Locus Online reports that the deadline for submitting Hugo ballots has been extended, in part due to a computer glitch which deleted a number of online ballots. Millennium Philcon will accept ballots, electronically or by mail, through July 25. Anyone who submitted votes online on or before July 12 should cast another ballot.

This seems to be the month for weird animal stories. ABC News posted a story about a dairy in Wisconsin with 21 cloned cows. The headline and opening paragraphs make it sound as if the company is going to start shipping the dairy products out any day now. Scroll down and you'll see that all the company has done is commission some studies to determine whether there is a difference between the milk from the cloned cows and that from cows made the old-fashioned way.

In the 'conventions I wanted to attend this year' catagory, there was Convergence, which takes place over the July 4th weekend in Bloomington, Minnesota. I didn't make it this year, but the minions at Cthulhu Coffee did. Here's their Convention Report. Also of interest to furry fans may be their Hastur's Guide to Hosting a Room Party. Furry fandom has a dearth of good convention room parties, and we should attempt to learn from the experts.

On alt.fan.furry, Artie Roo writes: "This is to tell you all that my comic strip "Alice Otter" is on the
Web! Check it out at http://www.vision.nais.com/~artieroo/alice. (I know, it looks a little void right now, but that's because there's only a single strip... just give me some time!" Description of the strip is below.

I was recently informed that a story I posted last week was wrong in nearly every respect. The article in question has been removed. I apologize for the misinformation. Due to time constraints and the inability to know everything and everyone that's in fandom, we at Flayrah.com cannot always completely fact check articles that are submitted to us, though we do make a serious effort. If you do notice any misinformation posted here, help us out and drop a note to the staff. Thank you.

No kidding! Apparently the frequency at which cats purr help strengthen their bones and possibly accelerate their healing. So grab a cat next time you're feeling pained. Or, well, pick one up gently.

Some interesting stuff from Scientific American today... apparently great white sharks like their wives to stay home while they wander. And more disturbing, an article about the decline of the sea turtle because of poaching. This one contains a couple of disturbing and graphic pictures of turtles being cut up in restaurants, so don't read this one over lunch. There are prettier pictures, too, though.

Go read about the man who had a cow fall on him in a coffee shop. No, I'm not kidding. This is almost as weird as the one about the cow falling out of the airplane, though I can't remember if that one was true or not.

Beanie, a nine-month old albino wallaby in a UK theme park, has undergone a cataract operation to restore his sight. It's the first time this surgery's been attempted on a wallaby.

We are pleased to announce that the Mephit Fur Meet 2001 information is now
available!

Feral! is warming up to be one of the summer's hottest furry events!


There is only a few weeks left for registration, so check out the web site to see all the great stuff that Feral! has to offer! Register today!

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals wants to see the unedited footage from Survivor where one of the contestants killed a wild pig to see if it constitutes cruelty to animals. Since I don't watch Survivor, I can't form an opinion on this one... did anyone see it? Any comments?

I certainly wasn't expecting to see this after my last post about the injured right whale, one of only 300 right whales remaining... but apparently scientists are going to go after him again, this time with a different sedative to see if they can untangle him. I wish them the best success, and will keep an eye out for more news about their venture. Also on the ocean-front, New Scientist reports that there are fish that try to apologize to other fish by petting them with their fins.

One of the most eagerly awaited movies of the year is finally opening. Starred with heroes and heroines with much more refined polygons than those of Lara Croft, the teasers and art have every geek salivating entry to the theatres. Without giving away any spoilers, here is what to expect.

Gay League, an organization covering mainstream comics with gay themes or characters, recently did an interview with the creative team behind Circles. Pretty good interview if you want to review it: the article can be found here: Gay League Circles Interview