The tropics ain't seen nuthin yet... Yeah, Bammer...

Alabama has some of the most diverse fish in the nation. And many are more colorful than you might imagine. The two minnows shown are the Rainbow shiner (Notropis chrosomus) and the Bluenose shiner (Pteronotropis welaka). I bet you wouldn't dare use those pretty little things as bait...

The brim, as they are called colloquially here in Alabama, are longear sunfish (Lepomis megalotis). This is a male in full color, and his mate during breeding season. Most females choose good mates based on the color of the red belly, and the size of that "ear flap". Males make great nests and guard the eggs from predators.

And the bugger with the two dorsal fins, is the famous Alabama darter (Etheostoma ramseyi). He is only found in Alabama and has beautiful colors during mating season that rival that of most tropical fishes...

Just showing my love for these Alabamer Fishies... This state is number two in fish diversity (behind Hawaii) and number one in amphibian diversity... a post for another time...

The Gulf

Listen to no one.
Trust no one.
They lead you astray.
Into the bay.
Or rather the ocean.
Set into motion.
From the gulf coast.
That has made the most.
Of the excessive stream.
The oil that teems.
Out the mouth, and spew.
No one really knew.
Even existed before.
The hole from which it pour.
Made notice to all.
Mankind will fall.
But only after the rest.
Animals, Plants, The Best.
Have been destroyed.
Hands never void.
The wreck we have made.
The bed we have laid.
No matter how clear.
It may be in a year.
Resistance is futile.
Big Brother, Big Business, Big Bile.

A stable structure, surrounding an unstable structure.

Aditya Dev - world's smallest body builder

Primordial Dwarfism

Osteodysplastic Primordial Dwarfism

Meier-Gorlin Syndrome

There are as yet no effective treatments for primordial dwarfism. It is known that PD is caused by inheriting a mutant gene from each parent. The lack of normal growth in the disorder is not due to a deficiency of growth hormone, as in hypopituitary dwarfism. Administering growth hormone, therefore, has little or no effect on the growth of the individual with primordial dwarfism. In January 2008, it was published that mutations in the pericentrin gene (PCNT) were found to cause primordial dwarfism. Pericentrin has a role in cell division, proper chromosome segregation, and cytokinesis suggesting these processes are important. -Wikipedia

Lucia Zarate - first person diagnosed with MOPD

b. 1864

wt. 4.7 lbs

She first worked as part of an act billed as the "Fairy Sisters", later partnering with Francis Joseph Flynn (billed under the stage name "General Mite") to exhibit internationally. In 1889 she was billed in The Washington Post as the "marvelous Mexican midget" and described as "a tiny but all powerful magnet to draw the public." When her circus train became stranded in snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains in 1890, Zarate died of hypothermia in 1890.

Harris Glenn Milstead

Harris Glenn Milstead is definitely one of my heroes. He may not be recognizable in this photo because he only looked like this during adolescence. Once Milstead got into his twenties, he was swept up by the wild world of acting and soon became possessed by the quirky mind of John Waters.





Yeah, this straight-edged young man became the wonderful Divine from such movies as Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble, Hairspray and Polyester.





Sad he had to die so young.





At least it was a little more dignified than the legende urbana of Mama Cass's "ham sandwich." What a pity, ain't it shitty...

Loose Lips

loose lips might sink ships

but these kisses take trips

to san fransisco, double dutch disco, tech.

tv hottie, do it for scotty

do it for the living, and do it for the dead

do it for the monsters under your bed

do it for the teenagers and do it for your mom

broken hearts hurt but they make us strong

and we won't stop until somebody calls the cops

and even then we'll start again

and just pretend that nothing ever happens

we won't stop until somebody calls the cops

and even then we'll start again

and just pretend that nothing ever happens

we're just dancing we're just hugging

singing, screaming, kissing, tugging

on the sleeve of how it used to be

how's it gonna be?

i'll dropkick russel stover

move into the starting over house

and know matt rouse and jest are watching me achieve my dreams

and we'll pray all damn day every day

that all this shit our president has got us in will go away

while we strive to figure out a way we can survive

these trying times, without losing our minds

so if you wanna burn yourself remember that i love you

if you wanna cut yourself remember that i love you

and if you wanna kill yourself remember that i love you

call me up, before your dead

we can make some plans instead

send me an i.m. i'll be your friend

shysters live from scheme to scheme

but my fourth quarter pipe dreams

are seeming more and more worth fighting for

so i'll curate some situations

make my job a big vacation

and i'll say fuck bush and fuck this war

my war paint is sharpie ink

and i'll show you how much my shit stinks

and ask you what you think

because your thoughts and words are powerful

they think we're disposable,

well both my thumbs are 'posable

spell that on a double word and triple letter score

and we won't stop until somebody calls the cops

and even then we'll start again

and just pretend that nothing ever happens

we won't stop until somebody calls the cops

and even then we'll start again

and just pretend that nothing ever happens

we're just dancing we're just hugging

singing, screaming, kissing, tugging

on the sleeve of how it used to be.

what a wonderful life

the next time you decide to party like a rockstar
don't put it on me
so what do you have to say?
are you here to be the bearer of bad news?
'cause i'm not ready for that.

you really had your chance, you had your time
i don't know why you wasted it like you did;
that's what happens when your head is up your ass,
or for that matter,
someone else's.

getting mad.
what did you expect?
it's kind of ridiculous the way you think
with this and everything
being the way you are.

those blinders won't last long
soon you'll see other than just the track ahead
what a surprise!
will you be ready?
personally, i don't think so.

funny that we were that close.
no more though,
guess it just happens.
what a wonderful world this is,
what a wonderful life. Yeah.
wonderful life.