It’s kind of nice to know that this generation isn’t the only one that pampers their dogs. Archeologists have uncovered pet cemeteries in Peru. The cemeteries belong to a pre-Columbian culture of people called the Chiribaya.

The Chiribaya people were farmers of the Osmore River valley from 900 A.D. to 1350 A.D. This was before the Inca Empire. So far researchers have uncovered 82 dog tombs, laid alongside human tombs. The dogs were buried with blankets and treats (Ahh). Anthropologist Sonia Guillen is quick to point out that the dogs were not sacrificed; “they are dogs that were thanked and recognized for their social and familial contributions�.

Researchers are currently doing genetic testing to try to find a link between the Chiribaya dogs and the Peruvian dog. The Peruvian dogs are known for being good shepherds much like the Chiribaya dogs.

Knock knock. Who’s there? Land Shark. Ahhhhh!

This old SNL skit may no longer be a joke. Researchers have discovered a new species of shark that can walk on its fins. The researchers have discovered dozens of new species in the Papua province of Indonesia including a shrimp that looks like a praying mantis and scores of new kinds of coral.

The area is known as Bird’s Head Escape and is in danger from fisherman who use dynamite and cyanide to catch fish. Researchers with Conservation International are trying to get the Indonesian government to do more to protect this area. They have discovered 24 new species of fish, 20 new species of coral and eight new species of shrimp.

That’s just in the water. Researchers at a survey sites a few hundred miles from Bird’s Head have found 20 new species of frogs, four new butterfly species and at least five new palms. They have also come across the Long Beaked Echidna. It’s a rare egg-laying mammal sort of like a platypus.

It’s hard to believe that so many new and diverse species can still be discovered. Only about 11% of a 70,000 mile area is currently under protection. That’s pretty sad when you consider that this area contains 75% of the world’s species of reef-building coral.

It seems that I am destined to see Flaming Lips concerts without Chris. Boy, did he ever miss out on a show. I was a little nervous when I heard they were playing at the Zoo Amphitheater. The Zoo Amphitheater is known for showing headliners like Megadeath and Poison, but it turned out to be the perfect venue for the Flaming Lips.

I saw the Flaming Lips a few years ago when they were doing their Yoshimi tour. It was a great concert and I new I wouldn’t be disappointed this year. They were amazing! First of all, there was probably four times the number of people at this concert. The stage was bigger which allowed the Lips to do a much bigger show. It started with a big spaceship floating down and Wayne Coyne in a big plastic bubble. I’d seen him do the bubble trick on TV and was slightly disappointed when he didn’t do it at the last concert. He carefully walked down the spaceship ramp and out into the audience where he tumbled around on top of the crowd. He was tossed back up on the stage to start the opening song. The crowd went crazy.

We all had these multicolored whistles that lit up with flashing lights with a push of a button (these were handed out for free at the gates when we came in). There were giant balloons tossed out into the crowd and being bounced all around. Giant confetti guns were constantly being blown and streams of confetti where floating through the air like snow. It was unbelievable.

When Wayne started introducing the Yeah Yeah Yeah song he talked about how people thought of that song as a protest song. He said “It’s no surprise that we all hate George Bush” and the crowd roared. There were a few boos, but they were drowned out by the cheers. All I could think was where the hell were all these people when we had to vote. It was such a great concert, I didn’t want it to end. And I felt a little sad that Todd couldn’t be there to share the experience because it was a thousand times better than the Yoshimi concert. Oh well. Maybe next time, because I’m bound and determined to go to every Flaming Lips concert that comes to OKC.

We’ve all heard the research stories about people with pets living longer, happier lives. Owning pets are good for you. They just make you feel better. A new study shows that dogs and cats can protect kids from stomach bugs. The research study by Jane Heyworth and colleagues found that children with a dog or cat in the home were 30% less likely to have gastroenteritis (stomach flu).

It was once believed that dogs and cats were possible sources for gastroenteritis. I mean, they do have a tendency to eat poop. But Heyworth’s findings prove other wise. Children being licked and touched by pets actually allow children to develop immunity to pathogenic organisms that can cause gastroenteritis.

Many of you may have noticed that my blog has been under construction lately. Chris decided that it was time to move Elephant Soap over to Wordpress. So now I’ve got a new coat of paint and therefore should be ready for bloggin’. I’ve been in a bit of a blog lull these last few weeks. Part of it is due to laziness, but I’ve also been knitting like a mad woman. Once I get started I really don’t want to put it down. This also means that I have precious must-read-now books sitting around the house gathering dust.

I’d like to get some things knitted for birthday gifts and such so I’ve been in hyperknit mode. I’m very excited about the scarf I’m working on. I made one before, but it didn’t turn out as nice as this one. The textures of the first scarf are all wrong. These scarves are going to be all the rage this season. I’ll post picks soon. They’re a great project for learning to knit in the round. Trust me, you’ll get plenty of practice at it.

It’s also a good thing I’m in obsessive knit mode because our only working car has decided to stop working. Chris took it to the dealership on Thursday and they kept it until Friday. They still didn’t figure out the initial problem, but did manage to give us a list of things that need to be replaced. For a small of fee of $1000 they would replace all these things. Lucky for us Chris’s brother is a mechanic. We spent $60 in parts and probably $20 on pizza for the family. That’s a huge savings. We still had to pay the dealership $100 for the diagnostic even though Chris was the one that found the electrical problem that they couldn’t reproduce. I think Chris should have gotten half of that fee.

Chris has started baby-sitting for some friends of ours on weekends. He’s been doing it off and on, filling in for their usual nanny, but starting this month, it’s a regular gig. So, this leaves me with the responsibility of taking care of our weekend errands on my own. Most things we’ve been able to accomplish before or after baby sitting stints like grocery shopping. It’s the other side errands that I’m now forced to do on my own.

I remember being fairly independent once, but since being married to Chris, I’ve slowly let him take over just about everything. If it wasn’t for him, I’d never leave the house. He’s the one that gets me up and into the car. I’d never buy new shoes, underwear, yarn, or any thing on the Gap sales rack if Chris wasn’t constantly conning me to go places with the promise of ice cream at the end of every trip.

Saturday, I had a short list of tasks I needed to accomplish. First on the list was go to Akin’s to buy my Burt’s Bees moisturizer. They don’t have it. Apparently, its not 100% natural, so they no longer carry it. Okay. I don’t panic and do something like by a substitute that I know doesn’t work as well but instead breaks my face out into giant zits. I move on. I walk next door to PetsMart to buy Hooper’s monthly supply of piggy twists and canned food. We’re in luck. I buy the last four packages of piggy twists and save 8 cents a can on his dog food. This is good. I’m out on my own accomplishing something. Woo-hoo!

Next, I head to Hobby Lobby where I buy yarn for my next knitting project. I noticed a Starbucks with a drive-thru window in the Hobby Lobby parking lot and decide that I’ve been so good today that I’m going to treat myself to coffee. I’ve never been to an actual Starbucks before, but it’s coffee. How hard can it be right? I pull up to the order box thingy and order a café au lait. The Starbucks girl then says, “What’s that?” I start to panic, frantically searching the menu for something I recognize when she comes back to tell me they do have that, they just call it a Misto. A Misto!? Like the soup that no one ever wants at the Chinese restaurant? No, wait, that’s “miso”. Never mind.

I got my coffee and went over to see Chris and proudly show him that I’m capable of ordering a coffee for myself from Starbucks. His reply: “Where’s mine?”

I barely managed to get my coffee, and he thinks I can order for two? Who knows what half double-decaffeinated half-caf thing he would have wanted? I should have order something else anyway just to see if the Starbucks girl would say, “What’s that? No, wait, we have that…but we’re calling it a Café au Lait now.”