Dirt, Dirt, Everywhere!

          You know I recently visited the ruins in Greece.  Athens has a cool museum where the floor has clear sections that let you look down to a dig below, and see dwellings of a long-ago village, being unearthed.

          It’s remarkable how high the “new” civilization is from the old one. All around Greece and elsewhere, you find such discoveries and they’re always a good 30 or 40 feet below today’s level. 

          So my question is: Where does all this dirt come from, that buries things this deeply?  Sure, there could be one or two places where a landslide covers things. And a volcano buried Pompeii. But all of these places, everywhere? It’s astonishing.

And my next question is: Once you know a scientific wonder is beneath your feet, why do you go ahead and build on top of it, instead of digging it up and finding out what was there before? Have you no curiosity?

I blogged about sleeping just inches from a Viking Graveyard, freshly discovered, here, and if I lived there permanently, you can bet I’d be out there digging with a spoon if I had to.

So I researched this abundance of dirt and here’s the answer: Dirt is constantly in motion. Who knew? Wind, rain, waves, gravity, temperature, and human activity wears away everything—even rocks. This erosion creates “new dirt” that builds up on the old dirt.

Lots of stuff is decaying, as well—trees, dead animals, fungi, leaves, and that fills in as well. Silt near rivers and floodplains builds up fast, and the next thing you know, you have artifacts waiting two meters deep.

I say we start digging. You could have a golden throne in your back yard! (And no, I don’t mean an outhouse.)

Meanwhile, check out my youtube mom videos, filled with quick life hacks you’ll love!

Mud Makes You Happy

          Ding, ding, ding—stop the presses! Scientists now claim that dirt can prevent anxiety disorders.

          You think I’m kidding. Nope. In Neuroscience Psychology they’ve cited a study that claims a fatty acid in soil can lead to a “stress vaccine” and that people who like to garden are just happier, better people. Okay, I  added that last part about gardeners because I like to garden.

          But they’re dead serious about the mental health benefits of playing in the dirt. For years folks have believed the “hygiene hypothesis” that exposure to germs makes you more immune. Back in 1989 it was found that lack of exposure to microorganisms in childhood led to higher rates of allergies and asthma.

          But now they believe it impacts mental health as well. One study shows farm kids being more stress-resilient than pet-free city dwellers. (Like that’s the only variable, right? Could it be chores? Fresh air?  Lack of traffic noise? Gimme a break.)

          So I was skeptical. But then they found that a certain bacteria was like an antidepressant in the brain and even impacted PTSD. They’re looking into injecting this bacteria into first responders and others in high-stress careers.

          Meanwhile, it sounds like mud pies could be just what the doctor ordered. I do know that my gardening buddies all claim an unexplainable joy they get from getting their bare hands into the soil.  

          And taking a mud bath? Well… now you’re talking heaven in a bathtub, my friend.

Surely you wouldn’t dream of bathing without a good book to read, right? Find my latest and greatest right here.

Dirt Cheap Ice Cream

          Ice cream is ruined.  At least soft  serve ice cream and at least for me.  I walk into the house the other day and my son says, “Oh, enjoying your clay?”

          This is where my eyebrows lower and I stare at him, waiting for the explanation that is going to forever spoil my fun.  The same exact thing happened with Pluto not being a planet.

          I look down at my vanilla soft serve in a cone, and say, “This is ice cream.”

          “No it isn’t,” he says.  “That’s why they call it Soft Serve.  They can’t call it ice cream.”

          WHAAAT? 

          “It’s made with bentonite,” he tells me.  This kid should never have gone on that volcano study to Hawaii, where he became entirely too smart for his britches.

          “Bentonite sounds like an ingredient in linoleum,” I say.  “Like a plastic or something.”  And suddenly my treat seems a little too airy, a little too smooth.

          “They put it in milkshakes, too,” Richie says, completely comfortable with his role as Bearer of Bad News.  “It’s a clay made from chemically weathered volcanic ash.  But it’s totally edible—they use it as a filler.”

          Like sawdust?  Like feathers?  I’m eating ashes?

          He goes on to tell me it’s sold in health food stores and is completely safe, even added to baths for its healing properties.

          I don’t care.  I look it up and all I can see are examples of cat litter and mud drilling. 

          And it’s clay.  When I wanted ice cream.  I’ll tell you this.  No way am I eating cheesecake or truffles or donuts around that guy. 

Have you visited my website, lately?  No filler whatsoever.  Just a bunch of cool stuff like a music video, YouTube Mom videos, and tons of books you can buy!