Monday, September 30, 2013

After Pet's Surgery. Pet Friendly Emergency Shelters. Take Your Pets With You. Pet First Aid Kit. Women's Suffrage. Radiation Released.

 

For "Mammal Monday":

Help Your Pet Recover After Surgery

Mr. Puddy: Friend For Friends"After your pooch or feline friend has gone through surgery, it may feel a bit uneasy for a while. It's up to you, the owner, to help the healing process go smoothly. Depending on the procedure that your pet went through, it will have a different recovery time, according to Vet Street. Here are a few tips to ensure your furry friend is adapting well:

A New Routine:

For the time being, your pet may need to rest a bit more than usual and go to the bathroom more often. If you normally take Fido for a morning walk, you'll have to ease him back into it. But give him a few days off - he should only head outdoors to go to the bathroom.

Surgery | My Zoo Animal HospitalHelp your dog in and out of the car as sudden movements can damage his stitches. Lift the dog by wrapping your arms around the dog’s chest/front legs and rear/back legs.

Pets recovering from surgery should only be allowed outdoors to relieve themselves, but be aware that some pets may need more frequent bathroom breaks than usual, especially if they were given fluids during surgery or hospitalization. When taking your pet outdoors, make sure that he’s urinating and defecating as expected, and keep him on a leash at all times.

You may also need to provide him with small amounts of food and water throughout the day. Always supervise meal times after surgery.

 

Rest

Pet Gear Dog Crates Confine Recovering Pets After Surgery

Some vets will recommend "crate rest" post-surgery to restrict activity and keep your pet safe. Although this may be the last thing your pup wants, try to accommodate him as best as possible by putting it in a room that is appropriate for his personality – like a high-traffic area for a pup that loves being around people.

ACTIVITY
• The healing process takes 7-10 days.
• Any strenuous activity could disrupt the healing process.
• Some animals are active after surgery, while others are quiSurgical Procedures » Westside Animal Hospitalet. It is very important that you limit your pet's activity during the healing process.
• Pets must be kept indoors where they can stay clean, dry, and warm.
• No running, jumping, playing, swimming, or other strenuous activity during the 7-10 day recovery period.
• Do not bathe your pet or have it groomed during the recovery period.
• When outdoors, dogs should be on a leash and taken for short walks only to relieve themselves for next 10 days.
• Non-feral cats should be kept indoors.
• Keep animal away from all hazards (including stairs).
"

Read more at: http://www.assisianimalhealth.com/news/2013/04/30/helping-your-dog-recover-after-surgery-the-10-best-things-you-can-do/

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From me:  We are nearly out of Hurricane September, but hurricanes are not the only disasters!  Fires and Floods happen, too.   So Be Prepared.

Pledge To Take Your Pets With You
Pledge To Take Your Pets With You - The Humane Society of the

Teddy is ready in his raincoat.

"Do you have a pet? Are you prepared? Unfortunately, some pet owners are not prepared when a disaster strikes. In fact, we have seen first-hand through our disaster rescue efforts that pets—especially cats—are left behind to fend for themselves.

Disasters can happen at any time; so plan ahead, be prepared, and don't lose sense of your priorities—pets are family and should never be left behind. Pledge now to be a responsible pet owner who will take ALL pets with you.

How can you prepare for you and your pet? Check out the Pet Disaster-Preparedness Kit."

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Pet Evacuation, Pet Friendly Emergency Shelters, and Disaster Preparedness for Pets

TIPS AND INFORMATION FOR HELPING YOU AND YOUR PET IN AN EMERGENCY

Do Not Leave Your Pets Behind
"If you evacuate your home, DO NOT LEAVE YOUR PETS BEHIND! Pets most likely cannot survive on their own; and if by some remote chance they do, you may not be able to find them when you return. If you are going to a public shelter, it is important to understand that animals may not be allowed inside. Plan in advance for shelter alternatives that will work for both you and your pets; consider loved ones or friends outside of your immediate area who would be willing to host you and your pets in an emergency.

The electricity goes out

Keep your pets with you. If you're forced to leave your home because you've lost electricity, take your pets. If it's summer, even just an hour or two in the sweltering heat, whether outdoors in a yard or inside an apartment, mobile home, or house, can be dangerous. Find a pet friendly hotel. If it's winter, don't be fooled by your pet's fur coats; it isn't safe to leave them in an un-heated house.

If you stay at home during a summer power outage, ask your local emergency management office if there are pet-friendly cooling centers in the area.  Don't rely on a fan. They don't cool off pets as effectively as they do people."  Full article at: http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/animal_rescue/tips/pets-disaster.html

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Why have a Pet Emergency Shelters?

"Mistakes were made during disaster planning and relief efforts when major hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit.  This has motivated a revision in the way the emergency response and aid organizations deal with pets and their owners.

Some owners were so reluctant to leave their pets in jeopardy that they delayed evacuation until danger was imminent or refused to evacuate at all.  The result was dead pets, dead owners, and many more injuries - many of which could have been avoided.

Now Homeland Security, FEMA, and the American Red Cross encourage and support the creation of local and regional pet friendly emergency shelters." 

NOT ALL COMMUNITIES OFFER PET FRIENDLY EMERGENCY/EVACUATION SHELTERS. TO FIND OUT IF THERE IS A PET FRIENDLY SHELTER IN YOUR AREA, CALL YOUR COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICE OR LOCAL ANIMAL SHELTER.

It may be difficult, if not impossible, to find shelter for your animals in the midst of a disaster, so plan ahead. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL DISASTER STRIKES TO DO YOUR RESEARCH.

Click on the links on this site, to find designated pet friendly emergency/evacuation shelters in the US:   http://www.petfriendlytravel.com/pet_shelters

Be prepared: Google: "Pet Friendly Emergency Shelters" in your area, BEFORE disaster strikes.

If you need to go to a pet friendly shelter during an evacuation, make sure you have the following items ready to go for your pet: a leash and collar, a crate, a two-week supply of food and water, your pets' vaccination records, medications, and written instructions for feeding and administering medication. If your favorite four-legged friend is feline, be sure you bring kitty-litter and an appropriate container, too."

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What To Include In Your Pet First Aid Kit

image "What if you walked into your living room to find your pup just chowed down the bowl of grapes you accidentally left on the coffee table?

What if your kitty is stung by a bee and her head swells up like a watermelon?

In the first moments following an emergency, your pet’s outcome may depend on your ability to respond swiftly and properly until you can get her to a vet — and having a well-stocked pet first aid kit is rule #1."  More at: http://www.blogpaws.com/2013/07/what-to-include-in-your-pet-first-aid-kit.html   ASPCA Poison Hotline (888-426-4435)

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On This Day:

Wyoming legislators write the first state constitution to grant women the vote, Sep 30, 1889:

"On this day in 1889, the Wyoming state convention approves a constitution that includes a provision granting women the right to vote. Formally admitted into the union the following year, Wyoming thus became the first state in the history of the nation to allow its female citizens to vote.

That the isolated western state of Wyoming should be the first to accept women's suffrage was a surprise. Leading suffragists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were Easterners, and they assumed that their own more progressive home states would be among the first to respond to the campaign for women's suffrage. Yet the people and politicians of the growing number of new Western states proved far more supportive than those in the East.

By 1914, the contrast between East and West had become striking. All of the states west of the Rockies had women's suffrage, while no state did east of the Rockies, except Kansas. Why the regional distinction? Some historians suggest western men may have been rewarding pioneer women for their critical role in settling the West. Others argue the West had a more egalitarian spirit, or that the scarcity of women in some western regions made men more appreciative of the women who were there, while hoping the vote might attract more.

Whatever the reasons, while the Old West is usually thought of as a man's world, a wild land that was "no place for a woman," Westerners proved far more willing than other Americans to create states where women were welcomed as full and equal citizens."

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Radiation released at Japanese plant, Sep 30, 1999:

"Large doses of radiation are released at Japan's Tokaimura nuclear plant on this day in 1999. It was Japan's worst nuclear accident, caused by a serious error made by workers at the plant. One person was killed, 49 were injured and thousands of others were forcibly confined to their homes for several days.

The Tokaimura nuclear plant is located 87 miles northwest of Tokyo and supplies power to much of the surrounding region. On September 30, workers were mixing liquid uranium when they made a serious, and inexplicable, mistake. Instead of pouring five pounds of powdered uranium into nitric acid, the workers poured 35 pounds, seven times too much. The resulting chain reaction caused gamma rays and stray neutrons to flood the purification chamber, where the radioactive water was treated. One employee immediately collapsed and the others fled the scene.

The emergency team at the plant were forced to seek outside assistance, as they could not contain the reaction themselves. As a precaution, trains and roads leading to and from the area were blocked. However, the plant workers forgot to turn off the plant's ventilation system and radiation was inadvertently sent into the air, reaching nearby towns. The Tokyo Electric Power Company brought in 900 pounds of sodium borate to absorb the radiation, but they could not safely get close enough to the source to deploy it properly. Eventually, many hours later, they figured out how to get the sodium borate into hoses so that it could be sprayed onto the source of the radiation. By that time, it was too late to save everyone."

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Yesterday:

lets create a horse colour chart. - Page 6Jay called wanting to work, but he had been a horse's patoot the night before, banging on people's doors asking for money for beer.  He doesn't even remember doing it.  I told him there was nothing here for him to do.

Getting-around-to-it! Ray and I had already planned on doing some of the punch-out list on the cargo/camping trailer. We lost interest in the trailer over the summer, it was just too hot on that side of the house. It needs those last little fiddly jobs, that we never got around to.   We thought we had better get 'a-round-tu-it'. Although I already have one hanging in the workshop!

First, we put some trim on some of the paneling seams.  The kitchen ones had to be cut with precise curved ends to go under the radius corner edges of the kitchen windows.  It was drizzling rain, and sometimes I had to go back and forth to the workshop with an umbrella.  A few areas were touched up with some caulking. Then, the rain cleared.  The outside bottom of the cargo door needed to be finished with some new white metal, but to do that we had to remove some hardware, and put it back exactly in the same holes through the metal.  It wasn't easy, so we didn't get it all done before we called it a day.

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Egypt's Burden. Accepting the Unacceptable. Enough! Bristlecone Pine. Names for Saturday in Many Languages. 666 and You! Gene Autry. Stacy Allison.

 

For "Scripture Sunday:

Egypt's Burden

"Egypt’s importance stretches over thousands of years and will continue through the end of this age.

Ancient Wonders

In the last 4,000 years or more, there have not been many nations that have so caught the attention of the rest of the world as the nation of Egypt. The world famous pyramids are among the many structures that have endured over thousands of years of time, affirming the important role this nation played in the Middle East.

Egypt was one of the first to develop into a powerful, scientifically advanced nation of builders, designers, craftsmen, lawgivers and sadly, idol worshippers. Its history was hundreds of years old when Babylon and Assyria were forming, Greece was a group of warring cities and Rome was just a little village.

Egypt was quite isolated, and therefore may have escaped some of the attacks from foreign nations. The deserts on both sides and the life-giving Nile that flowed from the far distant reaches of the south allowed Egypt to develop on its own. There were many internal battles and turmoil as areas were united under one ruler or another, and the nation did expand outwards to a limited extent, but judging from the incredible amount of time and effort it took to build the enormous temples, stone images and the many lesser pyramids as well as the famous three, it seems we are looking at a history of a ruling class, who were completely involved in preparing for their afterlives and the future that they believed would come and less involved in actually living for the moment.

Egypt is mentioned throughout the Bible

In the Bible, Egypt first shows up in Genesis 12:10 And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.
See All.... At the moment when God was dividing up the nations on Earth after the flood of Noah's time (Genesis 11:7-9 See All...), it seems He placed people in Egypt. Though the name “Egypt” does not show up until this point in scripture, it is described as the land to which Abraham traveled. It was a land of plenty and, since there already was a Pharaoh (Genesis 12:15 See All...), it is clear that Egypt was somewhat organized as a nation shortly after the flood of Noah’s day. It was the land from which Abraham traveled when he and Lot came north to the area of the Negev Desert (Genesis 13:1 And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south.
See All...).

It seems that Abraham had prospered greatly while in Egypt. He lived about 400 years after the flood, and one has to wonder exactly how and why the great pyramids were constructed and why a burial place was chosen that was above the water level of the Nile. Did Egyptians remember the flood? The Nile is known to have flooded each year, bringing rich soil and added moisture from Africa to ensure abundant crops in the land of Egypt.  

Today Egypt is in turmoil. There is a population of about 85 million who depend on the regular flow of the Nile. Most are of the blood of Ishmael. The number of the true Egyptians of old is not great. The true Egyptians of old have never regained the position of power within their own land let alone in the world. That was one part of the burden God placed on them – that others would rule over them (Zechariah 10:11 And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away. See All...). Greeks, Romans, French and others have ruled Egypt. Presently the rulers are of Ishmael and the dominant religion by far is Islam.

Egypt is so crowded that any disturbance can become a disaster. Poverty is rampant, education is lacking and the preoccupation with religion is shackling the people. They do not know of any other way to live, and God has not yet chosen to make them His people. He will though, and in scripture He calls them “My people.”

Egypt still has a role to play in history. Few lands have been mentioned as often as Egypt in the Bible. Before the time of God's blessing, more of the burden they are carrying has to be completed. There is still to come a great time of war and turmoil in which Egypt will be overrun and will suffer greatly. There will be a time of trouble that will be worse than anything the world has ever known and Egypt will not escape (Matthew 24:21-22 See All...).

Long after Israel had left Egypt and God had placed a heavy hand on that nation, Ezekiel states that God will act against Egypt again (he wrote more than a thousand years after Israel had left in the Exodus). He wrote that he would diminish them so they would never again rule over another nation (Ezekiel 29:14-16 See All...). Again and again we note that God has an ongoing interaction with this nation. We can also see the continued interaction between Egypt and Israel. There seems to be a fascinating link between them." 

Complete article at:  http://www.ucg.org/bible/egypts-burden/  article by Robert Berendt

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Accepting the Unacceptable

What we see and hear can change who we are.

"The other day I sat down and watched an old television show called The Dick Van Dyke Show. It was a show I had watched as a child, and I had forgotten just how funny it was. My teenage son also joined me and when it was over he said it was one of the best shows he'd seen.  The comedy was simply based around every day events taken to the extreme and it was hilarious.

The best part was what we didn't see.

Violence, murder, evil, sex, and foul language have overtaken the airwaves today.  This is Satan's world right now and he loves negative influences that work against what God stands for.

Over the years, we have been gradually spoon fed more and more of it. We have come to accept what we see, as normal and every day. We no longer turn away from it because it is so common.  Proverbs 8:13 See All... says , “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate” (KJV ). God hates evil!  Hate is a strong word to be taken seriously.

3 John 1: 11 in part also tells us that we should “follow not that which is evil, but that which is good.” You may argue that simply watching something on television or hearing a song on the radio is not the same as doing evil, but if we are to emulate Jesus Christ then shouldn't we do as He would do?  If God hates that which is evil, then would Christ have anything to do with it?

I have often found myself listening to an old song from my teen years. The music begins to play and I think to myself, oh I love this song! I begin to sing along to the lyrics when suddenly I realize what the song is about and I am appalled. “What? This song is about adultery...drugs, murder, or whatever?” I ask myself. I wonder how I had never realized what the song was about before. Is it just that I never really listened or was it that I didn't care? Honestly, I cannot tell you why exactly, but I am sure it is that I now have God's Holy Spirit working with me, which helps me to be more aware of what to accept as good.

Psalms 34:14 See All...says, “Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.” Departing from evil is not only physical. Evil comes in many forms. We must protect our minds as well.  If we continuously watch programs that show grisly murders, we can become accustomed to it. Personally I don't want to grow accustomed to something like that." 

More at: http://www.ucg.org/christian-living/accepting-unacceptable/  article by Lorelei Nettles 

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Enough!

"Are we grateful for what we have, or are we consumed with desire for what we do not have?

Dollar bills

There is a story that, in the 1920s, a reporter asked the fabulously wealthy John D. Rockefeller, “How much is enough?” Rockefeller’s reply, after a moment’s thought, is said to have been, “Just a little bit more!” Now, the story may or may not be true. It does, however, illustrate a characteristic of human nature. People are never quite satisfied with what they have now.

When we look back over recorded human history, so much of it is dominated by wars and struggles over land, wealth and power. One group of people desires what they do not already possess, and they are willing to go to any lengths to achieve their ends, including fighting and taking it by force. God inspired James to remark on this trait. James wrote, “Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war” (James 4:1-2 See All...).

James uses a word here that bears some examination.  There are several Greek and Hebrew words that are translated “covet,” but all carry the meaning of an extraordinary desire to have something. Often, the word “covet” is used to refer to wanting something that belongs to someone else. A clear example of this is found in Exodus 20, where the tenth commandment forbids coveting: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s” (Exodus 20:See All...).

The commandment is itself interesting, as it follows nine other commandments that, by and large, have to do with actions. This command has to do, not with actions but, with what we think. It has to do with wanting more than what we have; wanting more than we have been given. When we covet, what we have seems inadequate. We can see this principle in action at the very beginning of the Bible, when the serpent skillfully deceived Eve. Eve lived in a beautiful, perfect world, free of sin, worry, and trouble. What more could she want? Satan tempted her with the same thing he wanted. He wanted to be like God. His message to Eve was that no matter how good she had it right now, she was inadequate. Eve needed just a little bit more to be happy. God, he said, had something that she should have. “…God knows that in the day you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5 See All...).

Eve, seeing that the fruit looked okay physically, allowed herself to covet what was God’s alone to have. That covetousness moved her to sin against the word of God. Her eyes were opened, but this did not bring her happiness, any more than winning the lottery or becoming a dictator today is a recipe for happiness. All of the examples in the Bible and in the world, however, are not enough to keep us from always wanting what we don’t have." 

More at:  http://www.ucg.org/christian-living/enough/ article by Katherine Rowland

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High and Holy Places

AN AMAZING FACT:  "The bristlecone pine is the oldest living single organism on our planet. One tree called “Methuselah” is estimated to be 4,789 years old. Its location in the White Mountains of eastern California is undisclosed to protect the tree from vandalism.

Bristlecone pines are a group of small trees believed to live for about 5,000 years. There are three species: Rocky Mountain (Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona), Great Basin (Utah, Nevada, and eastern California), and the Foxtail (California). They grow in isolated groves at or just below the tree line. Because of high winds, dry soils, and cold temperatures, seasons are very short and the trees grow very slowly. The bristlecone’s wood is dense and resinous, so it is resistant to pests like insects and fungus.

These special trees can remind us of a Bible verse about the Lord: “For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones” (Isaiah 57:15).

Perhaps we can learn from the humble bristlecone pine. It can live at such a high elevation because it stays low and close to the rock, sending its roots deep down so it can hang on during the storms that strike the mountain. We, too, can come close to the “High and Holy One” when we are humble. When you are blown about by winds of strife, bow down like the bristlecone pine. Send your roots deep down into Jesus and hang on to Him as you grow slowly and strongly."

KEY BIBLE TEXTS: Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. - Psalms 92:13

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Names for Saturday in Many Languages Prove Which Day Is the True Sabbath

"Which day of the week is the biblical Sabbath? It is clear from the names for the seventh day of the week, Saturday, in many languages.

Which day of the week is the biblical Sabbath? Many are confused over the issue, but such confusion is unnecessary. Not only is the answer plain from history and the Bible, it is also clear from the names for the seventh day of the week, Saturday, in many languages.

For example, the Spanish word for the seventh day of the week, Saturday, is sabado— the same word for "Sabbath." In fact, in more than 100 ancient and modern languages the seventh day of the week was named "Sabbath" or its equivalent. Following is a list of names for the seventh day of the week, Saturday, in 24 languages in which the root word Sabbath is still easily recognizable.

Such widespread use of forms of the word Sabbath for the seventh day of the week, Saturday, is clear evidence that speakers of these languages understood which day is the Sabbath.

Likewise, the fact that in no language do we see "Sabbath" similarly linked with Sunday, the first day of the week, is an obvious confirmation that this day never was considered the biblical Sabbath until later religious leaders tried to substitute Sunday for the true Sabbath day.

Arabic: Sabet

Armenian: Shabat

Bosnian: Subota

Bulgarian: Sabota

Corsican: Sàbatu

Croatian: Subota

Czech: Sobota

Georgian: Sabati

Greek: Savvato

Indonesian: Sabtu

Italian: Sabato

Latin: Sabbatum

Maltese: is-Sibt

Polish: Sobota

Portuguese: S ábado

Romanian: Sambata

Russian: Subbota

Serbian: Subota

Slovak: Sobota

Slovene: Sobota

Somali: Sabti

Spanish: Sabado

Sudanese: Saptu

Ukranian: Subota

By now perhaps you've realized that most of mankind has failed to obey God when it comes to His Sabbath day. Much of humanity ignores God altogether and couldn't care less about setting aside a day to honor and worship Him.

On this seventh day of each week, we should cease from our own work and allow God to work in us, building and nourishing our relationship with our Creator. We will then discover and experience the blessings of God's Sabbath rest!"

From: http://www.ucg.org/booklet/sunset-sunset-gods-sabbath-rest/sabbath-beginning/names-Saturday-many-languages-prove-which-/

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This week's program on WGN TV:

666 and You!

"This infamous prophetic number involves not only one's freedom to buy and sell but much more. Discover the important biblical facts."

Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-program/news-and-prophecy/666-and-you

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On This Day:

Gene Autry, "The Singing Cowboy," is born, Sep 29, 1907:

"From the early 1930s to the mid-1950s, Gene Autry, "The Singing Cowboy," dominated the country & western genre as the biggest-selling recording artist of the era. But more than that, Autry was a phenomenally successful radio personality, movie star and businessman, too—a cross-platform creative mogul of the kind that today's pop superstars strive to be. Born on this day in 1907 near Tioga, Texas, Byron Orvon Gene Autry grew up to be one of the most important figures the country music world has ever seen.

As a boy, Autry sang in the church choir in Tioga and mastered the mail-order guitar his parents bought him for his 12th birthday. He was already an accomplished amateur and sometime-professional musician when, in the early 1920s, his family moved to Oklahoma, setting in motion the events that would make him into a star. While Autry strummed his guitar and sang casually during a quiet swing shift in the telegraph office in Chelsea, Oklahoma, in the summer of 1927, Oklahoma's favorite son and one of America's favorite entertainers, Will Rogers, happened into the office and encouraged young Gene to head to New York City to pursue a recording career. One year later, Autry did just that, landing an audition at RCA Victor that led to his first recording sessions in the autumn of 1929.

Autry's commercial breakthrough came two years later with the first of his many big hits, "That Silver-Haired Daddy Of Mine." When the record sold its first half-million copies, Autry's label, American Records, presented the young star with a commemorative gold-plated copy of the disc—the first-ever Gold Record.

Autry's lasting fame, though, came from his career as the film industry's favorite singing cowboy. His first movie, In Old Santa Fe, was eventually followed by nearly 100 other films that made him one of the most popular stars in America and vastly expanded the audience for country-western music around the world.

In later life, Gene Autry owned a record label, Challenge Records, and also became the original owner of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Angels. Born on this day in 1907, Gene Autry died shortly after his 81st birthday on October 2, 1998."

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American woman climbs Everest, Sep 29, 1988:

"Stacy Allison of Portland, Oregon, becomes the first American woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest, which at 29,035 feet above sea level is the highest point on earth. Allison, a member of the Northwest American Everest Expedition, climbed the Himalayan peak using the southeast ridge route.

The summit of Everest reaches two-thirds of the way through the air of the earth's atmosphere--at about the cruising altitude of jet airliners--and oxygen levels there are very low, temperatures are extremely cold, and weather is unpredictable and dangerous.

In 1975, Japanese mountaineer Junko Tabei became the first woman to conquer the mountain. Three years later, Reinhold Messner of Italy and Peter Habeler of Austria achieved what had been previously thought impossible: climbing to the Everest summit without oxygen. In 1988, American Stacy Allison successfully scaled Everest. About two dozen climbers died in attempts to reach the top of Everest in the 20th century."

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Yesterday:

After Wendy and I had our usual Saturday phone call, I got ready for church.  Jay had said that he was going to go too, but when I heard he was at the grocery store with a beer drinking buddy, I doubted it.  Sure enough, when he got home, he called me and said he wasn't going.  His mother said that she had to lock him out of her house, as he was already drunk.

I took Misty for her walk around here, and then left for church in the van.  But I hadn't got very far when I realized that something wrong, it wouldn't accelerate properly.  Also, it felt like there was an intermittent vibration.  I didn't want to be stranded on the side of the road, especially as it was starting to rain, so I turned around and came home.  My thoughts were maybe that new tank of gas had water in it.  I called Jim the mechanic down the street, and he took it for a test drive.  He said it cleared out some when he really floored it.  I usually have some 'HEET' in the shed, (wood-alcohol product that removes water in the tank), but Jay had borrowed it.  The vibration didn't feel like a tire, so that will have to be checked out some more.

While my van was gone, Rich, the computer man called and said that my e-machine was ready.  He said he had to deliver another computer nearby, so he said he would bring mine to me.  When he brought it, it wouldn't power up, so he took it home again.  Later, he called to say that something had got under the power supply, so it wasn't making contact, but it was fixed now.  I don't know when I will have time pick it up.

It was a bad mechanical day!

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Rabbit Day. CO Rescue Dogs. Bike Train. Garlic #1. "Most Dangerous Woman In Europe". Technology for Country Folk. William the Conqueror.

 

For "Summary Saturday" or News, some new, some old, that you may not have seen:

International Rabbit Day

Two white baby rabbits"International Rabbit Day is observed on September 28, 2013. It promotes the protection and care of rabbits both domestic and wild. International Rabbit Day is held each year on the fourth Saturday in September. Rabbit habitats include meadows, woods, forests, grasslands, deserts and wetlands. Rabbits live in groups, and the best known species, the European rabbit, lives in underground burrows, or rabbit holes.

More than half the world's rabbit population resides in North America.
Domestic rabbits can be kept as pets in a back yard hutch or indoors in a cage or house trained to have free roam. Rabbits kept indoors are often referred to as house rabbits. House rabbits typically have an indoor pen or cage and a rabbit-safe place to run and exercise, such as an exercise pen, living room or family room. Rabbits can be trained to use a litter box and some can learn to come when called. Domestic rabbits that do not live indoors can also serve as companions for their owners, typically living in a protected hutch outdoors." 

More at: http://www.smallanimalchannel.com/critter-news/2013/09/23/celebrating-rabbits-on-international-rabbit-day.aspx

A GIF of two rabbits - kangla-nawab via Tumblr

The Humane Society of the United States - Animal Testing Campaign

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=516182671796741&set=a.473457172735958.1073741827.306972089384468&type=1&ref=nf

International Rabbit Day is today! Join The Mentalist's Owain Yeoman and musical icon Leona Lewis and sign the #BeCrueltyFree pledge to end cosmetics testing on rabbits and other animals » http://on.fb.me/13LM52P

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Rescue dogs help save lives in Colorado flood zone  

18 Sept.2013: "The families of nearly 200 people are anxiously waiting for word from their loved ones who remain unaccounted for after the deadly floods in Colorado.

7NEWS - Search teams scour 21-mile area along the Big ThompsonThose raging waters have already taken the lives of six people and left more than 450 stranded for nearly a week with little food and water.

But help is on the way with one of the nation's largest air operations in nearly a decade.

Ana Cabrera is OutFront in Boulder, where teams of unbelievable dogs are now digging through the rubble and mud to save lives."  CNN video at: http://outfront.blogs.cnn.com/category/colorado-flooding/

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How One Parent Made Biking a Priority

"When Jeff Anderson requested bike racks at his children’s school in the fall of 2008, he had no idea this simple request would lead to him playing a key role in supporting the Safe Routes to Schools initiative in Fairfax County Public Schools (Virginia).

In the spring of 2009 he coordinated a bike to school day that ran in conjunction with National Bike to Work Day. When 40 students turned out for the event Jeff realized that he was on to something.

Bike Train

Students locking up their bikes. Image courtesy of Nike

Since 2009 Jeff has worked with staff at Wolftrap Elementary to establish what is called a bike train. Once a month kids meet at Jeff’s house and bike 1.8 miles to school along a predefined route. They pick up additional riders along the way and use back roads to avoid congestion. The bike train has been going strong for four years, with students biking to school on cold January days when it is 18 degrees and snowy, and on hot June days when it is 85 degrees.

Recently Jeff has started working to expand the bike train program to other schools in the district. This past May he coordinated a Bike and Walk to School Challenge (now in its fifth year), encouraging schools to compete against each other by recruiting students to bike to school every day for a week."  More at:  http://blog.nwf.org/2013/03/how-one-parent-made-biking-a-priority-for-fairfax-county-public-schools/

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Garlic Beats Best-Selling Blood Pressure Drug In New Study

garlic

"A groundbreaking new study published in Pakistan Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences has revealed that garlic is at least as effective as the blockbuster blood pressure lowering drug atenolol in reducing systolic and diastolic blood pressure in patients diagnosed with essential hypertension, a condition linked to the #1 cause of death in developed countries.

Hypertension is called a ‘silent killer,’ as it often goes completely unnoticed, along with the decades long subclinical march of atherosclerosis that is largely the cause of elevated blood pressure, often culminating suddenly in a deadly cardiovascular event such as a heart attack or stroke."  More at: http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/garlic-beats-best-selling-blood-pressure-drug-new-study

and: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-4954/Is-garlic-cure-all.html

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Bomb Damage at Buckingham Palace.

"The Queen Mother Elizabeth, King George and Winston Churchill inspect bomb damage at Buckingham Palace. Because of her effect on British morale, Adolf Hitler is said to have called her "the most dangerous woman in Europe".

The Most Dangerous Woman In Europe
"Queen Elizabeth speaks to the women of the British Empire 1942.  Queen Elizabeth, consort to King George VI rarely spoke on film.  Here, her soft well bred English manner of speaking is different to the more pronounced manner of that of her daughter Queen Elizabeth ll." 

Video at: http://youtu.be/CQEZPwLOzTo

More at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Elizabeth_The_Queen_Mother

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Technology for Country Folk

Log On:
Making a wood stove hotter.
Log Off:
Don’t add no more wood.
Monitor:
Keeping an eye on the wood stove.
Download:
Gettin’ the farwood off the truk.
Mega Hertz:
When yer not keerful gettin’ the farwood.
Floppy Disc:
Whutcha git from tryin’ ta carry too much farwood.
Ram:
That thar thing whut splits the farwood.
Hard Drive:
Gettin’ home in the winter time.
Prompt:
Whut the mail ain’t in the winter time.
Windows:
Whut to shut when it’s cold outside.
Sscreen:
Whut to shut when it’s blak fly season.
Byte:
Whut dem dang flys do.
Chip:
Munchies fer the TV.
Micro Chip:
Whut’s in the munchie bag.
Modem:
Whacha did to the hay fields.
Dot Matrix:
Old Dan Matrix’s wife.
Lap top:
Whar the kitty sleeps.
Keyboard:
Whar ya hang the keys.
Software:
Them dang plastic forks and knifes.
Mouse:
Whut eats the grain in the barn.
Main Frame:
Holds up the barn ruf.
Port:
Fancy Flatlander wine.
Enter:
Northerner talk fer “C’mon in y’all”.
Random Access Memory:
When ya can’t ‘member whut ya paid fer the rifle when yer wife asks.
Mouse pad:
That hippie talk fer the rat hole.

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On This Day:

William the Conqueror invades England, Sep 28, 1066:

"Claiming his right to the English throne, William, duke of Normandy, invades England at Pevensey on Britain's southeast coast. His subsequent defeat of King Harold II at the Battle of Hastings marked the beginning of a new era in British history.

William was the illegitimate son of Robert I, duke of Normandy, by his concubine Arlette, a tanner's daughter from the town of Falaise. The duke, who had no other sons, designated William his heir, and with his death in 1035 William became duke of Normandy at age seven. Rebellions were epidemic during the early years of his reign, and on several occasions the young duke narrowly escaped death. Many of his advisers did not. By the time he was 20, William had become an able ruler and was backed by King Henry I of France. Henry later turned against him, but William survived the opposition and in 1063 expanded the borders of his duchy.

With approximately 7,000 troops and cavalry, William seized Pevensey and marched to Hastings, where he paused to organize his forces. On October 13, Harold arrived near Hastings with his army, and the next day William led his forces out to give battle. At the end of a bloody, all-day battle, King Harold II was killed--shot in the eye with an arrow, according to legend--and his forces were defeated.

William then marched on London and received the city's submission. On Christmas Day, 1066, William the Conqueror was crowned the first Norman king of England, in Westminster Abbey, and the Anglo-Saxon phase of English history came to an end. French became the language of the king's court and gradually blended with the Anglo-Saxon tongue to give birth to modern English. William I proved an effective king of England, and the "Domesday Book," a great census of the lands and people of England, was among his notable achievements. Upon the death of William I in 1087, his son, William Rufus, became William II, the second Norman king of England."

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From me:  In the USA one just has to remember all the Presidents.  In British schools, they are supposed to be able to remember all the monarchs from 1066!

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Yesterday:

Rich, the computer man, called early to tell me that he thought that I would be happier going back to Windows XP Pro, and so he asked me to bring in the e-machine.  There are so many things that I do that Windows 7 just doesn't do the same. It has changed some programs so that they are not user friendly any more.  Jay wanted to go with me as he likes to get out of the subdivision, and he's handy for toting big computers, so I took him!

Ray and I took my Dell outside and gently blew it out with the compressor.  Rich was going to double the RAM.  Ray and I looked at the capacitors after what I had gone through with the HP small form computer, and none of them were swollen.  Then Ray went back to painting my screen porch.

It didn't take Rich long to open up the Dell and put the memory sticks in there.  He didn't charge me much, as I had given him my old Sony Vaio the day before. It had some good parts that he could use, like a new mother board, processor and memory sticks.

Rich said this Dell is a good old workhorse computer, and that I should keep it.  Certainly is heavy though.  It has never given me any trouble.  I bought it from Gary, an old computer guy in Montgomery, TX, and he had rebuilt it.  Gary knew what he was doing.  I don't know why I thought that I had to buy that HP with more RAM, when I could have had more put in this one.  It works like a champ now.  But we had to leave the e-machine with Rich, so I will pick it up later.

Many years ago, my daughter who works with stocks and bonds accounts, found out that she couldn't use Windows 7 on several of her customer's sites, so she had to look for a laptop  with XP Pro.  She still uses it today, so I am not the only one who prefers it.  If it works, don't fix it.

Yesterday, Ray filled in for someone at the Cat Habitat.   He enjoys that, playing with them, and taking care of them.  Then he comes over here and tells me about our SPCA cats there.  Very often they are adopted before their time to leave the Habitat is up, and that makes us all happy.  The adoptable dogs have to rely on our Adoption Days, or www.Petfinder.com to find their 'furever' homes. 

Please spay or neuter your pet, we have trouble finding good homes for them all.  People give away their puppies and kittens, but if the new 'parents' don't get them neutered, then they have even more babies.  Every Litter Bit Hurts!   Foster parents have to feed and care for the animals out of their own pockets, and give them the love and time that the animals often have never had.   Sometimes it takes a long time to get them adopted into responsible homes.  I am getting a new foster kitten who was dumped, next week.  Someone just left her to die. I am doing it for Nala, to keep her company.  I think Nala misses her litter brother who was adopted.

In the afternoon, who should come rolling up in a big truck, but my granddaughter Michelle's older half-brother, Jimmy.  Even though we are not related, he said "Hi Grandma, I came for the things for the yard sale for my mother".  Michelle had told me that they were having a benefit yard sale for their mother Becky, who has cancer, but she didn't tell me it was now!  Most of my yard sale stuff is packed away.  I didn't have anything ready, so I gave him a couple of TV's, a computer monitor, some knick-knacks and clothes. Jimmy said that clothes are selling well, that's unusual.  Michelle's boyfriend was helping him, so I met him too.  Seems like a nice enough chap.

So I got a few more things out of here yesterday!

Friday, September 27, 2013

'Use by' Dates Mislead. San Diego Bay. Ted Williams. New Computer Woes.


For “Foodie Friday”: 
Masses of food wasted - 'use by' dates mislead
Washington – “Americans throw away 40 percent of the food they buy, often because of misleading expiration dates that have nothing to do with safety, said a study released Wednesday by Harvard University Law School and the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group.
"The date labeling system is not a system at all," said NRDC staff scientist Dana Gunders, co-author of the report, the first to assess date labeling laws nationwide.
The report said 90 percent of Americans toss good food into the garbage because they mistakenly think that "sell by," "best before," "use by" or "packed on" dates on food containers indicate safety. One-fifth of consumers, the report said, "always" throw away food based on package dates.
imagesCAVXUJO1


In fact, "sell by" dates are used by retailers for inventory control. "Best before" or "use by" dates usually reflect manufacturer estimates of peak quality. While some labels are intended to indicate freshness, none of them reflects edibility or safety, said Ted Labuza, a food science professor at the University of Minnesota who collaborated with the authors.
"If food looks rotten and smells bad, throw it away, but just because it reaches a certain date does not mean the food is unsafe," Labuza said. "I don't know of any food poisoning outbreak that came from people eating food that was past its shelf-life date."
The report estimated the value of food tossed away at $165 billion a year.”  More at: http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Masses-of-food-wasted-use-by-dates-mislead-4825974.php
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On This Day:

Cabrillo discovers San Diego Bay, Sep 28, 1542:

“On this day in 1542, the Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo discovers San Diego Bay while searching for the Strait of Anian, a mythical all-water route across North America.
Cabrillo was not the first to search for a water passage across the North American continent, and he would not be the last. Ever since the voyages of Columbus, Europeans had dreamed of finding a shorter trade route to the Orient. Once it became clear that North America was not India, as Columbus had believed, but an entirely new continent, explorers hoped that an all-water route through the New World might still be found. Vastly underestimating the breadth of the continent, early 16th and 17th century explorers like Cabrillo believed that one such route might be the elusive Strait of Anian, a navigable passage some sailors claimed linked the Pacific with the Gulf of Mexico.
In June 1542, Cabrillo departed from the West Coast of Mexico and sailed northward to probe the complex broken coastline of the Pacific. Repeatedly turning east to follow any inlet that held the promise of being the Strait, Cabrillo was the first European to explore many of the Pacific Coast bays and inlets. Though San Diego Bay--as well as all the other inlets he subsequently explored--never led to the mythic Strait of Anian, Cabrillo did succeed in mapping many of the most important features of the California coast, though he missed discovering San Francisco Bay.
Despite the failure of the Cabrillo mission, other explorers continued to search for the Strait of Anian and its northern cousin, the Northwest Passage, for many years to come, though with no more success. Ironically, a passage across the continent actually did exist, and in 1905, the Arctic explorer Roald Amundsen became the first man to make an all-water crossing of North America. But Amundsen's cold and treacherous far-northern route was hardly the shortcut to the Orient Cabrillo and countless other explorers had dreamed of, and died for, over the course of more than five centuries.
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Ted Williams becomes last player to hit .400, Sep 28, 1941:

“On this day in 1941, the Boston Red Sox's Ted Williams plays a double-header against the Philadelphia Athletics on the last day of the regular season and gets six hits in eight trips to the plate, to boost his batting average to .406 and become the first player since Bill Terry in 1930 to hit .400. Williams, who spent his entire career with the Sox, played his final game exactly 19 years later, on September 28, 1960, at Boston’s Fenway Park and hit a home run in his last time at bat, for a career total of 521 homeruns. 
images[10]In 1942, Williams won the American League Triple Crown, for highest batting average and most RBIs and homeruns. He duplicated the feat in 1947. In 1946 and 1949, he was named the American League's Most Valuable Player and in June 1960, he became the fourth player in major league history to hit 500 homers. He was selected to the All-Star team 17 times.
Williams played his last game on September 28, 1960, and retired with a lifetime batting average of .344, a .483 career on-base percentage and 2,654 hits. His achievements are all the more impressive because his career was interrupted twice for military service: Williams was a Marine Corps pilot during World War II and the Korean War and as a result missed a total of nearly five seasons from baseball.
Williams, who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966, managed the Washington Senators (renamed the Texas Rangers in 1972) from 1969 to 1972. In 1984, the Boston Red Sox retired his uniform number (nine). Williams died of cardiac arrest at age 83 on July 5, 2002, in Florida. In a controversial move, his son sent his father’s body to be frozen at a cryonics laboratory.”
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Yesterday:
After Misty and I had our walk down at Jay’s, Jay and I went back to Rich, the computer man, and he showed me what was wrong with my HP.  It was either pay him for all his time, or get another computer from him. It only took Rich a couple of clicks to unlock whatever Jay had done to his tablet!!
So I came home with an e-machine, with all new innards, and Windows 7.   I am having trouble finding my way around Windows 7, which it is very frustrating for this old lady.  So everything is taking longer than it did when I had Windows XP Pro.  Even the format for Live Writer is different, I don’t know if it is because of the Windows 7, or because I never upgraded to this new version.  Anyway, I don’t like it!  I might even go back to my old Dell.
I don’t think this e-machine is any faster than my old HP, but maybe it will settle in, in a few days.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

RV Fridge Vent. Internet! 6v.Batteries. Outside Sink. 4-Bike Rack. Generators. Daniel Boone. Motorola Radio. Shannon Lucid. Computers and Cancer.

 

For "tRaVersing, or RV Day":

RV refrigerator rear venting
"An RVer recently asked if it was possible to install an LP-fired RV refrigerator so that the lower venting of the 'fridge would come from the "toy hauling" section of his RV. No, we don't mean stepping into the cargo area to get access to the refrigerator, we mean installing the refrigerator inside the "living area" of the RV, on a common wall to the cargo area. If you're thinking about it, in a word, "Don't."" Read more.

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The olden days when mobile Internet access was slow. . . very, very slow

RVtravel.com editor Chuck Woodbury received this email from reader Bob Hoffman in response to his essay in RV Travel News 519 about his early days on the road when he carried a small portable darkroom and typed on a manual typewriter.

Dear Chuck,
"Your story about using a typewriter reminded me of my first RV computer experience back in 1984. On that first RV trip, I carried along a VT-100 computer terminal, a 300-baud acoustic coupler, a 100' extension cord, and a 100' phone line. I'd stop at a pay phone, dial the 800 number of the computer I accessed in Huntsville, Alabama, then put the phone on the acoustic coupler and run back to the RV to access it from my terminal. At the time, I thought I was the height of technology. Though 300 baud was slow, it was much faster than the 110 baud that I'd been using back in Huntsville on a teletype machine back in the 1970s.
You can imagine the strange looks that I got from passers-by, wondering if I was doing something illegal or just plain crazy. Sitting there with my generator running and strange wires running 100' from my RV to the phone booth certainly raised a few curious looks. But, it got the job done and I was able to continue making a few bucks while traveling, which was and is always my intent."  Visit Bob's website InternetOnTheRoad.com

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How are your RV batteries connected?
Dear RV Doctor,
"The two house batteries in my motorhome have been removed to be replaced. They were 6-volt batteries but the person who removed them does not remember if they were wired in series or parallel. The motorhome is a 2005 Cross Country. How should the house batteries be wired?" --Will S., (Seminole, OK)
Read Gary's response.

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Sink Away exterior sink keeps dirt outside

"Now have a sink and water supply on the outside of your RV with Sink Away Exterior Sink! The ultimate campsite convenience is an RV sink outside where it's really needed!
Self-contained, portable Sink-Away mounts almost anywhere on RV exteriors and is ready to keep dirt and messes outside where they belong. Its ideal for washing hands, paws, faces, and fresh food–even for cleaning fish.
Sink-Away is lightweight, compact, easy to store, with optional accessories. It comes with the sink and frame, 3/4" water supply inlet connection, unique flexible gooseneck faucet, drainage hose, and mounting bracket. Coiled Hose sold separately." More at: http://www.greatrvaccessories.com/2012/01/sink-away-exterior-sink-keeps-dirt.html

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glideAWAY bike rack enables easy access to hatchbacks and SUVs

"If you tow a hatchback or SUV behind your motorhome you know the difficulty of carrying bicycles on a rack and accessing the rear hatch with the rack and/or bikes in place.
Heininger's Advantage glideAWAY deluxe 4 bike carrier eliminates the irritation with other rear mounted carriers of having to take your bikes off every time you want access to your vehicle from the back.   http://youtu.be/p5iO2TFaDvI
Designed to hold up to four bicycles with 1-2" top frame tubes, the ingenuous accordion style folding arm construction of the Advantage glideAWAY allows it to be pulled away from your vehicle with the simple lifting of the handle of its spring loaded safety latch, located behind its main upright support post. " More at: http://www.greatrvaccessories.com/2012/01/glideaway-bike-rack-enables-easy-access.html

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Tech Tips from Mark Polk

Generators need exercise, too
"When I worked at an RV dealership, every spring our service department was booked with appointments for generators that either wouldn't start, or if they did start they had that all too familiar surging sound. This was a result of letting the generator sit for periods of time without starting and exercising it. Lack of use is one of the biggest problems with generators. In gasoline generators the fuel breaks down and gums up causing hard starting and surging problems. This can happen in as short a period of time as two months." Read more.

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Random RV Thought
"A tiny broom, sometimes sold at toy stores, can do a good job of cleaning a floor, even most carpets. No power is needed except human power and the broom stores easily in a closet. It can also be used to tidy up a campsite."

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On This Day:

The famous frontiersman Daniel Boone dies in Missouri, Sep 26, 1820:

"On this day in 1820 the great pioneering frontiersman Daniel Boone dies quietly in his sleep at his son's home near present-day Defiance, Missouri. The indefatigable voyager was 86.

Boone was born in 1734 to Quaker parents living in Berks County, Pennsylvania. Following a squabble with the Pennsylvania Quakers, Boone's family decided to head south and west for less crowded regions, and they eventually settled in the Yadkin Valley of North Carolina. There the young Daniel Boone began his life-long love for wilderness, spending long days exploring the still relatively unspoiled forests and mountains of the region. An indifferent student who never learned to write more than a crude sentence or two, Boone's passion was for the outdoors, and he quickly became a superb marksman, hunter and woodsman.

Never satisfied to stay put for very long, Boone soon began making ever longer and more ambitious journeys into the relatively unexplored lands to the west. In May of 1769, Boone and five companions crossed over the Cumberland Gap and explored along the south fork of the Kentucky River. Impressed by the fertility and relative emptiness of the land--although the native inhabitants hardly considered it to be empty--Boone returned in 1773 with his family, hoping to establish a permanent settlement. An Indian attack prevented that first attempt from succeeding, but Boone returned two years later to open the route that became known as Boone's Trace (or the Wilderness Road) between the Cumberland Gap and a new settlement along the Kentucky River called Fortress Boonesboro. After years of struggles against both Native Americans and British soldiers, Boonesboro eventually became one of the most important gateways for the early American settlement of the Trans-Appalachian West.

Boone became a symbol of the western pioneering spirit for many Americans. Ironically, though, Boone's fame and his success in opening the Trans-Appalachian West to large-scale settlement later came to haunt him. Having lost his Kentucky land holdings by failing to properly register them, Boone moved even further west in 1799, trying to escape the civilized regions he had been so instrumental in creating. Finally settling in Missouri--though he never stopped dreaming of continuing westward--he lived out the rest of his life doing what he loved best: hunting and trapping in a fertile wild land still largely untouched by the Anglo pioneers who had followed the path he blazed to the West."

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First day of work at the Galvin Manufacturing Corporation, Sep 26, 1928:

"On this day in 1928, work begins at Chicago's new Galvin Manufacturing Corporation. (The company had officially incorporated the day before.) In 1930, Galvin would introduce the Motorola radio, the first mass-produced commercial car radio. (The name had two parts: "motor" evoked cars and motion, while "ola" derived from "Victrola" and was supposed to make people think of music.)"

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Shannon Lucid returns to Earth, Sep 26, 1996:

"U.S. astronaut Shannon Lucid returns to Earth in the U.S. space shuttle Atlantis following six months in orbit aboard the Russian space station Mir.

On March 23, 1996, Lucid transferred to Mir from the same space shuttle for a planned five-month stay. A biochemist, Lucid shared Mir with Russian cosmonauts Yuri Onufriyenko and Yuri Usachev and conducted scientific experiments during her stay. She was the first American woman to live in a space station.

Beginning in August, her scheduled return to Earth was delayed by more than six weeks because of last-minute repairs to the booster rockets of Atlantis and then by a hurricane. Finally, on September 26, 1996, she returned to Earth aboard Atlantis, touching down at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Her 188-day sojourn aboard Mir set a new space endurance record for an American and a world endurance record for a woman."

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Yesterday:

Misty and I went to get Jay for shopping day, and we had our stroll down there.  When we got back here, we loaded 2 desktops and a laptop into the van.  The small HP desktop with Windows XP Pro, that I bought refurbished at the beginning of the year has been giving me trouble for quite a while.  I found a computer repair man who lives in a subdivision not too far from here, and so I thought I'd give him a try at fixing it, and my 'molasses' laptop.  I took my big old Dell desktop with me, just in case I could do some 'horse-trading'. 

I had told Rich, the computer man, that the HP's computer clock had stopped a long time ago, and he said a new battery would be $4, and that could have a lot to do with the problems.  Now that XP is on it's last legs, I thought I might try Windows 7.  So he said that he would put Windows 7 in my desktop, and 2 more GB of memory, then it should run like a gazelle.  He also recommended putting AGV in it.  He said he would wipe my 'so-slow-that-it-can't-catch-a cold' laptop clean, and do a reinstall.  He thinks that is what's wrong with it. My old Dell desktop was never even mentioned.  So Jay and I left the computers there and went on into the next town.

We unloaded the paper recycling at St. Mark's Thrift Shop, and bought a few things there.  I have been disappointed with the produce at the Kroger stores, so we went to our new HEB.  I asked the produce guy if any of it was grown locally, hoping that it would be fresher.  I put a lot of raw veggies through my auger juicer, so I want them to be fresh.  He showed me which ones were Texas grown, and they all looked fresh, so I bought some.

Then we stopped at Petsmart.  Last time I was there, I had a 'thrifty spell' and bought some cans of Purina food for Misty.  But when I really looked at the labels, I saw that it has 'by-products' in it.  Now, I am not going to feed that to my old Misty.  So I exchanged them for more expensive Organix organic canned food, which is what she is used to eating, mixed with what I cook for her.  I have kept her in good shape for 2-1/2 years past her cancer 'expiration date', so I don't need to cut corners now.  She is my treasure, and she's worth it….

Later, after I was home, I got the old Dell desktop out of the van and hooked it back up. So that's what I am using now.  With only one computer working, I can't get on RV-Dreams chat, as I have to use this one for work in the evening.  Usually I have two going.  I don't like the keyboard on my laptop, so I don't use it often.

Rich called with some bad news. The mother board was going out on my HP desktop and some of the capacitors were swelling.  He said they don't make the small desktops any more because of overheating.   But that doesn't make sense to me…what about the small space in laptops?  (I bought a laptop fan to sit my old laptop on, so it doesn't seem to have that problem)  But it was obvious that when HP refurbished the desktop, that they didn't go through it thoroughly.  So I will have to get another computer. 

Then my grown granddaughter Michelle (my son's daughter) called, she is doing well, finishing last term of dental hygienist school, as it is already paid for, and then she is going to train to be a game warden.  But her mother, Becky, is now dying of cancer, even though she had that double mastectomy.  Her life expectancy is very short.  That is sad news for anyone, especially someone in her 40's.  So now they are getting future custody organized for Becky's toddler son, and Sheltie dog. 

Last night two sweet starving stray dogs came up to the houses, my house and the guest house.  So Shay and I were feeding them.   Looked like they were litter mates, but one was a lot smaller than the other. Maybe because it is so shy, and the bigger one keeps eating her food.  Shay held the big one so I could feed the little one. Poor babies, they must have been dumped.  Then a stray tabby cat came up, wanting to be fed.  When does it end?  Same old story, different day.

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Red-faced Warbler. Bar-tailed Godwit. Ruffled Feathers. BirdNote: Godwits, Egrets, and Public Lands ... Bill of Rights. Sandra Day O'Connor. IRA Officially Disarms.

 

For “Winged Wednesday”:

Red-faced Warbler

Red-faced Warbler by Greg Lavaty


“The Red-faced Warbler is one of only two warblers in the U.S. with bright red in its plumage (the other is the Painted Redstart). Unlike many warbler species, female Red-faced Warblers are nearly as brightly colored as males. This species has a distinctive habit of flicking its tail sideways as it feeds.

Male Red-faced Warblers do not appear to defend territories, and extra-pair copulations are common in the species. Over 45 percent of all nests in one study contained young that did not belong to the attending male. Its nest, a cup of bark, dead leaves, or pine needles, is built in a small hole on the ground beneath a log or plant and is lined with grass and hair.

Logging in areas where the Red-faced Warbler breeds can result in drastic declines and even complete disappearance of the local population. In a study of a gradient of disturbed plots in forests ranging from clear cuts to selectively logged plots, these birds were present only in the untouched control areas.

This species would benefit from more study on its wintering areas and more research on the effects of fire management and other forestry practices on its populations. The Red-faced Warbler is fairly easy to find in areas near the Paton property, a birding landmark which ABC and other organizations are working to save.”

Help ABC conserve this and other birds and their habitats!

Photo: Greg Lavaty, texastargetbirds.com; Range Map by NatureServe

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Bar-tailed Godwit.  An epic journey!

Bar-tailed godwits’ migration route“During fall migration, this Bar-tailed Godwit will fly over the Pacific Ocean, making a non-stop flight of 7,000 miles from Alaska to New Zealand.

These amazing birds can achieve their epic journeys only after fattening up – along the coast of Alaska in fall, or along the Yellow Sea during spring. However, the food-rich tidal mudflats of the Yellow Sea are disappearing rapidly. Using satellite tags, Nils Warnock of Audubon Alaska studies the godwits’ migration routes – and notes the critical importance of the Yellow Sea.”  More at: Preening Bar-tailed Godwit >>

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Ruffled Feathers: The Scraggly Life of Molting Birds

Molting Owl Looks Scraggly

Don’t bother me, I’m molting. (Photo Jim H.)

“I’ve noticed some scraggly looking birds the past few weeks. This time of year, many species go through a molt, which leaves them with a rough appearance. How embarrassing!

What is Molting?

Molting is the process of shedding an outer covering (like feathers) to be replaced by new growth. When birds molt, their feathers fall out and are replaced with new plumage to match their age, sex and sometimes the season.

Think about the situations you might change your outfit. Birds change their plumage for a variety of similar reasons: to control body temperature, to match the environment, for camouflage, and to attract/impress a mate.”   

Difference between breeding and non-breeding plumage for a male American goldfinch

These photos demonstrate the change in plumage for a male American goldfinch. Bright breeding plumage is shown on the left, and drab winter coat on the right. (Photos by John Benson and Rick Leche)

A lot more at: http://blog.nwf.org/2013/09/ruffled-feathers-the-scraggly-life-of-molting-birds/

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BirdNote: Godwits, Egrets, and Public Lands ...

Upcoming Shows

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Bar-tailed Godwit TUESDAY  Bar-tailed Godwit Migration  Featuring Nils Warnock Ph.D., Executive Director Audubon Alaska  LISTEN NOW ►

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Bachman's Sparrow SATURDAY Voices of our National Public Lands  by Bob Sundstrom   LISTEN NOW

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On This Day:

Bill of Rights passes Congress, Sep 25, 1789:

“The first Congress of the United States approves 12 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and sends them to the states for ratification. The amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were designed to protect the basic rights of U.S. citizens, guaranteeing the freedom of speech, press, assembly, and exercise of religion; the right to fair legal procedure and to bear arms; and that powers not delegated to the federal government were reserved for the states and the people.

Influenced by the English Bill of Rights of 1689, the Bill of Rights was also drawn from Virginia's Declaration of Rights, drafted by George Mason in 1776. Mason, a native Virginian, was a lifelong champion of individual liberties, and in 1787 he attended the Constitutional Convention and criticized the final document for lacking constitutional protection of basic political rights. In the ratification process that followed, Mason and other critics agreed to approve the Constitution in exchange for the assurance that amendments would immediately be adopted.

In December 1791, Virginia became the 10th of 14 states to approve 10 of the 12 amendments, thus giving the Bill of Rights the two-thirds majority of state ratification necessary to make it legal. Of the two amendments not ratified, the first concerned the population system of representation, while the second prohibited laws varying the payment of congressional members from taking effect until an election intervened. The first of these two amendments was never ratified, while the second was finally ratified more than 200 years later, in 1992.”

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O'Connor takes seat on Supreme Court, Sep 25, 1981:

“Sandra Day O'Connor becomes the first female U.S. Supreme Court justice in history when she is sworn in by Chief Justice Warren Burger.

Initially regarded as a member of the court's conservative faction, she later emerged from William Rehnquist's shadow (chief justice from 1986) as a moderate and pragmatic conservative. On social issues, she often votes with liberal justices, and in several cases she has upheld abortion rights. She is known for her dispassionate and carefully researched opinions on the bench and is regarded as a prominent justice because of her tendency to moderate the sharply divided Supreme Court.

On July 1, 2005, O'Connor announced her retirement from the U.S. Supreme Court. She was replaced by Justice Samuel Alito in January 2006.”

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IRA officially disarms, Sep 25, 2005:

“Two months after announcing its intention to disarm, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) gives up its weapons in front of independent weapons inspectors. The decommissioning of the group’s substantial arsenal took place in secret locations in the Republic of Ireland. One Protestant and one Catholic priest as well as officials from Finland and the United States served as witnesses to the historic event. Automatic weapons, ammunition, missiles and explosives were among the arms found in the cache, which the head weapons inspector described as "enormous."

Originally founded in 1919 to militarily oppose British rule in Ireland, the IRA had operated since about the 1960s as the military arm of Sinn Fein, the Irish nationalist political party. The IRA (and splinter groups using various derivatives of the name) had used terrorist tactics and assassinations for more than 30 years in their struggle to free Northern Ireland from British rule.

In April 1998, after more than 22 months of negotiating, a 67-page peace accord called the Belfast or Good Friday Agreement was finally signed. Endorsed by the British and Irish governments, eight of Northern Ireland’s ten political parties, and the region’s voters, the agreement included power-sharing among Catholics and Protestants in government, a commitment to peace and democracy, and a pledge by paramilitary groups on both sides to decommission their weapons within two years. A ceasefire had been in place since 1997, and although they continued to abide by it, the IRA initially refused to give up their weapons. This stalled the peace process for almost six years.

Although many Northern Irish Protestants did not trust that the IRA was truly giving up all of its weapons, the disarmament represented an important step toward lasting peace in the long-troubled region. In the aftermath of the disarmament, IRA splinter groups threatened to continue the violence.”

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Yesterday:

Misty and I went to get Jay, and had our walk down there.

The other day, while the really heavy rain was falling, some water dripped through the seams of the polycarbonate panels on the screen porch roof. 

Metal and polycarbonate panels. So, yesterday, Jay got up there, unscrewed the three polycarbonate panels partway, put blocks between them and stuck butyl putty tape between the seams.   We were told to do that, but Jay said we didn’t need to, so now we found out why it is recommended.  (When he put the metal roof on his mother’s house he did put it between the panels, but he didn’t do it when he built his own house.)  Ray was on the inside of the porch helping, too.  He put the tape where the metal panels join the polycarbonate panels. Then Ray primed the inside woodwork of the screen porch, down below the window sills. 

Jay and I started to put the closure strips at the top of each panel on the screen porch, to keep the bugs out, but we didn’t have time to finish it. 

It was a bit warmer, so the AC was on yesterday.