Saturday, May 31, 2008

You Been Bad



Have You Smiled Today


Happy Birthday

Click to Enlarge


Getting to Know Each Other


How to Advertise Without Commitment


The American Diet

Ninety percent of Americans' household food budget is spent on processed food, the majority of which are filled with additives and stripped of nutrients. Processed, packaged foods have almost completely taken over the diet of Americans.Unfortunately, most processed foods are laden with sweeteners, salts, artificial flavors, factory-created fats, colorings, chemicals that alter texture, and preservatives. But the trouble is not just what's been added, but what's been taken away. Processed foods are often stripped of nutrients designed by nature to protect your heart, such as soluble fiber, antioxidants, and "good" fats. Combine that with additives, and you have a recipe for disaster.

If $4 Gas Is Bad, Just Wait $7 a Gallon Gas Is Possible

Judging from the futures markets, shock at the gas pump is bound to get worse. Maybe much worse. Since the beginning of the year, benchmark oil and gasoline futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange both have increased by more than a third, but the average retail price of gasoline in the U.S. has risen by 22%. That bodes ill for consumers.So far, oil refiners and petroleum-product distributors have absorbed much of the increase, but their ability to continue to swallow losses and operate at thin margins is limited. Many analysts consider $4-a-gallon retail gasoline across the U.S. a foregone conclusion this summer driving season, a period of typically peak demand, but those estimates take only current record-high oil prices into account. Thursday, light, sweet crude futures breached $135 a barrel, more than double the price a year ago. If oil hits $200 a barrel, which is the upper end of Goldman Sach's prediction for prices over the next six months to two years, the gasoline picture changes quite dramatically. At $200 a barrel, crude alone would cost $4.76 a gallon. Add on the costs of refining and distributing as well as taxes, and pump prices could rise to a range of $6 to $7 a gallon.

Think Green

The wheelbarrow-bike that could be the solution to saving gas
It looks like a wheelbarrow attached to a bike - but transport experts believe it could be the solution to school-run traffic.
Families in Richmond are being asked to swap their 4x4s for a more environmentally friendly mode of transport: Dutch cargo bikes. Each costs from £1,150 and can carry a rider and up to three young children, or the weekly family shop. The "wheelbarrow" section is fitted with seatbelts for children.

Friday, May 30, 2008

Personality Test

WHICH CARTOON CHARACTER'S PERSONALITY BEST DESCRIBES YOU?
Everyone has a personality of a cartoon character. Have you ever asked yourself what cartoon character do you most resemble?
A group of investigators got together and analyzed the personalities of well known and modern cartoon characters. The information that was gathered was made into this test. Answer all the questions (only 10) with what describes you best. Add add up all of your points (which are next to the answer you choose) and at the end, look for your results.
Do not cheat by looking at the end of the e-mail before you are done. Then forward this to all your friends (including the person who sent it to you) and change the SUBJECT line to what character is you.

1. Which one of the following describes the perfect date?
a) Candlelight dinner (4 pts.)
b) Fun/Theme Park (2 pts.)
c) Painting in the park (5 pts)
d) Rock concert (1 pt.)
e) Going to the movies (3 pts.)

2. What is your favorite type of music?
a) Rock and Roll (2 pts.)
b) Alternative (1 pt.)
c) Soft Rock (4 pts.)
d) Country (5 pts )
e) Pop (3 pts.)

3. What type of movies do you prefer?
a) Comedy (2 pts.)
b) Horror (1 pt.)
c) Musical (3 pts.)
d) Romance (4 pts.)
e) Documentary (5 pts.)

4. Which one of these occupations would you choose to do?
a) Waiter (4 pts.)
b) Professional Sports Player (5 pts.)
c) Teacher (3 pts.)
d) Police (2 pts.)
e) Cashier (1 pt)

5 What do you do with your spare time?
a) Exercise (5 pts.)
b) Read (4 pts.)
c) Watch television (2 pts.)
d) Listen to music (1 pt.)
e) Sleep (3 pts.)

6. Which one of the following colors do you like best?
a) Yellow (1 pt.)
b) White (5 pts.)
c) Sky Blue (3 pts)
d) Dark Blue(2 pts.)
e) Red (4 pts.)

7. What do you prefer to eat?
a) Snow (3 pts.)
b) Pizza (2 pts.)
c) Sushi (1 pt.)
d) Pasta (4 pts.)
e) Salad (5 pts.)

8. What is your favorite holiday?
a) Halloween(1 pt.)
b) Christmas(3 pts.)
c) New Year (2 pts.)
d) Valentine's Day(4 pts.)
e) Thanksgiving(5 pts.)

9. If you could go to one of these places which one would it be?
a) Paris (4 pts)
b) Spain (5 pts)
c) Las Vegas (1 pt)
d) Hawaii (4 pts)
e) Hollywood (3 pts)

10. With which of the following would you prefer to spend time with?
a) Someone Smart (5 pts.)
b) Someone attractive (2 pts.)
c) Someone who likes to Party (1 pt.)
d) Someone who always has fun (3 pts.)
e) Someone very sentimental (4 pts.)

Now add up your points.....and see below which cartoon character's personality is like yours. When you forward this to your friends, put your character's name in the SUBJECT area. Very interesting to see 'who' your friends are! :)

(10-16 points) You are Garfield: You are very comfortable, easy going, and you definitely know how to have fun but sometimes you take it to an extreme. You always know what you are doing and you are always in control of your life. Others may not see things as you do, but that doesn't mean that you always have to do what is right. Try to remember, your happy spirit may hurt you or others.

(17-23 points) You are Snoopy: You are fun; you are very cool and popular. You always know what's in and your never out of style , you are good at knowing how to satisfy everyone else. You have probably disappeared for a few days more than once but you always come home with the family values that you learned being married and having children are important to you, but only after you have had your share of fun times.

(24-28 points) You are Elmo: You have lots of friends and you are also popular, always willing to give advice and help out a person in need. You are very optimistic and you usually see the bright side of things. Some good advice: try not to be too much of a dreamer. Dreaming too big could cause many conflicts in your life.

(29-35 points) You are Sponge Bob Square Pants: You are the classic person that everyone loves. You are the best friend that anyone could ever have and never wants to lose. You never cause harm to anyone and they would never not understand your feelings. Life is a journey, its funny and calm for the most part stay away from traitors and jealous people and you will be stress free.

(36-43 points) You are Charlie Brown: You are tender, you fall in love quickly but you are also very serious about all relationships. You are a family person. You call your Mom every Sunday. You have many friends and may occasionally forget a few Birthdays. Don't let your passion confuse you with reality.

(44-50 points ) You are Dexter: You are smart and definitely a thinker... Every situation is fronted with a plan. You have a brilliant mind. You demonstrate very strong family principles. You maintain a stable routine but never ignore a bad situation when it comes. Try to do less over thinking every once in a while to spice things up a bit with spontaneity!

80 years and counting

Still together after 80 years, Britain's oldest married couple celebrate their 'oak' wedding with a simple kiss. As with any married couple, there are times when Frank and Anita Milford don’t quite see eye to eye.
But they have never let the odd disagreement get in the way of their love for each other and their dedication to their marriage.
To prove it, Frank, 100, and Anita, 99, today celebrate their 80th wedding anniversary, equalling the record for England’s longest-ever marriage.
They say the secret to a lasting marriage is to iron out your arguments before bedtime and share a kiss and a cuddle every night before bed.
Mrs Milford said: ‘It’s our golden rule. Couples these days don’t last long because they often don’t take enough time for each other.
'Our advice to young couples would be to make time for a little romance every day.’
Mr Milford added: ‘To win over your sweetheart you need a dose of old-fashioned chivalry and don’t let your standards slip. We do everything together even after 80 years.’
The pair met in 1926 at a YMCA dance in their home town of Plymouth. They married two years later, on May 26, 1928, and after the register office ceremony popped to the cinema to catch a Charlie Chaplin film.
Shortly after they moved to a bungalow in the city’s St Budeaux district, where they lived until 2005. Mr Milford worked at Devonport Dockyard until retiring at 60.
The couple have two children, Marie, 78, and Frank, 73, five grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.
Mr Milford said: ‘We’re proud of what we have achieved. When we started we had low wages and worked very hard.
‘The war years were tough - a bomb even dropped on our house. But we have comethrough it.’ Since moving to a nursing home, the couple have taken up a range of hobbies.
They have just received a letter from the Queen congratulating them on their ‘oak’ anniversary. Their 80 years together equals the English record set by Percy and Florence Arrowsmith of Hereford in 2006. Mr Arrowsmith died a fortnight after celebrating the anniversary.
Guinness World Records says the longest British marriage was that of Thomas and Elizabeth Morgan of Caerleon, South Wales, who were married for 81 years 260 days until her death in 1891.

How to do the Hokey Pokey

Little Bits

One bug coming right up: Mom delivers lunch through the fly-by window of a hoopoe nest in Israel. The hoopoe was chosen Thursday as Israel's national bird in conjunction with the country's 60th anniversary.


Kirk's weekly gift: Kirk Douglas tries out a slide at the Lillian Elementary School playground, the 400th school playground he has renovated in Los Angeles. The 91-year-old actor and his wife, Anne, have donated a $25,000 renovation each week for 11 years.
Terney the tiger tries to figure out what's in the birthday present at the Philadelphia Zoo.

Unlikely litter mates Chihuahua adopt squirrels

Don't tell Zachary, but his bushy-tailed brother is adopted. The rodent is one of three orphaned squirrels being raised by Zack's mom, along with her own two pups, in Cundy's Harbor, Maine.
Norma, a 5-year-old long-haired Chihuahua, has a litter of five. Three of them can hang upside down from the top of their kennel cage and hold food in their front paws. That's because three of Norma's babies are squirrels.
In early April, a tree worker cut down a tree near Cundy's Harbor Road to find a squirrel nest inside with three infants. They were abandoned, likely because the chainsaw scared off the little tykes' mother.
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E. Patterson said...
So adorable! Who can resist these two? Mankind can learn a lot from the animals. It doesn't matter who you are, we all have the capacity to love each other.

Song thrush chicks hatched on fairground ride

Three song thrush chicks have hatched in a nest in Nottinghamshire - on top of a funfair carousel. The chicks, thought to have hatched about 10 days ago, were spotted by staff at Wheelgate Park in Mansfield. The adult birds moved in four weeks ago and built a nest high up in the structure of the carousel. They fly in to feed the chicks when the ride stops.
The song thrush is a garden songbird whose numbers have declined so much it is on the RSPB's warning red list. Ken Foster, team leader at Wheelgate Park, said: "The chicks are doing fine and both parents are flying in to feed them when the ride stops and customers get on and off. We make sure we allow plenty of time. "However, the chicks seem very happy having a bite to eat while twirling around on the carousel, they obviously don't suffer from motion sickness!"

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Hair Rasing Experience

Electrostatic Discharge


Think Green



I love country music


Mirror Image


Polite Parrot

Scrap man's 'brass' cup revealed as £500,000 gold goblet

A metal cup acquired by a man from Somerset has been revealed to be a pure gold goblet from the 3rd or 4th Century BC, worth up to £500,000. The analysis confirmed its age and that it had been painstakingly crafted from one piece of gold.

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Student's perfect attendance results in new car

CONSTANTINE, Mich. (AP) - Andria Baker has pretty much always been present. From the first day of kindergarten through her last day of high school, Baker somehow made it to school for every day of classes, despite colds and sports injuries. Why? If she kept it up, her father promised her a car. Baker kept up her end of the bargain, willing herself to go to school on those days when she felt under the weather. She notched her 13th year of uninterrupted classroom attendance with her final day at Constantine High School on Friday.
At a party Sunday, her father, Tim, presented the young woman with the keys to a new, $17,000 Pontiac G6, complete with a "0 DAYS" personalized license plate. "Without a doubt, it was worth every penny I spent," he said. The look on my daughter's face when she saw the car was priceless, Tim Baker said. "When she turned around after seeing the car, she did not know what to do," he said. "We got her into the car and she just sat there. Then she ran into the house to get her driver's license, and she and her best friend got in the car and tooled down the road.
"Andria Baker, 19, said she probably would have gone ahead with her quest for perfect attendance even if a new car had not been promised.
"A lot of my friends thought I was crazy, but I just kept going," she said.

Girl of four saves man from fire

A girl of four saved the life of a sleeping neighbor by raising the alert after a blaze broke out in his flat. Leah Merritt was woken by a smoke alarm in the apartment above her family’s. She knew exactly what to do after a talk on fire safety two weeks ago at her nursery school.
Leah said: "I heard a beeping noise and ran and told my mummy." Mum Sam Broom, 25, and dad Barry Merritt, 31, at first thought the noise was a false alarm. Technician Barry said: "I couldn’t raise anyone upstairs so dialed 999." Firemen broke in to the flat in Brentwood, Essex, and rescued a 49-year-old man suffering smoke inhalation. A spokesman said: "If it hadn’t been for Leah he could have died."

Dogs fears a toy puppy

Yabba-Dabba-Do protesters arrested during protest

Six Greenpeace activists dressed as cavemen and traveling in a Flintstones-style vehicle were detained along with three others for public order offences.
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A stone tablet accusing car lobbyists of driving climate change was confiscated before it could be delivered to lawmakers, a Greenpeace spokeswoman said. The European Parliament will this week start debating legislation to force down CO2 emissions from cars, with fines on manufacturers that fail to comply.

Monday, May 26, 2008

The tornado went That-A-Way

PARKERSBURG, Iowa — Severe thunderstorms packing large hail and tornadoes rumbled across the United States' midsection on Sunday, killing at least eight people and damaging dozens of homes, authorities said. Iowa Homeland Security administrator Dave Miller said seven of the dead were killed by a tornado in northeast Iowa — five from Parkersburg, 20 miles northwest of Waterloo, and two from nearby New Hartford. At least 50 injuries were reported. "Occasionally we have a death but we have warning system. Seven deaths. It's been a long time since we've had those kinds of injuries and deaths reported," Miller said.Witnesses reported parts of Parkersburg was reduced to rubble, including the town's high school and most of the homes.
A tornado also struck just to the east in the nearby town of Dunkerton and elsewhere in Black Hawk County, where there were reports of homes damaged or destroyed. Dunkerton has fewer than 800 residents and New Hartford has about 700 people.
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I posted this because it happen less then 20 miles from my home and the weatherman says it probably a F4 or F5 the strongest there is. It was reported that the wind where I live was gusting at 93 mph.
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weatherman said...
There have been 43 reports of tornadoes mostly in Iowa on Sunday..That was a destructive one..It's great that you were safe out there..though sad thing was there were casualties..My hopes and prayers for the fast and healthy recovery of the victims out there..

Memorial Day



A Knight in Shining Armor


New Kitty

Saturday, May 24, 2008

TOKYO BIKE PARKING TOWER

It can accommodate 9400 bicycles

TV Theme Songs Time Sweep - Parts 1 & 2

These will bring back some memories for many of you older folks.

..

A curious baby sloth

The Telectroscope, London's window on New York

It looks like something from the Victorian era, and its name sounds like a device from 1950s science fiction. The Telectroscope is an extraordinary new device that allows people in London to see across the Atlantic. Positioned at a spot near Tower Bridge, it allows people to watch their counterparts in New York, peering through an identical scope near the Brooklyn Bridge.

It is the invention of Paul St George, a 53-year-old artist in based in London who - using broadband internet cable to transmit video images between the two venues at high speed - gives the impression that the two cities are connected via a telescope under the Atlantic sea.
For £1 a go, people will be able to wave down a massive viewing pipe into the earth and see

Mom Makes Kids Hold Up Embarrassing Signs

Single Mother Says She's Run Out Of Ideas
OMAHA, Neb. -- A single mother said she is at her wits' end with her children's behavior, so she's making them hold signs at a busy intersection as punishment.
Christina Wilcox and her children stood at an Omaha street corner on Thursday night. One son held a sign that said: "I'll never have a girlfriend. I can't respect my mom." Another son's sign proclaimed him a thief.
"They'll learn by embarrassment," Wilcox said. "They'll learn. I've tried grounding them and disciplining them in every form and way, and this the only way I can get through to them."
Mason, 7, is being punished for stealing.
"He's starting down the wrong road of thieving and then lying about it," Wilcox said. "He's thieved from a couple of friends, from a store, and I just don't want it to proceed."
Wilcox said that 5-year-old Elizabeth is following in her big brothers' footsteps, so she held a sign, too.
"They're not going to want to do it again, so there will be no more lying and no more thieving," Wilcox said.
Some drivers honked and gave Wilcox the thumbs up. Others shouted profanities. Wilcox said that everyone has a right to their own opinion, but she said she didn't know what else to do.
"I'm a single mom of three. I work full time, so time outs and everything else don't always work," she said.
Dustin Wilcox said he's not fazed by the punishment, but he said it does get him thinking.
"It really doesn't bother me standing out here doing this," Dustin said. "I've been trying to work on being more respectful, not yelling at my mom and not arguing with her."
The children held the signs for about and hour and 45 minutes. Wilcox said it was the last time they would hold the signs, and she thinks they got the message.

Crowd Helps Disabled Guy With The National Anthem

This is one of those feel good videos
On Disability Awareness day at Fenway a mentally challenged guy gets a little nervous while singing the National Anthem so the crowd steps in to help him out.

Beaten by a female, man gets second place

A Very Small Trophy

Friday, May 23, 2008

Lonegan the donkey on the mend

A rare miniature donkey twin born with severely deformed legs is having corrective treatment that may eventually enable him to stand on his own four feet.
Donkey twins Lonegan and Donegan were born at Willowdale Donkey Stud in Western Australia on March 29.
Owner and Perth donkey breeder Barbara Bracken said it was believed there were just four sets of miniature donkey twins in the world. "It’s very rare for twins to live," she said. "Equines don’t carry twins, they either abort both at six months or give birth to one live and one stillborn."

In the News

Teenage boy jailed for taking call in court
A MAGISTRATE has jailed a teen for answering his mobile phone in court.
The 17-year-old let his mobile ring with the music of US rapper Akon before he answered the call while sitting in the front row of Darwin Magistrates Court yesterday. When the teen "backchatted'' after he was told off, magistrate Daynor Trigg shouted across the courtroom and sent him to the court cells for three hours. The magistrate said he could have confiscated the phone for 28 days for the "rude'' act. "How dare you answer a phone in court ... that allows transmissions from court ... which is a serious contempt,'' he shouted at the teen when he answered the phone.
When the teen waved it off as "my bad'', Mr Trigg ordered he be taken away.
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Cops pose as pizza deliverers to nab teens
Police in Harrisburg, Pa., said they posed as Domino's pizza delivery workers to nab five would-be robbers who allegedly targeted employees of the pizzeria.Harrisburg city spokesman Matthew Coulter said a Domino's delivery worker told police he thought he was being targeted for a robbery after he arrived at his destination and saw people "lurking in the shadows," The Patriot-News, a Harrisburg newspaper, reported Thursday.
Coulter said a call came in for a delivery at the same address the following night, and a police officer posed as a delivery worker by placing a Domino's placard on an unmarked car. The spokesman said a teenage boy pointed a pellet gun at the officer after he arrived, but fled with four others when the officer identified himself. The undercover officer, along with a second officer hiding in his back seat and other police in the area, chased down the suspects Police arrested four 15-year-old boys and a 14-year-old boy on charges of robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery.
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Boston Police say 14-year-old's kidnaping was a hoax
Boston Police say they were the victims of a hoax today when they launched a major search for a 14-year-old Dorchester girl who was simply skipping school.
Alexus Clarke, a resident of Monadnock Street, was nervous that her mother might be angry at her for being a truant. So she text-messaged her mother, saying that she was in trouble and being held against her will, said Police Superintendent Daniel Linskey.
"As a father, I feel happy a 14-year-old girl is safe and unharmed. As a police officer, I'm a little upset we wasted some time," said Linskey.
Clarke was reported missing at about 9:30 a.m. She was found by police at about 5:30 p.m.
Linskey said dozens of officers spent hours looking for Clarke, who is in eighth grade at a Boston middle school.

McDonald's Fries Are Now McHealthier

McDonald's french fries are now trans-fat-free in all its restaurants in the United States and Canada, the fast-food restaurant chain said Thursday.
McDonald's has lagged other restaurant operators in switching over to a zero-trans-fat cooking oil out of worries it would compromise the taste of its trademark fries. It has been under increasing pressure from consumer advocates and some public officials to make the change.
The new oil is canola-based and includes corn and soy oils.
CEO Jim Skinner told shareholders at the annual meeting at its headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., that the new oil has been in use in U.S. restaurants for a few months now for french fries, hash browns, chicken, filet of fish and biscuits.
He said McDonald's is on schedule to convert to the new oil by year's end for its remaining baked items, pies and cookies.
Skinner said the company decided not to advertise the changes.
McDonald's Corp. has nearly 14,000 restaurants in the United States.

Could Bella the oldest dog in the world?

A Derbyshire couple are trying to prove their pet Labrador cross is the oldest dog in the world. Bella's owner David Richardson, 76, said he bought the mixed breed dog from the RSPCA 26 years ago when she was "at least three years old". That would make Bella's age more than 200 in canine years.
But the RSPCA said it does not have any records for Bella and Guinness World Records said without the appropriate paperwork it could not be proved. Mr Richardson said he thought Bella might be the oldest dog in England, but was shocked to realise that she might be the oldest in the world. His partner Daisy Cooper said Bella was showing signs of her age, but still goes for a walk in the park. She eats little as she has only two teeth left, but loves to suck on sweets.
With news video.

Lifeboat rescue for stranded dog

The tables were turned when a dog, usually associated with saving people in distress, got himself into a spot of bother on the beach. Arnold, a St Bernard-mastiff cross followed another dog down 130 steps to Whipsiderry beach near Newquay, but was too old - and fat - to climb back up. As the tide came up the beach, Arnold's worried owner contacted coastguard.