Sunday, 13 January 2013

Mesmerizing birds

View_From_Here sent me the link to a site showing the video below. I had to go to youtube to get the embed code and found the second one, which is also fascinating. Thanks, View.



Saturday, 12 January 2013

Meow

I'm feeling a bit lazy today. It's cold and gloomy, not terribly inspiring. I'll give you some cat photos, they tend to cheer me up, I hope they'll cheer you up too!





Friday, 11 January 2013

Incredible nature

What an fantastic place!

This photo shows a surreal-looking ice cave on the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia. It was formed by a stream flowing from the hot springs associated with the Mutnovsky volcano. This stream flows beneath glacial ice on the flanks of Mutnovsky. Because glaciers on Kamchatka volcanoes have been melting in recent years, the roof of this cave is now so thin that sunlight penetrates through it, eerily illuminating the icy structures within. Photo taken by Marc Szeglat on September 12, 2012

(Click on image to enlarge)

Thursday, 10 January 2013

The artist

There was an artist who worked from a studio in his home and specialized in nudes. He had been working on what he thought would be a masterpiece for several months now.


As usual, his model reported, and after exchanging the usual greetings and small talk, she began to undress for the day's work.

He told her not to bother, that he felt pretty bad with a cold he had been fighting. He told her that he would pay her for the day, but that she could just go home. He just wanted some hot tea and then, off to bed.

The model said, "Oh, please, let me fix it for you. It's the least I can do."

He agreed and told her to fix herself a cup, too. They were sitting in the living room just exchanging small talk and enjoying their tea, when he heard the front door open and close, then some familiar footsteps.

"Oh my God!" he whispered. "It's my wife! Quick - Take your clothes off!"

Wednesday, 9 January 2013

Sending good vibes

Bush fires are raging in many parts of Australia yet again. The temperatures dropped overnight, much to the relief of the firefighters, but they're set to rise again by Friday. Tasmania was the worst hit, followed by New South Wales and Victoria.

I chatted to our son Paul, who lives in Melbourne, and he said conditions are pretty bad. So far, there are no reports of human fatalities, but there were devastating losses of livestock.

Let's all do a rain dance for our Australian friends. They need a lot of rain!

Here are some pictures of the fires:

Tasmania

In Tasmania, a grandmother led her grandchildren to the sea, the only safe place...

New South Wales: The smoke darkens the sky and it looks like night time

One of the fires from a distance

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield took this photo from the International Space Station