|
Post by moonstone on Mar 17, 2008 15:47:35 GMT -5
Bluebirds in our yard. They showed up one rainy AM last week--had the cat all shook up--and now they have a nest somewhere. They sit on the rearview passenger's side mirror of the car on guard duty. Other times they sit on the wires and in the persimmon tree at the bottom of the driveway and sing the sweetest little songs to each other-- Oh, how I envy you, Katie. I haven't even seen a robin yet. Still too much snow on the ground, I think. Last year, there were robins through the winter. This seems like the longest winter I can remember, for sure. Thanks for the peek at Spring.
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 17, 2008 15:50:07 GMT -5
Thanks, Chris. I LOVE Scott Simon. He's ALWAYS been my favorite NPR host. I didn't know he'd written a novel. Is this his first? This is his second novel, the first is Pretty Birds . He also has written Home and Away , a memoir and Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball . Glad ya'll enjoyed! Chris -- Thanks. I'm sure I'd be interested in all of them. I love baseball. I'll check those out.
|
|
|
Post by chrisfondaborder on Mar 17, 2008 16:02:02 GMT -5
Bluebirds in our yard. They showed up one rainy AM last week--had the cat all shook up--and now they have a nest somewhere. They sit on the rearview passenger's side mirror of the car on guard duty. Other times they sit on the wires and in the persimmon tree at the bottom of the driveway and sing the sweetest little songs to each other-- Oh, how I envy you, Katie. I haven't even seen a robin yet. Still too much snow on the ground, I think. Last year, there were robins through the winter. This seems like the longest winter I can remember, for sure. Thanks for the peek at Spring. I'll go along with this being the longest (insert bleeping winter experienced in a long time. It's been hard on everybody and everything. The other day, I was over at one of the barns and I stopped to say hello to a visiting veterinarian of my acquaintance. She look kind of sad, so I asked her if there was a problem. She shook her head no, but said that she had just come from putting a horse down - he'd slipped in an icy paddock and fractured the long bone in his front foreleg. This was the 30th horse she's had to put down this winter because of the icy environment. Multiply that by every equine vet in the Northern Illinois/Southern Wisconsin area. Grim.
|
|
|
Post by Laura on Mar 17, 2008 16:14:14 GMT -5
Bluebirds in our yard. They showed up one rainy AM last week--had the cat all shook up--and now they have a nest somewhere. They sit on the rearview passenger's side mirror of the car on guard duty. Other times they sit on the wires and in the persimmon tree at the bottom of the driveway and sing the sweetest little songs to each other-- This is too cute! What a sweet little critter. Thanks for sharing. Beautiful little thing.
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 17, 2008 16:27:31 GMT -5
"The other day, I was over at one of the barns and I stopped to say hello to a visiting veterinarian of my acquaintance. She look kind of sad, so I asked her if there was a problem. She shook her head no, but said that she had just come from putting a horse down - he'd slipped in an icy paddock and fractured the long bone in his front foreleg. This was the 30th horse she's had to put down this winter because of the icy environment. Multiply that by every equine vet in the Northern Illinois/Southern Wisconsin area." -- Chris
Wow. How very sad. I guess that's all we need to know about this winter. The freezing and thawing and refreezing has always been the worst part.
|
|
|
Post by greenbrier on Mar 17, 2008 17:59:25 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by pdb on Mar 17, 2008 18:07:02 GMT -5
LOL Katie!! Thanks for sharing this; I agree with you; I don't see it either!! PEACE!!
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 17, 2008 18:09:32 GMT -5
I come from a state shaped like a misformed mitten, so I hear you. By the way, ironically, I saw a robin late this afternoon. Your bluebird photo must have broken the jinx. I guess Spring is here. Now, if we could just get the temperature above 40 degrees on a consistent basis, maybe I'd believe it.
|
|
|
Post by g1 on Mar 18, 2008 12:47:51 GMT -5
Not much by way of spring here yet, though temps are fitfully climbing above freezing during the day. I saw a mating pair of canada geese chasing around a few days ago, though they might have wintered over. We're still awaiting the first robin. There's probably a republican joke to be made out of this story: news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080318/ap_on_sc/dinosaur_mummy
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 18, 2008 12:55:32 GMT -5
Not much by way of spring here yet, though temps are fitfully climbing above freezing during the day. I saw a mating pair of canada geese chasing around a few days ago, though they might have wintered over. We're still awaiting the first robin. There's probably a republican joke to be made out of this story: news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080318/ap_on_sc/dinosaur_mummyThat story can't be correct. John McCain has been spotted in the Middle East, hasn't he? (Will that work? If not, how about "I didn't even know there WERE republicans 65 million years ago.")
|
|
|
Post by g1 on Mar 18, 2008 12:58:48 GMT -5
Weren't those Ronald Reagan's formative years?
|
|
|
Post by texashigfan on Mar 18, 2008 12:59:41 GMT -5
Not much by way of spring here yet, though temps are fitfully climbing above freezing during the day. I saw a mating pair of canada geese chasing around a few days ago, though they might have wintered over. We're still awaiting the first robin. There's probably a republican joke to be made out of this story: news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080318/ap_on_sc/dinosaur_mummyRepubs are trying to put paleontologists out of business -- they're messing with 'oil futures'.
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 18, 2008 13:09:48 GMT -5
LOL Katie!! Thanks for sharing this; I agree with you; I don't see it either!! PEACE!! Well, now that I actually looked at it, I think it does look a little like Illinois, but if you flip it over, does it also look like Alabama? So, is the message perhaps bit ambiguous? Like Madonna on a lemon or something like that? Speaking of which, did anyone else see the story on CBS Sunday Morning about the woman who had this collection of unusual potato chips with smiley faces and other odd characteristics? She insured it for a million dollars at one time. Here's a link to a clip of a famous Tonight Show sequence where she was showing the chips to Johnny Carson and he inadvertently ate one of them. www.youtube.com/watch?v=EY3Lw_-bj5UI'm going to start combing through my collection of fava beans to see if I can find some that look like Billo, or Dana Perino, or Ann Coulter ... On second thought, nah ... with my luck, they probably all look like Tucker, and since his show has been cancelled, they're worthless.
|
|
|
Post by Laura on Mar 18, 2008 13:50:51 GMT -5
LOL Katie!! Thanks for sharing this; I agree with you; I don't see it either!! PEACE!! Well, now that I actually looked at it, I think it does look a little like Illinois, but if you flip it over, does it also look like Alabama? So, is the message perhaps bit ambiguous? Like Madonna on a lemon or something like that? Speaking of which, did anyone else see the story on CBS Sunday Morning about the woman who had this collection of unusual potato chips with smiley faces and other odd characteristics? She insured it for a million dollars at one time. Here's a link to a clip of a famous Tonight Show sequence where she was showing the chips to Johnny Carson and he inadvertently ate one of them. www.youtube.com/watch?v=EY3Lw_-bj5UI'm going to start combing through my collection of fava beans to see if I can find some that look like Billo, or Dana Perino, or Ann Coulter ... On second thought, nah ... with my luck, they probably all look like Tucker, and since his show has been cancelled, they're worthless. Thank you so much for that Moon, I almost peed in my pants at the women's face when she heard Johnny bit on the chip. I thought she was going to have a heart attack. A most peculiar collection.
|
|
|
Post by g1 on Mar 18, 2008 14:10:10 GMT -5
Repubs are trying to put paleontologists out of business -- they're messing with 'oil futures'. In the early days of Pennsylvania oil there was speculation that petroleum was from a shoal of whales that drowned in the biblical flood. So as long as paleontologists "confirm" creationism and don't depress oil futures, I 'spect reupbs will leave them alone. *** State-shaped corn flakes got nothing on the Virgin Mary appearing on a frijole, imho. *** And speaking of food and religion: www.venganza.org/
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 18, 2008 14:25:38 GMT -5
Well, now that I actually looked at it, I think it does look a little like Illinois, but if you flip it over, does it also look like Alabama? So, is the message perhaps bit ambiguous? Like Madonna on a lemon or something like that? Speaking of which, did anyone else see the story on CBS Sunday Morning about the woman who had this collection of unusual potato chips with smiley faces and other odd characteristics? She insured it for a million dollars at one time. Here's a link to a clip of a famous Tonight Show sequence where she was showing the chips to Johnny Carson and he inadvertently ate one of them. www.youtube.com/watch?v=EY3Lw_-bj5UI'm going to start combing through my collection of fava beans to see if I can find some that look like Billo, or Dana Perino, or Ann Coulter ... On second thought, nah ... with my luck, they probably all look like Tucker, and since his show has been cancelled, they're worthless. Thank you so much for that Moon, I almost peed in my pants at the women's face when she heard Johnny bit on the chip. I thought she was going to have a heart attack. A most peculiar collection. Well, I didn't mean to cause quite that kind of reaction, but it was funny, wasn't it? I'm really glad you enjoyed it, Laura.
|
|
|
Post by Laura on Mar 18, 2008 14:30:33 GMT -5
Thank you so much for that Moon, I almost peed in my pants at the women's face when she heard Johnny bit on the chip. I thought she was going to have a heart attack. A most peculiar collection. Well, I didn't mean to cause quite that kind of reaction, but it was funny, wasn't it? I'm really glad you enjoyed it, Laura. That's ok Moon. Steve used to have that same affect on me with his hilarious wit.
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 18, 2008 14:37:52 GMT -5
Repubs are trying to put paleontologists out of business -- they're messing with 'oil futures'. In the early days of Pennsylvania oil there was speculation that petroleum was from a shoal of whales that drowned in the biblical flood. So as long as paleontologists "confirm" creationism and don't depress oil futures, I 'spect reupbs will leave them alone. *** State-shaped corn flakes got nothing on the Virgin Mary appearing on a frijole, imho. *** And speaking of food and religion: www.venganza.org/Thanks, g1 -- I bookmarked that immediately. Next time I need an excuse not to work, I'll claim that it's because of my status as a pastafarian and refer my bosses to that website. It will no doubt work no better than all of my other excuses, but it's certainly funnier. Flying Spaghetti Monster as intelligent designer -- my kind of religion. I often see God in cloud formations, so it works right in with my other delusions.
|
|
|
Post by Laura on Mar 18, 2008 17:28:17 GMT -5
Here's another animal happy ending. I'd absolutely freak if one of my parrots got loose and couldn't find it. Check out the video. www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23695885
|
|
|
Post by greenbrier on Mar 18, 2008 18:02:17 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 18, 2008 18:48:07 GMT -5
Oh, no. This is very sad. Clarke was the best. I especially loved his short stories, especially "The Nine Billion Names of God" (and overhead, without any fuss, the stars were going out) (paraphrase). There were two novels in particular, called The City and the Stars and Childhood's End, that have always stayed with me. 2001 is, of course, the quintessential science fiction film. Although obscure in many ways (Kubrick's influence), it was made totally accessible by Clarke's novel. He was a great visionary and a wonderful writer. Rest in peace, Arthur C. Clarke. May you now become one with the stars you loved so much.
|
|
|
Post by pattycake on Mar 18, 2008 18:56:04 GMT -5
Did anyone happen to hear what the bids are up to on that stupid corn flake shaped like Illinois? About $220,000? That is absolutely unbelievable. Somebody has too much money. My boss and I are each bringing a box of Corn Flakes in to work tomorrow and working on a Corn Flake map of the US so we can both retire early!!!
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 18, 2008 19:09:11 GMT -5
Here's another animal happy ending. I'd absolutely freak if one of my parrots got loose and couldn't find it. Check out the video. www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23695885Laura -- Do you have parrots? Do they talk?
|
|
|
Post by moonstone on Mar 18, 2008 19:31:55 GMT -5
For anyone interested, here is an article about Arthur C. Clarke. A truly remarkable life -- www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/books/18cnd-clarke.html?hpHere is a description of Childhood's End, which I mentioned above -- In “Childhood’s End,” a race of aliens who happen to look like devils imposes peace on an Earth torn by cold war tensions. But the aliens’ real mission is to prepare humanity for the next stage of evolution. In an ending that is both heartbreakingly poignant and literally earth-shattering, Mr. Clarke suggests that mankind can escape its suicidal tendencies only by ceasing to be human. “There was nothing left of Earth,” he wrote. “It had nourished them, through the fierce moments of their inconceivable metamorphosis, as the food stored in a grain of wheat feeds the infant plant while it climbs toward the Sun.” This was, as I recall it, a wonderful blending of Biblical myth with cosmology. The idea is that the devils we dreamed of in our subconsciences were actually the aliens who were watching over us, and who were condemned to shepherding civilizations to the next level in evolution, but never could achieve it themselves. Very compelling now that I remember it more clearly.
|
|
|
Post by g1 on Mar 18, 2008 20:40:09 GMT -5
Sad news about A.C. Clarke. I recall an interview many years ago in which he described sending the text of his latest novel from Sri Lanka to his New York publisher on a single floppy disk. As mundane as that sounds now, it was bleeding edge technology in its day, and quite an astonishing thing to read about, and dream about.
For a musical tribute, I recommend Mike Oldfield's musical take on Clarke's "Songs of Distant Earth." If all you know of Oldfield's work is Tubular Bells, you will be quite amazed.
|
|