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One of the great things about being a nature lover is that your powers of observation seem to improve. While others are walking by, oblivious to the activities going on all around them, naturalists notice the creatures and the behaviors, especially if they are out of the ordinary. Such was the case on March 24, 2012, a sunny Saturday morning, when Ginger Morneau, her husband Ken, and brother Lou Baker were walking along the Ogden Point Breakwater in Victoria, BC. The breakwater is a favourite spot for locals and visitors, reaching out about a half mile from the waterfront south...

Obama fundraises at BET chair’s homeBy LEIGH MUNSIL | 4/27/12 8:44 PM EDT President Barack Obama attended a fundraiser Friday night at the home of Debra Lee, chairwoman and CEO of BET. About 40 people attended the $40,000-a-plate dinner in D.C.’s Woodley Park neighborhood. During his remarks, the president gave a nod to some of the acrimony toward Washington among the American people. "[T]hings are tough, and they've grown cynical, and they see the mess that goes on in Washington and there's a temptation at a certain point to just say, 'Oh, a plague on both their houses; nothing is...

http://youtu.be/L_q9ns8LVVs Just a video but seriously funny!!

What did Velociraptor have for dinner? Raptor skeleton discovered with bones in its gut If you lie awake at night wondering Velociraptor's favorite food was (and whether it tastes much like human flesh), you're in luck. For the first time, a Velociraptor skeleton has been observed with its last supper still filling its guts, and this little guy feasted on long-dead pterosaur. Paleontologist David Hone has published a new paper describing his findings in Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, but for those who don't want to breach the paywall, he's also explaining them on his blog. This especially well preserved specimen was...

'My Dinner With Andre' Movie Review: One Of A Kind For Good Reason

A free meal at school for breakfast, lunch — and dinner? About 450 city students have been eating supper in school cafeterias as part of a government-funded meal program that may expand in Hartford and also to other Connecticut school systems this year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture gives schools about $2.99 per dinner to serve students in after-school activities that involve academics.

There will definitely be a lot of gobbling when this turkey lands on the table... because it weighs an incredible four stone (56lb) and is set to feed 50. Weighing as much as an eight-year-old child, the jumbo Stag Turkey is 2ft wide and has been reared at Carr House Farm, in Ottingham, East Yorkshire. The super birds are so large, they will not fit in a conventional oven and are normally destined for large catering kitchens in hotels and restaurants. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2077587/This-bird-lot-stuffing-Farmer-rears-giant-FOUR-STONE-turkey--feed-50.html#ixzz1hVh8wEbm

For the low, low price of $2,500, you can have dinner cooked for you by Weather Underground agitators and terrorists Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn. Bidders at 32Auctions.com are invited to, “Enjoy an unforgettable and scintillating dinner for a party of six cooked by veteran activists and educators Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn. Fascinating conversation over a meal,” the website promises, “is the agenda for this special evening.” In the late 1960s and early 1970s, both Ayers and Dohrn were leaders of the violent, communist organization Weather Underground — a splinter group from the radical Students for a Democratic Society,...

(snip) Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said the dinner was scheduled long before POLITICO reported about the sexual harassment allegations that have since rocked Cain's campaign. "I never met Herman Cain, I'm going to meet him tonight at dinner," said Graham, who is expecting the Cain controversy to die down. "He's going to meet some people in town. I think people are intrigued by him." (snip)

The only surprise in this poll is that he didn’t win it by 50 points. If the campaign was a contest of pure charm, the rest of the field would have already packed up and gone home.I wonder which publication will be the first to try to spin this counterintuitively as proof of conservative racism. The “guess who’s coming to dinner� jokes are already flying on Twitter so the headline comes ready-made. Don’t let us down, New York Times. According to the Clarus poll released Tuesday, 29% of self-described registered Republicans say they would like to dine with Cain, the...

Here is the free entry link: click here to enter without contributing Here is the text of the email: Friend I'm writing to invite you to dinner. If that sounds familiar, it's because we've done this before. I've asked the campaign to organize small, five-person dinners with supporters like you as a regular thing. These dinners are important to me. Not just because they help me stay connected to supporters like you who are doing the hard work of building this campaign, but because they set us apart. No matter what our opponents do over the next 14 months, we...

There are still dinner tickets available but going fast. Presidential candidates will be at free rally next day, Saturday. Napa wine tasting and all that stuff.

Missourians for Conservative Values PAC(MCVPAC) is hosting a dinner to roast (and toast) Chris Stigall, former host of The Morning Show on 710KCMO. The event will be held at Tiffany greens Golf Club (near KCI airport) on July 30, 2011, 5:30 PM. Stigall left Kansas City for Philadelphia where he continues his show on WPHT. MCVPAC is bringing Stigall back to Kansas City for one night only when his friends (many known to listeners of his show) will get a chance to "go at him" ... then he gets to return the honor. Roasters will include political strategist Jeff Roe;...

Sign up for free raffle for dinner with Barrak Obama!

Obama and Seth Meyers headlined

At Harlem Dinner, A Few Disaffected Donors Come Back to ObamaBy Reid Pillifant March 30, 2011 | 7:28 p.m President Obama is making progress. According to two sources who attended the "purposefully small" D.N.C. dinner at the Red Rooster in Harlem last night, a few of those much-discussed, dissident donors were among the 50 attendees who paid $30,800 to enjoy short ribs and cornbread, and chat amiably with the president. "There were people there who in the past have expressed frustrations, and one person who said, 'You know, I'm not going to support him for re-election,'" said one attendee. "Well,...

Freshman Rep. Ben Quayle (R-AZ), son of the former Vice President, makes jokes about Weiner, Spitzer, Newt Gingrich, Pawlenty, Dick Cheney, Biden, Obama and other high power politicians.

Your morning fashion and beauty report: Michelle Obama's Alexander McQueen gown might not have been politically correct Oscar de la Renta is fretting over the red and black Alexander McQueen gown Michelle Obama wore to this week's state dinner for People's Republic of China President Hu Jintao. Not that the frock by McQueen creative director Sarah Burton wasn't lovely. But it should have been made by an American or Chinese designer, not a Brit, de la Renta says. Who knew fashion was so political? [WWD]

Obama, Hu toast 'strategic mutual trust' at state dinnerBy Christina Wilkie - 01/19/11 10:30 PM ET President Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao toasted U.S. and Chinese collaboration and mutual interests on Wednesday night at a festive state dinner for 225 guests at the White House. Their toasts marked the high point of an evening notable for its strict adherence to the protocol and symbolism valued in Chinese culture, but which, at the same time, managed to fulfill the Chinese delegation's request for a thoroughly American dinner party. Guests dined on a meal of pear salad, lobster, ribeye steak and...

Obama's White House State Dinner to boast 'Who's Who' list including Jackie Chan, Barbra StreisandBy Thomas M. Defrank DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF Wednesday, January 19th 2011, 8:08 PM WASHINGTON - Chinese President Hu Jintao scored the full-hoopla treatment at the White House on Wednesday, a tribute to his country's growing global clout. President Obama rolled out the literal red carpet for a critical if uncertain strategic partner, not to mention one of America's largest bondholders. A full pomp-and-circumstance arrival ceremony on the South Lawn launched a day of talks capped by a rarity in the Obama years - a...

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama hosts a private dinner Tuesday evening for Chinese President Hu Jintao (hoo jihn-tow) at the White House.They'll eat in the Old Family Dining Room roughly 24 hours before an official, black-tie White House state dinner. This is probably Hu's last trip to Washington as China's president.Before this evening's private dinner, Obama sits down in the Oval Office with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Robert Gates. The earlier part of the president's day will be taken up by briefings and meetings with advisers.

"I thought it was a horse and carriage," said Wypyszinski. "That was the kind of noise that I heard." By the time he turned around, the two fuzzy brown images were racing quickly toward him. Wypyszinski pulled out his camera quickly, thinking he was going to catch two moose racing down the highway. He quickly learned he was mistaken. "I thought I was having a hallucination or something," said Wypyszinski. "I couldn't believe what that buffalo looked like."

$7,500 Per Person for **Dinner With Obama (**Dinner With Obama Not Included) By Doug Powers • October 26, 2010 09:14 AM **Written by Doug Powers Preparing to host a dinner for the President of the United States is a huge undertaking, as one wealthy Rhode Island woman discovered when she decided to host a $7,500 a seat DCCC fundraising dinner featuring Barack Obama. In the days leading up to last night’s fundraising dinner, the Providence Journal outlined what was involved in serving the president: When President Obama sits down to dinner on Monday night in Providence, Rhode Island fruit and...

A two-term Minnesota state senator facing a Republican primary challenger has confirmed reports that he had dinner with a gay adult film star. Sen. Paul Koering (KOHR'-ing) confirmed the meeting to the Brainerd Dispatch after several websites reported on it. The newspaper says Koering had dinner with Brandon Wilde at a Brainerd restaurant on Sunday. Wilde is described as a gay porn star in his Twitter profile and posted messages about the date on Twitter. Wilde did not immediately respond to a message sent through his Facebook account. Koering represents a conservative north-central Minnesota district that includes the cities of...

You know the basics. The unemployment rate is 9.9 percent. Jobs are still being lost. Worries about the global economy are causing breathtaking volatility on Wall Street. And millions of Americans who still have jobs are worrying more than ever about the safety of their retirement savings. What you may not know is that, during this moment of terrible economic anxiety, the Obama White House found the time -- and the money -- to turn itself, at least for a night, into a showcase of glitzy extravagance. On May 19, the White House held a state dinner for Mexican President...

Mexican President Felipe Calderon came to the United States, criticized us in our own house, they had the pleasure of having a State dinner at the White House, courtesy of President Obama. Watch this video where President Obama calls for people to make, “…a sacrifice for the next generation”. Then, take a look at the party pictures and tell me if you think that, A) Calderon deserves a party and, B) This party looks like Obama is ready to make any sacrifices himself. He’s partying with your money, and entertaining a Mexican leader that insulted America. I hope people never...

Chief of Protocol Penavic Marshall slipped on a step in front of the president.

CHICAGO (AP) -- Will it be his pork with green tomatillo-avocado salsa, or the duck breast in red chile-apricot mole? Perhaps the bacon-flavored corn masa cakes stuffed with black beans.

On Wednesday, the Obama White House will host its second state dinner, honoring Mexican President Felipe Calderon and his wife, Margarita Zavala. It’s shaping up to be quite a different affair from the now-infamous first state dinner late last year. Let us count the ways. First, new social secretary Julianna Smoot is helming this event, and she’s as discreet as Desiree Rogers was flamboyant. Consequently, the dinner is going to be much more intimate than the 400-guest party that honored India last fall, and will bring about 200 people (including stars Eva Longoria and George Lopez) together in the executive...

As celebs including Jessica Simpson, Alec Baldwin and Jessica Alba converged in Washington D.C. Saturday night to hear President Obama show off his comedic skills at the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner, one highly politicized star was notably absent. Angelina Jolie, who recently returned from a trip to Bosnia where she met with displaced victims of the civil war there, was invited to the party but chose to skip it.Angelina Jolie turns down Obama's dinner invitationWonderwall, May 3, 2010 Related: News, Angelina Jolie By Jennifer Odell As celebs including Jessica Simpson, Alec Baldwin and Jessica Alba converged in Washington D.C....

Democrats are raffling off the opportunity to dinner privately with President Barack Obama and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Sign up at the link above, no donation necessary. Get a private sit down with the Commander in Chief. Feel free to reply with suggestions on what to ask, comments to pass along, and your thoughts on winning such a meal. Your entry into the New York City Dinner Contest is just a few clicks away!

Celebrity chef Beppe Bigazzi upsets viewers with his cat casserole

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Secret Service says another person not on the guest list was allowed into a White House state dinner for India's prime minister in November.

This Thanksgiving I took on the daunting task of making my mother-in-law’s cornbread dressing. This isn’t just ordinary dressing; this is my husband’s very favorite dish. This is “Mamma’s Dressing”. There are entire family stories surrounding this dressing. The outcome of holidays has been determined by this dressing. Forget the presents, forget the company; it was all about the dressing. No pressure.

They Party in High Style While Millions of Americans Face Hard Times!Is the White House just not good enough for the Obamas? Why else would they erect a glass "tent" on the White House lawn for what has to be one of the most expensive state dinners of all time? A large tent was erected for the State Dinner on the South Lawn of the White House November 24, 2009 in Washington, D.C. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama hosted their first State Dinner for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur of India. (Excerpt) Read...

Having friends over for dinner used to involve a minimal and fairly unremarkable to-do list: There were groceries to buy, along with flowers and a couple of bottles of semi-respectable wine. I would put out some guest towels and a collection of fancy soaps that were off limits to blood relatives, and then — voilà! — dinner was served. Preparing for a dinner party these days is far more complex, thanks to a vast and bewildering array of dietary needs that seem to have suddenly overtaken everyone I know. Complaint Box Steamed? Dish out the peeves. Send your essays —...

EXCLUSIVE: If tradition stands, the details of the guest list will be revealed only a few hours before the Obama administration's first state dinner tomorrow. The welcome for India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will be the biggest social event of the Obama White House. Already the Washington DC press corp is buzzing about the "got-to-be-there" fever.

David Cross, of Arrested Development fame, says he did it on a dare We’ve all done silly stuff on a dare, but probably not on the level of actor/author/comic/crazy guy David Cross, who says he snorted cocaine not 40 feet from President Obama at the White House Correspondents' Dinner (not, for the record, held at the White House). With cabinet secretaries, Supreme Court justices and his “fancy Hollywood actress” girlfriend Amber Tamblyn all in the house, the Arrested Development star … well, let’s hear it from him: “It’s crazy and there’s security, Secret Service is standing there,” Cross, 45, said...

A quick and easy meal for the whole family. Cheaper cuts of meat often cook well for slow cooking and saves on the family budget. Ragout can be served with mashed potato or rice.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A true fan of former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is paying $63,500 to have dinner with her. Cathy Maples of Huntsville, Alabama, on Friday won the dinner in an Internet auction, which was a benefit for a charity that aids wounded veterans. Maples says she fully supports the military and the men and women fighting for this nation. Maples, who owns a defense contracting company, also says she's a "big advocate" for Palin, and would love to see her as president. Palin offered the dinner as part of the charity auction on eBay for the...

The White House has released a list of some of the guests expected at tonight's Ramadan dinner hosted by President Obama. Cabinet members, members of Congress, ambassadors from around the world and many members of the Muslim community are expected to attend. Click through for the full list. CABINET Secretary Robert Gates, Department of Defense Attorney General Eric Holder, Department of Justice Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Health and Human Services DEPUTY CABINET SECRETARIES Deputy Secretary Dennis Hightower, Department of Commerce Deputy Secretary Adam Miller, Department of Education MEMBERS OF CONGRESS Congressman Andre Carson (Indiana 7th) Congressman John Conyers (Michigan 14th) Congressman...

You are invited to the Dominion Republican Women's Club 25th Anniversary dinner and silent auction with speakers: Delegate Bill Howell and Congressman Rob Wittman. When: Thursday, September 3, 6:30PM Location: Augustine Golf Club Restaurant 100 Lynnhaven Lane Stafford, VA 22554 Choice of meal is lemon chicken or beef tenderloins. Cost is $37. To pay by check, please make check payable to DRWC and send to: DRWC, P.O. Box 5531, Falmouth, VA 22403. Phone: 540-373-2928 If you are unable to attend, please consider supporting our Club with a donation. Proceeds go to the candidates as well as our community projects.

ONE evening last week, almost every seat was occupied at Au Cinquième Péché, a bistro in the bustling neighborhood called the Plateau. And almost every table was sampling an appetizer plate that included a specialty of the restaurant’s French-born chef, Benoît Lenglet: a seared, rare loin, dark red in color, with a texture and taste akin to beef tenderloin. But the meat was not beef. It was seal. Across town, at Les Îles en Ville, Andrée Garcia, an owner and chef, has elevated seal from an occasional specialty to a regular feature. The most frequent preparation there, Ms. Garcia said,...

You may remember the evening of Sept. 29, 2001. On that evening, Rudy Giuliani appeared on Saturday Night Live. It was 18 days after the September 11 attacks. This appearance of the mayor of New York — who had spent almost three weeks comforting a shaken nation, mourning with families of the murdered, and leading — was widely considered a signal: We could laugh again. We needed to laugh. Heaven knows, Giuliani must have needed it as much as anyone. Laughter can be a beautiful thing, a great gift in difficult times. A way to reach those who might not...

What did you think of Obama's crack about former Vice President Dick Cheney? Thumbs up Thumbs down And 2 other questions

WASHINGTON – It was the hottest ticket in town, a black-tie dinner gathering of Washington's political and media elite but Dick Cheney couldn't make it. The former vice president was busy, President Barack Obama joked, working on his memoir "tentatively titled, How to Shoot Friends and Interrogate People."

Hail to the Chief, he's the Chief and needs hailing! Not.

# Houston Chronicle: Alberto Gonzales # Fox News: Chace Crawford, Todd Palin, Matthew Modine, Greta Van Susteren, Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, Bret Baier and Chris Wallace. # National Music Publishers’ Assn.: Kara DioGuardi # Wall Street Journal: Jason Wu # BBC: Sir Howard Stringer, Kristi Yamaguchi, Ellen Burstyn, Phil Gordon # CNN: Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore, Val Kilmer, Kyra Sedgwick, Brad Cooper, Tyra Banks, Janet Napolitano # ABC News: David and Susan Axelrod; Rahm Emanuel, White House Chief of Staff; Peter Orszag, Director, Office of Management and Budget; Valerie Jarrett, senior presidential advisor; Jackie Norris, First Lady’s Chief of Staff;...