Couple nurses butterfly back to health

Jeannette Brandt and Mike Parwana rescued this monarch butterfly from the side of a road in Lake Luzerne, N.Y., nursing it back to health and patching its broken wing with two white splints. On Sunday, the couple took the insect to a truck stop and lobbied a trucker to give it a ride to Florida so it could complete its Southern migration

LAKE LUZERNE, N.Y. (Nov. 20) - A monarch butterfly has a chance at completing its species' famed migration to central Mexico thanks to some tiny cardboard splints, a bit of contact cement and a trucker from Alabama.
The insect's broken wing was painstakingly splinted by an upstate New York couple who then helped it hitch a ride south after the weather in the southern Adirondacks turned cold.

About three weeks ago, Jeannette Brandt was out for a bike ride in rural Hadley when she spied the injured butterfly and took it home in her emptied water bottle.
She and her partner, Mike Parwana, fed it rotting pears and water mixed with honey from bees they keep. The butterfly fattened but the question remained: What about the broken wing?
A search of the Internet turned up a nine-minute video demonstration posted by the Live Monarch Foundation, a nonprofit group from Boca Raton, Fla., on how to fix a broken butterfly wing. A little contact cement on the wing, some tiny cardboard splints, and the bruised butterfly was back in business.
"It was still weak. It was another week or so before it would fly," Parwana told the Post-Star newspaper of Glens Falls.
On Sunday, the couple took the healed monarch in a shoebox to Scotty's, a popular and busy truck stop about 35 miles north of Albany. Anybody looking for company on the trip south?
"And all these truckers looked down at their shoes," Parwana told the newspaper. "If you ever want to feel strange, walk into Scotty's and just put it out there that you want them to take a box south."
Eventually, a trucker from Alabama, on his way to Florida, raised his hand.
On Tuesday, the trucker called: The butterfly was loose in Florida with its mended wing.

Mutant fish killing people

They reckon that a huge type of catfish, called a goonch, may have developed a taste for flesh in an Indian river where bodies are dumped after funerals.
Locals have believed for years that a mysterious monster lurks in the water. But they think it has moved on from scavenging to snatching unwary bathers who venture into the Great Kali, which flows along the India-Nepal border.



The locals have told of a theory that this monster has grown extra large on a diet of partially burnt corpses. It has perhaps got this taste for flesh by feasting on remains of funeral pyres. There will be a few freak individuals that grow bigger than the other ones and if you throw in extra food, they will grow even bigger.



discounted theories that crocodiles could be responsible for the carnage before turning his attention to goonches – among the world’s biggest freshwater fish.



one which tipped the scales at 161lb and was nearly 6ft long – a world record weight and far bigger than any landed before.



An 18-year-old Nepali disappeared in the river in 2007, dragged down by something described as like an “elongated pig”.



But the first victim of a goonch attack was thought to have been a 17-year-old Nepalese boy.
He was killed in April 1988 as he cooled himself in the river.
Witnesses said he was suddenly pulled below the surface.
Three months later a young boy was dragged underwater as his father watched helplessly

The Beautiful Game

'mumbo jumbo,(quick talk) mumbo jumbo (scream)' ....'mumbo jumbo mumbo (fast words) mumbo ...GOALLLL!!!!!!!' ...wooh !! Thats the commentary of a typical exciting footie game, or rather FOOTBALL aka SOCCER, the most watched sport on this living planet!

I was 7 years old, short,fat and chubby! nothing of the sort you would imagine me to be right nw, well i was! untill i met my ultimate fitness instructor! FOOTBALL! The very versatile sport changed my thinking,ability,skill,wellbeing and body ;) drastically! i started playing football at a local sports club known as 'BURHANI SPORTS CLUB'. We participated in numerous festivals and sports challenges, though not so good at other sports, we were the best at football. This ongoing tradition of winning set in our mentality to fight for the best and nothing less! Thus it propelled my relationship of playing football from a timepass sport to a passionate hobby!

at the tender age of 15 i was already in the senior team, challenging for a roster in the team against 24 year old players. i never thought less about myself, having the urge to compete always grew , this at times was my merit but at other times my downfall.

2003 , the inevitable year. Mombasa was hosting the BEASF ( Burhani East African Sportsl Festival). I was the vice captain of my team. My ego, undoubtly high , though it did not overshadow my talent as i talked the talk and walked the walk. 8 teams participating in total, we had overcome the 6 teams easily, not have been scored even a single goal in the whole process.

The final team, our most bitter rivals! Al-Madrasa! Kickoff time, we were surprisingly finding the game very easy, passing the ball and the movement was pure fluidity, scoring, seemed to be a problem! I took to the task, sprinted down to a hapless defender who was struggling to control the ball, went straight down for the tackle and...'CRUNCH!!!!!!'

Agony and pain was unbearable! Excruciatingly horendous ! i screamed ' my hand!! my hand ! MY HAND IS BROKEN!!!'.....

5 years down the line , i have been offered football scholarship by an american scout to play for their team in the U.S.A., have won the festival 3 times( last one in 2008-didn't go for 1 festival), been awarded the 'Most Valuable Player' and have continued to ascend!

football gives me peace of mind, allows me to freely apply my creativity and most of all , helps me show off my talent! I aspire to be a proffesional footballer someday , at the age of 19 i believe i have a wide path to follow and an array of options to pursue.

Football is not only about exercize n enjoyement, in a good country within a good team, playing profesional football can earn you millions of dollars! a few well-paid,well-known footballers are Bekham,Cristiano, Gerrard,Lampard and Ronaldinho. all earning way above 180 million ringets per year, yes i said MILLION !! earning such a bagful of money and enjoying while you are at makes football one of the most coveted sports by sportspersons.

The team which inspires me most is LIVERPOOL FC. it is the most decorated English team on earth! well known to be the 'COMEBACK KINGS' they completed a 3-0 comeback against AC-MILAN in 2005 going ahead to win the champions league final that year.

My passion and urge to play better football grows day by day, i can only wait to get my opportunity to play at proffesional football one day, till then i'll have to continue studying architecture for timepass (i don't really mean that ).If today ,you feel inspired by my writing( or typing if you are the literal kind) then please feel free to vist some of these amazing football sites.have a nyc day folks. :

http://www.tribalfootball.com/

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/

Mombasa Raha(Freedom)

The Mombasa Tusks were built to commemorate the visit of Queen Elizabeth to the town in 1952, when she arrived in Mombasa for her Kenyan safari. They lay directly on the path from the port to the town. Ivory was considered an exquisite commodity during the time, and the tusks were meant to include the Queen and the British Empire in the town. The intersecting tusks also spell the letter "M" for Mombasa. The heart of the town is where most of the hospitals, banks, shops and markets are located.

Oscar the Death messenger..

Either it's supernatural or scientific ways that Oscar uses, both are mind-boggling. Death is one of the most difficult entities to predict due to the uncertainty of the time it will strike. Oscar seems to have gained an uncanny ability to predict the so-known unpredictable entity, death ,and that too 25 times. He resides at Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, Rhode Island, on the third floor. Making his way quietly around the ward he chooses his spot next to his 'victims' as a lot of people have mistaken him to be a grim reaper.



Oscars skill or 'gift' is a very useful one indeed.He actually helps release anxiety in those related to the patient , his presence gives them assurance of the patients demise and his absence gives them hope of the patients life. His contributions have not gone unnoticed , a local hospice agency has awarded oscar with a plaque with a commendation engraved on it "For his compassionate hospice care, this plaque is awarded to Oscar the Cat."

For as long as Oscar is taking his work seriously in the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center , people will always have prior knowledge of their relatives demise if meant to be.

Not all tht glitters is gold...some of it is diamonds and rubis as well.

Well we aren't always the lucky ones when it comes down to money. Every person i know complains about money. Why is it that this single enitity is more fantasized than Britney Spears and Beyonce? We concure the wrath of money-madness when we begin the search for it, usually ending with little or none of it.





Once i heard this tale of a monkey who stole a handful of grapes from a person's basket, it immediatly ran up tree to avoid the flaring person's wrath. Reaching up to a decent height up the tree, it decided to commence its consumption of the grapes. Unexpectedly a single grape grain slipped from its grasp, the dumb animal flung its hands to grasp it, leading to the loss of the rest of the grains in his hands. This witty tale teaches us an important moral lesson, do not reach out for the losses u incurred, grasp what u have with all your might, or else you might end up losing the rest of what is left. This lesson in particular is directed to those people who gamble with their wealth and do so unknowing of the un-earthing consequences they will face.



Wealth, in todays times, has become an important aspect of people's criteria of judging a person. One is judged by the amount of money he has or hasn't. The level of selfishness increases in a person knowing he needs to be in control of his money before sumone else takes it. all these r vices of wealth.



What of the positives of wealth? Many wealthy people have helped the needy out in various ways. One such example is Oprah Winfrey. She is currently the richest black in the world. no offense to the racial colour,but, she seems to have taken strides way ahead of the rest. This has not prevented Oprah from sharing her money or better, convincing others to share theirs as well. Currently Oprah is running a show called 'Oprah's Big Give', this show hands the common people an opportunity to help those in dire need of it. It is such a succesful show that it has raised millions of dollars for the charities Oprah runs.



With wealth comes power. Once a wise man tried to contradict this statement. He wasn't considered wise anymore. Any foolish person even ,would happily agree with this bold statement. People can say all they want about wealth but the truth remains, the more money you hold, the more power you control.

Past english class nightmares!

Well life can't always be fair on us,actually to be honest it never has been and chances are it never will be. This description fits perfectly for another subject apart from 'life' , which is 'English Class.'

Past experiences for me have been horendous. Having grown up in an african country,Kenya, chances are you are treated like one. Our teachers in the past were allowed to cane us, well not only that but pinch,punch,scratch,chew,nibble,chop,skew and burn as well. Although my description might seem a bit on the exaggerated side but some of it is definatly true, well the first three surely are.

English classes were the classes we used to imagine to be free lessons, well not for long. In year six, our lady teacher was replaced by a male one. He came in with this whole new aura around him . Mythically evil as i would put it. He would boss us around like a dictator. We felt like we were in a militay camp. I can never forget the experiences we had with him, one such was when he picked up a mate of mine ,named Kassim, by the ears! We were stunned.

Eventually we passed the rest of the years with ease, untill...year ten. This was a year which changed my belief in english classes completly. Loathing the class was a general feeling sharedby my classmates, not because our teacher was madly brutal, but because the teacher was brutaly mad.

Mr.Juma was his name and boring us was his game. His words literally incited yawns all over ,and the general attitude over the class dropped drastically. luckily i held on, not paying attention in class does help at times. By the end of that year, we were thoroughly moulded into the perfect english hating students, well that includes the most of us. Time passed and days rolled, our finals emerged and we survived the genocide.

Today we stand again, to face yet another challenge , our challenger (and mentor) Ms.Juida. It now places the responsibility on our laurels to emerge victorious over this highly talked being known as ' Foundation English.' Will we survive this massacre ? Or will we fall victim to this hurdle? Only time will tell.