Swoopers~

Pictures of Australian Magpies by Cindy Knoke.

Cindy Knoke

Wild Australian magpies are inquisitive, wise, friendly, and fun to interact with. Like most creatures, they are usually respectful to you, if you are respectful of them.

But, they do swoop!

Swooping means they attack humans, other animals, cars, etc., causing thousands of human injuries in Australia each spring. See:

https://www.science.org.au/curious/earth-environment/how-survive-magpie-swooping-season

They swoop if they perceive their nestlings are in danger….

or maybe, if they are having an irritating day.

Like all corvids, they have excellent memories and hold grudges, so if you bothered a corvid in the past, you better steer clear during swooping season, or else be ready to duck down really fast!

Cheers to you from Australia’s marvelous-memoried, moody-magpies~

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Good People Doing Good Things — Woody & Luna

More good people doing good things.

Filosofa's Word

Just over a year ago, August 14, 2019, I wrote a ‘good people’ post that included a story about Woody Faircloth who, along with his then-7-year-old daughter, Luna, started a non-profit,  RV4CampfireFamily, to purchase RVs for people whose homes had been destroyed by the devastating Camp Fire that killed 85 people and destroyed 14,000 homes, leaving over 50,000 people homeless.  At the time I wrote that post, Mr. Faircloth and his organization had provided RVs for temporary housing to 65 families, and ultimately provided RVs for 80 families.As we all know, this year has brought in a new batch of devastating wildfires on the West Coast, and Woody Faircloth is back on the job.

As a wildfire tore through Berry Creek, California, last month, it destroyed the homes of six of the community’s seven volunteer firefighters along with the department’s fire station.  Nonetheless, the firefighters kept on…

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Food For Thought …

Food for thought.

Filosofa's Word

Today it is likely that Amy Barrett will be confirmed by a majority in the U.S. Senate.  Unconscionable?  Yes, for many reasons, but nonetheless inevitable.  In yesterday’s edition of The Guardian, Robert Reich wrote about what needs to happen next, assuming that Joe Biden is the next president and that the democrats can keep a majority in the House and gain a majority in the Senate – once considered unlikely, but far more realistic today.

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Trump assaulted American democracy – here’s how Democrats can save it

Amy Coney Barrett is heading for confirmation but supreme court and Senate reform is possible if Biden wins and acts fast

Robert Reich

Barring a miracle, Amy Coney Barrett will be confirmed on Monday as the ninth justice on the US supreme court.

This is a travesty of democracy.

The vote on Barrett’s confirmation will occur just eight days before election day. By…

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The Small Dog’s Vicious Circle…

From the small dog’s blog.

The Small Dog

Well, she’s still being weird

And she’s up half the night,

So we sit in the garden

Because stars are bright

And why shouldn’t we watch

As they twinkle and shine?

I don’t care what we’re doing

‘Cause this time is mine.

*

With her hands in my fur,

Or caressing my ears,

It’s this time of night

When we get to change gears,

I don’t need to guard her

Or be high altered…

Just snuggle up close

While the tension’s diverted.

By day we have unicorns

Over the fence,

All disguised as horses…

The undergrowth’s dense

To protect them from hunters,

So I’m on the case,

Of every intruder

Protecting the place.

*

The birds all fly in

And I chase them away,

‘Cause a garden of birdsong?

Who wants that all day?

She says that she likes it,

It’s fine by her choosing,

I say she needs quiet

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A Low Bar — Negative Expectations

The bar has been set extremely low for Trump.

Filosofa's Word

If you have two children of approximately the same age, one is of average intelligence with normal capabilities for her age, and the other is developmentally delayed, has difficulty with the fine motor skills, then you have a different set of expectations for each.  Alicia, the fist example, might be expected to not spill her food, chew with her mouth closed, place her napkin in her lap and use it as necessary, while Sammy is praised if he merely manages to get the food onto the spoon and into his mouth.  We set the expectations for our children, our friends and our family members based on their abilities.

We should not have to lower our expectations for the president of the country based on his past behaviour.  The bar shouldn’t be moved up or down depending on who is speaking – Donald Trump is not a child, but a world…

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Romanian manufacture of painted glass

Beautiful and unique, Paul. —- Suzanne

Bad Hair Day?

Even birds like the Kookaburra may look like they’re having a Bad Hair Day.

Cindy Knoke

I can so relate.

Thanks to covid, it has been seven months since my hair has been professionally cut.

I cut my hair with my husband’s buzzer and it looks much like this kookaburra.

Actually, it looks much better on a kookaburra!

My friend told me, I look, “natural,” which is nice friend speak for “God awful, but real.”

I’m cool with real.

If it’s good enough for the Kookaburra, it’s good enough for me.

Cheers to you and keep smiling~

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A Lot Can Happen In Three Months …

Some of the things that can happen in three months.

Filosofa's Word

The official death toll from the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. is currently at 225,222 (as of 11:04 p.m. on 10/19/2020).  There are over 2.7 million active cases of the coronavirus in the nation at this time.  The most recent unemployment data, from September, shows 12.58 million people are unemployed in the U.S.  And yet, Trump & Co were planning a cut to the food stamp program that would have cut off food stamps to some 700,000 people.

It has long been obvious that neither Trump nor any of his cronies have that thing we call a conscience, that they do not care about anyone but themselves, or anything but wealth.  But, fortunately for the people of this country, despite Trump’s efforts to pack the courts with partisan judges, some fair and honest judges remain on the bench.  One such is U.S. District Chief Judge Beryl Howell, who on Sunday…

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Good People Doing Good Things – Rob & Reece Scheer

Two especially good people doing great things.

Filosofa's Word

This is only the second time I have replayed a ‘good people’ post.  Admittedly, I am short on the resources of time & energy tonight, but there is good reason for this repost from June 2018.  First, these two guys will warm your heart, and this remains today one of my most popular good people posts.  And second,  I only today found that Rob Scheer wrote a book … it was actually published in late 2018, but only came to my attention today.  The book is titled A Forever Family: Fostering Change One Child at a Time and is “an inspirational memoir by the founder of Comfort Cases about his turbulent childhood in the foster care system and the countless obstacles and discrimination he endured in adopting his four children.”
I hope you don’t mind too much that I am reposting … I promise all new good people next week!

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Highways England using public funds for a propaganda film at Stonehenge!

Highways England using public funds.

The Heritage Journal

The fact Highways England, a roads provider, acts like a roads advocate (and often like a used car salesman) is hardly news. But this account from a pro-scheme campaigner revealing what they’re up to is remarkable:

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“This company (Motiv Productions) will be filming in our High Street and around the area commencing Monday coming, on behalf of Highways England. They’re going to “do me first” and will talk to ordinary folks going about their business walking, cycling, riding, or just taking in the general workings of our busy village. The film when complete, will be presented to the Government to assist with their decision on November 13th.”

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Like many places nationwide, the village in question is affected by traffic with its ‘London Road’ a clue to this being an issue of historical significance. The traffic will continue to increase locally no matter what happens to the A303…

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