oolong, the pancake rabbit

i saw a picture of oolong with a pancake on its head a while ago, but I had no idea that the owner had a gallery pictures with this rabbit, balancing different things (especially foods) on his head. so cute! not surprised that the owner of oolong is japanese.

the pictures are really cute, but apparently the owner started getting harassing emails (especially from america) that accused him of animal abuse. an excerpt from the owner's message on his site, below:

"Some visitors have written me e-mails, accusing me of
being cruel to my rabbit and that I am abusing my pet. This was never my
intention when I included numerous links to photographs, showing Oolong's
unique ability to hold objects on his head. This is not a site to mock
rabbits, or demonstrate animal abuse. I'm sure you understand it if you see
whole my site.

Oolong is so calm and patient -- he never gets angry when I take pictures of
him. When I put various objects on his head, he stays still for a minute.
This is just a result of an intimate relationship between me and Oolong.
The main theme of my site is not to show these 'headperformance' links,
and it's not my hope to propagandize nothing but the strangeness of his
headperformance over the world. Oolong's headperformance-- many foreigners
seem to feel it 'crazy', but Japanese people feel it just cute and funny.
It is the difference of international feeling."

sadly, oolong has since passed, but has been replaced with yuebing, who has a smaller head for balancing but still does. ;) pics of him are below, enjoy!

  

yuebing ("mooncake") - oolong's replacement
  

yuebing in the snow
  

yuebing's site with more cute pictures.
oolong's tribute site, made by a fan. the original site doesn't really have english on it, but there is a link to the original site from this link.

chihuly

i saw this and i knew i had to blog about it~ i can't remember when it was that i first ran across the artistry of dale chihuly, an artist who works with glass in such amazing proportions, it's really mind blowing. i can browse through his website for hours, looking at the different things he's done with glass. aside from the famous ceiling in the bellagio hotel lobby in las vegas, i've seen only a few of his works (including a few of his art pieces in a hole-in-the-wall thai restaurant in san diego, where the owner had some connection with him) up close, I'm being reminded of how I would love to see his art pieces in person.

  

http://www.chihuly.com

chihuly was called to design the sets for a ballet for oregon ballet theater.

  

i always remember this lap pool when i think of chihuly. my favorite image is the one on the bottom left. genius insanity.

  

chihuly and his fascination with blending his artwork in the middle of nature.

  

  

dale chihuly light installations over the beautiful canals of venice

  

andy veyette

 

i can't believe i used to dance with him - he was about 10 years old, this little kid whom all the girls babied. he's all grown up! he's been getting really good reviews, so I'm hoping he'll get promoted soon. i'm very proud of him!!

picture: andy veyette partnering his girlfriend, megan fairchild, as cavalier and sugar plum fairy in the nutcracker.

klutz

i am such a klutz, especially when things get busy. i had 1.5 hrs of free time during the day today to do labwork AND do my homework (ahem. i know i'm such a procrastinator. but i defend it because it's efficient). and i accomplished 1) missing a meeting with a med school dean, and 2) showing my prof the wrong slides b/c I didn't read them correctly (after I got his hopes up, I thought I made this earthshattering discovery). whoops. kind of embarrassing.

i soothed my spirits today by watching my favorite tv shows. :) i turned in a lot of homework today so it was a nice evening off. project runway is so good! it was a fun episode today - they had to design an ice skating dress for sasha cohen, one of my favorite skaters. I did NOT agree with the winning design at ALL, but really liked chloe's dress.

another good tv show: skating with celebrities! i'm very impressed with how good the celebrities are, it's so obvious a lot of them have skated before because their spins are amazing.

mom: "you know that actress, she plays the older sister in pride and prejudice"
me: "which pride and prejudice are you talking about?"
mom: "the british one"
me: "they're all british"

 
john zimmerman, now in skating with celebrities.
 

vive las vegas

i lost $20 so quickly, in about 7 minutes. it takes luck to be that unlucky, i think. it was fun tho. :) i wanted to go on the star wars themed slots, but they were popular. they even have penny slots!! i wonder how much you can win on those, is jackpot something like $40?

vegas was lovely - a city where you can see about five cities in one - paris, new york (i saw the chrysler building coming out of the top of luxor hotel that's shaped like an egyptian pyramid), venice, a villa in tuscany, rio de janeiro, new orleans...) got to go on the strip for a few hours, but spent most of the weekend in the car, or trying to read some papers for school (ick). i really don't like systems neuroscience, i just don't get it. don't we know enough about it? :D haha class is also at 9 am in the morning three times a week, all the way across the other side of the freeway. blah. i miss molecular neuroscience.

 
they change the indoor gardens in bellagio hotel, every month or so, to match the seasons and the holidays. this time it was themed for chinese new year's - it was amazing. the lighting was lovely in here too, great for pictures.
 

 
i cut off the top of eiffel tower, oops. it was so windy but it was a beautifully clear day.
 

 
the world's largest chocolate fountain, in bellagio hotel. the bottom half (left), and top half (right). it smelled heavenly - it's 27 feet high, and the chocolate (white, dark, and medium) is kept flowing at 125 degrees Fahrenheit. just wanted to reach in and...
 

stacy london on what not to wear is wearing a sweater i own! does that mean that i'm devilishly fashionable? muhaha

wow, just drove 10 hours to vegas... my grandma is sick with shingles and couldn't move out of bed, so we came to help her eat and take care of her. she looks so sick, her eye is swollen shut and she has that characteristic dermatomal rash (the first time i've really seen it). at least it's a three day weekend, I haven't been in vegas for a long time but it doesn't look like we'll be on the Strip this weekend. i brought two dvd's and lots of reading to do. i wish i brought my skates - there's an ice rink about half a mile from my grandma's house.

i had forgotten just how crazy the 15 N (the only road into vegas) can be. people driving an average of 90 mph, it's insane, on a narrow two lane road that you share with semis. it's like being in a video game.

happy new year's!

spent it fairly quietly, went to church and hung out at home with family. tried to break into lab (not sure why my card key isn't working, again! i think it's a hint that i shouldn't go to lab. ;) hopefully my cells won't overgrow and commit suicide) in this stormy weather. i can't wait until it stops raining.

i discovered the men's section at banana republic. ooh, the sales... i never thought it's fair how much more expensive women's clothing is. and the cheap cashmere that's not form fitting but extremely comfortable... fell in love with this sweater for a future boyfriend of mine. teehee. it was luxurious cashmere. i love the vintage look of these tees as well.

kinda sad how the holiday season is ending as well. safeway was having a 50% sale on all holiday items, so i bought egg nog, crackers and cheese spread, and unfiltered apple cider (only $3) for hot mulled apple cider. it's simmering on the stove here, i highly recommend ina garten's recipe (from barefoot contessa). here tis: (italics are my suggestions)

• 16 cups pure apple juice or fresh apple cider
  
• 4 (2-inch) cinnamon sticks
  
• 2 oranges, peels and juice (can possibly eliminate some of the peels, it adds a sort of bite to it. be sure not to get the white part of the peel but mostly the orange. i thought oranges would actually make it more sour, but it adds a delightful sweetness and depth to the cider.)
  
• 8 whole cloves (add more for more of that mulled spicy fragrance)
  
• 6 star anise (a bit hard to find, i found mine at dean and deluca in napa valley, but you can taste the licorice note in the cider)
  

Combine in a saucepan. Heat, simmer for 10-15 min, and serve in mugs. You can also add a dash of dark rum. ;) I left mine to simmer for a bit longer mostly to make the house smell like mulled spices. yum!