Arizona became the 48th state on Feb. 14, 1912, and is home to approximately 6,553,255 Southwest dwellers as of 2012. The Grand Canyon State lags behind the United States in many health indicators, most notably in high rates of childhood obesity and teen birth rates. Click on links and roll over the graphs below to…
April 22 was Earth Day. For some, this conjures fears of global warming, oil shortages and rising gas prices, threats that signal the impeding and almost certain death to gasoline-powered vehicles.
Automotive enthusiasts and consumers alike are shifting their priorities when shopping for cars, as demonstrated by the growing popularity of efficient and smaller models, alternative fuel and electric vehicles.
However, EV’s are not an easy sell. They carry a stigma of being slow with short ranges and limited practicality. To many, the idea of driving an EV has only ever been mildly appealing.
Coupled with arguments that EV’s take too long to charge, it is unlikely that the U.S. will reach the DOE’s goal of 1 million electric cars on the road by 2015.
There is hope for Arizonans, though.
Kari Schlachtenhaufen shows her new Model S to a curious bystander
Cell phones are everywhere. In the 21st century, a dead cell phone signal has become nearly unacceptable. Cell phone towers provide a clear answer. But they also created a problem—a problem that many have taken to calling “visual pollution”. Few consider cell phone towers easy on the eyes. Fortunately, companies such as Larson Camouflage have…
The Tucson rock-climbing scene is paramount to the parks and recreation community in Arizona and has proved to be rock-climbing heaven for both avid and casual climbers.
The most popular and difficult scene that southern Arizona has to offer can be found at Mt. Lemmon. It is more than 9,100 feet above the desert floor and sports around 1,200 separate routes for climbers.
Another notable spot in the state include, Camelback Mountain and Hole in the Rock both located in Phoenix.
For newcomers to the sport, there are many bouldering areas scattered around the state where they can work on they’re craft before taking on more challenging courses.
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<iframe src=”http://player.vimeo.com/video/63788349″ width=”500″ height=”281″ frameborder=”0″ webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe> <p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/63788349″>Holi Festival of Colors by Jessica Ahles</a> from <a href=”http://vimeo.com/user11074463″>J.Ahles</a> on <a href=”http://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a>.</p>
{/source}Just before 2 o’clock, an announcer advises the crowd to take deep breaths. He says, “You’re not going to want to breath this stuff in for a minute. So enjoy the fresh air now.” In seconds, thousands of hands raise and an explosion of bright powdered paint fills the sky in rural Utah. Mantra music pulsed and cheers ensued in celebration of one of India’s most ancient and joyous holidays.
Each year, Spanish Fork, Utah summons a pilgrimage to celebrate Holi, the festival of colors. This year, 80,000 people gathered at the Sri Sri Rhada Krishna Temple to welcome the arrival of spring at the two-day event.
“Well Holi for me was one of the best experiences ever,” said Staci Polasek, a first-time Utah Holi celebration participant. “The countdown to throw the paint was exciting and then the freedom I felt once throwing all the paint in the air was amazing. It took away all the worries and bad stuff for that short time and I could just appreciate the minute in time for everything it offered.”
The meaning of Holi stems from several stories in Hindu mythology and is believed to have its roots reaching over 2,000 years ago.
Originally referred to as “Holika,” the festival is most commonly believed to originate from the legend of the demon king, Hiranyakashyap, who had ordered his sister, Holika, to kill his son after he refused to worship his father.
Knowing Holika had the ability to enter a fire without burning herself, Hiranyakashyap ordered her to do so while holding his son, Prahlad. When Holika entered the fire, she instead was burned while Lord Vishnu saved Prahlad for his extreme devotion.
