If you can’t view the video above, try this link.
NOT the Video I Wanted to See…
… five days before embarking on a flight with the very same airline featured in the video.
The Source of the Swine Flu
Apparently, experts at the CDC, NIH and WHO were very happy to get this image, which shows definitively how the Swine Flu made the pig-human jump.
Thanks to Hubby for sending me the e-mail that cleared up that mystery!
What Will They Think of Next?
Hubby got a new junk catalog in the mail the other day. It was from Kotula’s, a company I’d never heard of, so I had to have a look.
There was some stuff that was useful. There was other stuff that was just plain dumb.
My personal favorite is Flair Hair.
There was also a Beverage Buggy, a Giant Wine Glass, a Talking Toilet Paper Spindle, and an Off-Road Commode. Those are just some of the unusual items offered for sale.
I guess some of this stuff would make great gag gifts. Maybe. But it’s still weird.
The Dump
We stayed home from WV this weekend so Hubby could get some time in the saddle of his motorcycle. He needs to shake off the winter cobwebs, achieve that comfort level that only comes from long hours of riding in a variety of conditions.
He plotted out a 200+ mile trek. I wasn’t feeling up to a long ride. Plus, I had some odds and ends to get done around the house.
So I stayed home.
One of those little chores was taking a bit of trash to the dump. What an adventure!
I’ve never been to the dump on a Saturday. I usually go during the week. Either early in the morning, before work, or at lunchtime. There’s hardly ever anyone there. Today, there was a line of vehicles just waiting to get in.
Once on the property, there were bumper-to-bumper cars, pick-up trucks and SUVs snaking their way back to the bulk trash area.
When I finally got to the dumping spot, with my boxes of trash, there was a worker dude there to help. Yet another anomaly to me.
Said worker dude was scolding me because I wanted to dump my boxes of trash into the bin.
“Cardboard can be recycled,” he says.
“But these cardboard boxes are full of trash,” I replied.
“Just dump the boxes and I’ll put the cardboard into the recycle bin,” was his response.
Weird. At least he offered to take the boxes away for me. No one had ever told me that one before. So I commenced dumping the boxes.
The last box was full of old beer glasses.
“Wait,” he said as I was about to dump them. “Glass can be recycled, too.”
He had a point. So I gave him that and off he went.
Where are the helpful dump workers when I have a truck full of heavy stuff to discard?
There was still a line of cars waiting to enter when I left. I don’t think I’ll ever go to the dump on a Saturday again.
Everything Here is So Green
It is still raining here. Sort of. It is not raining right this second, but it is supposed to rain some more later today. And everything is still wet. It is cloudy, too, so it feels like it is still raining.
The good thing about all the rain is that everything is very green. It’s pretty colorful, too.
I don’t have a lot to say today, but I do want to share some of the artsy pics I shot this past weekend. The first is one I shared the other day.
Why the repeat? Because I want you to click on the image so the large version is visible. While looking at the large version, tell me if you can see the spider peeking out from the top of the flower, on the left, with the big drop hanging off of it. I thought that was a pretty cool accident.
I have a thing for wet pine needles.
This flower is only about 3 inches tall, if that.
The Redbud blooms are starting to fade. If I had a horse, I would name it Redbud. I think that would be a cool name for a horse, but a stupid name for a dog. Not that I ever expect to own a horse…
I shot this one toward evening, which why the light is super soft.
See how green?
I thought these little red leaves were cool.
The red leaves, for whatever reason, are slower to emerge than the green ones.
The same leaves from further back. Just cause I like to experiment.
Look at the big, fat raindrop.
This one is my favorite. It is very artsy, don’t you think?
It is so artsy, I felt it needed a frame. And a name.
I hope you enjoyed today’s little taste of nature.
Girls’ Weekend in WV
This past weekend was the first ever girls’ weekend at the WV place. It was fabulous.
Unfortunately, timing wasn’t good for Tracey. She couldn’t make it (we missed you, Trace!). But Carol was able to come.
That’s Carol pictured at right. She and I have been friends for over 30 years. Thirty years! Yikes, that sure sounds like a long time. We’ve known Tracey almost as long.
My doggie girls came, too. They love our WV place so much, I can’t imagine going up there without them. Unless I am on my motorcycle, that is.
Anyway, it really was a very nice, relaxing weekend. It rained every day, but we did get a few dry spells. We were inside most of the time and perfectly content regardless of the weather. We were very happy the rain held off long enough that we could grill some steaks for dinner on Saturday night.
I did have a little bit of excitement on Saturday morning. I was up relatively early, thanks to Belle, and decided to load some firewood into the truck while it was still cool. I’d promised my neighbor, Jean, that I’d give her some of the extra wood we have laying around all over the place.
I was pulling small-diameter, 18″ lengths of wood off the stack when I saw this…
… a pretty big black snake. In my woodpile!
Had the dogs not been around, I would’ve shooed it out of there. But they were nearby, so I left it alone.
A little while later, Carol, the dogs and I piled into the truck and drove to Jean’s house. We saw this on the way…
We didn’t visit with Jean and Buddy (her dog) for very long. The sun had finally come out, bringing with it a gazillion gnats. We stayed just long enough to unload the wood and chat for a few minutes, then we all piled back into the truck and went to town.
Sunday was pretty wet. Luckily, Hubby keeps an umbrella in the truck, so I was still able to take the girls for their morning walk.
They don’t seem to mind getting wet. But they sure look pathetic when they come home all soaked.
I think Meg just wanted to take a nap.
Not long before we decided to start packing for the trip home, Belle showed up with turkey poo all over her chin (she likes to roll in the stuff).
She was quite stinky, so I had to clean her up a bit. Unfortunately for Carol, she didn’t notice the poo until after Belle laid her chin on Carol’s knee. Now I know that waterless dog bath works on people, too!
That cute little dog of mine can sure get into some stinky messes!
It was definitely a relaxing weekend. We really missed having Tracey there, though. We’ll have to start planning the next girls’ weekend at the WV place soon!