Newsletter October 5, 2014

Another week has gone by, and the month of September has gone by. Too fast! Too fast!!

It has been an interesting week sports-wise, as the San Francisco Giants baseball team got into the playoffs as a wild-card team, so I've been watching some of the games. Also, the Kansas City Royals have made it into the playoffs for the first time since the 80's, so DotRot has been watching baseball too! Then yesterday I was going to watch a bit of the second game of the playoffs--the Giants versus the Nationals. That game ended up going to 18 innings, and a bit over six hours! It was pretty wild.

This last week I began working on a new project for a YouTube display at a trade show. It is an interesting project, and what's more, the display is being manufactured on Treasure Island, outside San Francisco. I went down on Thursday for a meeting, and it was a place I had never been before. Their manufacturing area was in one of the old hangars built for the seaplanes in the 1940s. (At one point Treasure Island was being considered for the location of the international airport.)

The really interesting part of the project is that the guy I'm working for has a fabrication facility inside this hangar, and it is really nice. I could only lust after the open space, the neat stations for the various phases of construction. But then I learned that his facility was left over from his work on the Google barge. That was a project that was the stuff of legends about a year ago. Google had contracted to have two enormous barges built--one on the east coast, and one out here in the west. And this guy Noah was at the head of one of the build teams.

Yes, a guy named Noah being tasked with the building of a large boat. The irony was certainly no lost on me.

However, this YouTube gig is a big project, and it is going to be a challenge for me to be able to get everything done and still be able to keep up with all the sports things.

And what's more, the SF 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs are about to start their game. It's a fun time in the sports world!

Well, it is time to get back to it here. I hope everybody has a great week! (I'm still looking into other services that might be better for us than Ustream…)

			Chatter News
	A Note from the Dude		Chatter News		Prayer Requests		Vaca Blog

	Sharoot	Sharoot's featured pictures can be found at the end of each newsletter, under Photos of the Week. She says that since they are located at the end, then "Sharoot's the Caboose!" Sharoot and her hubby visited Orlando Wetlands Park and took lots of pictures. Another of these are featured today. We look forward to many more over the upcoming weeks.

	ChatterChopz	To celebrate her birthday, CC again hosted a party for all the little ones in her life. This year she took them to the zoo. Two of the littlest had never been there before and it was great fun to see their awe and wonderment as they explored. Even though we didn't have time to see all the animals we did get to see some of the biggest, some of the smallest and some of the most beautiful. More pictures will be available on our website (http://chatterchopz.com) in a couple of days.
		Berlin, the polar bear—The largest animal we saw this time


		A Little Green Guy (waiting for ID from BugGirl) Almost the smallest we saw this time


		A Trumpeter Swan—Isn't he beautiful?


	*Elsalynda*	Elsalynda's latest column entitled Nature in the City: Enjoying Late September Wildlife in Waltham, is available online here: http://waltham.wickedlocal.com/article/20140930/NEWS/141009963

	We'd love to include more news of VacaChatters. If you have something you'd like to share (something about you or your family) or if you know of exciting news about another chatter that they're just too shy to share, please send it to us! (We won’t run it without that chatter’s permission, however.)

	*EmmieJan*	Many of you may remember EmmieJan from the Molly days and from other online chats. An email was received this week from Emmie Jan’s husband, Jeff. He said that on September 25th, Emmie did not wake up. She passed away in her sleep. We have no other details. If you would like to sign the group card for Jeff, go to: http://www.groupcard.com/c/-LwgR7n2X4U

	*KSBorn*	KSBorn was in regression for lymphoma and breast cancer. It has since returned and she's going for Chemo now. She and her doctors are attacking it vigorously and she needs our prayers. She needs our prayers for healing, for the Lord to guide her doctors, and for the peace and strength as she undergoes the treatment.

	*Jes63*	Rest in peace Miss Jonesy. November 29, 1997 to August 29,2014 Jes is, of course, hurting and grieving. Please keep her in your prayers.

	*VacaDude and his cousin, Kevin*	Keep VacaDude's cousin, Kevin in your prayers as he battles cancer.

	*BugGirl*	BugGirl is recovering well. She's still not allowed to drive, though.

	*Marilyn Crabb*	We received this message this week from a long-time Molly watcher: I don't join the online chats but I read the newsletter and was a Molly watcher from the beginning. Last week, I was diagnosed with stage 2B (or greater) breast cancer and am undergoing lots of further tests and will begin chemotherapy on Tuesday. Please add me to the prayer list. UPDATE: Thank you for your prayers. I'm doing really well after my first chemotherapy treatment. One week down - nineteen to go. Then surgery and radiation. I have more tests scheduled to see if the cancer has spread beyond my armpit but so far it does not look like it has. My screen name was/is MarilynLA on UStream. (Marilyn from Los Angeles)

	*Littleguys*	UPDATE: The latest news from Littleguys: Quick recap – Keep in mind that I am a half full person, not half empty, so I share the following with you as friend and family so you can enjoy that there is never a dull moment in my life. I had a big to do list I wanted to work through this summer since I was going to be out of work, and I was going to be a woman of leisure. There were yard projects and house projects and some little day trips to take. I have a pinched sciatic nerve from a disc that slipped years ago that I wanted to take care of. You get the idea. It all went by the wayside when my mammogram, now done digitally, was the basis for a diagnosis of Stage Zero Breast Cancer. After over a dozen medical appointments, tests, biopsy, consultations, etc. The first lumpectomy was done July 21. Then the surgeon decided to take a bit more out, which was done Sept 5th and he told me everything came back clean, nonthing had spread, the one lymph node taken out for study showed no cancer. No chemotherapy is called for. Next step, and I believe I am up to appointment 20 by now, was consulting with an oncologist who is deciding on a course of radiation. He said the type of cancer I had has a 5 percent chance of coming back if I have radiation and 30-50% if I do not. Basically he plans on about six weeks of radiation, five days a week. Those of you that know the San Diego area, I live just west of Alpine and the place for radiation is up in the Rancho Bernardo / Penasquitos area, approx one hour away. He said the actual office time, including prep and treatment, will be about an hour. So about 3 hours each day. Since I teach on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, I asked that the time be scheduled so I can go after the morning class, go home, take a nap and go back to the evening class. All prayers are welcome. There are people in much worse shape than me. My situation mostly involves lots and lots of appointments, so a time thing. No chemotherapy, no pain, good prognosis. But I did want you folks to know. Keep me in your prayers… and if you know any good restaurants or shops I should make a point of visiting in the Rancho Bernardo / Penasquitos area that I might not know about, let me know.

	*Caboval*	Caboval is in need of our prayers for her dog, Joey. You can read more about Joey and his struggles here: http://gfwd.at/1n8NU0h.

		UPDATE on Joey! Caboval writes: “Joey is in remission but the chemo almost killed him. He was in liver failure and the Dr gave him a 50/50 chance to live. He made it through that and we have had 3 really good weeks. He was so happy and acting like a puppy, but now he is starting to not eat again and he vomited today so I don't know… It's a rollercoaster. I have a feeling he is having liver issues again. I do really need those prayers!!!”

	*Elsalynda*	We got this message from elsa last week: Hi all, Thanks for all your prayers. This computer is so hard to type on. I dislike it but will have to use it for now. I saw the MGH sleep specialist today for consult and got some scary news. My apnea is severe and REM behavior disorder is rare and correlated with parkinson's disease. There is not much treatment available for the REM but I will try what there is. Please pray for me again. I am worried. Your elsalynda

	*GentleDoe*	It was great to see GentleDoe in chat. Here is the latest update from her: Dad: My sister has taken him out of the assistive living complex she had put him in. He is now in her home receiving hospice care. My sister is not contacting us or answering my mother's calls so we are only receiving second-hand updates from an aunt. As of last weekend, August 23rd - 25th, my father had a urinary tract infection. There was problems with his medication. They did not get his depression medication ordered before the weekend so he was without his medication the weekend of the 23rd - 25th. Also, since he left the assistive living home, he has been overdosed on his seizure medication. As of last week he still had the UTI & was not lucid. My aunt could not get him to understand who she was on the phone & he kept referring to my sister has his wife. My mother does not know this yet. Mom: She has been doing better with her medication with the latest change of a reduction in her blood pressure medication. Her cardiologist has recommended water aerobics which we are looking into. The lack of communication with my father has her very upset & depressed. Me: I've had some health issues since last Wednesday. My doctor is away until after the Labor day holiday. I'm still experiencing a good bit of pain as well. I'm trying to take care of mom, birds, bunnies & all of the various issues with my father/sister situation. It is so sad that my sister now has complete control over my father & everything in his name. My mother nor I have been able to speak to my father in over two weeks now. I'm concerned that if the lawyer does not get moving that we may not get to spend any time with him or give him our love before he passes. I do not know his medical condition, other than what is told second-hand to me or my mother! Friday, AT&T cut off my mother's phone service. We were told it was an order that the phone service was moving out of the area. I spent several hours Friday evening trying to get it straightened out with AT&T & was told it would be back on within 2 to 4 hours at 8 PM. Saturday morning still no service, called again spent from 9:30 am until after 12:30 PM when we were cut off without it being resolved. Called back & got another customer service person who was no help & could not get a supervisor. Had to rest for a bit & did not get anyone before AT&T was closed for the long Labor day weekend. My phone service has also gotten messed up with AT&T. I had my phone service moved to my mother's since I am now staying with her for now. They installed the Uverse internet & phone service but did not disconnect my home line at my house. Still haven't found out about what is happening with my AT&T cell phone. I may totally stop my AT&T phone services if I can't get this straightened out. Please keep my family in prayer especially that things can be resolved so that my mother & I can have contact with my dad as well as the other issues over my dad's POA (my father put my mother as the person on his POA but somehow my sister has taken over), my mother's health, & me with my health issues, surgery may be in the near future. My big prayer request is that my mother & I get to spend time with my father before we lose him, mentally or physically. Hope to see everyone in chat.

	Shari in Memphis	UPDATE!!! Just received this from Shari: "So kind of you to keep prayers going for me. I was hospitalized in November for an event (that just yesterday my doc said was severe enough that it could have killed me) and have pretty much been sick ever since. I'm trying to be patient as doc said it would take 6 months to a year, to fully recover."
	Shari in Memphis


	Thank you for your prayers and good thoughts for owl our wonderful VacaFamily members! If you have any prayer requests, updates or news of answered prayers, please let us know. Email us with the information so it can be included in the next newsletter.

	A Message from Zorro		StoryTime News		StoryTime Archives
							Recipe of the Week


	*Next StoryTime*	Sunday, October 12 3:00 PM PDT/6:00 PM EDT

	*Title*	*Tauntz and the Intruders!*

	*Invitation*	We need story writers! Please consider dropping in and checking out the fun we have writing the stories. Honestly, it's not at all difficult to join in and you'll surely be glad you did.
	*Invitation*

Yarn-Wrapped Owl Frame

http://www.allfreekidscrafts.com/Kids-Decorative-Crafts/Yarn-Wrapped-Owl-Picture-Frame-from-Lion-Brand

Burned Glue Owl

	Hello Vriends,
	Another week has gone by, and the month of September has gone by. Too fast! Too fast!! It has been an interesting week sports-wise, as the San Francisco Giants baseball team got into the playoffs as a wild-card team, so I've been watching some of the games. Also, the Kansas City Royals have made it into the playoffs for the first time since the 80's, so DotRot has been watching baseball too! Then yesterday I was going to watch a bit of the second game of the playoffs--the Giants versus the Nationals. That game ended up going to 18 innings, and a bit over six hours! It was pretty wild. This last week I began working on a new project for a YouTube display at a trade show. It is an interesting project, and what's more, the display is being manufactured on Treasure Island, outside San Francisco. I went down on Thursday for a meeting, and it was a place I had never been before. Their manufacturing area was in one of the old hangars built for the seaplanes in the 1940s. (At one point Treasure Island was being considered for the location of the international airport.) The really interesting part of the project is that the guy I'm working for has a fabrication facility inside this hangar, and it is really nice. I could only lust after the open space, the neat stations for the various phases of construction. But then I learned that his facility was left over from his work on the Google barge. That was a project that was the stuff of legends about a year ago. Google had contracted to have two enormous barges built--one on the east coast, and one out here in the west. And this guy Noah was at the head of one of the build teams. Yes, a guy named Noah being tasked with the building of a large boat. The irony was certainly no lost on me. However, this YouTube gig is a big project, and it is going to be a challenge for me to be able to get everything done and still be able to keep up with all the sports things. And what's more, the SF 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs are about to start their game. It's a fun time in the sports world! Well, it is time to get back to it here. I hope everybody has a great week! (I'm still looking into other services that might be better for us than Ustream…) Until then--cheers!
	Cheers, VacaDude

	Check out VacaDude's blog! Don't forget to send VacaDude your comments to let him know how much you appreciate him, his time & his talent!
	http://vacadude.wordpress.com/

	Hello there, Everbuddy!
	Zorro the Mouse here. Once again, it has been busy busy busy here at the Casa de Vaca. I am hoping the Dude will take me to Treasure Island with him sometime. It sounds very adventurous. I hear they worked on a barge out there. I should be very good with that, because the Dude tells me I am very good at barging in! It also sounds like they have a really cool place with lots of power tools. I could build all kinds of things there! Maybe because it is Treasure Island, I could build a pirate ship! I think I would look very dashing with a leather coat and an eye patch. I could get a big parrot and have it stand on my shoulder. Wait a minute—I think I tried that before. Only it was McGee, and he wasn’t actually standing on my shoulder. ::shudder:: Okay, maybe too many bad memories there. I have been wearing my Giants outfit lately, to root for my team. Next I need to get one for the 49ers, too! Speaking of which, it is time to go watch the game. Have a great week, you guys!!
	Yours Most Whiskerly, Zorro

	Pasta with Walnut Sauce
	Ingredients
	1 cup (250 ml) ricotta cheese 1 cup (250 ml) chopped walnuts ½ cup (125 ml) shredded Parmesan cheese ½ cup (125 ml) chopped parsley 2-4 cloves garlic, chopped Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 1 lb (450 g) pasta of your choice, cooked according to package directions

	Directions
	Combine all the ingredients except the cooked pasta in an electric blender or food processor and process until fairly smooth - small pieces of nuts are desirable. Toss with the cooked pasta, adding a little bit of the pasta cooking water to thin the sauce if necessary, and serve immediately.


	Vanilla Roasted Fruit
	Ingredients:
	1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla ¾ cup sugar 4 large or 8 medium very ripe nectarines or peaches, halved and pitted ½ cup water ¼ cup butter, melted Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (optional)
	Directions:
	Using a paring knife, split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Carefully scrape the seeds out into a small bowl. (If you like, save the empty pod and place it in your sugar jar to scent your sugar.) Stir sugar into vanilla seeds; mix well. (If using vanilla, stir it into the melted butter). Sprinkle half of the sugar mixture over the bottom of a 15x10x1-inch baking pan. Place the nectarine halves, cut side down, on the sugar mixture. Pour the water into pan. Brush the fruit generously with the melted butter. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture. Roast in a 350°F. oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until juice begins to thicken and the fruit can be easily pierced with a knife, spooning juices over fruit occasionally. (The roasting time will vary according to the ripeness of the fruit.) Serve nectarines drizzled with juices over the top. If you like, serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

	Owl Cams				Other Nature Cams		Video Picks of the Week		Inspiration
			Other Bird Cams

Barn Owls
	Nicassio Owl Box Salt and Pepper	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nicasio-owl

	HOP - MAGC Barn Owls	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/magc-owls

	Owlceanside Mel and Sydney	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/owlceanside

	Felix Neck Owl Cam Martha’s Vineyard	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/felix-neck-owl-cam

	The Owl Cam	http://www.ustream.tv/owlchannel

	Barn Owls in Minden, Nevada	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/barn-owls-in-minden-nevada

	Port of Stockton Barn Owl Cams	http://www.portofstockton.com/owl-cams

	Hosted by Cornell Lab of Ornithology Located in Texas	http://cams.allaboutbirds.org/channel/42/Barn_Owls/

Other Owls


	The Caring Owl in South Africa	http://www.thecaringowl.co.za/

	PPO (Potted Plant Owl) in South Africa	https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pot-Plant-Owl/148721154229

	Alessondra’s Owl Cam in Oklahoma City	http://ustream.tv/okcowlcam The three owlets have fledged.

	Rusty and Iris in Houston, Minnesota	http://www.internationalowlcenter.org/ourowls/rustyandiris/livecams

	Burrowing Owls Tri-Cities, Washington	http://wdfw.wa.gov/wildwatch/owlcam/video_burrowing2.html

	Project Snow Storm	http://www.projectsnowstorm.org/

Puffins
	Shetland Islands Puffins	http://www.shetland.org/puffincam/

	Sea Island, Maine Puffin Burrow	http://explore.org/live-cams/player/puffin-burrow-cam

	Sea Island, Maine Puffin Loafing Ledge	http://explore.org/live-cams/player/puffin-loafing-ledge-cam These pages also contain links to numerous other nature cams.

Eagles
	Black Eagle South Africa		http://www.africam.com/wildlife/black_eagle_webcam The first egg hatched on June 6!.

	Decorah Eagles Decorah, Iowa	http://www.ustream.tv/decoraheagles

	Berry College Eagle Cam Mt. Berry, Georgia	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/berry-eagle-cam

		http://www.pixcontroller.com/eagles/index.htm

Peregrine Falcons
	PA Falcon Cam Harrisburg, Pennsylvania	http://www.pacast.com/players/falcon.asp

	Commerce Tower Peregrines Kansas City, Missouri	http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/wildlife-cameras/peregrine-falcon-web-camera Cam not live now but should be returning soon.

	Pitt Peregrine Falcon Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	http://www.aviary.org/PF-NestCam1

	Gulf Tower Peregrine Falcon Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	http://www.aviary.org/PF-NestCam2

	Emily Falcon Cam Caloundra, Australia	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/emily-falcon-cam

	RFalconCam Rochester, New York	http://rfalconcam.com/rfc-main/

Talking Birds
	Watch the Birdie Bibi, the African Gray	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/Watch-the-Birdie

	Disco Talking Parakeet	https://www.youtube.com/user/MsJumpinJude/videos

Other Birds

	California Condor San Diego Zoo Safari Park San Diego, California	http://zoo.sandiegozoo.org/cams/condor-cam

	KC Zoo Penguin Cam Kansas City, MO	http://www.kansascityzoo.org/penguincam

	Whidbey Island Back Porch Whidbey Island, WA Rufous hummingbirds and other assorted birds	http://www.ustream.tv/channel/katersch

	Hellgate Ospreys Missoula, Montana Sponsored by Cornell	http://cams.allaboutbirds.org/channel/27/Hellgate_Ospreys/

	Ostrich Chicks (Live Again! New Chicks!)		http://www.ustream.tv/channel/ostrich-egg-cam-live

	Streaming Bird Cams List of many cams	http://www.beakspeak.com/

Pandas
	San Diego Zoo Pandas	www.sandiegozoo.org (click on live cams) or http://www.ustream.tv/sandiegozoo. Zoo's blogs: http://blognew.sandiegozoo.org/category/animals-and-plants/giant-pandas/

	Twin Pandas at Zoo Atlanta	http://www.zooatlanta.org/1212/panda_cam#ff_s=aDIEl

	Giant Panda Cam National Zoo Washington, DC	http://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/webcams/giant-panda.cfm

Bears
	Kansas City Polar Bears Nikita and Berlin	http://www.kctv5.com/category/244581/nikita-berlin-polar-bear-cam

	Brown Bears and Salmon Katmai National Park Alaska (off season- will return)	http://explore.org/#!/live-cams/player/brown-bear-salmon-cam-brooks-falls (lots of other cams at this site, as well)

	Black Bears Ely, Minnesota	http://www.bear.org/website/live-cameras/live-cameras/holly-bears-den-cam-live.html

Other Animal and Nature Sites
	Golden Paw-Prints Classic Golden Retrievers Oshkosh, Wisconsin		http://www.ustream.tv/channel/golden-retriever-puppy-cam EIGHT beautiful puppies!

	San Diego Zoo and Safari Park	http://animals.sandiegozoo.org/

	The Pet Collective (many live cams)	http://www.thepetcollective.tv/livestreams/

	Critter Chat Cams Multi-Critter Site with Chat	http://critterchatcams.org/

	Friends of Felines Rescue Center Defiance, Ohio	www.ustream.tv/ffrc

	Little House Prairie Village, Kansas	http://www.tomnliz.com/Livecam/

	CC's Page of Links (scheduled for updating)	http://chatterchopz.com/links/camslinks.htm

Other Sites of Interest

International Space Station Links
During a recent broadcast the Dude talked about the websites where one can view the spacestation and the view that the astronauts have. Here are the links: This one has the map, but no chat. http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/HDEV/ This site has a chat room. http://www.ustream.tv/channel/iss-hdev-payload

An Old Kansas City Owl
The Junction at the intersection of Ninth, Delaware and Main Streets of Kansas City, MO in the spring of 1906. None of these buildings exist today.

			Fun Animations and Pictures		Photos of the Week				Zorro's Word of the Week
	Just for the Fun of It						Kyle's Jokes of the Week

	Kyle's well known among his friends for his "triple groaner" riddles and jokes. Now he shares them with VacaFamily. Enjoy!


	What is the hardest part of learning to ride a horse? The ground

	What would you call a cardboard belt? A waist of paper

	NEW WINDOWS USER TRYING TO SET A PASSWORD WINDOWS: Please enter your new password: USER: cabbage WINDOWS: Sorry, the password must be more than 8 characters USER: boiled cabbage WINDOWS: Sorry, the password must contain 1 numerical character USER: 1 boiled cabbage WINDOWS: Sorry, the password cannot have blank spaces USER: 50bloodyboiledcabbages WINDOWS: Sorry, the password must contain at least one upper case character USER: 50BLOODYboiledcabbages WINDOWS: Sorry, the password cannot use more than one upper case character consecutively USER: 50BloodyBoiledCabbagesShovedUpYourAIfYouDon'tGiveMeAccessNow!** WINDOWS: Sorry, the password cannot contain punctuation USER: ReallyPissedOff50BloodyBoiledCabbagesShovedUpYourAIfYouDontGiveMeAccessNow** WINDOWS: Sorry, that password is already in use

	Why did the carrot get an award? Because he was out standing in his field