Well, I may as well gripe..

Let me introduce you to the characters in the first episode of a personal soap opera, or maybe it's better called a Mystery Mini Series?
 
The plot with characters in place:

Body Eclectic has either been kidnapped by an army of microbes that killed off  The Domestics or perhaps The "Not so Auto" Immune System.  Anyway, it is believed that Left Arm has gone south for fear of the approaching Spring, taking with it Left Hand which does most of the work.  Maybe it ran away to join The Martians? 

Ah, enter Spring, that season which can get hotter than Dread Summer, and is much feared by  Mind, a character that believes it actually runs- rather badly if you ask me- the Greek Chorus called Auto Immune System.  In fact, Auto Immune System is so out of sync with Mind and the rest of Body Eclectic that it sometimes goes out the door before Body E. does.  Of course this means that no knitting, no cake making, or bread making nor any two handed enterprise (Typing? Camera work?) can be attempted before this Battle of the Body Parts is resolved. 

We are, after all, merely very intricately put together reef communities in a sac.  Admit it, you know, deep down in your soul, that you really are just an Atoll.  

Beware the Rest Cure...

Sarah-Hope Warned me. mwuhahahahaha! I just couldn't resist buying this, for my insomnia

It's officially Spring where I am, because the wild flowers are blooming.

So I changed the header.

And, that sweater is magically mended! I put some magic mending tape over my eyes and E! Voila!

Annnnd, don't forget to take a Left at the stop light when you get to my street on Mars.

From Ted Talks, Jamie Oliver's talk, Teach Every Child About Food.

this is too important not to pick up and run with, so here we go.....

This is long, plus 20 minutes, but very much worth seeing. Thanks go to my DD who sent this link. In our home, we were lucky. All the kids learned to cook, and I was able to stay home with them, pass on my knowledge, gotten from my own mother who grew so much of our family food, and always cooked.

Cooking is a joy, but you can't cook in the home or TEACH your children about food or cooking, when you are working two jobs, etc., just to keep the roof, the heat, all of it, you know, keeping a family together.

Albino Asian Boa Constrictor.

There are two almost identical pictures of this snake in our two cameras. This doesn't surprise me because in the whole afternoon we were there, the snake never moved a muscle.

Isn't it gorgeous!

A little Gorilla Vignette

Baby, Happily Sleeping.

Mother senses a Camera!

Baby whines, " Why Ma?!!" "Because I say so, that's why!", says Mother

Mother and Baby, happily resting as baby nurses.

DD took the pictures. She has some other fabulous pictures but they are hers so I am going to let her share them somewhere else. Some of the pictures she got in the Herpetological Building are just gorgeous. I will share my wonkey one of the albino Boa Constrictor, which is probably over 26 feet long, with you all.

ZooBeeDoo Albino Rattler

 

The Herpetarium is very hard to get pictures in but this one came out pretty well. There is also an albino Boa from Indonesia which will come up next time I can run in here and get a picture up of our trip.

Zoo Birdie

 

Bali Mynah, in the big Aviary. My mother loved birds and we went every time that she came here. This time we went with the twins when they came in January.

Life for humans..

From the day a human being is aware of the "self", he or she learns that "Life" is supposed to have meaning. So the first twenty or so years I was alive were years of discovery regarding that big and hairy question, "Why am I alive?".

Sometimes this question was directed at a superior "Being", and sometimes just sent plaintively into the night sky in the hope that there was a superior being "out there" in what I had by now learned was a vast impersonal, and dangerous, Universe which was expanding into limitless space.

Recently, the Big question has been answered, and neatly, in this email which came from a friend in OZ,

And it explains "Life" perfectly:

" On the first day, God created the dog and said:

'Sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. For this, I will give you a life span of twenty years.'

The dog said: 'That's a long time to be barking. How about only ten years and I'll give you back the other ten?'

So God agreed.


On the second day, God created the monkey and said:

'Entertain people, do tricks, and make them laugh. For this, I'll give you a twenty-year life span.'

The monkey said: 'Monkey tricks for twenty years? That's a pretty long time to perform. How about I give you back ten like the Dog did?'

And God agreed.


On the third day, God created the cow and said:

'You must go into the field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves and give milk to support the farmer's family. For this, I will give you a life span of sixty years.'

The cow said: 'That's kind of a tough life you want me to live for sixty years.. How about twenty and I'll give back the other forty?'

And God agreed again.

On the fourth day, God created humans and said:

'Eat, sleep, play, marry and enjoy your life. For this, I'll give you twenty years.'

But the human said: 'Only twenty years? Could you possibly give me my twenty, the forty the cow gave back, the ten the monkey gave back, and the ten the dog gave back; that makes eighty, okay?'

'Okay,' said God, 'You asked for it.'

So that is why for our first twenty years we eat, sleep, play and enjoy ourselves. For the next forty years we slave in the sun to support our family.. For the next ten years we do monkey tricks to entertain the grandchildren.. And for the last ten years we sit on the front porch and bark at everyone.

Life has now been explained to you.

There is no need to thank me for this valuable information. I'm doing it as a public service."

I don't want to think about this question anymore so put the complete explanation here to read in later years when I come in off the porch at night, hoarse and needing my gruel by the fire, maybe with a cuppa.

Back from the Groomer

She did a fantastic job on this Wee Fellow who has such a mixed up fur genetic!
His hair is all mixed up, with a curly saddle and the rest looks like poodle, fine and sweet smelling.

I love that little face and now he can see better, too!
This was the first time he's been groomed since being shaved at the Pound.

He's waiting for his treat.

UPDATED post: Dopplest 9000 vs Global Warming

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
We're Off to See the Blizzard
www.colbertnation.com
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So, here's the scientific word on the Snow. Years ago, when this was first discussed, the swings (wild at times) in the weather over North America were predicted. We live near Scripp's Institute of Oceanography so took a keen interest then in the 1970s when climate change was first raising red flags among the Oceanographic types.

And speaking of winter suffering, through snow and loss of power..

Here ya go to the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation

Why I love winter time in Cali

I love the amazing green that blankets the ground everywhere.

These aren't weeds; two of them are edible for humans, and the birds eat the flower heads on the small white flowering plant just under the mallow.   I eat baby thistle and dandelions from the back yard in my ramen noodles.  I really need to grow wild onion and find miner's lettuce seeds to plant..  There used to be miner's lettuce  growing wild here when we bought the house, but years of drought really did in a lot of wild winter greens.

For the Kitchen, as promised

Soup Cups from King Arthur Flour, with free sugar sprinkles, YAY!

.

DH is never sure about letting me loose around the King Arthur site, but he did like these Manly soup cups. What he didn't know, and didn't believe is that the sugar came free, totally free. No shipping and no other charges. Wasn't that a nice little Christmas Prezzie?

The knitting drought continues. But, the hempathy fingerless mitts are still waiting in the wings, so I'm going to get the big shepherd's crook out of the knitting bag and drag them back to center stage. My buddy from Resolutions in Ravelry has told me that sometimes mistakes don't show, so the pattern being off might be quite alright. I won't tell DH about it. hehe It's his sweater.

Not with a shout but with a whimper..

"Last week, after nine months, the Senate finally approved Martha Johnson to head the General Services Administration, which runs government buildings and purchases supplies. It’s an essentially nonpolitical position, and nobody questioned Ms. Johnson’s qualifications: she was approved by a vote of 94 to 2. But Senator Christopher Bond, Republican of Missouri, had put a “hold” on her appointment to pressure the government into approving a building project in Kansas City.
This dubious achievement may have inspired Senator Richard Shelby, Republican of Alabama. In any case, Mr. Shelby has now placed a hold on all outstanding Obama administration nominations — about 70 high-level government positions — until his state gets a tanker contract and a counterterrorism center."

And so, will our Country finally die, "in Committee", like so many of it's proposed "General Welfare" bits of legislation?

Want to read the whole of this op ed?  HERE 'TIS  ..  From Paul Krugman, who will receive a "Zippknits  Journalist's Combat Medal" for his pain and suffering while reporting on Greed and Stupidity in America the Beautiful.



An next up, something for the kitchen.. 

Cats I wish I had...

Once upon a time I had a cat who looked like Maru, without the white bib.  His name was Spider Louie.  He was a terrific and playful cat, completely adorable.  I named him Spider because of the pattern on his sides that reminded me of a Garden Spider's spiral patterning.  I still miss that cute cat.

Wolfie the Brave..except for Rainy days...

Wolfie doesn't like rain much at all. The tiniest spit of it from the skies makes him want to come home, pronto! He likes to go on walks after a storm because he licks water off the weeds and grass. This he does with a gourmet's delight. But he does NOT like to be in falling rain.

The more we watch his funny little ways, and get to know him, the more we think he was a backyard dog, either a dog who had bad owners, or a breeders dog, used because he helped create gorgeous little fuzzy puppies. He was one of those little ones who got mistreated and then abandoned when his "people" moved away.

He "invents" his own games with things in our back yard, ignores cats like they don't exist, and doesn't play any dog games other than "chase". He doesn't go into play stance and invite you to play. He never was socialized, or taught to play with or given any toys.

He is deathly afraid of crashing sounds, buzzing noises, and any low rumbling noise he doesn't know the source of. He trembles and runs from us if he is scared by a crashing sound. He literally screams if he thinks he is going to be hurt. He doesn't try to bite, but he can really sound off!

We treat him very, very kindly because if this, meaning: no abrupt handling, and we don't yell at him. We love our little foundling fellow. Hopefully his dark days are over forever.

I just found out about a fabric dyeing group who do experimental things in fabric manipulation. So there's a new urgency to get the studio end re-organized for a different craft, or at least make it into a multi craft area.

The Horse Opera Report: I think some of the situations are a little strange, but the acting is terrifically good! I can see why this drama just took off to a world wide audience. The actress who does the villainous Sandra is absolutely superb!

Knitting.. *groans*.. That sweater is going to be driving me bonkers if one more thing goes wrong with it. I tried to watch something, some dumb video is my bet for the culprit. I've got several sections of round 1, and two sections of round 2, in the same round! The mistake is hard to find, because it must have happened two or three rows ago.

Happier knitting news is THIS link to Valentine's Day patterns from Garn Studio. I will link it at the side bar, under the picture link to Garn Spring designs. Gorgeous stuff!

It rained yesterday but there's a break in storminess for a day, the new storm arrives tomorrow. This is the time of year when the back garden looks like an English garden, with the wild birds like ornaments in the trees and bushes.

Yesterday, the Chipping Sparrows were back, so DH got a good look at them, too. These birds travel in a very small flock of about five to seven birds.

There were two, tiny Lesser Goldfinch males who had an aerial boxing match above the lime trees. The Anna's Hummingbird female sat patiently on a branch, waiting to get a turn at the citrus blossoms, and the big Warbler Faction was represented by an Audubon's male and a Wilson's female, visiting to garner aphids between storms. Gold finch are really fun to watch because they are so small they can sit on a tall dandelion  or thistle plant,and eat the seeds as the stem sways in the breeze.   I don't know where the Alan's hummer has got to.  He is usually here every day, rain or shine.

I am typing on a small netbook, so it's hard to see mistakes!  Sorry about all th typos!

The Aeonium "Cyclops" in the rain

This succulent is as big as a round Turkey platter. It's huge.  Actually this is  an Aeonium called "Cyclops"  I was wrong about a lot of stuff in this....  LINK TO CYCLOPS here.

Saturday Sky

This is the most beautiful season of the year on SoCal. For accuracy, it should simply be called, "The Wet", as it is in Australia. It's a season that stretches from December to June, here in extreme Southern Cal anyway.

Horse Operas VS Knitting

I have a neat, little weather radio that stays tuned to the local NOAA broadcasts.

Promises, promises.  Today a new storm is supposed to be pouring delicious ion filled rain down to earth, here, but apparently it's stalled somewhere over the Pacific so only L.A. is getting rain this far south.  I was hoping for rain tonight now, so that there would be more water in the southernmost reservoirs.  I wonder if all the Hopi rain dances are overwith on the Mesa lands?  We've always been too far south for the good storms.  I should look at the Hopi Tribes web site...

I've not knit a SINGLE stitch which pretty much knocks me out of the "ten minute a day rule" club for either of the two still viable WIPs.  Mostly there's been a lot of tears over the demise of Nick, in McLeod's Daughters, my goto stress buster of a horse opera.  I love the show because it's a sort of mild soap opera, mixed into a big dose of Horse opera.

I never got hooked on American soaps, though it's fine with me if other people like them, I just never have.  But this Aussie Hybrid has it's hook into me so well, that I fear the end coming up.  Will Tess and Dave get married if Nick IS really dead?  Well Stevie ever get off the high horse of her fears and abduct Alex, slipping past the four day wonder he just dragged in?  Will Harry ever take Sandra up in the same plane and have a heart attack?  God, I hope they get theirs in a less gory fashion.  And that gal who kept trying to steal Nick, did she finally get the Spine to move on, and leave our Tess alone?  Oddly, I still would take an American quarter horse any day over anything in the show, other than Stevie's or Jodi's horses.  In that case, I like the gait of those two magnificent animals.

So, there's the reason for my not having knit anything for awhile.  I can't take my eyes off the screen.  Anyone else with this problem?  Any bets on whether Dave, who is shaping up as great husband material, will hit on Tess, or maybe Kate?

I really need to get another life going here. 

Been Grilled lately?

Were you over easy or well done?  Did you even know it?

This is an excerpt from an article HERE about how some CIA agents moonlight for such firms as Hedge Funds, Merchant Banks, and other Global Financial Giants.  Isn't it nice to know that all that expensive publicly funded education and training is helping out the private sector, especially Hedge funds?


Excerpt:

“Tactical Behavior Assessment.”


"Unlike polygraph machines, the TBA technique allows examiners to work without hooking up their subject to a series of wires. The subject never knows he’s being scrutinized.

Polygraph machines work by measuring a person’s physical responses, such as heart rate, that indicate stress. Analysts using the machine need to sit with their subject for a long time. They have to establish a person’s physiological baseline, so they begin with a “control” conversation about neutral topics, before they can begin grilling the subject. Conducting an interview and doing a thorough analysis of polygraph results can take hours.

TBA focuses on the verbal and nonverbal cues that people convey when they aren’t telling the truth. Psychologists familiar with the method say it works because human beings just aren’t hard-wired to lie well. Holding two opposing ideas in your brain at the same time — as you have to do in order to tell a lie — causes a phenomenon they term “cognitive dissonance,” which creates actual physical discomfort. And when people are uncomfortable, they squirm. They fidget ever so slightly, they pick lint off their clothes, they shift their bodily positions.

Agents look for the physical indicators of lying. They watch for a person shifting anchor points. If the person is leaning forward on one elbow, does he switch to the other one? Interrogators watch for grooming gestures such as adjusting clothes, hair or eyeglasses. They look to see if the person picks at his fingernails or scratches himself. They watch for the person to clean his surroundings — does he straighten the paper clips on the table or line up the pens? If he does, he could be lying. 

(I would like to say, to be honest, that people have all sorts of reasons to shift around in chairs, not the least of  which is a bad back or even a sore hemorrhoid.)

But, I digress....


"To obtain verbal clues, agents listen for several kinds of statements. They’ll listen for qualifying answers, phrases that begin with words like “honestly,” “frankly” or “basically.” The agents will be listening for detour phrases like “as I said before ...” They’ll want to hear if the person invokes religion — “I swear to God” — or attacks the questioner: “How dare you ask me something like that?”

Other red flags: Complaints —“How long is this going to take?” Selective memory —“To the best of my knowledge.” Overly courteous responses —“Yes, sir.”

Basically, I find this so incredible!!  And, frankly, I suppose we are all lying when we use these sorts of phrases - or body language - in what amounts to "casual conversation."as it devolves into hostile interrogation. 

Happy online dating!