Tasmanian Devil Endangered as Cancer Hits

May 19, 2008 -- Australia's Tasmanian devil will be listed as an endangered species this week as a result of a deadly and disfiguring cancer outbreak, the state government said Monday.

The disease, a fast-growing head tumor which spreads over the marsupial's face and mouth and prevents it from eating, often killing it within months, has cut the island's devil population in the wild by as much as 60 percent.

A spokeswoman for Tasmania's Primary Industries Minister David Llewellyn said the small, black-haired animal would be listed as an endangered species by state officials on Wednesday.

The minister told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that the animal would be upgraded from a vulnerable to an endangered species so that the "appropriate resources and effort" can be poured into protecting it.

The government has also backed a plan to build an "insurance population" of healthy Tasmanian devils at wildlife reserves, zoos and other protected areas.

"If required, these animals could be utilized to help re-establish Tasmanian devil numbers in the wild," Llewellyn said.

The facial tumor is extremely unusual in that it is a contagious cancer, spread from devil to devil by biting.

The devil is the world's largest marsupial carnivore and now only lives in Australia's southern island state.

Early European settlers named the feisty marsupial the devil for its spine-chilling screeches, dark appearance and reputed bad temper which, along with its steeltrap jaw, made it appear incredibly fierce.

Such a sad thing to read about! There are so many animals that are suffering because of humans and this is just one more creature that we have damaged. We as people should step back and look at what we have done to the world we live on and realize that the more missing animals there are, the more likely that Man ends up going the way of the Dodo too...

LONG TIME NO SEE!!

I know it's been a long time since my last post, but to be honest, I have been.... neglecting to do things like this.
Since last September, I have been up North for New Years, back up North for a funeral and I should be heading back North again in July. In between I have enjoyed Winterlude, and the snow storms and the great melt we've had.
Now I'm enjoying all the tulips and other good smelling things that grow this time of year. I watched as the canal was filled, not to exciting, and I've walked the 7 km trail along the canal from Downtown to Dows Lake.
Needless to say, most of that was fun, but it's boring when you do most of it alone...
I'm going to try to keep up with posts, at least once or twice a week. Hopfuly as the summer gose on, I'll have pictures and stories to post and even if I don't... I'll keep updateing the picture of the day and things like that...

A sad day in the World Of Dragonmount

Sad news from the world of fantasy literature. Robert Jordan, known best as the author of the “Wheel of Time” series of books, died on the afternoon of Sunday September 16th after more than a year battling cardiac amyloidosis. The news comes from a message left on the author’s blog.

The site says, “”It is with great sadness that I tell you that the Dragon is gone. RJ left us today at 2:45 PM. He fought a valiant fight against this most horrid disease. In the end, he left peacefully and in no pain.” Funeral arrangements will be posted later on the blog, and for fans interesting in sending his family their best wishes, the comments section on Jordan’s there seems to be the place to do it.

Robert Jordan was a prominent voice in modern fantasy literature. The author’s massive Wheel of Time series has long been a top seller, and with his death he leaves the series’ twelfth book unfinished and his story painfully incomplete. It was the twelfth book which was supposed to end the series, finally finishing the story of Rand al’ Thor and his friends, a finale in the making since the publishing of the first WoT book “The Eye of the World” back in 1990.

As someone who’s read all eleven books, this hurts. Not just because now we’ll never know how 17 years worth of character development ends, but because Jordan seemed like a genuinely good person who loved what he was doing and loved his fans. Right now my thoughts are with his family and friends, but from now on whenever I look at his spot on my bookshelf it’ll always be to selfishly wonder what might have been.

The Days Niagara Falls Went Dry... March 29-31, 1848"

The flow of water was stopped completely over American Falls & Horseshoe Falls on March 29th 1848. "Due to an ice jam in the upper river for several hours. This is the only known time to have occurred. The Falls did not actually freeze over, but the flow was stopped to the point where people actually walked out and recovered artifacts from the riverbed".
Even during the coldest months, "the river waters continue to flow, carrying Lake Erie and Niagara River ice over the cataract and into the great basin below the Falls. Some of these blocks of ice are quite large and able to temporarily withstand the erosive forces of the raging waters. When the temperatures are right, some of the falling water freezes instantly on the block ice and form great ice falls in front of the actual waterfalls. Such formations grow further forming castle turrets and other outcrop patterns as the mist settles on them. On occasion, a ice bridge forms across the Niagara River within the Great Gorge below the Falls as a result of the laying down of these ice blocks.
On six reported occasions (1883, 1896, 1904, 1909, 1936 and 1947), the water flow over American Falls has been totally blocked by ice and ceased to fall. But only once has this happened to the much larger Horseshoe Falls (originally known as the Canadian Falls)

Crashes kill 13 in Ontario, including groom a day before his wedding

Among the 13 people killed on Ontario roads over the long weekend were a Good Samaritan who stopped to help at a crash.

A man was killed while trying to help a teenager who had crashed his car on a rural road near Kitchener. He died after a volunteer firefighter on the way to the accident also lost control and crashed.

Two people, were killed on Highway 402 when a minivan carrying eight family members rolled into a ditch. Police said only two passengers were wearing seatbelts.

An 80-year-old woman was killed in a head-on collision the woman was struck by a man who is suspected of impaired driving. The man, who also died in the crash, was travelling the wrong way down the Highway

Two brothers were killed, after hitting a tree. Guy, was to be married Saturday while his brother Marcel, was his best man. On the same day, a camper trailer rolled over killing one person.

A mother was killed Friday on Highway 401 She had pulled her three-year-old daughter from her vehicle after it was struck by a transport truck. She was returning to the car when the vehicle was struck a second time.

Every year and every long weekend there are warnings about drinking and driving, about wearing your seat belts and after every long weekend we hear sad, sad stories about young people, the elderly and the saddest is the stories we hear about people that were ready to be married, or that a baby was involved. Sometimes crashes have nothing to do with alcohol, and those, if nothing was distracting the driver... (cell phone, other people in the car, the view)... those are accidents. What happened over this long weekend could have been avoided.

A Bride weeps for a love lost forever today, grandchildren cry for their Grandmother, and more people will thing twice before being a Good Samaritan
at the side of the road.

What a Great Idea!

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) - Who says Tom and Jerry can't be friends?

For the past year, a special Colombian police unit has been locking rats in cages with cats as part of a project to train the rodents to sniff out the more than 100,000 land mines planted mostly by leftist rebels across this conflict-wracked Andean country.

Bringing the rats face to face with an enemy allows them to stay more focused once they are released, veterinarian Luisa Mendez, who's been working with the animals for two years, told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

The rodents are taught to freeze in front of mines, but had difficulty staying put for fear of being attacked by predators.

"Here the cats play with the rats instead of attacking them," Mendez said. "The cats wear shields on their nails so they can't cause any injuries and as a result the rats feel comfortable playing around them."

Col. Javier Cifuentes, who oversees the project, said the rats' success rate in mine detection is 96 percent. Unlike dogs, the rats weigh a lot less and therefore don't trigger explosions.

Colombia is home to the world's largest number of land mine victims. Last year, there were 1,108 victims, or about one every eight hours, the government says. Nearly a quarter of the victims die from their injuries.

The past that haunts me

Every now and then someone or something from my past comes barging into my present. It has honestly take me many years to let go of what I couldn't change and now, get this, with technology that stupid past that makes me want to cry comes and bashes me no the head! Lost chances, lost friends and worst of all lost love never given a chance.
When I think back 10 or more years I remember people that filled my days with joy. The friends that I got up out of bed to see everyday. I even look back on the days that I had to cry and wished to start over with fondness. I remember seeing my high school crush and daydreaming of what could be. Not that any of it came true... I feel jipped, almost like, even though I lived everyday to the fullest I really missed out on something. I am happy with my husband, I could never find someone better. But I will always regret that I never took a chance to see what I could really get out of life.
Kudos to you my Heart, may the life you have found bring you the happiness and fullness that seems to be eluding me.

Boy, 3, fell to his death out apartment window

A boy found dead after a 15-story fall from an Ottawa high rise on Monday night, fell out a top floor window and not off a balcony, police confirmed Wednesday afternoon.

Police are still investigating the incident that took place at a building in Ottawa's west end around 10 p.m. Monday, and still have no details about what led up to the fall of the three-year-old boy, said Const. Isabelle Lemieux.

She added that an autopsy is being performed in Toronto, but the boy's name is not being released at his family's request.

Housing agency to check windows

The incident took place at 1465 Caldwell Ave., at a building owned by the city's public housing agency, Ottawa Community Housing Corp.

On Wednesday morning, CEO Ron Larkin said the corporation would randomly examine the windows in other units in its highrise buildings as a precautionary measure.

Staff will be checking whether the windows are properly equipped with locking "restrictor" devices to prevent windows from opening beyond a certain width, he said. He added that some residents remove the devices to clean the screens and then don't reinstall them.

How dose this happen? Why are parents not watching there kids! It's not locks on doors and windows that kids need. They need to be taught what is safe, what's not and why. If they don't know why running across the road is danger, they will run out to see why mom and dad say not to run out there. I don't have kids and I'm not saying that this will fix a problem, but I will say this Children are smart, make them smarter and explain why they should or should not do something. Maybe, just maybe they will listen and be safe.

Last spring, a 12-year-old boy with autism fell 16 storeys from a Scarborough highrise building. He was pronounced dead at hospital.

In September, that boy's caregiver was charged with criminal negligence causing death.

Two months ago, a Hamilton boy fell from a ninth-floor balcony. In the Hamilton case, the 5-year-old suffered only broken thighbones.

18-month-old tumbles from 28th floor through torn window screen June 04, 2007

St Jean Baptiste... Hour Quebec

Bonjour, Salute!!
Today we celebrate La St. Jean Baptist. Why, well for a few reasons...
While the orgin of the holiday in France was the pagan celebration of the summer soltice; a celebration of light and a symbol of hope. In the reign of the French King Clovis, the annual event was Christianized and became a religious celebration of the birth of John the Baptist, who is known as the Precursor of Christ, the light of the world thus the link with the soltice and the bonfires. Also, French residents in the St. Lawrence River area formed a chain of bonfire lights from village to village. Even in the late 20th Century, more than 15,000 of these fires could be seen on 24 June. And..After the conquest of New France by the British, the celebration of St-Jean Baptiste lost some of its importance. It was just over two centuries later on 24 June 1834 when Ludger Dunvernay, a newspaper editor, and about 60 people decided during a banquet to turn that day into an event that would unite all French Canadians.

Now for my part... Every year Phenix Productions hold a St. Jean Baptist Party. We call it St. Jean, Hour Quebec. We offer, Free food, drink and entertanment. Watch over the next few days and I will post pictures and maybe even a story or two...

It's been a few days since I posted anthing... I have a good excusse... There's not much going on. I have BIG plans for the weekend, so keep an eye open Monday for new posts and pictures. After that, it's Canada Day and they I'll be on my way North to visit the in-laws and out-laws ;)

Burglary Screwdriver Stabbing

An Ottawa man has been charged with attempted murder and other offences after a burglar stabbed a homeowner in the chest with a screwdriver in the city's west end on Sunday evening.

James Pilon, 44, is to appear in court Tuesday to face charges of attempted murder, break and enter, possession of a dangerous weapon, breach of conditions and uttering threats, said an Ottawa police.

The owner of a home on Richardson Avenue in Ottawa's Carlingwood neighbourhood received superficial stab wounds.The suspect allegedly had been trying to break into the home, and stabbed the homeowner several times in the chest area before police arrived.

I have not made a comment on anything for a bit because I thought the posts would say enough. But today, I think it time to say something. I have no answers, only questions.
Why is there so much violence? Is it because there are more of us in one place with a good communication base that we hear about more.
Or is it because our world is becoming more violent again and we are heading for a 'war' of some sort on a massive scale. Unlike we have ever seen before.
I know how hard it can be to get along with everyone we meet, but jeez people, try at least. If you don't make an effort to get along with others, why should anyone make an effort to get along with you?

Fourth Murder in Ottawa

Residents were shocked on the weekend when their neighbour Deborah Frankel-Howard was found dead in her 1735 Gage Cres. home, and when police later issued a Canada-wide warrant for Aaron Howard, her 19-year-old adopted son, as the suspect in her first-degree murder.

There has never been a problem on the street, agreed Stefano Marcantonio, who lives several houses down. Marcantonio has lived in the neighbourhood for four years and said Frankel-Howard and Howard have lived in the house for about three years.
“I know that because my cousin lived in the house before him,” he said.
He remembered when Howard first moved to the neighbourhood.
“He’s a quiet kid,” said Marcantonio. “He used to ride his bike to baseball in his uniform. I always said ‘Hi’ and he’d say ‘Hi’ back. He seemed like a normal kid.”

Police say Aaron Howard was last seen in Ottawa around 8 p.m. on Thursday. He was carrying a black-and-red suitcase. He is described as a black male, 5-foot-10 to 5-foot-11, of medium athletic build, with long, dreadlock hair. Anyone with information can contact Ottawa Police at 613-236-1222, ext. 5493.

Child obesity an epidemic, Ottawa told

This next article that I want to quote from is something that affects me. I understand why this is such a problem, and really, there is no quick fix. As long as we sit to play on the computer, or gaming consoles, we will never change. The children in the rural areas are affected just the same as urban and inner city children. The more convenient the world becomes the less we need to work to achieve a goal as simple as eating. This is the first true generation of the technical era. We know the error of our ways, now the question is; How are we going to fix this?

For first time, Canada's younger generations are expected to live shorter lives than parents

More Canadian children are overweight and for the first time the country's younger generations are expected to live shorter lives than their parents because of obesity, says a new Commons committee report made public Committee MPs said they were "shocked" to learn about the increase in overweight children, from 12 per cent to 18 per cent, and obese children, from three per cent to eight per cent, between 1978 and 2004.
That makes about one in four Canadian children overweight or obese.The report said most Canadian children spend too much time in front of TV and computer screens; don't get the expert-recommended 90 minutes a day of exercise; eat too much fat and junk food; consume too many sugary drinks and don't eat the recommended five daily servings of fruit and vegetables. The committee also reported the"distressing" and "most alarming" number of 55 per cent of First Nations children living on reserves, and 41 per cent off reserves, are overweight or obese.There is so much poverty among First Nation and Inuit people that many people cannot afford nutritious food, especially in remote northern communities, the report said.
New Democratic Party MP Penny Priddy said by chronicling links between poverty, poor diet and lack of exercise, the report busts a myth that overweight children all sit around playing on computers and watching TV. She cited the example of children in poor families being fed Kraft Dinner instead of going to bed hungry.

The report waswelcomed by the Heart and Stroke Foundation, which has long warned "fat is the new tobacco."

Summer weather: more than a conversation starter

No longer just something to talk about, the weather seems to be a cause for real concern — especially when U.S. experts are predicting seven to 10 hurricanes between now and the end of November.
Three to five of the predicted hurricanes are estimated to be comparable to or even more unrelenting than hurricane Katrina, one of the most devastating U.S. natural disasters.
"For 2007, we're predicting a high probability of an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season," explained NOAA forecaster Dr. Gerry Bell. "We're in an active hurricane era that started in 1995, and while we can't say for sure how long this era will last, historically other eras have lasted 25 to 40 years."
A normal hurricane season is generally predicted to have 11 named storms, with six becoming hurricanes, and two of those being major.
This year, the outlook is 13 to 17 named storms.

WORD FROM THE STREET Ken MacLaren

Against All Adversity
The determination and resolve of our street friends to pick up and carry on – usually in the face of adversity – never ceases to amaze me the stories I hear each week are almost overwhelming.

Steve's Story
I often connect with my Inuit friend Steve at our Wednesday drop-in. He has experienced many troubles throughout his life, we have built enough relationship that he now confides in me.
He has two children that he doesn't see often enough because his ex-wife has gone back North. More than this, he carries a tremendous amount of pain that is the result of residential school abuse and several traumatic incidents that he experienced as a child.
He tells me that he feels locked into a life that he cannot escape.

Hardship and Pain
Outside the drop-in Steve told me of his niece who took her live in Iqualit. She hung herself in the school cafeteria. She was thirteen.

He told me this story and stared at me. The depth of his pain was so evident. He sought desperately for understanding, empathy – anything so as not to be alone.
What to say? What words could adequately convey any sens of understanding? Who could speak to this?

Never ending Troubles
Next week I saw Steve again. He drew close to me and whispered, “Can we talk when you have a minute?” His breath smelled of alcohol. “It happened again. My nephew's gone. Same place. Same way. He was fourteen.”
I could not believe my ears. How could such trouble compound itself over and over? “Let's talk now,” I said. “Come over here where we can be alone.” He told me his pain and troubles. Even though we talked for quite some time, I still felt inadequate to respond.

The Scriptures Speak
Proverbs 31:6,7, speaks to us; “Give beer to those who are perishing, wine to those who are in anguish; let them drink and forget their poverty and remember their misery no more”(NIV)
We do not condone the abuse of alcohol, but at least we can understand how people use it to try to deal with life's pain. I can't adequately answer Steve's questions, But I can listen. I can support him in times of trouble, I can point him to a God that understands pain, and who really dose care.

Real people, with real needs.
It really is so much more than 'Please don't feed the pigeons'

Stem cell breakthrough

Scientists have developed a new way to produce embryonic stem cells that could lead to an endless supply of the basic building blocks of the body and avoid ethical controversies that have dogged their use in cutting-edge medical research.

In a new study, researchers from UCLA and Harvard University say they were able to transform skin cells from adult mice into embryonic stem cells, a process that holds promise for organ and tissue transplantation.

If it could be duplicated in humans, the reprogrammed stem cells — which can grow into any type of tissue in the body — could be used to create individualized replacements for diseased organs and tissues that wouldn’t be rejected by the immune system.

There's a lot of talk about this and I just want to add my two cents. I don't know how 'harvesting' stem cells is done, but I do know that there are abortion clinics in Canada and in the US that could donate stem cells to research and all the other places that need them.
Myself, I can't have children, and without children there is no one to help Paul or myself if we got sick. Yah that might sound selfish, but that's part of what having a family for, so that there always someone to look after the others.
As with all things in the age we live in, there will be advances.

If not for our generation, for the next.

Day 1 ~Hello Everyone!

Hello to everyone!
This is my first post on my first blog. I'm sure that'll be the only one reading this most of the time, but that kewl. I can deal with that as long as eventually someone comes by to take a look and actually lets me know that they came by.


I'll tell you this much. If you really want to know what I think or who I really am, this is the place to come. I say what I want best when I write. It may seem that I go in circles or I get off topic and really what girl doesn't talk about 5 different things at the same time, I do it all the time. One subject always leads to another and I can admit it, I LOVE TO TALK! But don't worry, I can always bring the conversation back, if you ask.
What I want to try on this blog is to post pictures, and opinions that I have. I welcome any opinions back I'm open minded and always willing to listen... That's a big part of talking you-know, If you talk too much you hear little... if you talk to little there is nothing to hear... Well, I'm off to see what I can do here. I hope there's lots here for you to waste your time reading and looking through.

ttfn.