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Mar 2, 2017

New fad rocks Volusia with yearlong 'Easter egg' hunt

Port Orange resident Nicole Sanchez, who spruces up rocks with her 7-year-old daughter, Navella, and also helps Copelin keep up with the flood of Facebook posts on the VolusiaCountyRocks page.“Seeing the joy in people’s faces when they find the rocks” is a big part of why Sanchez has painted rock after rock – too many to count.“You’re not getting instant gratification, but you know that you’re putting something out there and it’s something bigger than yourself,” she said.Sandy Jarvis, also of Port Orange, is just as jazzed about the movement behind the rocks, from which she often garners a sense of instant gratification.“You see your completed product quickly,” she said. “It’s not a long drawn-out process. Some of (the designs) are just really adorable, and it doesn’t take 10 minutes to paint them.”Jarvis’ designs span from cartoon faces and flowers to animals and landscapes and, like others involved, she gathers ideas from the Internet and Pinterest, where people in other cities swept by the rock hunts have posted their works of art.For Jarvis, who likens VolusiaCountyRocks to a “year-long Easter egg hunt,” the joy of painting rocks is nearly outweighed by the joy she sees in her grandkids and other children when they come across stones.“The kids are just so excited about it, and it’s just awesome to brighten the little kids’ day and see them running around the park,” she said.That’s the whole point – propelling kids and families off couches and away from electronics to spend time together and promote random acts of community kindness.“It just feels good to give and not get anything in return,” Sanchez said. “I think it makes our souls feel good.”... (Daytona Beach News-Journal)

Feb 3, 2016

A close-up look at Hoyt Arboretum: Plus winter garden care tips (photos)

Just look at the twisty, bare bones structure of a corkscrew hazel (Corylus avellana 'Contorta'). Squint and the patchy dark on a light background of Snow Gum branches (Eucalyptus pauciflora subsp. debeuzevillei) look like a giraffe's neck bending to the ground. Visit the Hoyt Arboretum now and you'll also be rewarding with a vision of a blooming 'Showa-No-Sakae' Camellia sasanqua, a prelude to spring. Hoyt Arboretum's winter garden topography "provides viewing windows for the plants and simulates the motion of water in the rockery and drainage creek bed," says the arboretum's horticulturist Mark McKinney. "Several plants are currently flowering, such as our hellebores, viburnums, witch hazels and contorted filbert. The flowering cycles of the plants interact with diverse foliage texture and bark colors." Volunteers at the arboretum's Visitor Center are ready with self-guided tour brochures and gardeners say every tree has a story to tell. Hoyt Arboretum has a story, too. It was founded in 1928 by timber industry representatives, the U.S. Forest Service, the Portland Parks & Recreation department and enthusiasts to educate scientists to students about vulnerable or endangered species. The arboretum has Dawn Redwood and other rare plants that it conserves across 189 ridge-top acres. If you're interested in adding something unique to your winter garden, check out Hoyt Arboretum's online Plant Inventory Guide. Better yet, go see for yourself. Hoyt Arboretum, at 4000 S.W. Fairview Blvd. in Portland, has private, guided and self-guided walking tours. Admission is free. The arboretum is open 5 a.m.–9:30 p.m daily. The Visitor Center is open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday and 11 a.m.–3 p.m. Saturday-Sunday (depending on volunteer availability). For more information, visit www.hoytarboretum.org or call 503-865-8733. Hoyt horticulturist Mark McKinney lists his favorite winter plants: For bark and color inter... (OregonLive.com)

Dec 30, 2015

Astoria Stands With Hate Crime Victim

Haque speaks to reporters outside his store last week, surrounded by Councilman Costa Constantinides, State Sen. Michael Gianaris, Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas and Astoria residents. Local politicians, who organized the rally, condemned the alleged hate crime in strong terms. “Mr. Haque, I’m sorry what happened to you. I can’t tell you how disgusted I feel. But I’m so proud to see all of Astoria out here today to support and to unite together to say that this behavior is not acceptable,” Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas (D-Astoria) said. “This is his neighborhood. This is his community as much as everyone else’s,” Councilman Costa Constantinides (D-Astoria) stressed. The Councilman spoke warmly of Haque’s involvement in the community, describing a press conference on pedestrian safety where Haque had handed out free coffee to the attendees. Several of the polticians criticized Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump for saying that Muslims did not belong in the country. “Make no mistake, what you’re seeing happening here, what happened in Philadelphia where a mosque was vandalized, these are the direct results of the hatred that is being inspired in the national debate,” State Sen. Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) said. “What Donald Trump and his kind are doing is creating an environment where people who want to commit hate crimes feel emboldened to do so,” he said. State Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst) had a message for the attacker. “Enough is enough, and if you try that again, you’re going to have to deal with the community. You’re going to have to deal with all of us united as one,” Peralta said. For his part, Haque became emotional as he spoke about the life that he’d built in the United States over 28 years. “This is my country. I was in this country since I was 21 years old. I came alone. I came alone. Now, I have a beautiful family. A wife and five kids,” Haque said. “I am proud of this country. That’s why I am here. I’m from Bangladesh. I get eve... (Queens Tribune)