Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit.

There're less than 300 in the whole world

Japan GDP shrinks 12.7% in biggest dive since 1974 as exports collapse

news.yahoo.com : Japan's economy shrank in Q4 2008 by its most since the first oil crisis in 1974, hit by an unprecedented slump in exports, which is likely to lead to more calls for extra stimulus. Japan's economy shrank 3.3%, or an annualized 12.7% in Q4 2008. With exporters cutting production and laying off staff and many retailers reporting sharp falls in sales, economists saw little hope of a bounce back for Japan. The big slide in Japanese GDP was its second-worst in modern times, lagging only a 3.4% contraction in 1974, after the first Middle East oil shock. A plunge in exports was the main culprit behind the massive Japanese contraction. The subsequent build-up in inventories of unsold cars, flat-screen TVs and many other goods has forced Japanese manufacturers to halt factory lines, pushing industrial production off a cliff. Wary of mounting problems for Japan's economy, the BOJ has nudged interest rates down near zero, taken some unconventional steps including buying of commercial paper, and set up a new funding scheme using corporate debt as collateral. - To be sure, as yet this 12.7% number is an annualized figure based on quarter-on-quarter results, but if (/when) it does dip into the negative double-digit territory year-on-year, one could probably declare that Japan's economy has gone straight into the Second Great Depression. Since Japan does happen to have the world's second largest economy, if Japan itself is falling into an economic depression or what looks more and more likely the case, an economic collapse, the rest of the world particularly Asia can't be that far behind. See also : 1. Japan GDP shrank annual 3% in Q2 2008, revised figures show 2. Nissan to slash 20000 jobs in mass layoff, sees annual loss in 2009 3. Japan exports plummet record 35% as recession deepens 4. Toyota to cut production 54% in Q1 2009 as demand plunges

Red Rabbit.

Fortunate One

JJI Cafe became our usual hangout. Each new day started with a JJI Special (eggs, Tibetan bread, stir-fried vegetables, and hot chai) and ended with a Tibetan thentuk or momo soup at the very same table, overlooking the valley. At night wed go downstairs to the owners apartment to watch a movie or have a jam session (everyone in Dharamsala seems to be a musician). One day some friends brought along a monk named Sonam, which means fortunate one in Tibetan. He wore a maroon fleece over his robes, with big floppy sandals, and a messenger bag filled with books. Sonam shook my hand silently, turning the corner of his mouth up into a smile. He was looking for a private English tutor. Teaching engagements in Dharamsala are fairly ad hoc, staffed by itinerant backpackers in their spare time. No time commitments, no curriculum, no obligations. Just sit with the monks and talk. I was tired of travel already. Not tired of Asia but of moving around so mucha day or two in each town, see the sights and get out. Travelling this way allowed me to cover a lot of ground and keep my days busy, but it had become a little tedious. I certainly was not so smitten with sightseeing that I could justify quitting my job and hopping on the first flight overseas for it. Any traveller will tell you that sightseeing is only the backdrop; the main course is everything else. I came to appreciate the cardinal rule of travel: dont overplan (that is, if you plan at all). Most fellow backpackers Id met in India had no idea what they were doing, no direction whatsoever, claiming to be in India just to exist for a while (you hear that phrase a lot). India is the perfect country for drifters; its cheap, slow, and endless. Plus they give you a six-month visa, renewable ad infinitum at the Indian embassy in nearby Kathmandu. So I said Yes to staying in Dharamsala and teaching Sonam for a while. Why not. We were to meet daily on the patio of Nicks Restaurant over a pot of ginger-lemon tea, and read from the books in his messenger bag: a childrens adaptation of Siddhartha, a grammar book, some pro-Tibet political pamphlets, and several notebooks filled with assorted English phrases, all given him by previous teachers. At our first meeting and I asked him some basic questions. He spoke enough English to make conversation. He was born in a small village in the east of Tibet and had come to India when he was eight years old via the familiar Himalayan hell-passage, suffering severe frostbite from which it took him months to recover. He spent the next seventeen years in a monastery in Karnataka state in south India, studying the Tibetan canon and meditating in the sweltering heat, rising at 4:30 AM each day for hours of tedious morning chanting, taking breakfast and lunch but no dinner. He had met the Dalai Lama eight times, and spoke of him like an old buddy. Sonam was twenty-eight years old; he and I were born only eight days apart. Aside from us both now being in McLeod Ganj at the same time, our lives had been different in every imaginable way. Sonam had a curious demeanour. While I was eager to accommodate him and make him feel comfortable, he watched me with some good-natured suspicion. Rapport was difficult; he smiled at everything. He understood my words, but not how I said things. Even the simplest Western conversations have complexities that never really occurred to me until I was presented with this blank slate. He picked up a spoon, slowly, carrying it without any wasted movement to the tea glass, stirring it three times, then pulling it out and laying it precisely on a napkin. All his movements were careful and deliberate. Grasping the rim of the glass with three fingers and raising it to his mouth, he sipped perfectly, and then set the glass down on the exact same spot, and turned the glass clockwise to face him. He turned each notebook page with similar care, easing each page gently over the metal binding, and wrote with the smoothest hand, even in English (Tibetan uses a different script, as does Hindi, both of which he spoke fluently). I offered him a bite of my brownie (Nicks Restaurant is famous for them), and he firmly shoved the plate away with a smile. Always with a smile. It would appear offering sweets to a monk is a faux-pas. I began to feel like my cordial affectations were indecipherable to him. Why would I give a brownie to a monk? I felt like a fool. When I asked him what his long-term plans were, he said, learn English. Nothing could happen until he learned English, and his plan was to spend all his time learning English. Thats all? Yes. He said this in a way that made me the silly one. A monk living in poverty could be perfectly happy with his life the way it is, he was telling me. The cultural gap between us yawned. The idea of having such genuine and bone-simple conceptions of ones future just sent my head spinning. My mind now erased of good conversation topics, we moved on to the reading. He preferred Siddhartha so he opened it to the appropriate page. An American lady gave him this book, he said. I saw her address in Georgia written in his notebook, under the words SONOM, YOU ROCK! [sic] She crazy girl, very loud he said, with a laugh. He wanted me to read each chapter first, out loud, and then he would follow, and hed ask about the words he didnt know and Id draw him a picture or explain it in simpler terms and hed spend the rest of the session blurting out these words at odd times, sometimes scribbling them on his hand, getting me to re-pronounce them, over and over. Sonam practiced English every night by himself, reading each page out loud ten times in a row. We read a chapter of Siddhartha per day. After two or three sessions I could see that he didnt understand a word of it. I figured every Buddhist monk knew the Siddhartha story but he wasnt following a thing, didnt know what a naga was or why the Prince fled his fathers palace. It didnt take us long to become friends. At the end of every session he always tried to pay for the tea without me noticing. It became a little contest between us (I knew that he had almost no money, so we didnt get carried away). He once asked me how much it was costing me to travel around the world. I told him the amount I had saved up, and he could not believe the number. Couldnt even understand the number; hed never heard of a person having a sum of money that large. What strange place did I come from? What was my life like back home? He wanted to know everything, but he hadnt the slightest interest in trading places with me. There was only one place in the world he wanted to be other than Dharamsala, he said, and that was Tibet. He drew me a little floor plan of the apartment he shares with three others: one small room, one hot plate, and enough floor space for all to sleep, but no bathroom. Instead, they walked to the other end of McLeod Ganj to use the public toilet (yes, Indian public toilets). His living expenses were about thirty dollars per month. He cooked all his own food, and showered once in a while at a friends place. And he was as happy as could be. I saw Sonam often around McLeod Ganj, and he walked along the road with me, ignoring the beggars as I did, asking me about my day and how long I was staying. He always wanted to know how long I was staying in Dharamsala. Sonam was always laughing, except when the topic was my departure, when he became very serious. In fact hed been asking me for weeks, always trying to figure out exactly how long we had left. The day before I left McLeod Ganj, Sonam stood up from the table and looked me in the eye. He produced a white scarf, and put it around my neck. He then knelt, put his head down reverently, and handed me a beaded bracelet, a mala used in Tibetan chanting. He said something in Tibetan, stood up, gave a prayer-bow, and thanked me for helping him with his English. Stunned, I could only slide the mala on my wrist with a smile and thank him quietly. He was clearly dismayed that I was leaving, and frankly, so was I. Perhaps my definitive memory of Sonam was when someone in our group got a laugh by teaching him a kind of gangsta hand gesture. You make a gun with your two fingers and thumb and flick your wrist while making the appropriate goofy facial expression and you say Yo! Sonam took this gesture very seriously. He asked us over and over to show him how to do it. And for the rest of the day, whenever I looked over at him, there he was, this maroon-clad, shaven-headed monk from east Tibet, studiously practicing the gangsta hand gesture to nobody, out loud, ten times in a row.

Washington Capitals Team Report

The Caps finally did what they needed to on offense against the Penguins, and that's why there will be a Game 7 in this wildly entertaining Eastern Conference semifinal. Alex Ovechkin had done too much for the Caps, and they weren't getting any help from their complementary scorers on offense. He didn't get many good scoring chances in this game, but Viktor Kozlov, Alexander Semin, Tomas Fleischmann and David Steckel did. In fact, Steckel got the game-winning overtime goal that gave the Caps a spine-tingling 5-4 victory in Game 6 and forced the finale in Washington on Wednesday night. The Caps didn't dominate the game offensively as they've done so many times this season. They've rarely done it in this series as the Penguins have too much speed and skill for the Caps in certain situations. But the Caps are able to counter-attack and get some great rushes and scoring chances. Despite being out-shot, 42-24, the Caps came up with numerous opportunities. In fact, many of them came from the second, third and fourth lines, all of which played very well at different times. Steckel was magnificent again "He's a big-game player," said Caps coach Bruce Boudreau getting the game-winner and making so many other big plays. Kozlov, the cagey veteran, gets two goals the Caps desperately needed, and Fleischmann, who was in a slump throughout parts of the post-season and got knocked down to the fourth line, came up with a huge goal. Ovechkin actually finished with three assists on this night, but it was the goal-scoring work of everyone else that saved the day. Now the Caps go back to Washington for Game 7. Boudreau gets the advantage of having the final line change at home, something that could make a difference as he tries to get good match-ups. It means even more when the team's second, third and fourth line are finding ways to score, taking the pressure off Ovechkin. If the Caps can win without Ovechkin needing to score, they are such a talented group. CAPITALS 5, PENGUINS 4 (OT): Welcome back, Alexander Semin. The Caps and their fans have missed you for much of this series. He's been on the ice but hasn't do much. But he did plenty in this game, finishing with two assists one on a spectacular play where Semin kept the puck alive after a delayed penalty was called, letting goalie Simeon Varlamov get off the ice and an extra attacker come on to help the Caps. As good as Alex Ovechkin is, Semin sometimes can be better, taking shots that it's hard to imagine anyone else taking. When Semin is on, the Caps can be close to unbeatable.NOTES, QUOTESThe Caps somehow stayed alive in this game despite playing a horrible first period. You name it, they couldn't do it right in the first 20 minutes and were so lucky to be down only 1-0 after one. The Penguins held a huge 18-5 edge in shots and seemingly held the puck the entire way. G Simeon Varlamov didn't have a moment's break, but the Caps settled down after that and got back into the game. Overtime hadn't been the Caps' time in the playoffs. They lost both overtime games in this playoff series, thanks to unlucky deflections, and had dropped seven in a row in the extra periods until this one. That should give the Caps some confidence heading into Game 7, especially if that one goes to overtime. The Caps' interesting success in the face of possible elimination games continued on this night. They're now 6-1 in games where they face elimination under coach Bruce Boudreau. Interestingly enough, they're 3-0 on the road in those situations, an impressive statistic for any team. The Caps are 1-1 in Game Sevens with Boudreau at the helm, losing last year to the Flyers in overtime but beating the Rangers this year in the first round. Coach Bruce Boudreau didn't make a move with his lineup, keeping it the same and not inserting Donald Brashear, a move the coach considered but didn't make. That's a mild surprise, as Brashear is a leader who helps the team and plays a big role as their muscle man. Let's see if Boudreau puts him in for Game 7. QUOTE TO NOTE: "I was in the right place at the right time. I personally didn't know where it went or anything. It was the biggest goal of my career, so I didn't know what to do. I just jumped around." David Steckel, in an AP story after scoring the game-winning goal.ROSTER REPORT GOALTENDERS: Simeon Varlamov, Jose Theodore. DEFENSEMEN: Brian Pothier, Mike Green, Tom Poti, John Erskine, Shaone Morrisonn, Milan Jurcina. FIRST LINE: Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Viktor Kozlov. SECOND LINE: Brooks Laich, Sergei Fedorov, Alexander Semin. THIRD LINE: David Steckel, Boyd Gordon, Matt Bradley. FOURTH LINE: Tomas Fleischmann, Jay Beagle, Chris Clark. PLAYER NOTES: C/LW David Steckel came through again. Coach Bruce Boudreau has talked about Steckel's success under him in the big games and post-season contests when both were at Hershey in the AHL. Steckel scored only eight goals in the regular season, but he's gotten three already in the post-season this spring and they've all come at huge times. The game-winner Monday night was a great play where he redirected a Brooks Laich wrister from the right circle past G Marc-Andre Fleury for the game-winner at 6:22 of overtime. He also won 11 of 15 face-offs.RW Alexander Semin made one of the best plays of the post-season on Monday night. The officials were calling the Penguins for a delayed penalty after Semin got taken down on a rush. He got up found the puck, kept the play going to let an extra attacker make it on the ice, and LW Tomas Fleischmann wound up chipping home the rebound of C Sergei Fedorov's shot. It was a very smart hockey play that you won't see often, and Semin could do so much more. RW Viktor Kozlov again came through in a big way. With LW Alex Ovechkin often bottled up through most of the night, Kozlov scored twice. His first came on a brutal wrist shot and his second was on a play that came from sheer hustle, when Kozlov chased down a loose puck in the left corner, saw that G Marc-Andre Fleury got tangled up with one of his defensemen, and fired a bullet into the open net from a sharp angle. Kozlov seems to have a knack for coming through when the Caps need him. LW Alex Ovechkin still found a way to help even though he couldn't often get free to fire some of his cannon shots. Ovechkin finished with three assists although he got only five shots overall he's often getting off nine or 10 in a game. But Ovechkin kept working and going after the puck and hitting people. MEDICAL WATCH:G Brent Johnson (hip surgery) could return later in the playoffs.LW Quintin Laing (torn spleen) is out for the season.D Jeff Schultz (upper body injury) is day-to-day.RW Eric Fehr (undisclosed) is day-to-day.

Uroplatus phantasticus

White turtle

dogs on chains is it really fair?

i agree with leashes when you are walking them etc. but to put a dog on a 6 foot chain and left in a yard is just wrong in my eyes. i know aperson that has 2 dogs that she keeps on chains in the fenced back yard. the chains are short they cant get to each other and they have had puppies together and love being with each other. they are great dogs they dont bite, growl or anything just very loving. they break the chains or get lose sometimes and when they do they come to my yard through jumping on the dog houses and over the fence that doesnt bother me like i said they are great dogs and i tell her the dogs are fine when they end up in my yard no big deal. we havent been neighbors long just a month or so. well they have a puppy too and that one isnt on a chain and it gets in our yard all the time and in the house too. he is sweet and we love him like our own. we are always feeding the 3 dogs scraps etc. my husband cuts up rope for them to have something to chew on and etc. its just sad seeing them sit in the yard cant play cant run and no attention unless we strech hard with our hands through the fence to love on them. we talk to them all the time but they just look so sad. what do you think about chains etc

Right Here, Right Now

A Chesterton woman was charged with felony theft and misdemeanor conversion yesterday after K-Mart security found a cornucopia of stolen goods in her pants:According Chesterton police, the investigating officer dumped out Yeakey's purse and found two dental kits, a bottle of cologne, one toy car, 12 packs of Ponds Facial Strips, a bottle of antifungal cream, two fingernail kits and two bottles of foundation primer were stolen from the store.When informed that she would be patted down by the officer, Yeakey unbuttoned her pants and pulled out 10 DVDs, a Play Station video game, a pair of white tube socks, a black and red bra, a black and red pair of women's underwear with the word "pouty" printed on them, three pairs of size 4T boys underwear and two women's rings.Among the DVD's stolen:"Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" to "Death Row"There's something to be said about a woman who has a copy of Girls Just Want To Have Fun shoved down her pants, and it's another thing entirely to find Death Row also shoved down her knickers.If I was to guess at a few other titles that were pulled from her drawers, i would say Scent of a Woman, Snatch, and the entire Leave it to Beaver Box-Set. Talk about Dumb & Dumber

1924 camora

The Unexpected Pleasure of Basil

I was on my way home from Cumbernauld on Thursday evening. I was asked to stop and do some grocery shopping on the way home. I stopped at the big ASDA just off the motorway in Hamilton. It was just easier to get to than any other supermarket I could think of. It was raining (naturally) and I had been sitting through a presentation so my senses were dulled.I wandered the aisles a bit aimlessly. Milk, cheese, some good bread, dog food . . . . vegetables . . . what else did we need? I thought fresh herbs would perk up the mid-winter menu when it happened. I had taken down a basil plant, stuck my nose in the top of the bag it was in and sniffed. I was instantly transported to my greenhouse in July. I love how the nose can transport me to another place and time. The smell of the fresh basil yanked me out of dreary shopping doldrums and smack into a warm summer day in my greenhouse. It wasn't just before Christmas on a dark, rainy Scottish night. It was summer and I was going to make some pesto from the The memory helped my eyes to focus on things and people again. My step lightened and I was able to finish my task with a new perkiness that had not been there before. The memory of warm summer days had visited me there in the supermarket. Work has been hard, the winter weather is grim but just as night follows day, spring will come again. That is what the scent of the basil said to me. I haven't been very good at posting lately. I'm going to apply to use the work excuse this time. It seems that the run up to the end of the year is always the busiest. This year was no exception. I was dashing around extra furiously so that I could see the right number of target customers before the end of the month. I think have managed it.Christmas is coming. I have just about everything finished except that I haven't posted one single Christmas card and we have no tree yet. I'll fix that tomorrow.----------------------------------p.s.Happy Birthday Ian!

Puppy

Humpty and Dumpty.

Red Sox fans are jubilant, but will it make sense in the long run?

The rest of the league having no leg up on Boston leaves just the Red Sox and Blue Jays to analyze. We know they are legitimate even in the wake of their own limited problems and the Blue Jays. The Jays lost two out of three at home to the Yankees and past Roy Halladay, they haven't had a successful starting pitcher capable of staying healthy. The problem with Toronto is they were dominant until they played real competition, and their flaws, which consisted of timely hitting and a healthy and effective rotation past Halladay, is likely to be super exposed against really good teams. Though the Yankees have their reliever issues, they have the rotation and offense to sustain such problems, the Blue Jays' best strength is their bullpen, but you're only going to see the bullpen in an important situation if the Jays lead, and they will only lead if their weaknesses; a consistent offense and talented rotation, can step up, which they can't. So yes, being swept is never good and the Yankees have not beaten their biggest competition almost halfway into the season series, but keep in mind a few things: Six of those eight games have been at Fenway Park, and of the eight, only this three-game series was against a Yankees team even remotely near full strength. The problem with that excuse if you expect the Red Sox to improve too, they have their own injuries and they will likely fill those holes, but still, six out of eight games at home is a benefit. The two teams won't play each other until after the trade deadline, likely, their next series will be the best feel of all as to where the teams stand. As of right now, the Red Sox are a better team (they're in first) and a superior opponent (they are, again, 8-0). The problem the Yankees have is their biggest weakness (the bullpen) is very vulnerable because it's rare for starters to last long against a patient Red Sox offense. The Sox on the other hand, have a great bullpen, so when the Yankees' offense can knock one of their pitchers out of the game, it's not a huge benefit like it is for Boston (though they did manage four runs against the Sox bullpen this series). Both offenses can score, both rotations are capable of getting the job done (the Sox have only won one of the eight games by a large margin), but right now it's night and day with the Yankees and Red Sox bullpens. New York needs arms, but contrary to popular belief, they have the resources to get them. They have prospects in the farm system they will be willing to part with (such as the names necessary to get a Nick Swisher in the offseason). Top notch relievers will net their teams a nice name or two, but the Yankees aren't looking for an ace, or an entirely new bullpen, or a middle of the order hitter, they're looking for two arms who can throw strikes and get big outs. That's not earth shattering. Alfredo Aceves is effective to eat up innings, he is the perfect sixth and seventh inning arm. Phil Coke could be used for an inning four times a week. Phil Hughes is an ideal bullpen arm and he will remain there if Wang can figure out his mechanics. It's not a guarantee, but Wang's problem isn't velocity, it's location, those things are more easily correctable when you have a history of having control. Even if Hughes does replace the former 19 game winner, Wang has had success in the bullpen in limited time this season as well. Mariano Rivera is the closer, plain and simple, and if Brian Bruney is healthy, he's a necessary power arm. That's four, possibly five solid arms in the bullpen. New York could use one or two more. Will Marte be one? Can Veras straighten out? It's possible, but not something to be counted on at this point in the season, just like the Sox can't expect Ortiz to be a difference maker anymore even if he does hit well against the Yankees still. New York needs some help in relief, but it's not impossibly to obtain that. And that's it. That's their problem. If the Yankees had these arms, they would have won the first game the two teams played against each other, they would have held the 6-0 lead in the second game and they likely would have won last night. All of a sudden it would have been 5-3 in the season series and nobody is saying anything. But that's not the state of the team right now and if anything, this past series should have sent that message loud and clear. The problem with quantifying games is they all count for something. The Yankees are better against the rest of the league than Boston is. They are historically dominant against all west teams minus the Angels and the Angels don't have the same formula they used to for beating New York. This is a traditional second half team with a .500 record or better against every team but Boston in the AL. True they are 1-2 against the Phillies, the final game being decided in extra innings, but the Sox are 1-2 against the Mets, so that's not proving much. Interleague counts in the standings, not in the "you're playing a contender" category. There are way too many variables to try to compare NL teams to AL teams during the regular season starting with pitching matchups. When you play each other once, it's not enough to evaluate anything. New York is 8-3 against AL West teams and the only one they have yet to play is Seattle, whom they will likely beat as badly as the rest of the division on the west coast or at home. Speaking of which, more than half of those games were on the West Coast, the Yankees don't have the same problems Boston does in the West. The Yankees are 13-5 against the Central and they will likely continue beating those teams up all season long. Eliminate Boston, and the Yankees are competitive in the East as well, standing at 12-8. So don't overblow this, the Yankees have a problem with Boston, not with the team and not with the league. They haven't overachieved, they have overcome injuries and stayed focus, this team is only going to improve from here on out. And as much as Boston fans would like you to believe it, they won't finish 18-0 against the Yankees this season, at some point that monkey is going to come off the back as well. The Yankees are 9-6 in one run games, and 9-3 if you eliminate Boston. They are above .500 on the road and at home, including games with Boston and are six games above .500 since May 1st. To try to belittle what New York has done to the rest of the league because your team has dominated them is childish and stupid. It's something for a child to comment about, not an avid sports fan. The Yankees are here to stay this year, and only having one flaw, it shouldn't be too difficult to correct it at some point. Will the bullpen cost the team more games between now and July 31st? It's likely. It's also likely Burnett does better than he has since April and the real Sabathia is here to stay. Joba will continue to grow and so will Hughes. Xavier Nady will eventually further deepen the offense. There is still improvements on the way, and law of averages still has some catching up to do for New York. This is a division race not likely to go away anytime soon, even if one team has a free three game swing every time they play the other. It's funny how when one person makes a comment to discount an 11-game winning streak, pointing out how Boston would have been way under .500 at the time without that two week stretch where they played well, that person was criticized. Yet these same people seem to think a nine-game winning streak should be discounted because "only two games" came against Toronto and the rest were sub .500 teams? How does that work exactly? So if you eliminate the Yankees nine-game winning streak, they are a .500 team? It's true, the problem is, the same teams the Yankees beat during that stretch were six of the 11 games during Boston's streak, the same coveted streak untouchable to criticism. Meanwhile, Oakland and Cleveland, who made up an additional two games of Boston's streak are a combined 13 games under .500 while Toronto, who made up two games of the Yankees' streak is six games over .500. So much for the lack of hypocrisy. Is it frustrating the Yankees have some statistical fluke against Boston? Yes. Yes it is. And a fluke is what this has become. The following teams have beaten Boston this year: Tampa Bay, Oakland, Cleveland, LA, Seattle, Toronto, NY (the Mets), Minnesota and Texas. Are the Yankees worse than all of these teams? No, they aren't. In fact, I'd go out on a limb and say they are better than every single team listed above. Baseball is a tricky sport, but the important thing is to stay focused even when your team is on a high because throughout the year, there will be many high's and many low's. Acting foolish or losing composure during either stretch can be dampering, especially when your team switches sides. The Red Sox are two games in first place, that's the most important thing to come out of these past three games. They have the history, pedigree, confidence, record and depth to win the division. If the playoffs started today, they would likely beat the Yankees in a seven-game series. The problem is, they don't, neither two plays for two weeks and the wild card does exist. The Red Sox should know, they've won it the most times out of any team ever, and that includes one of their two World Series seasons in recent memory. The season isn't half over yet and the games will only intensify from here on out. Let Boston have their tea party, but who knows if and when a massacre is right around the corner.

A Trendier Version of the Classic Vanilla Milk Shake

There was a time when choosing a plain-old-vanilla cone, in world-of-thirty-wonderful-flavors, seemed unimaginative at best. Myopic, safe, intolerant of new things, at worst. This sense of superiority usually coming from the brave soul that dipped into the frozen tub of black licorice goo as their flavor du jour. Of course, any plain-old-vanilla lover knows it’s hard to keep up that superiority complex when your tongue begins to resemble that of a camel! We’re just saying.It should be no surprise that vanilla, one of the world’s most expensive, yet beloved spices, holds steadfast as the US number one ice cream flavor; this according to the NPD Groups’ National Eating Trends survey. Vanilla weighs in at a whopping 30% of all ice cream consumption, while chocolate comes in second-place at only 10%! Surprisingly, butter pecan ekes out third-place at 4%, while strawberry lags just behind at 3.7%. Rounding out the top five US ice cream favorites is chocolate chip mint at 3.2%. So, just where does a flavor like Chunky Monkey fall on the list? We may never know.It should also be no surprise that the intoxicating allure of vanilla paired with cardamom’s intriguing fragrance and taste come together as a luxurious sensory delight. Unique to itself, cardamom is sweet, floral, and citrusy with woody undertones. It’s no wonder this charming couple is one of the McCormick Flavor Forecast 2008 top ten pairings!While the essence of the vanilla bean is adored around the world as a flavor and fragrance for all things imaginable, the pod of the perennial Elettaria cardamomum is just beginning to makes its debut to the much of the world. A member of the ginger family, cardamom, this “queen” of spices, is very popular in Scandinavian, Saudi Arabian, North African, Asian and Indian cuisines. In fact, cardamom coffee is considered a symbol of hospitality and prestige throughout the Arab world. Used in lieu of cinnamon, cardamom is a popular ingredient in Danish pastries. Cardamom is often found as an ingredient in spice blends such as curry and chai.So how does all this talk of ice cream, vanilla and cardamom come together? It comes together deliciously as a recipe provided by the innovative chefs at McCormick®. Try this trendy version of a classic vanilla milk shake today!Vanilla Cardamom Milk Shake Shooters1 pint (2 cups) vanilla ice cream1 cup milk1 tablespoon McCormick® Vanilla Extract1/4 teaspoon McCormick® Gourmet Collection® Ground CardamomPlace ice cream, milk, vanilla and cardamom in blender container; cover. Blend on high speed until smooth.Pour into glasses. Sprinkle with additional cardamom, if desiredAs mentioned previously, cardamom is also a key ingredient in a chai spice blend. For another scrumptious treat, try these Chai Sugar Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches!This article first published for Suite101.com.

Hole-y mole-y!

I have often advocated regular visits to the dermatologist for “mole checks” on this blog. Until my brother-in-law, who has melanoma, urged me to be checked for suspicious moles, I’d never seen a dermatologist. But his situation (Interferon treatments for an entire year, hoping for a 10% chance of a more positive outcome) jolted me out of my procrastination and I finally found a dermatologist and went in for a “mole inspection.” At that first appointment, Dr. Voss found four suspicious moles. She removed and biopsied them and called me back to take deeper tissue from two of them that showed irregular cells. I have quite the scar on my chest, which affects the necklines I choose to wear these days, but I do NOT have cancer. A few months later, I returned for a follow-up check and lo and behold, another suspicious mole was removed. My latest follow-up appointment was scheduled for January 5th – the day after my accident – so obviously that was cancelled. Now, normally I’d probably space and not re-schedule (after all, it’s just a check-up…), but in this case I knew better and I rescheduled for when I knew I’d be mobile enough to get to the office. Good thing, too. Because yesterday FOUR more moles were removed, and today my forearm looks like this: That wound is nothing – and yet, fear of that silly superficial scratch is what had prevented me – a redhead, no less – from being checked in the first place! How stupid is that?! So this is your call to action. Pick up the phone and make an appointment with a dermatologist for a mole check NOW. Do not wait. Don’t wait till you read just five more blogs. Don’t wait till after dinner. Don’t wait till you’re near a phone. Don't wait till you feel like it. Just do it. NOW. Right this minute! And if you’re in the Seattle area, I can recommend Julie Voss at Northwest Face in Kirkland. You’ll even have this view from the parking lot (bring a sandwich and have a picnic!):

Is a diamond engagement ring a must?

I just read an article about japanese men not spending on diamond engagement rings because they find it a waste of money.


Well, it might seem like a waste of money, but as a girl, i would like to have a diamond engagement ring. It doesn't have to be big. But at least something.*shrugs*

Well, i'm not married. So what do I know.. haha

What about you? If you're married, do you have an engagement ring. And if you're single like me or not yet married, would you want to have an engagement ring?

For the guys, will you buy an engagement ring for your bride?

Fur,with no fur

Duck

The Twin Cities “Tax Day Tea Party”

Ive just gotten back from the Tax Day Tea Party at the Capitol in St Paul - which is still going on - and, seriously, all I can say is wow. And, might I add, thats not wow in a good way, either. Id guess around three-thousand people showed up, and Id guess no more than five of them expected - or wanted - a nonpartisan event, as was facetiously promised. It was completely, utterly, totally, entirely, unabashedly far, far, right, and all hate, all the time. It was ugly, seriously - so ugly I couldnt stand to be around it anymore, photo opportunities or no photo opportunities, and left after about an hour. Anyone who things these things are nonpartisan and apolitical, youre, sorry, completely deluded. I dont know who the speakers were, but they got a lot of cheers from the crowd whenever they called Barack Hussein Obama - and always Barack Hussein Obama, never President Obama or anything like that - a liar, or a socialist, or a communist. They got a lot of cheers when they announced - I kid you not - that if the Department of Homeland Security thinks conservative taxpayers are terrorists, maybe they - that is, the conservatives - should start taking hundreds of people hostage to get what they want. They got a lot of cheers when they announced Texas is seceding from the United States, and that if they can do it, so can Minnesota. You know what got the biggest cheers, though? You know what got a basically standing ovation from everybody in the crowd? We dont need the United Nations! That pretty much says it all, really. Moderate? Nonpartisan? Like fucking hell

Moving along

Updates, as you may have guessed, will probably be a bit sparse over the next few weeks. I move in thirteen days!Things are going well thus far. Most of the important stuff -- cats, bank stuff, address forwarding and all those little details -- have been addressed. I wish I were further along in packing, but a great deal of my "packing" actually just involves throwing things out, so it's not as bad as it looks. The kitties have been microchipped and vaccinated for rabies. Aside from the usual debate about why I don't want them vaccinated for anything else, that went fine. Lilly went in on Thursday, Morsel went in on Friday, and Minx and Thundercat went in together on Saturday. Saturday was especially fun, as I had my nine year old niece, C, with me for the day. She was very helpful, opening doors for me as I lugged 22 lbs of combined cat weight in and out. After the vet, we got her some Chicken Nuggets (she's the sweetest kid in the world until her blood sugar gets low) and some water, then we went to see Kung Fu Panda. Which we both loved. I so love going to the movies with C, she snuggles up right next to you and doesn't hog the popcorn. Then we got her nails done -- she wanted me to get mine done too, but I explained that Auntie will wreck that manicure in about ten minutes what with packing and all, so we just did hers -- and then went to the bookstore, got some stuff, and then to Claire's where she got some earrings. A perfect Auntie-Niece Day. I'm really going to miss that kid. But, we're making plans to have her come out and visit. She is old enough, in theory, to fly alone. In reality, she's probably not quite there mentally, so she'll have to come out with my mom or brother or whoever.What else ... the car is almost set for her long trip. It occurs to me though, that in six years of ownership I've never once used the cruise control on it. What can I say? I learned to drive before we had that particular bell/whistle, and then for the longest time I owned cars which predated it, and I'm just used to not using it. I have no idea if it even still works. I guess I should try it.Today involves more packing, which I should get to, like, now I suppose. This coming week involves the final plotting of the route and booking of hotels. And shipping!More later!Elle

Kitten

They're steal EATING Dogs in the Philippines?! WHY?

I just can't believe that it's true that they're still some parts of this damn country who still eats dog for breakfast,lunch and dinner.
It's not a hear say, i have watch a commercial and a Night show is supposed to be aired either tonight or this Saturday about a person who had been Dog his entire life not fearing rabies. these aren't common house pets but Stray Dogs found in the Street, they collect and send them to this particular pound and probably put them to sleep.....and eat them. . It's terrible that it's sick to my stomach.
For Filipinos out there, just wait for it after "Bandila" (Flag Evening News), I forgot when are they going to air that show. and all this time i though idiots from youtube are just making false accusations. i even had a fight a user who claims we eat dogs even our pets..
I am so depressed right now..(:-<)
I know they're strays, and there's no funding for Animal shelter, which we all kno that.but at least put them down and Bury them (with a Cross)!!

E3 Ubisoft

Purple robot

hUMOR For Oct 20th

Crime Prevention Did you hear about the two guys who stole everything out of a house except the soap and towels? They were dirty crooks!VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVPost Turtle While suturing a cut on the hand of a 75 year old rancher, whose hand was caught in the gate while working cattle, the doctor struck up a conversation with the old man. Eventually the topic got around to one of the political candidates. The old rancher said, "Well, ya know, that candidate is a 'Post Turtle'". Not being familiar with the term, the doctor asked him what a 'post turtle' was. The old rancher said, "When you're driving down a country road you come across a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that's a 'post turtle'". The old rancher saw the puzzled look on the doctor's face so he continued to explain. "You know they didn't get up there by themselves, they don't belong up there, and they don't know what to do while they're up there, and you just wonder what kind of dummy put them up there to begin with".VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVTips From the Flori-DUH Book of Manners1.Never take a beer to a job interview.2.Always identify people in your yard before shooting at them.3.It's considered poor taste to take a cooler to church.4.If you have to vacuum the bed, it is time to change the sheets.5.Even if you're certain that you are included in the will, it is still considered tacky to drive a U-Haul to the funeral home.Dining Out1.If drinking directly from the bottle, always hold it with your fingers covering the label.2.Avoid throwing bones and food scraps on the floor as the restaurant may not have dogs.Entertaining In Your Home1.A centerpiece for the table should never be anything prepared by a taxidermist.2.Do not allow the dog to eat at the table no matter how good his manners are.Personal Hygiene1.While ears need to be cleaned regularly, this is a job that should be done in private using one's OWN truck keys2.Proper use of toiletries can forestall bathing for several days. However, if you live alone, deodorant is a waste of good money.3.Dirt and grease under the fingernails is a social no-no, as they tend to detract from a woman's jewelry and alter the taste of finger foods.Dating (outside the family)1.Always offer to bait your date's hook, especially on the first date.2.Be aggressive. Let her know you're interested: 'I've been wanting to go out with you since I read that stuff on the bathroom wall two years ago.'3.Establish with her parents what time she is expected back. Some will say 10:00 PM; others might say 'Monday.' If the latter is the answer, it is the man's responsibility to get her to school on time.4.Always have a positive comment about your date's appearance, such as, 'Ya'll sure don't sweat much for a fat gal.'Weddings1.Livestock, usually, is a poor choice for a wedding gift.2.Kissing the bride for more than 5 seconds may get you shot.3.For the groom, at least, rent a tux. A leisure suit with a cummerbund and a clean bowling shirt can create too sporty an appearance.4.Though uncomfortable, say 'yes' to socks and shoes for this special occasion.5.It is not appropriate to tell the groom how good his wife is in the sack.Driving Etiquette1.Dim your headlights for approaching vehicles, even if the gun is loaded, and the deer is in sight.2.When approaching a four-way stop, the vehicle with the largest tires always has the right of way.3.Never tow another car using panty hose and duct tape.4.When sending your wife down the road with a gas can, it is impolite to ask her to bring back beer.5.Never relieve yourself from a moving vehicle, especially when driving.6.Do not lay rubber while traveling in a funeral procession.Two Reasons why it is hard to solve a Minnesotan Murder:1.All the DNA is the same.2.There are no dental recordsVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVEveryone has a personality of a cartoon character. Have you ever askedyourself what cartoon character do you most resemble? A group of investigators supposedly got together and analyzed the personalities ofwell known and modern cartoon characters. The information that wasgathered was made into this test. Answer all the questions (only 10) with what describes you best, add upall your Points (which are next to the answer that you choose) at theend and look for your results. Do not cheat by looking at the end of the e-mail before you are done .Then forward this to all your friends ( including the person who sent itto you )and change the subject of this message to what character isyou.1. Which one of the following describes the perfect date?a) Candlelight dinner (4 pts.) b) Fun/Theme Park (2 pts.)c) Painting in the park (5 pts) d) Rock concert (1 pt ) e) Going to the movies (3 pts.)2. What is your favorite type of music? a) Rock and Roll (2 pts.)b) Alternative (1 pt.) c) Sofa t Rock (4 pts.) d) Country (5 pts )e) Pop (3 pts)3. What type of movies do you prefer? a) Comedy (2 pts.)b) Horror (1 pt.)c) Musical (3 pts.)d) Romance (4 pts.)e) Documentary (5 pts.) 4. Which one of these occupations would you choose if you only couldchoose one of these? a) Waiter (4 pts.)b) Professional Sports Player (5 pts.)c) Teacher (3 pts.) d) Police (2 pts.) e) Cashier (1 pt) 5 What do you do with your spare time? a) Exercise (5 pts.)b) Read (4 pts.)c) Watch television (2 pts.) d) Listen to music (1 pt.)e) Sleep (3 pts.)6. Which one of the following colors do you like best? a) Yellow (1 pt.)b) White (5 pts.)c) Sky Blue (3 pts)d) Dark Blue(2 pts.) e) Red (4 pts.)7. What do you prefer to eat?a) Snow (3 pts.)b) Pizza (2 pts.)c) Sushi (1 pt.) d) Pasta (4 pts.)e) Salad (5 pts.)8. What is your favorite holiday ?a) Halloween(1 pt)b) Christmas(3 pts.)c) New Year (2 pts.)d) Valentine's Day(4 pts.)e) Thanksgiving(5 pts.) 9. If you could go to one of these places which one would it be? a) Paris (4 pts)b) Spain (5 pts)c) Las Vegas (1 pt)d) Hawaii (4 pts)e) Hollywood (3 pts)10. With which of the following would you prefer to spend time with? a) Someone Smart (5 pts.)b) Someone attractive (2 pts.)c) Someone who likes to Party (1 pt.) d) Someone who always has fun (3 pts.0e) Someone very sentimental (4 pts.)Now add up your points and find out the answer you have been waitingfor! Put your character in the subject line and forward to your friendsand back to the person that sent this to you. Very interesting to see who your friends are! (10-16 points) You are Garfield :You are very comfortable, easy going, and you definitely know how tohave fun but sometimes you take it to an extreme. You always know whatyou are doing and you are always in control of your life. Other s maynot see things as you do, but that doesn't mean that you always have todo what is right. Try to remember, your happy spirit m ay hurt you orothers. (17-23 points) You are Snoopy:You are fun; you are very cool and popular. You always know what's inand you're never out of style, you are good at knowing how to satisfyeveryone else. You have probably disappeared for a few days more thanonce but you always come home with the family values that you learnedBeing married and having children are important to you, but only afteryou have had your share of fun times (24-28 points) You are Elmo:You have lots of friends and you are also popular, always willing togive advice and help out a person in need. You are very optimistic andyou always see the bright side of things. Some good advice: try not tobe too much of a dreamer. Dreaming too big could cause many conflicts inyour life. (29-35 points) You are Sponge Bob Square Pants:You are the classic person that everyone loves. You are the best friendthat anyone could ever have and never wants to lose. You never causeharm to anyone and they would never not understand your feelings. Lifeis a journey, it' s funny and calm for the most part Stay away fromtraitors and jealous people and you will be stress free. (36-43 points) You are Charlie Brown: You are tender, you fall in love quickly but you are also very seriousabout all relationships. You are a family person. You call your Momevery Sunday. You have many friends and may occasionally forget a fewBirthdays. Don't let your passion confuse you with reality. (44-50 points ) You are Dexter: You are smart and definitely a thinker... Every situation is frontedwith a plan. You have a brilliant mind. You demonstrate very strongfamily principles. You maintain a stable routine but never ignore a badsituation when it comes . Try to do less over thinking every once in awhile to spice things up a bit with spontaneity! Now don't spoil it! Have some Fun!! Change the subject of the email towhat you are and send it on.VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV"Mr. Schwartz"Mr. Schwartz was the oldest of 7 children, so he had to quit school and work to help support his younger brothers and sisters. He never learned to read, so when he married and started a checking account, he signed his checks simply "XX".Eventually he started his own business, which immediately prospered.He soon was a very rich man. One day, he got a call from his bank. "Mr. Schwartz," said the banker, "I need to ask you about this check. We weren't sure you had really signed it. All these years you've been signing your checks 'XX', but we just got one that was signed with three XXX's..."Mr. Schwartz answered, "No problem, my friend. It's just that since I've become so wealthy, my wife thought I ought to have a middle name."VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVOneliner"Who says nothing is impossible - I've been doing nothing for years."

Gold Coast to Landsborough - Mar 18

Summary: self portrait issues, rednecky car coming to America, Surfer’s Paradise view from the top, XXXX, odd sweat pattern ya got there, Landsborough primer, Sunshine Coast previewLast night, I was dressed up for probably the last time in Australia – hey we were at a sweet resort, it was a holiday of sorts (St Patty’s Day), nice dinner options abound… it was worth going for it. So I thought, let’s take a photo. First off, when you are the only adult in the group (and the only awake one), any smile will look fake or drunk and despite my Irish heritage & the spirit of St Patrick, I was not the latter. Then there is the issue of taking the photo at arm’s length vs. with a timer. Lastly, when you use the timer, where do you set the camera? Yes, that is the bathroom. Throw in the expression (fake smile or laughing at the situation, you decide). Let’s just say this was my only and hopefully last self-photo session.As proof that the major car companies are reading this blog, I read this morning that Holden’s “utility vehicle” SS version will be exported to the US. No sooner do I describe the pickup cars as “rednecky” and Pontiac will be selling them back home. Looks like I better take more photos and we can look for Ford Falcon pickups too.This morning, we fit in as much as we could before checkout time: free breakfast, monorail, beach walk, playground, hot tub…all well before 11am with time to spare. The photos give you the view from the monorail and more lizard shots. We then went to the Q Deck at the Q1 Tower. It was cool. The Q1 is the second building in Australia that claims to be the tallest residential tower in the world. Not sure if that is possible. We had some fish & chips and appreciated the statue on another beach just the other side of Surfer’s Paradise. That town name has a story worth retelling here – it was a town with yet another name that sounds like Yorkshire or whatever and the town council agreed years ago to switch it to “Surfer’s Paradise” on what became the burgeoning Gold Coast. Lo and behold, it was the center of the Gold Coast and the city name that people were drawn to. Now, instead of a string of surf shops and cheap restaurants it sports major high rises. Marketing matters – I love proof. Anyhow, we drove up through Brisbane and Alex suggested we tour the XXXX Brewery. Brilliant move. The tour was far more detailed and fact-filled than most brewery tours (most can be summarized as “here’s the process, let’s drink some beer”). The thing I loved is that from the videos to the tour itself, they actually used the word “alcohol” unashamedly and happily pulled out old TV ads about how much more a man can do “with a few beers behind him”. You just don’t see that at home. My photo of an old print ad gives you a sense of what I mean. I’m not saying they support bad behavior, their tour just isn’t devised by lawyers as a drink driving sermon with 5 minutes on the actual beer making process. They’ve also got a cartoon “spokesmen” of sort named Mr Fourex who would be a hit in the US. School groups come through here as well, they just don’t get the tasting card with four X’s to punch. Sadly, with another 80km ahead of me, I did not get past halfway through any of the four. Fun fact - They produce over 2 million beers per shift not counting the kegs (this is in a country of 20 million, and based on what I’ve seen they are not the market leader outside Queensland, which has 4 million people). We got to see every detail of the packaging cans, kegs, & stubbies, labeling, packaging, and out the door – just like the old Laverne & Shirley intro in the 70’s - but no photos of that part are allowed. Warning: graphic parental images in this paragraph. After the hour plus tour, we were just about to taste and I had been holding Alex the whole time (like a Koala). He was napping when we arrived and rather clingy throughout the tour. Background: he wears these thinner “Cool Alert” diapers to let him know he is wet so that he can hurry up and get as tired of wearing diapers as the rest of us are of changing them. The downside is that these diapers do not hold in excess moisture beyond a certain point. You know where this is going. We are just about to walk into the tasting room and his pants went from light green to dark green while everything south of my rib cage on the right was soaked. Eww and dammit! I think one person noticed, the others probably just thought I was sweaty from carrying him while walking around in 30 degree weather. That may also explain why I was rather concise with my tasting.Southwest Australia had the tongue twister towns. There is a stretch of Queensland that has the funny names that are simply amusing to read. I can tell we are entering that region as we drove past Burpengary this evening – sounds like a bad nickname. There are lots more names like that to look for in the coming days. We also passed through another Virginia but I have long since given up on counting the personalized plates in Australia.Anyhow, after four half beers (does that make my XXXX a Dos Equis? Sorry, my jokes don’t improve), we drove up from Brisbane to Landsborough. The drive was nice and then we got off on Steve Irwin Drive. This is a scenic road through the Glass Mountains and attractive in its own right. The Australia Zoo is actually between Beerwah and Landsborough (mailing address is Beerwah, but we’re talking 3 km away). The Landsborough Pines where we’re staying at is nice enough (little cabin, a duck pond, lots of birds on site) – mostly a caravan park but the units are fine. The one photo from here does deserve some explanation – a rather sedate looking family has rented a van with “Dirty Sanchez” written as bold as can be. Something tells me nobody has told them what it means – heck, I didn’t know until two loyal readers of this blog informed me a couple years ago. (theater types, what can I say?) There are lots of vans for rental (the company name escapes me) with carpe diem type sayings or song lyrics scrawled across them, but this one stands apart. Don’t google or wiki the term, just assume you don’t want to know. The walk into town for dinner was also a trip. It is a short walk, but it goes past this huge tree (maybe 25 meters) where every bird in Queensland meets up at sunset. This was so loud you could hear it well before you see it and we could see it for a ways. We had a very good dinner at the Landsborough Pub. This is a tiny country town on a humid late summer night like you’d find all across the South or the Midwest in the US. I think I have made it back into small town Australia and that should hold the rest of the week.South of Brisbane is the Gold Coast. Due East of Brisbane are Moreton Island and North Stradbroke Island (my spelling may be off), making the Eastern suburb beaches less wavy and apparently less of a tourist destination. North of Brisbane is the Sunshine Coast. Above the Sunshine Coast, the tourism monikers seem to disappear. This may be because once you get north of the Sunshine Coast (and then Fraser Island), people who enter the water can disappear. “Crocodile Coast” and “Box Jelly Bay” do not sound as good to most people planning a vacation. (then again, several Queensland regions do have names like Deception Bay and Cape Tribulation) That’s OK, we like Queensland just fine. Just bear in mind that the water wants to kill you. No worries.Next: Australia Zoo and get a room on the Sunshine Coast. Then kiss the water goodbye and sprint up to Cairns.

What's this anlimal?

What a biiiiiiiiiiig cat!~