Doggies

Pinterest is a fantastic source of photos of just about everything. Many of the pins are of dogs.

I've never been able to resist a picture of a cute dog. In fact, I probably pin more images of dogs than anything else. Most of them are on my Cute Animals board. Some of them are on Animal Welfare, and a few are even at Posters and Quotes.

I can't even begin to name all the terrific people who pin and repin images of dogs. Here are just a few recommendations:

Animal Rescues
Dogster & Catster
Donna Renkel
FeeFee, RN
WebVet

Cakes

Photos of cakes are among the most common images I see on Pinterest. Many of them link back to the recipe or decorating instructions, while others are simply beautiful images that can be used as decorating inspiration--or a good reason to rush out to the bakery.

Cake decorators are incredibly talented. On Pinterest alone, I've seen cakes made to look like such things as asparagus, castles, and Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors. I've also seen cakes with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Nightmare Before Christmas, steampunk, and zombie themes, to name just a few. This is in addition to the many photos of gorgeous wedding cakes with more traditional themes. I shouldn't leave out the cupcakes: teacups, babies, owls, and so much more!

For beautiful images of cakes, I recommend following Lenita's cakes pinboard and Stacie Vaughan's Yummy Desserts board. I've been pinning cakes and other baked goods on Cool Creations.

Bats

Look at those faces! Bats, including these white-winged vampire bats, are the subject of many myths and misconceptions that unjustly give them a bad reputation. Here are a few facts about bats:

1. Despite the phrase blind as a bat, bats aren't blind at all. Many species do have small eyes, but they can see.

2. Bats are mammals belonging to the order Chiroptera, which means "hand-wing." They are not rodents.

3. Bats don't attack people. They see humans as predators and therefore avoid them.

4. Vampire bats don't suck blood. They do, however, bite a sleeping animal and then lick its blood. This doesn't harm the animal at all.

5. Some species are in danger of becoming extinct due to White Nose Syndrome, which causes white fungus to grow on their noses and wings during hibernation.

6. Bats are critical to ecosystems worldwide. Organizations such as Bat Conservation International, Bat World Sanctuary, and the Organization for Bat Conservation help bats all over the world.

Since I like bats, I enjoy pinning images of them on Pinterest. Whenever I see one, I have to repin it or at least "like" it so that I can pin it later.

I've also gone out and found a few good bat photos that I didn't see there. I have one of a baby bat that's absolutely adorable.

I probably pin most bat photos on my Nature's Beauty pinboard, but the baby bat was an obvious choice for Cute Animals.

Doing a search of Pinterest, I found that there are many images of bat cupcakes and crafts for Halloween.

Aurora

Displays of aurora have always fascinated me, which is why I was happy to discover that there are so many images of them on Pinterest. Here are a few facts about these colorful lights in the sky:

1. The term aurora borealis refers to the Northern Lights. It is used when the display is in the northern hemisphere.

2. When these colorful lights are visible in the southern hemisphere (Southern Lights), they're known as aurora australis.

3. The most common colors in aurora displays are pink and pale green.

4. Aurora is Latin for dawn. These beautiful light displays were named for Aurora, the goddess of the dawn.

5. Displays of aurora have been the subject of many legends and superstitions, including the belief that they were spirits.

6. Aurora occurs when electrically charged particles from the sun enter the earth's atmosphere.

I've been pinning and repinning these images on my Nature's Beauty board. I get many of them from Dan Ashbach, who has a pinboard dedicated to them.

For more information about the lights, visit the Northern Lights Space and Science Centre.

Image: Aurora borealis above Bear Lake, Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. Credit: Senior Airman Joshua Strang, USAF.

Malfunctioning Followers Gadget

I've been having trouble with the followers gadget on one of my blogs, Help Michigan Pets, for months now.

I can't see the followers most of the time; sometimes they briefly show up as it loads, and then they disappear, leaving an empty box where the avatars should be. They show up just fine in the preview (when I'm fiddling with the design), but as soon as I get out of the preview mode, they're gone. So far, nothing I've tried has fixed it.

Some people have reported that their followers gadgets indicate that they don't have any followers yet, but that's a different problem.

One thing I've read is that it has to do with my computer settings. If that were the case, all my blogs would be affected.

Maybe I just need a new template. I'd really like to keep the one I have, but it's looking as if I have no choice. Then again, I have no idea whether that would even fix the problem.

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Just a few hours after this post was published, the followers gadget started acting up on this blog too! It comes and goes. This is really discouraging.

Down to the Wire: Blogging from A to Z

If you're interested in joining in on this year's Blogging from A to Z Challenge but haven't signed up yet, there's still time. You'll have until Monday night (April 2).

Check Arlee Bird's latest post for a terrific last-minute check list to help you prepare. There's even a cool countdown clock on the right sidebar.

As for my own preparations, for the last few days, I've been devoting most of my online time to getting ready for the challenge. While I don't write the final drafts in advance, I do as much as I can beforehand.

As I previously announced, three of my blogs are participating. The info is here.

Have fun with the challenge, and I hope you enjoy my posts.

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2012

In my last post, I wrote about the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge that kicks off on April 1. At that point, I hadn't yet decided which of my blogs would be participating. Now I know.

For this year's Blogging from A to Z April Challenge, I'll be posting on three blogs every day.

Here are the themes for each blog during this challenge:

Ellie's Blank Book (this blog) - Pinterest
Ellie's Couch - music videos
Help Michigan Pets - animal welfare in Michigan

If you're interested in participating in this fun blog hop, be sure to check out the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge website.

The Blogging from A to Z April Challenge is the brainchild of Arlee Bird, who has several co-hosts this year. Here is a list of the official team members:

Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Coming Down The Mountain (KarenG)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Author Elizabeth Mueller (Elizabeth Mueller)
Pearson Report (Jenny Pearson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)

Getting Ready for the A to Z Challenge

Last year, I participated in the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge. Ellie's Blank Book didn't exist at the time, but now that it does, I want to use it for this year's challenge. After all, I created it mainly for blog fests and challenges.

Essentially, Blogging from A to Z involves posting a topic for every letter in alphabetical order during the month of April. Normally, posts are Mondays through Saturdays, with Sundays off; this year, since April begins on a Sunday, the "A" post will be that day.

I haven't actually registered yet; before I do, I want to know exactly which of my blogs are going to be involved (besides this one). I'm hoping to pin that down this week so that I can go ahead and sign up.

To prepare for this, I've been making lists of potential topics beginning with each letter of the alphabet. Each participating blog will adhere to a theme chosen for that blog. Themes aren't required, but they can be helpful.

I'll post more when I have the rest of the details worked out.