Feeding the Good Wolf

"Feeding the good wolf. There is a story from the Elizabeth Berg novel, “The Year of Pleasures”, about a Navajo grandfather who once told his grandson, "Two wolves live inside me. One is the bad wolf, full of greed and laziness, full of anger and jealousy and regret. The other is the good wolf, full of joy and compassion and willingness and a great love for the world. All the time, these wolves are fighting inside me." "But grandfather," the boy said. "Which wolf will win?" The grandfather answered, "The one I feed."..."read more

Mr. Bean - Christmas

More polar bear news than you can shake a rapidly melting icicle at

photo                  By John Platt  "Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) got a long-awaited boost on November 23 when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) finally designated more than 485,000 square kilometers of "critical habitat" for the species, which is listed as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The critical habitat was first proposed in October 2009, and a ruling was due this past June 30, but the FWS obviously did not make that date. The habitat was also reduced by about 33,500 square kilometers from what was originally planned (pdf) to "accurately reflect the U.S. boundary" as well as exempt five U.S. Air Force bases and several native communities..." read here

Scientists rediscover Africa's 'terrible hairy fly'

"Dr Robert Copeland and fellow dipterist Dr Ashley Kirk-Spriggs found the fly, known as Mormotomyia Hirsuta, in its only known habitat, a cave-like rock cleft in Ukazi Hill east of Nairobi.
"The re-discovery of the species, which has been collected on only two occasions before, in 1933 and 1948, has caused excitement in insect museums world-wide," said the statement.
The mission was led by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Icipe), an organisation which aims to reduce poverty and improve health and food security by enhancing tropical African countries' ability to harness their natural resources through the study of insects.
The spider-like fly is described as "strange, due to its relatively large size, the males of which can stretch over one centimetre its long legs and covering of yellow hairs, reduced eyes and its non-functional wings."
"Since Mormotomyia cannot fly, there is a strong possibility that it is really restricted to this tiny habitat," Copeland said.
"If that is the case, it would be wonderful if the entire Ukazi Hill, on which it is found, were declared a national heritage area and given suitable conservation protection," he added." http://www.physorg.com/news/2010-12-scientists-rediscover-africa-terrible-hairy.html

(c) 2010 AFP

Fat Boy Slim - " Weapon of Choice" starring Christopher Walken

Hailey and Oliver Are Back! (Pit Bull & cockatiel are best friends!)

Hailey the APBT and her boyfriend-Oliver, the cockatiel:
Hailey the APBT and her boyfriend-Oliver, the cockatiel from Victoria on Vimeo.

Nat King Cole - Smile

Discover more than 3 million Google e-books

12/06/2010 07:00:00 AM

"Today is the first page in a new chapter of our mission to improve access to the cultural and educational treasures we know as books. Google eBooks will be available in the U.S. from a new Google eBookstore. You can browse and search through the largest ebooks collection in the world with more than three million titles including hundreds of thousands for sale. Find the latest bestsellers like James Patterson’s Cross Fire and Jonathan Franzen’s Freedom, dig into popular reads like Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken and catch up on the classics like Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities and Gulliver’s Travels..."read here

Family Matters - Dueling Accordions

Family Matters

Sierra Noble

Sierra Noble Myspace:http://www.myspace.com/sierranoble  Sierra Noble- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sierranoblemusic

Cat and dog & That's The Way Love Goes - Merle Haggard

Cancun talks start with a call to the gods

By Juliet Eilperin

"With United Nations climate negotiators facing an uphill battle to advance their goal of reducing emissions linked to global warming, it's no surprise that the woman steering the talks appealed to a Mayan goddess Monday.
Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, invoked the ancient jaguar goddess Ixchel in her opening statement to delegates gathered in Cancun, Mexico, noting that Ixchel was not only goddess of the moon, but also 'the goddess of reason, creativity and weaving. May she inspire you -- because today, you are gathered in Cancun to weave together the elements of a solid response to climate change, using both reason and creativity as your tools.' " call to gods

Now my life is at risk, says WikiLeaks chief ... and he promises to publish files on UFOs and aliens

pic@UFO closes airport in China I sure hope they don't throw this guy in the slammer before he posts files on UFOs and aliens."The founder of WikiLeaks last night claimed his life was at risk for exposing government secrets.

In an extraordinary rant, Julian Assange also revealed he would publish classified U.S. files about aliens and unidentified flying objects..." read more

New Scientist - November photo competition winner: Geometry

"November's competition theme was "geometry". Entrants drew inspiration from nature, architecture and science to supply us with some outstanding images.

This month's winner is this breathtaking image of roof domes in Ardakan, Iran. Ehsan Sanaei Ardakani managed to capture both the geometric beauty of the domes, which form part of the roof of the city's bazaar, and the beautiful colour contrast that they make against the clear, blue sky. The geometry of the roof helps reduces the effect of the heat from the desert's sun.

We have put together a gallery of our favourite entries, and you may also like to see the full gallery of submissions.

If you'd like to get involved in this month's competition - on the theme of light - then head here for all the details." New Scientist

Forest fire in Israel kills 40 prison guards trapped in fleeing bus

"An Israeli firefighter runs from a raging fire in Beit Oren, Carmel Forest, near Israel's northern city of Haifa on Dec. 2, 2010. Around 40 people were killed in the forest fire." Isabel Kershner NEW YORK TIMES   "JERUSALEM—A fire raging in a rain-starved northern Israel forest Thursday has left at least 40 people dead, caused the evacuation of thousands of people and prompted Israel to call for urgent international aid in fighting the inferno.
The worst forest fire in Israeli history killed 40 prison guards Thursday as they travelled in a bus that became trapped while trying to flee racing flames, officials said.
Dozens of other people were reportedly injured as the blaze, which torched some 325 hectares, continued to burn out of control late Thursday night in Carmel Forest.
In a televised address, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the fire a “catastrophe the likes of which we have never known.”
“This is a disaster of unprecedented proportions,” Netanyahu said...." http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/900345--forest-fire-in-israel-kills-40-prison-guards-trapped-in-fleeing-bus