Squirrels

IT'S SQUIRREL APPRECIATION DAY!

But I suggest that you avoid giving squirrels beer, because it leads to this:

Which can lead to this:

So, please, celebrate responsibly.

Friday: Time For Boobies

A fine pair.

Shane Rickman

(Happy Narwhal by Shane Rickman.)
Sadly, my friend Shane Rickman was struck and killed by a train on Monday. In addition to being a kind and generous friend, Shane was a gifted and talented artist and a compassionate member of the local community. We are mourning a kind soul who will be truly missed.

"I paint to inspire, to wake the spirit from its slumber and to remind myself of the splendor and beauty of life."

You can view more of Shanes artwork here:http://www.shanerickman.com/index.htm

(Turtles Library by Shane Rickman.)

MLK Day Turns 25

This is the 25th annual Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday. Sadly ironic that we celebrate the life of a man who advocated non-violent political action while still in the wake of another round of political violence and unjust wars. Many remember Dr. King's "I have a dream" speech, but he was just as eloquent about war:

The Western arrogance of feeling that it has everything to teach others and nothing to learn from them is not just.A true revolution of values will lay hands on the world order and say of war: 'This way of settling differences is not just.' This business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nation's homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of people normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields physically handicapped and psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love. A nation that continues year after year to spend more on military 'defense' than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.

Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence

I'm old enough to remember how powerful and effective an orator Dr. King was, and how fierce the battle over civil rights and the Vietnam war was. We could use someone like him today.

Also, today is the 47th birthday of First Lady Michelle Obama, a fitting legacy for Dr. King.