We made it! Woohoo!
Ugh....this 5 hour time difference in Ireland is not something I can get used to. It's currently a little after 1am and my body clock says it's a little after 8pm the day before. Who goes to bed that early? I have tried and all I end up doing is tossing and turning, then I just get up and read or watch the telly. After a month of this I might finally adjust but then when we get home, I will be 5 hours ahead!
We arrived on time Friday night and we have been having a great time so far. It's beautiful here but it's on the cool side for this Florida native. It's been nice during the day but it cools down to the 50's at night. 50's in the summer? I'm used to the lows being 82 degrees at night in my hometown. I knew it was going to be cooler here so I did pack some things for that.
So far we have just stayed around Megan's grandma's house and drove some through Dublin. Tomorrow we are planning on driving around more and seeing more of the city and its surroundings and find some time to do some shopping too.
That's about it so far. I have to try and get some sleep so I will be worth a poop tomorrow. I yawned just now so that's a start. lol
Happy trails!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Ireland Bound & Oiled Turtles
Ireland
Tomorrow morning we leave for Ireland for a month!! Woohoo!! It's about time too. We have been wanting to go for the last 6 months and the time to go is about here. It's about 10 hours flying time total with a 1 1/2 hour layover in Atlanta. I'm sure we will sleep most of the trip being the only thing out the windows will be water, which is what I usually do on long trips. As excited as I am right now about going, I doubt I will sleep much tonight, on the plane, or even when we get there until like 2 days later. lol
I will be updating my blog while in Ireland.
Turtles in Gulf of Mexico
Megan and I, along with our friends Nick and Brad, did some volunteer work with the U.S. Wildlife Department in Mississippi since last week. I called them to see what we could do for them through my grant for my bunnies, being I'm sponsored thru the Florida Wildlife Dept. and they gave me a list of needs, info on obtaining access, etc., and when we got there, I cried. Oh my gosh! I had never seen so many turtles covered in oil like what we saw in front of our eyes. They were so helpless. The workers put us to work, first showing us how to clean them, handle them, etc., and we spent 5 days cleaning countless turtles. I still have oil in my skin (I had gloves on too) from the many turtles I cleaned and got to know real well. Each turtle that came my way, I named myself as each one were like little friends thanking me for taking the time to help them out. I enjoyed every last minute of what I did for them.
Being this trip to Ireland has been planned for the last 6 months and everything has been paid for in advance, that is the only reason we are going. If not for that, I would stay where we were in Mississippi cleaning and cleaning until every last turtle was spotless, then move on to the many birds and other mammals in the area that need our help too. I do plan on returning after our trip, but it will have to be a short stay being my own bunnies need me too.
The oil problem in the water is not going away with a blink of an eye, so maybe you can help out to if you have some free time. Call your local wildlife depts and fisheries, and help out our little friends of the world.
Happy trails!
Tomorrow morning we leave for Ireland for a month!! Woohoo!! It's about time too. We have been wanting to go for the last 6 months and the time to go is about here. It's about 10 hours flying time total with a 1 1/2 hour layover in Atlanta. I'm sure we will sleep most of the trip being the only thing out the windows will be water, which is what I usually do on long trips. As excited as I am right now about going, I doubt I will sleep much tonight, on the plane, or even when we get there until like 2 days later. lol
I will be updating my blog while in Ireland.
Turtles in Gulf of Mexico
Megan and I, along with our friends Nick and Brad, did some volunteer work with the U.S. Wildlife Department in Mississippi since last week. I called them to see what we could do for them through my grant for my bunnies, being I'm sponsored thru the Florida Wildlife Dept. and they gave me a list of needs, info on obtaining access, etc., and when we got there, I cried. Oh my gosh! I had never seen so many turtles covered in oil like what we saw in front of our eyes. They were so helpless. The workers put us to work, first showing us how to clean them, handle them, etc., and we spent 5 days cleaning countless turtles. I still have oil in my skin (I had gloves on too) from the many turtles I cleaned and got to know real well. Each turtle that came my way, I named myself as each one were like little friends thanking me for taking the time to help them out. I enjoyed every last minute of what I did for them.
Being this trip to Ireland has been planned for the last 6 months and everything has been paid for in advance, that is the only reason we are going. If not for that, I would stay where we were in Mississippi cleaning and cleaning until every last turtle was spotless, then move on to the many birds and other mammals in the area that need our help too. I do plan on returning after our trip, but it will have to be a short stay being my own bunnies need me too.
The oil problem in the water is not going away with a blink of an eye, so maybe you can help out to if you have some free time. Call your local wildlife depts and fisheries, and help out our little friends of the world.
Happy trails!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
No news is good news...
No news is good news...right? I hope so as I don't have anything to blog about really. It's been a busy week around here as usual with 2 part time jobs going and taking care of the bunnies. Life sure did get busier after graduating. Geesh...
Megan and I leave for Ireland next Friday. I think we started packing last week. lol I am so ready to go too. I'm so eager to go that my heart pounds wildly just thinking about it. Am I overeager? I think so. I get this way when going to places I've never been before or doing something I really want to do. I guess everyone is like this or maybe it's just me. I don't know. I do know I'm very excited about the trip.
The rain barrels are doing good that we installed last month. Being it pours down rain here everyday for about thirty minutes each and every day lately, they are filling up fast and working like they are supposed to do. I sure wish we had installed these a couple years ago.
That's about it from me. I'm writing this on my break at work. lol
Happy trails!
Megan and I leave for Ireland next Friday. I think we started packing last week. lol I am so ready to go too. I'm so eager to go that my heart pounds wildly just thinking about it. Am I overeager? I think so. I get this way when going to places I've never been before or doing something I really want to do. I guess everyone is like this or maybe it's just me. I don't know. I do know I'm very excited about the trip.
The rain barrels are doing good that we installed last month. Being it pours down rain here everyday for about thirty minutes each and every day lately, they are filling up fast and working like they are supposed to do. I sure wish we had installed these a couple years ago.
That's about it from me. I'm writing this on my break at work. lol
Happy trails!
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Wild Rabbits Video
This is an amazing video of a wild rabbit family living in a ladys backyard garden. In the video, which is in German, you can see the rabbits building a nest and the mama bunny digging out and nursing the babies. Unfortunately, the mama bunny was very sick (you can see that her left eye is infected). She later died, but the babies did survive.
The babies are sooo cute!
Video courtesy of The House Rabbit Society through YouTube.
The babies are sooo cute!
Video courtesy of The House Rabbit Society through YouTube.
Rabbits Mutilated
I was reading through the news tonight and this hit me straight in the face!
Friday, June 11, 2010
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. (AP) -- A 23-year-old Massachusetts man has been arrested in the mutilations and killings of five pet rabbits at a construction company.
The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says Wayne C. Brackett was arrested Friday on charges including animal cruelty and killing an animal. North Adams police say an attacker broke into Berkshire County Construction on Tuesday and killed five of 17 rabbits being raised by the owners' 6-year-old daughter. Nine rabbits are unaccounted for. The Massachusetts SPCA has said one animal was stabbed several times. SPCA Sgt. Roy Sutton says Friday's arrest followed a review of surveillance tape.
This just makes my blood boil! What makes a person do this to helpless animals and to make it worse, he did it to a 6 year old girls pet rabbits that she was raising?? It's one thing to not like certain animals, as we all have animals we like and dislike, but to break in and kill them for no reason? What possesses a person to be this mean? Drugs? Alcohol? Just plain mean?
I don't know what the laws are in Massachusetts for cruelty to animals but if it's like most states, he won't get what he deserves which is not enough time in jail. Too many cases like this one go unpunished or lack the proper sentences. To me, killing any living creature for no reason what so ever is the same as killing a person, and this person should be held accountable for the same punishment.
Just think what he might do next if he is not punished properly. Kill a kid? Is that next on his mean streak? It could be, as we never know about people like this. They usually start small and work upwards. Thankfully he was caught now, but he will bail out and be among us law abidding people in a matter of days, which is a place I don't want him to be in, but there is nothing I can do to keep him locked up. I wish it were my choice what his sentence would be. Boiled in water comes to mind. lol Un-happy trails to this monster!
Friday, June 11, 2010
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. (AP) -- A 23-year-old Massachusetts man has been arrested in the mutilations and killings of five pet rabbits at a construction company.
The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says Wayne C. Brackett was arrested Friday on charges including animal cruelty and killing an animal. North Adams police say an attacker broke into Berkshire County Construction on Tuesday and killed five of 17 rabbits being raised by the owners' 6-year-old daughter. Nine rabbits are unaccounted for. The Massachusetts SPCA has said one animal was stabbed several times. SPCA Sgt. Roy Sutton says Friday's arrest followed a review of surveillance tape.
This just makes my blood boil! What makes a person do this to helpless animals and to make it worse, he did it to a 6 year old girls pet rabbits that she was raising?? It's one thing to not like certain animals, as we all have animals we like and dislike, but to break in and kill them for no reason? What possesses a person to be this mean? Drugs? Alcohol? Just plain mean?
I don't know what the laws are in Massachusetts for cruelty to animals but if it's like most states, he won't get what he deserves which is not enough time in jail. Too many cases like this one go unpunished or lack the proper sentences. To me, killing any living creature for no reason what so ever is the same as killing a person, and this person should be held accountable for the same punishment.
Just think what he might do next if he is not punished properly. Kill a kid? Is that next on his mean streak? It could be, as we never know about people like this. They usually start small and work upwards. Thankfully he was caught now, but he will bail out and be among us law abidding people in a matter of days, which is a place I don't want him to be in, but there is nothing I can do to keep him locked up. I wish it were my choice what his sentence would be. Boiled in water comes to mind. lol Un-happy trails to this monster!
Friday, June 11, 2010
Giant Walkingstick
Identifying features are that they are red to brown and in some cases a shade of green in color. Colors will seem to become lighter near the rear legs.
These insects are generally found throughout the midwest and southeast areas of the US and feed within forests and grasslands on various greenery.
Like its counterpart, the Northern Walkingstick, the Giant Walkingstick female will lay individual eggs over the winter in hidden areas on the ground such as dead or dying leaves and foliage. Hatchlings will push through their egg casings in about late spring, which then make their way upwards to edible greens. With only about one generation produced a year, Giant Walkingsticks stay active in the later hours of the day where their movement may not be so noticeable to predator and prey alike.
The scientific name for the Giant Walking Stick is:
(Megaphasma dentricus)
They can be found in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Iowa.
I have always found insects to be some of the most interesting forms of life on our planet. Most are scared of us and run away, but some standfast and hold their ground, like the walking sticks. They don't call it a walking stick for nothing, as it looks just like a stick laying on the ground and sticks don't move.
Happy trails!
Going to Ireland
I thought I would give you some information on my upcoming 30 day trip to Ireland with my best friend Megan. Megan was born in Ireland and moved here to the US when she was 10. She is 18 now too. We have been best friends for the last two years and her dream has been to go back home and visit her grandparents, so we came up with this idea of going to Ireland back in December of last year as a sort of getaway before college.
It's been a long 6 months of planning, getting money together, and getting all the reservations placed, but we are finally ready and all plans are set in stone. We were thinking of cancelling this trip when the ash clouds started making traveling by plane impossible, but all seems okay right now.
We leave for Dublin in two more weeks! Woohoo! Megan's grandma lives in Dublin and we are going to stay with her for the first week of our trip. We have a car reserved and waiting on us so we can go where we want. After the first week, we leave by car to Dingle, which is in the southwest corner of the island. We have a townhouse reserved in Dingle which is located overlooking the water on Dingle Bay. The place is supposed to be one of the best places to stay in Dingle as it's like a three room condo with all the goodies, two stories, fireplace, full kitchen, and so on. We got a great price on the place and it's been paid in full by our families.
After Dingle, we leave to just drive around the next week exploring the island and seeing the many castles and other places we want to see. We plan on spending a lot of time shopping too! We love to shop!
Once we get back to Dublin again, we will be staying with Megan's grandma again for a few nights, then we are headed to Belfast in northern Ireland to visit Megan's grandpa. We are going with Megan's aunt and uncle to Belfast and stay at her grandpa's for a couple days, touring the many places we want to see in that part of Ireland.
I plan on updating my blog while we are on our trip, but I can't guarantee an everyday blog. We will make an effort to make that happen though. My laptop will be making the trip so I do plan on updating when I can and able to.
Happy trails!
It's been a long 6 months of planning, getting money together, and getting all the reservations placed, but we are finally ready and all plans are set in stone. We were thinking of cancelling this trip when the ash clouds started making traveling by plane impossible, but all seems okay right now.
We leave for Dublin in two more weeks! Woohoo! Megan's grandma lives in Dublin and we are going to stay with her for the first week of our trip. We have a car reserved and waiting on us so we can go where we want. After the first week, we leave by car to Dingle, which is in the southwest corner of the island. We have a townhouse reserved in Dingle which is located overlooking the water on Dingle Bay. The place is supposed to be one of the best places to stay in Dingle as it's like a three room condo with all the goodies, two stories, fireplace, full kitchen, and so on. We got a great price on the place and it's been paid in full by our families.
After Dingle, we leave to just drive around the next week exploring the island and seeing the many castles and other places we want to see. We plan on spending a lot of time shopping too! We love to shop!
Once we get back to Dublin again, we will be staying with Megan's grandma again for a few nights, then we are headed to Belfast in northern Ireland to visit Megan's grandpa. We are going with Megan's aunt and uncle to Belfast and stay at her grandpa's for a couple days, touring the many places we want to see in that part of Ireland.
I plan on updating my blog while we are on our trip, but I can't guarantee an everyday blog. We will make an effort to make that happen though. My laptop will be making the trip so I do plan on updating when I can and able to.
Happy trails!
Found At Sea - AMEN!
Abby has been found alive! Woohoo!
I was so worried about her that I barely slept much last night. It's great to hear she is alive but she is not out of danger yet as she has no mast on her boat. She has plenty of food and water, but no way to steer the boat. That's like driving down hill with no tires! Keep her safe God.
Happy trails!
I was so worried about her that I barely slept much last night. It's great to hear she is alive but she is not out of danger yet as she has no mast on her boat. She has plenty of food and water, but no way to steer the boat. That's like driving down hill with no tires! Keep her safe God.
Happy trails!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Jacques Cousteau Friday
Starting on Friday the 11th, TMC (Turner Movie Classics) is having an all day marathon of his 1 hour specials he did back in the '70's. Way before my time but I have seen most of them that I got from the public library for school projects and just for myself, as he was very interesting to watch and learn about.
This is the schedule I got from the TMC website. All times are Eastern Time.
6:00 AM - The Cousteau Odyssey: The Nile - Part One
7:00 AM - The Cousteau Odyssey: The Nile - Part Two
8:00 AM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Calypso's Search For Atlantis - Part One
9:00 AM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Calypso's Search For Atlantis - Part Two
10:00 AM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Time Bomb at Fifty Thousand Fathoms
11:00 AM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Mediterranean - Cradle or Coffin?
12:00 PM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Calypso's Search for the Britannic
1:00 PM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Diving for Roman Plunder
2:00 PM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Blind Prophets of Easter Island
3:00 PM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Clipperton - The Island That Time Forgot
4:00 PM - The Cousteau Odyssey: Lost Relics of the Sea
5:00 PM - The Cousteau Odyssey: The Warm Blooded Sea - Mammals
6:00 PM - Jacques Cousteau: The First 75 Years (2 hr. special)
8:00 PM - Sharks
9:00 PM - Whales
10:00 PM - Sunken Treasure
11:00 PM - The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau: Mystery of the Hidden Reef
12:00 AM - The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau: The Sound of Dolphins
1:00 AM - The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau: The Flight of the Penguins
I plan on watching a few of them and will most likely record the rest of the them for a later time. Anyone else interested in this type of nature? I find it very interesting and always have.
Happy trails!
Missing At Sea
My friend and fellow blogger Abby Sunderland is missing at sea. She had been trying to circle the globe in her sailboat which left California in January. She is missing somewhere in the Indian Ocean 400 miles from the nearest ship and farther than that from the nearest landmass. Talk about being out in the middle of nowhere. Rescue efforts are in effect to locate her as she switched on two of her emergency beacons early this morning.
Please pray she is found and found safe too. I have cried deeply over this and I'm very concerned for her safety being she is so far from help. The nearest ship is over a day away.
You can follow updates of Abby on her blog, which is here. Her mom is doing the updates.
This is the lastest from CBS news. Click here to read.
Please God, help her. Keep her safe until help arrives.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Gulf Oil Spill - Wake Up!
I feel worse for the poor little animals and fish that can do nothing about it. They are dying! Does anyone even recognize that word? Dying! They are dying!! Wake up you money hungry thieves and politicians! What does it take to wake them up? If people were dying, which I'm sure some will, will that wake them up? I doubt it being money is all I hear about this crappy oil slick. I don't get paid to go out and help animals. I do it because I love and care about them. Do any of our politicians care? I don't see it. Put me in charge of this oil cleanup and I guarantee I will take action no matter what the cost is. Atleast I will do more than what has been done, which isn't much or not enough to please me or anyone else living near this crap.
All my whys:
Why is a British oil company drilling in our neck of the woods anyway?
Why doesn't our President kick BP out and we do the cleanup?
Why are there no booms stretching from the Keys to Louisiana?
Why are so many brown pelicans being shown drenched in oil?
Why are turtles being shown dead and dripping in oil?
Why are the marsh lands in Louisiana shown covered in oil when booms are out?
Why? Why? Why? I could go on forever.
It's sad. It's sad that we are so advanced in technology that we can't even stop a leak. Didn't anyone think of this before they drilled the hole? Again...No! Money was on their mind only. Our government spends billions and billions of money on an army that tramples around the world looking for a man that can't be found, but they can't do the same for poor animals that can't defend for themselves. It's just sad!
I have called the wildlife dept in north Florida to see if they need help in cleaning the birds and all the other animals being affected by this disaster and they said come on up at anytime. I will be doing just that real soon. If anyone reading this cares about animals as I do, you will do the same and volunteer your time to help these helpless animals that the money hungry oil people have hurt. It's not the cost. It's care. Do you care? The animals need our help. Please help them! Please!
Happy trails!
Saturday, June 5, 2010
I'm Free!
Hi everyone! (I'm waving)
Well, I graduated from high school last week (woohoo) and we had our graduation exercises last Friday (May 28th). WooHoo! I passed all my exams with none less than a 92 grade, so now I'm free. I was so happy that I think I cried for a couple days. I will miss all my classmates as most of us have spent our entire school years together ever since first grade. That is the one thing I loved about going to a private school, was the close friendships and the small classes too. Most are headed off in opposite directions going to colleges all over the US and some overseas. I'm staying local to go to school for a couple years, then will be heading off to a bigger college. My best friend Megan is staying local too, so that is great news. We will be going to the same college this fall, just different classes.
What have I been doing since I last posted here 3 weeks ago? Plenty! After the graduation party last week, a bunch of my friends and I went on a small getaway for a couple days. We went down to Naples, Florida to relax, lay on the beach alot, and party a little too. We came back last Sunday, the day before Memorial Day, so we could all spend time with our families, then I flew up to see my grandma on Tuesday morning for a short trip and came back today. She doesn't have a computer and I didn't take my laptop or I would have written something here by now.
My friend Megan and I leave for Ireland in 3 weeks for our 1 month summer getaway and that is something we have been looking forward too since January of this year. We were thinking of cancelling it because of all the ash clouds and it's still not a sure thing right now. I watch the news everyday to see what that volcano is doing so we can go see the world. If we can't go, well, we have planned another place just in case, but we really want to go to Ireland. Not much else can take its place.
Other than that, it's back to full time duty with the bunnies. I have missed being around them and I have planned all of next week to do some reorganizing, painting, and some other things to make life better for them all. I'm still working the part time job at night, which I start back at this Monday night.
That's about it from me right now as I'm more busier now than before I graduated. That's life, right?
Happy trails!
Well, I graduated from high school last week (woohoo) and we had our graduation exercises last Friday (May 28th). WooHoo! I passed all my exams with none less than a 92 grade, so now I'm free. I was so happy that I think I cried for a couple days. I will miss all my classmates as most of us have spent our entire school years together ever since first grade. That is the one thing I loved about going to a private school, was the close friendships and the small classes too. Most are headed off in opposite directions going to colleges all over the US and some overseas. I'm staying local to go to school for a couple years, then will be heading off to a bigger college. My best friend Megan is staying local too, so that is great news. We will be going to the same college this fall, just different classes.
What have I been doing since I last posted here 3 weeks ago? Plenty! After the graduation party last week, a bunch of my friends and I went on a small getaway for a couple days. We went down to Naples, Florida to relax, lay on the beach alot, and party a little too. We came back last Sunday, the day before Memorial Day, so we could all spend time with our families, then I flew up to see my grandma on Tuesday morning for a short trip and came back today. She doesn't have a computer and I didn't take my laptop or I would have written something here by now.
My friend Megan and I leave for Ireland in 3 weeks for our 1 month summer getaway and that is something we have been looking forward too since January of this year. We were thinking of cancelling it because of all the ash clouds and it's still not a sure thing right now. I watch the news everyday to see what that volcano is doing so we can go see the world. If we can't go, well, we have planned another place just in case, but we really want to go to Ireland. Not much else can take its place.
Other than that, it's back to full time duty with the bunnies. I have missed being around them and I have planned all of next week to do some reorganizing, painting, and some other things to make life better for them all. I'm still working the part time job at night, which I start back at this Monday night.
That's about it from me right now as I'm more busier now than before I graduated. That's life, right?
Happy trails!
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