Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Aww, the fun.
Mom and Dad came over Sunday to watch Emilias play at the high school (Yes, Emilia's play - I know some other students in the play who did a very good job - but Emilia stole show - videos coming later to prove it) anyway... So they came over, went to the play and then ate some yummy Albano's Pizza. annnnd....I was THIS close to letting dad take Tigger and dump him somewhere. I'm not a cat person, and I don't think I ever will be - so Rachel and Ashley - find somebody to take your cat, because the Tiggs has got to go. Mom dropped off her Circuit so Emilia and I can get graduation cards together for Emilia, and of course some scrap book pages ready for her to take home with her. I'm excited to get the time to put things together. =) We watched "Life As We Know It" the other night.. I'm glad I did not go to the theater, $5 would have been waaaayy toooo much. It was cute and had funny moments, but mostly I thought it was boring. Sorry if I just ruined any high hopes you may have had for it. >.< Spring Break is coming up and I am feeling it already. Students are out of control, and I'm pretending today is Thursday. As Mrs. Hastings said, "If we pretned it is Thursday and no one shows up on Friday. No one will know that we are not here!"
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Brought on a tear or two
Nine-year-old Anaiah Rucker is being hailed as a hero after saving her sister from being hit by a truck last month. Anaiah told The Today Show's Ann Curry today that she didn't think twice before pushing her little sister out of the path of the vehicle as the pair crossed the street in Madison, Georgia to get to the school bus stop.
Anaiah took the hit, instead, and lost a leg and a kidney for her bravery.
"I love her more than anything," Anaiah told Channel 2's Tom Jones of her five-year-old-sister, Camry. Anaiah said it was raining and her sweatshirt hood was covering her eyes as she and her sister crossed the road. The girls' mother, Andrea Taylor, witnessed her older daughter's act of bravery from the porch of their home, where she watches the girls catch the bus each morning.
"I saw the truck and I was like, 'No,'" Taylor told Channel 2. "I seen my daughter kinda snatch my 5-year-old back, and if it wasn't for that, my 5-year-old would have ... I don't think she would have made it." The driver wasn't charged after police decided he was not at fault.
Today, Anaiah told Curry that she doesn't feel she deserves to be called a hero. She said her sister "was too young to be hit like this, and if she got hit she wouldn't hardly be alive. She would be probably gone forever."
Anaiah might also not be alive if it weren't for bus driver Loretta Berryman. Berryman pulled over immediately and started performing CPR on Anaiah, who wasn't breathing. "I instructed her mom to hold her head while I gave mouth-to-mouth, chest compressions," Berryman told NBC News. "As she took a breath, my first thing was, 'Thank God.'"
Taylor recently lost her job and her car. The community held a BBQ to raise funds for Anaiah's medical bills and renovations needed to make her house handicap accessible. Thousands of classmates and Madison residents took to the streets to welcome Anaiah back when she got out of the hospital last week, after a month of care. You can contact United Bank in Madison to donate to a fund to help with the family's medical bills, which is in Anaiah's name.
"Anaiah has a really, really big heart," her mother said. Anaiah's grandmother told the Morgan County Citizen that her first words after regaining consciousness were, "Am I going to chorus today?" She's active in Sweet Home Baptist Church and the Boys and Girls Club in Madison.
Video Here
Anaiah took the hit, instead, and lost a leg and a kidney for her bravery.
"I love her more than anything," Anaiah told Channel 2's Tom Jones of her five-year-old-sister, Camry. Anaiah said it was raining and her sweatshirt hood was covering her eyes as she and her sister crossed the road. The girls' mother, Andrea Taylor, witnessed her older daughter's act of bravery from the porch of their home, where she watches the girls catch the bus each morning.
"I saw the truck and I was like, 'No,'" Taylor told Channel 2. "I seen my daughter kinda snatch my 5-year-old back, and if it wasn't for that, my 5-year-old would have ... I don't think she would have made it." The driver wasn't charged after police decided he was not at fault.
Today, Anaiah told Curry that she doesn't feel she deserves to be called a hero. She said her sister "was too young to be hit like this, and if she got hit she wouldn't hardly be alive. She would be probably gone forever."
Anaiah might also not be alive if it weren't for bus driver Loretta Berryman. Berryman pulled over immediately and started performing CPR on Anaiah, who wasn't breathing. "I instructed her mom to hold her head while I gave mouth-to-mouth, chest compressions," Berryman told NBC News. "As she took a breath, my first thing was, 'Thank God.'"
Taylor recently lost her job and her car. The community held a BBQ to raise funds for Anaiah's medical bills and renovations needed to make her house handicap accessible. Thousands of classmates and Madison residents took to the streets to welcome Anaiah back when she got out of the hospital last week, after a month of care. You can contact United Bank in Madison to donate to a fund to help with the family's medical bills, which is in Anaiah's name.
"Anaiah has a really, really big heart," her mother said. Anaiah's grandmother told the Morgan County Citizen that her first words after regaining consciousness were, "Am I going to chorus today?" She's active in Sweet Home Baptist Church and the Boys and Girls Club in Madison.
Video Here
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Vacation time is almost here - but before that........Emilia has a school play! We're totally looking forward to it. Mom and Rachel I know are for sure coming over to enjoy the show. =) Anyone else?
Exciting news here - Just when you think the neighborhood is safe - it happens! The battery in Chris's keyless entry fob-like thingie went dead. So, Saturday night his doors did not lock... and guess what? The car got broken into - while sitting in our driveway! Yes- it got trashed, everything pulled out of the glove box and center console. All they took was $8 cash...and maybe the Tripley game pennies out of the trunk (Chris swears we brought them in the house, but I still can't find them...) BTW - who's up for a Tripley night? We haven't had one of those since...um.... Kokomo with Casi and Shane, Martha and EB?? Chris just had a chat with the neighbor and he said his car also got broken into. Same thing as ours - rummaged through pretty good, but nothing of any importance stolen. Chris really freaked me out however, when he pointed out that all they had to do was push the garage button on the visor to have access to the garage and the house. Thankfully, it does not appear that they got into the garage or the house.
Speaking of game nights - we FINALLY learned how to play Yahtzee Free-for-All! WOW! It really was a lot of fun. I told Emilia she should be happy she missed out on our DOMINOES phase, or she'd playing that almost every night. Ah, now I want to play Harry Potter Clue again!
Homework awaits! Lots of writing to do - but first I'm going to step outside again and help Chris get the yard straightened up while it is still 58 degrees! Tomorrow is to be even warmer!
Bring on the Spring!
Exciting news here - Just when you think the neighborhood is safe - it happens! The battery in Chris's keyless entry fob-like thingie went dead. So, Saturday night his doors did not lock... and guess what? The car got broken into - while sitting in our driveway! Yes- it got trashed, everything pulled out of the glove box and center console. All they took was $8 cash...and maybe the Tripley game pennies out of the trunk (Chris swears we brought them in the house, but I still can't find them...) BTW - who's up for a Tripley night? We haven't had one of those since...um.... Kokomo with Casi and Shane, Martha and EB?? Chris just had a chat with the neighbor and he said his car also got broken into. Same thing as ours - rummaged through pretty good, but nothing of any importance stolen. Chris really freaked me out however, when he pointed out that all they had to do was push the garage button on the visor to have access to the garage and the house. Thankfully, it does not appear that they got into the garage or the house.
Speaking of game nights - we FINALLY learned how to play Yahtzee Free-for-All! WOW! It really was a lot of fun. I told Emilia she should be happy she missed out on our DOMINOES phase, or she'd playing that almost every night. Ah, now I want to play Harry Potter Clue again!
Homework awaits! Lots of writing to do - but first I'm going to step outside again and help Chris get the yard straightened up while it is still 58 degrees! Tomorrow is to be even warmer!
Bring on the Spring!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Keep your Zombie Ants though Bela! =)
“Zombie” ants fall victim to mind-control fungus
'Zombie ants' may sound like the title of an Ed Wood movie, but, according to National Geographic, they are quite real.
Oddly, there's nothing very zombie-like about the actual ants. It's only when a particular fungus takes over the ant's brain that things get weird.
Once the "stalk of the newfound fungus species Ophiocordyceps camponoti-balzani infects an ant, the ant gives up control over its own body. After the fungus is in control, it forces the ant to scamper toward "a location ideal for the fungi to grow and spread their spores." Then, it's lights out for the ant. Who knew a fungus could be so diabolical?
These wild discoveries were made by a group in Brazil headed by entomologist David Hughes. National Geographic published a series of pictures of ants that have "lost their minds" to the fungus. You can check out a sample of them below. Not for the squeamish.
'Zombie ants' may sound like the title of an Ed Wood movie, but, according to National Geographic, they are quite real.
Oddly, there's nothing very zombie-like about the actual ants. It's only when a particular fungus takes over the ant's brain that things get weird.
Once the "stalk of the newfound fungus species Ophiocordyceps camponoti-balzani infects an ant, the ant gives up control over its own body. After the fungus is in control, it forces the ant to scamper toward "a location ideal for the fungi to grow and spread their spores." Then, it's lights out for the ant. Who knew a fungus could be so diabolical?
These wild discoveries were made by a group in Brazil headed by entomologist David Hughes. National Geographic published a series of pictures of ants that have "lost their minds" to the fungus. You can check out a sample of them below. Not for the squeamish.
Morning!
I was about to say "2 am and I can't sleep," but no... it is only 1:30 and I have already been on for about 45 minutes. I am hoping to start getting tired sooner rather than later - because I seriously have been falling asleep in the 7th and 8th hour Algebra classes...luckily I caught myself and woke up before any of the students realized it. =)
Tigger heard me wake up, and decided that he was going to scratch to get out of his room and try to wake everyone up...so I tossed him out in the cold garage. Few hours out there and he might reconsider, because he has been doing that a lot lately. He is also NOT using his liter box to pee in, but for some reason thinks it is okay to pee on the bathroom floor - needless to say - my tolerance level is at zero - and if this person at Chris's work does not take him .. poor little kitty is going to the Cat Shelter next week.
More exciting and positive news is that ISABELA is going to be joining us in Orlando for vacation - OFFICIALLY now! Like....she has her airline tickets bought and everything. YAY! Can not wait - come on SPRING BREAK!
Tigger heard me wake up, and decided that he was going to scratch to get out of his room and try to wake everyone up...so I tossed him out in the cold garage. Few hours out there and he might reconsider, because he has been doing that a lot lately. He is also NOT using his liter box to pee in, but for some reason thinks it is okay to pee on the bathroom floor - needless to say - my tolerance level is at zero - and if this person at Chris's work does not take him .. poor little kitty is going to the Cat Shelter next week.
More exciting and positive news is that ISABELA is going to be joining us in Orlando for vacation - OFFICIALLY now! Like....she has her airline tickets bought and everything. YAY! Can not wait - come on SPRING BREAK!
Saturday, March 05, 2011
DejaVu, Anyone?
Not that long ago it feels as though I was making this exact same post - CHRIS IS COMING HOME! I know a couple people who are not enjoying all of the frequent flyer miles he has been accumulating - but I'm glad that he got to visit with Isabela and her family on the trip to Brasil!
No Need to Hate on Miss Portman
Hmm... I understand the point he is trying to make...not so sure why he thought this was the best angle to take...
In an interview with conservative radio host Michael Medved, the former Arkansas governor and potential 2012 presidential hopeful slammed Portman for glamorizing unwed pregnancy.
Portman is expecting her first child with her fiancé, Benjamin Millepied, a choreographer whom she met on the set of "Black Swan." Her critically lauded performance in the film made her a staple on the red carpet this award season, culminating in her Academy Award win for Best Actress on Sunday.
The former governor, who is also a pundit on Fox News, called Portman's pregnancy "troubling" and suggested it might "glorify and glamorize" the idea of having children outside of marriage. He argued that most single mothers aren't in the same position as Portman in terms of her lifestyle and resources.
"There aren't really a lot of single moms out there who are making millions of dollars every year for being in a movie," Huckabee said, per the liberal group MediaMatters. "And I think it gives a distorted image … Most single moms are very poor, uneducated, can't get a job, and if it weren't for government assistance, their kids would be starving to death and never have health care. And that's the story that we're not seeing."
It's the third time this week that Huckabee has made headlines for controversial remarks.
In a statement issued Friday afternoon, Huckabee defended his comments on Portman, insisting he wasn't trying to "slam" or "attack" her.
"Natalie is an extraordinary actor, very deserving of her recent Oscar and I am glad she will marry her baby's father," Huckabee said. "My comments were about the statistical reality that most single moms are very poor, under-educated, can't get a job, and if it weren't for government assistance, their kids would be starving to death. That's the story that we're not seeing, and it's unfortunate that society often glorifies and glamorizes the idea of having children out of wedlock."
Yahoooooooooo!
In an interview with conservative radio host Michael Medved, the former Arkansas governor and potential 2012 presidential hopeful slammed Portman for glamorizing unwed pregnancy.
Portman is expecting her first child with her fiancé, Benjamin Millepied, a choreographer whom she met on the set of "Black Swan." Her critically lauded performance in the film made her a staple on the red carpet this award season, culminating in her Academy Award win for Best Actress on Sunday.
The former governor, who is also a pundit on Fox News, called Portman's pregnancy "troubling" and suggested it might "glorify and glamorize" the idea of having children outside of marriage. He argued that most single mothers aren't in the same position as Portman in terms of her lifestyle and resources.
"There aren't really a lot of single moms out there who are making millions of dollars every year for being in a movie," Huckabee said, per the liberal group MediaMatters. "And I think it gives a distorted image … Most single moms are very poor, uneducated, can't get a job, and if it weren't for government assistance, their kids would be starving to death and never have health care. And that's the story that we're not seeing."
It's the third time this week that Huckabee has made headlines for controversial remarks.
In a statement issued Friday afternoon, Huckabee defended his comments on Portman, insisting he wasn't trying to "slam" or "attack" her.
"Natalie is an extraordinary actor, very deserving of her recent Oscar and I am glad she will marry her baby's father," Huckabee said. "My comments were about the statistical reality that most single moms are very poor, under-educated, can't get a job, and if it weren't for government assistance, their kids would be starving to death. That's the story that we're not seeing, and it's unfortunate that society often glorifies and glamorizes the idea of having children out of wedlock."
Yahoooooooooo!
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
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