July 31, 2008
I've Already Ordered Three
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44-pound stray cat bulges out of box [CNN.com]
Posted by D-Mac at 03:47 PM | Comments (2)
The Story Of The Summer
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Oh, yes. Chunky the fat cat is back on the front page! Turns out Princess Chunky is actually a male, according to her original owner. Also, look, he got top billing over Nathan Lane on Regis & Kelly!
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I guess fat cats have more star power than fat gay actors.
Princess Chunky’s owners found -- are they homeless? [Inquirer]
Posted by D-Mac at 09:37 AM | Comments (2)
July 30, 2008
Philly.com Is On Drugs -- Really
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Be still my heart. It's like my two worlds (drug column and blog where I have made fun of Philly.com for almost three years) have collided! The current Philly.com front page is about stoner comedies. Yes, the paper that wrote about the area's "marijuana overdoses" last November has its film critic writing about movies that essentially have weed as the main character.
As you may have also noticed, the other big story tonight is: OMG the giant fat cat is going to be on Regis tomorrow everybody celebrate like gangbusters!!!
Smoking the funny stuff [Inquirer]
Posted by D-Mac at 09:02 PM | Comments (0)
Fox Beats Philly.com To The Punch
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On Fox 29's front page not only is there a story about the abnormally large cat, there is interactivity. And there will soon be many more abnormally large cats, one can assume.
Earlier: Fat Cat Biggest Story Locally Yesterday
Thanks, Joe
Posted by D-Mac at 12:22 PM | Comments (0)
Fat Cat Biggest Story Locally Yesterday
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You had to know the fat New Jersey cat was going to end up as the main story on Philly.com at some point. (This was from yesterday.) If this cat was homeless and lived in Rittenhouse Square, though, the Inquirer would be calling for it to be executed.
Thanks, John
Posted by D-Mac at 08:32 AM | Comments (3)
April 10, 2008
Recommended: Scene In 2008
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I must belatedly recommend Tom Gralish's project on his Scene on the Road blog. He's taking a photo for a day the entire year, and recently got to day 100.
While I posted his photo of the kitty since people on the Internet love cute cats and I really love this dude inexplicably carrying a car bumper, my favorite so far is this re-creation/homage to George Tice's famous Mobil Station photo in New Jersey. (It's now a Lukoil.)
Posted by D-Mac at 11:34 AM | Comments (1)
October 04, 2007
Ex-Nun Hordes Super Fast 'Matrix' Puppydogs
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In Mayfair, a former nun was cited with 62 counts of animal cruelty after investigators found, uh, 46 cats and 16 dogs in her home. The woman apparently was taking in any animals she could get and the place was overrun with cute little bundles of fur.
Neighbors told NBC 10 the stench overwhelmed the neighborhood for two years, so they're finally happy everything doesn't smell like shit anymore.
Anyway, while the workers were bringing the dogs out, a few of them escaped, some of them apparently at warp speed, according to the photo above that looks like the poster for The Fugitive. They eventually caught all the dogs in the driveway (called an "alleyway" everywhere but Mayfair).
Also the ex-nun was outside of the house wearing a Phillies t-shirt. Silly. It shoulda been a Michael Vick jersey!
Former Nun Cited For 62 Counts Of Animal Cruelty [NBC 10]
Posted by D-Mac at 10:52 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0)
August 09, 2007
Animal Lovers Turn On Each Other Down The Shore
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This time, though, two different animals groups are fighting with each other, and so the animal people will fight with each other. I should be safe. Cape May is the bird watching capital of the east coast, the World Series of Birding is held in Cape May and bird watching brings in $2 billion to the state economy. (Birders, I word I might just have made up, have deep pockets.)
"This is a very emotional issue; this really is a cat town," said resident Pat Peckham.
Emotional! The issue is: A bunch of cats are eating birds. Endangered birds. Birds that are required to be protected by law. But the cats have more people on their side, since lots of people have cats and owning a bird is weird:
"We're intent on protecting all species," said Jessica Frohman with Alley Cat Allies in Bethesda, Md. "But birds are not somehow more important than cats."
So will they kill a bunch of cats? Will the birds all be eaten? Will the cats be moved? (Will feathers fly? Sorry.) The blog comment sections of bird and cat blogs will be battlegrounds.
It's cats vs. rare bird in N.J. town [AP/Yahoo! News]
Posted by D-Mac at 12:04 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack (0)
March 20, 2007
Breaking: More Local Angles To National Story
Yesterday, we looked at the local angle to the national story, the one about a pet food recal.
And last night, CBS 3 showed the local-est angle of them all: Reporter Valerie Levesque has a cat, Brandy, who ate the recalled food.
As usual, we shall pray for Brandy with cards, letters and messageboard chatter.
CBS 3 Video [CBS 3]
Valerie Levesque [CBS 3]
Posted by D-Mac at 01:07 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
March 19, 2007
Local Angles To National Story
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That ugly dog over in the photo to your right is an unfortunate victim of the pet food recall, and right now it's at the University of Pennsylvania Vet Hospital, possibly an upcoming recipient of Barbaro-style cards, letters and prayers. The dog isn't really a victim of the recall, though; he's a victim of, uh, whatever it is that's contaminated the food, since the company that made the food doesn't know yet.
But there's another pet food recall local angle. The company that made the recalled food is Menu Foods; it supplies over 90 brands of cat and dog foods that have been recalled. (Yes, the leading brands of pet food are all produced at the same factory. Of course they are.) And one of the plants that produced the tainted food is in Pennsauken, N.J.
And, of course, there are even more local angles. Some people might've purchased the recalled food.
Silviene Grzybowski became worried when her local pet store pulled the food she normally feeds her cat and posted an announcement saying it, and many other popular pet foods, had been recalled. Her cat, Smokey, hadn't been eating for days.
"The vet told us to buy her her favorite food, but I'm going to call the vet right now," Grzybowski said.
The vet just hated your cat, ma'am.
Of course, this big national story will soon fade from the spotlight, as have you heard about the teacher who had an affair with a student and her husband shot and killed the kid? Oh, man, that's the best morbid curiosity ever.
Pet Deaths Prompt Pet Food Recall [6 ABC]
Recall of pet food hits close to home [Camden Courier-Post]
Teacher-Student Love Turns Deadly [ABCNews.com]
Posted by D-Mac at 01:06 PM | Comments (36) | TrackBack (0)
November 07, 2006
Allentown Technophobe Does His Duty As A Citizen In The Only Way He Knows How
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A man entered an Allentown polling site, signed in and proceeded to smash one of the electronic voting machines with a metal cat paperweight, poll volunteers said.
Michael Young, 43, of 375 Auburn St., will be charged with felony criminal mischief and tampering with voting machines, according to Ronald Manescu, chief of investigations for Allentown police.
Police gave no motive, but a source said Young, a registered Independent, believed Republicans had conspired to win the election by using electronic ballots. This is the first time electronic machines are being widely used in a Pennsylvania general election.
"He smashed it with the cat's ears," said volunteer Jim Govostis, who watched the incident unfold at Raker Center, a nursing home owned by Good Shepherd, a little before 1 p.m. [...]
Volunteer Shirley Rossetti said Young never spoke as he smashed the screen. "He did a job on it, didn't he?" she said. "It's frightening, because in this day and age, you just never know."
You never know, indeed. American hero, that Michael Young. And his cat.
Voter smashes touch-screen machine in Allentown [Allentown Morning Call]
Posted by D-Mac at 03:36 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
October 02, 2006
Cat Confirmed Not To Be Garfield; Nermal Relieved
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(Wild cheers, screaming, party balloons and streamers falling down, Pee Wee Herman dancing around, etc.)
The Inquirer writes today that Robert Squillace, a Camden County man, snapped three pictures of an unusually large cat -- MOST CERTAINLY A COUGAR -- in New Jersey.
Although the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection averages one report a week -- that's enough for a full time "Cougar Hunter" position! -- Squillace is certain he saw a cougar. Patrick Carr, who works for the DEP, said the cat has a white tip on its tail, which cougars don't have.
But Carolyn Welty, who lives across the street, says it was as big as "a golden Labrador retriever," whatever that is.
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"That's no Garfield."
Duh, of course. The cat was seen on a Monday. Everyone knows Garfield doesn't do anything but sleep that day. He hates Mondays.
Will big cat amount to anything? [Inquirer]
Posted by D-Mac at 11:40 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
September 20, 2006
Selling Polar Bear Skins Apparently Illegal
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Indeed! They weren't killing red pandas at the Philadelphia Zoo, obviously; they simply imported the items. But, say Kim Johnson and Virginia Smith, they're not animal haters, despite selling skins of elephants, tigers and (!) polar bears:
"We want to emphasize we don't hate animals," said Smith. "We have 28 cats and a dog. We are so far from hating animals."
Oh. Well, in that case: Not guilty!
Federal indictment: 2 West Philly women imported items of endangered species [Daily News]
Posted by D-Mac at 10:29 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
August 30, 2006
Leftovers: Start The Parade Down Broad Street
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• The Eagles cut Todd Pinkston and Koy Detmer, re-sign A.J. Feeley. Heather Mitts is back, baby! [PhiladelphiaEagles.com]
• Possible new Pennsylvania law: Sex offenders have to declare "I am a convicted sex offender!" upon entering a library. Oh, boy, that's going to be a fun time for everyone involved. [Above Average Jane]
• Jessica Simpson wore a shower curtain the other night. [TinaPopo]
Posted by D-Mac at 04:27 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
April 20, 2006
Leftovers: Borgata's Boffo Bathroom
• Let's give a round of applause to the Borgata, which was voted as having the fourth best restroom in America. The worst restroom in America? Well, we'll leave that question to the philosophers. [BestRestroom.com]
• Fortunately, police have arrested a man who they say shot a man for getting ready to testify against a man who allegedly killed his cousin. [Metro]
• A powdery substance exploded in Kensington, sickening a city worker. Turns out it was a substance found in fire extinguishers. [CBS 3]
• The Delco SPCA cat euthanasia scandal intensifies, as charges are filed! Whoo! [AP/6 ABC]
• President Bush? Oh, he said he invented the iPod. Well, not really, but he did say this: "[T]he government funded research in microdrive storage, electrochemistry and signal compression. They did so for one reason: It turned out that those were the key ingredients for the development of the iPod." Tee hee. [Engadget]
Posted by D-Mac at 04:36 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
February 17, 2006
This kitten's got claws!
From yesterday's Evening Bulletin, the latest pearl of wisdom from Herb Denenberg:
Really? I thought that was Dick Cheney.
Posted by D-Mac at 02:06 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
February 15, 2006
Miracle on Frankford Street
Remember Miracle, the eight-month old kitty who traveled 30-miles clinging to a car on a New Jersey highway? (He's at left.)
Well, after his ordeal he was renamed Miracle (obviously) and ended up at a South Jersey animal shelter.
And now, he's been adopted by a family in Northeast Philadelphia -- which means today he's sitting in his rowhome right now wondering if he should have let go of that car in Jersey.
Miracle Moves to Northeast Philadelphia [NBC 10]
Posted by D-Mac at 09:15 AM | Comments (17) | TrackBack (0)
January 30, 2006
Quickies: Temple of the dog and cat
• While I'm not as big of a fan of them as I am of puppies, kittens are pretty boffo too. But sometimes they can be used for evil. Or at least to reinforce gender stereotyping, or something. Readers are angry at Step Inside Design's December/January issue, which had a kitten-filled cover to represent the "Women of Design." The response: "But we honestly believe you can change connotations by re-appropriating them (especially with humor). That's why it's OK for Spike Lee to make a movie about minstrel shows but it would not be OK if Woody Allen did. Mel Brooks can get away for Springtime for Hitler, but Prussian Blue can't ... context is everything." This is what as known as the "re-appropriating stereotypes cop out." [Folio Magazine]
• In honor of the Chinese New Year -- the year of the dog -- here's a list of the top 100 pop culture dogs ever. Krypto, Superman's dog, lands at #19. I'm feverishly working on a Top 100 Puppies Ever list. [Retrocrush]
• Somebody at the BBC totally effed up and somehow the BBC spent some time filming in Bristol, Bucks County, as opposed to the version of that town across the pond. (Okay, they're actually following around Iraq War vet and Democrat Patrick Murphy -- who's also running for Congress -- which means give the liberal bloggers five minutes to start going nutso over this television appearance.) [Bucks County Courier Times]
• I want to live in this guy's world, because I bet the mind-altering drugs are fantastic: "[The Washington Post has] decided to use their pages to mount a political campaign against progressive bloggers, who they've apparently decided are their sworn enemy. It's absolutely paranoid and ridiculous." [MyDD]
• Yes, if you've stepped outside today, Philadelphia is channeling 1849 London with all this fog. [Philadelphia Weather]
Posted by D-Mac at 10:10 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
January 11, 2006
Only, like, a minor miracle then
The big story on, oh, essentially everywhere last week was the "miracle kitty." The feisty feline (at left) was said to have traveled 70 miles hanging onto the bottom of an SUV. The kitty was okay, everyone was happy, the television news went nuts.
Well, it turns out that, while this miracle kitty may still deserve that moniker, it's more of a little miracle than a big miracle:
It turns out it was more like 30 miles, a Ford Taurus rather than an SUV and the cat was tucked in an engine compartment rather than hanging onto the bottom of the vehicle. [...]
The shelter's director, Karen Dixon-Aquino, said her staff misunderstood [the driver of the vehicle, Gwen] Cobb's story in the excitement of the moment. "Our staff was under the impression that (Cobb) didn't even pull off until Exit 4," she said. "That's what they heard, not necessarily what she said. Certainly there was not attempt to make stuff up."
Uh-huh. Sure, Ms. Dixon-Aquino. Sure. You just can't go and say something and expect the media to believe it! Do you think if, oh, say, the president said there were weapons of mass destruction, everyone would just print that without thinking to check?
Okay, bad example. Just make sure you get it straight next time.
Change in Details of 'Miracle' Cat's Journey [AP via 6 ABC]
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