YouTube - ☺ Best Guitar Improvisation Ever
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZM0EGBdHOw
The guitar’s good but check out this guys facial expressions while he’s playing, absolutley hilarious. He’s having loads of fun.
Slashdot | The Last Pinball Machine Factory
Hi Admin hereAs Denise hasn’t been able to post for ages I thought I’d share this sad sad story with you all.
I’ve just read this on slashdot and it brought a lump to my throat as all my younger days flooded back.
The New York Times is running a story about Stern Pinball Inc., which they say is the last pinball factory left worldwide. The story describes working there as a “game geek’s fantasy job.” The company president, Gary Stern, acknowledges the lack of demand, but he plans on sticking around. He also expects the industry to rebound within the next 10 years. We’ve previously discussed a slightly smaller version of pinball. “Corner shops, pubs, arcades and bowling alleys stopped stocking pinball machines. A younger audience turned to video games. Men of a certain age, said [Pinball Hall of Fame operator Tim Arnold], who is 52, became the reliable audience. (”Chicks,” he announced, “don’t get it.”) And so for Mr. Stern, the pinball buyer is shifting. In the United States, Mr. Stern said, half of his new machines, which cost about $5,000 and are bought through distributors, now go directly into people’s homes and not a corner arcade.”
Gutted!!
Yep, couldn’t believe it. My friend said that only yesterday. I hate cats.
Please expand I asked.
They come and go as they please, show affection when they want to, crap in your flower beds, or should I say my flower beds because they’re too sensible to crap in their own, laze around all day and leave you to go and have fun at night, hairballs enough said, shred curtains/furntiure. Ok Ok I had to stop her.
I started to stand up for them and then thought better of it. She’s obviously got pre-conceived notions and I don’t think anything I said would have made the slightest difference. And she did make a couple of valid points.
I love cats and she’s entitled to her opinion too.
Enough said.
You love them, you feed them, you keep them warm, you feed them, you put up with shredded curtains and clean up after them and you feed them.
So why do cats insist on killing mice, birds, rabbits, gazelle, wilderbeast and dragging them in through the back door. That wilderbeast kept us going for weeks.
Ok, ok, I do know why, instinct and all that. But it’s still a little upsetting when you have to clean the blood trail up and worse, put some little bird out of its misery.
Oh the joys of being a cat owner.
Does anyone know how to stop this deluge of blood letting. Thoughts on a postcard please or leave a comment.
Cat DNA is mostly decoded
Ok, this looks like it could be huge so I’m reproducing it here. I didn’t even know cat DNA was being decoded. But then again why should I.
From the Associated Press
November 3, 2007
Researchers have largely decoded the DNA of an Abyssinian cat, a step that may aid the search for treatments for both feline and human diseases.
The work is published in this month’s Genome Research journal.
The DNA of about two dozen mammals has been unraveled, including dogs, chimps, rats, mice, cows and, of course, people. Cats were added to the list because they get more than 200 diseases that resemble human illnesses — for example SARS, diabetes, retinal disease and spina bifida, said one of the researchers, Stephen J. O’Brien of the National Cancer Institute. Knowing cats’ genetic makeup is expected to facilitate vaccine and treatment research.
The genetic map covers about two-thirds of the DNA of a research cat named Cinnamon who lives at the University of Missouri in Columbia. More complete results are expected next year, O’Brien said.
The full complement of an organism’s DNA is called its genome. In cats, as in people, it’s made up of nearly 3 billion building blocks. The sequence of those blocks spells out the hereditary information, just as strings of letters spell out sentences. Decoding or “sequencing” a genome means identifying the order of the building blocks.
The new work identified 20,285 genes in the cat. Humans are thought to have perhaps 20,000 to 25,000.
I’m into a healthy lifestyle and try to keep the weight down. I do take vitamin supplements to keep the ol’ immune system boosted.
This site links straight into ebay. It takes you straight to the goods.
They have done away with the auctions and only list buy it now items.
Stumbled upon this gem today and thought I’d share it with you. There’s a lot of feeling behind this!
I don't miss her, but I miss you.
You are the only cat I ever liked...and I think you liked me as I'm the only person you let pick up and walk around with.
Sure, you were crabby, sounded like a rusty can when you were meowing, would ignore the laser pointer and got pissed at me when I needed to work and not pet you.
Oh sure, you'd complain and make me feel bad for feeding you the same thing and at the same time as her other 2 cats, but did you notice I'd always slip you a piece of meat from my dinner plate?
I know you were old and stairs were not as easy as they used to be, so I was always secretly glad and flattered to hear your voice by the bedroom door when I'd stay over.
I know her kids liked the other animals in the house more then you, and I'm sorry, but I liked you better then her kids anyway.
And yes, I know you watched me walk away that last time I left; I knew I wouldn't be coming back so I hope you found that catnip mouse I left in your secret hiding spot...you deserved 1 last rush in your old age.
I'm not sure if you are even still alive as I haven't been by the house since March of 05, but I hope that you are happy, warm and still catching the beam of sunlight in your favourite spot.
Anyway, just wanted you to know that you were the only cool cat I've ever known and that I miss you.
Right, you know how to grow the catnip for your cat but where to you buy it from.
Ok here’s a couple of links to get you going growing your own catnip
from Amazon at $2.69
for the UK market
There are loads of links on ebay for the seeds. Do a search on “catnip seeds”.
Finally a list of companies selling the seeds from Holland, Israel, Italy and the USA.
Well almost free. Grow your own catnip to give your feline friends a deserved treat.
We’ve mentioned recently the catnip plant, here it is. Well I’ve found some info from a gardening site that may come in useful and save you some money into the bargain.
I have unashamedly pulled this direct from their website so apologies to them but here’s a link back so you may want to check out their organic herb gardening section.
Catnip needs moist rich soil. Catnip prefers sun or partial shade, but if you grow your catnip in full sun, the plants will be sturdier and shorter.
Seeds should be sown 1/8 inch deep and covered with fine soil. Press your catnip seeds down. If you grow your seeds indoors, they should germinate in 10-20 days. If you grow them outdoors, you should plant your seeds in the fall for spring plants. When your catnip plants are about 2 inches tall, thin them. When you’re ready to harvest in the late summer, cut and dry the mature leafy tops and leaves. However, if you want a second harvest, cut the catnip plant back severely after the first flowering.
Days to Germinate: 10-20
That’s all there is to it. Get gardening.
When you realise that your cat is overweight the impulse may be to reach for the Feline Atkins Diet book and half starve your precious pet, fill it full of fat and no carbs (you may do it to yourself but why put your cat through it).
No, the first thing to do is ask your vet how much weight it should lose. That should give you some sort of idea how much of a problem you have to face.
Formulated cat food now exists specifically for weight reduction programs. Again ask your vet for details.
Now’s the time to start looking at the backs of packets. Try to serve up dry food that contains less than 10% fat and provides 10% or more of fibre.
Try and feed your pet as instructed on the food labels. This could be up to four times a day. Get realistic, for some people this just can’t happen. But at least try for twice daily.
Exercise will obviously help. For obese cats this can be more of a chore than a way of life so you may like to help this along with a little play time. Encourage your cat to get up off its fat backside and get back to the natural predator it really is.
Talking about predators, if your cat does manage to supplement its diet with a little extracurricular mouse activity, then reduce the amount given at meal times proportionately.
Don’t micro manage the situation. Only weigh your cat every two weeks. This will avoid disappointment on your part. Averages count in this game not quirky peaks and troughs that may arise over the course of a few days.
If your cat is very obese then do consult your vet about diet. Too much dieting for this type of animal can cause severe liver complaints.
Now go and help that cat get its life back.
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