I’m off to the land of no access to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Dropbox. But I will be keeping in touch through this blog which is set up to cross-post to Facebook. And apparently I can post photos to my Facebook account via email. We’ll see …
So downloaded latest version and installed. How now? Is everything in working order?
Plus refreshed the Wordbooker plugin.
This is a test post to see if the plugin is working.
This morning, I went out without my netbook. This is rare. The only times I don’t carry my netbook with me when I go out is when I don’t plan to write outside. But this morning, I made a conscious decision to carry only a paper notebook and pen.
I’ve been writing quite a bit by hand this past month. I think it’s because of this B5 spiral bound notebook that I bought early in the month. Size-wise, it’s smaller than A4 but larger than A5. A5 has been my preferred size for many years; I find A4 to be too big and conspicuous. I also prefer spiral bound notebooks because they open flat, but the problem with A5 spiral bound is my hand hits the spiral spine too soon. So I decided to try the B5 size, and find that it suits me. So I’ve been writing by hand quite a bit this month, usually 3 pages at a time.
This morning, I wrote 4 pages after breakfast at Wendy’s in JayaOne, while waiting for my car to be washed. I felt comfortable taking out the notebook and opening it on the table to write. This morning’s writing was sparked off by something I read in a book that just arrived from Better World Books a few days ago – Writers and Their Notebooks, edited by Diana M Raab. This picture commemorates the writing session:
I usually can’t write by hand for long, due to my lupus. But I haven’t felt much pain writing by hand in the B5 notebook. Part of the reason is the notebook itself. The other is the pen – I use a Pilot G-2 0.7 which glides across the surface of the notebook and doesn’t get in the way of the writing. My handwriting’s not great, but I’ve learned not to let it bother me; what’s important is getting the words down.
Fans of American-born giant panda Tai Shan were thrilled to discover there’s now a daily webcam showing him in Bifengxia Panda Base, China. At first, there was some confusion as many people thought this is the webcam that Pandas International has been trying to set up for a while now (with funds donated by Mara Strock). Pandas International has now confirmed that this is a different webcam from the one they’re setting up; no matter, the more Tai Shan webcams, the better!
Unfortunately, the webcam is not very stable. Many fans have reported not being able to get the cam to work, despite following instructions to upgrade to the latest version of the Java plug-in. Fortunately, their daily Tai Shan “fix” has been provided by other fans who have been able to view the cam and have done screen captures to share online.
But this is not a blog post about the Tai Shan screencaps, but another set of screencaps.
A recent Tai Shan screencap showed a keeper I’d met in Wolong in 2007. I had not see him again until my March 2010 trip to Bifengxia; in the aftermath of the May 12 earthquake in 2008, he had remained in Wolong as a part of a small group of keepers to look after seven cubs born in 2007. The reason for keeping the cubs in Wolong was to encourage those who were still in Wolong after the earthquake (more on this later).
Seeing this keeper in the screencap reminded me of all the Wolong earthquake images that we’ve become so familiar with. However, there are some Wolong earthquake images that we might not have seen before.
During my September 2010 trip, I’d purchased a DVD on Wolong’s earthquake story released by the China Conservation and Research Centre for Giant Panda (CCRCGP), the Government admin department that oversees both Wolong and Bifengxia. In addition to the familiar earthquake images, the DVD also has a section on the seven cubs that had remained in Wolong, and their keepers. I realised I’ve never seen any pictures from this part of Wolong’s earthquake story. Other giant panda fans may not have, either, so I spent some time doing my own screencaps to share online.
Temporary housing for the 7 pandas that remained in Wolong for a year after the earthquake
Born in the same year and “classmates” in the Wolong kindergarten, they got along fine in their temporary home
A heartwarming screencap that showed them at a favourite activity – eating ‘boo!
The temporary panda home was open to the public
An “earthquake” cub coming up to say hello to two young visitors
Info board showing the weight of the 7 pandas; the top row shows the dates of their weigh-ins
The keepers bringing the cubs indoors
This section of the DVD has this to say about the seven cubs:
6km away from the ruins of the Wolong Panda Research Center, we come to the temporary shelter for the 7 pandas that remain. The pandas that remain were all born in the same year and grew up together. Despite suffering different degrees of shock, with tender love and attention from the caretakers, they are all in good health.
The Road Home
CCRCGP DVD on Wolong’s earthquake story
Yang Haidi, the keeper I saw in the Tai Shan screencap and who I’d met in Wolong in 2007, is also interviewed in this section of the DVD
The local people all care deeply about the pandas and people from all over the world also come to see them and are especially kind to them. After the quake, it wasn’t just us taking care of them but they also gave back to us a kind of inner strength. The fact that they are surviving so well is a great encouragement for us. Because the pandas haven’t gone, our hope is still here, all of Wolong’s hope is still here. After the relief effort comes the rebuilding process and we have every confidence in ourselves.Yang Haidi
Giant panda keeper
