These are my super-model cats, Commander Samuel Vimes (his Grace), and Hobbes (erstwhile materialist philosopher).
Cmdr. Samuel Vimes in a contemplative mood.
Sam and Hobbes – Maine Mountain Cats scaling the mantel.
Sam watching the news.
And paying close attention to the weather report.
What!? Now he’s buying a car!?
All of this activity is truly exhausting.
When I was a kid, wolves were the beasts that haunted my nightmares. Recurring nightmares about tricky wolves; wolves that wore blue overalls. I think Looney Tunes has a lot to answer for.
When I got older I realized that the critter above could be the real nightmare. Then I read about this guy.
The giant short-faced bear kind of blows any other bears right out of the water. This gigantic bear stood about 6.5 feet while on all four legs and was about 11-12 feet tall when standing upright on its hind legs. Evidence of members of this bear family are found in both North and South America. It was truly an impressive creature. Fossil evidence indicates that humans did not move into this bear’s environment until after its extinction. It also seems to have been the alpha predator because of the lack of fossil evidence for other large carnivores such as lions and scimitar cats in areas where short-faced bear traces are found.
I love bears, albeit with the greatest respect. I would not want to meet this one.
The Indian city of Bikaner hosts an annual camel festival in January. The designs are the results of trimming and dying the camel hair. Photographs by Steve Hoge and Osakabe Yasuo.
Reblogged from hovercraftdoggy.
My cousins have a camel – Maybe they will do this to Cammie.
You have seen this. I just wanted to look at it again. Cool owl.
Iris, an Amur tiger, with her cub. From wordlesstech.
I saw this photo and got to wondering how many different kinds of tigers are there . . .
and some of their coloration is also interesting . . .
The stripeless white looks a lot like my Hobbes.
Not real goldfish, of course, but little goldfish teabags swimming in your cup. If you can get around thinking about what fish do in the water . . . .
These little darlings are from Charm Villa.
Thanks to Katie for the tip.
From Sippican Cottage via HMS Defiant, with thanks.
“When I turned on the light, I couldn’t quite understand what I was seeing,” Piotr Naskrecki said about his encounter with the Goliath Birdeater Spider in the rainforest of Guyana.
Okay, this is not sappy spider blogging – this is Creepy, Enormous, NIGHTMARE spider blogging. This specimen has a leg span of up to a foot, 2 inch long fangs and a fist-sized body. The Goliath also has hardened feet that make it sound like horses hooves when it walks.
It gets better:
When Naskrecki approached the imposing creature in the rainforest, it would rub its hind legs against its abdomen. At first, the scientist thought the behavior was “cute,” he said, but then he realized the spider was sending out a cloud of hairs with microscopic barbs on them. When these hairs get in the eyes or other mucous membranes, they are “extremely painful and itchy,” and can stay there for days, he said.
I’m never going there, nope, never.
Read more here at Live Science.
Photo credit: Piotr Naskrecki
Firearms, fibers, any news or behaviors that make me say, "hmm, let me take another look at this."
I still miss my man, but my aim is getting better.
Gunsmoke and Knitting 