New Google Tool Tells You How to Make Your Site Faster - read from mashable.com. Also, talking about speed - WOA FASTEST LAND ANIMAL [in the western hemisphere] PRONGHORN NON-AUTOGRAPHED MAXIMUM CARD (I CREATED ONLY A HANDFUL)

Please read: New Google Tool Tells You How to Make Your Site Faster

Talking about speed [just look, you don't have to compulsively buy anything]:

WOA FASTEST LAND ANIMAL [in the western hemisphere] PRONGHORN NON-AUTOGRAPHED MAXIMUM CARD (I CREATED ONLY A HANDFUL)

http://delcampe.com/page/item/id,0037985248,language,E.html

WOA doesn't necessarily mean the interjection Whoa!. :)
Here, it means Wonders of America, a cool series of 40 USPS stamps from 2006.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pronghorn

WHY is the pronghorn so fast?

Because it was chased, over time, 

by the prehistoric American cheetah. 

Seriously.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_cheetah

More details in a future blogpost.

Our enemies shape us, in time.

==========

Please visit http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/newhome/

Wordless is good, but if you simply look at the above image, you may miss some of the important aspects about it.

Some images are best left wordless, but some could use some meaningful words. :)

=================

Please visit and join ABC Wednesday meme!

http://abcwednesday-mrsnesbitt.blogspot.com/
Today, L is for Long-distance runner.

WWF maximum cards/ maxicards/ dorincards about São Tomé e Príncipe. Not a fish, but they call it Blackfish; a true killer, but not a true whale: The Killer Whale (Orcinus orca). Another species on these MCs: not even a true "killer whale" (not closely related): The False Killer Whale (Pseudorca crassidens)

UL (upper-left) and LL: "The False Killer Whale (Pseudorca crassidens) is a cetacean, and the third largest member of the oceanic dolphin family (Delphinidae). 

It lives in temperate and tropical waters throughout the world. 

As its name implies, the False Killer Whale shares characteristics such as appearance with the more widely known Orca (killer whale). 

Like the orca, the False Killer Whale attacks and kills other cetaceans. 

However, the two dolphin species are not closely related. 

The False Killer Whale is black with a grey throat and neck. 

It has a slender body with an elongated tapered head and 44 teeth. 

The dorsal fin is sickle-shaped and its flippers are narrow, short and pointed. 

It can grow up to 20 feet." 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_killer_whale

 UR and LR: "The killer whale (Orcinus orca), commonly referred to as the orca, and less commonly as the blackfish, is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family." 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale

"The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises^[2], which belong to suborder Odontoceti (toothed whales)." 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whale

"Killer whales are found in all oceans, from the frigid Arctic and Antarctic regions to tropical seas. 

Killer whales as a species have a diverse diet, although individual populations often specialize in particular types of prey. 

Some feed exclusively on fish, while others hunt marine mammals such as sea lions, seals, walruses and even large whales. 

Killer whales are regarded as apex predators, lacking natural predators and preying even [on] large sharks."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale

Trainer-killing orca Tilikum back in SeaWorld show

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12920267

I think that's a BAD idea, both for the safety of future trainers of Tilikum and others, and for the whole idea of confining big dolphins in small swimming pools.

They deserve large spaces to live properly.

===========

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Location_S%C3%A3o_Tom%C3%A9_and_Pr%C3%ADncipe_AU_Africa.svg

"São Tomé and Príncipe, officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is a Portuguese-speaking island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Central Africa. 

It consists of two islands: São Tomé and Príncipe, located about 140 kilometres (87 mi) apart and about 250 and 225 kilometres (155 and 140 mi), respectively, off the northwestern coast of Gabon. 

Both islands are part of an extinct volcanic mountain range. São Tomé, the sizable southern island, is situated just north of the equator. 

It was named in honour of Saint Thomas by Portuguese explorers who happened to arrive at the island on his feast day.

São Tomé and Príncipe is the second-smallest African country in terms of population (the Seychelles being the smallest). 

It is the smallest country in the world that is not a former British overseas territory, a former United States trusteeship, or one of the European microstates. 

It is also the smallest Portuguese-speaking country."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A3o_Tom%C3%A9_and_Pr%C3%ADncipe

===========

Time for a stretch.

Today, let's make a stretch and pretend that we see a heart shape in the UL maximum card, behind the False Killer Whale.

Let's say that we see a heart formed by the water, with a little tsunami overwhelming half of that heart, if you see what I mean.

Metaphorically-speaking, today the heart of Japan is overwhelmed; half by the tsunami, half by the earthquake.

On top of that, radiation is spreading.

They'll have to build a deep-concrete sarcophagus, like in Chernobyl.

Plutonium: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutonium

"Screwed" by the slipping of a screwdriver.

A fatal, supercritical mistake with The Demon Core:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demon_core

Enjoy while you can, whatever you enjoy! Vita brevis...

===================

Please visit and join The Guest Heart Thursday meme!

http://clytie-randomhearts.blogspot.com/

Welcome to Guest Heart Thursday -
A place to share YOUR hearts!

What Happened to the American Declaration of War? | STRATFOR. Also, this rhino is capable of attacking anybody (any body) without a "declaration of war": The White or Square-lipped Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum). WWF maximum cards / maxicards / dorincards about Swaziland.

Please read: What Happened to the American Declaration of War? | STRATFOR


A rhinoceros can be an equal-opportunity attacker - it does not discriminate.
It can attack anybody.
Anything that moves (too close to his proximity).
If it's a Land Rover, it'll make it a Land Roll-over.
If it's a whole damn moving train, it can attack it head-on - there were such cases.
Guess who won?

"The White or Square-lipped Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is, after the elephant, the most massive remaining land animal in the world, along with the Indian Rhinoceros and the hippopotamus, which are of comparable size. 

There are two subspecies of White Rhinos; as of 2005, South Africa has the most of the first subspecies, the Southern White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum simum). 

The population of Southern White Rhinos is about 14,500, making them the most abundant subspecies of rhino in the world. 

However, the population of the second subspecies, the critically endangered Northern White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum cottoni), is down to as few as four individuals in the wild, and as of June 2008 this sub-species are thought to have become extinct in the wild.[7] 

Six are known to be held in captivity, two of which reside in a zoo in San Diego. 

There are currently four that were in held in captivity since 1982 in a zoo in the Czech Republic which were transferred to a wildlife refuge in Kenya in December 2009, in an effort to have the animals reproduce and save the subspecies.[8]"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Rhinoceros

"White Rhinoceros range (brown - native, pink - reintroduced, red - inroduced)"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Rhinoceros

My comment: even Wikipedia contributors can make mistakes, including typos, despite presumed multiple layers of editors.

Editing is fun (for me). :)

The word inroduced does NOT refer to the rhino..."making inroads", or something.

It's just a tiny mistake, inTroduced and left there, uncaught. :)

"Swaziland, officially the Kingdom of Swaziland (Umbuso weSwatini), and sometimes called Ngwane or Swatini, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa, bordered to the north, south and west by South Africa, and to the east by Mozambique. 

The nation, as well as its people, are named after the 19th century king Mswati II."

"Swaziland's economy is dominated by the service industry, manufacturing and agriculture. 

Some 75% of the population are employed in subsistence farming, and 60% of the population live on less than the equivalent of US$1.25 per day.^[3] 

Swaziland's main trading partner is South Africa, and its currency is pegged to the South African rand. Swaziland's economic growth and societal integrity is highly endangered by its disastrous HIV epidemic, to an extent where the United Nations Development Program has written that if it continues unabated, the "longer term existence of Swaziland as a country will be seriously threatened."^[4] 

The infection rate in the country is unprecedented and the highest in the world at 26.1% of adults^[5] and over 50% of adults in their 20s.^[4]"

^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swaziland}

=============

Please visit and join Ruby Tuesday meme!

http://workofthepoet.blogspot.com/

My entry for today is that rhinoceros  red - in-road used area above. :)

Drill, Baby Drill...and Mom Drill, too! The Drill (Mandrillus leucophaeus) - WWF maximum cards / maxicards / dorincards from Cameroon.

"The drill (Mandrillus leucophaeus) is a primate of the Cercopithecidae (Old-world Monkeys) family, closely related to the baboons and even more closely to the mandrill.

The drill is similar in appearance to the Mandrill, but lacks the colorful face. They are semi-terrestrial monkeys, exhibiting extreme sexual dimorphism with males weighing up to 45 kg (100 lbs) - three times the size of females. They are semi-nomadic seasonally and little is known of their behavior or ecology in the wild.

Drills are found only in Cross River State, Nigeria; South Western Cameroon; and on Bioko Island, part of Equatorial Guinea. Their entire world range is less than 40,000 km², smaller than Switzerland.

Drills are among Africa’s most endangered mammals, and are listed by the IUCN as the highest conservation priority of all African primates.^[2] Drill numbers have been declining in all known habitat areas for decades as a result of illegal commercial hunting, habitat destruction, and human development: as few as 3,000 drills may remain in the wild, the highest population estimate is 8,000. Drills have also been declining in zoos internationally."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drill_(mammal)

============

You will find PINK zones, even on the black-faced Drill...:)

Happy Pink Saturday!

^{Please visit "Pretty in pink"/ "Show us your pink" [objects, that is :)] meme here:}

^{http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/}

Saved by the last 4 females from "the Apocalypse of this species": The Norfolk Parakeet (Cyanoramphus cookii), also called Tasman Parakeet, Norfolk Island Green Parrot or Norfolk Island Red-crowned Parakeet. WWF maximum cards about Norfolk Island.

C is for...cookii.

"The Norfolk Parakeet (Cyanoramphus cookii), also called Tasman Parakeet,^[1] Norfolk Island Green Parrot or Norfolk Island Red-crowned Parakeet, is a species of parrot in the Psittacidae family. It is endemic to Norfolk Island (located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia in the Tasman Sea)."

Breed, baby, breed!

"This species of parakeet was down to only 4 breeding females and 28-33 males in 1994, but its population has since rebounded to 200-300 birds. It is only found in Norfolk Island National Park and the surrounding area."

Wrap your brain around this:

"Genetic reconstruction

Further information: Archaeogenetics and Early human migrations

Two pieces of the human genome are quite useful in deciphering human history: 

mitochondrial DNA and the Y chromosome. 

These are the only two parts of the genome that are not shuffled about by the evolutionary mechanisms that generate diversity with each generation: 

instead, these elements are passed down intact. 

According to the hypothesis, all people alive today have inherited the same Mitochondria^[26]from one woman who lived in Africa about 160,000 years ago.^[27][28]

She has been named Mitochondrial Eve. 

All men today have inherited their Y chromosomes from a man who lived 60,000 years ago, probably in Africa. 

He has been named Y-chromosomal Adam."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recent_African_Origin

==============

Happy PFF (Postcard Friendship Friday)!

Please visit: http://thebestheartsarecrunchy.blogspot.com/ (wait until Beth posts the today's Linky tool for the meme, then make your entry, if you want to join).

Libya's Terrorism Option - read from STRATFOR. Also, somebody said that sometimes,"terrorism is the poor man's revenge", just like, sometimes, "rape is the ugly man's revenge". Sure, many exceptions apply. Also, a metaphoric image for a crowd that may resort to a terrifying stampede out of fear and anger. "Prosti, dar multi!" Never MISUNDERESTIMATE [that's a BUSHism] a crowd, which gets dangerous when desperate.

Libya's Terrorism Option

A metaphoric image for a crowd that may resort to a terrifying stampede out of fear and anger. 

"Prosti, dar multi!" 

Involuntary comedy, courtesy of translate.google.com, who believes it should translate the above quote like this:

Italian to English translation

"Prost, create multi!"========In fact, it should translate it from Romanian, into:"Stupid, but many!"That's a literary quote, meaning "yes, they are stupid, but they are many!" :)

Never MISUNDERESTIMATE [that's a BUSHism] a crowd, which gets dangerous when desperate.

The most damaged postcard that I ever received! HOW TO avoid getting damaged postcards or maximum cards, with over-cancelling, scratches and missing chunks/corners?

I share here some useful info from the postcard exchange great website http://www.forum.postcrossing.com, where my username is dorinco.

That is also my username for the primary website http://www.postcrossing.com.
This website is good - it facilitates "blind" (you don't choose your partner) exchanges of postcards with addresses chosen at random by their computers.

But the forum http://www.forum.postcrossing.com is much better, in my opinion, because you can choose your exchange partners for postcards, stamps, maximum cards, and other items!

The messages below are about a Round Robin exchange of maximum cards - the thread path (sub-folders) is this:
Postcrossing Official Forum » General » Tags, Trades, Notebooks, Round Robins and Pen-Pals » Round Robins » NEW Maxicards/Maximum cards RR!! Group3 Need ONE for travelling!!New groups!!!(always OPEN)

dorinco [that's me, remember?] said:
"Thank you, gracefool, for the very cute MC from Gr.6!

Unfortunately, it is the most damaged postcard that I ever received! :flaming: [emoticon]

Australia Post/Adelaide put our MC face-down over a heavily-inked mailpiece, so ink migrated onto the face side of our kangaroo MC.
It also roller-stamped it across the address-side, although it says that it's PREPAID!

Then, between Australia Post and US Postal Service, a chunk was ripped of a corner!

See also some roll marks, near the left, at about 45 degrees angle.

Not your fault, but next time you either talk to your postal clerk, or you send it in a transparent bag to have the stamps on the postcard visible, or you just send it like a CIA agent - "undercover".

==========
gracefool replied:


"Dorinco - A self-made Wintery Lighthouse MC, I really love it thank you. Your cancellations are very nice.

Also, Dorin, I am so sorry about the condition the MaxiCard arrived to you in!! 
That is terrible!!! I have sent so so so many MCs and I have not had any report like this before. 
However I have received quite a few cards myself which have heavy cancellations on front and back (but not ripped), it is the risk we all take when putting mail through the postal system(s) I think. 
I have never sent in "transparent bag" before, can you explain this?"
==============
dorinco replied:

"Thank you, gracefool, I'm glad you like the unique/UNICATE/UNIKAT in the world MC that I created for you! :)

Transparent bag can be any transparent plastic bag that looks like a transparent envelope - you can cut and modify it to desired size.
After you get the needed postmarks on the due postage (that may or may not include the stamp for the MC), seal that bag with scotch tape.
Or you can use a re-sealable bag, like Ziploc - best option, since it allows postal postmarking in the arrival country, with re-insertion of your MC back in the bag to reach you.

This is a custom MC, that I made from a page from a book.
Why? Coz I like it! :)
To you (and any other viewer here) and my US Postal Service, it's just a postcard with a stamp.
It's not terribly thick, but it's thick enough to be accepted as a postcard by USPS.

Instead of mailing it as a naked postcard, subject to postal damage, I tested this: I inserted it in a transparent plastic bag/envelope and I put mailing address labels for sender and receiver (which is me in both cases) on the outside of the bag.
I could have postmarked it, but personalized stamps in USA don't necessarily require postmarking - their encrypted value (little B&W squares) is supposed to be voided by the scanner of the Post.

So I mailed it like this:

It arrived to me by mail, without any postmark and any damage.
The value of the stamp is presumably voided, as it should.

The point is that whenever you suspect that your MC sent as a naked postcard will get damaged or over-canceled, you can enclose it in a protective transparent bag, or a glassine envelope, etc.
You just tell your postal clerk that you have a "philatelic item, sent under protective cover/bag."
In USA, currently it's 98c to mail either a postcard or a First-Class (1 to 3.5oz) letter internationally, except Canada and Mexico.

The advantage of using a transparent bag instead of a normal opaque envelope is that:
you could use the maximaphily stamp as part of the postage, totaling from both sides,
IF that stamp is still valid for postage
and IF you get all the stamps postmarked with that date when you send it.

In your case, gracefool, I already had the MC stamp cancelled in December, so I had to put now 98c on the address side."

==========

Please visit http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/newhome/

Wordless is good, but if you simply look at the above images, you may miss some of the important aspects about them.

Some images are best left wordless, but some could use some meaningful words. :)

=================

Please visit and join ABC Wednesday meme!

http://abcwednesday-mrsnesbitt.blogspot.com/

Today,  J is for JOEY = baby kangaroo.

Also:

"JUNK MAIL? No, protect your mail! Don't let the Automated Postal System or the postal associates ruin your mail!" :)

Yes, I was talking about the country Liechtenstein, in my previous blogpost! Also, see now WWF maximum cards / maxicards / dorincards from Liechtenstein:

"Libelloides coccajus. Owlflies are dragonfly-like insects with large bulging eyes and long knobbed antennae. They are neuropterans in the family Ascalaphidae; they are only distantly related to the true flies, and even more distant from the dragonflies and damselflies. They are diurnal or crepuscular predators of other flying insects, and are typically 5 cm (2.0 in) long.

* The European Polecat (Mustela putorius), also known as a fitch, foumart, or foulmart, is a member of the Mustelidae family, and is related to the stoats, otters, and minks. 

* The European tree frog (Hyla arborea) is a small frog that can grow to a maximum length of 4.5 cm.
They are the only members of the widespread tree frog family (Hylidae) indigenous to Mainland Europe. Characteristic are the discs on the frog's toes which it uses to climb trees and hedges. There are three or four species and many subspecies:
Hyla arborea (Linnaeus, 1758) (common or European tree frog). 

* The Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius) is a small plover. Adults have a grey-brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with one black neckband. They have a brown cap, a white forehead, a black mask around the eyes with white above and a short dark bill. The legs are flesh-coloured and the toes are all webbed.
This species differs from the larger Ringed Plover in leg colour, the head pattern, and the presence of a clear yellow eye-ring."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page 

===================

Please visit Ruby Tuesday meme!

My red items for today are about...Liechtenstein.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liechtenstein

=============

Please visit and join Ruby Tuesday meme!

http://workofthepoet.blogspot.com/

World's Cutest Baby Alternates Between Terror & Delight [VIRAL VIDEO]. Also, a philatelic cover ("a symphony of blue elements") with my Big, Bad Wolf zazzle personalized stamp, that COULD be slightly more terrifying than Mommy's nose, for Baby Emerson.

See at mashable.com: World's Cutest Baby Alternates Between Terror & Delight [VIRAL VIDEO]

A philatelic cover ("a symphony of blue elements") with my Big, Bad Wolf zazzle personalized stamp, that COULD be slightly more terrifying than Mommy's nose, for Baby Emerson. 

I will mail/ post this cover today! :)

There are currently only 20 such stamps of this exact design of mine, large size, in the world.

I have previously bought a sheet of 20 stamps, medium size, of a slightly different design.

Can you spot the differences?

Se more: http://s289.photobucket.com/albums/ll201/dorincard/#!cpZZ11QQtppZZ16

=============

Happy Blue Monday! (meme)

Please visit:  http://smilingsally.blogspot.com/