Friday 8 February 2013

Some sites I’ve rambled onto recently



Wandering around the Internet may not be the most productive use of my time but it is irresistible.  Usually I look at my sidebar and check what blogs and websites have been updated. This can be a relatively short process or a great long one depending upon how long I’ve been away from my computer and how far mes bloggypals take me.  Sometimes just one blog posting may take me to all sorts of other sites.

Among the places I have visited lately is WeatherCity.  You can find out the weather in all sorts of places by just putting the city name in the search box. Today in Liverpool it is supposed to be sunny with a low of 2°C and a high of 5°C.  Tomorrow we are due for a mix of rain and snow again.  A friend, in Corsica is going to have similar weather to Liverpool - Sunny today and a mix of rain and snow tomorrow but the temperatures are somewhat different with a high of 11°C and a low of -1°C.  Meanwhile in Minsk, Belarus where I have a postcrossing friend it is cloudy with a high of -0°C and a low of -2°C.  (Note this was written on Tuesday morning and delayed by fings wot delay us...).

On Hank’s blog I found this super photo of a frog by Marcus Yeagley.  Marcus says it isOne of my girlfriend's pet frogs in her tank. I think that is Rika (a particularly stupid frog)..”          


Frog Prince waiting for a kiss.
Source: Licensed through Wikimedia Commons (here)

Another website I enjoy is ZooBorns.  Not just because the babies of so many species are cute but because I often learn about animals I hadn't come across before.  This is a baby Takin.

Takins, closely related to the Sheep, are native to China and the eastern Himalayas. They have many specialized adaptations to cope with this cold environment such as a secondary coat of fur and a special nasal cavity that helps warm up the cold air they breath in. As herbivores, Takin eat essentially any vegetation that they come across including tough leaves, bark and bamboo. Although they are considered national treasures in their native China, Takin are still facing a declining population, primarily due to habitat loss. This has led to their classification as an endangered species by the IUCN. 

I mentioned Doreen’snew blog yesterday.  Today I’ve pinched a piece of information from it – “You have no sense of smell when you're sleeping”.   Perhaps it’s because you gave can’t smell while you’re asleep that so many people die in house fires.  By the time the smoke is thick enough to affect your lings (and either wake you or kill you) the fire is probably well established. If you had a sense of smell while asleep it might wake you earlier with the smell of burning.  Interesting….

Ella has a quotation at the top of her blog and changes it regularly.  I have a quotation but I only get around to changing it once a year!  Recent quotations on Ella’s blog :-
 "Lace is as much about the space between the threads as it is about the threads themselves." ~ Lori Howe


"Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face." - Victor Hugo

8 comments:

  1. Hi! John,
    Thanks for the shout out. I too found the frog pic somewhat one of happiness. This is in keeping with the prompt. Enjoy the week-end, Sir!

    Hank

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  2. Your blog today reminded me of a piece of news from the zoo in my own town - I've just posted it here

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  3. I was astonished at the WeatherCity site which even gave the tiny township in which I live in NZ. It must be one of the most comprehensive place name lists readily available. I didn't like the weather it suggested for me this coming week though (which differs very much from the site I usually use) so it'll be interesting to see which is the more accurate.

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  4. You always present us with interesting websites CJ...thanks.
    Pet frog huh??? No thanks.
    I had never heard of a Takin, but I like them, they're cute.
    Thanks for the info on not being able to smell while we're asleep, that was something new for me, and well noted.

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  5. Very interesting about us not being able to smell while asleep! I didn't know that, but you are right, it explains a lot.

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  6. I've been neglecting everyone's blogs but I am just replying to your letter and I wanted to say I will be reading your back posts soon. Their titles look alluring, particularly the one on Candlemas. Went to a lovely Candlemas service at Southwark cathedral and the cathedral was packed - very nice to see and be amongst.

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  7. oh boy you do get about a bit...

    thank you for all your good wishes....and I would be writing to you in person again, however after my house move four wks ago..I cannot find my address book, and lots of other things, which is very frustrating..

    Just sending a big (HUGS)

    saz x x

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