The Great American Total Solar Eclipse 2017 Is Happening In Less Than A Week!

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The Great American Total Solar Eclipse 2017 is happening in less than a week, on August 21, 2017, and what an amazing event it is going to be! 

People in all 50 states are going to the view the eclipse. Depending on where they're at, those that are within the path of totality will view the eclipse as a total eclipse of the sun; those who are not in totality will view the eclipse as a partial eclipse of the sun. Either way, it's going to be exciting!

Below is a list of eclipse facts that I put together for a program that I did for work back in July. I am sharing this information here for anyone who is interested in understanding more about what is going to happen during Monday's total solar eclipse.

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# 1 - A solar eclipse happens when the sun, moon, and earth line up just right and the moon's shadow is cast over the earth. 

#2 – A total solar eclipse occurs on earth about once every 18 months, but most of them occur over the ocean.

#3 – There are two parts to the moon's shadow – the penumbra and theumbra.

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#4 – The penumbra is the larger part of the moon's shadow that, in the case of the August 21^st, 2017 eclipse, will be observed by people in all 50 states as a partial solar eclipse.

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#5 – The umbra is the smaller, darker part of the moon's shadow that lies directly in line with the moon as it passes between the sun and the earth.

#6 – The umbra's path is only about 70 miles wide and that small 70-mile-wide band of shadow is what we call the path of totality.

# 7 – In the U.S. people in all 50 states will experience the Great American Eclipse to some degree, but not all states are going to be under the path of totality.

#8 – Major cities that will be within the path of totality include Salem, OR, Casper, WY, Kansas City, MO, St. Louis, MO, Nashville, TN, Columbus SC, and Charleston SC.

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#9 – When the eclipse occurs, those within the path of totality are going to experience something that very few people get to see. The sun will disappear and it will become nighttime in the middle of the day.

#10 – Some of the things that will happen during this time are – temperatures will drop, birds will begin to roost, nighttime insects will begin to sing, and stars will appear in the sky.

#11 – It has been 26 years since the last total solar eclipse in the U.S. and that one was viewed only by those in Hawaii.

#12 – It has been 148 years since the last solar eclipse in Missouri (my home state).

#13 – During the Great American Total Solar Eclipse of 2017, it will take approximately 90 minutes for the moon's shadow to cross the United States from coast to coast.

#14 – The umbra will take only about 13 minutes to makes it's trip across the state of Missouri.

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#15 – The longest periods of totality will occur across the center line of the eclipse path. This is because the shadow is a circle. A location near the center of the circle will get the widest part of the shadow.

Now, those are some of the basic facts about the upcoming eclipse, but it is, by far, NOT the most important thing that you need to know if you and your family plan on viewing the eclipse. The most important thing that you need to know about the upcoming eclipse is that YOUR EYES MUST BE PROTECTED!!! Sunglasses are NOT enough! Every single person that plans on viewing the eclipse must have a pair of special mylar eclipse glasses that are made to view the sun. Without them blindness can and does occur. Please, please, PLEASE make sure your eyes are protected!

Please watch the following video in which the UALR's Darrell Heath does an excellent job of further explaining explaining everything that you and your family will need to know before Monday's eclipse. 

Thanks for viewing! And safely enjoy the eclipse!

Until next time...

~Rebecca

Product Review - Magic Things Natural Mosquito Repellent Bracelets and Mosquito Repellent Patches

Ticks, mosquitoes, and other insects and arachnids have been out-of-control crazy this year! I think it's because we, virtually, had no winter last year and nothing got killed out. Whatever the reason, it's been terrible and the number of tick- and mosquito-born illnesses are on the rise.

As part of my job, I recently led an evening hike out on the prairie and, by the end of it, most of the participants were freaking out. Even those who had sprayed down with insect repellent that contained DEET (which I detest) were picking dozens of ticks off...some of them numbering into the 120's and 130's per visitor! NOT a very nice experience!!! 

I myself had sprayed down with the high-powered stuff that you spray on your clothes (stuff that they provide for us at work...which also contains DEET) and, even with that, I came off the prairie with 30-some ticks! I was kind of freaking out myself. I could not BELIEVE how many ticks there were! 😱

Okay...so, soon after this, I was supposed to lead a Saturday morning bison hike. I was thinking that I really didn't want to go through the whole tick thing again, and that there must be something out there that works. I remembered a school teacher that had gone on one of our summer-school hikes. She was the only person all summer long that I had met that hadn't had a problem out on the trail with ticks. I remembered asking her at the time what on earth she had used to be so fortunate and it was her (I wish I knew her name, because,I owe her a debt of gratitude that can never be repayed)...but, it was her...who had told me about the bracelets and stickers. 

BRACELETS AND STICKERS!!!!! 😲

Nothing to spray on, nothing to rub on, nothing you have to take a bath in, nothing directly on your skin or clothing, and, the best part? There's NO DEET!!! Woo-hoo! 

Too good to be true?

So...I got online and started investigating and here's what I discovered and ended up going with...

Magic Things Natural Mosquito Repellent Bracelets With Citronella

Mosquito Repellent Patches

These two products are AMAZING and, used together, they really work!!! (I say "used together" because that's how I used them. I'm sure on their own they're each phenomenal, but I used them together, so that's all I can testify to.) 

Both products are DEET-free and are safe for children.

The Magic Things bracelets provide protection for up to 240 hours...that's 10 DAYS...and come six to a package (each one is individually sealed); the Mosquito Repellent Patches provide protection for up to 72 hours per patch.

Shortly after my bracelets and patches arrived, I got to try them out when conducting the Saturday morning bison hike and, let me tell you...I couldn't have been more pleased! Our group went out on the prairie and, in order to get close enough to view the bison, we had to get off trail. This means that we got off the mowed trail and was hiking through tall grasses waist-deep and higher. When we got done I had ONE tick! ONE!!! And it WASN'T ATTACHED! 😲 

I was sold!!! These products really work and I HIGHLY recommend them to anyone who has to be (or chooses to be) outside whether for work or play. 

The way I used them was...I put one bracelet on my right ankle and used four of the patches placed in various places on my clothing...one on my left pant leg, one near the waistband on the front of my pants, one near the waistband on the back of my pants, and one under my front collar flap. I'm telling you...it worked!

I continued to wear this same bracelet and those same four patches for several days and was outside at night during part of that time and I never got one insect bite. It was amazing! Super, super amazing!!! 😊

Until next time...
~Rebecca