September 15, 2011 @ 11:48 PM Comment?

Filed under: Awareness

The following is written by @AkiraRavens & @Ktguenther526, I support the efforts to stop this disastrous pipeline 100%, so to create more awareness and to reach more people I posted it here.   Please read it and sign to stop this pipeline. No matter where you are from, you can stand up and say NO Keystone XL pipeline. Remember the world is your play ground so this is happening in YOUR backyard too!

Vampires care – do you, too?

If someone came up to your house asking whether you’d be alright with him polluting the water you drink, the food you eat and the air you breathe, you certainly wouldn’t be, would you? The very thing, however, is happening right now, by means of the devastating Keystone XL Pipeline project – only that you don’t even get asked whether you’re alright with it. Instead, you will have to speak up against it!

The Keystone XL Pipeline is a pipe system that will be built by TransCanada and will bring tar sands oil into the U.S. It will run from Alberta, Canada, all the way to Port Arthur, Texas, and so cross through six states and under three major rivers. What may not sound like a big deal, though, in fact poses an extreme threat to nature and thus people’s wellbeing. The production of tar sand oil does not only require for huge parts of land and forest to be completely destroyed, but also results in one of the most dirty and carbon-intensive fuels man may access. What’s more, the transportation of the oil will definitely result in what experts expect to be at least a dozen to twenty oil spills a year, further polluting the environment and causing plants, animals and humans to suffer alike. To find out more about the devastating effects of tar sands oil production and the Keystone XL Pipeline also take a look at this article.

The only way to prevent this pipeline and its negative effects from happening is for us to get active right now! We need to speak up against dirty energy sources like oil and especially against the building of the Keystone XL Pipeline before it’s too late. You can start making a difference by signing this petition !

Also we would like to ask you to repost this article and the link to the petition on your own websites, blogs, facebook and twitter pages and anywhere else you think it will catch the attention of people willing to change the world for the better and take their future into their own hands.
Even celebrities like Ian Somerhalder, star of The Vampire Diaries & founder of the Ian Somerhalder Foundation (ISF), are trying to raise as much attention as possible for this project and thus play a huge part in working on a better way of life for all of us. See Ian’s video about saying NO to the Keystone XL Pipeline .

Please be a part of our fight against the destruction of nature and for a healthy, better future for all of us by signing the petition and spreading the word about it.
Thanks a lot to each and every one of you – together we can make a change

May 24, 2011 @ 4:31 PM Comment?

Filed under: Animal Welfare, Animals, Charity

I wrote about St. Tammany Humane Society before, but in case you missed those entries let me tell you about them again. St. Tammany is the largest no-kill shelter in Louisiana U.S.A. They are a non-profit, non-governmental animal shelter and welfare organization relying primarily on the assistance of the community.

St. Tammany is collecting funds for a much needed shed and my friend Siun is trying to help by organizing a fundraiser where you can win a really awesome goody basket!!!! You can check out the contents of it here. And it could be yours for a donation to St. Tammany. For every donation a ticket with your name on it will be entered in the draw ($10 gets you 2 tickets etc).

There are currently 2 ways to donate:

1
By donating to St Tammany directly through here. If you donate this way, you MUST include ‘@Siunm Shed Fundraiser’ when you donate so they know it’s for the Shed Fundraiser.

2
By donating on the Crowdrise page of this fundraiser through here . Minimum donations on Crowdrise are $10 (as set by Crowdrise) but remember $10 get’s you 2 entries in the goody basket draw.

In both cases you have to @ reply @Siunm on twitter to let her know you donated, or if you don’t have twitter, leave a reply (with your name) here to say you donated and I’ll pass it on to Siun.

So, help get St. Tammany Humane Society get the funds for their much needed shed and hopefully win some awesome stuff while doing good

April 19, 2011 @ 1:17 PM Comment?

Filed under: Animal Welfare, Animals, Personal, Take Action

Four years ago I adopted a little black kitten with eye problems, my small but big friend Sam. Due to his eye problems he’s a real indoor cat. Sam is partially blind in one eye and they keep watering, so he can’t see 100% especially in the dark. He goes outside on a leash every day to get some fresh air but after 10 minutes he prefers to go back inside. Even the curious neighborhood cats aren’t interesting enough to play with. Untill recently anyway. The last couple of months Sam started to show some interest in playing with these cats. But after four years they have had enough of their failing efforts to play so now THEY don’t want to play anymore. Sam’s response to this, showing from his body language and the disappointed look in his eyes, were enough for me to consider finding him a friend. After thinking long and hard if this was the right choice (did Sam really want a friend in ‘his’ house?) I decided to go for it and go search for a fitting friend.

Because I truly believe in adopting animals from shelters and I’m absolutely against keeping puppymills and the like in bussiness, the choice to take in a shelter cat was really easy. Last Saturday was the day; a trip to the shelter with my sister and brother-in-law to see if they had a cat that would fit with Sam’s personality. That was my only condition, the cat had to fit Sam’s personality. Age, colour or sexe did not matter. If they didn’t have a cat like that in the shelter at this time, I had decided to wait untill they did. Which, unfortunately, means I wouldn’t have to wait very long, shelters are filled to their capacity with more animals coming through the doors every day.

Walking into the shelter I was nicely greeted and after a short conversation to find out what I was looking for, the search for the perfect match in the shelter began. They only had a limited amount of indoor cats and since it wouldn’t be fair to ‘lock’ an outdoor cat indoors I only had a few cats to look at. I ended up looking at a very pretty 6 year old overweight female cat and even though she’s adorable she didn’t seem to fit with Sam. I really hope she finds a forever home soon.
There was also a nest of kittens in the shelter, they were a little ill so not ready to be adopted out yet, but kittens are always sweet, cute and lovely. I did take a look at them, but let’s be honest, kittens usually find a house rather quickly for the previously mentioned reasons. So I decided to pass on a kitten and continue the search.

Suddenly the lady from the shelter had an idea; she still had a young black male cat, a little weary around people but very playfull around other cats. That sounded great so we went to look at him and hear his history. When I saw him I knew this might be the right one. And that’s where the story of Pax the shelter cat begins.

Pax (nameless his entire life until Saturday) was born from a stray cat in someone’s backyard. The people in the neighborhood couldn’t/wouldn’t continue to take care of the strays and Pax and his brother ended up at the shelter. He is 9 months old now and spend his whole life, minus a few weeks, in the shelter. His brother and him were adopted out for a while but quickly returned because “they played too much and made a mess”.

Stories like that make me angry, WHEN you decide to adopt an animal, think about the concequences first! Animals do play and yes, can make a bit of a mess, but isn’t that common knowledge?! An animal is not a toy that can be returned or exchanged. It’s a living creature that needs good care, love and attention. This is exactly the reason why shelters are overloaded with orphaned animals. People don’t think before adding a furry member to their family and because they don’t spay or neuter their pets. Yes young animals are cute, but they don’t stay small forever, if good homes can’t be found off to the shelter they go, not fixed of course just like the parent who probably will be having more babies only to repeat the above.

After sitting with Pax in his ‘home’ for a while and studying his behavior (he went to sit in the back but was friendly, curious and kept staring at me with his big yellow eyes) I knew this was the right friend for Sam.
So last Saturday I added a 9 month old black male cat to my family, who now listens (ok not really…) to the name Pax. His brother was no longer at the shelter and this scared beauty deserved a forever home too.

Once we got home both Sam and Pax had to get used to the new living arrangements but so far so good. They play together and Sam seems happy with his new friend (and Pax too). Pax is still skittish but a little over 24 hours later he already asked for cuddles and a bellyrub!

I can only say this; if you consider adding an animal to your family, think about it long and hard before you make that decision so animals don’t have to go (back) to a shelter. Please also look into adopting one rather than buying one. Shelters are filled to their max with wonderful and sweet animals that deserve a forever home!

If you can’t get another family member but would love to help out ahelter animals, check with your local shelter to see how you can help. And check out Paws 4 A Cause they have awesome ways to help out St. Tammany Humane Society a wonderful NOKILL shelter in Covington, Louisiana, USA. They can really use your help.