Friday, May 30, 2008

Friday Fractal: My Genome Project


Genomes are flames that have not been bred or changed in anyway. If you click on the images, you can view them full size in a new window. The detail in them is fascinating. The genomes come directly from the Oxidizer gene pool. I enlarged them and improved the quality of the render and posted them here. You can use genomes to create new flames. The combinations are endless.Be sure to check out my Oxidizer Tutorial below.

Click the tag below to view creations of other participants!
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LOL Cat Bible: Lectionary Readings for the Third Sunday After Pentecost

Third Sunday after Pentecost

Deuteronomy 11:18-21, 26-28
Psalm 31:1-5, 19-24 (Ps. 31:3)
Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28 (29-31)
Matthew 7:21-29



Deuteronomy 11: 18-28

18 Dont ferget thees shitz.
19 Tel ur childz not 2 ferget thees shitz aitherz. Tel demz twoo tiemz a day.
20 Rite theez on ur dorz,
21 and u will has kittiez liek whoa.
22 If uz doo wat CEILING CAT sez,
23 Then CEILING CAT wil maek theirz bases belong to uz.
24 All teh base wil belong to uz: frum Lebanon, to teh river, to teh sea, all theez base wil belong to uz.
25 No ones can stop uz. CEILING CAT wil skare their d00dz.
26 Today I givez u a cheezburger and a sqirt gunz:
27 Teh cheezburger eef u obayz CEILING CAT,:
28 Teh sqirt gun eef uz fuk CEILING CAT ovrz. Srsly.:

Psalm 31

1 In yu, o Cieling Cat, ai hided;
dis kitteh dont want to be fownd in kitteh littur trai (tis embarrusin);
plez send meh to ur richoushnessh ov cookiez an burdiez!!
2 Ai has a seekit
plez cum findz meh :(;
plez beh sofa so I can haides,
plez be mah haidysofa
3 thx 4 being sofa
I wuv u Ceiling Cat an giz yu allz mah cookiez!!
4 Oh noes! Dere is trap! Be ma sofaz agen!!1!!!!

Romans 1: 16-32

16 Am not emberess uf teh Gud Nuuz becuz it meens Ceiling Cat has invisible powerz.
17 An then if we has fayth then Ceiling Cat ses we r gud. An that r like teh skripchurs sed, "Gud ppl haf life thru fayth."

Ceiling Cat DO NOT WANT teh Invisible Errors
18 If u has teh invisible errors, an u hides truth, u maek Ceiling Cat mad, k?
19 Ceiling Cat shows us wut is tru.
20 Wen Ceiling Cat maed teh urths, ppls cud see he has invisible powers, an so they has no excus.
21 They dun thx Ceiling Cat. An they wuz confusd.
22 They sed "Am smrt," but reeli r stoopid.
23 They dun wurship Ceiling Cat. They wurship teh idols like Booda, but he eets too mani cheezbrgrs. Wy u wanna wurship him?
24 So Ceiling Cat ses FIEN! BE DAT WAY!
25 An so they wurship stoopid idols an not Ceiling Cat.
26 An Ceiling Cat let them do bad fings and mani invisible errors. An they had ebil secks that wuz bad.
27 Evrbody had ghey secks and stuffs.
28 Evrbody thot Ceiling Cat was stoopid, so Ceiling Cat let thm do stoopid stuff an they shuldnt do that stuff!
29 Liek ebil wicked stuff an killsing an fites an lies an gosip.
30 They iz prowd an meen an they hates Ceiling Cat.
31 They dun keep promis, if they ses u can has cookie, an then eets it, an they stolend teh Lolrus's bukkit.
32 They knows Ceiling Cat ses it r bad but they does it anywai.

Matthew 7: 21-29

21 When teh tiem comez lotz of peeplz will be all "O hai, we tellded teh fyoochr n chaseded awai demnz n gived cheezburgr in ur name."
22 I will sai 'I never knew u LOL. Go awai!'

teh whys and foolish bilders
23 If u heer me n do whut I tellz u, u iz liek teh smart d00d who builded his house on teh rock.
24 It rainded n flooded n it wuz windi. But teh house did not fall down bcz of teh rock.
25 But if u heer me n duzn do whut I tellz u, u iz liek teh dumass who builded his house on teh sand.
26 It rainded n flooded in it wuz windi. N his house falled down LOL."
27 Evribodi wuz impressed wif Jesus for sayin all dis.
28 everyone was all amazdz0rz and bowed tehre heds
29 Bcz he wuz cooler than teh law teechrs.



humorous pictures

Get ready now cuz the wild weekend is coming!
Board the Friday Ark at The Modulator
(submit your post here)

Weekend Cat Blogging at Megan & the Bad Kitty Cats
(see the week's host to enter your WCB post
in the comments for the weekend roundup)

Bad Kitty Cats Festival of Chaos at Mind Of Mog
(submit your post here)

The Carnival of the Cats at Kashim & Othello
Sunday Evening
(submit your post here)

More Rocket Science

Our fifth grade rocket scientists launched
  more rockets two weeks ago.

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Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Wild Edibles: Common Speedwell (Veronicas)

Veronica officinalis

Forms:
Juice, tea, and extract from the leaves and tops of Veronica officinalis L.

Traditional Usage:
Appetite loss, arthritic pain relief, bladder health maintenance, blood purification, cleansing, detoxifying, diarrhea, gastrointestinal disorders, liver health maintenance, nerve health maintenance, respiratory health maintenance, skin disorders, ulcers, urinary tract infections, wounds.

Identified by Heather Irvine (a former student at the Northeast School of Botanical Medicine in Ithaca, NY and a current student at the Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism) on a Wild Edibles Walk at the North Branch Nature Center in Montpelier. This plant grows everywhere and I could never identify it. It is so small that it is barely visible. Heather called this flower Veronica.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Wordless Wednesday: Edible Common Wintercress

Barbarea vulgaris


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Cats Tuesday: Buddy's Bath

You need a bath after rolling in the dirt on a beautiful sunny day! Buddy still has all of his winter fat. I hope he isn't embarrassed by this post (he's sleeping in my arms now as I type!). I'm late this week because the three day holiday we just had has confused me no end!
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Monday, May 26, 2008

Odd Shots: Duck Tipping

Three mallard drakes were swimming side by side yesterday. Perfectly synchronized, they all oddly tipped and rose at the same time. I always enjoy watching duck (and geese) feet wave in the air when they tip. But I noticed a couple of other things in these photos . . .

. . . the feet should be held underwater for balance . . .

. . . and just before they tip over, they look as if they are capsizing!

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Sunday, May 25, 2008

Set Duel: 2nd Win!

I can't believe it — twice in one month! My time? 1:35. Not good, but good enough. Of course, I couldn't even do today's USA Today five-star Sudoku puzzle. Next Saturday, go play Set and post your time at Deb's blog!
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Blog Your Blessings: Memorial Day: Dying Alone

Photographed 24 May 2008


CHAS. DEVEREUX
Co. F
11 Vt. Reg't

DIED

at Baltimore, Md.
Nov. 17, 1864
AEd 33 yrs, 4 ms

Charles Devereux was born in some unknown place in 1831. He enlisted in the Vermont Volunteer Infantry on August 6, 1862 in Barton and was mustered in on September 1, 1862 as a Private in Co. F of the 11th Infantry Regiment. He was promoted to Corporal on May 1, 1863. Charles was mortally wounded in action at the Battle of Cedar Creek on October 19, 1864 (with twenty-three other Vermont Volunteers).

The Battle of Cedar Creek was in Middletown, Virginia. Every single Vermont man in service in 1864 fought at the Battle of Cedar Creek. Charles's 11th Vermont Regiment served in the VI Corps of the Army of the Shenandoah commanded by Major General Philip Sheridan. They were in the 2nd Division, 2nd Brigade and were among the first sent into battle. The Army of the Shenandoah had 31,610 men and 90 guns in battle. Five hundred sixty were killed, 3025 were wounded, and 1770 were taken prisoner. The Confederate Army fought with approximately 21,102 men (exact figures are unknown) and 40 guns. Killed and wounded were 1860 people, and 1500 were missing at the end of the battle. All suffered horribly.

Charles died of his wounds in Baltimore, Maryland on November 18, 1864 — hopefully in a hospital. He was buried in Welcome O Brown Cemetery in Barton, Vermont, were I found his grave yesterday. There are no photographs, family, obituaries or memories of Charles anywhere except for his gravestone.
Many casualties, especially during the 1863-1864 campaigns, are probably buried in mass or unmarked graves, and their final resting place will never be known. There are also, in Vermont, many cenotaphs, or empty graves; some of these are not marked as such, but are a fitting memorial to the fallen solider nevertheless.
The Vermont drummer at the Battle of Cedar Creek, Julian Scott (born in Johnson, VT), won the Medal of Honor. He painted The Battle of Cedar Creek, which hangs in the Cedar Creek Room of the Vermont State House in Montpelier. I photographed this painting when I visited in October of 2007.

detail

The Cedar Creek Room of the Vermont State House

References:

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Camera Critters: Missed Shots

Sitting in my waking-up-stupor the other morning, I saw a beaver swimming across the nearest pond. I was so slow getting the camera set up that I saw him do a surface dive into his lodge, shown here, just as I was all set up. He dove for the black spot under the grass, under the thatch behind a dry cattail underneath and to the right of the lodge in this photo. At least I have visual proof that the lodge is inhabited!

I also missed a humming bird and an eastern bluebird this week. Although I captured this white-tailed doe in the dawn's heavy mist, the photo is just awful! I post it anyhow.

I did not take this photo of a woodchuck. It was taken last summer by my grandson, Wingnut. This morning on the way home from church I drove by the same rock formation and the woodchuck was out. It was sunning with all four legs out on both sides, totally relaxed. Until I stopped the car. It ran so quickly that I never saw it leave. Here's to better shots this coming week!
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My other Camera Critters post is about swimming salamanders.

Teacher Potluck Carnival: Memorial Day Edition

Welcome to the Memorial Day Edition of the Teacher Potluck Carnival. While the country is having cookouts and parades, I am pondering the meaning of this day. Our minister today had a bulletin insert on the history of Memorial Day from history.com which I reprint here:
Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day because it was a time set aside to honor the nation's Civil War dead by decorating their graves. It was first widely observed on May 30, 1868, to commemorate the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers, by proclamation of General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of former sailors and soldiers. On May 5, 1868, Logan declared in General Order No. 11 that:

The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land. In this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.

During the first celebration of Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried in the cemetery.

This 1868 celebration was inspired by local observances of the day in several towns throughout America that had taken place in the three years since the Civil War. In fact, several Northern and Southern cities claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day, including Columbus, Miss.; Macon, Ga.; Richmond, Va.; Boalsburg, Pa.; and Carbondale, Ill.

In 1966, the federal government, under the direction of President Lyndon Johnson, declared Waterloo, N.Y., the official birthplace of Memorial Day. They chose Waterloo—which had first celebrated the day on May 5, 1866—because the town had made Memorial Day an annual, community-wide event during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags.

By the late 1800s, many communities across the country had begun to celebrate Memorial Day and, after World War I, observances also began to honor those who had died in all of America's wars. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May. (Veterans Day, a day set aside to honor all veterans, living and dead, is celebrated each year on November 11.)

Today, Memorial Day is celebrated at Arlington National Cemetery with a ceremony in which a small American flag is placed on each grave. Also, it is customary for the president or vice-president to give a speech honoring the contributions of the dead and lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. About 5,000 people attend the ceremony annually.

Several Southern states continue to set aside a special day for honoring the Confederate dead, which is usually called Confederate Memorial Day.
While you pray for our soldiers, please add prayers for those who have suffered at the hands of our government and its policy.

education

Heather Johnson presents Guest Writer: Teaching With Google Earth posted at Successful Teaching. I have to add that this is one terrific post with links to great ideas.

Heather Johnson presents New Learning Management System: Haiku LMS posted at Education and Technology.

Alvaro Fernandez presents Brain Research Interview Series posted at SharpBrains: Your Window into the Brain Fitness Revolution, saying, "Check out these interviews with leading neuroscientists and psychologists on a variety of topics: learning, brain health, happiness, memory..."

One Language presents Learn English Articles » Blog Archive » Some Low Cost Ways to Learn English posted at Learn English Articles, saying, "A few ideas for learning to speak english cheaply!"

Alvaro Fernandez presents Brain Health Business Grows With Research and Demand posted at SharpBrains, saying, "An in-depth look into the "brain training" field and future directions."

A.Lee presents The Artist’s Mother posted at eArtFair . com, saying, "In this post I examined how world famous artists depicted their mom. And I realized what a great teachers' resource this post has become for a fabulous class project on 'portrayal'. Beautiful illustrations are inspirational. Ideas for photo projects, collage and paintings."

Jason Isbell presents Summers coming up, what are you going to do? posted at Shabam School, saying, "How are you going to help clear your mind and get tuned up for next year?"

Alvaro Fernandez presents Word game: stimulate your temporal lobe posted at SharpBrains, saying, "some food...for the brain."

One Language presents The Advantages of Learning with Phonics posted at Learn English Articles, saying, "Even if you know some of the basics of English, you might find it helpful to review some materials on phonics."

Heather Johnson presents Going back to school: A shock to the system posted at Piggy's Blog.

food

lalaine y. manalo presents Spaghetti Pizza posted at thecookmobile.com, saying, "kid-friendly pasta recipe combining two kiddie favorites~pizza and spaghetti!." This recipe really does look fun, guys!

Kay presents Miscellaneous thoughts and pictures… posted at Kitchen Scrapbook, saying, "Ideas and pictures for a potluck and teacher's gift!"

FitBuff presents Guest Chef Video - Healthy Chicken Tacos posted at FitBuff.com's Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog, saying, "Watch my amazing video tutorial on how to make fancy-shmancy chicken tacos. Emeril, watch out!"

Bobby presents Shrimp Scampi Recipe posted at Free Online Recipes | Free Recipes, saying, "shrimp scampi, what could be better?"

Barbra Sundquist presents Edible Creations: How to Make a Fruit Bouquet posted at Edible Creations, saying, "Fruit Bouquets can be one of the easiest edible creations to make. The trick is to avoid the fancy cutting required by some edible creations design instructions. This article shows you how to make an attractive Fruit Bouquet using small fruit (plums and strawberries) wrapped in cellophane and wired to look like flowers on stems."

Raymond presents Healthy and Frugal Boca Veggie Burgers posted at Money Blue Book.

Sam presents Coffee and Espresso. A Really Good Cup ! Surfer Sam posted at Surfer Sam and Friends, saying, "Coffee and Espresso. A really god cup. Have it your way, a cup of hot, freshly brewed coffee, a frothy latte, a slowly sipped espresso. We love this magic bean. It’s stimulating and satisfying and incredibly popular. Find out more about shade grown and fair trade coffee."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the Summer Edition of Teacher Potluck Carnival on June 29 using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page. These submissions have been very commercial. Hopefully, more teachers will see that the Potluck Carnival is back and will contribute!

WHERE THERE ARE TEACHERS, THERE IS FOOD!

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Friday, May 23, 2008

My New Well Pump. Yikes.

That's the old, bad pump from my well. It stopped working Wednesday (it was originally installed in 1987). My pressure tank was saturated with water due to an damaged diaphragm. That caused the pump to run and run and run and it finally burned out. That's the explanation that the plumbers and the drill guys told me. I never knew the pump was running too much. What I do know is that this is a $1,400 repair (without labor, which was only like an hour or two). I got a day off from work. Yippee?

Here, he is taping that green thing to the top of the new pump.

Here is a badly focused view of the inside of the well.

He continues to wrap the pump up.

They lower the new pump down the well.

And I have water! The water in the house looked like this for 24 hours. It smells of mud, too. The water is pretty clear now, 36 hours later, but has a greasy feel to it. A friend at work told me today that when this happened to her well this winter, it was a full month before her water was normal again. The humans, cats and dogs here are now using bottled water for cooking, drinking and brushing teeth. I have to go to the store now and get a lot of paper plates.

And now I'm thinking I should disinfect the well, even though the pump men said I'd be fine . . .
Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation: Water Supply Division: Disinfection of Drinking Water

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LOL Cat Bible: Lectionary Readings for the Second Sunday after Pentecost

Second Sunday after Pentecost

Isaiah 49:8-16a
Psalm 131 (Ps. 131:2)
1 Corinthians 4:1-5
Matthew 6:24-34



Psalm 131
Ai iz Calm

1 My hart iz not brave, Ceiling Cat, i dont tink about big tings, like tuna on frigarator
2 but i haz learned to STFU; like a kitteh witout mama, like a small kitteh is meh soul
3 Izrael, believe in Ceiling Cat for eveh and eveh

1 Corinthians 4:1-5
Apossels uv Christ

1 Evribodi ought to treet us liek we workz for Ceiling Cat n he trustz us wif hiz secretz.
2 If u iz trustid then u gotz to akt liek it.
3 I doant caer if u jujiz me. I doant evn juj maiself LOL.
4 Duznt mean I iz inosent. Meanz Ceiling Cat jujiz me.
5 So doant juj nuthing yet. Wait for Ceiling Cat. He will turn on teh liet n look into evribodis heartz n sai "Good job" if u dezervz it.

Matthew 6:25-34
Pls to stop havin teh kittehz lulz

25 so i sez, stop havin teh kittehz bout ur lifes, wat cheezburgerz or drinx u is havin, or about ur bodeez n wat u iz wearin. Iz life not moar importint den teh foodz, and teh bodeez moar importint den teh cloathz?
26 Lookit teh birdz in teh ceilingz, dey dont be in teh fieldz gatherin teh f00dz or puttin dem away in teh barnz, but teh Ceiling Cat givez dem f00dz anywayz lolz. Wat, u aint more better den dem?
27 Who can make teh life longur by havin teh kittehz newayz?
28 And y u be havin teh kittehz about teh raimentz? Lookit teh lileez in teh fieldz. Dey dont work or nuffingz
29 but Solom0n cant pwn them even with his pimp outfitz. No rly.
30 If teh Ceiling Cat makes teh grass all pritty, and it gets thrwn into teh 0venz 2morr0w, wat about u, peeplz who no beleiv dat much?
31 So plz to be stoppin havin teh kittehz n sayin "oh noez, i can has cheezburger?" or "wat 2 be wearin 2dae?"
32 Bcuz onlee teh n00bz be havin kittehz about thees thingz, k? Ceiling Cat noez wat u need. srsly.
33 Look around first for teh kingd0m and teh r0xorz of teh Ceiling Cat, an u can has all thees thingz.
34 So stop havin teh kittehz bout teh fut00r bcuz it have enuff kittehz alreddy. 2dae pwns u enuff. kthxbai.

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News from lolcatbible.com: May 12th
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Get ready now cuz the wild weekend is coming!
Board the Friday Ark at The Modulator
(submit your post here)

Weekend Cat Blogging #155 May 24-25
Katie & Puddy at A Byootaful Life
(see the week’s host to enter your WCB post
in the comments for the weekend roundup)


Bad Kitty Cats Festival of Chaos Edition #46 5/25
at The Catboys Realm
(submit your post here)

The Carnival of the Cats #219 5/25
#219 at M-cats Club
(submit your post here)