Praying Mantis preys on cursor

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Colorado Springs cuts into services considered basic by many

This tax-averse city is about to learn what it looks and feels like when budget cuts slash services most Americans consider part of the urban fabric.
More than a third of the streetlights in Colorado Springs will go dark Monday. The police helicopters are for sale on the Internet. The city is dumping firefighting jobs, a vice team, burglary investigators, beat cops — dozens of police and fire positions will go unfilled.
The parks department removed trash cans last week, replacing them with signs urging users to pack out their own litter.
Neighbors are encouraged to bring their own lawn mowers to local green spaces, because parks workers will mow them only once every two weeks. If that.
Water cutbacks mean most parks will be dead, brown turf by July; the flower and fertilizer budget is zero.
City recreation centers, indoor and outdoor pools, and a handful of museums will close for good March 31 unless they find private funding to stay open. Buses no longer run on evenings and weekends. The city won't pay for any street paving, relying instead on a regional authority that can meet only about 10 percent of the need.
"I guess we're going to find out what the tolerance level is for people," said businessman Chuck Fowler, who is helping lead a private task force brainstorming for city budget fixes. "It's a new day."
Some residents are less sanguine, arguing that cuts to bus services, drug enforcement and treatment and job development are attacks on basic needs for the working class.
"How are people supposed to live? We're not a 'Mayberry R.F.D.' anymore," said Addy Hansen, a criminal justice student who has spoken out about safety cuts. "We're the second-largest city, and growing, in Colorado. We're in trouble. We're in big trouble."
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Dog got his coat stolen right of him

A New York pooch was left shivering in the buff after a coldhearted mugger stole his coat just days before a raging winter storm bore down on the city.
Donna McPherson, 42, says she tied up Lexie, her 10-year-old Westie, in front of Ace Supermarket "for two minutes" so she could buy milk.
When she returned, his $25 green wool coat with leather trim and belt was gone.
Fortunately, she said, Lexie wasn't wearing his pricier Burberry.
"How could anyone steal a coat off someone's back in the freezing cold?" McPherson said. "I asked him, 'Where's your coat?' like he could answer me. I looked all over and could not find it."
At Ace Supermarket on Seventh Avenue and Berkeley Place, employees insisted the neighborhood is normally safe for all dogs. "This is highly unusual for the area," said one.
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Straddling the Wall

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Teenager sleeps her life away - Literally

When 15-year-old Louisa Ball takes a nap, she doesn’t mess around. She sleeps for days on end, and no amount of shaking or prodding can fully wake her up.
Rare illness turns girl, 15, into ‘sleeping beauty’
But it’s no fairy tale; asleep for days on end, she has to be wakened to eat.

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Man banned from carrying daughter on shoulders in Tesco

A father was banned from carrying his daughter on his shoulders during a shopping trip to Tesco.
Martin Dunkley was confronted by a security guard when he tried to enter a branch of the store in Cambridge.
The guard told the 45-year-old taxi driver to take six year-old Natalie down for health and safety reasons.
But he refused and decided to shop elsewhere.
A Tesco spokeswoman: "We take the safety of our staff and customers very seriously. Each store can make these decisions on an individual basis. We have no blanket policy on this issue."
The incident comes after other Tesco stores recently banned customers from wandering around stores wearing pajamas, then from going barefoot. Tesco ban on shoppers in pajamas
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3 Legged Bear Chooses Walking Upright

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Dogs Dinner – The Funny Version

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Dog Saves Diabetic Owner!

Don Callahan rescued his four-legged companion, Wyatt Earp, at an adoption fair held at the Detroit Zoo five years ago. Now, Wyatt Earp has returned the favor.
On January 23, Callahan collapsed while on a walk with the dog by Rotary Park on 13 Mile Road. Drivers and pedestrians couldn't see Callahan as he lay in the dark on the sidewalk.
His loyal companion stayed by his side and barked incessantly. Finally, someone called the police about the dog being a nuisance. When police responded, they found Callahan and rushed him to the hospital.
Callahan who is a diabetic, went into a coma after his blood sugar level dropped to 18, far below normal levels.
Besides being thankful for Wyatt Earp, Callahan says he is thankful to Marlene Burgess who called the police about the barking dog, which brought him the help he so greatly needed.
Callahan is recuperating at home with Wyatt Earp right by his side.
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Retirement village is exclusively for cats

Homeleigh retirement village is a perfect place to spend the twilight years, with staff to clean and cook, a garden and immaculate quarters.
But forget about signing up - unless you are a cat.
Inside a fully functional house next to Keysborough Animal Shelter in outer Melbourne, the only residents are eight aged felines.
A shelter staff member visits every morning and night to feed the cats and human visitors pop and to spend a few hours.
Elizabeth Johns, one of the directors of the village, said the cats never fought and would roam the house and garden at will.
Ms Johns, who visits twice a week, said owners can rest easy knowing their pets will be cared for. That's the case even if an owner dies or is incapacitated.
"You can't often rehome a cat, especially an older cat, and people want peace of mind," she said.
To become a resident, cats must be at least eight years old and owners must donate $6000 to cover expenses for the cat's life.
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