The Young and the Old Weekly Link Round-Up

One thing I've noticed over many years of observing wildlife here in the desert is that-- like humans-- the very young and the very old suffer from extreme heat more than those right in the middle. I can be sitting in the pool as cool as cool can be, but if I see a young hummingbird with its beak gaping wide open in an attempt to lower its body temperature, all of a sudden I'm hot, too. I guess you could say that's one reason why I have birdbaths and the like all over the back garden. I want all my resident critters to be as comfortable as I am.

Young Hooded Oriole feeling the heat.

Of course that goes for guests, too, like the young female Hooded Oriole you see to the right. "All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small...." Sorry. I must be having a James Herriot moment!

Another quiet week here at Casa Kittling, but I did shock the owner of the plumbing company we use. After a month of not receiving a bill for services rendered, I called and asked when I could have the invoice in order to pay it. After listening to him string together five or six extremely complimentary adjectives, I finally broke in with, "It's just how I was raised!" Now... isn't it terrible that doing what's right has become rather uncommon?

But what's not uncommon are some hand-picked links for y'all. Head 'em up, move 'em out!
 

►Books, Movies & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• An infographic showing the historical inspiration for the Game of Thrones.
• Benedict Cumberbatch will  be portraying Hamlet at the Barbican Theatre in London. 
• Beware! Computer hackers are using Jane Austen's writing to spread viruses. 
• Two bookstores with San Francisco Bay area roots are helping literary life thrive in Paris. 
• A Utah boy reading junk mail gets thousands of books after his mailman's plea goes viral. (I wish I didn't have nagging questions about his parents.)
• When it comes to the American West, no architect said it better than Mary Colter. 
• Meet the male writers who hide their gender to attract female readers. (I'm reading one of them now!)
• The George Cross awarded to World War II heroine Violette Szabo fetches over $400,000 at auction.
• Audiobooks.com is the first company to partner with Android Auto. 
• A new Game of Thrones eReading app should appeal to casual TV viewers. 
• Academics have cracked Agatha Christie's whodunnit code.
• The CW is remaking Little Women as a gritty dystopian series. Ooookay....

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• A family in Florida has found $1 million in treasure from a sunken Spanish galleon.  
• Those darned cats has gotten into all sorts of places for millennia! 
• Jackie Kennedys handmade scrapbook shows a rare glimpse into the creation of the White House Rose Garden. 
• After his death, this grandfather's family found an old trunk he'd left behind. 
• The remains of four early colonial leaders have been discovered at Jamestown, Virginia. 
• Color photos of the Hindenburg show what luxury air travel was like 80 years ago. (No cattle class for those folks!) 
• An ancient hillfort in Lochaber, Scotland, will soon be excavated.
• Ground-penetrating radar has uncovered the remains of a Nazi-destroyed synagogue.

►The Happy Wanderer◄

• 15 ancient cities you need to visit right now.
• 25 lonely little winter houses lost in majestic scenery. Some might be the perfect place to get snowed in so you have plenty of time to read.... 
• 17 satellite photos that will change how you see our world. (I posted something similar recently, but these are different photos. I like getting a bird's-eye view!) 
• This map shows the locations of the most endangered animals in the world. (Cecil, your death may wind up having some meaning after all if it means that people wake up and start doing something.)
• I'm always happy to find wonderful photographs, so how about the 2015 National Geographic Traveler photo contest winners?

►I ♥ Lists◄

• 311 reasons to celebrate Banned Books Week. 
• 11 reasons why reading is the single best hobby in the universe. 
• Time magazine says that these are the best books of 2015 so far.
• Read some reviews for famous homes in literature. 
• 10 of the oldest known surviving books in the world.
• Massage your taste buds with these desserts inspired by books.

►Book Candy◄

• The book covers of graphic artist Mike Mahle.
• Thanks to one of my favorite readers (that's you, Reta!) for the link showing a cover collection for I Captured the Castle.

That's all for this week. Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure!

Have a great weekend, and read something fabulous!