My Commonplace Book

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There aren't too many people who can say they caught onto water skiing before mastering the potty, but 22-month-old Cole Marsolek can -- or he will be able to, once he can talk.



This is so cute! There's a video at the link, too!

eudyptes, here's what you need --  a pet Emperor Penguin!

And don't miss March of the Emperors! (via mactavish)

Le Papa Pingouin, featuring little Pigloo, is awfully cute!

woofiegrrl, do you remember this song? Except the words have been rewritten, and now it's Le ragga des Pingouins! (Another cute Pigloo video, though not as adorable as Le Papa Pengouin) (ADDED: Gaaah, now I'm stuck with this earworm!)

Ohhhh ... my head is exploding from cuteness overload! This is one of the sweetest videos I've ever seen! Absolutely mandatory for anyone who loves cats! (Also anyone who loves chickens.) If you've seen it before, go watch it again. I've watched it three times in a row so far.

I just wish the narration were in English rather than Japanese. I'm dying to know what she's saying!

(Found via mactavish)

Cat Comforts Grieving Orangutan at Zoo

Mar 9, 10:22 PM (ET)

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. (AP) - Tondalayo, a 45-year-old Sumatran orangutan, and T.K., a stray tabby cat, became an inseparable duo after a zoo employee introduced them late last year.

Stephanie Willard, Education Director at Zoo World in Panama City Beach, said Tondalayo was depressed since losing her mate two years ago.

Her age prevented her from moving to another zoo or taking another mate. The ducks and turtles swimming in a moat around her island were not enough, Willard told the Panama City News Herald for Thursday's editions.

When the sweet-natured orange cat wandered into Willard's life, the solution became clear.

"It's an unbelievable match," Willard said. "This has worked out a lot better than I expected it to. She's got brighter eyes now. He's brought a lot of light to her."

Zookeepers named the cat, T.K. - short for "Tondalayo's Kitty."

They play together, cuddle and sleep together each night. They have been together constantly for more than a month.

"He's perked up Tonda more than anything," Willard said.

Don't miss this wonderful story of fanciness on the subway!

A couple of months ago I wrote about an orphaned squirrel that was adopted by a pregnant dog, who nursed it with her puppies once they were born.

eudyptes found an update on how Finnegan the squirrel is doing.

At first, when the puppies got too rambunctious, Finnegan found a quiet haven:  a pair of jeans belonging to Debby Cantlon, his rescuer, that were hung on a hook behind her bedroom door.  For three weeks he'd climb into the pocket of the jeans, roll himself into a ball, and sleep.

When he was 8 weeks old Cantlon released him. He'd run around but would stay in the yard, and each night he would scratch at the back door or at Cantlon's daughter's window to be let in for the night. But one day he disappeared for two weeks.

Since then Cantlon has seen Finnegan twice, in the company of other squirrels, but he wouldn't let Cantlon touch him.

"He just wanted me to know he was OK," Cantlon said. "He's wild and free and happy and doing exactly what he's supposed to be doing."

That's exactly the way a story like this should end!

Cuteness overload alert! (woofiegrrl, make sure you read this entry!)

An orphaned squirrel in Seattle was adopted by a pregnant dog when the dog's owner, Debby Cantlon, took the 3-day-old animal in. Cantlon named the tiny squirrel Finnegan and put him in a kennel cage; but her Papillon, Mademoiselle Giselle -- who was due to give birth any day -- kept dragging Finnegan's cage all the way through the house and putting it beside her own bed.

After the pups were born Mlle. Giselle seemed so anxious about the squirrel that Cantlon let it out of the cage to see what would happen. Pictures on the page show the baby squirrel among the puppies, being cared for and snuggling up with them as if he were part of the litter. A video* accompanying MSNBC's story about the squirrel shows Finnegan nursing from Mlle. Giselle right along with the puppies!


*The video can be viewed only with Internet Explorer (of course ) but even if you use a good browser, it's worth taking the time to open IE to see it!