CAT'S WORLD

General Information	Cats have vertebrates and they are mammals. The females give birth to live kittens. For cats you need a box or a basket lined with newspaper, a litter tray and a blanket as a cat bed.
Babies	A cat's babies are called kittens.
Appearance	The cat's skeleton has about 40 more bones than ours - most of them in the tail and spine. It has a full coat of fur. The cat walks on its toes. It can easily jump upwards to five times its own height but is less efficient jumping down. More information: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/97/cats
Behaviour	Cats are very independent animals. They are intelligent and beautiful.. They like warmth, comfort and regular meals. The cat cannot see as much colour as we do but they can react to any movement. The smell of food is more important to them than its taste. However, they are very conscious of stale food and may refuse a bowl that has been left down too long. The cat's hearing is very accurate.
Diet	They are carnivores-they eat meat and they are hunters. Cats have a highly developed senses of smell and taste. They like milk. Cats are very sensitive to the taste of the water. They do not usually like sweet things. A cat's tongue and teeth are very important to drink and to cut the meat they eat.
Training	The fights and games of kittenhood are practical training for adult life.
Facts	Cat sounds: Cats communicate with a variety of soft purring sounds, according to their feelings of inquiry, affection and concern : meow; miaou; miao; nyan nyan; miau-miau ... Pets'voices Did you know? The fattest cat in the world was called Himmy. He weighed 20.7 kg. Normal cats weigh about 2 kg. Famous cat lovers - http://www.catclub.net/files/frameset3.htm
Activities	A cat's body 1- Game: Drag the words over the item on the image. 2 - Print write and colour the parts of a cat's body. A Quiz about Cats Pussy-cat, Pussy-cat - Nursery Rhyme-Land Read the comics with Osborne's adventures on http://www.catclub.net/files/frameset3.htm

DOG'S WORLD

General Information	Dogs are mammals. The Female dog is called a bitch. Male dogs are dogs. A dog's house is a kennel.
Babies	A baby dog is called a puppy.
Appearance	Dogs have got a tail, four legs with paws and claws. They are usually furry. There are small and big dogs with long or short ears. There are many races of dogs.
Behaviour	Dogs are wonderful companions. They are kind, friendly, loyal and playful. Dogs are good for our health! By taking dogs for walks you can keep fit! They help disabled people. They guide the blind. They search for contraband, find lost people, and supply joy to many people's lives. The love we have for our dogs is great, and they love us back unconditionally. They can protect our houses, too. Don't leave your dog alone for long periods! They suffer from that. They don't like baths but they like the sea and the rivers to swim in.
Diet	Dogs usually need to be fed once or twice a day. They can eat a variety of foods. Most dog food is meat but you can find some vegetarian foods on the market. Dogs love large and hard bones. Small bones are dangerous for dogs.
Training	Dogs need exercise. They usually need about three walks a day. Training a dog takes patience, persistence, and love.
Facts	Queen Elizabeth loves dogs. She owns 10 corgis. They are called Smokey, Shadow, Spark, Myth, Fable, Diamond, Kelpie, Geordie, Chipper, and Blackie . They are all female. Visit the site http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/kids/html/pets.html to know about "Pets in the White House", Washington D.C., USA. Did you know? The biggest dog in the world is a St. Bernard. The tallest dog is a Great Dane. The smallest dog in the world is a Chihuahua. To know more about dogs: http://www.worldkids.net/critters/pets/dogs/dogs.htm
Activities	Dog sounds: Woof? ouha ouha? bau bau? wan wan? guau guau ? �o �o? What do the dogs say? Is it the same all over the world? Try to record and digitalize a dog's sound. E-mail it and how you write it in your own language. Describe feelings according to the sounds you have recorded. A dog's body 1- Game: Drag the words over the item on the image. 2 - Print write and colour the parts of a dog's body. Pedigree dogs. Are you a dog expert? - Matching activity A Quiz about dogs. Take care when you play with unknown dogs. Write some reasons to be careful of dogs: Read what they say: I like children but... http://www.avma.org/care4pets/safelikr.htm Enjoy yourself printing colouring and learning on "AN ANIMAL CARE ACTIVITY SECTION" http://www.avma.org/care4pets/petpouri.htm You can find games about pet care and other animals on http://www.avma.org/pubinfo/petweek97/pwgames.html

What is the origin of America's annual Thanksgiving Day?

Pilgrim William Brewster holds a Bible as the Pilgrims pray for a safe journey as they leave for America from Delft Haven, Holland, on July 22, 1620.

The Pilgrims left Plymouth, England, on September 6, 1620. Their destination? The New World. Although filled with uncertainty and peril, it offered both civil and religious liberty.

For over two months, the 102 passengers braved the harsh elements of a vast storm-tossed sea. Finally, with firm purpose and a reliance on Divine Providence, the cry of "Land!" was heard.

Arriving in Massachusetts in late November, the Pilgrims sought a suitable landing place. On December 11, just before disembarking at Plymouth Rock, they signed the "Mayflower Compact" - America's first document of civil government and the first to introduce self-government.

After a prayer service, the Pilgrims began building hasty shelters. However, unprepared for the starvation and sickness of a harsh New England winter, nearly half died before spring. Yet, persevering in prayer, and assisted by helpful Indians, they reaped a bountiful harvest the following summer.

The grateful Pilgrims then declared a three-day feast, starting on December 13, 1621, to thank God and to celebrate with their Indian friends. While this was not the first Thanksgiving in America (thanksgiving services were held in Virginia as early as 1607), it was America's first Thanksgiving Festival.

Pilgrim Edward Winslow described the Pilgrims' Thanksgiving in these words:

"Our harvest being gotten in, our Governor sent four men on fowling [bird hunting] so that we might, after a special manner, rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as... served the company almost a week... Many of the Indians [came] amongst us and... their greatest King, Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted; and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought... And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet BY THE GOODNESS OF GOD WE ARE... FAR FROM WANT."

In 1789, following a proclamation issued by President George Washington, America celebrated its first Day of Thanksgiving to God under its new constitution. That same year, the Protestant Episcopal Church, of which President Washington was a member, announced that the first Thursday in November would become its regular day for giving thanks, "unless another day be appointed by the civil authorities." Yet, despite these early national proclamations, official Thanksgiving observances usually occurred only at the State level.

Much of the credit for the adoption of a later ANNUAL national Thanksgiving Day may be attributed to Mrs. Sarah Joseph Hale, the editor of Godey's Lady's Book. For thirty years, she promoted the idea of a national Thanksgiving Day, contacting President after President until President Abraham Lincoln responded in 1863 by setting aside the last Thursday of November as a national Day of Thanksgiving. Over the next seventy-five years, Presidents followed Lincoln's precedent, annually declaring a national Thanksgiving Day. Then, in 1941, Congress permanently established the fourth Thursday of each November as a national holiday.

Lincoln's original 1863 Thanksgiving Proclamation came - spiritually speaking - at a pivotal point in his life. During the first week of July of that year, the Battle of Gettysburg occurred, resulting in the loss of some 60,000 American lives. Four months later in November, Lincoln delivered his famous "Gettsysburg Address." It was while Lincoln was walking among the thousands of graves there at Gettysburg that he committed his life to Christ. As he explained to a friend:

When I left Springfield [to assume the Presidency] I asked the people to pray for me. I was not a Christian. When I buried my son, the severest trial of my life, I was not a Christian. But when I went to Gettysburg and saw the graves of thousands of our soldiers, I then and there consecrated myself to Christ.

As Americans celebrate Thanksgiving each year, we hope they will retain the original gratefulness to God displayed by the Pilgrims and many other founding fathers , and remember that it is to those early and courageous Pilgrims that they owe not only the traditional Thanksgiving holiday but also the concepts of self-government, the "hard-work" ethic, self-reliant communities, and devout religious faith.

GARAGE SALE / YARD SALE

We use to do garage sale which is also known as yard sale. It's fun to do it. Through this, you will always have a goo deal on the goods you buy.

A garage sale, also known as a yard sale, rummage sale, tag sale, attic sale, moving sale, or junk sale, is an informal, irregularly scheduled event for the sale of used goods by private individuals, in which "block sales" are allowed, so that sellers are not required to obtain business licenses or collect sales tax.

Typically the goods in a garage sale are unwanted items from the household with the home owners conducting the sale. The goods are sometimes new, like-new, or just usable, offered for sale because the owner does not want or need the item, to minimize their possessions, or to raise funds. Popular motivations for a garage sale are "Spring cleaning" or the owner's move to a new residence, to even getting some well-earned spending money. The seller displays their wares to the passers-by or those responding to signs, flyers, or newspaper ads. Sometimes local television stations will broadcast a sale on the local public channel. The sales venue is typically a garage, driveway, carport, front yard, porch, or occasionally, the interior of a house. Some vendors, known as 'squatters', will set up in a highly trafficked area, and not on their own property.

Staples of garage sales include old clothing, books, toys, household knickknacks,lawn and garden tools (UTC), sports equipment, and board games. Larger items like furniture and occasionally appliances are also sold. Garage sales occur most frequently in suburban areas on good-weather weekends, and usually have designated hours for the sale. Buyers who arrive before the hours of the sale to review the items are known as "Early Birds"; they often are professional restorers or resellers. Such sales also attract people who are searching for bargains or for rare and unusual items. Bargaining also known as haggling on prices is routine, and items may or may not have price labels affixed. Some people buy goods from these sales to restore them for resale.

Some cities, such as Beverly Hills, California, and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, require that the homeowners apply and pay for a yard sale permit, and even with that homeowners in Beverly Hills can only hold yard sales in the back of their homes. Typically these permits cost only ten dollars or so.

VINTAGE CAR

VINTAGE CAR

I like vintage car because I find it so unique and outstanding. Just seeing their pictures amazes about the technology used and the different ideas inculcated just to produce an absolute piece. But what really is a vintage car?

A vintage car is commonly defined as a car built between the start of 1919 and the end of 1930. There is little debate about the start date of the vintage period—the end of World War I is a nicely defined marker there—but the end date is a matter of a little more debate. The British definition is strict about 1930 being the cut-off, while some American sources prefer 1925 since it is the pre-classic car period as defined by the Classic Car Club of America. Others see the classic period as overlapping the vintage period, especially since the vintage designation covers all vehicles produced in the period while the official classic definition does not, only including high-end vehicles of the period. Some consider the start of World War II to be the end date of the vintage period.

The vintage period in the automotive world was a time of transition. The car started off in 1919 as still something of a rarity, and ended up, in 1930, well on the way towards ubiquity. In fact, automobile production at the end of this period was not matched again until the 1950s. In the intervening years, most industrialised states built nationwide road systems with the result that, towards the end of the period, the ability to negotiate unpaved roads was no longer a prime consideration of automotive design.

Cars became much more practical, convenient and comfortable during this period. Car heating was introduced, as was the in-car radio. Antifreeze was introduced, allowing water-cooled cars to be used year-round. Four-wheel braking from a common foot pedal was introduced, as was the use of hydraulically actuated brakes. Power steering was also an innovation of this era. Towards the end of the vintage era, the system of octane rating of fuel was introduced, allowing comparison between fuels.

During this period, as well as the car adapting, society began to adapt to the car. In the United States, drive-in restaurants were introduced as well as suburban shopping centers and motels.