If you’re struggling to decide what to do towards the end of August, then you may be relieved to know that one special day is Take Your Cat to the Vet Day (unless you don’t have a cat, that is). Bizarre though this might sound, there is, in fact, a very legitimate purpose to this annual occasion. While humans are used to visiting the dentist, doctor and optician regularly for health assessments, many cat owners forget to take their moggies to the vet for check-ups and instead only when a medical problem arises. This, of course, results in costly bills which might otherwise have been avoided if routine checks, worming, inoculations and blood screening were carried out. In other words, you can celebrate Take Your Cat to the Vet Day by doing just that, helping your feline friend to stay supple and healthy by identifying any medical problems long before they require extensive and expensive treatment.
Word of the Day
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| Definition: | (noun) A pen for sheep. | ||
| Synonyms: | fold, sheep pen | ||
| Usage: | It was the second time in a month that a predator had managed to tear through the sheepcote's wire. | ||
heide and pete, happy anniversary!
History
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 | Parker was an American short-story and verse writer who gained an almost legendary reputation for her sardonic wit while serving as drama critic for Vanity Fair and book critic for The New Yorker. She went on to write stage and screen plays and was twice nominated for an Academy Award. In the 1950s, she was blacklisted by Hollywood for her suspected ties to Communism. Parker was a founding member of the Algonquin Round Table, dubbed "The Vicious Circle" by members. | ||
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 | A long work week doesn't just mean less time for fun or friends, it can also mean an increased risk for certain cardiac events such as stroke or heart attack, according to a new study. | ||
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1762 - Ann Franklin became the editor of the Mercury of Newport in Rhode Island. She was the first female editor of an American newspaper.
1827 - Composer Josef Strauss was born.
1862 - Composer Achille-Claude Debussy was born.
1865 - A patent for liquid soap was issued to William Sheppard.
1902 - In Hartford, CT, U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt became the first president of the United States to ride in an automobile.
1906 - The Victor Talking Machine Company of Camden, NJ began to manufacture the Victrola. The hand-cranked unit, with horn cabinet, sold for $200.
1932 - The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) began its first TV broadcast in England.
1938 - Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers appeared on the cover of "LIFE" magazine.
1950 - Althea Gibson became the first black tennis player to be accepted into a national competition.
1956 - Elvis began work on his first movie, "Love Me Tender." The film was originally titled "The Reno Brothers."
1986 - Kerr-McGee Corp. agreed to pay the estate of the late Karen Silkwood $1.38 million to settle a 10-year-old nuclear contamination lawsuit.
DAILY SQU-EEK
If You Were Born Today, August 22
One of your most distinguishable traits is your common sense - you are grounded and logical, and although you are a dreamer, you prefer to imagine realizable goals. You have a straightforward manner, and you are magnetic and intuitive. You can be quite determined, independent, and some might call you stubborn. You value some level of routine and structure. You are practical, yet also enthusiastic when you see something you like. Your people skills are strong, but you are also able to be direct when necessary. Open to new ideas and visions, you also have your feet firmly planted on the ground, always considering the viability of any endeavor carefully. You are filled with quality advice for others, and others turn to you for your opinion often. You are attracted to youthful, confident, and dynamic lovers. However, you might often find yourself attracted to people who resort to trickery or other dubious activity. Famous people born today: Ray Bradbury, John Lee Hooker, Tori Amos, Cindy Williams, Ty Burrell, Kristen Wiig, Richard Armitage, Rodrigo Santoro, Rick Yune, Dakota Goyo.
| Picture of the day | |
A panoramic view of the Bryce Amphitheater in Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, as seen from Sunrise Point. It is the largest amphitheater in the park, measuring 12 miles (19 km) long, 3 miles (4.8 km) wide and 800 feet (240 m) deep. Bryce Canyon National Park, which was designated a National Park in 1928, consists of numerous natural amphitheaters and is distinguished by its hoodoos.
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Over Craiova
Photograph by Felicia Simion, National Geographic
A family takes a sunset walk in Nicolae Romanescu Park in Craiova, a university town in southern Romania. A rich example of the country’s landscape architecture, the Emile Rendont–designed park opened in 1903. It’s named for the man who was then Craiova’s mayor.
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Big Waves Throw - Patterns | Yarnspirations
Get cozy with this quick and easy ripple blanket, knit in Bernat Mega Bulky.
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Hot Stuff Socks pattern by bunnysquirrel
Pattern pdf download with heel method tutorial coming soon! For now, basic instructions (use your favorite short row heel method) are available on my blog.
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Preview by Yahoo
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Preview by Yahoo
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thanks, shelley
A cat died and went to Heaven. God met her at the gates and said, 'You have been a good cat all these years... Anything you want is yours for the asking.'
The cat thought for a minute and then said, 'All my life I lived on a farm and slept on hard wooden floors. I would like a real fluffy pillow to sleep on.'
God said, 'Say no more.' Instantly the cat had a huge fluffy pillow.
A few days later, six mice were killed in an accident and they all went to Heaven together. God met the mice at the gates with the same offer that He made to the cat.
The mice said, 'Well, we have had to run all of our lives: from cats, dogs, and even people with brooms! If we could just have some little roller skates, we would not have to run again.'
God answered, 'It is done.' All the mice had beautiful little roller skates...
About a week later, God decided to check on the cat. He found her sound asleep on her fluffy pillow. God gently awakened the cat and asked, 'Is everything okay? How have you been doing? Are you happy?'
The cat replied, 'Oh, it is WONDERFUL. I have never been so happy in my life. The pillow is so fluffy, and those little Meals on Wheels you have been sending over are delicious!'
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Scrubbies Pattern & Tutorial: Crocheted Hemp - Darice
Make your own crocheted hemp scrubbies with this tutorial. Hemp is naturally antibacterial which makes it the perfect material for making scrubbies!
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RECIPE
CROCKPOT RECIPE
stephanie o'dea
CrockPot Paella Recipe
I don't really know much about paella, other than the Costanzas invited the Seinfelds over for dinner and they refused. And with that limited knowledge I attempted to make some. In the crockpot. I do know that paella uses saffron, and I have quite a bit of saffron in the house, thanks to a gift. I think I got the flavors right. This tasted good, but the rice turned to absolute mush, and ended up glued to the crock. I've made rice before, and thought I knew what I was doing. The Ingredients.
--2 spicy sausage, cut up (I used chicken spicy Italian)
--1.5 lbs of thick fish steak (I used halibut)
--1 each of a yellow, red, orange bell pepper, cut in chunks
--1 small yellow onion, diced
--1 head of cauliflower florets
--2 T butter
--1/4 tsp kosher salt
--very healthy pinch of saffron (about 1/2 tsp)
--2 cups chicken broth
--1 cup rice (I used white. I should have used brown.)
The Directions.
Dump the rice and chicken broth into the crockpot and stir. Stir in the saffron and the salt. Add the butter, and chopped onion, cauliflower, and bell pepper. Add the cut up sausage and the fish to the top.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 3-4, or until rice has absorbed the liquid and is cooked and the fish is flaky.
I cooked ours in a 6qt Smart Pot for 7 hours on low and it was too long. The rice disintegrated.
The Verdict.
I think I put in too much liquid. I used the standard 1 cup rice to 2 cups liquid measurement, but didn't take into account the juice from the meat or vegetables. I'd like to try this again, but with brown rice and with only 1 1/2 cups of broth.
CRAFT
Colorful Summer's Bangle!!!
1. A PVC tube...the one you use for your aquarium will do...not the PVC hose in the garden...unless the bangle is for an elephant..who knows?
2. A skewer...or wire.. or whatever thin ..long and hard enough!
3. Some yarn...or rags..ribbons...any some pieces of rags things will do!
4. Some oil..(now..this is the weird part...why oil for bangle?)
5. Yup...that's about all.... so, if you happened to have all above on hands..this can be a $0-fun project!
Method...
1. Cut your yarns...rags..ribbons...into small pieces.
2. Push in bit by bit into the PVC tube. You will have something like this.
3. No..no..no...not yet done...the messy fun part is just to begin....Now, drip in some oil..cooking oil...olive oil...I don't care... as long as it's clear and clean. See the color of the yarn...rags..clothes turn so vibrant and some sort of glass like way! It makes the bangle look so glass like! Let the oil absorb slowly...this may take some time...I leave it for hours!
5. Now let's admire what a beautiful bangle you have made!
CHILDREN'S CRAFT ... crafts
Chalk Spray
Chalk Spray! It is easy to make and fun to spray.
Supplies:
1 tsp. washable tempura paint
1 cup of hot water
1/2 cup of cornstarch
squirt of dishwashing liquid
1 squirt bottle
1. Add cornstarch to one cup of hot water whisking to mix so that there are no clumps.
2. Add one teaspoon of washable tempura paint and a quirt of dish washing liquid. Mix well.
3. Pour it into your squirt bottles and shake well.
Watch your kids enjoy making designs and pictures on your driveway. I always spray my driveway down when we are done to avoid any staining. After you let your spray sit a while it will separate. Shake it really well before you use it each time.
Preview by Yahoo
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QUOTE
4 HOT DOGS CELEBRATING FREEDOM IN THE KITCHEN
LOS ANGELES EATS THE MOST HOT DOGS OF ANY CITY IN THE WORLD (MORE THAN 39 MILLION) BASEBALL FANS SCARF DOWN OVER 21 MILLION HOT DOGS IN THE COURSE OF A YEAR.
The hotdog is considered a nearly omnipotent food by the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council. Over $2.5 billion in hot dogs are sold in supermarkets, but the number of dogs sold without bar codes in ballparks, street stands, and in restaurants make hot dog consumption almost incalculable.
Hot Dogs By the Numbers
- Los Angeles eats the most hot dogs of any city in the world—over 39 million!
- Baseball fans scarf down over 21 million hot dogs in the course of a year!
- More than 7 billion hot dogs are devoured during “hot dog season” (between Memorial and Labor days) – that’s over 800 hot dogs a second!
WHEN A FOOT-LONG ISN’T ENOUGH
The “Big Hot Dog” is 16 inches long and 4” in diameter and weighs in at 17 lbs! This dog is a mixture of 100% veal, beef, and pork.
But it sports a hefty price tag, this dog will set you back $170, but the makers claim it can feed 40+ people.
THE HUNDRED-DOLLAR HOT DOG
Americans aren’t the only country in love with the dog.
The “Dragon Dog”, from Dougie Dog in Vancouver, is a $100 food truck fare made by infusing Kobe beef with 100-year-old cognac. The dog is then topped with lobster, truffle oil, and a picante sauce.
The “Dragon Dog”, from Dougie Dog in Vancouver, is a $100 food truck fare made by infusing Kobe beef with 100-year-old cognac. The dog is then topped with lobster, truffle oil, and a picante sauce.
Is Dragon Dog is a little out of your price range? Try the Dave Grohl Special , a whiskey infused frank with hot peppers, for just $6.95.
"Good Morning" in Vietnamese (Vietnam) - Chào buổi sáng
CLEVER
EYE OPENER
4 out of every 100 Ravelers are cats
cat-vatars on Ravelry. Most of them look like trouble.
1000 tons of finished projects
Combined, all of the finished projects on Ravelry contain almost 2 million
pounds of yarn and weigh more than 5 blue whales.
5 billion kilometers of yarn
If you were to frog everyone's finished projects and combine that yarn
with all of the unused stash, you'd have over 5 billion kilometers of yarn -
enough to add 5 new (single strand) rings to Saturn.
If you were to use all of that yarn to make wetsuits for the blue whales, you'd...
end up with quite a few. What kind of gauge do you get from 5 billion km
of mismatched yarn?
cranking out some holiday gifts
Jan 1
Feb 1
Mar 1
Apr 1
May 1least
Jun 1
Jul 1
Aug 1
Sep 1
Oct 1
Nov 1
c 1mostDec 25
worldwide northern hemisphere southern hemisphere
Yellow blocks mark days when fewer projects were finished.
The calendar above groups together the completion dates for every finished
project from 2007-2013. It looks like some of you were cutting it close with
Christmas gifts ;)
Red blocks mark days when the most projects were completed.
Yellow blocks mark days when fewer projects were finished.
900 million words were posted to the forums in 2013
2007
55 million words
2008
452 million words
2009
649 million words
2010
804 million words
2011
883 million words
2012
923 million words
2013
900 million words
1 tiny block in the chart above ( 
) = the entire 7 book set of Harry Potter
) = the entire 7 book set of Harry Potter
novels
As of February 2014, Ravelry groups & the main forums contain more than
100 million posts and 5 billion words. That's enough words to stack up to
4400 complete sets of the Harry Potter series.
color families used in garments
Well, I was hoping that one would be more interesting. Not a whole lot to see
here! Greys seem to be picking up, eh?
2 pm eastern: the loveliest hour
1am3am5am7am9am11am1pm3pm5pm7pm9pm
2-3 PM Eastern time is the busiest time of day on Ravelry.
During these 60 minutes, you all click the "love" buttons on forum posts
over 7,000 times. At each day's end, love buttons have been clicked about
125,000 times.
thursday, I don't care about you ♫
Monday is our busiest day and more new patterns are added on this day than on any other day of the week. It's not all about Monday, though. Other days of the week have their own specialties:
Sunday is the biggest photo and project updating day. Wednesday is the busiest time of the week for the forums. More patterns are purchased on Fridays. Saturday is the quietest time of the week for just about everything but it's usually the most popular day for pattern searches.
contributors
30,000 people have created a page for their own design or yarn
64,000 people have contributed a page for any pattern or yarn
(their own or someone else's)
74,000 people have revised a pattern or yarn page
336,000 people have added a project (with a photo)
ravelversaries
1 year151,000 people
2 years127,000
3 years108,000
4 years87,000
5 years77,000
6 years50,000
Your Ravelversary is the anniversary of the date that you joined Ravelry.
The Anniversaries for Ravelers who were active during 2013 are shown above.
150,000 of you have had your first anniversary and 50,000 of you old timers
have celebrated your 6th. We're very happy that all of you are here with us
and we hope that you'll celebrate many more :)
a day in ravelry
In a typical 24 hour period, we add...
65,000forum posts 7,000new projects 5,000stashed yarns15,000queued projects 80,000favorites 30,000photosravelers per capita
Iceland is leading the way with an estimated 346 Ravelers per 10,000 Icelanders! Here are the top countries that members hail from:
Iceland: 346 Ravelers per 10000
Canada: 90 per 10000
United States: 84 per 10000
Norway: 83 per 10000
Finland: 78 per 10000
New Zealand: 66 per 10000
United Kingdom: 49 per 10000
Australia: 49 per 10000
Denmark: 44 per 10000
Sweden: 44 per 10000
Ireland: 41 per 10000
Estonia: 38 per 10000
Netherlands: 24 per 10000
Germany: 16 per 10000
Figures are based on self-reported data. If we instead use IP address information, Iceland bumps up to 450+ and New Zealand ties the US and Norway with 84 Ravelers per capita.
how do you use Ravelry?
We've met so many people that use Ravelry in different ways. That's great and it's exactly what we want to hear. Use it as a tool, a memory book, a way to socialize, whatever. Use Ravelry however you like!
Loved reading all the things that Ravelry tracks! My anniversary is July 15, 2007:) It's been a fine romance:)
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