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#151
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OT: Garden talk with Trish (was) While you stitch - who'swatching the Olympics
Jangchub wrote:
snip Brugs are woody, Datura are herbaceous. snip Ah! Thanks for that. Yes, I've looked them both up and see what you mean. D. stramonium is a serious pasture pest over here. It only takes a small amount to do serious injury to stock. Isn't it funny that potatoes and tomatoes belong to the same family, yet are not poisonous? Yeah, they're Sulphur Crested Cockatoos. Great big fellas that weigh a kilo or two and hit the roof like a ton o'brix! I've had one on my arm. Intimidating, they are. But I know they are mush pots. Hah! Don't bet! Ever been bitten by a cranky one? Their bills are very, very strong! Not so long ago, I had occasion to rescue one from Alice, who had plucked it from the backyard. I nearly lost both thumbs as Cocky chewed on them! Sadly, people are very unkind to animals and don't do a page of reading before buying a parrot. They are not an easy pet to have. If I told you what I had to cook and prepare for Mika you'd think she was a child I was caring for! Pets are just like children aren't they? When you take on a pet, you're taking on responsibility for its entire life, just as you do with children. My sister cooks up the most amazing smorgasbords for her dogs and we put a lot of effort into exotic meals for sick horses back when we had them. snip Yeah, see. Poor things. It is illegal in the US now to take them from the wild. I'm sure it doesn't stop people from stealing the Hyacinth Macaws from the wild. Those sell for thirty thousand dollars each in many cases for a mating pair, more than twice that. They are the largest of the Macaws and can easily take a hand off at the wrist with one chomp. Oz parrots are very much sought-after on the international black market. People are getting nicked all the time for illegal bird smuggling and there are still filthy sods who trap them illegally from the wild. We have strict licensing laws and you can't buy or sell one unless you have a permit from Parks and Wildlife. Some of the more common species, though, like Galahs and SCresteds, aren't regulated because they're so - well - common! When I was a kid, you hardly ever saw a parrot around the towns. They were only to be seen way out west in the farming country. I think the ongoing drought has brought them ever closer toward the coast in search of food and water so that now we get quite large flocks in the cities. These days, we regularly see rosellas, galahs, corellas, lorikeets and, of course, the cockies. Probably about twenty or so species in all. I've even seen Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos flying up my street (which is PB remarkable, as they're a rainforesty species and the nearest thick forest would be an hour away). snip I have been trying to teach Mika that she is a bird and should be chewing stuff. I buy her chew toys, balsa wood, puzzles, etc. She only wants her bells to dingle all day. She can drive me crazy when she gets her ding on! LOLOLOL! Don't try too hard - she might learn to chew on you and that's not desirable. We have problems here in TX with vultures collecting on electrical towers by the hundreds. Huge birds which they are afraid will topple towers. The only wild parrots we have here are ones which got out of their cages. In Austin in the City Park is a flock of Monk Parrots aka Quaker and in San Francisco they have a flock of Cherry Headed Conures. There is a film about them called "The Parrots of Telegraph Hill." Cherry Headed Conures are just gorgeous, aren't they? Will trot off to Google your Monk Parrots - I don't know them. I get excited when the Cedar waxwings come. Nomads they are. I've seen photos of those - they're so pretty! We have nothing remotely like them here in Oz. The main attraction here are our Mexican freetail bats. We live in the path they take every night. There is an overpass on the highway which is built exactly the way bats like it. Bat houses look similar underneath. This is known as the McNeil Bridge Bats and is the second largest urban bat colonies either in the US or it could be in the world. The first largest is downtown under the newly named Ladybird Johnson Bridge, formerly The Congress Avenue Bridge. There are a few million bats there. That is a sight at dusk. Bats are cool! I mean, I won't be sorry to wave 'bye-'bye to the colony in our palm tree (mostly on account of all the b@tcr@p) but I still like their feisty little natures. The Mums with babies on their backs are great to watch. The tiny batlets are sooooo cuuuute, my kids want one for a pet. Erk. I do draw the line there. Imagine shovelling b@tcr@p on a daily basis! snip They love to fly through mist, so I stand there like a nut with the hose nozzle mist thing on waiting for them. Heeheehee! You sound just like me! That's exactly the sort of thing I would do. DH can't believe that I'm willing to stand, motionless, for half an hour just to get a glimpse of some creature or another. But every living thing is fascinating and I'd rather watch that that stupid telly. snip I have a friend who bought two hundred acres in Costa Rica. On the property are three small houses and ten of the acres have a vanilla orchid production. I wonder how many people know that vanilla beans are the seed pods of the vanilla orchid. When I get organized I will give it another try. I do like them very much. Oo! Oo! Me! I knew that! I'd like to have a go at Stanhopeas, the ones that flower out the bottoms of their pots. And Oncidiums, the dancing ladies. They grow wild in gardens here in N'cle along with the Epidendrums, which grow like weeds. Our native Dendrobiums are lovely, but the flowers are very small - only a centimetre or two across. Once, we went on a family picnic to place called Boarding House Dam. I took the kids on a bushwalk and found an incredible glade of mountain beech trees just *dripping* with all sorts of orchids. None were in flower, but I could just imagine how they would look in season. I'm hoping to have another trip up that way in the Spring so I can see the flowers. Sadly, people are usually all too ready to nick the epiphytes for their gardens so it's pretty special to find such a place still intact. snip I like grey-green. I have several artemesias which are actually thriving on neglect. Do you grow Phormiums there? In New Zealand they have wonderful flax plants. No, I think Phormiums are a notifiable plant. That is, they're likely to achieve pest status. We have a few noxious imports such as pampas grass, lantana, ipomoea, yucca and brambles. There are no natural predators of these and so they just go mental in the bush, choking it up and squidging out all the native plants and birds. They build new houses here like that. Big giant McMansions with ten feet between them. I always wonder who vacuums those huge places. I've only got a pocket-hanky to vacuum and that suits me fine. ;- |
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#152
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
Cheryl Isaak wrote:
I like my age until the knee pops. Cheryl Mine's been popping since I was 17. I don't let THAT make me feel old. -- Karen C - California Editor/Proofreader www.IntlProofingConsortium.com Finished 7/27/08 - MLI Christmas Visit WIP: Oriental Kimono (Janlynn), MLI The Teacher (gift to the library), Bethany Angel (Marbek) Retrieved from UFO pile: Marbek's Snow Angel, MLI Farmers Market CFSfacts -- where we give you the facts and dispel the myths Myths, with research cites: http://www.aacfs.org/images/pdfs/myths.pdf Newest research blog: http://journals.aol.com/kmc528/Lifeasweknowit/ |
#153
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
lucretia borgia wrote:
You don't know they are, anymore than I know they are not. I merely pointed out that most Chinese women are far smaller than their NA counterparts. So because these gymnasts look too young, it doesn't mean much in talking about Chinese women. In a sport dominated by extremely short people, one of these looks extremely short compared to her teammates. She looks extremely young compared to her teammates who are supposedly the same age. And, as the article points out, there was an article on China News Service saying that she's 13 which suddenly disappeared from their website this morning. Someone has also found her name in a birth registry which would also make her under the legal age to compete. The issue is that there are legitimate reasons to believe that they were using at least one underage gymnast, and therefore, should forfeit their medals because they broke the rules. -- Karen C - California Editor/Proofreader www.IntlProofingConsortium.com Finished 7/27/08 - MLI Christmas Visit WIP: Oriental Kimono (Janlynn), MLI The Teacher (gift to the library), Bethany Angel (Marbek) Retrieved from UFO pile: Marbek's Snow Angel, MLI Farmers Market CFSfacts -- where we give you the facts and dispel the myths Myths, with research cites: http://www.aacfs.org/images/pdfs/myths.pdf Newest research blog: http://journals.aol.com/kmc528/Lifeasweknowit/ |
#154
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
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#155
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OT: Garden talk with Trish (was) While you stitch - who'swatching the Olympics
Jangchub wrote:
snip People. Don't get me started. I'm supposed to be a practicing Buddhist and I suppose a way to describe a big part of that practice is kindness. People, not so much YET. One thing I've learned after too many years of ranting about people is that most of them *just don't know* about the natural world. Only those brought up on farms or trained from youth to look closely at living things have the faintest clue about it all. I never ceased to be amazed by how little people notice around them. Today, while our tree was being chopped down (Hooray!!!!!) an Australian Hobby (falcon) flew by, hot in pursuit of some poor bird or other. Of the eight people in our yard, I was the only one who noticed it swoosh by! Not one other person even looked up to the flurry of its wings or the loud cry it was giving. So don't be too hard on people. Just teach them when you can. No, I think Phormiums are a notifiable plant. That is, they're likely to achieve pest status. We have a few noxious imports such as pampas grass, lantana, ipomoea, yucca and brambles. There are no natural predators of these and so they just go mental in the bush, choking it up and squidging out all the native plants and birds. Yes, I can understand. We have the same plant problems with the Pampas grass, especially in California. The biggest problem pest is purple loosestrife http://www.kingcounty.gov/environmen...osestrife.aspx Too bad, it's such a pretty thing. It *is*! We have one with an equally romantic name. In it's native UK, it's called 'Viper's Bugloss', which I think is a hoot. Here in Oz, we call it 'Paterson's Curse' because it's not too good for the cattle. Over in South Australia, though, they call it 'Salvation Jane' because it saves the sheep from starving during drought. http://www.dungeness-nnr.co.uk/image...rs_bugloss.jpg Also a pretty thing, IMHO. I always wonder who vacuums those huge places. I've only got a pocket-hanky to vacuum and that suits me fine. ;- Ya got me. One of my friends has a 3500 square foot house with five bedrooms and four bathrooms all for two people. The vacuum in my moms house is built into the wall and the canister is in the basement, but she lives way up on Long Island which is thousands of miles away. Holy Dooley, I could make great use of such a large space. All our stuff has to be packed in boxes and tubs. If you need to get at anything, it's like playing Chinese Puzzles. Then again... that vacuuming... Naaaaahhhh... LOL! Well, off to do the day. After I water outside I plan to stitch all day and night. Have a goodie. I'm sitting here at 2.30am listening to Rammstein with my DH and watching the Olympix on and off. I might toddle off to bed! Enjoy your stitchin'! 'night! ;-D |
#156
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
On 8/13/08 4:41 PM, "Joan E." wrote:
On Aug 13, 3:08 pm, lucretia borgia wrote: I guess I did quite often speed up when I saw an MP jeep behind me lol Unlike these days???? Joan (rdh!!!!) Funny, something like I was thinking Ellice, also rdh |
#157
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
lucretia borgia wrote:
On Wed, 20 Aug 2008 18:47:07 GMT, ellice opined: On 8/13/08 4:41 PM, "Joan E." wrote: On Aug 13, 3:08 pm, lucretia borgia wrote: I guess I did quite often speed up when I saw an MP jeep behind me lol Unlike these days???? Joan (rdh!!!!) Funny, something like I was thinking Ellice, also rdh Maligned again while in my dotage lol Dotage, my ass! -- *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~living well is the best revenge~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* The most important thing one woman can do for another is to illuminate and expand her sense of actual possibilities. --Adrienne Rich *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* |
#158
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
On Aug 20, 2:09 pm, lucretia borgia
wrote: Maligned again while in my dotage lol I can only hope to be as feisty as you in *my* dotage! LOL Joan |
#159
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
"lucretia borgia" wrote in message ... On Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:48:38 -0400, "Dr. Brat" opined: Maligned again while in my dotage lol Dotage, my ass! I had my dental check this a.m. and when I was leaving the receptionist said to me "All well?" and I said "Yes, healthy again, if anybody is waiting for me to die they are **** out of luck so far" this poor man in the waiting room nearly passed out laughing. That's what left for us old 'uns, catch you young 'uns unawares (rare Canuck smiley) Good for you, you gotta keep them on their toes. |
#160
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While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics
On 8/20/08 3:09 PM, "lucretia borgia" wrote:
On Wed, 20 Aug 2008 18:47:07 GMT, ellice opined: On 8/13/08 4:41 PM, "Joan E." wrote: On Aug 13, 3:08 pm, lucretia borgia wrote: I guess I did quite often speed up when I saw an MP jeep behind me lol Unlike these days???? Joan (rdh!!!!) Funny, something like I was thinking Ellice, also rdh Maligned again while in my dotage lol We should all have such dotages..... (don't faint - I think that's a compliment) Ellice |
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