"Wild animals seem to have escaped the Indian Ocean tsunami, adding weight to notions they possess a "sixth sense" for disasters, experts said on Thursday.

Sri Lankan wildlife officials have said the giant waves that killed over 24,000 people along the Indian Ocean island's coast seemingly missed wild beasts, with no dead animals found.

"No elephants are dead, not even a dead hare or rabbit. I think animals can sense disaster. They have a sixth sense. They know when things are happening," H.D. Ratnayake, deputy director of Sri Lanka's Wildlife Department, said on Wednesday.

The waves washed floodwaters up to 3 km (2 miles) inland at Yala National Park in the ravaged southeast, Sri Lanka's biggest wildlife reserve and home to hundreds of wild elephants and several leopards..."

"Wildlife seem to be able to pick up certain phenomenon, especially birds ... there are many reports of birds detecting impending disasters," said Clive Walker, who has written several books on African wildlife."

I think humans are too cognizant to be able to effectively make use of what is commonly called a "sixth sense." We actually THINK too much to be able to sense these very divergent patterns and feelings that animals may feel. Certainly, animals cannot know that a wave is coming and they must run this way! But there is probably some very deeply ingrained instinct that kicks in with just the right stimuli and maybe even a little karma thrown in. Humans are far too aware and thinking to begin to respond to such instincts.

Reminds me of a Mark Twain quote, "Humans are the only animals that blush; or have to."

It has been way too long since I last Posted on here. Every week that goes by has me seeing my bookmark to this page, and I skip over it knowing there is nothing new to see here. Every time that small pang of guilt from not posting gives a knock to my thinking, I realize to myself that, at the moment, I really have nothing to say that would be worth posting here.

I guess maybe I was waiting for that inevitable summary of the goings-on for the past year, or look ahead to the future that the New Year Approaching tends to draw out of people. Personally, I think it is just the dead of winter settling in, draping a stilling blanket of cold over top the earth, damping activity and causing most people to do less and be a little more pensive with thoughts.

Sadly, this year has been a stagnant one. I have made few little improvements over myself and my lot in job and life. This year was what would be called a "building" year I guess. My job has increased dramatically in responsibility, but nil in satisfaction returned. The living quarters and social life are at the same level as a year previous, as are my interests. The one improvement I have had is a more focused study in things geek and security related when it comes to computers and networking. My appetite for learning this stuff is insatiable; and sadly my gluttony of information has tended to lead to overload on numerous occassions. Nonetheless, I continue to learn things on a daily basis and continue to improve my own technical merits and abilities and knowledge...one line, one program, one late night in front of a glowing monitor with mp3's softly playing in the background, at a time. I even have my goals for next year...learn Linux enough to use it as my main computer OS...learn Cisco IOS using simulator products (cracked, of course)...learn to quickly and accurately read network traffic dumps using ethereal and tcpdump...and possibly learn Windows scripting techniques, just to make admin-life easier.

Other more personal goals abound, but they will remain unspoken here...my own mind is sometimes my best audience, and in this case, I shall entertain it with a private show. Suffice Curiosity to simply hint at goals...health, social life, fish, financial recovery.

Blah to year-end reminisces...but...I have to admit the deathly winter months bring something out of me...albeit this year we had a disappointing autumn and even more disappointing winter, as the first 24-hour-unmelting snow came only two days ago. Much later than last year's Halloween gift. I listen to certain music more, more pensive music, greyer music...the soft crooning of Seal or the lullaby morose of Counting Crows.

Tonight was one of those great nights...very cold outside, immediately tightening the skin upon stepping out, breath escaping in great swirling clouds...something like 9 degrees out, but it doesn't feel all that evil as the wind is dead silent; leaving only that heavy, crisp stillness everywhere. Sky clear, surprisingly, as the cold seems to invite this sense of a wool blanket hovering above, shutting out any possible warmth from above; but instead, the soft, unjudging and eternal dots of the stars stare down...ever signifying our insignificance, to nearly abuse the cliche. It is nights like these that make me appreciate and adore the dead of winter; the emptiness of January; the biting of the cold; the frozen solitude that one can feel...

It has certainly been way too long since posting here...and it has been too long since I exercised my Muse; too long since I wrote for myself, stretched my mind, flexed the creativity, and poured something out; over and over, continuinally exploring prose, feeling, passion, imagery...practicing to improve.

Definitely been too long...