March 29, 2008
Amazing
Update: 4/3/2008: 11:16 am: Not as amazing I guess, but still kind of cool.
Posted by Dianne at 9:29 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
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I saw this on Good Morning America yesterday. It's so sad that this elephant can draw better than the vast majority of people I know. It's rather scary.
Posted by: Qusan at April 3, 2008 9:23 AM
It is rather weird!
Posted by: Dianne at April 3, 2008 9:50 AM
January 31, 2006
No Two Are Alike!
This is a really awesome look at just how varied snowflakes really are! There are some amazing pictures at snowscrystals.com. They have information on natural snow, created snow crystals, the physics of snowflakes, etc. It's a project at Cal Tech. Check it out! It's neat!
Posted by Daffodil at 1:08 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
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I love that site. :) I used several of their pictures both years when I was teaching preschool and did a unit on snow / winter. We also used the book Snowflake Bentley -- about William Bentley - the first guy to actually photograph snowflakes. His pictures aren't as high tech, but he was the first! :) Isn't nature amazing???? :)
Posted by: katherine at January 31, 2006 3:08 PM
Here is another awesomely cool snowflake site!
http://www.popularfront.com/snowdays/
Make paper snowflakes virtually. It amazingly easy to make really, really complex looking designs.
Posted by: cjmr at January 31, 2006 7:58 PM
Now that's neat! I'm going to post a blog entry about it! Thanks!
Posted by: Dianne at February 1, 2006 10:25 AM
December 6, 2005
Morning Sun on Snow
Posted by Daffodil at 8:41 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
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How much snow did you end up getting? We had almost 3 inches here. :)
Posted by: Katherine at December 6, 2005 9:12 AM
About the same.
Posted by: Dianne at December 6, 2005 9:16 AM
About three inches down here, too. I'll probably post some snow pictures later--once I get a chance to photograph the kids playing in it. I tried to take some pre-dawn snow pictures when I went to take out the garbage and fetch the paper but I don't think they came out very well.
Posted by: cjmr at December 6, 2005 9:55 AM
November 2, 2005
This One Speaks For Itself
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October 11, 2005
Juilliard toasts 100 years as bastion of arts
New YorkJuilliard, the performing arts school which boasts such illustrious alumni as cellist Yo-Yo Ma and actors Kevin Spacey, Laura Linney and Robin Williams.
Even Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan studied there, playing the clarinet before he turned from music to economics.
As Juilliard celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, the school's President Joseph Polisi says much has changed since it was founded in 1905 as the Institute of Musical Art.
The disciplines of dance and drama were added in 1951 and 1968 respectively, and Juilliard moved in 1969 to the city's premier arts complex, the Lincoln Center, where its neighbors include the Metropolitan Opera and the New York City Ballet.
I've always been fascinated by Julliard. Of course I was never talented enough in the arts that are taught there to even consider attending, but I think at some point I would have jumped at the chance if I had been given the opportunity. Here's hoping they have many more 100 year anniversaries to come.
Read more here.
Posted by Daffodil at 7:56 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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October 10, 2005
Boy, 9, Swims From Alcatraz to San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCOA nine-year-old boy has just finished a pretty tough morning swim — from Alcatraz to San Francisco.
Johnny Wilson, from Hillsborough, made the 1.4-mile swim in under two hours, braving choppy morning waters and rough winds in a portion of the San Francisco bay known to have sharks as well.
Wilson's classmates were waiting for him on shore, cheering as he made it all the way to Aquatic Park.
His effort raised about $30,000 for the Red Cross Katrina Hurricane Victims Fund.
Wilson said the toughest part of the swim was the beginning, because it was cold and windy.
Way to go and for a good cause to boot! What an amazing little boy!
Found via Yahoo!
Posted by Daffodil at 4:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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September 1, 2005
Tour of Hope
A few weeks ago when I blogged about the American Cancer Society's Blog for Hope I received an email from my good friend Joanne about one of her friends Christopher Millard who is participating in the Tour of Hope and I decided that I must blog about him.
Here's a little information on Christopher:
Christopher MillardChristopher Millard waited to see a doctor for more than a year after he discovered a lump on his shoulder. He is a well-educated biologist, and thought he knew what a cancerous tumor felt like. But when he finally had the lump looked at, he learned it was a high-grade sarcoma that required immediate and intense treatment.
Doctors told Christopher about a clinical trial and treatment for his cancer that showed a lot of promise. Christopher was taken aback by his cancer diagnosis and was further surprised to learn of the many clinical studies underway to treat it. “I wasn’t aware of how many clinical trials there were and that they were available for the general public,” he says. “I participated in one and it has made all the difference.”
Nevertheless, Christopher says he waited too long to see a doctor about the lump on his shoulder. His procrastination meant a longer and more involved treatment for a tumor that had grown from the size of a quarter to the size of a softball in the course of a year. As a member of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Tour of Hope™ Team, Christopher wants to encourage people to see their physicians immediately if they find a lump or experience any symptoms of cancer.
Christopher is very open about his cancer experience and takes the opportunity to promote early detection and the promise of cancer research. He welcomes questions from friends and acquaintances. “I always encourage folks to ask,” he says. “I want to get rid of the stigma associated with cancer. I want people to know it’s OK to talk about it and learn from it.”
As a cancer survivor, Christopher feels compelled to reach as many people as possible with his message. He’s been given a second chance and wants to return the favor by taking his story on the road with the Tour of Hope. “I hope that others will find strength, hope and knowledge in the Tour of Hope, and see me and my teammates as an inspiration.”
Joanne tells me that he is an amazing person whom she respects a lot. She says she was amazed at how he carried on and worked all through out his cancer treatment. Joanne also says he is a very upbeat person that people really like. Christopher sounds like an all around great person! And on top of this he is involved in a great cause.
The Tour of Hope is a great thing. If you can, check them out and see how you can help. After all every little bit helps and hopefully one day in the very near future they can find a cure for cancer so that everyone faced with this disease will be a survivor.
Posted by Daffodil at 2:08 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
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Thanks for helping to get the word out about this great tour Di!
Posted by: Joanne at September 1, 2005 2:33 PM
It's the least I can do! Let me know if there is anything else that comes up. I'll be happy to talk about it. I'm going to make a donation too.
Posted by: Dianne at September 1, 2005 2:36 PM
That's so nice Di, thanks! I do want to say that the Tour of Hope is not actively asking for donations, rather their mission is to educate and make people aware of how important clinical research is.
Posted by: Joanne at September 2, 2005 9:46 AM
That's true. But hopefully in the process people will look at them and think about making a donation to the American Cancer Society.
Posted by: Dianne at September 2, 2005 11:19 AM
July 11, 2005
We're Not Afraid
This one speaks for itself. Bravo! Check it out here.
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June 7, 2005
Dolphins use sponges as tools
WASHINGTON (AP)A group of dolphins living off the coast of Australia apparently teach their offspring to protect their snouts with sponges while foraging for food in the sea floor.
Researchers say it appears to be a cultural behavior passed on from mother to daughter, a first for animals of this type, although such learning has been seen in other species.
The dolphins, living in Shark Bay, Western Australia, use conically shaped whole sponges that they tear off the bottom, said Michael Kruetzen, lead author of a report on the dolphins in Tuesday's issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.
"Cultural evolution, including tool use, is not only found in humans and our closest relatives, the primates, but also in animals that are evolutionally quite distant from us. This convergent evolution is what is so fascinating," said Kruetzen.
Researchers suspect the sponges help the foraging dolphins avoid getting stung by stonefish and other critters that hide in the sandy sea bottom, just as a gardener might wear gloves to protect the hands.
I'm not sure why this is such a surprise given that dolphins are very intelligent. One might even argue they are smarter than humans, but I digress.
Posted by Daffodil at 1:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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May 25, 2005
Now That's a Big Fish!!
ALTON, IlinoisTim Pruitt went fishing and pulled up a whopper of a beast.
No, seriously: It was roughly the size of a sixth-grader.
Pruitt, casting his line in the Mississippi River on Sunday, hauled up a 58-inch long, 44-inch around blue catfish that weighed a whopping 124-pounds.
To get a sense of just how big that is, the state record holder was a mere 85 pounds and the world record holder tipped the scales at 121 pounds, eight ounces.
"My adrenaline was really pumping, so it wasn't that bad," said Pruitt. "Later on, when I was lifting him out of the livewell and into another tank I really felt the weight."
Read it all here.
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April 27, 2005
Arizona Surrogate Mother Gives Birth to Quintuplets
I can't decide what's more impressive about this story, the fact that the Teresa Anderson ended up having 5 boys, or the fact that she waved the fee she charged the family for carrying their children for them. If you do such things, keep them in your prayers, they were all below 4 pounds and one had to have surgery for a heart defect. I'm sure the infrastructure we have in this country for mass births like this should kick in. Does anyone know if something is going to be done for Teresa?
Read more here.
Posted by ManDrake at 8:06 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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April 18, 2005
A Real Letter!
I actually got a real, hand written, letter today from a friend who is stationed in Iraq. We send emails back and forth, but he actually took the time to send me an honest to goodness paper letter! I was thrilled. He definitely made my day!
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December 1, 2004
How's This for Weird?
"NORFOLK Naval Air Station Virginia One of the military's largest transports got stuck at the end of a runway atop the I-564 overpass for more than 16 hours. It was unable to turn around at the west end of Chambers Field at the Norfolk Naval Station. The incident forced the closing of the field to all but helicopter traffic and made for a dramatic sight for hundreds of motorists passing beneath it during morning rush hour."
That would be disturbing to drive up on! Read it all here.
Posted by Daffodil at 10:09 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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November 16, 2004
And People Think I'm OCD!
"He has, after all, collected nearly 10,000pounds of pennies in his lifetime - the greatest feat of spare change collecting yet recorded.
Tuesday, it will all come to an end.
The retired glass-factory supervisor, 78, will cash in what remains of his record-setting collection of 1,407,550 pennies, worth $14,075.50, accumulated over 34 years."
Now that my friends is a collection. Read the article. He's an interesting little man! Read it all here.
Posted by Daffodil at 12:41 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
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Simple investment calculation: I divided the 14,075 by 34 years and got approximately $414 per year. If he took that and invested it with these returns, look what he might have earned: At 5% per year, $37,392. At 6%, $46,133. At 7%, $57,230. And at 8%, $71.339.
While collecting spare change is cool and can make headlines, think how much better he (or his heirs) would be if he had invested moderately!
Posted by: MoneyMan at November 16, 2004 1:32 PM
I'll put the disclaimer up for you Tom.
**Past performance is no guarantee of future results. The asset class returns reflect the reinvestment of dividends and other earnings. These results are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent actual or future performance of any investment option.**
Did he need the extra money for anything? Obviously he's didn't need the money or he would have already cashed in the pennies for whatever it was that he wanted. My point is making money for the stake of money really doesn't do anything for you. The guy had a hobby that made him happy. 14k is a testament that American's can save money if they ever actually tried. If anything this kind of behavior should be encouraged. Gambling "savings" on the pipedream that is the stock market can't really be considered a useful exercise.
Posted by: ManDrake at November 16, 2004 2:56 PM
I actually think this guys way of saving is a good way to do it and I'll tell you why. I myself have a collection of state quarters. I call them my "Ireland Fund" and the reason I haven't rolled them up and put them in the bank is this...1) I'm not worried about earning interest and 2) If it's in the bank you end up having an emergency like an air conditioner breaking down or a car repair and that money is gone. You can tie your money up other ways that make it harder to get to but I don't like the penalties that come with getting to your money if you really need it. Plus I don't put money in anything that has the chance of losing anything so I don't do stocks. So I'm completely happy with my quarter stash as it is. :o)
Posted by: Dianne at November 16, 2004 3:30 PM
Thanks for the disclaimer, ManDrake, I don't see it nearly enough! :)
My numbers, however, are simple arithmetic, not representative of any investment. All of those numbers are well within the realm of past performance possibility and were only intended to illustrate what might have been. I understand that this was a hobby, you didn't need to tell me that.
But it's not so obvious that he didn't need the money. I don't know of anyone who doesn't need the money. If you have money, you can give it to charity if you don't need it immediately. Having money is not evil, it's what you do with it.
This type of behavior should NOT be encouraged. You want to save bottle caps, fine. But if Americans don't invest, the economy will falter, and worse, they will have zero shot at retiring comfortably, if at all.
That $14,075 is worth $3,434 in 1970 dollars using a .244 CPI factor. That's $100 per year of saving. So actually he LOST $314 in purchasing power per year (in 1970 dollars, you can inflate the rest for yourself), not even taking potential investing into account. It had better be a hobby; it certainly isn't SAVING.
Posted by: MoneyMan at November 16, 2004 4:09 PM
October 29, 2004
Dog saves woman's life by calling 911
"RICHLAND, Washington (AP) -- Leana Beasley has faith that a dog is man's best friend. Faith, a 4-year-old Rottweiler, phoned 911 when Beasley fell out of her wheelchair and barked urgently into the receiver until a dispatcher sent help. Then the service dog unlocked the front door for the police officer."
Now that's what I call mans best friend! Read it all here.
Posted by Daffodil at 12:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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October 21, 2004
What Are the Chances?
I saw a commercial this afternoon for Ruby Tuesday and there was a family in the commercial whose name was the same as a family in the area of Tennessee I grew up in. Then I saw someone that looked familiar and when they showed a picture of him in a UT football uniform I thought to myself "Could it be??" So I emailed my best friend Darlene who still lives in the area and sure enough it was him and his family! She goes to church with them! How weird is it that a family from McMinn County Tennessee is on a national Ruby Tuesday's commercial that I saw here in Maryland? The mind reels! It truly is a small world!
Posted by Daffodil at 7:48 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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September 9, 2004
Puppy Shoots Man and Saves his Litter Mates
"PENSACOLA, Florida (AP) -- Nice shootin', Rex!
A man who tried to shoot seven puppies was shot himself when one of the dogs put its paw on the revolver's trigger.
Jerry Allen Bradford, 37, was charged with felony animal cruelty, the Escambia County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday. He was being treated at a hospital for a gunshot wound to his wrist."
Trust me someone always will take an animal. He just wasn't looking hard enough. This is an ironic twist of fate.
Read it all here.
Posted by Daffodil at 11:37 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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July 12, 2004
OK All I have to say is she looked good!
When I first saw the story on Isabel Sanford I assumed they made a typo about her age. She hardly looked (or acted having seen her on several comercials over the past few years) in her late 80's! According to IMBd she was born in 1917! Sherman Hemsley who played her husband, George Jefferson was born in 1938! Do the math folks that's 21 years and it makes her old enough to be his mother. I would have never guessed. I always just assumed they were around the same age. She looked fantastic and had such a vivacious spirit! My heart goes out to her family.
Posted by Daffodil at 2:24 PM
July 11, 2004
Boaters Find Kitten 3 Miles Into Gulf Of Mexico
Cats are definitely resilient little creatures! I don't know how he got there (I assume one of the dumb A$$es in one of the boats around the area dumped it out there to get rid of it. Don't get me started on stupid people not deserving the right to be around animals. Someone should dump their sorry a$$ in the ocean and leave them for dead!!) but this is an amazing story. I hope little Nemo has a long happy life on land!
Read it all here.
Posted by Daffodil at 3:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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July 10, 2004
Centenarian Breaks 100M Sprint Record
"CAPE TOWN, South Africa - It took him two tries, but South African Philip Rabinowitz made it into the Guinness Book of World Records Saturday as the fastest 100-year-old to run 100 meters.
Ok folks this amazes me. I couldn't run that fast now! I'm more of a water girl myself and prefer swimming but this is amazing!
Read it all here.
Posted by Daffodil at 6:34 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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June 10, 2004
Boy, 6, Critical After Saving Girl's Life
America needs more people like this brave little guy:
"CHICAGO RIDGE, Ill. -- Six-year-old Donnie Hauser-Richerme knew he couldn't swim, but he also knew the little girl in the murky, debris-filled swimming pool was in trouble."
Read it all here.
Posted by Daffodil at 8:11 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
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This kid did a wonderful thing...but I wonder about the adults standing around...
"As somebody called 911, adults hurried to the pool area, but the water was so filthy, so filled with debris, that they couldn't see Donnie. Another maintenance man, Andre Mitchell, said he poked the water with a long aluminum pole used to clean pools but turned up nothing.
By the time the paramedics found Donnie, he had been under water anywhere from five to 20 minutes, Baldermann said."
Stood around and poked at the water??? For up to 20 min?? And no one jumped in? I have a year old son and if he fell in I would have been in that pool in a heartbeat. Sounds like they would rather let a child drown then get dirty!
Posted by: danielle at June 14, 2004 3:28 PM
Yes, stood around. They didn't want to "get involved" and their inaction cost this child and his family more grief than anyone should suffer. Their inaction and total disregard for human life has torn the family apart and made them unable to even go home, thanks to the media circus.
No, wait, I thought of some who deserve to have this come back at them threefold: All of those adults standing around! May they know in this lifetime the grief that they caused, and may it destroy them. Standing around! Can you imagine that, while they and the 4 year old brother watched him drown???!!! I have a big problem with this.
A 6 year old has more common sense and guts than any of them.
Posted by: Willow at June 15, 2004 12:22 AM
You both are right. I should have pointed that out in my initial post. The adults were negligent to say the least. If it was Alexis I would have jumped into that water no matter what was in it. I don't understand people who have children and don't take responsibility for them. My neighbors are a key illustration of this point. If you haven't been to the site before this post (http://www.daffodillane.com/mt-archives/000029.html) along with countless others show how they treat their kids. It's really sad. Kids need our love and protection and a lot of parents only think of themselves.
Posted by: Dianne at June 15, 2004 8:46 AM