Today’s photo is of the kittens, Oliver and Merlin, who are still small enough to comfortably fit on the desk and “help” me work. They like to watch the mouse on the computer screen, which is very cute but does make it difficult to see what one is doing. They’re also indiscriminate about what they’re stepping on, and can find all sorts of buttons and shortcuts that you had no idea existed. Usually for functions that you really didn’t want to do, too.
I’ve been saving up a few random things to throw together in a post of assorted non-nature things, or at least not directly nature. The first is that I want to make a slightly advance notice of the next edition of I and the Bird, which will be hosted by Jeffrey A. Gordon at his blog this week. IATB #90 will be posted on Thursday (and I’ll put the direct link here once it’s up). The rest of his blog is worth a browse, too, he’s got some fabulous photos.
Second is delayed notice of the most recent Festival of the Trees, #30, hosted at A Neotropical Savanna. Lots of interesting posts and blogs included, so I encourage folks to pop over and poke around. Carnivals are a great way to discover new blogs, perhaps even find one that will become your new favourite read.
If you peer closely at the monitor in the photo, you’ll see I was checking out my WordPress stats page. On the right-hand side of the stats graph there’s a gigantic spike in hits. I’d been bumbling along at about an average of 130-140 page views per day (as WordPress tracks it, anyway). Then yesterday, out of the blue, I got a whopping 995 hits. This is more than I got during the entire month of February, back just shortly after I’d started the blog. I always have a bunch of visitors that come through Google searches (the popular one at the moment is inquiring about female deer with antlers), but the vast majority of the hits yesterday were referred from StumbleUpon, a social-networking site that allows you to “bookmark” pages you really like, which are then shared with other people who follow your selections, or can be “stumbled” by others looking for random pages submitted by other users in categories they’re interested in. The page of mine that had been stumbled was my previous one, on goldfinches. And the person who bookmarked it to StumbleUpon was Wrenaissance Woman, of Wrenaissance Reflections. A huge thank you to Wren for including my blog in her bookmarks. I need to sign up with StumbleUpon myself and start using it myself, something I’d been meaning to do but hadn’t gotten around to yet.
I’d like to acknowledge receipt of an award, initially given to me by Voice of the Turtle, but seconded by Huckleberry Days, both regular reads of mine and also worthy recipients in their own right. I lean heavily on nature to provide me with content, but Turtle has a way of being able to pull creative and interesting content from her own head (I’m sure my readers would be bored to tears if I tried that). Huckleberry approaches blog subjects in a similar manner to myself, only lives out in the beautiful and diverse Fraser River Delta in British Columbia.
The “rules” are thus:
1. Each Superior Scribbler should in turn pass the award on to 5 most-deserving blog friends.
2. Each Superior Scribbler should link to the author & the name of the blog from whom he/she has received the award.
3. Each Superior Scribbler should display the award on his/her blog, and link to this post, which explains the award.
4. Each blogger who wins The Superior Scribbler Award should visit this post and add his/her name to the Mr. Linky list. That way, we’ll be able to keep up-to-date on everyone who receives this prestigious honor!
5. Each Superior Scribbler should post these rules on his/her blog.
The blog’s first “rule” asks that the recipient pass the award on to five others. Awards are not only recognition of good blogging, they’re also a way for bloggers to receive a bit of free promotion and in turn offer it to other blogs that they feel are worthy reads. I read many blogs, so picking just five is tough. Huckleberry has already picked three that would be high on my list: Wanderin’ Weeta, Beetles in the Bush and Myrmecos. Here are a few others that tend to be the first ones read from my blogroll when I’ve only got a few minutes. As per my usual, recipients can choose to participate or not as they wish.
1. Jennifer at A Passion for Nature
2. Hugh at Rock Paper Lizard (I especially enjoy his Interpreter posts, which I think would make a great book, like Stories from the Vinyl Cafe)
3. Liza Lee at It’s Just Me (a very humble title, previously The Egret’s Nest)
4. Tim at From the Faraway, Nearby
5. Nina at Nature Remains (whose poetic prose is perfect for an award highlight excellent writing)
I just want to also mention that it bothers me that the stripes on the Scribbler’s one arm are coloured in, while on the other they aren’t.
seabrookeleckie.com 
Thank you so much for the nice words, Seabrooke! I really ought to start keeping a file for blue days. Or write the words backwards on my forehead, so whenever I look in a mirror…
Another way of contrasting the two of us, however, is that I’m very scattered, my only discipline being that of daily blogging, while you have a focus. You take the photographs, you research the information, and you put it into your own words. Oh, and your pen-and-ink drawings are fabulous. And guess which one of us is collaborating on a real-live book-to-be? Not I. (Maybe someday… )
Oh, and thanks for pointing out Huckleberry’s blog a few months back; it was because of your shout-out that I’ve blogrolled Huckleberry Days.
I love your photo of kitties. Their dark images against the bright background capture the essence of easily entertained cats.
Adorable kitties – when do they start their own blog? I’m sure they’re a big help. My own Kinsey likes to sit on my shoulder a la pirate’s parrot and observe.
Never trust cats near your computer. Next thing you know a couple crates of toy mice, yarn, and catnip show up at the door … or on your credit card invoice!
Thanks for the kind words in return, Lavenderbay! I guess there are all types of writing. Really, I consider my strength to be in research, and I just happen to have good grammar skills from all the reading I’ve done. I did alright in creative writing back in high school, but coming up with ideas or plots was never something I was good at.
Thanks, Zhakee. They’re definitely easily entertained! Something cats have up on dogs… Well, I suppose Raven is also easily entertained, but usually it also involves you, while the cats can entertain themselves.
Hee, we’ll work on it, Wren! First I should teach them to read. Oliver rides around on Dan’s shoulders a lot, but mine aren’t broad enough without me hunching over.
I wouldn’t put it past them, Robert! Cats are sneaky creatures…
Congratulations! Here is your award number: TWHCA8. You will need this
in the future. It is really for a valuable opt-in promotion to get items at no cost.
We’re going to use our computer software to browse web blogs all over
the net to hunt for our champ in 30 days time!