Power Nap #9

Funny and thought-provoking media from Kate and her team for a quick, refreshing pick-me-up.

Apr 06, 2023

Things We Found Interesting About Plants…

A Day in the Life of an Oak Tree. We especially liked this one because we have an old oak in our backyard. One great oak can support a whole ecosystem - birds, fungi, lichen, deer, rabbits, squirrels, fox, algae, parasites, predators, and prey, everyday. h/t to The Best of Journalism.
World seaweed production (for food) is booming and looks likely to continue to boom. Could we “farm” the ocean just like we learned to farm land? Seaweed is “high in much-needed protein and nutrients" and "could add 10 percent to the world’s present supply of food using just 0.03 percent of the ocean surface.” Plus, it “requires no fresh water, pesticides, or fertilizers . . . doesn’t take up any land and can overlap with other uses of the ocean like offshore wind farms . . . creates a rich habitat for sea life, soaks up CO₂, counteracts acidification, and absorbs run-off nutrients.” I hope you like your salads wet. h/t to Axios Science.
Are Plants Intelligent? We have strong evidence that plants have “memories, perceptions, and feelings, [are] capable of learning from the past and anticipating the future, [and are] able to sense and experience the world.” h/t to the Browser newsletter. (this one is a bit longer)

Bible Summary

Nate was reminded this week of this article he saw years ago, where someone summarized each book of the Bible in a tweet. See if you can guess his five favorites (answers at the bottom):

He wakes in the night to find a woman, a foreigner, touching his feet. He rubs his eyes. He had been dreaming of kings.
The invention of antiphony: when my heart broke in two, I taught both parts to sing.
Even in chains, Paul is freer than wild horses. Even in prison, his joy is boundless as the skies.
I love you, I love you. Not because you are so good or great, but because you are so lost and little.
When she finally arrived at the wedding, she kissed him and said, "Sorry I'm late. The traffic was hell."

Things From The Gram

1. Kate shared why she always packs a Mom's Treat Jar when taking someone a meal.

2. Kate shared the ultimate trick to cleaning out a burned pot.

3. Kate shared how she packs BBQ Chicken Quinoa Casserole when she takes it to a friend.

4. Nate is pumped for Wes Anderson's next movie. In his words: “Grand Budapest was one of the best movies of the last twenty years. I will die on this hill.” This one has Tom Hanks, Steve Carroll, Margot Robbie, and Scarlet Johansson, among others.

Things We Devoured

Kate tried this recipe for Copycat Homemade Perfect bars and it did not disappoint. She doubled the recipe, because if you're going to the trouble, might as well. It really tasted like the real thing, but didn't break the bank. She used almond flour instead of oat because that's what she had on hand.

Kate devoured Darling Girl: A Novel of Peter Pan. Warning, it's sort of dark. Peter Pan isn't so innocent. But it hooked her from the first chapter and kept her turning the page. It should be said that Berta also read it and was the one to suggest it to Kate.

NTK Bracket Challenge Winners

A big Power Nap congratulations to Sarah Coplon Barlow of Memphis, TN for winning the first inaugural NTK Bracket Challenge! Jane Bauknight of Blue Bell, PA finished second and Rachel Warnick of Moncks Corner, SC finished third (I bet Rachel can't wait to take the whole family out to Micky D's to celebrate!). All three had UConn winning the championship. Impressive! All three also noted that they either “know nothing about sports” or “have never won anything in their life.” Thanks to all of you for entering the bracket challenge!