3,200

REUTERS- A surprising article was released the other day about how there are only 3,200 tigers left in the world. 3,200!!! How is this even being allowed to happen? Thankfully, several world leaders and other influential people were meeting this week to discuss the fate of these beautiful creatures. If nothing is done to slow the progression of their decline, tigers could easily become extinct within the next decade. The major cause of the demise, poaching of course. Thankfully, there are tigers in captivity to help with the populations and reintroductions, but with as few as 1,000 breeding females left, there isn't much hope for the future generations of wild tigers. Christmas is fast approaching and everyone should be doing something to save these critters in their time of need. After all, 'tis the season of giving.

Redneck Holiday

PA Game Commission -- 750,000 Hunters will be out and about on Monday for Pennsylvania's "Unofficial Holiday". This holiday is known as the first day of general deer hunting season. Though the season is only 2 weeks long, the hunters will be out in force in search of the trophy buck...or just dinner for the family. I personally miss being in PA for this grand holiday. There's nothing more fun than having the day off, listening to gun shots and fearing for my life when I step out the door. With more hunters on the prowl than that of a small army, it's no wonder Pennsylvania has one of the highest accidental shooting rates for hunters. Unfortunately, I will be in Maine for this grand occasion...and as everyone knows, there are no deer in Maine...except for the one that ran into my car.

Lions & Tigers & Bears...oh my!

I have just completed my application to go spend 22 days in South Africa playing with cute, cuddle animals! It's through a program called Ecolife Expeditions and it seems absolutely amazing. The program has you romping around in the different game preserves doing everything that a vet in the wild would do. We'll be flying in helicopters darting large game, playing with elephants and lions, camping in the backcountry...pretty much everything and anything I could ever dream of doing! This is going to be awesome.

HOMEWARD BOUND

Classes are finally over and it's time to hop in the car, drive 14 hours and reach the homeland known as Pennsylvania! Now, the drive itsself is not that bad. I can handle being in a car, singing obnoxiously and bumpin' beats like it's my job. The part that bothers me is all the "massholes" and those darn "Jersey drivers". If I could make the entire trip without seeing other cars from either of those states, my life would be much more enjoyable. Unfortunately that's virtually impossiable and I'll have to resort to other mechanisms to calm my road rage which only shows when they're around. Though I hate the drivers from those states, I truely hate the state of Connecticut. It's the worst. It's the only state I ever hit traffic in, they drive 40 mile per hour whenever there's a turn and no matter what season or time of day there is always construction. Of all five states that I must venture through to reach home, I enjoy being in Maine the most. It's a straight run and there's few people there. Pennsylvania wouldn't be bad either...except I'm in it for 3 hours before reaching my house. But with towns like Virginville, Intercourse and Blue Ball, at least I get to giggle before I reach my final destination.

It's a sad world...

Full Story Here

A Pennsylvania game warden was killed in the line of duty just a few days ago and thankfully the story has made national coverage. David L. Grove was shot four times and killed near one of the monuments at Gettysburg National Park after intervening on what appeared to be the poaching of deer. The 31 year old warden called in the license plate number of the suspects vehicle which allowed police to locate the suspect quickly and arrest him. This is the first warden in 95 years to be killed in the line of duty. 

This story disgusts me in two ways. The first is that someone would be willing to take the life of another human being and the other reason is the suspected poaching. Killing a human is a horrible thing no matter where you are, but more so in a national park such as Gettysburg where so many people died as a result of the civil war. As a resident of Pennsylvania (only about 20 miles away from where this occurred) I know that deer within the state are plentiful and there is no reason to poach them. As residents, we are allowed to shoot several deer a year in each of the season. Why poach? And why poach in a National Park where you are bound to get caught. If you really feel the need, go to the old stippin' pits...no one will find you there. This was completely uncalled for and I hope the suspect gets exactly what he deserves.

Who's yo daddy?

There's nothing cuter than old men that have reached 400 wins. Not only is Joe Paterno an adorable old man coach, but he also has a delicious ice cream named after him (Peachy Paterno). He already coaches one of the best football teams there is (PENN STATE!), but believe it or not he gets even cooler. Nicknamed "JoePa" and born in Brooklyn, NY this guy is naturally ballin' and probably pumps beats like it's his job.

Turtles in Trouble

We all know that the oil spill in the Gulf was a tragedy. It's now been several months since the spill occurred and it seems as though all media coverage of the clean-up and environmental effects has come to a screeching halt. I'm currently working on a project that involves the relocation of black bears and how the are able "home" even when moved over a hundred miles. This made me wonder, what other species do this?  After doing some research, I learned that sea turtles and many species of birds also perform this unique behavior. My mind then started to wander down to the Gulf, where hundreds of volunteers and biologists have been working to save all the different species which were effect by the spill. With a huge clean-up underway, many of the birds and other animals which were cleaned off and rehabilitated were relocated to different areas. Little did they know, these animals would travel right back into the danger zone. This behavior is mystifying to biologists. My question is not just why do they go back (don't they understand their lives were in danger?) but how? How do these animals know where they were moved and exactly how to get back there?  A lot of these animals were not moved to areas where they generally migrate and they were back in the gulf within a week or two.  It may be unexplainable, but I wish I had this navigational ability...I would never need my GPS again.

OMG A PUPPY!

Now I love cute and adorable puppies like any other female on the planet. How could you not? They're small, fluffy, do cute puppy things...the list goes on forever. I never thought in a million years I would ever want to get rid of something so adorable...until Blazer moved into my house. Now don't get me wrong, I really do adore him, but it's really hard to get work done when he's crawling on my lap (like he is currently), hiccuping, barking, running around like a maniac and generally tearing the house apart. Thankfully he's only with us until Thanksgiving so my grades shouldn't suffer too badly. Now, I was told he's a boxer/lab mix, but to me I think he's part beaver (since he's always chewing on something) and fat man (as he's already learned that the counters contain the most delicious food). Though I do spend a lot of time romping and playing with this little bundle of fur, there's a lot of time that I spend yelling and telling him to give me back my slippers. So please Blazer, be a real dog for the next two weeks....I'm starting to lose my voice. 

Get Me to This Movie!

 I'm a complete sucker for true, wilderness adventure movies. I absolutely loved "Into the Wild". The scenery, acting, the actually story behind the movie...literally everything. 127 Hours seems like it will be even better. Though I don't know anything about the actual story behind the film yet, it seems like it will fulfill the adventurous void I have in my life right now. Someone please, Get Me to This Movie!

I love pandas...

I especially love pandas with sick dance moves. I mean, who wouldn't? This little guy would rip up the dance floor if he was ever allowed in a club. He should probably be released from the zoo and go perform on Broadway.