Potential Republican Crack-Up

[Monkey Face]

I have a mental pic of both those dogs in action, and it's pretty funny from where I sit!

[Monkey Face]

GOOD ONE!!!

[Tax-chick]

I didn't even notice!

[Monkey Face]

You're getting pretty good at that! LOL!

[Tax-chick]

Clean living!

[Not A Snowbird]

Kitten update!

My big orange dude, Tomas, has decided to allow the kittens to share his food. This is a major concession!

A couple of days ago, however, he wasn't so willing. Tori came over and stuck her face in his bowl while he was eating a couple of days ago. I watched to see how he'd react, and he just sat there, staring at her, then reached over and lightly tapped her on top of the head. No hissing, just a tap.

Now they're best food-sharing buddies.

[Monkey Face]

LOL!

Hey! Have you been watching the progress of the Pope at the World Youth thingy in Germany? He's almost as big a hit as John Paul was.

[MikefromOhio]

yeah...

not a big deal. it did make me mad for a minute, but then I decided to have some fun with it....

[Monkey Face]

LOL!

That's funny! Just a pop to let her know who is boss! Cool!

[Tax-chick]

We're getting reports from a FReeper who's there. I'll have to check later to see if there's another one.

Pope Benedict is a real cutie!

[Not A Snowbird]

Yep, that's what it was. Just letting her know who the alpha cat is. :-)

[Monkey Face]

I've been following it on Deutsche Welle TV at night. The coverage is, obviously, quite good.

[Tax-chick]

I would think so! Hometown boy hits the big time!

[Monkey Face]

I have no clue what Hobbes would do if I introduced her to another cat. One that was here to stay, anyway. She is so used to being by herself.

[fanfan]

Hi Laura.

You two are such a neat couple.

My husband lurks, but won't post. :-(

[Monkey Face]

Yes, that was the impression I got, but it is really quite thorough, in that it has a lot of what the kids are doing, and what their days are like.

[Monkey Face]

Hiya, Mr. fanfan!

*shakes head* (Why do you remind me of Kilroy?)

[NicknamedBob]

July 7, 2005: Just when you thought it was safe to read your email....

There's a rumor about Mars going around the internet. Here are some snippets from a widely-circulated email message:

"The Red Planet is about to be spectacular."

"Earth is catching up with Mars [for] the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history."

"On August 27th … Mars will look as large as the full moon."

And finally, "NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN."

Only the first sentence is true. The Red Planet is about to be spectacular. The rest is a hoax.

Here are the facts: Earth and Mars are converging for a close encounter this year on October 30th at 0319 Universal Time. Distance: 69 million kilometers. To the unaided eye, Mars will look like a bright red star, a pinprick of light, certainly not as wide as the full Moon.

Disappointed? Don't be. If Mars did come close enough to rival the Moon, its gravity would alter Earth's orbit and raise terrible tides.

Sixty-nine million km is good. At that distance, Mars shines brighter than anything else in the sky except the Sun, the Moon and Venus. The visual magnitude of Mars on Oct. 30, 2005, will be -2.3. Even inattentive sky watchers will notice it, rising at sundown and soaring overhead at midnight.

You might remember another encounter with Mars, about two years ago, on August 27, 2003. That was the closest in recorded history, by a whisker, and millions of people watched as the distance between Mars and Earth shrunk to 56 million km. This October's encounter, at 69 million km, is similar. To casual observers, Mars will seem about as bright and beautiful in 2005 as it was in 2003.

[TASMANIANRED]

I watched a lunar eclipse through da'scope a couple of summers ago.

I can't keep all those specks of light straight.

[TASMANIANRED]

I've had really good luck with them.

I have one of those nasty fiberglass tubs with a texture to it.

I scrubbed with every chemical known to man and couldn't get rid of the dingy look.

Magic eraser worked.