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Link only (that's a shame) - Tips on protecting against Christmas tree fires

Why should any visitor to a Christian country be offended by Christian traditions and decorations? I’m not offended by the overt signs of other countries’ differing religions and traditions; in fact, I enjoy them. What is more, I know for sure that there are Christmas trees and decorations in Dubai, that go up as the Eid celebration finishes. One officious counter lady in our local PO tried to stop me using a proper (ie Religious) stamp on a card to Dubai 2 years ago. She was astonished when I told her that she would see Christmas decorations there...

U.S. President Barack Obama (R), First Lady Michelle Obama, daughters Sasha (2nd L) and Maila (R) take their seats for the National Christmas Tree lighting ceremony on the Ellipse in Washington December 3, 2009. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (UNITED STATES POLITICS)

Call me crazy, but just in case Ogabe tries to shut down the Internet, how can we communicate? A friend suggested Freenet, but that still requires ISP's. Someone else mentioned that the Eagle Forum etc. used to use faxes and phone trees back in the 80's. Does anyone have any thoughts on where to put a phone number so I can get a call when if the unthinkable happens?

WORCESTER, Mass.- A Worcester, Mass., man said he will not appeal the city's order to tear down the $12,000 four-story tree house he built on his property . Michael Chapman, 48 -- who built the tree house over the course of three months from more than a ton of pressure-treated lumber, 1,000 feet of rope, about 500 lag screws and 48 feet of rebar -- said the city ordered him to remove the tree house by Nov. 2 and he intends to abide by the order, The Boston Globe reported Tuesday. Officials from Worcester's Department of Inspectional Services said they...

National Geographic photographer Michael Nichols is one of the world's foremost wildlife photographers. But he recently said that he'd happily spend the rest of his life photographing trees. Of course, the folks over at National Geographic would almost certainly never hear of it. Nichols' newfound love developed after a serious, yearlong relationship with redwoods. National Geographic sent Nichols to spend an entire year in California's redwood forest. His mission was to capture the majesty of some of the tallest trees on Earth, some of which date back before Christ. And if you've ever photographed in a forest, you'll understand the...

DENVER -- The "Tree Fairy" camouflages himself in foliage and said he is guided by the light of the moon. "My mother wants me to quit. My sister seems to want me to quit. They think I am a little crazy and are worried I might go to jail," said the Tree Fairy. The Tree Fairy wants to remain anonymous on his unique mission of goodwill. An elfish angel of sorts, the Tree Fairy finds joy in planting trees in the yards of unsuspecting neighbors. "I like nature. I wanted to live around nature. I really wanted to live in...

Czech archaeologists have uncovered a unique 1000-year-old mark engraved into an oak tree the remains of which were found near Celakovice in Prague, which is probably the oldest preserved sign of this kind in the world. According to a report from the Czech News Agency, the real meaning of the 10-cm star-shaped mark on the oak trunk is not certain. Experts say it may have marked the territory or serve some iconic purposes. This find is rare as so old engraved signs were not previously mapped and they are not systematically searched for either, archaeologist Jana Marikova of the Academy...

JASLO, Poland (Reuters) – An oak tree planted in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War Two to mark Adolf Hitler's birthday may soon face the axe if the local mayor has her way. Authorities in Jaslo in rural southeastern Poland discovered the origins of the tree when plans were lodged to fell it to make way for a traffic roundabout. "We obtained information that this is no ordinary tree but was put here to mark Adolf Hitler's birthday," said Jaslo's mayor, Maria Kurowska. "So should I try to improve our town's communications or should I allow a memorial to that criminal...

A tree planted in a Polish town in honor of Adolf Hitler's birthday has received its death sentence. The local government of Jaslo, a southeastern Polish town, wants to fell and burn the 67-year-old oak tree, which was brought by the Nazi occupying force from the Austrian town where Hitler grew up. Jaslo's mayor, Maria Kurowska, wants to uproot the town's Nazi past by removing the tree and planting a new tree to be dedicated to the memories of Polish officers who were killed by Soviet police in April 1940. The mayor did not mention whether a new tree would...

The skeeters are so thick you can't breath unless you keep moving. Not many critters out, except during twilight hours. I got these shots just rambling around yesterday.

An art exhibition in Civic Center Plaza could kill trees and should be removed immediately, a certified arborist has warned city officials. Acclaimed artist Patrick Dougherty in March installed his “The Upper Crust” exhibit, which is 18,000 pounds of freshly cut willow saplings interwoven in the sycamore treetops. Tree advocates at the time expressed concerns that the exhibit could harm the trees, and a March 31 arborist report seems to validate those worries. “To protect the trees from possible harm, it is my recommendation that the sculptures be removed from the trees immediately,” certified arborist Roy Leggitt said in a...

The following video is real. The animals are eating the fermented fruit of the Marula tree. The Marula (Sclerocarya birrea) is a medium-sized dioecious tree, indigenous to the miombo woodlands of Southern Africa and the Sudano-Sahelian range of West Africa. The tree is a single stemmed tree with a wide spreading crown. It is characterised by a grey mottled bark. The tree grows up to 18m tall mostly in low altitudes and open woodlands. The fruits are used in the liqueur Amarula. The distribution of this species throughout Africa has followed the Bantu in their migrations, as it has been...

Russian doctors find tree growing in man's lung 12:17 | 13/ 04/ 2009 MOSCOW, April 13 (RIA Novosti) - Surgeons in Russia's Urals Region were staggered to find a 5-centimeter high spruce growing inside a man's lung, the Komsomolskaya Pravda daily reported on Monday. The discovery was made while Artyom Sidorkin, 28, from the Urals city of Izhevsk, was undergoing surgery. Sidorkin had complained of extreme pain in his chest and had been coughing up blood, doctors suspected cancer. "I blinked three times and thought I was seeing things," Izhevsk surgeon Vladimir Kamashev told the paper. Medical staff believe Sidorkin...

A reward is being offered by the city's parks department after nearly 20 trees were recently discovered chopped down inside Manhattan's Inwood Hill Park. NY1's Amanda Farinacci filed the following report. Signs are posted all over Inwood Hill Park after the Parks Department said its employees discovered 17 trees chopped down and left to rot across the 200-acre park. "We have serial tree killer operating in Inwood Hill Park. Right around this time last year somebody killed 35 red cedar trees, obviously deliberately. Now we've got another 17 over the last week or so," said Parks Department Commissioner Adrian Benepe....

BEALE AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. , Dec. 24, 2008 – A reservist with the 940th Air Refueling Wing here was selected by California's 2nd district congressman and the 9th Reconnaissance Wing commander to design an ornament for the White House Christmas tree. The ornament for the White House Christmas tree designed by Chief Master Sgt. Stuart Bisland, an Air Force reservist at Beale Air Force Base, Calif., showcases the emerging intelligence missions performed there. Bisland was asked by California's second district congressman and the 9th Reconnaissance Wing commander to design an ornament for the White House tree. (Courtesy photo)  (Click...

At least in this case study from Absurd Britannia, the backtracking began almost immediately. "Mother told to take down her Christmas lights... in case they offend her non-Christian neighbours," from the Daily Mail, December 16 (thanks to James): A woman has spoken of how she was told to remove her Christmas lights by a housing association worker - in case they offended her non-Christian neighbours. Dorothy Glenn decorates her home in South Shields with hundreds of festive lights every year, including a giant tree and a 4ft Santa Claus. But she was left stunned this year when a South Tyneside...

PARRISH — A 37-year-old man who lives with his parents was arrested on a felony assault charge after he used a Christmas tree as a weapon in an attempted attack on his father, according to a sheriff’s report. Manatee deputies arrested Thomas Edward Lackie of the 3300 block of 92nd Avenue East in Parrish last week after hearing a description of the altercation from his parents. According to an arrest report, Lackie lost his temper around 9 p.m. Wednesday and threw a 3-foot-tall Christmas tree at his father. The tree missed, but Lackie then tried to use the steel base...

BERKELEY, CA (KGO) -- The final showdown is unfolding at UC Berkeley. As campus police move in on the tree sitters occupying the last of the remaining trees. There have been many violent confrontations between police and protestors. Objects thrown, weapons drawn, people arrested - it's all going down right now at UC Berkeley. Campus police in a cherry-picker are actively trying to get the tree sitters down from their perch in a redwood tree. A dramatic ending to the nearly two-year protest over the removal of trees to build a new university sports complex.

Sarah Palin is the 12th cousin of John McCain, 8th cousin of George W. Bush and 10th cousin of Barack Obama.