Sunday, January 30, 2011

Lancaster, California-Mayor wants to brighten up the Mojave Desert city by broadcasting recorded bird songs.



It may sound like a bird-brained idea, but the mayor of Lancaster wants to brighten up the Mojave Desert city by broadcasting recorded bird songs.
R. Rex Parris proposed the idea during his State of the City talk on Monday.
The Antelope Valley Press says Parris wants to play the bird chatter from loudspeakers on Lancaster Boulevard. The mayor says there's science to show that listening to birdsong makes people happier.
On other topics, the mayor says Lancaster must continue its drive to become a research capital for solar and alternative energy.
Parris is known for his flamboyant ideas. He got a law passed giving the city the right to castrate pit bulls, ordered city officials to learn Mandarin in a bid to woo Chinese business, and riled some people by saying he was growing Lancaster into a Christian community.

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/01/27/3358008/lancaster-mayor-wants-to-broadcast.html#ixzz1CY9UH1ZO Amazing! Bird sounds from the lyre bird - David Attenborough - BBC wildlife

50 Beautiful Winter Wonderland Photos

X2 in 50 Beautiful Winter Wonderland Photoswinter photos

Friday, January 28, 2011

Best of the Web - Digital Inspiration

Kitty Mittens thinks she is hiding, she has a very low forehead.----
A round up of great websites and cool blogs that Digital Inspiration has compiled.  A place to surf and gather information.

About Digital Inspiration: "An award-winning technology site with 6,000+ articles, how-to guides and video tutorials on all things related to personal technology, software and useful web apps." best of the web

Turkey attacks mail truck on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

imageCape Cod online

John Conlee - Friday Night Blues

Tundra Comics

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Stand back, he bites: British fisherman grapples with ferocious 'giant piranha'... which has been known to eat CROCODILES

"British angler Jeremy Wade looks understandably anxious as he grapples with this ferocious-looking 'giant piranha'.
The 52-year-old caught the aptly-named goliath tigerfish during a fishing expedition up the Congo River in Africa.
The brave fisherman was forced to hold the fish at arms-length for fear of being bitten by its razor-sharp teeth while posing with it for the camera...."read here

Missing cat Thomas back after four years

"A BELOVED pet cat has been reunited with its owners an incredible four years after the mischievous moggy went missing.
Teenager Nathan Lucas and parents Malcolm and Anita were heartbroken when pure white kitten Thomas disappeared back in 2007.
They searched tirelessly for days but were eventually resigned to the fact the kitty was lost forever.
But now Thomas is back where he belongs after his owners spotted him on the RSPCA’s website for rescued pets.
Mr Lucas today explained how the story unfolded – although where Thomas had been all those years is a mystery..."read here


Don Williams - I Believe in You

Lammermuir Hills, ScotlandLammermuir Hills

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Blind Willie McTell - Cold Winter Day

A Cold Winter Day Photographer: Maria Sundqvist pixdaus

World’s only tree which grows upside-down

upsidedown tree 600 800 Worlds only tree which grows upside down"The tree above is a gravitropic mutant, with the root and the stem swapping growth directions. This is probably the only known tree in the world that grows downwards. It grows in Italy in the remains of a cellar..."  upside-down tree

A real dogsbody: Super hound helps dress owner, does her washing… and even pays for the groceries

By rohitsingh
Posted on 06 Jan 2011 at 10:37pm
"Four-year-old Sandie has proved she really is a girl’s best friend – by learning to do all of her owner’s housework.
The four-year-old pooch does all of owner Sue Line’s shopping and washing – and can even pay for her groceries..."read here

National Geographic's Photography Contest 2010 (47 photos total)

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/11/national_geographics_photograp.html

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Seizure sparks tilt with SPCA

 
"The owner of an Elrose animal shelter who believes the Saskatchewan SPCA had no reason to remove more than 70 animals last week in what she calls a "raid" on her home has taken her case to the courts.

On Monday, Dolores LaPlante received an injunction against the Saskatchewan Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), preventing it from taking any further action on the animals seized from her home. The animals remain at the Saskatoon SPCA or under the care of veterinarians.

"The emergency injunction my lawyer helped me get ensures that the animals cannot be disposed of or destroyed, given away or anything like that," said LaPlante..."read here

'Wally', the dog, gets stuck between two walls




"The dog had managed to squeeze itself into a six inch space between two buildings and was unable to move.

Rescuers found the Shar-Pei mix completely stuck and spent an hour freeing him from the tight spot in Cathedral City, California.

The four-year-old dog was pulled out weak and dehydrated but was immediately revived - with a bean-and-cheese burrito.

He was later given the all clear by vets who also gave him the nickname Wally while his owner is traced.

John Walsh, of Riverside County Animal Control, said: 'Wally got wedged between parallel cinder-block walls.

'We managed to knock out enough of the blocks to, well, free Wally. He may have been chasing a cat or a rabbit when he got stuck. "read here

Patsy Cline-Walkin' After Midnight

photohttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3241/2939610404_f6b9774c4e.jpg

A dog takes its loyalty to the grave in Brazil

"A dog, "Leao", sits for a second consecutive day, next to the grave of her owner, Cristina Maria Cesario Santana, who died in the week's catastrophic landslides in Brazil, at the cemetery in Teresopolis, near Rio de Janiero, on Jan. 15. Brazilians braced for more rain Saturday, fearing further landslides after walls of muddy water tore through towns and claimed some 550 lives in the country's worst flood disaster on record."Photo Blog      "I think anyone who has ever owned a dog will probably get a lump in his or her throat upon viewing this picture. I know I did. See more from the flooding and landslides in Brazil here."

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Sissel - Oh Mio Babbino Caro

Elvis Presley - Walk a Mile In My Shoes

picture[ph-10053.jpg]

The Almighty Military Babes Thread

This is an interesting place to visit. Excellent photos


The Almighty Military Babes Thread

Sask Alley Cat Allies-Display Cancelled Due To An Emergency

cat smoking[Funny+Cat+Smoking+Wallpaper2222.jpg]It is with great sadness that I have to tell you that SACA is under attack by the both the Saskatchewan and Saskatoon SPCAs. They did, sometime during the 12th of January 2011, willfully break in to the shelter in Elrose while knowing volunteers were busy in Saskatoon at a display for the cats. They broke the back door right off its frame like you see in a drug bust. Five SPCA staff and one vet on their payroll then determined the shelter was not up to their standards and the animals should be removed immediately. I beat myself up imagining the fear of these cats, running away from these loud strangers, looking for places to hide. With nets, gloves and rabies poles, the animals were hunted down over a period of hours. Furniture was tipped over with no regard to its value, litter boxes tipped over along with water dishes. The sick animals in quarantine kennels had no chance of escape and were shoved into kennels with no care to their conditions.
My dog Jasper, in the outdoor run, would have been the first to be shoved into a cage in the back of the their vehicles. Barking with fear, not knowing who these strangers were or where I was to protect him.
As I got home later that night, you can imagine the horror as I walk into my home to find it ransacked. On the counter was a note from the SPCA. "We were here and have your animals. You have 3 days to get them back or they will be killed as is our right." I was in shock. Surely they couldn't do this, it wasn't right. But right or wrong, it happened. As I walked down stairs I looked at more devastation and damage - tipped over litter boxes, spilled water dishes, boxes and storage containers along with scratching posts and cat condos piled into large piles. The basement door, not able to close completely as drywall, insulation and framing stuck out from the walls or laid on the floor nearby.
A few cats had managed to escape and snuck out from their hiding places. Fear and confusion were in their eyes. They didn't understand anymore than I did how this could have happened. We could only huddle together for comfort as the shock of the situation sank in. The SPCA for years has been trying to remove the competition, but I always believed justice would prevail. It was determined the following day that the stolen animals were in Saskatoon. I was told had 3 days to pay the fine of $10,000 to get them back or they could be killed after Monday. Some of the animals that were with me have already been adopted but they too cannot go back to their owners without sharing in the fine.
According to them they believe the animals were in distress. The 7 turtles (over 30 years old) were taken as well as the 5 foot igauna Chubchub who has lived with me for 12 years.
Many of you have adopted or seen our animals for adoption, some shall we say on the full figure side. Did they seem distressed? Earlier in December some of the donated cat food may have been contaminated and this caused a mass outbreak of diarrhea. As 2010 was the busiest ever for Alley Cats with record numbers of cats and kittens coming in, I must admit to being a bit overwhelmed. Not all the cats were making it to the litter boxes and not all the messes could be cleaned immediately. The first priority when I was home was to clean kennels for the worst infected, medicate and keep the cats supplied with food and water at all times. This included the wild cats in runs outside. The turtle tank was cleaned mid-December as well, yet the SPCA said they didn't think the water looked clear enough to them. Even though it is an 180 gallon tank, I can see right down to the bottom. Perhaps their eyesight is not so good. Dishes and laundry had fallen behind.
I've asked to show them which cats are being medicated for what, but they will not let me into their shelter to see or comfort the animals including my dog Jasper. They said my opinion was of no value to them and a vet would determine who got treated for what.
I have met with lawyers and will attempt to get an injunction to prevent the SPCA from killing any of the animals. This matter will cost a lot of money, but I believe these animals are worth it. I have always said an animal doesn't die because he has to but because no one cared if he lived. Do you care? Will your life be disturbed if these animals get put down. Will you feel good about yourself if you help them? Do you support Alley Cats and what they stand for or do you agree with the SPCA and their right? We need help now, I can't fight this battle on my own. The future of SACA is up to you. I feel dead inside from all this, but I will find the strength somehow if you will help me. This is our 15th year and we have rescued over 5,000 cats and have put down less than 5%. Does that mean anything? The SPCA kills 75% of their animals every year, will these cats be just another victim in their long list? There is only a couple days left. Please let me know if you can help. God help us all.
Dolores La Plante
306-378-2524

Saskatchewan Alley Cat Allies
1996 - 2010http://www.saskalleycats.ca/ 
K Jans said...
I would just like to say that everything written here absolutely disgusts me. I live in Elrose and the SPCA was justified and then some in going into Dolores' home WITH A WARRANT! and removing those poor animals. for 1 she had way to many animals in that cramped tiny home and she was fasting her cats because of lack of food. If someone wouldn't feed 1 animal in their house cause of lack of food the spca would come in to our place too. this was not an attack, but a rescue! If you could see the conditions of the house or "shelter" as Dolores put it, you would be in udder disgust. the smell of feces and urine in the air and on a breezy day can be smelt all around town. the garbage and litter boxes piled up out side is disgusting. I imagine now with all the newpeople showing up at her place for an interview today, she will have been attempting to clean, but that smell will be in the house still. She's had people that needed to get into her house to do something and they had to wear hazmat suits, so you tell me if thats a suitable environment for sheltering animals. I think not.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Scientists create GM 'superchicken' that doesn’t spread bird flu

cartoonChicken horror movieBy David Derbyshire
Last updated at 9:00 AM on 14th January 2011
"A genetically modified 'superchicken' that doesn't spread deadly bird flu has been developed by scientists.
The bird is intended to prevent the outbreaks of avian influenza which lead to millions of birds being culled.
It could also stop new strains of flu mutating in domestic fowl and spreading to people, leading to killer worldwide pandemics..." read here

Bellamy Brothers ~ Let Your Love Flow

Saskatchewan winter sceneshttp://www.leaderpost.com/sports/Alouettes+defeat+Riders+claim+Grey/2283190/VANSTONE+Back+Saskatchewan+longest+winter+merely+beginning/2283775/4047988.bin?size=620x400

Music- Unchained Dreams

music
Whoever wants music instead of noise,
joy instead of pleasure,
soul instead of gold,
creative work instead of business,
passion instead of foolery,
finds no home in this trivial world of ours.
Hermann Hesse
Music isn’t just a pleasure, a transient satisfaction.
It’s a need, a deep hunger; and when the music is right, it’s joy.
Love. A foretaste of heaven. A comfort in grief.
Is it too much to think that perhaps
God speaks to us sometimes through music?
How, then, could I be so ungrateful as to refuse the message?
Orson Scott Card
There’s music in the sighing of a reed;
There’s music in the gushing of a rill;
There’s music in all things, if men had ears:
Their earth is but an echo of the spheres.
Lord Byron
The earth has music for those who listen.
William Shakespeare http://joniew.wordpress.com/2011/01/12/music/

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Fleetwood Mac - Dreams

http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/Hengeveld_EagleHasLanded.jpgHe clasps the crag with hooked hands;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
Ringed with the azure world, he stands.

The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.
The Eagle by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
A man is not old until regrets take the place of dreams.
~John Barrymore

Media Slow To Show WikiLeaks Justified Iraq War

"While the media have been quick to run with WikiLeaks’ U.S. State Department cable releases to undermine Washington’s efforts to effect stability in unstable parts of the world, it is slow, if not silent, in giving credit where credit is due. Although other credible sources confirmed it before WikiLeaks did, in receiving similar disinterested responses from the media, it should be clear now that President Bush’s concerns about Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction (WMD) program were well-founded..."continue reading

Photo Gallery: Greg Pender's best of 2010

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Shenanoah

"The greatest power is the Creator. But if you want to know the greatest strength, that is gentleness." Shenandoah

Voices of the Wind

http://wallout.com/files/images/cat_vs_rooster.gif

Captured: North American Indian Photographs by Edward Curtis

"In 1906, American photographer Edward S. Curtis was offered $75,000 to document North American Indians. The benefactor, J.P Morgan, was to receive 25 sets of the completed series of 20 volumes with 1,500 photographs entitled The North American Indian. Curtis set out to photograph the North American Indian way of life at a time when Native Americans were being forced from their land and stripped of their rights. Curtis’ photographs depicted a romantic version of the culture which ran contrary to the popular view of Native Americans as savages...."photographs here

Wikimedia Commons Pictures of the Year

Massive fish kill blankets Arkansas River

pic100,000 Dead Fish In Arkansas Raise Suspicions Of Biblical Plague

"(CNN) -- Arkansas officials are investigating the death of an estimated 100,000 fish in the state's northwest, but suspect disease was to blame, a state spokesman said Sunday.

Dead drum fish floated in the water and lined the banks of a 20-mile stretch of the Arkansas River near Ozark, about 125 miles northwest of Little Rock, said Keith Stephens of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. A tugboat operator discovered the fish kill Thursday night, and fisheries officials collected some of the dying animals to conduct tests..."read here-video

Arkansas game officials probe mystery of falling birds

File:Red winged blackbird - natures pics.jpg"(CNN) -- Arkansas game officials hope testing scheduled to begin Monday will solve the mystery of why up to 5,000 birds fell from the sky just before midnight New Year's Eve.

The birds -- most of which were dead -- were red-winged blackbirds and starlings, and they were found within a one-mile area of Beebe, about 40 miles northeast of Little Rock, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission said. Birds fell over about a one-mile area, the commission said in a statement..."read here