Welcome to the Living Tree Academy Blog

With this blog we will keep you updated on our daily events of building a school in the Country of Belize. You will also be able to jump in and help with this adventure of a life time.

And anyone that is so inspired might find some of this information helpful in your efforts to build a quality school in any community or country around the world.

Stay in touch and lets change the lives of young people, one at a time.


Thursday, March 31, 2011

THE POSTAGE STAMP

THE POSTAGE STAMP
I had a little postage stamp,
No bigger than your thumb,
But still it stuck right on the job
Until its work was done
They licked it and they pounded it
‘Til it would make you sick!
But the more it took a lickin’
The tighter it would stick.
Let’s be like the postage stamp
In living the Christian life;
And just keep on a-stickin’
Through the conflict and the strife.
For the stamp stuck to the letter
‘Til it saw it safely through;
There’s no one could do better;
Let’s keep stickin’ and be true.
---Author Unknown

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Insect Repellent

Orvis is a brand that makes apparel with insect repellent in it. Insect Shield has no unpleasant smell or feel. The active ingredient, permethrin, is a man-made version of a natural insect repellent found in certain chrysanthemums. It is bonded to the fibers using Insect Shield's patent-pending process.

http://www.orvis.com/intro.asp?subject=3741

Of course I had to see what else the internet said about this ingredient (permethrin):
The insecticide permethrin (in the synthetic pyrethroid family) is widely used on cotton, wheat, corn, alfalfa, and other crops. In addition, over 100 million applications are made annually in and around U.S. homes.
Permethrin, like all synthetic pyrethroids, is a neurotoxin. Symptoms include tremors, incoordination, elevated body temperature, increased aggressive behavior, and disruption of learning. Laboratory tests suggest that permethrin is more acutely toxic to children than to adults.
http://www.safe2use.com/poisons-pesticides/pesticides/permethrin/cox-report/cox.htm
So it looks like DEET is for the skin and Permethrin is for clothing/material:
DEET Repellents / Skin
The most effective repellents contain DEET, which is an ingredient used to repel pests like mosquitoes and ticks. DEET has been tested against a variety of biting insects and has been shown to be very effective
Permethrin® Insecticide / Clothing
Permethrin is applied to clothing and material. It bonds to the fibers. When a mosquito, tick, or other insect comes into contact with the Permethrin it absorbs a lethal dose. Unlike DEET, which may harm some fabrics and materials, Permethrin is compatible for use even on fragile fabrics, such as silk.
Permethrin spray is applied to clothing before it is worn. Product is effective for two weeks after being applied. Liquid contains 0.5% Permethrin. This product should not be applied to the skin.
 http://www.traveldoc.com/products/repellents.aspx

Foto Of The Day

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

The Few

“The Few”
The easy roads are crowded,And the level roads are jammed;The pleasant little riversWith the drifting folks are crammed.But off yonder where it’s rocky,Where you get a better view,You will find the ranks are thinningAnd the travelers are few.


 Where the going’s smooth and pleasantYou will always find the throng,For the man, more’s the pity, Seem to like to drift along.But the steeps that call for courage,And the task that’s hard to do,In the end result in glory
For the never-wavering few
-Edgar A Guest

Albert Einstein during the war years said, "Times such as ours breed defeat and despair.  But there remain, nevertheless, some few among us who believe, who meet and overcome even the greatest challenges of this time.  If we want to avoid defeat, we must know the truth and be courageous enough to act upon it, and we need not despair."