where live music lives for the founding of a new tradition, built on the love of the past, the Suwannee Spring Reunion.

Mushpa + Mensa can’t wait to see you all there!!!

Here are some of the artists playing this weekend!

The Adventures of Annabelle Lyn

 

 

 

 

Donna the Buffalo

 

 

 

Larry Keel Experience

 

 

Jon Stickley Trio

 

The Mammals

 

 

 

 

 

Plus other awesome peeps.

It is going to be such an amazing experience!

– Mushpa + Mensa

We’re Off Again

Tags

African, Alice Merton, and a Children's Universe tent, Appalachian, art, Art Market, artisan market, artisans, artist, arts, Arts & Live Music, arts and crafts, Awesome Event, Blue Ridge Mountains, Blue Ridge Parkway, bluegrass, Cajun, Cara Reynolds, Children's Universe tent, clay beads, clothes, compost, craft market, crafts, dance workshops, eco fi felt, eco-friendly, face painting, fashion, felt, Floyd, Floyd Festival, FloydFest, folk, freedom, Games and Activities, handcraft vendors, handmade, Happiness, healthy living products, homemade, jewlery, kids activities, lesbian, local, local arts and crafts, local craftsmen, love, Maria Emilia Borja, morning yoga lessons, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, music festival, No Roots, North Carolina, or Zydeco, organic, organic cotton, peace, plush animals, poetry readings, queer, reggae, rock, screen printing, soaps, story telling, t shirt designs, t-shirts, upcycled pillows, Virginia, woodworking, world music, Yiddish, Yoga, Zydeco

Our home has never been on the ground.

We are off to the next adventure tomorrow.

We’ve got no roots!

– Mushpa

Get Up Get Down

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Amelia Meath, Bob Boilen, Cara Reynolds, Colin Marshall, Come Down, Dine Alone, Electropop, Emma Breg, Flock of Dimes, H.S.K.T., Happiness, Hey Mami, indie pop, Kevin Wait, Loma Vista, Made of Oak, Maggie Starbar, Maggie Starbard, Megafaun, Morgan McCloy, Morgan McCloy/NPR, Mountain Man, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, music video, Nick Sanborn, NPR, NPR Tiny Desk Concert, Partisan, Sylvan Esso, tiny desk, Trekky

Today’s music brought to you by Sylvan Esso.

Hey Mami…

They are a local band from Durham, NC who made it big! :] North Carolina has so many great things! Watch out NYC, we have nerdy hillbilly coolness AND nature! We’ll call ourselves the Big Tobacco, the City that Sometimes Sleeps. Okay, that’s not so cool.

-Mushpa

 

 

She’s Looking Through The Wrong End Of The Telescope

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Andrew Burri, Berklee School of Music, Berklee School of Music alumni, Bob Boilen, Brooklyn, Brooklyn NY, Cara Reynolds, Chic Band, Christopher Parks, Danny Molad, Denise DeBelius, Don't Just Sit There, female music, Genevieve, Go Home, Holly Laessig, Jess Wolfe, Kevin Wait, Lauren Rock, Lucius, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, music video, New York City, NPR Tiny Desk, Peter Lalish, Ryan Smith, Turn It Around

Turn it around.

Feels like a curse.

Sounds likes a dream.

Don’t know what it means.

But it means everything.

Two of us on the run.

I can be the one who’s going insane.

A bike ride from our place in Brooklyn. We ate here so many times.

I love ya girl.

Took me 5 years to find them…but I did.

-Mushpa

Music – Make Me Feel Alive Again

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A Change Is Gonna Come, AHI, Alive Again, Bob Boilen, Cara Reynolds, Closer (From a Distance, DIY Musicians Conference, Frank Carter Rische, Maria Emilia Borja, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, music, music video, Nashville, NPR, Ol' Sweet Day, Ontario, Robbie Crowell, Sam Cooke, Shawn Killaly, Tiny Desk Concert, true love, We Made It Through The Wreckage

I said in Mushpa + Mensa’s 2018 goals meeting that for our blog entries this year no more posting just music videos as an entry. Saying it more for myself than anyone, being the only person that does it. :] I went on to say, we need the entries to have sustenance, depth, words, links pictures, etc. It has to be a REAL blog entry. The last few days I have been thinking about what I should write about and nothing raised my interest. Cut to this morning when I went to check my e-mails and found this…

I was mesmerized, enraptured really. Move in an undefinable way that music gifts you. It connects you to the place of magic, which these days is not always easy to find. Music, when good, allows your vision to clear and your strength to return.

AHI’s (pronounce eye) music brings good things to the table. It creates hope in humanity’s light and confirms the existence of beautiful humans. That in itself is worth writing about.

So down with the rules, first blog entry of 2018 is a music video my friends. Forgive me my love!

We bring light to the table.

– Mushpa

More Cats!!! The Scratching Post Cafe

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10%, Cara Reynolds, Cat Café, cat rescue center, Causes, delicious, fair trade Guatemalan coffee, Happiness, healthy food, indiegogo, inspiration, local coffee shop, Maria Emilia Borja, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, organic teas, Our Monthly Cause, The Scratching Post Cafe

Starting in 2017, we chose a monthly cause and will donate 10% of our sales to support said organization, project, human, etc. It will always be a cause that Mushpa + Mensa believes brings more love, hope, and peace to this world.

This month we will be supporting our soon-to-be local coffee shop and cat rescue center: The Scratching Post Cafe! What is better than coffee and cats? Mushpa would argue than nothing comes close.

Meow!

The Scratching Post Café, Wilmington’s first Cat Café plans to offer delicious, fair trade Guatemalan coffee, organic teas, and healthy food options for Wilmington residents and visitors! They will be the first of their kind here in our area, offering delicious refreshments all while being able to play and hang out with adoptable, cuddly kitties! Their ultimate mission is to give cats a loving and comfortable environment until they get adopted and get to go to a loving home!

Purrfect!

– Mushpa + Mensa

 

Listen To Some Music While Doing Some Good #LessWasteChallenge

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#LessWasteChallenge, A Prairie Home Companion, Alejandro Jodorosky, Banjo, Baritone Ukulele, Blank Tape Records, Cara Reynolds, Chandler Pratt, Colorado, Concertina, eco-friendly, Fiddle, guitar, Guitar Mike Clark, Harmonica, Haunted Wind Chimes, Inaiah Lujan, Kazoo, magical mobile art machine, Mandolin, Mandolin Desirae Garcia, Maria Emilia Borja, Melodica Chela Lujan, Mushpa + Mensa, Mushpa Y Mensa, OpenAir 1340 Colorado Public Radio, psychedelic, Pueblo, Rattle Your Bones, recycle, recycle toys, recycled, Sarah Megyesy, Sun Shining Bright, TerraCycle, The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit, Tom's of Maine, Vocals

Take the #LessWasteChallenge and recycle your old toys!

TerraCycle and Tom’s of Maine have partnered to create a free recycling program for used/loved toys from now through April 30!!!

You can send those old or broken toys to TerraCycle for free, courtesy of Tom’s of Maine. Here is how easy it is!

1. Request your free shipping label

2. Fill a box with toys (10 pounds per box)

3. Send TerraCycla your toys to be recycled

Free shipping labels are available until April 30th and your toys may be in any condition!

Broken toys. Used toys. Forgotten toys. Instead of bagging them up and putting them on the curb, try recycling.

This year, Tom’s of Maine challenges you to reduce 1 lb of waste per week through the #LessWasteChallenge. And they want to help you meet this goal by providing a free recycling program for your old toys.

Toy Condition: Your toys may be in any condition. Instead of being thrown away, these old toys will be sorted and recycled into cool, new creations.

Less to the dump, R6 it!

– Mushpa

Grow Your Own Pineapples

Tags

Australia, Cara Reynolds, diy, diy pineapple, farming, Gardening, Happiness, homemade, How to Grow Mini Pineapples From Tops, how to grow pineapple, love, Maria Emilia Borja, Mark, Mushpa Y Mensa, organic, organic farming, pineapple, Self Sufficient Me

In this video, Mark lets us know to only buy pineapples with tops at the stores or farmer’s market, any others without tops he says those sellers can, “go stuff themselves!” :] Other truth bombs he drops on us are, no need to soak in water just cut the head off leaving an inch of the fruit to give them some extra energy, then “bang the head into the ground” and add some water.

He gives us some more knowledge in the video, but I will let you watch and learn the rest on your own if you so choose!

Free fruit! Pictures in the future here.

– Mushpa