Printable coloring pages ebooks -- as many as you want on one custom-burned CD.  Since eBay banned digital downloads in March 2008, I am one of the few sellers who still has these.   (I also have Easter and Christmas which I have not re-listed yet, but if you are doing "Christmas in July" contact me and I'll get it up there ASAP!) 

I just read that there will be a new policy requiring sellers to list Item Condition starting in September.  Has eBay REALLY thought this through?   Sure, New and Used helps describe manufactured items -- but how does this work with natural items like feathers (Which I sell)?  They are not manufactured "new" -- the birds used them first!  But "used" would give the impression somebody made something with them already. 

What about plants and bulbs?  Are they new or used? 

If I sell a cactus that has been on my windowsill for a couple years, is it used?

Are rocks new even if they are millions of years old? 

Is an empty wasp nest "used" because the wasps had it first? 

Are dead insects and taxidermy specimens "new"?  

Are animal bones new or used?

I can already see problems with this policy... can't you? 

Here are Prince (white gander) and Clark (grey goose) with their new gosling (behind Clark's neck). Anybody who has been around geese knows they are not happy to have me in there!  Mama is hissing over the food and has put herself between me and her baby to potect him/her (not sure which yet).  Dad is honking and lowering his head to bite if I try to grab the gosling (which I would never do -- not if I value my fingers!)

Geese are usually very good parents -- the father  helps raise the young, too.  A lesson we all could learn -- childcare should be the responsibility of both Mom and Dad.  In this next pic, you see mama goose teaching her baby to eat.  That's a mixture of feed and very tender fresh grass (their natural food in the wild.)  Mama knows best -- she went right for the grass first and Junior followed her beak.  Within a few minutes the little one was eating fine.  Eventually she will lead him outside to graze with her and his Dad.

Mama got very nervous with me there pointing the camera at her baby.  In the pic below, you see her in the most threatening goose position, about to try and bite me if i get any closer.  My grandson looked at this picture and asked, "Is she dead?"  NOPE!  In person you could NEVER, EVER mistake this for death -- not with all that angry hissing!  So, heeding the warning, I left them to settle in with their new baby while I went to do other chores.

(Warning: These pix show NIPPLES!) 

Not the best cat pix I've ever taken, but when you see where her den is, you'll understand why.  Her four kittens (two orange and two grey) were born very early on Friday morning, June 13, in my attic storage space.  (So they are "Friday the 13th" babies!) 

Annabelle found a nice hidey-hole in the attic, behind some boxes up against the shelves where I store my pickles and such -- you can see the pickle jars on the floor behind her.   It looks like a tight squeeze but she actually has enough room to stretch out under the shelf and nurse comfortably.  I took these pix by holding the camera down there, pushing the button and hoping for the best.  Not perfect, but still cute!   (Story continues below the photo).

When she came out to eat and drink and relieve herself, I cleaned up her den area (birth is messy!) and laid down a nice layer of polar fleece and sweatshirt scraps to make a warm soft nest for the babies.  She accepted that fine and settled right in.  Here you can see three of them nursing.  

Why haven't I moved her litter somewhere else?  Like maybe a cardboard box?  For one thing, the weather has been cold at night (it's been a very cold spring this year) and with the furnace off now, the attic is chilly.  Although her den is small, it is also cozy.  A small space holds warmth better than a big box.  For the first few days, kittens cannot regulate their body temperatures, so it is important for them not to get chilled when she leaves the nest.    She chose very well when she picked this place.  (story continues below the photo.)

She is also a bit more nervous than other nursing cats we've had.  She was a stray who was being harrassed by my neighbor's dogs before they brought her to us, so she does not trust my dogs at all - another reason she chose the attic, I think.   (Even though my dogs live with cats and would not harm her or her young, she does not know that.)   It's important for her to feel secure and to bond well with her babies. So I don't want to disturb her for the first few days, although I do reach in and pet her and she lets me touch the kittens.   In a few more days I will move her -- if only to get at my pickles!

Got pets?

whatever you've got hopping, running, barking, purring, swimming, flapping, scratching, clucking, hissing, honking, quacking, crawling, slithering or just being quiet around your place  --

come tell us about him/her/it/them !!

This is a solar battery charger that I got from solarsales on eBay.  It works entirely on sun power, and will charge 2 batteries at a time, either AA, AAA, C or D.   I like it a lot, and I was very pleased with the super-fast, courteous service I got from this seller.  So I thought I'd give them a plug here.

For 2 AA rechargeable NiMH batteries (such as I use in my camera), it took about 2-3 hours in full sunlight (I was doing yard work, so I'm not sure exactly when they were fully charged).  That is reasonably comparable to what it would take if plugged into the grid.  I have not tried the other sizes yet. 

According to the box it takes about 1-2 hours for AAA,  6-8 for C and 10-12 for D, assuming they are totally dead.  For partially-charged batteries, it would, of course, take less time.  Ditto for some of the better fast-charging batteries. 

But even with totally dead ones, I charged 6 AA batteries today. Considering that I take enough pix to use up at least 2 batteries a day (more on special trips), this is a good investment.  It is just the right size to sit on a sunny windowsill at home or in the back window of the car on the road.  I don't do much camping anymore, but I wish I had had one of these when I did.  No more dead flashlights!  Simply recharge your C or D cells in the sun each day.

The construction is sturdy and durable, too.  And the lid fits tightly in such a way that water won't leak in if your pack gets rained on (although it would not be a good idea to throw it in the lake.)  My only complaint is that it does not have any kind of indicator that it is charging.  A small LED light to show that would have been nice.  Otherwise, it is a great little gadget. 

And oh yeah -- my electric pencil sharpener for my artwork runs on AA batteries, too. So at least my art is now off the grid :)