How to Relax!

Tom has perfected relaxation- with Dolly, Franklin and Sprite!

Touching Video: Dog in Post-Quake Japan Brings Rescuers to Injured Dog

*This video taken by rescuers sifting through debris following last weekend's massive Earthquake really touched me. Dogs are truly amazing, loving companions.**

Reporters came across the animal whilst filming the destruction wreaked by Friday's earthquake and tsunami in Ibaraki Prefecture, northeast Japan. The pair were rescued by vets from Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support.  The tan and white spaniel was taken to a shelter in Mito while its injured mate is being treated by a vet in the same town. 

Happy 7th Birthday Franklin!

Today is our lovable little Dachshund, Franklin's 7th birthday! He has mellowed as he's grown older but despite white fur on his front paws, he's as fast as a tornado when it comes to chasing birds and squirrels!  He loves ALL food and treats are always welcome. Grandma and Grandpa spoil him (and Dolly and Sprite) rotten, but we think he deserves it. Happy Birthday to our little "Frankalino-puppachino!

How a Meteorologist Acknowledges St. Patrick's Day

Being a meteorologist, I (Rob) guess I have a unique way of celebrating St. Patrick's Day- using satellite imagery in the shape of a 3-leaf clover to look at Ireland. The idea for this story came to me because I use this satellite data every day and there are 3 types of data, just like a clover. Anyway, you can read the full story about what it all means, here: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/aqua-clover.html
 OR, just read the caption below and enjoy this geeky scientific image (well, I love it!).

CAPTION: This collection of Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument images of Ireland positioned in the shape of a clover include visible (left), infrared (center) and microwave (right). They were captured from the AIRS instrument onboard NASA's Aqua satellite on March 3, 2011 and revealed a land surface temperature near 50F (10C). Credit: NASA JPL, Ed Olsen/ Henry Kline

NOAA Animation of Tsunami Wave Throughout the Pacific-post Quake

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration created this animation to show how the tsunami waves (generated by Japan's 8.9 Richter Scale earthquake last week) propagated throughout the Pacific Ocean. It's a fascinating look at how the quake affected the Pacific Ocean (North and South Pacific).

For more information about it, check out the NY Times DOT Blog: http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/ocean-spanning-power-of-japans-great-quake-on-display/

New Plantation Shutters... finally

We've been trying to get plantation shutters for our large front window for a couple of years, and tax returns allowed for it! Yay! The shutters were installed this week and make a tremendous difference in the lighting in the living room. Here are before and after photos. The were taken from a cell phone so they're not the best resolution.

Before the shutters -we removed the drapes

Our nice new plantation shutters! We recommend them!

4 Days of Missing Posts- dealing with nasty people

  Why haven't I posted anything in the last four days?  It's taken me 4 days to calm down from the disgust I feel toward various churches (Catholic, African-American, Baptist and Mormon) -  and the conservatives in our state that rallied to prevent gay marriage from becoming legal here last week. The issue is now dead.
  The leader of this movement of hatred and intolerance is Delegate Donald Dwyer of Anne Arundel County. This man has for some reason been re-elected to office and now the ONLY item he rallies for is to prevent ANY laws of equality for gay and lesbian citizens. I would love to know where this intense hatred of his comes from. I have a theory that he's a deeply closeted gay man - who uses his hatred to cover for him. This isn't so far-fetched. In fact, I believe it was the Governor of Washington State that did the very same thing until he was outed.
   I urge anyone in Anne Arundel county to not vote for this hateful, nasty, vicious man again. I'm not alone in this opinion. When I spent several evenings last week emailing and calling offices of Maryland Senators and Delegates they shared the same sentiment. Many of the people in the offices agreed that Dwyer is the most hateful and disliked person in the entire state house. Fascinating how a hateful man continues to remain in politics.
  So, although gay marriage isn't legal in Maryland, it is legal in various other places that don't have stupid people legislating.
  Where is it legal? As of February 2011, same-sex marriages were granted in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Washington, D.C., along with Coquille Indian Tribe in Oregon. Same-sex marriage licenses were available in California between June 16, 2008, and November 4, 2008. It was passed in Maine before HATEFUL conservatives repealed it. Bastards.
  States that recognize same-sex marriage but have not granted same-sex marriage licenses include New York, Rhode Island, and Maryland.
  As of February 2011, 41 states expressly prohibit same-sex marriage; said prohibitions are contained either in state statutes or state constitutions.

Amazing 4 Min.Video of a NY man finding lost film-leading him to Paris!

This is an AMAZING and great story (and the guy is a really good videographer!)
A Brooklyn man's quest to locate the owner of a roll of film he found in the snow in Prospect Park after a blizzard has ended with a reunion in Paris.

  Todd Bieber stumbled upon the film canister while cross-country skiing after a 2010 Christmas blizzard that dumped more than a foot of snow over the city. Bieber developed the film and was captivated by the photos, which show what he surmised to be out-of-towners taking a snowy and beautiful journey from Central Park across the Brooklyn Bridge to an empty Coney Island amusement park, and then to Prospect Park, where they must have accidentally dropped the film canister.
  Bieber's video about his quest quickly went viral, garnering over a million views. Thousands of people wrote offering tips and advice. Finally, he got the response he was looking for. **CLICK ON VIDEO BELOW TO PLAY*

NBC Cancels the Cape: Last Episode Airing Online

  On Mondays at 9PM EST NBC was airing one of our favorite new shows called The Cape, a short series about a cop who’s framed, fakes his own death, and becomes the superhero from his son’s comic books. It starred David Lyons and Summer Glau, and unfortunately, it didn’t bring in the viewers that NBC had hoped.
   Despite 4.1 million viewers, the Feb. 28th show was likely the last to air. The final episode (which they're not even airing for some STUPID reason) that is supposed to wrap up the story, is going to be available only on NBC.com.
   This stinks. I thought the show was well done, and had very good acting. It wasn't hokey either, like several older superhero TV shows were. I'll really miss this program. I guess they didn't have enough stupid men or big chested women on it. Sigh.
To find out when the On-Line end story ends, keep checking: http://www.nbc.com/the-cape/

ROB'S UPCOMING BOOK APPEARANCES/EVENTS

MY UPCOMING BOOK APPEARANCES/EVENTS

MARCH 29, 2011 (1-2 p.m. EST)
Speaking/book signing at Heritage Harbor Book Club (open to public-FREE)
959 River Strand Loop,
Annapolis, Maryland 21401
CONTACT INFORMATION: Email Rob at Rgutro@gmail.com
APRIL 30, 2011 7-9 p.m. EST (Admission- Open to Public)
Mediumship Demonstration with Barb Mallon
Wyngate Hotel, 3940 Centerview Drive, Chantilly, VA 20151
Barb will conduct a mini talk on her work, and then relay messages from the other side to those members of the audience she's pulled to.
I will help host the evening, and give any readings for spirits that contact me (there's always a couple everytime I'm with Barb!). Check Barb's site under "Events" to register and pay.
BARB is an AMAZING and learned Medium (we've worked together a number of times)
REGISTER ON-LINE at www.barbmallon.com
JUNE 10, 2011, FRIDAY AT 7 PM EST (FREE):
Speaking at Inspired Ghost Trackers
Odenton, Maryland (will have books to sign, too)
I'll be talking about my experiences with the Inspired trackers at Montpelier Mansion, Riversdale Mansion, and Sotterly Plantation. Includes a slideshow of pictures from all locations.
CONTACT INFORMATION: Email: Margaret at: inspiredghst@aol.com to reserve a seat! *FREE*
http://www.meetup.com/inspiredghosttracking/events/16748804/

To buy the book: BARNES AND NOBLE E-Book/NOOK: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Ghosts-And-Spirits/Rob-Gutro/e/9781602645141/?itm=1&USRI=rob+gutro
KINDLE: http://www.amazon.com/Ghosts-Spirits-Insights-Medium-ebook/dp/B003KK57NC/ref=sr_1_cc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295813675&sr=1-1-catcorr
AMAZON PAPERBACK: http://www.amazon.com/Ghosts-Spirits-Insights-Rob-Gutro/dp/1602645132/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1295813675&sr=1-1

Seniors and their funny tee-shirts

Mom F. in Maine sent us an email with some pictures of older folks in funny tee shirts. Some of them I couldn't post on the blog, though. :) Because Tom loves sarcastic tee shirts and has a  good collection of them, I thought posting these was appropriate.  Enjoy!

Letter to Dr. Fox: Dog Understood Master's Death

Our friend Maureen forwarded this letter that appeared in a syndicated newspaper column: Animal Doctor, Dr. Michael Fox:about an amazing dog. 

Dear Dr. Fox — I'm writing in response to your recent column about how a "dog's devotion to master can lead to the grave." It is similar to what occurred with our golden retriever more than 20 years ago when my husband died at 46 after a four-year battle with cancer. During my husband's illness, Friday laid beside his bed, provided support when my husband walked, and never left his side. He obviously knew something was wrong and was devoted to his master.


Before my husband was ill, he was a senior sports-and-news cameraman for a major TV station. Owing to the nature of his assignments, my husband's work hours were unpredictable. Regardless of the hour, Friday always knew when my husband was headed home and ran to the front door, wagging his tail and sitting patiently until my husband's car pulled into the driveway.

After my husband's death (in the hospital), Friday sat at the front door all day, every day, whining and waiting for my husband's return. He stopped eating and wouldn't leave the front hallway. He refused to play with our children whom he loved because "guard duty" was his only purpose. He left his post only when he needed to be waked. My heart was breaking for this dog.

After one week of watching Friday's vigil, I decided to help him understand what happened. Hesitantly, Friday left his post and got into the car with me. His car behavior was unusual: He paced from window to window, looking everywhere for my husband. I drove to the cemetery, and we walked together toward my husband's gravesite. As we got closer, Friday pulled away from me and ran directly to my husband's grave. He lay down on the grave, closed his eyes, and just stayed there, quietly. I didn't try to talk to Friday or to disturb him — he needed to grieve, too. After an hour, Friday got up and walked over to me, using his mouth to hand me his leash. He was ready to go home.

On the way back home, Friday laid down quietly in the backseat. After we arrived home, he kept kissing my hands as if to say "thank you" and never again sat by the front door waiting for my husband to return home. He now understood. Although obviously sad, his behavior returned to normal around the children and he began eating again. In time, he healed as we did. — L.B.J., Lake Worth, Fla.

Dear L.B.J. — Many readers will join me in thanking you for this remarkable example of giving a dog closure with regard to your husband whom Friday thought was perhaps still alive. Your devoted dog clearly advances our understanding of how much some dogs really do know and feel. We should never underestimate their ability to comprehend and make every effort, as you did, during such difficult times of bereavement to help them when they are grieving. www.twobitdog.com/DrFox
Dr. Fox, c/o "Animal Doctor," United Features Syndicate, 200 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10016