JessicaRulestheUniverse.com

This illustrates one reason tackling climate change at big international conferences has been so difficult. The countries that contribute to the problem reap rewards in the form of economic growth while the consequences are felt elsewhere. The Copenhagen conference might have been more productive if the United States, China, and Russia topped this list.

Read A List You Don’t Want To Be On in GOOD. Thanks to Butch for the alert.

So massive SUVs burn up more fuel, contributing to global warming and climate change disasters such as floods—one reason people cite for buying SUVs (Puedeng lumusong sa baha). Oy.

Climate Armaggedon: How the World’s Weather Could Quickly Run Amok

What are those on the floor of the truck? 2-year-old Philippine crocodiles, wrapped in soft netting. They were being transported by truck, raft and on foot to the lake in Dunoy where they were released back into the wild. Photo by Malu Francisco.

On May 19, Lacoste S.A. Chairman Michel Lacoste boarded a 6 x 6 truck in San Mariano, Isabela with a dozen 2-year-old crocodiles. The juvenile crocodiles belong to the severely endangered species Crocodylus mindorensis or Philippine crocodile (local name: bukarot). This small freshwater species found only in this country will become extinct in ten years if no conservation action is taken.

Read Crocs On A Truck in Emotional Weather Report, our column today in the Philippine Star.

An on-again-off-again scandal that the Italian press has called VatiLeaks burst into the open on Friday with the arrest by Vatican gendarmes of a man, identified in news reports as Paolo Gabriele, the pope’s butler, who the Vatican said was in possession of confidential documents and was suspected of leaking private letters, some of which were addressed to Pope Benedict XVI.

The arrest follows by a day the ouster of the president of the Vatican Bank, Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, amid conflicts over how to bring the secretive institution in line with international transparency standards and days after the publication of a sensational book, “Your Holiness: The Secret Papers of Benedict XVI,” in which the journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi, aided by “Maria,” discloses a huge cache of private Vatican correspondence, many revealing clashes over the management at the Vatican bank and allegations of corruption and cronyism.

Read In Vatican scandal, a whodunit of a suspect in the NYT.

Mother Daisy with one of her many critters.

Daisy Langenegger has an organic farm, and on that farm she has a lot of animals. But first let’s meet her urban pets.

There’s Lucio, a second-generation Neapolitan mastiff who should find a suitable mate soon. Lucio has sired some big babies—bull mastiffs mostly—but not one of his own breed because all the mastiffs he’s met are his sisters. “We’re kind of sad that he could be the last of his line,” Daisy says. “His late father Spike had trained us to care for mastiffs—a daunting task because they are the gentlest, most intelligent, possessive, and willful of giant dogs. No matter what you do, you end up being mastered. However, the Neapolitan mastiff is so intelligent, he allows you to take the lead as long as it suits his temperament. Remember, he owns you.”

Read our column Emotional Weather Report in the Pet Life section in the Philippine Star.

1.2.1. The celebrity judges on American Idol are styled and coiffed to within an inch of their lives. They’re in show business after all, and image is everything.

1.2.2. The Senator-judges in the impeachment trial are style and coiffed to within an inch of their lives. They’re in politics after all, and image is everything.

1.2.3. Rock star Steven Tyler has been around forever and seen things you wouldn’t believe. Among his greatest hits are “Dude Looks Like A Lady” and “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing”.

1.2.4. Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile has been around forever and seen things you wouldn’t believe, and in the impeachment trial he is the rock star. Among his greatest hits are the martial law declaration, the call for People Power in 1986, and “Gusto Ko Happy Ka”.

1.2.5. Singer/actress Jennifer Lopez first achieved fame through her most famous asset: her behind.

1.2.6. Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago first achieved fame through her most famous asset: her mouth (Though she is proud of her legs). We haven’t heard her sing, but we’re sure she’s a better singer than J-Lo.

Read our column at InterAksyon.com.

What have we missed?

Message from Koosi:

We are fine now. We suspect it was a reaction to our human’s horrible furniture. Hate that couch, hate it, hate it.

If you did not wish us well, we have nothing for you. Hah!

* * * * *

Here’s Koosi appropriating our dinner for her pillow.

DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU ARE EATING. OR SQUEAMISH.

This morning we woke up to a scene out of The Godfather. The one where the producer wakes up to find his prized racehorse’s head on his bed.

Take away the horse’s head, all the blood but three drops, and all connection to the mob and that’s what our morning was like.

We followed the trail of drops of blood (six) outside and they led to the bathroom. Our eldest cat Koosi had blood in her stools.

Except for the one time our youngest cat, Mat, caught a cold and freaked us out by not eating (an occurrence to rival the appearance of Halley’s Comet), this was the only health issue our feline family has ever encountered.

Koosi was hiding under the shelf, being even crankier than usual. This is an antisocial cat who likes her solitude. When she wants attention, she walks up to us, rubs her head against our feet, then when we say “Awww”, bites our toes. Yesterday she was snarling and snapping at the other cats, and last night she jumped onto our bed growling. She must’ve been in pain.

We cleaned up the spots then gave Koosi a bowl of kibble and water. She drank a lot of water. Then she came out of hiding and seemed herself again. She allowed us to clean the spots off her butt with baby wipes, but when she got bored she scratched us.

We messaged our pet consultants: Azon our cat-sitter, our Pet Life editor Kathy, and our vet Mayem Yao at Pendragon. Azon said Koosi might have parasites or a digestive problem. Is she losing weight? Azon asked. The opposite, we said, she’s gaining. Any change in their usual behavior means something is wrong, she noted.

Our editor said Koosi must’ve eaten something that disagreed with her. As far as we know she’s been eating the same brand of kibble for years and hasn’t eaten anything else. She even declines the occasional human food (leftover fish or chicken dishes) we offer her.

Our vet asked if Koosi’s poop was solid (It was), then suggested we try deworming her first. If that didn’t work, we should take her to the clinic. She recommended Prazivet or All Wormer for cats and kittens.

Meanwhile Koosi seemed herself again and was busy cleaning her butt. We went off to our appointments, anxious about our cat’s health. At an Animal House we bought deworming tablets. Clearly we were in for a wrestling match. Our technique for giving cats their vitamins requires a medicine dropper. How were we going to give Koosi the two and a half tablets? If we mixed them with her kibble she would refuse them. We could crush the tablets, mix with milk or water and put them in a dropper, but that was too fussy.

We opted for strong-arm tactics. Show the cat who’s boss. It never happens, so it should work once. We grabbed her by the scruff of the neck and when she opened her mouth to protest, popped the tablet in.

She spit it out. We popped it in again. She spit it out again, but on the 10th attempt she swallowed the tablet, which had been softened by her drool. Then we repeated the maneuver for the other tablets. (This weekend we’re going to deworm Saffy and Mat as well.)

Afterwards she did not attack us; she understood the need for the meds. We’ll observe her for 24 hours, then report to the vet. Meanwhile she’s sitting next to us making suggestions as to the style of this post. She’s fine, we’re exhausted.