Heat ~ Picture of the Day ~ Ravens ~ Farmer's Dressing ~ National Take Your Dog To Work Day

Good 53º clear sunny morning. 

Yesterday we started off clear and sunny and stayed that way. We topped at 98º. Predicted hotter today. :o(

Picture of the Day .... !

Interesting about Ravens.......

Ravens are the largest perching bird in Europe, that now only occupy the rural parts of their former range here. They prefer the upland moorlands and coastal cliffs of Europe, northern Africa, Asia and North America. Although they have a wide and varied diet, it's carrion on which they most rely. These giants of the crow family are known to be super intelligent, but they are also playful, performing mid-air acrobatics and playing games that involve passing stones to one another.

Ravens pair off for life and defend their territory from other ravens, but if you see lots of ravens together this is known as an ‘unkindness’.

Common ravens have coexisted with humans for thousands of years and in some areas have been so numerous that people have regarded them as pests. Part of their success as a species is due to their omnivorous diet: they are extremely versatile and opportunistic in finding sources of nutrition, feeding on carrion, insects, cereal grains, berries, fruit, small animals, nesting birds, and food waste.

The common raven evolved in the Old World and crossed the Bering land bridge into North America. Recent genetic studies, which examined the DNA of common ravens from across the world, have determined that the birds fall into at least two clades (a group of biological species that includes all descendants of one common ancestor) a California clade, found only in the southwestern United States, and a Holarctic clade, found across the rest of the Northern Hemisphere. Birds from both clades look alike, but the groups are genetically distinct and began to diverge about two million years ago.

A mature common raven ranges between 21" and 26" long, with a wingspan of 45–51". Recorded weights range from 1.5 to 4.4 lb, thus making the common raven one of the heaviest passerines (of or relating to the largest order ..Passeriformes.. of birds which includes over half of all living birds and consists chiefly of altricial songbirds of perching habits). Birds from colder regions such as the Himalayas and Greenland are generally larger with slightly larger bills, while those from warmer regions are smaller with proportionally smaller bills. Representative of the size variation in the species, ravens from California weighed an average of 1.728 lb, those from Alaska weighed an average of 2.502 lb and those from Nova Scotia weighed an average of 2.71 lb.

Common ravens usually travel in mated pairs, although young birds may form flocks. Relationships between common ravens are often quarrelsome, yet they demonstrate considerable devotion to their families.

Common ravens have been observed calling wolves to the site of dead animals. The wolves open the carcass, leaving the scraps more accessible to the birds. They watch where other common ravens bury their food and remember the locations of each other's food caches, so they can steal from them. This type of theft occurs so regularly that common ravens will fly extra distances from a food source to find better hiding places for food. They have also been observed pretending to make a cache without actually depositing the food, presumably to confuse onlookers.

Common ravens are known to steal and cache shiny objects such as pebbles, pieces of metal, and golf balls. One theory is that they hoard shiny objects to impress other ravens. Other research indicates that juveniles are deeply curious about all new things, and that common ravens retain an attraction to bright, round objects based on their similarity to bird eggs. Mature birds lose their intense interest in the unusual, and become highly neophobic (a tendency to dislike anything new; fear of novelty) .

From Mr. Food

Our Farmer's Dressing is a creamy, easy-to-make homemade recipe that is sure to take your salad to the next level. Filled with delicious cucumbers and a simple spice blend, our Farmer's Dressing will be a delight to drizzle over your salad, whether it's at the potluck or around the dinner table.

 

• 1 cucumber, cut into small chunks
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons chopped onion
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1. In a food processor or blender, combine all ingredients; blend on medium-high speed until smooth.
    
2. Cover and chill at least 1 hour or until ready to serve.

***No cucumbers? No problem! Just substitute a medium zucchini...the results are just as good.

Historically this date.....

1918 – World War I, Western Front: Battle for Belleau Wood – Allied Forces under John J. Pershing and James Harbord defeat Imperial German Forces under Wilhelm, German Crown Prince.

1934 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Federal Credit Union Act, which establishes credit unions.

1974 – The Universal Product Code is scanned for the first time to sell a package of Wrigley's chewing gum at the Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio

1975 – Two FBI agents and a member of the American Indian Movement are killed in a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota; Leonard Peltier is later convicted of the murders in a controversial trial.

2012 – The Waldo Canyon Fire descends into the Mountain Shadows neighborhood in Colorado Springs burning 347 homes in a matter of hours and killing two people.

And births this date include.....

1898 – Chesty Puller, American military officer (d. 1971)

     USMC!!!! Most decorated Marine ever! 

1922 – Eleanor Parker, American actress (d. 2013)

1970 – Chris O'Donnell, American actor

1974 – Derek Jeter, American baseball player

All I know. Nuff said. Happy Friday. Ciao.

xo Sue Mom Bobo

Every year employees across the country bring their dogs to work the Friday after Father’s Day. It’s National Take Your Dog to Work Day.

A celebration of the companionship between canine and human, National Take Your Dog to Work Day hopes to inspire others to adopt from shelters and humane societies. Those in the pet supply business may find this to be an everyday occurrence. With pets being central to their business platform, employees bring their dogs to work frequently. Companies such as Petco, Petsmart, Mars Petcare, Trupanion and Nestle Purina Petcare all have pet-friendly policies. So, every day is Take Your Dog to Work Day at these companies.

However, not only pet companies are dog friendly these days. Tech and marketing businesses seem to be next in line for offering this perk to employees. Amazon, Airbnb, Procore Technologies, Vungle, and Radio Systems Corporation are just a few of the companies across the nation supporting pet-friendly policies.

Are there benefits to having a dog by your side all day? As any business knows, policies like these come with pros and cons.

Pros of Pet-Friendly Policies

1. Perhaps the number one benefit of dogs at work is the reduced stress for most employees. Studies have shown pets in the workplace not only reduce stress but also increase productivity.
2. Which brings us to the second benefit. Employees who take breaks to care for their dog tend to be more productive than those who plow through their work. They come back to their desk refreshed and energized, ready to refocus.
3. Employees are healthier and so are their dogs because both are getting more physical activity.
4. The pet also gets more social interaction, not only from the dog owner but from the entire office.
5. Overall, dogs bring a morale boost to the entire office. Not very many can resist the affection of a loveable pup.
6. Pet-friendly businesses retain their employees longer and are more attractive to future employees.

Cons of Pet-Friendly Policies

1. The job satisfaction of employees with allergies or phobias are greatly affected.
2. Risk of injury to employees or other dogs increase the legal risk.
3. Dogs that are not well-trained lead to distractions in the office.
4. What do potential clients think? If dogs on the premises continually turn away dollars, the pros may not matter.

While not all businesses can participate in #TakeYourDogToWorkDay, those who can have a terrific opportunity to see if a pet-friendly policy would work. It also provides some insight into your employees’ desire for this type of policy.

HOW TO OBSERVE

Host an event at your place of business. To find participating employers and to download a toolkit visit Pet Sitters International. Share your pet-friendly workplace experiences by using #TakeYourDogToWorkDay or #TYDTWD on social media.

NATIONAL TAKE YOUR DOG TO WORK DAY HISTORY

The celebration originated in the United Kingdom in 1996. Then in 1999, Pet Sitters International founded the first day in the United States.