Wow. It’s been a marathon few weeks since the H3SD 2024 Summit. We finished the summit but I had agreed to speak at the Early Childhood Mental Health Conference which is a big regional conference in San Diego. It had been weighing on my mind, and I had agreed to do it in order to give an opportunity for someone who I am mentoring to speak. But in the end because we all live in our own realities of jobs/family/illnesses, we had to pivot and I ended up speaking with one of our premedical students. I am a believer in if things are meant to be , they are meant to be. And the talk at the end stages went fantastic. We were both definitely at the right place at the right time, and with each other at that moment.
We both delivered and I progressed on my thinking of so much of my environmental health work and thinking. I re-watched another recent talk I gave on indoor air pollution which actually was really good – now that I’m rewatching it. I need to move forward with that work as well. I am reminded that I am a very good public speaker, as I was rewatching some of my work.
But this weekend, I honestly need to catch up on sleep. My favorite kdrama is dropping a new episode! I have to help my daughter finish a really big application she is working on. And we want to have some fun and go out to Balboa Park. I also need to do my taxes. I have the money ready to pay my quarterly, but I need to get all my paperwork together. My father was an accountant, so I actually like getting together our tax paperwork.
That’s it! I just wanted to let my blog readership know that I have to really concentrate on my taxes this weekend!
What a relief just to type out the title of this blog. I’m absolutely exhausted. I’m tired. And yes I’m tired of bullies. You know who you are. Everyone has a bully in their life, even my good climate friends have people who have bullied them in their work-homes. And I have mine. There are bullies on city council. There are bullies in HMOs. There are bullies at school. There are bullies on committees. There are bullies at non-profit foundations. There are bullies in universities. And as my back is spasming and I’m thinking about just the mundane day to day of my life, I’m furious at the bullies that exist in my life.
But those bullies, have prepared me for the climate work. There is no bigger bully than the fossil fuel industry, entrenched interests, and those that sit around while the rest of us worker-bees actually work. I’m pretty sure I never bullied anyone in my life. If I have, please text me and I’ll apologize to you. Maybe I was having the same back spasms I’m having right now and was not in my right mind. Maybe the back spasms is a reminder of my own mortality (which I’m acutely aware of).
But now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, I am grateful. I’m grateful for the kind-hearted and loving people who are doing climate work. The real work that needs doing. Not the posturing, not the easy stuff. The hard work. The organizing the summits. The fighting the Tijuana Sewage Crisis. The calling of legislators. The passing of bills. The work that is going to the root of systemic racism, environmental racism and addressing head on the climate crisis and global heating. It’s what my mentor Nicole Capretz from Climate Actions Campaign said, “the cavalry is not coming.”
Actually Nicole, the sad imagery is that the cavalry is coming. It’s coming with Dr. Plastic Picker and it’s literal children. Sometimes I look at the premedical students, medical students and high school students that have joined hands with pediatricians to do this work in San Diego – and I realize they are like toddlers in diapers. We have children that are rising up and fighting back. And it’s absolutely daunting.
But those children have done amazing things this week. They’ve written a blogpost that was published in the AAP-CA3 newsletter about their advocacy. They helped form the backbone of the OC Public Health Advisory Council of Climate Actions Campaign. They helped delivery testimony regarding the dangers of hydrogen sulfide gas to developing lungs and children to the San Diego Air Pollution Control District board, and get a promise of 10K air purifiers to the south bay.
That I have my own bullies makes me a better pediatrician. It makes me understand better what so many of my patients especially those that are neurodivergent go through. That I have my own bullies makes me a better mentor for the medical students and premedical students that dare to dream to be physicians, that though they know they have had to overcome so much to get to where they are. They have many more mountains to climb, financial barriers, prejudices about their gender, growing up in communities that they dearly love that are also burdened by pollution. It makes me a better mother, helping my daughter navigate the dicey world of junior year where some around her don’t believe in her dreams. When you try to rise, others will try to pull you down or others will try to push you down. But to my daughter and to so many that I mentor, we’ll rise up. We have to. There is no cavalry coming. There is just us. But we are a powerful force. Thank you for listening. And I feel better, and I’ll show up to work today despite the ridiculous things I have to deal with day to day sometimes in order to be a doctor.
50th time I’ve been mentioned in some kind of news article.
September 14, 2024
by Dr. Plastic Picker
Honestly you can’t make up some of this stuff!!! I called my sister and called our niece Zoe in New York. I’ve told all the details to some friends and patients, but here I can’t tell all the details because the internet is forever. But OMG, honestly life is stranger than fiction sometimes.
We had just almost finished the leaded aviation fuel project which is awaiting the Governor’s signature and then the Tijuana Sewage Hydrogen Sulfide (perhaps there was Hydrogen Cyanide) crisis happened. There was news coverage, gas masks, drones deployed, governor called, chancellor and congressionao delegations, messages to the President of Mexico, competing press conferences, mayors and board of supervisors involved, front line doctors, public health doctors, graphs, talks of swirling eddies and hot spots. But in the end, why I got involved is because I heard about the schools and children that were affected. It was Nestor Language Academy, Southwest High School, Mar Vista High School and Berry Elementary School. These are all schools that our clinic takes care of. So the entire issue hit home.
In the end, I’ll keep the details to myself. If you know me in real life, I told you my version of the story. But this is what is on public record. This is the letter we sent to the Governor of California, Board of Supervisors, San Diego Air Pollution Control District and posted all over our socials. We were told that our letter made a difference, and that at least our patients will be getting air purifiers.
Re: Tijuana Sewage Crisis We are concerned. As pediatricians who take care of children in the South Bay in particular infants and children living in and around the Nestor area, and those thousands of students attending Southwest High School, Mar Vista High School, Berry Elementary and Nestor Language Academy, we have been informed by our colleagues that the concentration of several toxic gases are at unacceptable levels. This concurs with what we have seen in our clinics, which are many cases of new onset migraine headaches, gastrointestinal illnesses, asthma exacerbations, respiratory infections and conjunctivitis in children living around the Nestor area. Our front-line experience mirrors what other physicians in Imperial Beach have documented.
We have been in open communication with Professor Kim Prather from UC San Diego Scripps Oceanographic Institute and Professor Paula Granados from SDSU School of Public Health, who have shared with us their data. This has been through natural networks of concerned citizens and community leaders, that want to do what is right and just for the communities we serve. The various measured levels of multiple airborne pollutants from the Tijuana River include hydrogen sulfide and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) pose an immediate danger to our patients.
As community pediatricians we are well equipped to understand the physiology of children. Per the CDC, children exposed to the same levels of hydrogen sulfide as adults may receive larger doses because they have greater lung surface area:body weight ratios and increased minute volumes:weight ratios. In addition, they may be exposed to higher levels than adults in the same location because of their short stature and the higher levels of hydrogen sulfide found nearer to the ground. Children may be more vulnerable to corrosive agents than adults because of the relatively smaller diameter of their airways. We do not know the long-term side effects of such high levels of chronic hydrogen sulfide and VOCs exposure to a community already burdened by environmental pollution and historic racism. For these reasons, as individual practicing pediatricians who will follow and care for these children long-term, we urge the different government agencies and responsible organizations to deploy as rapidly as possible air purifiers to the homes with infants and children as a short-term solution. We defer to the County Public Health Agency for further instructions to ensure public health. We defer to our government agencies to address the root cause of the Tijuana Sewage Crisis, but to treat it as such – an immediate threat to the short-term and long-term health of our pediatric patients. We hope that our shared community will treat infants and children affected like their own and provide for them the same safety measures and protections that children of other more affluent areas would receive. We are concerned. And we are fulfilling our duties as pediatricians, to speak up and advocate for those that cannot do so for themselves.
With respect, lots of doctors (25 signatures)
And with that, I made the news for the 50th time. It was wild for sure! For now our part is done. I have to email and thank everyone! But the funniest thing I texted my niece and a few of the students is that in my mind I was thinking the entire time “Why do we need nuclear weapons when you have sewage? Countries can just build sewage treatment plants at different borders, and when they get mad at each other just stop the plants, and then Hydrogen Cyanide will just waft over to the other side.” LOL. A reason to get rid of nuclear weapons.
I feel better. I feel better just titling the blog post “It’s hot. I’m tired.” I just sent the Public Health Advisory Council San Diego email group and a included a few other doctors and medical students a plea for someone to show up on September 17 at the Vista Unified School District at 6pm to help present with one of the staff. All this work is volunteer, but the volunteers are very busy physicians like myself. I just wanted to remind them that there is some work that is important, and since we are laser focused on decarbonization – electrifying this school district is very important.
It felt very good to send the following email snippet
“One last plea for anyone who might be available to speak at Sept 17 at 6pm with Climate Actions Campaign to help Serena with the work up in Vista to help electrify. We asked PHAC members first, but I’m including some of my AAP peds colleagues and some of our medical students who might know someone. As long as it’s a med student, pediatrician or other physician – we can catch you up easy.
I’m asking because if no one volunteers, I will go. But I will be honest, I’m completely exhausted. I have a PHAC OC press conference that morning (because we are doing a press release for the CAP report there which is hugely important) but the VISTA work is important too. No one in OC can physically be there yet, as I’m trying to build up the council. And I have realized I need to figure out how to fit in a bunch of dental stuff for myself and my daughter because her wisdom teeth are coming in. So asking for help, if anyone can do it. If not I will do it, and it will be fine. But it helps me to ask knowing that I reached out. I’m not as good as Bruce as keeping connected with everyone, but would like to start making sure I ask because I know everyone wants to help with impactful stuff – and helping VISTA get to district electrification is fundamental decarbonbization and important.”
I’m glad I can just type stuff on this blog. I posted on Instagram and it’s true, whenever it’s time to retreat and delete the social media – I’ll be okay. I’ll always keep the blog and my personal emails. But the social media Instagram stuff, I’m not sure how much of it is real? You know? I’m tired because I have real stuff I need to catch up on. My daughter has real teeth that we already went through braces, and her wisdom teeth are starting to move. I also need to see the dentists myself. I also need to do my real taxes. I totally forgot we could paid yesterday. But I need to pay the government their substantial portion so I need to file our taxes. I started real folding and organizing our closet, and I need to move our teens ceramics from the extra dining room table we have to the upstairs game room that has a perfectly good display case already. Lots of real things that need to be done today.
Decarbonization is real work as well. So I hope one of my other PHAC and doctor friends shows up in REAL life to help do a presentation. If not, I’ll do it. But I’m hot and I’m tired because there is a heat wave. But at least I was on KPBS for it! That was COOL!
I wrote to a climate colleague the following, “Adam was so happy today. I really only did a paragraph. It was mostly Adam and Andrew. But I think what I’ll remember most about this one, was laughing with Adam over the word pyro-metallo-mania. He said pyromania and I added the metallo part.” And honestly that’s what I will remember most about this article. It was important to write, to say our piece as community leaders. I posted a lot about this on Instagram.
But here on this blog, I’m just me and I wanted to remember and share that moment. My professor friend, Adam, just laughing and being joyous when we were trying to save the world together.
I have to remember that I’m a person. I’m going to turn it off completely this weekend. I need to do two presentations on air pollution, and I need to start getting my heart rate up to make sure my physical body is strong. Mentally I’m doing wonderful and I’m grateful for this climate and health journey that I am on. But I am nearing 50, and I need to remember to do cardio enough that my heart rate gets up above 140 at times. So just a quick post to say hi, and give the op-ed a read if you have time. I’m almost done with my matcha (still with just a splash of soy milk and 2 teaspoons of sugar) and will go jogging for 30 minutes.
The house is a disaster. There is a gift bag filled with vegetables I need to drop off at Dr. Luis Castellanos’ house. I believe he has peaches for me, which I will come get hopefully Tuesday. They are probably overripe. The last of the cherry tomatoes are on the vines, and the summer is coming to a close for our family. We have the house to ourselves and somewhat our lives back after successfully finishing H3SD 2024 at UC San Diego School of Medicine. It’s hard to describe how successful the gathering was. Just some phrases I posted on my personal facebook page.
“H3SD 2024. It was an absolutely inspiring evening. Day #1 was all about the students. Opening and poster presentation.”
“It’s hard to sum up how wonderful it went. H3SD 2024 , the collective we (organizations and individuals) knocked it out of the park. So it gets an Instagram reel share on Facebook.”
Instagram posts as well with reels and commentaries. But we will write the summit proceedings up, as it needs to be shared as soon as possible. We made important connections during that meeting, and built up regional leadership to address global heating in our region. One of the most important connections we made as an organizing committee, is looping in San Diego State School of Public Health – as they are doing work at our most at-risk community which is the Imperial Valley. Our AAP CA3 chapter actually is San Diego and Imperial Counties so that is our catchment area as well. It’s humbling to know that as one of the chapter committee chairs, I don’t know enough about the children in the Imperial Counties.
But today is just a feeling of exhaustion. I’m sure our hard working coordinators are feeling the same. This year was so different than the first. I think this one belonged to everyone, and overall objectively improved and impactful. But I’m thinking back to last year, and it’s with an overwhelming sense of love. H3SD 2023, was my shooting my shot at global heating. I was shooting my shot at building relationships and connections across institutions. I was shooting my shot at perhaps chance meetings that would lead to some drama. And it led to something entirely different, and something more enduring.
As the person who helped start H3SD, the first one will always be the most loved. It’s like your first child. You don’t know what you are doing, but you know that you absolutely love him/her/they. And that love and fear and anticipation, can never be recreated. But the 2nd child, you are more experienced and it goes more smoothly. And H3SD 2024 was that. This was the 2nd child, well planned and executed. It was other people 1st child, but for me it was the 2nd. I started H3SD with friends as an idea on the wetlands, and it was powered by so much joy and hope. And I am so happy that it’s taken a life of it’s own. It no longer belongs to me, it belongs to the shared community that made H3SD 2024 a hopeful coming together of the house of medicine – raising it’s voice for the planet.
But I am indeed so tired. I need to do our taxes. The entire thing probably costs our family $10K or so? We received some funding for other sources and UC San Diego School of Medicine came through. But we applied for some grants and awards, and I know that this next year – it will be no longer just us but shared. Just letting things soak in and enjoying the exhaustion.
But my daughter reminded me that she’s a junior this year, and she needs my support. I’m going to limit myself this year. I only have her at home for another two years, and these are two crucial years. She’s my climate why, and I have to be mindful that I have to be there for her. I’m trying to save the earth for her, and my future grandchildren – whoever they might be.
I was going to show you a picture for her, but it’s her pictures and she has her own social media now. So I’m going to respect her privacy. I’m learning for sure, and growing and learning not to be so superficial.
My good friend and collaborator Dr. Luis Castellanos is at his house this morning, and he is living his life with his family. Being a husband and father. Mr. Plastic Picker and I are in our house, and my radiologist husband had to run out unexpectedly and will work all day at the HMO covering the hospital because of a sick call. He’s going to be “paid back” supposedly, but I never believe that. He’ll make extra money, but it’s money that we don’t need because we are FISE – Financially Independent to Save the Earth (it’s a phrase I tried to make a thing a few years ago). And another friend is nearby in another coastal city, and they have left the practice of medicine essentially. And here I am, Dr. Plastic Picker often collaborating with my friend Dr. Luis Castellanos on trying to save the earth. We have our upcoming H3SD 2024 San Diego’s Heat and Human Health Summit in less than a week at UC San Diego School of Medicine. What amazes me, that at some point we were all first year medical students together, in patient doctor 1 and just learning how to examine a patient. And now we are trying to resuscitate the planet.
But here I wanted to share with the readership the nomination we sent on behalf of my good friend Dr. Luis Castellanos for the Prebys Foundation Leadership Award. It’s a big prize and funds that he will put to good use to help address global heating and health, and address health disparities in San Diego County. Even if we don’t get it, the combined forces of our medical community will keep on trying to resuscitate the planet. And still be normal clinical doctors in pediatrics, cardiology and radiology.
Please send us good thoughts and we hope he is honored in November.
It’s 5:24AM and a Monday morning, and I’m typing on this blog. I’ve started three versions of this blogpost, and deleted them. But it’s been fun, because it’s thoughts I needed to write down which enabled me to return to my email and actually finish a climate project.
I’ve been working on and off with Prof. Adam Aron from UCSD Green New Deal and Andrew Meyer from San Diego Audubon Society on an op-ed we would like to submit to the San Diego Union Tribune. If you know me in real life, you likely haven’t heard me stop talking about the Sea World July 4th fireworks that were out of control, and lead to many shorebirds including elegant terns washing dead ashore. The fireworks are bad for human health as well, which is why I got involved. You’ll hopefully see the op-ed this week and it’s really cool to co-author something with my two climate friends! Prof. Adam Aron and Andrew Meyer are like some of my favorite people in the world!
If you were in San Diego on July 4th, you probably remember where you were and who you were with. You likely remember the fireworks displays. I was with my daughter on our roof deck and watching the fireworks, and thinking a bit “they are a bit out of control” and sure enough the next day, all these elegant terns were documented on social media washed up dead on West Ski Island. That event, led us to investigate further into the hazards of fireworks which includes air pollution, noise pollution and actually heavy metals raining down on Mission Bay. I was fascinated to learn there is something called Firework Dust (FD) and Legacy Dust (LD) that continues to pollute the environment.
Personally, I’ve never taken my children near the fireworks because they don’t like the noise close up. My son when he was a toddler in Boston, had an uncontrollable crying episode over watching the fireworks while sitting on a stroller near the Charles River. I wasn’t there because we had the new preemie baby at home. It makes sense that small children would be adverse to fireworks up close. He probably helped ensure his own good neurodevelopment, because his father brought him straight home and he wasn’t exposed to the noise pollution, heavy metal pollution and particulate matter. Since then, we kind of avoid the entire thing.
So I was standing on the roofdeck with my daughter, and honestly we don’t really enjoy the fireworks that much. Maybe that tells us that those that enjoy the fireworks and the spectacle of it, we are too different. But the community will need to decide what’s best for the children.
For my child during the summer of sixteen, she was with me physically and safe. She was away from the lead, cadmium, barium and copper raining down on Mission Bay. She was away from the possibilities of fingers being blown off. I remember acutely as a resident physician, the orthopedic hand surgeons had to reattach fingers from mostly teenagers living in New Hampshire that were playing with fireworks. It seems kind of silly to let your children do that, or allow them to hang out with friends who would do that. But in the end, everyone raises your own children. I only get involved when it affects all children, and of course the elegant terns and biodiversity.
This summer has been so unexpectedly wonderful for our daughter. It wasn’t the summer she expected. There was no boy, no summer romance (thank goodness!). But there was so much art and learning. The one month California State Summer School for the Arts CSSSA was an intensive 6-day program that was pretty much from 8:30am to 9pm every day. She studied mostly ceramics and had a lot of studio time, but also studied figure drawing, photographer, print-making, arts and culture. She got to go to the Getty and Disneyland with her friends! We saw her just twice for brief snippets the entire month, and we saw lots of selfies. She would send me her “fit-checks” (yes it is a teen thing). She was on artistic fire, honestly. She produced two large ceramics pieces that will be included in her portfolio. I loved seeing them in the pictures she sent us, but honestly they are physically very impressive when you see them in real life! She’s really an amazing 16-year-old.
Then she went to a Vietnamese youth leadership advocacy camp, that is too complicated to explain, but I was able to accompany her on Saturday. She finally met her team that she’s worked with over the year. She’s being mentored by amazing Vietnamese-American women, and meaningfully contributing to human rights work. For a Harvard educated mother, I am floored at times what she has accomplished. I just follow along with her, and try to gently guide her. We had so much fun this last weekend with new friends and connections we made. This is her community as it was mine, and it’s changing and blending and we are there to be a part of it. Plus the food was amazing. And it was cool when she hugged her new friends and we said “maybe we’ll come to Paris next year for the European camps?” And honestly, that is definitely possible.
But she’s tucked back in her room and sleeping soundly this morning. I have to leave for clinic in two hours, and back to clinical work. But I am so grateful to have spent this hour with you writing down my thoughts.
My daughter on her ceramic’s instructors social media account.
July 23, 2024
by Dr. Plastic Picker
Yes, I am on social media. I’ve learned a lot from social media, and I admit I need to be off it a bit more. But it’s a thing and it’s here to stay. The most important part is that it is fundamentally connecting a lot of us that need to be connected to address the climate crisis. I know I may be living in my own echoing chamber, but honestly I don’t think I am. Social media is like going to the mall or grocery store, you see people and meet people. But you can tell a lot about them by the images they share, their captions and the general “vibe” of their account.
It’s a scary and dangerous thing as well, because there is a lot of darkness out there. There is glorification and self objectification. It’s taught me to be wary of some people, and some paths I thought were possible. But it’s also shown me some beautiful hearts and minds. Yes, we can all be manipulated but we can be manipulated in real life as well.
I think for me social media is helpful when it is the accounts of actual people I know and I will be working with in our region. I have no need to have more followers /friends than I have now. There are tricks to the social media game, when people “buy followers.” Yes, it is a thing. This occurs when that account or person is trying to usually make money off you, or trying to exert influence that they don’t have. I’m just a pediatrician who is trying to help stop the climate crisis. I’m a real person.
And my daughter is real too, and I saw this on my ceramic teacher’s instagram story. It’s fine and appropriate, but at least I know what is going on because I am where the youth are – on social media.
Isn’t her ceramics cool????!!!! I’m so proud of her. She’s actually not on social media that much. She’s very much in the real world making amazing things with her own hands and skills. It’s been a busy and quieter summer than she expected. She’s 16 and pretty, and rather than growing in her social relationships – she’s actually unexpectedly grown in her art quite a bit. I don’t think she’ll fully realize how important this summer will be to her development artistically and professionally until years down the line. I am so grateful to social media because I learned about many of these opportunities for her because I was looking around and curious about the world in general.
Today I have to continue to move the climate work forward mostly through being connecting with folks. I need to talk to my mentor Bruce Bekkar about something, I’m not sure. I need to talk to Dr. Christine James about 3 projects. I need to talk to Dr. Mel Fiorella about a different project. I need to talk to Angela Kim from UC Berkeley about PHAC OC/LA. I need to talk to Aneesah Grayson also about PHAC OC/LA. I need to talk to several people about H3SD Summit. I basically need to talk to a lot of people. And I’m hoping to have some time to talk to my daughter when she has time for me. She’s really busy creating art.
She’s really pretty! But she’s older now and has her own social media and controlling her own image. But every time I see her, I only have one thought. She’s pretty. That’s pretty much it. I’m kind of superficial in that way.
Hope you are all well! My charts are actually miraculously almost all closed and I’m starting this morning fresh and energized for clinic! Being happy makes a huge difference with doctoring.
It’s 6:09am and I have a full day of clinic ahead of me. I’m at peace with the world. What I’m most proud of these days is that three days ago, I came home after morning clinic and there were about 50 flies milling around the beautiful glass doors that look into our backyard garden. The reason the flies are there are probably many, but some of them is that it’s the summer and there are always flies in Pacific Beach and I think indeed the world. But a lot of it, is that my parents-in-law are out of town and I think my father-in-law was not around to do his daily fly-swatting duty and the flies likely just multiplied. Where, I don’t even want to know. But we are having a house-cleaner coming soon (which is actually rare for us to outsource this task) to come to do a deep clean. But I was so proud of myself, because one by one – I killed all the flies. And this morning, after the next few days just making sure to swat at them as I existed in my own home – the fly infestation is done. I texted my children, “there was a fly massacre and I was the evil villain!” The kids thought it was funny on the family text stream. Indeed, Mr. Plastic Picker the radiologist and I are a great fly swatting team. Our children were both gone living their wonderful lives, and husband and I finished off the flies. Then we went out to eat sushi and had a great time.
Mr. Plastic Picker and I are a great team. He’s still Assistant Chief of his department and it’s stressful these days. We were walking along the beach last night, meandering and chatting as millennials were spending money they didn’t have – and I commiserated with him about the absolute ridiculous nature of middle management. I had been in middle management two years ago for a total of 5 years, but actually even before that was head of our clinic for some reasons. Honestly, it seems so long ago. Just like a different life. But it’s helpful to have done it. I better understand what my husband is going through and often offer words of comfort.
Are you in the same department as me? Did you go to the last meeting? It was so interesting. I think most people were so upset and revved up because it had to do with money. For me, I don’t really think about money much these days other than trying to be effective in how I spend the money I donate towards the earth. For me that meeting, was like an out of body experience. Folks were upset (and rightly so), but I was just observing and thinking this entire meeting was so interesting. That the upper management person who was called out for a mistake was also the one that is is my fossil fuel “enemy” (in my make believe world) in my internal fight for fossil fuel divestment, did not upset me. I thought to myself, wow – that upper management person made a big mistake. It’s karma coming back at him, because he was mean to me about trying to get our pension divested from fossil fuels during a committee meeting. I just show at up the meeting. I believe in karma 100%!
Our kids are doing great. Our 16 year old is super adorable and learning so much at her arts camp. I can’t share all the wonderful work she is creating. She’ll post on her ceramics instagram account soon. And our son rode a bike all around Mission Bay yesterday, and had the best day the day before with his friends at an e-sports tournament. I told my daughter in our nightly chat that while she is gone, I’m working with San Diego Audubon and going to talk to one of my eccentric UCSD professor friends about trying to pressure Sea World to switch to drone shows. I showed up at city council yesterday after the massacre of elegant terns from the July 4th fireworks display in Mission Bay. A lot of endangered shore birds died due to Sea World going overboard on the fireworks. It makes sense, they imprison orcas and dolphins. I don’t think they care about a native endangered shore bird species. But they have to care about the local law and ordinances, so I’m going to make a lot of noise with my UCSD professor friend. It’s really going to rile a lot of people up!
Okay. I have to write a letter of recommendation right now for someone special! And come to the H3SD San Diego’s Heat and Human Health Summit if you can! It’s going to be a lot of fun! Plus I think I’m paying for most of it. Literally. That’s a strange story too, but I’m a partner at our physician group and it’s my job to try to avert the worse effects of heat and human health and I have some money from working extra shifts these days. Plus we didn’t given Elon Musk any of our money. There are a lot of pediatricians driving Teslas? Just observing. I’m still driving my CMAX but our Prius 2012 needs to be upgraded soon so we are thinking about electric cars as well. But not a Tesla for various political reasons.
