*Except there's no shirts, and the only 'T' is on the end of the elephant.
Because its spring, and that means peewee pachyderms in the pool. This week, the keepers at the Houston zoo brought out the new 'baby' pool for their younger elephants. And it was quite a splash hit...
Baylor is over 1100 lbs, tiny Tupelo is only 600. Baby Baylor's first pool.
See at :20 where Mom sticks her foot in? Notice the keepers bribe her (and auntie) with tidbits to keep their big feet (and 10,000lbs) out of his baby pool. But they still end up replacing the pools every few weeks.
Make you want a pool of your own?... It just makes me want summer, stat! ;-)
Though the bribe be small, yet the fault is great.
- Edward Coke
The World Bank estimates over $1 trillion of the Earth's economy is bribes. Luckily, Vijay Anand, and the people of zerocurrency.org, have begun to reduce that number through financial non-violence. Meet the 'zero rupee':
When asked for a bribe, you hand over this zero-rupee note which looks like real currency but says "Eliminate corruption at all levels. I promise to neither accept nor give bribes." And it works! One official in Tamil Nadu was so stunned to receive the note that he handed back all the bribes he had solicited for providing electricity to an entire village.
Vijay says: "Corruption starts before birth here. Parents have to pay a bribe to the nursing staff to even know the sex of the baby. (If it is a girl child you pay less, if its a boy child you pay a little more bribe.) That is where it begins for an Indian citizen. And after getting discharged from the hospital, (come the bribes for) obtaining of the birth certificate. Then when (they) got to school, obtaining admission requires another bribe..." and so on.
This non-money?... It is worth the paper its printed on.
The book for do-it-yourself royal wedding planners:
'Knit Your Own Royal Wedding' (yes, its a real book)
With the first peek at Kate Middleton's wedding dress. *shetland wool must be the new silk...
The archbishop presides at Westminster Abbey. Finally, these 'Woolly Windsors', Charles & Camilla, Harry, Prince William & Kate, Queen Elizabeth & Philip all give a balcony wave. (Not sure what those corgis are doing...)
All you true book lovers out there, Have you transitioned to virtual books?
How could you possibly give up the smell of ink, the feel of the velvety pages, the sound of the pages turning, the heft of the book in your hands...
Meri, here's my answer...
I do like real books, honestly.
But my conversion to digital books began the day I went to my library to borrow this hefty new book that had been recommended to me. The librarian found it, and handed it over. Actually she heaved it my way, since it has over a 1000 pages, weighs more than the dog I was pup-sitting, and it has -no- page numbers or index.
I could only read it* with my bent legs propped up on a very sturdy ottoman. (the furniture type - not a guy - sheesh)
Until I see the new contender, I can't decide. So currently I'm still using my mobile to read eBooks, while waiting to find out which new device will win my heart. Or at least my wallet. I'll keep you posted.
Meanwhile, enjoy the sweet irony of this audio-visual trailer that publisher MacMillan put out recently to promote a 32-page children's book. Its protagonist eschews the digital, prefering the pleasures of reading. Watch a video of a book about reading a book... *That 5 lb tome? Surprised me that it was a graphic novel/comic that was turned into the 'Walking Dead' tv series. At over $50, $10 a pound, its not worth all that weight. Happy Reading... or 'Viewing'. Playing Along: Theme Thursday: Book ================
I'm amazed by all the creativity on the web just trying to make sense of the latest missives from actor Charlie Sheen. But I think its an impossible task:
On drugs… “I am on a drug. It’s called 'Charlie Sheen'. It’s not available. If you try it once, you will die. Your face will melt off...”
On beating addiction… “I closed my eyes and made it so with the power of my mind ...AA. It’s a silly book written by a broken-down fool.”
On his own in-home rehab… “...that we labeled the Sober Valley Lodge. … its primary client achieved radical success.”
On discussing his behavior with his kids… “Talk about an education. And then, like, this, and then that’s the guy, and that’s our dad and we can get all the answers and the truth? Wow, 'winning!'...”
On being special… “I will not believe that if I do something then I have to follow a certain path because it was written for normal people. People who aren’t special. People who don’t have tiger blood and Adonis DNA.”
On being tired… “I’m tired of pretending I’m not a total bitchin’ rock star from Mars.”
On life… “...my life is so much more bitchin’ than yours. I planned it this way.”
Newsflash... "...I am special. I will never be one of you."
On what people think… “If people think I’m insane... I have no interest in their retarded opinions. I’m gonna live my life the way I want... they can just find the most comfortable chair in their small house and sit back and enjoy the show.”
Or go here for more Sloth Sheen screenshots by buzzfed. ETA - Charlie Sheen's strong moral code:
Howard Stern announced a 'Charlie Sheen Beauty Pageant' for his Thursday show, with the girls that Charlie used to pay to have sex with. Charlie wasn’t amused and said he felt burned by the girls.
Random musings plus hits & bits. Also 'guilty' tv that I never talk about with my pals IRL: 'Top_Chef' and 'D_List', with a dash of 'Flipping Out', 'Middle' & 'GLEE'.
That's all.
Thanks for playing.
Though the bribe be small, yet the fault is great.
