Robert McAngus
Jul 27, 2017 · 7 min read

The Daily Tulip — International News From Around The World

Thursday 27th July 2017

Good Morning Gentle Reader…. Bella and I went to the top of the hill this morning, up by the Hermitage, and watched the meteors streak across the heavens.. we must have seen 10 in the brief time were there… I know all the facts behind what they are, bits of ice, dust, rock etc., that burn up when they enter the Earth’s atmosphere, but I love to see them, it gives me my Spielberg moment to start the day…. so me and my faithful black companion set off back to the house, to write to you and drink coffee and water…The first for me the second for her and a couple of Rice cookies which we will share,

BRITISH MOVERS FIND MASSIVE AUSTRALIAN SPIDER IN FAMILY’S BELONGINGS…. Animal rescuers in Britain said a team of movers unloading a family’s shipping container captured an unusual stowaway — a massive huntsman spider from Australia. The RSPCA said movers unloading the shipping container of family belongings in Merstham, England, discovered the large spider after it apparently spent three months being transported the more than 10,000 miles from Brisbane, Australia. Dave Aldridge of Britannia Movers International told the BBC he captured the “handsome critter” after it startled one of his colleagues.
“I had three guys unloading, one ran about two miles up the road when he first saw it,” Aldridge said. “He’s a handsome, furry guy. I caught him in a lunch box and took him home for my six-year-old son to see while waiting for the RSPCA to pick him up.”
RSPCA animal collection officer Annie Janes retrieved the spider from Aldridge.
“This huntsman spider is quite the traveler, surviving a journey of over 10,000 miles inside the removal container,” Janes said.
“From the empty locust shells found in the container it seems he has thankfully been able to find food during that length of time, but it’s a long time to go without water, and he’s lucky he didn’t get squished by any boxes or furniture. When I arrived he had been caught in a box and I carefully put a few drops of water down which he drank for some time, before confining him in a secure carrier. I carefully confined him and transported him to the Heathrow Animal Reception in Hounslow, who will arrange for him to be rehomed to a specialist. He was about the size of my two hands put together, roughly [7 inches], so quite something to look at! Thankfully I wasn’t apprehensive, in my job I have to rescue all sorts of animals so I have had to learn to get used to dealing with spiders.” Janes said huntsman spiders “are not venomous but they can give a nasty bite.”

CROCODILE DRAGS ENTIRE COW WHILE SWIMMING IN AUSTRALIAN RIVER…. A group of anglers using a drone to spot fish in Australia captured video of a massive crocodile dragging an entire cow through a river. The video, posted to YouTube by user Trip In A Van, shows a crocodile — estimated to be between 16 and 20 feet long — swimming in a river in Western Australia’s Kimberly region Friday while carrying a fully-grown cow in its jaws. “On a day out fishing for Barramundi in The Kimberley, Western Australia we spotted this massive crocodile drag a cow down the river bank,”the filmer wrote. “We followed him with the drone as it dragged the cow down river. It eventually got fed up with the drone buzzing over him and tried to pull the cow underwater.” The angler described the scene as the “pure awesomeness of nature.” https://youtu.be/7thN5IgvHr4

MAN SKIRTS ‘NO DOGS’ POLICY BY BRINGING PET SHEEP INTO STORE…. A shopper who turned heads at a Northern Ireland grocery store by bringing his leashed pet sheep inside said he wasn’t violating the store’s “no dogs” policy. The man drew a crowd of astonished onlookers at the Lidl store in Portrush when he took his sheep, which was wearing a leash, for a stroll through the aisles.
Witnesses said the man was escorted out of the store by employees. John Junk, who was shopping with his family at the time of the incident, said the man wasn’t worried about store policy. “As a female Lidl employee headed toward him, my wife and daughter warned the shepherd that there may be trouble ahead. He laughed and quipped: ‘It said no dogs, so I’ll be dead‐on love,’” Junk told the Belfast Telegraph. “After he’d been asked to leave we spoke to the urban shepherd outside. He claimed that his charge was one of triplets, and he’d had her from she was three days old, and had saved her from the abattoir,” Junk said. “The lad seemed to have a genuine affection for the animal, and despite having some drink taken, it didn’t look like the animal was in any need of rescue.”
Police said the sheep’s owner was later arrested on charges of common assault and disorderly behavior stemming from what was described as an altercation at a supermarket. It was unclear whether the alleged incident was at the same store, or whether the sheep was present.

COLORADO VET SOOTHES DOG BY SINGING BEFORE SURGERY…. A veterinarian in Clorado used his musical talents to help soothe a nervous pet being prepared for surgery. Fox Hollow Animal Hospital shared video of Dr. Ross Henderson playing guitar and serenading a dog named Ruby with Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love” to calm her nerves before she underwent surgery.
“Sometimes your patient just needs you to go the extra mile to make them feel comfortable when they’re here for the day to have surgery,” the animal hospital wrote. “Dr. Ross has mastered the technique and sweet Ruby was so thankful for that.”
The video, which has been viewed more than 460,000 times, features Henderson performing the song while the 6-month-old puppy rests peacefully on his leg. Henderson, 28, told ABC News he has been singing to animals at the hospital for several months to help make their stay more pleasant. “Dogs spend 99 percent of their time at home and when they come into the hospital, we try to give them as pleasant an experience as possible,” he said. “I think that’s why attention and music, those two pieced together, causes a little bit of familiarity to them. It’s the best part when they start to settle down and say, ‘OK, I can relax now.’” https://www.facebook.com/foxhollowvet/videos/1602892713084801/

5-YEAR-OLD BRITISH GIRL FINED FOR RUNNING LEMONADE STAND…. A father in England said his daughter was left in tears after being fined for setting up a lemonade stand. Andre Spicer was initially excited at his 5-year-old daughter’s request to sell lemonade outside their home, but said he “would have thought twice” if he were aware about the 150-pound ($194) fine that would eventually come their way. “The lemonade quickly disappeared and her little money tin filled up. A happy scene,” he wrote in the Telegraph. “And then, after about 30 minutes, four local council enforcement officers stormed up to her little table.” The officers read Spicer a legal statement explaining he would be fined for operating the lemonade stand without a trading permit and said the fine would only be 90 pounds ($116) if paid quickly. His daughter quickly burst into tears and asked “have I done a bad thing?” “She was very upset and had to watch Brave a few times to calm down,” Spicer told The Guardian. Spicer felt the difference between his daughter’s stand and an unlicensed street trader should have been obvious and sent a tweet to the Tower Hamlets council stating he “realized there were broader issues at stake, including how society treats children.” Tower Hamlets eventually dropped the fine and a council representative offered Spicer and his daughter an apology. “We are very sorry that this has happened. We expect our enforcement officers to show common sense, and to use their powers sensibly. This clearly did not happen,” the representative said. “The fine will be canceled immediately and we have contacted Professor Spicer and his daughter to apologize”

Well Gentle Reader I hope you enjoyed our look at the news from around the world this, Thursday morning… …

Our Tulips today are like an old “Who” song “I can see for miles and miles and miles….”

A Sincere Thank You for your company and Thank You for your likes and comments I love them and always try to reply, so please keep them coming, it’s always good fun, As is my custom, I will go and get myself another mug of “Colombian” Coffee and wish you a safe Thursday 27th July 2017 from my home on the southern coast of Spain, where the blue waters of the Alboran Sea washes the coast of Africa and Europe and the smell of the night blooming Jasmine and Honeysuckle fills the air…and a crazy old guy and his dog Bella go out for a walk at 4:00 am…on the streets of Estepona…

All good stuff….But remember it’s a dangerous world we live in

Be safe out there…

Robert McAngus

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