In today’s news, the city of Mountain View will start trapping and killing aggressive tree squirrels in Cuesta Park.

Posted on Thu, Sep. 28, 2006

City to kill aggressive tree squirrels
MOVE FOLLOWS ATTACKS ON 4-YEAR-OLD BOY, OTHERS
By Renee Koury
Mercury News

Mountain View will begin trapping and killing aggressive tree squirrels in Cuesta Park following an attack last week on a young boy who was bitten and had to undergo rabies shots.

An official with the state Department of Fish and Game declared the squirrels to be “a threat to continued public safety” after mounting reports in recent months that the squirrels had scratched several visitors and bitten three, including 4-year-old Andrew Packard last week.

“None of us wants to see the kids have to go through this,” said Fish and Game Lt. D.J. Kelly. “He’s going to have nightmares for a long time.”

But the unusual measure is drawing criticism from wildlife lovers.

“The squirrels will be back,” South Bay wildlife rehabilitator Norma Campbell said. “For every one you take out, two more will come in. It could be a never-ending project that isn’t going to accomplish anything. Maybe if people stopped going to the park for a while, that would help.”

Mountain View community services director David Muela said officials first hoped to trap and relocate the animals. But Kelly warned against moving them, saying the city would be liable for any damage the squirrels might cause elsewhere.

So for the next three weeks, a pest control company will set tube-like traps in the trees of Cuesta Park. Captured squirrels will be euthanized “in a humane way,” Muela said, though he could not elaborate.

Kelly said it’s rare for the state to recommend trapping and killing squirrels, which can be a nuisance but are not usually threatening. Their bold behavior in Mountain View stems from years of being fed by park visitors, he said.

City officials have long discouraged feeding of the animals and earlier this year increased park patrols and installed squirrel-proof trash cans.

The squirrels became more bold in their pursuit of handouts.

Cuesta Park squirrels increasingly have been jumping inside baby strollers, opening food bags and even scratching people as they seek a handout.

In last week’s attack, a tree squirrel leaped on 4-year-old Andrew as his mother was unwrapping a muffin. The squirrel wouldn’t let go of the boy, biting and scratching as Andrew ran through the park screaming. The preschooler is undergoing painful rabies shots as a precaution and taking powerful antibiotics for other possible diseases.

The latest attack prompted officials to resort to the trapping, Muela said.
Contact Renee Koury at rkoury@mercurynews.com or (650) 688-7598.

Finally, a number, a price - $249. Same price as the new 30GB iPod. The competition is tough I tellya. If the Zune has Mac support I’d get it in a heartbeat. I already have 3 iPods, getting the Zune will be sort of an experiment, trying out new ideas about listening, sharing, and buying music.

So, $249, coming out November 14th.

Let’s wait for the reviews from early adopters.

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Our very own Cuesta Park in Mountain View made it to the Mercury News today, but it isn’t for any good news. Rather, we have a problem - a Critter problem. According to the story, a 4 year old boy was attacked by a squirrel last week. Gosh, I used to love squirrels, but if you visit Cuesta Park, the whole area is swarmed with those critters, its scary. Charlotte and Cayenne should start training up for the Squirrel Deterrent Squad.

Taken from this article:

Posted on Wed, Sep. 27, 2006

Squirrel attacks plague Mtn. View park
RANGERS: DON’T FEED CRITTERS; ONE POUNCED ON BOY LAST WEEK
By Renee Koury
Mercury News

The signs went up in Mountain View’s Cuesta Park on Tuesday: Beware of Squirrels.

In the past three months, aggressive rodents have jumped into a child’s stroller and bitten at least three people.

Jennifer Packard’s 4-year-old son was their latest victim. As she unwrapped a muffin during a picnic last week, a brown tree squirrel pounced on her son, Andrew, biting and scratching as he ran screaming through the park, then hanging on as he rolled desperately in the grass.

“It was such a horror,” Packard recalled of the attack, which left her boy with a trail of red claw marks, a bite on his upper arm — and a regimen of painful rabies shots. “To hear your child screaming the way you’ve never heard before . . . it was just bone chilling.”

Now, Mountain View parks officials are fighting back. They’re seeking permission to set traps, ramping up ranger patrols and cracking down on visitors feeding the wildlife.

Mountain View Community Services Director David Muela said officials “have no reason to believe that the squirrels are rabid.” Instead, he said, their bold behavior toward humans apparently stems from years of being fed by park visitors.

As for Andrew, he’s still trying to make sense of the assault. He declared he’s never going into a park with trees ever again, his mother said, and he keeps telling everyone the squirrel was trying to eat him.

“My mommy said the squirrel sneaked down behind me and he was hugging me, but when he kissed me it was really a scratch,” he recalled Monday. “I fell down, and he fell on me, and . . . and he’s still on, and yeah, he was crazy. I don’t know what he was trying to do.”

Muela said the city is taking the attacks “very seriously. We want to make sure the park is a safe and enjoyable experience for people. It’s very unfortunate what happened to this little guy.”

The city already has ramped up park ranger patrols in recent months to enforce the no-feeding edict and monitor the creatures. The city also has installed squirrel-proof garbage cans to prevent foraging in the trash.

All of that may have made the animals more desperate.

At the park Tuesday evening, Ping Ping Kuo of Los Altos said she’s seen squirrels jump into strollers after parents leave food there while playing with their children. “They’re very aggressive,” she said.

But she hadn’t noticed the warning signs posted near where she and her 5-year-old son, Cole, were playing soccer. Close by, half a dozen squirrels chased each other and hunted around the picnic area for crumbs.

Andrew’s pediatrician and the county public health officer both said the unprovoked attack meant the squirrel might have rabies. The diminutive, wide-eyed preschooler has spent hours in the emergency room facing long waits and long needles.

It took four adults to hold him down while he got his first six shots at Stanford Hospital. Nurses gave him one tiny stuffed toy for each poke. Four more rounds of shots await him.

Santa Clara County’s public health spokeswoman Joy Alexiou said it’s rare that the department recommends a full rabies treatment for a bite victim. “But if the animal is behaving that strangely, it presents a higher risk” because unprovoked attacks can be an indicator of rabies.

Packard says she plans to seek reimbursement for Andrew’s medical expenses from the city, which has also offered to give Andrew a tour of the police and fire station.

“As a little kid, to be attacked by a squirrel and undergo this,” Packard said, “you just wonder if he’ll always have fear.”

Contact Renee Koury at rkoury@mercurynews.com or (650) 688-7598.

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© 2006 MercuryNews.com and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.

This time it buys Jumpcut, another video service. And this is the FIRST time I’ve heard of this company. I’m sure there are people like who know nothing much of anything else outside YouTube. Well, they don’t have to worry, now the world will know them! LOL. They even made a cute video about it.

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My patience with my current webhosting company is just about on its last straw. Ever since they migrated to some new servers, and I think they got new management as well, things have gone way bad. I can’t even transfer files via FTP without having to sit there and stare at the screen as it takes place, for fear that the connection will timeout. FTP shouldn’t have to be like this - just select the entire file structure, drag it to your local directory and you should be all set! How can one expect to locate any corrupted files along the way? Ugh. Anyway, the reason why I haven’t been writing the past few days was because I was thinking of moving to a new webhost, but now I think I will wait it out for a little bit (since my contract hasn’t expired) and see if they would improve.

San Francisco Day Trip
Originally uploaded by RoadsterGrrl.

We took my parents to San Francisco for a tour of the usual SF sights - Lombard St, Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, and Chinatown.

View pictures here.

First there’s the guidebook, and now a Soundtrack CD???? I wish I were in Tokyo now …

Source: Kotaku

VW Eos, Eismeer Blue
Originally uploaded by RoadsterGrrl.

I’ve been trying to find a car that will suit my needs at this point in time - I want a convertible that allows me to be able to transport little Rebecca, a retractable hard top and 4 seats would be perfect. Plus the car has to be mid-size, sporty and classy, no SUVs if I can help it. I was looking at this list of cars:

1. Mazda MX-5 PRHT (only 2 seats)
2. Audi A4 2.0T (sedan, cabriolet out of budget)
3. Infiniti G35 Sedan (new design for 2007, might exceed budget, not convertible)

Budget should be no more than $32,000. Now this new VW model appears (2007 VW Eos) and I think its closer to my requirements compared to my top three. It is a convertible, has a hard top, seats 4. The only downside is the compromised trunk space, and the 2 doors instead of 4. Price wise is ok too, if I get the one without any of the packages I can keep it just hovering around $30,000. The Eismeer Blue looks really cool in the pics, but I gotta see it in person to make a choice between that and white. I would get the red but its too dark for my liking.

Ahh, decisions, decisions.

The LocoRoco Guide Book goes on sale today, according to Kotako, but what about the US? Any love for it here? Apparently not … yet.

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On the Ellen Degeneres Show today there was this woman who came on to introduce some tech gadgets, and guess what, she showed the Zune. The Zune is not even priced, nor selling, and Ellen gives everyone in the audience one!

I am a BIG fan of BBC’s Top Gear, so imagine my shock when I saw the news that Richard Hammond, one of the presenters, was involved in a car crash that took place at 280mph. He was driving a rocket-powered dragster car capable of up to 300mph. I really hope he pulls through.

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9.21.2006 Update on the Hamster:
Stable but serious condition

I gotta say even though I’ve bought quite a bit of music from the iTunes Store (formerly known as iTunes Music Store), but I’m getting sick of the 5 computer limit that have been placed on it. I feel restricted. My previous hard disk crashed and I didn’t get to de-authorize it, so now I’m left with 4 instead of 5 computers I can authorize to play my music. This is getting ridiculous.

I have begun to go back to old-school habits of buying music CDs. I can rip it anytime I want, no DRM, and at a higher quality. Now that’s what I like. So until iTS comes up with a better solution, I’ll be staying off iTS if I can help it.

Rebecca and Grandpa
Originally uploaded by RoadsterGrrl.

My Mom and Dad are visiting from Singapore, and although Rebecca took to my Mom in no time, she is still a little apprehensive about my Dad. When he talks to her, she would just stare at him, not smiling, and cries when Dad tries to carry her. I’m sure she’ll warm up to him given a few more days. It’s interesting to see this new shyness from her, as she tries to figure out which adult she likes better than others. For the most part, she will smile and interact with friends and family members whom she’s never seen before, but being carried is a NO-NO.

I’ve been waiting for this DS game for 2 months, and finally, its out. Gotta make a trip to Best Buy today! I’ll also be getting the new Pokemon game. Woohoo!

Dragon Heroes: Rocket Slime Review on IGN

Newegg is having a promotion and is selling a selected list of tech gadgets for 99 cents each.

Check it out

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