Friday, April 27, 2007
Dogs Rule!
Over at Better Living Through Blogging, my brother actually wrote, "wouldn't you rather have a lamb than a plain ole dog?"
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(Sorry for the pause, I was busy shaking my head in confoundment.)
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(Sorry for the pause, I was busy shaking my head in confoundment.)
Now, I have nothing against lambs, or even adult sheep. But there is nothing -- let me emphasize this, NOTHING to beat a dog. In fact, I would say that 95 percent of all dogs are preferable to 95 percent of all people. So for Dave's benefit, here is a list of reasons why dogs are better than any other animals:
- Dogs don't care who you are, what you look like, or how much money you make. Just feed them, rub their bellies (some prefer ear-scratching), and be around for them, and they will love you just for that.
- Dogs are heroes. Did you ever hear of a Search and Rescue Cat? There were literally dozens of dogs involved in the recovery efforts after September 11. I used to work with a lady who also trained German shepherds for police work. When I heard on the news that a police dog had been killed after he entered a burning building looking for people trapped inside (the people made it out, but the dog did not), I later found out that the had been trained by my co-worker had trained. She hadn't seen the dog since he started his work, but she told me she cried the whole day after she heard the story.
- Dogs will play with you whenever you want to play. If a cat is in the mood, he might allow you to play with him. Maybe.
- Kittens grow into cats, but dogs always remain puppies at heart.
- Dogs are one of the few animals that smile, and their smiles are contagious.
- Dogs love to help people. There are service dogs for the blind, the deaf, and the wheelchair-bound. A lot of training is required, but ultimately dogs do this because they want to.
- Dogs have medical skills. Nobody knows how or why, but certain dogs are able to sense the onset of an epileptic seizure as much as 45 minutes in advance. They can then warn their partners, who can then take steps to prevent injuries. (I've heard of birds doing this, too, without any training at all.)
- Some dogs are naughty (see "Marley & Me"), but they are nearly all good-hearted.
- Dogs forgive. If you've ever watched "Animal Precinct" or similar shows on Animal Planet, then you've seen how often and quickly dogs that are abused or neglected by humans usually accept other people.
- Dogs are loyal and protect their families.
- Many dogs help protect other animals that are important to humans -- including lambs!
Yes, I have a bird and not a dog, but that's for the dog's sake. My workdays are too long to leave a dog alone in the house -- it wouldn't be fair to the dog or the rug!
Labels: dogs animals
Friday, April 20, 2007
Like We Need Something Else to Worry About
Guess what researchers have discovered? Chimps are more evolved than humans. So maybe Pierre Boulle had it right.
Paging Dr. Zaius...paging Dr. Zaius....
(Let it go...I know Dr. Zaius was an orangutan and not a chimp!)
Paging Dr. Zaius...paging Dr. Zaius....
(Let it go...I know Dr. Zaius was an orangutan and not a chimp!)
Labels: science evolution chimps
Thursday, April 19, 2007
They Are All of Us
Over at msnbc.com, there is a slideshow showing the names and faces of many of the victims of the Virginia Tech shootings. It doesn't take very long to realize how diverse a group this was. Some were professors. Some were students.
Most were young, but some were middle-aged and one was old.
They were white, black, Hispanic, Far East Asian, Indian, and Hispanic. Maybe also Native American, although it's hard to tell from just the names and faces.
Not surprisingly, many were from Virginia, but they also came from other states: Georgia, Massachussetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. Others came from Canada, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Peru, Puerto Rico, and Romania.
One survived the Holocaust. Another spent time in Lebanon during the most recent violence there.
Ironically, one American from a military family was born in South Korea.
Some were naturally outgoing, while others were just coming into their own.
It seems as though these people had only two things in common, one being that they all came to Blacksburg.
They are all of us.
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That last line is to some degree more true in my case. Although I generally maintain a certain anonymity here by not publishing my full name, I will mention here that one of the victims -- Leslie Sherman -- has the same last name as me. We are not related, nor do I know her, but I tried to find out a little of her background.
There seems to be less information on Leslie than on many of the other victims, but I came across a short mention from last November in a community newspaper that I'm pretty sure refers to her. (Same name, same hometown, same year at VT.) If you have ever been to college, or know anyone who has, you know that one thing students usually don't want to give up is Thanksgiving at home. Well, last Thanksgiving, Leslie didn't go home. Instead, she went to New Orleans to help with the post-Katrina cleanup and feed the homeless.
A very special young woman, indeed.
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One final note. The modified VT logo above will probably turn up in a few places (it was on the homepage at the University of Florida website). It is a memorial design, but it is not related to this week's tragedy. It is available as a magnet or pin from the VT bookstore, and proceeds are divided between scholarships in honor of two Hokie alumni who gave their lives in the armed forces in the War on Terror.
Labels: Virginia Tech tragedy murder Hokie
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Spurrier Talks Again...(and not about football)
Nothing unusual about Steve Spurrier generating controversy with something he said, but this time it had nothing to do with football.
It seems that after South Carolina's spring football game, the Ol' Ball Coach was asked about something he had said Friday night at an award presentation. At the earlier event, he was heard to say that when the Gamecocks played Tennessee last year, ESPN's Game Day coverage was "marred by some clown...waving that dang, damn Confederate flag behind the TV set. And it was embarrassing to me and I know embarrassing to our state." It's worth noting that Spurrier himself grew up south of the Mason-Dixon line -- Tennessee, in fact.
Asked about the comment on Saturday, he said, "My opinion is that we don't need the Confederate flag at our Capitol. I dont' really know anybody that wants it there, but I guess there are a lot of South Carolinians that do want it there."
For some reason this is considered a controversial subject in South Carolina. It seems to me that removing the flag from the Capitol is a no-brainer. Even if you set aside the racist implications, the fact is that the Confederacy is not only dead, it was intended to be a separate country. You won't find the Spanish flag flying on the grounds of the Florida Capitol, or the French flag at the Louisiana statehouse. And if someone tried to raise the Mexican flag at the Capitol building in Texas, it wouldn't take ten minutes before the flag was replaced on the pole by the person crazy enough to suggest the move.
It seems that after South Carolina's spring football game, the Ol' Ball Coach was asked about something he had said Friday night at an award presentation. At the earlier event, he was heard to say that when the Gamecocks played Tennessee last year, ESPN's Game Day coverage was "marred by some clown...waving that dang, damn Confederate flag behind the TV set. And it was embarrassing to me and I know embarrassing to our state." It's worth noting that Spurrier himself grew up south of the Mason-Dixon line -- Tennessee, in fact.
Asked about the comment on Saturday, he said, "My opinion is that we don't need the Confederate flag at our Capitol. I dont' really know anybody that wants it there, but I guess there are a lot of South Carolinians that do want it there."
For some reason this is considered a controversial subject in South Carolina. It seems to me that removing the flag from the Capitol is a no-brainer. Even if you set aside the racist implications, the fact is that the Confederacy is not only dead, it was intended to be a separate country. You won't find the Spanish flag flying on the grounds of the Florida Capitol, or the French flag at the Louisiana statehouse. And if someone tried to raise the Mexican flag at the Capitol building in Texas, it wouldn't take ten minutes before the flag was replaced on the pole by the person crazy enough to suggest the move.
Labels: Spurrier flag controversy South Carolina
Monday, April 09, 2007
Wild Parrots on PBS
If you've been following along, you know that I have a great pet bird -- a sun conure named Cisco. So it won't surprise you to find out that I take an interest when I see something on television about birds.
Recently I found out that the PBS series Independent Lens will be featuring "The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill" in late May. It tells the true story of a bohemian in San Francisco who befriends the wild parrots who populate the Telegraph Hill neighborhood. Most of the birds appear to be cherry-head conures, meaning they are pretty closely related to Cisco.
As with all PBS shows, schedules will vary, but it's at least a seven-week wait, so in the meantime, I may have to read the book.
It also reminds me of the time several years ago when I was riding my bike in Lantana (I lived there at the time) and saw what definitely looked like a pair of amazon parrots flying around and landing on a power line. Amazons are most definitely NOT native to Florida (the only native North American parrot was the Carolina parakeet, which became extinct about a century ago), so these were obviously a couple of escaped pets.
Recently I found out that the PBS series Independent Lens will be featuring "The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill" in late May. It tells the true story of a bohemian in San Francisco who befriends the wild parrots who populate the Telegraph Hill neighborhood. Most of the birds appear to be cherry-head conures, meaning they are pretty closely related to Cisco.
As with all PBS shows, schedules will vary, but it's at least a seven-week wait, so in the meantime, I may have to read the book.
It also reminds me of the time several years ago when I was riding my bike in Lantana (I lived there at the time) and saw what definitely looked like a pair of amazon parrots flying around and landing on a power line. Amazons are most definitely NOT native to Florida (the only native North American parrot was the Carolina parakeet, which became extinct about a century ago), so these were obviously a couple of escaped pets.
Labels: birds television books parrots PBS animals
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Okay, NOW I have a comment!
The fact that the University of Florida is now the first team to ever win the Division I football and basketball titles is pretty big, but that may not be the most significant sign of just what is going on in Gator athletics. What may be more significant is Billy Donovan's announcement that he would remain in Gainesville when the Kentucky job was his for the asking. He didn't even wait until the job was officially offered to him.
This means that Florida now has a football coach and a basketball coach who both turned down the most prestigious jobs in their respective sports -- in Donovan's case to remain at Florida, and in the case of Urban Meyer, turning down Notre Dame to accept his current position. To top it off, both of these guys had been assistants at the schools they turned down.
There are two other points about this that extend well beyond UF. First, it continues a trend that has been developing over the past 5-10 years where the most high-profile schools often don't get their first choice. The pressure to win at football schools like Notre Dame, Miami, and Alabama is tremendous, and the alumni are incredibly impatient. Also, I pointed out in another venue, at Kentucky, Donovan had an opportunity to be another in a line of great coaches starting with Adolph Rupp. At Florida, however, Donovan could BE Adolph Rupp. Florida AD Jeremy Foley alluded to this, saying that he and Donovan want to build a program that will one day be held in the same regard as Kentucky and UCLA.
With coaching money getting so big around the country, a head coach can make $1 million or more per year at any number of big schools, so the dollars offered by the big-name school becomes less important, and the chance at a legacy becomes more of a factor. Donovan is still negotiating a contract extension, but it expected that he will earn in the neighborhood of $2 million a year -- about half what the Kentucky offer was projected to be. It's hard to turn down $4M when you're making $300,000, but a lot easier when you're making $2M and not living in someone else's shadow.
The other point also has to do with money, and I'm sure a lot of schools are relieved that there isn't a $4 million man in college basketball. If Donovan -- or anyone else -- were to sign a $4M contract, you can be there would be a lot of other coaches getting big raises, and the bar would be set that much higher for new hires. This really would have put a squeeze on some of the smaller schools and, IMO, could have led to a split in Division I, much like in in football. There probably will be a $4M coach eventually, but at least it has been delayed for a while.
This means that Florida now has a football coach and a basketball coach who both turned down the most prestigious jobs in their respective sports -- in Donovan's case to remain at Florida, and in the case of Urban Meyer, turning down Notre Dame to accept his current position. To top it off, both of these guys had been assistants at the schools they turned down.
There are two other points about this that extend well beyond UF. First, it continues a trend that has been developing over the past 5-10 years where the most high-profile schools often don't get their first choice. The pressure to win at football schools like Notre Dame, Miami, and Alabama is tremendous, and the alumni are incredibly impatient. Also, I pointed out in another venue, at Kentucky, Donovan had an opportunity to be another in a line of great coaches starting with Adolph Rupp. At Florida, however, Donovan could BE Adolph Rupp. Florida AD Jeremy Foley alluded to this, saying that he and Donovan want to build a program that will one day be held in the same regard as Kentucky and UCLA.
With coaching money getting so big around the country, a head coach can make $1 million or more per year at any number of big schools, so the dollars offered by the big-name school becomes less important, and the chance at a legacy becomes more of a factor. Donovan is still negotiating a contract extension, but it expected that he will earn in the neighborhood of $2 million a year -- about half what the Kentucky offer was projected to be. It's hard to turn down $4M when you're making $300,000, but a lot easier when you're making $2M and not living in someone else's shadow.
The other point also has to do with money, and I'm sure a lot of schools are relieved that there isn't a $4 million man in college basketball. If Donovan -- or anyone else -- were to sign a $4M contract, you can be there would be a lot of other coaches getting big raises, and the bar would be set that much higher for new hires. This really would have put a squeeze on some of the smaller schools and, IMO, could have led to a split in Division I, much like in in football. There probably will be a $4M coach eventually, but at least it has been delayed for a while.
Labels: Florida Gators football basketball sports money coaches
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
No Comment
I mean, really...what more needs to be said?
Labels: Florida Gators sports football basketball college
