Dortmund, Germany: People on the frontlines of Europe’s gas crisis are scrambling to get solar panels for their homes and businesses as they confront a “perfect storm” that’s sending energy prices to record levels.

In the first six months of this year, Germany saw a 22% jump in the installation of solar systems, compared with the same period last year.

This included residential and commercial uses, from small installations on private rooftops to large solar farms.

Demand for solar power was already on the rise in Europe’s biggest economy, as energy prices surged, policy incentives were introduced and adoption of the technology became more mainstream.

But more recently, consumers have also faced ever higher utility bills, scorching temperatures, and renewed anxiety over whether they’ll be able to keep the heat on this winter. (CNN)

And all of this is driven by the threat that Russia will turn off the gas to its biggest European customer.

Oh, I know your house isn’t perfect.

And I know your loved ones aren’t perfect.

Of course, your friends aren’t perfect.

And if you’re employed, your work situation isn’t perfect.

If you are seeking perfection in this world, you came to the wrong place!

It just doesn’t exist.

But, you can still be a happy person if you always try to make the best of your situation.

In other words, “Bloom Where You’re Planted!”

If not today, when?

Pakistan is racing to prevent further loss of life as it reels from one of its worst climate disasters with floodwater threatening to cover up to a third of the country of 220 million people by the end of the monsoon season.

Climate change minister Sherry Rehman said Sunday the unprecedented rain had created a “climate catastrophe” with floodwaters submerging homes, destroying farmland and displacing millions of people.

“We’ve had to deploy the navy for the first time to operate in Indo-Pakistan, because much of it resembles a small ocean,” she told German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.

On Monday, the death toll reached 1,061 since mid-June as the unrelenting rain raised fears of more fatalities to come.

On Monday, new satellite images showed homes and fields completely submerged along the Indus River, as well as the cities of Rajanpur and Rojhan in Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province. Islamabad (CNN)

Isn’t it about time for everyone to admit CLIMATE CHANGE IS REAL?

If not today, when?

I met him on a racing yacht.

I was invited to join the crew because they only had a crew of 5 and needed a crew of 6.

Dennis was the first to welcome me aboard.

He was the bowman, the most dangerous position on the boat.

He was always telling jokes and keeping everyone entertained.

Around 2015, he discovered he had prostate cancer.

The surgery to remove it was not successful and he fought the disease for 7 years until his passing recently.

He continued to race until he was no longer able.

Every time I spoke with him, he had more jokes to tell me.

The lesson of his life is to try to make the most of every day regardless of whatever struggles you may have!

Life deals everyone a different hand.

We must play the hand we’re dealt!

Your reply may be, “She knows I love her!”

Does that reply mean that you said it once and once is enough?

The Reverend Jesse Jackson has always said, “Keep hope alive!”

I would like to offer this saying, “Keep love alive!”

I have a friend whose wife went for a bicycle ride and was struck and killed by a bus.

I wonder how recently before her death he told her, “I love you?”

I hope his wife died knowing he loved her.

Our lives are filled with many uncertainties.

The one thing that must be certain in the lives of your loved ones is the sure knowledge that you love them.

That sure knowledge can only be guaranteed if they hear you say, “I love you!” often enough.

If not today, when?

The future of environmentally friendly travel might just be here — and it’s Germany that’s leading the charge, with the first ever rail line to be entirely run on hydrogen-powered trains.

Fourteen hydrogen trains powered by fuel cell propulsion will exclusively run on the route in Bremervörde, Lower Saxony.

The trains, five of which began Wednesday, will gradually replace the 15 diesel trains that currently run on the route, with all 14 running exclusively by the end of the year. Just 1 kilo of hydrogen fuel can do the same as around 4.5 kilos of diesel.

The trains are emissions-free and low-noise, with only steam and condensed water issuing from the exhaust. They have a range of 621 miles, meaning they can run for an entire day on the network on a single tank of hydrogen. A hydrogen filling station has already been established on the route. The trains can go at a maximum of 87mph.

There was not the divisiveness we see today.

There was no such thing as RED STATES and BLUE STATES.

We were THE UNITED STATES.

Our young men and women went off to war so that we could protect our way of life from the Nazi peril.

Our bombers and fighter planes were being built by women who went into the factories to build the weapons needed to win.

They had the popular nickname, “Rosie the Riveter!”

We were all together then, fighting shoulder-to-shoulder for Democracy.

Now, many of our politicians don’t think we need Democracy anymore.

So, our Democracy is under attack again not from without, but from within.

And our allies around the world are watching to see if the world’s greatest Democracy can survive.

They are worried.

We should be too.

If not today, when?

Do you know who your kids friend’s are at school?

Do you know if your kids have any friends?

If they have friends, have you ever met them?

Do you know what kind of influence their friends have on them?

Many of these questions can be answered if you meet with their teachers.

Parent conferences with teachers give you a unique perspective on your child’s academic AND SOCIAL PROGRESS.

No one is in a better position to observe your children on a daily basis than their teachers.

You MUST attend parent -teacher meetings so you can get an unbiased opinion of your children’s life at school and how they interact with their peers.

You can also schedule a private one-on-one meeting with teachers if you are concerned about your child.

YOU’VE GOT TO KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON!

If not today, when?

The pandemic forced Freed Bodyworks, a wellness center offering massage therapy, yoga, acupuncture, mental health counseling and other services, to shut down for four months.

But while clients returned when it reopened in the summer of 2020, workers did not.

Almost two years later, owners Frances Reed and Jessica VonDyke were forced to shut the business’ doors.

“I couldn’t hire anyone,” said Reed. “We never had trouble with our demand for services. It was 100% a supply issue for us.”

Before the pandemic, Freed Bodyworks had 20 practitioners booking up to 550 clients a month. It reopened with a skeleton crew of eight.

Moreover, the shutdown of in-person instruction at massage schools dried up what had once been a dependable pipeline of emerging talent.

“In the entire time period from when we reopened until closing, I managed to hire three people, and that was with full-time recruiting.” (CNN)