Story From a Minnesota State Trooper

Remember the old rock 'n roll song 'Go Granny go Granny go'? 

Now this little pistols (no pun intended)  eyes are just flashing with determination and fire....ya gotta notice those pearl button earrings.  Why, I'll betcha if she's wearing Depends they're thongs!  I personally would not have a concealed carry permit for anything....that's why we live in a town of 400.  Everybody knows I wield a 'mean' broom!

I'm getting off track a little bit but it seems like every senior citizen I know always has on the same pearl button earrings...cept for me...I still like the 'wild' ones.  I'm wondering where we go to get those pearl button earrings and at what age should we start wearing them?   Does anybody out there know?

OK, back to the story....read this and study the white haired little lady...then think how the heck did that Trooper keep his composure?

!!!!!

CLICK HERE for my store Supergrannys Treasures

CLICK HERE for Online Auction

The Decorah Eagles

Last year, people were amazed and glued to the computer, watching the Decorah Eagles. Just click on the Decorah Eagles for the link. This is a part of the Raptor Resource Project. I copied this from the site to give you an idea of what the Raptor Resource Project is:

The Raptor Resource Project

Established in 1988, the non-profit Raptor Resource Project specializes in the preservation of falcons, eagles, ospreys, hawks, and owls. We establish and strengthen breeding populations of these raptors by creating, improving, and maintaining nests and nest sites. In addition to directly managing over 40 falcon, eagle, and owl nest sites, we provide training in nest site creation and management across the United States, reach more than 85,000 people each year through lectures, education programs, and our website, and develop innovations in nest site management and viewing that bring people closer to the world around them. Our mission is to preserve and strengthen raptor populations, to expand participation in raptor preservation, and to help foster the next generation of preservationists. Our work deepens the connection between people and the natural world, bringing benefits to both.

This camera was set up by the nest of eagles near Decorah Iowa. Last year people watched in amazement as the eggs were laid, hatched and the eaglets flew! This was all over a period of time so people continually viewed the site. It was amazing!

There are links to other sites from the Raptor Resource Project, also!

The broadcast started again yesterday! And there will be updates throughout! This is an amazing site to keep an eye on!! This morning when I opened the site, the eagles were there but they have since flown off. There is a video, however, with an update! Check in periodically! It's fun, informative, and absolutely amazing! Oh, the wind can really make a noise on your speakers, so you may want to adjust the sound until you know how noisy it is.

Enjoy!!

Now, I love eagles! So I took a peek to see what OLA.com has to offer this morning! Wow!!

AKelly110 has these great American Eagle Bandannas - Lot of 18 and TONS more items!!

I love this Glass Eagle Beer Stein, Pewter Eagle & Head, Italy from JustGracie!

Wow! I know we have LOTS of eagles on dollars but this

1857 Flying Eagle Penny *** NO RESERVE *** Our AUCTION # 269 a from 1967P4 is unique!

And if you're sports minded, check out Yogisportsden for these NFL Salt and Pepper Shakers - Philadelphia !

Morerivethead has these neat 6 Porcelain COASTERS with Eagle & stars unknown!

 

And our store, KornKountryTreasures has this fabulous Eagle in Flight Statue!

So, while watching the eagles, check out OLA.com!! You'll be glad you did!

Thank you!

Beautiful!

This was sent to me and I wanted to share it with all my friends at OLA.com and beyond!

A Birth Certificate shows that we were born

Pictures show that we live!

Have a seat. Relax . . .

and read this slowly.

I Believe...

That just because two people argue,

It doesn't mean they don't love each other.

And just because they don't argue,

It doesn't mean they do love each other.

I Believe...

That we don't have to change friends if

We understand that friends change.

I Believe....

That no matter how good a friend is,

they're going to hurt you,

every once in a while

and you must forgive them for that.

I Believe.....

That true friendship continues to grow,

even over the longest distance.

Same goes for true love.

I Believe...

That you can do something in an instant

That will give you heartache for life.

I Believe....

That it's taking me a long time

To become the person I want to be.

I Believe...

That you should always leave loved ones with Loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

I Believe....

That you can keep going long after you think you can't.

I Believe....

That we are responsible for what

We do, no matter how we feel.

I Believe...

That either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I Believe....

That heroes are the people

who do what has to be done

when it needs to be done,

regardless of the consequences.

I Believe....

That my best friend and I can do anything or nothing

and have the best time..

I Believe....

That sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're

down will be the ones to help you get back up.

I Believe...

That sometimes when I'm angry

I have the right to be angry, but that

doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

I Believe...

That maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had

And what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.

I Believe.....

That it isn't always enough,

to be forgiven by others.

Sometimes, you have to learn

to forgive yourself.

I Believe...

That no matter how bad

your heart is broken,

the world doesn't stop for your grief.

I Believe....

That our background and circumstances

may have influenced who we are, but,

we are responsible for who we become.

I Believe...

That you shouldn't be

so eager to find out a secret.

It could change your life forever.

I Believe....

Two people can look at the exact same

Thing and see something totally different.

I Believe...

That your life can be changed

in a matter of hours

by people who don't even know you.

I Believe...

That even when you think

you have no more to give,

When a friend cries out to you,

you will find the strength to help.

I Believe...

That credentials on the wall

do not make you a decent human being.

I Believe...

That the people you care about

most in life are taken from you too soon.

I Believe...

That you should send this to

all of the people that you believe in. I just did.

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything;

They just make the most of everything they have.

Nice words to live by...... Enjoy.

Please share this with your friends!

MY FAVORITE BIRD

Hello my friends,

do you have a favorite bird? Well, I have. - Please have a look at the picture. Do you already know him? - No? Then please continue reading. ...

The Kakapo also called owl parrot, is a species of large, flightless nocturnal parrot endemic to New Zealand. It has finely blotched yellow-green plumage, a distinct facial disc of sensory, vibrissa-like feathers, a large grey beak, short legs, large feet, and wings and a tail of relatively short length. A certain combination of traits makes it unique among its kind—it is the world's only flightless parrot, the heaviest parrot, nocturnal, herbivorous, visibly sexually dimorphic in body size, has a low basal metabolic rate, no male parental care, and is the only parrot to have a polygynous lek breeding system. It is also possibly one of the world's longest-living birds. Its anatomy typifies the tendency of bird evolution on oceanic islands, with few predators and abundant food: a generally robust physique, with accretion of thermodynamic efficiency at the expense of flight abilities, reduced wing muscles, and a diminished keel on the sternum.

The Kakapo is critically endangered; as of June 2011, only 131 living individuals are known, most of which have been given names. The common ancestor of the Kakapo and the genus Nestor became isolated from the remaining parrot species when New Zealand broke off from Gondwana, around 82 million years ago. Around 70 million years ago, the kakapo diverged from the genus Nestor. In the absence of mammalian predators, it lost the ability to fly. Because of Polynesian and European colonisation and the introduction of predators such as cats, rats, ferrets, and stoats, the Kakapo was almost wiped out. Conservation efforts began in the 1890s, but they were not very successful until the implementation of the Kakapo Recovery Plan in the 1980s. As of January 2009, surviving Kakapo are kept on two predator-free islands, Codfish (Whenua Hou) and Anchor islands, where they are closely monitored. Two large Fiordland islands, Resolution and Secretary, have been the subject of large-scale ecological restoration activities to prepare self-sustaining ecosystems with suitable habitat for the Kakapo.

The conservation of the Kakapo has made the species well known. Many books and documentaries detailing the plight of the Kakapo have been produced in recent years, one of the earliest being Two in the Bush, made by Gerald Durrell for the BBC in 1962. A feature length documentary, The Unnatural History of the Kakapo won two major awards at the Reel Earth Environmental Film Festival. Two of the most significant documentaries, both made by NHNZ, are Kakapo - Night Parrot (1982) and To Save the Kakapo (1997). The BBC's Natural History Unit also featured the Kakapo, including a sequence with Sir David Attenborough in The Life of Birds. It was also one of the endangered animals that Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine set out to find for the radio series and book Last Chance to See. An updated version of the series has been produced for BBC TV, in which Stephen Fry and Carwardine revisit the animals to see how they are getting on almost 20 years later, and in January 2009, they spent time filming the Kakapo on Codfish Island. Footage of a kakapo named Sirocco attempting to mate with Cawardine's head was viewed by millions worldwide, leading to Sirocco becoming "spokesbird" for New Zealand wildlife conservation in 2010, as part of the International Year of Biodiversity.[ The kakapo was featured in the documentary series South Pacific (renamed Wild Pacific) episode Strange Evolutions, originally aired on June 13, 2009.

The Kakapo, like many other New Zealand bird species, was historically important to the Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, appearing in many of their traditional legends and folklore. It was hunted and used as a resource by Māori, both for its meat as a food source and for its feathers, which were used to make highly valued pieces of clothing. It was also sometimes kept as a pet.

Lots of ACTION at OLA.com!

I recently re-listed a Parachuting Sigmund Freud Action Figure (why Freud????)

and was wondering what other odd action figures were available at onlineauction.com. Here are a few that I found... enjoy!

From mvpcollectibles 1978 Grizzly Adams!

From silverjack810 a Gene Simmons KISS Demon figure!

From curiocache - a Casanova action figure....
 .....and a Wilhelm Richard Wagner figure (with super magical Maestro Baton! )..ok - just kidding..or am I??  You'll have to buy it and find out..

A fun Coneheads INS Agent from pickersgalore!

 What a great find!1973 Tonto from Classic_Chloe!

WOW! Grandpa Munster figure from 1964! Another amazing treasure from Classic_Chloe!

A very good cause!

I would like to introduce you to a friend of mine, Dirk. He has a store here on OLA.com under Krautrock. I am sure that you have probably seen a lot of his wonderful posts here in the OLA.com Team Blog if you keep up with us.

Dirk, or Krautrock, as we call him, is having a charity sale. From now until February 29, 2012, all proceeds, 100% of his sales, will be donated to the CANCER RESEARCH UK and MacMILLAN. These are both in the United Kingdom since this is his home. He is doing this for personal reasons and I, only one amongst many, am trying to help.

This is different than some donations because you get something out of it!! Krautrock has some fabulous pictures, yours free to do with whatever you want once you've purchased them!! I made a screen saver for my hubby out of one that he particularily liked!! From the HMS Victory Ship!

HMS VICTORY SHIP MUSEUM

I'm also going to order some of the art pictures for my daughter (and because I like them)!

BARTOLOME MURILLO

And I love being able to see beautiful photographs of places that I've not seen and will probably never go to! Just think of the wonderful vistas that you've not seen! Even in our own country! But he has wonderful discs of places all over the world!

PANORAMIC PHOTOS OF NORTH AMERICA

NATURE OF BELARUS

GRATEFUL DEAD - 04/16/72 Aarhus

And if you are into music, you have to stop in!! This is a small price to pay for some great sounds!!

LUX RADIO THEATER on Audio CD-R

Like old time radio?? I ordered a couple of these for my dad and found I loved listening to them while working on the computer!! Fun!!

So, stop in at Krautrock's Store and see what he has to offer. I can assure you that the shipping is fast, inexpensive for shipping overseas (about $3.20 for 2 cds) and they have great quality!! The cause is a great cause and the products are fabulous!!

Now, I just have to decide which ones to get next . . . . . . . . . .



Rats..they're NOT what you think..

Someone sent me this pic on my Facebook page and I just absolutely love it! It captures the true personality of rats... friendly, curious, funny, smart, affectionate and social. I've had many, many pet rats, in fact my daughter and I had a newspaper article written about our exotic rat breeding hobby.  We had Blue Rats, Hooded Black Rats, Hooded Blue Rats, Elephant Ear aka Dumbo Rats, (the little guy in the top pic is a "dumbo" rat) white rats, black rats, himalayan (siamese colored) rats and even a tailless rat. I hoped he would be great for breeding tailless varieties, but I found out they are mostly sterile. Our most successful ones were the Hairless Rats. They became very popular. Kind of weird-feeling to hold, but we had some really cute elephant-earred hairless rats.

Hairless rat.

I got started being interested in rats when my Dad got me my first job at Everett Community College taking care of the lab rats in the Psych Dept. (Dad was a Biology professor there, so I had a little help getting that job!) It was an eye-opener - rats crammed in tiny cages, barely enough room to turn around. They had males and females together, and they would breed, then there would be mass infanticide as there was no room in the cages for babies.

Blue rat.

 I separated them all out and got them to give me more cages. They had a huge squirrel cage that I'd put a few in at a time so they could run around and play. At one point there was about 50 rats to take care of. They said I could take one of the geriatric rats home, so I took a beige hooded rat and named him Charles B. Wratt. Sadly, one day I went to work and there were no rats! I asked my Dad if they moved them but he said the Psych. Dept. leader had euthanized them all (put them in bell jars with chloroform.) I was heart-broken, but it was a good learning experience for me, and I've had the little critters pretty much most of my life. I'm rat-less now, as unfortunately they only live about 2-3 years.  I seem to need a little breather before committing to a new couple of souls - pet rats should always come in at least a pair as they are VERY social and are much happier with a pal.

PI-rat.

I've got a few ratty things in my crittercache store at Onlineauction.com:

Enesco Rat Race Figure!

RATS Owner's Guide

If anyone has any questions about getting a pet rat, I'd be glad to help - there are some great Rat Associations around the world, and there are even rat shows you can take your pride and joy to!

American Fancy Rat and Mouse Association
Rat and Mouse Club of America
The Rat Fan Club
Lots more!

ARNOLD BÖCKLIN

ARNOLD BÖCKLIN PHOTO DISC - CLICK HERE TO BUY.

He was born at Basel. His father, Christian Frederick Böcklin (b. 1802), was descended from an old family of Schaffhausen, and engaged in the silk trade. His mother, Ursula Lippe, was a native of the same city. Arnold studied at the Düsseldorf academy under Schirmer, and became a friend of Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach. Schirmer, who recognized in him a student of exceptional promise, sent him to Antwerp and Brussels, where he copied the works of Flemish and Dutch masters. Böcklin then went to Paris, worked at the Louvre, and painted several landscapes.

After serving his time in the army, Böcklin set out for Rome in March 1850. At Rome, he married Angela Rosa Lorenza Pascucci in 1853. The sight of the Eternal City was a fresh stimulus to his mind. So, too, was the influence of Italian nature and that of the dead pagan world. These new influences brought allegorical and mythological figures into his compositions. In 1856 he returned to Munich, and remained there four years. He then exhibited the Great Park, one of his earliest works, in which he treated ancient mythology. Of this period, too, are his Nymph and Satyr, Heroic Landscape (Diana Hunting), both of 1858, and Sappho (1859). These works, which were much discussed, together with Lenbach's recommendation, gained him his appointment as professor at the Weimar academy. He held the office for two years, painting the Venus and Love, a Portrait of Lenbach, and a Saint Catherine.

He was again at Rome from 1862 to 1866, and there gave his fancy and his taste for violent colour free play in his Portrait of Mme Böcklin, and in An Anchorite in the Wilderness (1863), a Roman Tavern, and Villa on the Seashore (1864). He returned to Basel in 1866 to finish his frescoes in the gallery, and to paint, besides several portraits, The Magdalene with Christ (1868), Anacreon's Muse (1869), and A Castle and Warriors (1871). His Portrait of Myself, with Death playing a violin (1873), was painted after his return again to Munich, where he exhibited Battle of the Centaurs, Landscape with Moorish Horsemen and A Farm (1875). From 1876 to 1885 Böcklin was working at Florence, and painted a Pietà, Ulysses and Calypso, Prometheus, and the Sacred Grove.

From 1886 to 1892 he settled at Zürich. Of this period are the Naiads at Play, A Sea Idyll, and War. After 1892 Böcklin resided at San Domenico, near Florence.

Influenced by Romanticism his painting is symbolist with mythological subjects often overlapping with the Pre-Raphaelites. His pictures portray mythological, fantastical figures along classical architecture constructions (often revealing an obsession with death) creating a strange, fantasy world.Böcklin is best known for his five versions of Isle of the Dead, which partly evokes the English Cemetery, Florence, close to his studio and where his baby daughter Maria had been buried. An early version of the painting was commissioned by a Madame Berna, a widow who wanted a painting with a dream-like atmosphere. Clement Greenberg wrote in 1947 that Böcklin's work "is one of the most consummate expressions of all that was now disliked about the latter half of the nineteenth century."

Böcklin exercised an influence on Surrealist painters like Max Ernst and Salvador Dalí, and on Giorgio de Chirico.Otto Weisert designed an Art Nouveau typeface in 1904 and named it "Arnold Böcklin" in his honor.Böcklin's paintings, especially Isle of the Dead, inspired several late-Romantic composers. Sergei Rachmaninoff and Heinrich Schulz-Beuthen both composed symphonic poems after it, and in 1913 Max Reger composed a set of Four Tone Poems after Böcklin of which the third movement is "The Isle of the Dead" (The others are "The Hermit playing the Violin", "At play in the Waves" and "Bacchanal"). Hans Huber's second symphony is entitled Böcklin-Sinfonie, after the artist and his paintings.The Homecoming ("Die Heimkehr")Rachmaninoff was also inspired by Böcklin's painting Die Heimkehr ("The Homecoming" or "The Return") when writing his Prelude in B minor, Op. 32, No. 10. Adolf Hitler was fond of Böcklin's work, at one time owning 11 of his paintings. When asked who was his favorite painter, Marcel Duchamp controversially named Arnold Böcklin as having a major influence on his art. Whether Duchamp was serious in this assertion is still debated.H. R. Giger has a picture called Hommage to Boecklin, based upon Isle of the Dead.Roger Zelazny titled one of his novels Isle of the Dead after Böcklin's paintings, and an Ace books edition featured a cover painting by Dean Ellis that was deliberately reminiscent of Böcklin’s work.

ICE

The Intercity-Express (written as InterCityExpress in Austria, Denmark, Switzerland and, formerly, in Germany) or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn. The brand name "ICE" is among the most well known in Germany, with a brand awareness close to 100%, according to DB.

There are currently 259 trainsets in five different versions of the ICE vehicles in use, named ICE 1 (deployed in 1991), ICE 2 (1996), ICE T (1999), ICE 3 (1999) and ICE TD (2001–2003, back in service 2007). The ICE 3, including its variant models, is made by a consortium led by Bombardier and Siemens.

Apart from domestic use, the trains can also be seen in countries neighbouring Germany. There are, for example, ICE 1 lines to Basel and Zurich. ICE 3 trains also run to Liège and Brussels and at lower speeds to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. On 10 June 2007, a new line between Paris and Frankfurt/Stuttgart was opened, jointly operated by ICE and TGV trains. In addition, ICE Trains to London via the Channel Tunnel are planned for 2013.

While ICE 3M run the Paris-to-Frankfurt branch (with exceptions to trains 9553/9552, which operates with TGV POS equipment and cross-crewed with both SNCF and DB staff), SNCF's TGV runs from Paris to Munich (via Stuttgart), with mixed crews on both trains.

German and Austrian ICE T trains run to Vienna. On 9 December 2007, the ICE TD was introduced on the service from Berlin via Hamburg to the Danish cities of Århus and Copenhagen.The Spanish railway operator RENFE also employs trains based on ICE 3 trains (Siemens Velaro). Wider versions were ordered by China for the Beijing-Tianjin high-speed rail (CRH 3) and by Russia for the Moscow – Saint Petersburg and the Moscow – Nizhny Novgorod routes (Velaro RUS).

The Deutsche Bundesbahn started a series of trials in 1985 using the InterCityExperimental (also called ICE-V) test train. The IC Experimental was used as a showcase train and for high-speed trials, setting a new world speed record at 406.9 km/h (253 mph) on 1 May 1988. The train was retired in 1996 and replaced with a new trial unit, called the ICE S. After extensive discussion between the Bundesbahn and the Ministry of Transport regarding onboard equipment, length and width of the train and the number of trainsets required, a first batch of 41 units was ordered in 1988. The order was extended to 60 units in 1990, with German reunification in mind. However, not all trains could be delivered in time.The ICE network was officially inaugurated on 29 May 1991 with several vehicles converging on the newly built station Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe from different directions.

The first ICE trains were the trainsets of ICE 1 (power cars: Class 401), which came into service in 1989. The first regularly scheduled ICE trains ran from 2 June 1991 from Hamburg-Altona via Hamburg Hbf – Hannover Hbf – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Fulda – Frankfurt Hbf – Mannheim Hbf and Stuttgart Hbf toward München Hbf on the new ICE line 6. The Hanover-Würzburg line and the Mannheim-Stuttgart line, which had both opened the same year, were hence integrated into the ICE network from the very beginning.Due to the lack of trainsets in 1991 and early 1992, the ICE line 4 (Bremen Hbf – Hannover Hbf – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Fulda – Würzburg Hbf – Nürnberg Hbf – München Hbf) couldn't start operating until 1 June 1992. Prior to that date, ICE trainsets were used when available and were integrated in the Intercity network and with IC tariffs.In 1993, the ICE line 6's terminus was moved from Hamburg to Berlin (later, in 1998, via the Hanover-Berlin line and the former IC line 3 from Hamburg-Altona via Hannover Hbf – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Fulda – Frankfurt Hbf – Mannheim Hbf – Karlsruhe Hbf – Freiburg Hbf to Basel SBB was upgraded to ICE standards as a replacement).

A notable characteristic of the ICE trains is their colour design, which has been registered by the DB as an aesthetic model and hence is protected as intellectual property. The trains are painted in Pale Grey (RAL 7035) with a Traffic Red (RAL 3020) stripe on the lower part of the vehicle. The continuous black band of windows and their oval door windows differentiate the ICEs from any other DB train.The ICE 1 and ICE 2 units originally had an Orient Red (RAL 3031) stripe, accompanied by a Pastel Violet stripe below (RAL 4009, 26 cm wide). These stripes were repainted with the current Traffic Red between 1998 and 2000, when all ICE units were being checked and repainted in anticipation of the EXPO 2000.The "ICE" lettering uses the colour Agate Grey (RAL 7038), the frame is painted in Quartz Grey (RAL 7039). The plastic platings in the interior all utilise the Pale Grey (RAL 7035) colour tone. Originally, the ICE 1 interior was designed in pastel tones with an emphasis on mint, following the DB colour scheme of the day. The ICE 1 trains were refurbished in the mid-2000s, however, and now follow the same design as the ICE 3, which makes heavy usage of indirect lighting and wooden furnishings.The distinctive ICE design was developed by a team of designers around Alexander Neumeister in the early 1980s and first used on the InterCityExperimental (ICE V). The team around Neumeister then designed the ICE 1, ICE 2, and ICE 3/T/TD. The interior of the trains was designed by Jens Peters working for BPR-Design in Stuttgart. Among others, he was responsible for the heightened roof in the restaurant car and the special lighting. The same team also developed the design for the now discontinued InterRegio trains in the mid-1980s.

Getting anxious for spring?

Okay, the weather lately has been more springlike than winter, even in Iowa! It's starting to make me want to plant things, even though I'm not a very good gardner.

I love flowers, random bunches of flowers and you should see what I found on OLA.com!

Tulip Poppy Flower Seeds Papaver Glaucum N41B

Meconopsis Poppy Flower Seeds Himalayan Blue N77

California Poppy Flower Seeds Jelly Beans New 4 '09 N74

Poppy Flower Seeds Cream Peony Papaver Poppies N13

Just look at these beautiful flowers!! All found at OneStopPoppyShoppe! And they have a huge variety for you to choose from! Gorgeous colors, beautiful blossoms, different looks!!

Get yours ordered today so that you are ready!!

We don't carry any flowers but if you just want to browse, stop on over to KornKountryTreasures!

Thank you!!