Country Lovers Blog
Countryside at risk under latest plans to downgrade planning laws – Telegraph
George Osborne, the Chancellor, is expected to announce a review of the Habitats Regulations that protect huge swathes of precious landscape.The review is intended to speed up the planning process by cutting down on red tape.
Critics, however, believe it is another concession to developers and threatens wildlife in areas like the Thames Estuary, Lindisfarne and Salisbury Plains.
The Habitat Directive, which was passed down by the European Commission in in 1994, covers any area considered important for rare wildlife such as ancient woodland, heathland and wetlands.
The UK interpretation of the rules, the Habitats Regulations, covers more than one million hectares in England.
Read More via Countryside at risk under latest plans to downgrade planning laws – Telegraph.
FARM GIRL BEAUTY – British Pathe
FARM GIRL BEAUTY – British Pathe.
FARM GIRL BEAUTY
Don’t you just love the old British stiff upper lip reporting from the old News Reels? Enjoy this retro footage of a simple Farm Girl winning a beauty competition complete with girl about town makeover.
Stupid People – Kids on Marriage | Dating Online
Kids on Dating, Romance and Marriage
A group of young children were asked about marriage, here is their advice.
HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHO TO MARRY?
- You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.- Alan, age 10
- No person really decides before they grow up who they’re going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you’re stuck with.- Kirsten, age 10
WHAT IS THE RIGHT AGE TO GET MARRIED?
- Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then.- Camille, age 10
- No age is good to get married at. You got to be a fool to get married.- Freddie, age 6
HOW CAN A STRANGER TELL IF TWO PEOPLE ARE MARRIED?
- You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.- Derrick, age 8
WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR MOM AND DAD HAVE IN COMMON?
- Both don’t want any more kids.- Lori, age 8
WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE?
- Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.- Linette, age 8
- On the first date, they just tell each other lies, and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date.- Martin, age 10
WHAT WOULD YOU DO ON A FIRST DATE THAT WAS TURNING SOUR?
- I’d run home and play dead. The next day I would call all the newspapers and make sure they wrote about me in all the dead columns.- Craig, age 9
WHEN IS IT OKAY TO KISS SOMEONE?
- When they’re rich.- Pam, age 7
- The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn’t want to mess with that.- Curt, age 7
- The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It’s the right thing to do.- Howard, age 8
IS IT BETTER TO BE SINGLE OR MARRIED?
- I don’t know which is better, but I’ll tell you one thing. I’m never going to have sex with my wife. I don’t want to be all grossed out.- Theodore, age 8
- It’s better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them.- Anita, age 9
HOW WOULD THE WORLD BE DIFFERENT IF PEOPLE DIDN’T GET MARRIED?
- There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn’t there?- Kelvin, age 8
HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK?
- Tell your wife that she looks pretty even if she looks like a truck.- Rick, age 10
via Stupid People – Kids on Marriage | Dating Online.
Victoria Advocate | Horses aid in therapy, promote trust and empathy
Like many teenage girls of the late 1960′s and early 1970′s, Garwood native Shirley Johnson got engaged to her high school sweetheart on graduation day.
Her wedding plans were cut short, however, when her fiancée turned out to be a nightmare rather than the man of her dreams.
“The minute he gave me my engagement ring, I became his possession,” said Johnson, who accused her ex-fiancée of being physically abusive.
A member of the Balusek family, who were well-known on the Texas rodeo circuit, Johnson looked to her horses for solace.
It was then that she found the strength to end her abusive situation.
“I felt powerful on this horse so why should I submit to this man,” said Johnson. “I thought if I could control my horse, I should be able to control (my fiancée).
That was one of Johnson’s earliest realizations that horses were good not just for riding, but also for therapy.
More than 20 years later, she is still using horses to provide therapy to herself and others.
“Horses give you strength,” said Johnson, 59, owner of Stable Life Counseling Center. “They can be empowering.”
After nine years of working as a counselor and parent liaison with the Victoria school district, Johnson opened Stable Life in 2003.
The counseling center focuses on helping clients with issues such as anger management, career counseling, domestic violence, sexual assault, parenting, post traumatic stress disorder and attention deficit disorder.
A number of different treatment approaches when working with clients including phone sessions, Christian counseling, relationship counseling, solution-focused therapy and most notably, equine or animal assisted counseling.
Equine therapy has been found to be effective in treating people with a wide spectrum of physical, behavioral, social, cognitive and psychological problems.
Building a relationship with an animal has been found to promote empathy; affection; trust; loyalty; the ability to be in control of a situation; increased self-esteem; improved learning, concentration; ability to take responsibility; motivation to set and achieve goals; and teamwork and problem solving, according to The Federation of Riding for the Disabled International .
In 2001, Johnson was a part of the first certification class for Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association.
Although equine therapy is an internationally accepted and certified area of counseling, Johnson said it has started to gain respect within the counseling community within just the last five years.
Though she has used other animals for therapy purposes, including a calf and her dog Pumpkin, Johnson favors using her horses – Rojo, Red, Penny and Snowball – because of their unique ability to read people.
“Horses don’t lie. Dogs do. Other animals do. You can beat a dog and abuse it, and it will still come for love. If you beat a horse, the horse won’t come back until you earn that trust again.”
Read the full post via Victoria Advocate | Horses aid in therapy, promote trust and empathy.
Should I still be grieving my horse’s death? – CNN.com
Is it crazy that I still feel this bad from my horse’s death four years ago? This horse was my life. He died of cancer on November 20, 2007, when I was 12, and I’ve been affected by his death ever since. I feel as if I can’t talk to anyone about it, because they expect me to be over it by now, but I just can’t. I tried telling my mother once, but she told me point blank that she didn’t understand why I was still upset, and that it was a little silly for me to still be this hurt by his death. I write my feelings in a notebook sometimes when I can’t think, but all that’s happening is making me feel worse. There are nights where I just break down crying until I can’t breathe. Sometimes I think I’m depressed, but I’m scared to tell anyone. What should I do?
Read the CNN expert answer via Should I still be grieving my horse’s death? – CNN.com.
I Believe I can Fly ( flight of the frenchies). Trailer on Vimeo
I was looking for something new and fun to do outdoors when I came a cross this video. The video is a fantastic, must see but I think I might look for something a little easier and safer
I Believe I can Fly ( flight of the frenchies). Trailer on Vimeo on Vimeo
via I Believe I can Fly ( flight of the frenchies). Trailer on Vimeo.
Value of farming the subject of short film shot in Whatcom County
Spread a message about the value of agriculture
As fewer Americans maintain direct ties to farming and as urban areas increase, several local organizations are working on a short film to spread a message about the value of agriculture.
Last week, Bellingham-based Hand Crank Films finished shooting footage in Whatcom County for what will be a five-minute video about the importance of farming. The video focuses on several local farmers talking about the state of the agricultural industry and providing a powerful visual message, along with a new community website for people interesting in learning more, said Chris Donaldson of Hand Crank.
The film, directed by Caleb Young, is expected to be ready in early 2012.
“We wanted to create a powerful story about farming and how it has shrunk in people’s minds,” Donaldson said.
The project was the idea of Gigi Berardi, a professor at Huxley College of the Environment at Western Washington University. Other organizations that supplied initial support include Sustainable Connections and Whatcom Farm Friends.
While Hand Crank is working on distribution plans, Donaldson said they also are counting on people doing something that has become a common way to get the message out to the world – sharing the video through Internet posts.
Read More via Value of farming the subject of short film shot in Whatcom County – Business News – bellinghamherald.com.
Where did Fido come from? Gifts, strays lead list – Boston.com
Where do people get their pet cats and dogs from?
A new AP-Petside.com poll found that the most common way people acquire a pet is as a gift, followed by taking in a stray.
About four in 10 pet owners say at least one of their current pets was given to them by friends or family, while a third say they have a pet that showed up on their doorstep as a stray.
Shelters and breeders are next on the list as sources for pets. Thirty percent of those polled say they adopted through a shelter, 31 percent got a pet from a breeder and 14 percent bought an animal at a pet store.
Karen Hulsey, 63, adopted a cat from a Texas shelter. Greyson is about a year old now and “he’s cuddly and clean,” she says.
She calls her shelter experience very upbeat because the cat “has turned into a wonderful pet with a good attitude and I felt like I was doing something positive.”Another quarter obtained a pet in some other way, including 3 percent who say they went to an animal rescue group and 2 percent who purchased them using an online or print classified ad.
More than half of the pet owners polled say they’ve taken in a shelter animal at some point, and two-thirds of them say their experiences have been extremely positive.
Read more on this via Where did Fido come from? Gifts, strays lead list – Boston.com.
Tips For Attracting A Guy
Before you even try to attract a man, first you have to determine your strong points as a woman. When you have determined your strong points, you can use them to your advantage.
It is not a secret that men are first attracted by the physical attributes of women. And thus this is the best place to start. Probably you have incredible legs or deep blue eyes – use them to your advantage.
It is a good idea to wear flattering clothing and put on a great smile and light up the room. However, try not to put yourself out there too much because you certainly do not want to cast the wrong impression of yourself.
It is true that men like confident women. However, do not confuse confident with overconfident or conceited. Using the proper level of confidence could be a great turn on. You have to let men know that you are looking for the proper man. If you want to meet a man who respects an independent woman, you have to show your confidence.
The other thing for you to keep in mind is to show your intelligence. Of course, we all have seen blondes on TV that get whatever man they want. However, you do not want to be that girl. You certainly want a man who appreciates a woman with smarts. And thus you do not have to be ashamed of your intelligence.
As well, you do not have to be afraid to step up. In fact, waiting on a man to approach you seems outdated in modern society. Today a lot of men like a woman that knows what exactly she wants. And thus go ahead and make the first move. You have to show him that you are interested and strike up a conversation.
If you let your good traits shine, you will have no problems attracting a man. Just put yourself out there and watch as they line up. However, here it is important not to overdo this.
Establishing contacts is a real issue for a number of men. Fortunately they can find lot of flirting tips on the Internet. For instance this flirting techniques site proposes a lot of info on the subject including details on alpha male system review.
The Art Of Flirting
For some people flirting is a hard task and for others it comes naturally. In fact, flirting is an art and thus it is easy to be talented in this area, but the talent could be gained by anyone who wants to reach for it. Men and women have absolutely different flirting styles and the only way the flirting styles could mesh together is if they are on the same level.
If a man is interested he will show it to you immediately. In most cases, if a woman catches your eye and she is not interested, she will just turn you down. However, if woman did not catch your eye but you nevertheless walk up to her wit that cheesy line, you are most likely will be embarrassed.
Quite often there is a situation when you see a girl sitting at a table by herself and you are thinking of a million things to say to her but nothing seems to be good enough. For example, you can say how great scent she has on and ask what it is. However, here you have to remember to ask only if you really smell a scent on her. And if you smell nothing, then she could look at you as you are crazy or she could be just flattered that her natural scent smells as perfume.
Flirting technique that women traditionally use could be described as if she acts and man is the guest star with no rehearsed lines. Women could drop something only to see if you will help women pick it up.
Women cry for no reason, fake illnesses and distraught and so on. These techniques work on men but some men are starting to notice a pattern. Women have got to come up with something new and men like teaching them things they are good at. So it is a great flirting technique for both men and women.
Establishing relationships is a real problem for a number of men. Fortunately they can find lot of tips for flirting on the Internet. For instance this flirting techniques site offers a lot of info on the matter including details on alpha male system.


