- An 11-pound hero. (Thank you, S&L, for the news.)
- Another great dog story.
- Okay. Equal time for cats. This is not only amazing cat news, but the implications for severely injured humans are pretty awesome, too.
- Gold. Yes, it’s likely to end up as a bubble. But in the meantime, take a look at that chart. Besides, the Dow really could go to 5,000. Are any actual humans investing in stocks any more? Or is it all just banks and computers?
- “A Sermon on Ethics and Love.” (Hail Eris! All Hail Discordia!) Tip o’ hat to C2 for this and the kitty story above.
- “Don’t mind me; I’ll just die here in the dark.” Good one from J.D. Tuccille. About preparedness. Or the defeatist lack thereof.
- Surprise, surprise. Police state powers are growing as Obama and Janet Napolitano continue Bushevik policies. And here’s one more cheery example.
- Back to better news. Saw Toy Story 3 on Friday. In the Big City. In very subtle 3D. Pixar does it again. Cinematic miracles as standard stock in trade; what a concept. It’s at 98% fresh on RottenTomatoes.com and on track to become RT’s best-reviewed feature film of the year (another Pixar standard — ho hum). Of course, one out of 1000 reviewers might just think it’s the worst film of the year. 😉 Me, I bawled like a baby. And laughed. And marveled. And hung on for the wild ride. Don’t have kids? Me, neither — and who needs ’em for an excuse? Go see it, anyhow, if you haven’t already. Take your hankie. (I’m not sure how much the 3D added to the experience, ‘tho. It probably added emotional immediacy & a heightened sense of being in the action, but it was really very, very subtle. Unlike “Avatar,” the extra dimension isn’t crucial. Gads, Pixar just does such wonderful storytelling and creates such fabulous characters.) Oh yeah; think twice before taking really little kids. How a movie this intense got a “G” rather than a “PG” rating is a mystery.
I am more and more impressed with the apparent gentleness of the pit bull; such a 180-degree denial of its reputation is remarkable — and makes its reputation all the more suspect. Is it *only* the human intervention (via dog-fighting) that has made these animals so feared? Plus… I give credit to Kay-Lynette Roca, the lady at the FL dog shelter, for wanting to keep these two dogs together. It shows her real concern for the animals that come to her attention.
The cat’s prosthesis is also remarkable. For human use it seems a god-send. Too many people suffer from the mis-fitting of ordinary prostheses. This seems like a more permanent and comfortable solution – at least for adults. I’m not sure if this would work on a child, as their extremity would continue to grow, and a too-small prosthesis might be embedded deeper into the stump to the point of uselessness; and it might be too weak (small and thin) to support the child as he grows into teenager or adult.
I went to see Toy Story 3 with a little one yesterday. It was very good. I never saw #2 so I was afraid I’d not get into this one but it was very well done. I have to say that I think the Ken parts were my favorite. The baby was just plain creepy. I think if I went home and had one of those, it would have been thrown out.