Coffee and Provocation

The Dog Ate My Book

John Steinbeck spent two months of 1936 rewriting 'Of Mice and Men' after his Irish Setter ate the only copy of the original manuscript. He later wrote, "Two months work to do over again. It sets me back. There was no other draft. I was pretty mad but the poor little fellow may have been acting critically."

4,000 Beagles Seek Homes

The US Department of Justice is is working with the Humane Society of the US to rehouse 4,000 beagles that were kept in horrendous conditions at the Envigo research facility in Virginia, which bred the dogs for pharmaceutical research. If you are intereseted in adopting, see the rescues working with HSUS to rehome these dogs. 

British Water Quality is Terrible

A long-term contract to produce chickens for Tesco stores has resulted in billions of pounds of chicen feces and chemicals washing into the River Wye as it runs through mid-Wales to the Severn estuary. 

Birth Control Pills for Squirrels
Oral contraceptives might help in reducing the number of invasive Grey Squirrel in the UK, which are out-competing the native Red Squirrels. 

The First Tree Huggers

The first tree huggers were the Bisnoi, a Hindu community in the Western Thar Desert and northern states of India. The Bishnoi live by 29 principles, one of which is to protect trees, and so when, in 1730, the Maharaja of Jodhpur sent soldier tree cutters to acquire wood for the construction of a new palace, a woman by the name of Amrita Devi hugged a tree in an attempt to stop them, and she was followed by members of her family and community. The Maharaja's soldiers killed her and 362 others.

Pave Paradise

Cleveland's Tower City Center is building an indoor "Skylight Park" where people can "connect” to nature. Joni Mitchell saw it coming to this back in 1970. 

Pygmy Blue Whales is the New Oxymoron

A new group of "Chagos" pygmy blue whales was discovered last year in the Indian Ocean thanks to underwater hydrophones used to track submarines and monitor nuclear explosions. An analysis of old audio tapes suggests this pygmy blue whale population may be growing.

Shit Street

There was so much human and animal waste in the streets of 14th century Paris that roads were named after it: rue Merdeux, rue Merdelet, rue Merdusson, rue des Merdons, and rue Merdiere. There was also a rue de Pipi, or "Urine Street".

No One Wants to Work Anymore
In 1998 Patrizia Reggiani was sentenced to 29 years in prison for arranging the killing of her ex-husband, Maurizio Gucci of the Gucci fashion family. In October 2011, she became eligible for parole under a work-release program but refused, saying, "I've never worked in my life, and I'm certainly not going to start now." With credit for good behavior, she was released in October 2016, after 18 years in prison.