Lake Of The Big Snake

Robert Twigger goes to the Far East in search of the world's longest snake - 'echoes of Gerald Durrell's trips crossed with Redmond O'Hanlon's foray into the heart of Borneo . . . a fantastic book' DAILY MAIL About to be married, Robert Twigger decides on his last great adventure as a bachelor. Surfing the net, he discovers the Roosevelt Prize - worth $50,000 - for the capture of a live 30 foot python. Armed only with a tin of High Toast Snuff (deadly if sniffed by a snake), Twigger sets off into the remote jungles of Indonesia in search of his prey. Along the way, he investigates the legendarily beautiful women of Sulawesi, treads in Nabokov's footsteps, looks for giant snakes beneath the sewers of Kuala Lumpur, and spends time with a variety of snake catchers and cults. After being caught up in anti-Chinese riots and surviving on greasy civet cat in the jungle, Twigger finally comes face to face with the big one; but the final capture is not quite what he had in mind.

Two boys outwit a hungry snake in an African rain forest village.

In a circular valley beneath the looming peaks of the Himalaya lies Kathmandu, Nepal. It's a city of shimmering prayer flags, sacred cows, lavish festivals, and violent political turbulence—and a world that journalist Jeff Greenwald has come to call home. Snake Lake unfolds during 1990's dramatic "people power" uprising against Nepal's long–entrenched monarchy. The story follows Greenwald as he wins the friendship of a high lama who reveals the pillars of Tibetan Buddhism; embarks on a passionate romance with a spunky but curiously unlucky news photographer; and discovers what democracy means to rural Nepali citizens—all while covering the revolution for a major American newspaper. Meanwhile, back in the U.S., Greenwald's brilliant but troubled younger brother descends into a deepening depression. The author is forced to choose between witnessing Nepal's long–overdue revolution and reconnecting with an alienated brother in desperate need of help. Snake Lake is primarily a memoir (though the roles of several characters have been recast). Focused on the life–changing events that unfolded during one calamitous spring, the book weaves a vivid tapestry of Buddhism, revolution, and the often serpentine paths to personal liberation.

This report (269 pages, 4 plates) presents hydrogeologic, groundwater-monitoring, and hydrochemical studies by the Utah Geological Survey (UGS) in Snake Valley, Tule Valley, and Fish Springs Flat in Millard and Juab Counties, west-central Utah. Data From the newly established UGS groundwater-monitoring network establish current baseline conditions, and will help quantify the effects of future variations in climate and groundwater pumping. New hydrochemical data show that groundwater quality is generally good, major-solute chemistry varies systematically from recharge to discharge areas, and suggest that most groundwater was recharged over one thousand years ago, implying low recharge rates and/or long or slow flow paths. Two aquifer tests yield estimates of transmissivity and storativity for the carbonate-rock and basin-fill aquifers. Variations in the potentiometric surface, hydrogeology, and hydrochemistry are consistent with the hypothesis of regional groundwater flow from Snake Valley northeast to Tule Valley and Fish Springs. Collectively, our work delineates groundwater levels, flow, and chemistry in Snake Valley and adjacent basins to a much greater degree than previously possible, and emphasizes the sensitivity of the groundwater system to possible increases in groundwater pumping.

In his book RādhāKrsna Sunil Gangopadhyay did not treat Krsna and Rādhā as god and goddess. He described them as common ordinary human just like us. His description of the love between Rādhā and Krsna therefore had sensual connotations following the custom of many literary publications of the past like Jayadeva's 'Gitagovinda' and many Padābali Kirtanas. However, we have to remember that Krsna is the 'Param Brahma' that is the Supreme Spirit as defined in the Hindu Dharma Shāstras. Shrimati Rādhā is his consort or his 'Shakti' that is power. The 'Prema' that is love between them is devotional and spiritual love. Krsna and Rādhā's devotional love plays are the 'Rāsa Lilā' of Bhagavān Shri Krsna and his 'Shakti' Rādhā.

My life was full of many unexpected experiences. Some were good, and some were bad. During that time of war, mostly bad times occurred more often than good times. Those good times didnt last longer. I think there is a reason why things happen to people, and as always there are results afterward, either good or bad. My hope all these years of war in South Sudan was that someday, there would be a joyful moment for me as the outcome of my horrible suffering. I do not have many good times to remember in my past life since the day I left South Sudan until the day I arrived in the United States of America. However, even then still, I always felt like I was missing something. Of course, indeed, part of me is missing: my whole family was not with me. I never gave up on myself when I was in that horrible situation. I resisted the pain I was facing. I wish of no ravage that I should do against my foes for what they did to me. I wish for the bad day to get over and hope for better tomorrow. I never except the weakness to engage my mind. Instead, I wish to preach the word of peace to my enemies for the sake of freedom in order to save the lives of the innocent. I wish to just speak out only the word of unification. I want to make the world aware of the war situation that was going on in my hometown and convey peace among the people and avoid more lives to be lost. War is wrong; we are all human beings with only one common goal: the soul. However, the only message you should be saying to your enemies is peace. Bear in mind that when you are torturing someone, you are torturing yourself as well. You might not feel it physically but emotionally, maybe not at the moment, but afterward, in the near future, when peace comes and when justice prevails. My parents used to tell me not to be afraid but to brave and strong. The fear one is the one got kill first in battle because they panic and run randomly into ambush.

A comprehensive guide to cryptozoology—the quest to identify animals that have not been officially catalogued by science and to place these unknown animals into their proper zoological categories. In this fascinating two-volume encyclopedia, author George M. Eberhart provides a comprehensive catalog of nearly 1,000 cryptids—unknown animals usually reported through eyewitness accounts and not yet described by science. Cryptids are the stuff of folklore, hoaxes, and genuine scientific breakthroughs. There are 400 now-classified cryptids once considered either extinct or pure fantasy. The cryptozoologist's job is to strip away the myth, misidentification, and mystery—and separate fact from fiction. Mysterious Creatures covers everything from dinosaurs and the emala-ntouka, an elephant-killing dinosaur-like animal of central Africa, to searches for the Loch Ness monster, Bigfoot, and other cryptozoological hoaxes. Entries about specific animals include the derivation or meaning of each cryptid's name, its scientific name, variant names, a physical description, behavior, description of tracks, habitat, significant sightings, present status, and possible explanations. Illustrations and photographs accompany many entries. The book also includes resources and references for further information.

Brings the paranormal beings and places of the Iroquois folklore tradition to life through historic and contemporary accounts of otherworldly encounters • Recounts stories of shapeshifting witches, giant flying heads, enchanted masks, ethereal lights, talking animals, Little People, spirit-choirs, potent curses, and haunted hills, roads, and battlefields • Includes accounts of miraculous healings by shamans and medicine people such as Mad Bear and Ted Williams • Shows how these traditions can help one see the richness of the world and help those who have lost the chants of their own ancestors With a rich history reaching back more than one thousand years, the six nations of the Iroquois Confederacy--the Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, the Seneca, and the Tuscarora--are considered to be the most avid storytellers on earth with a collection of tales so vast it would dwarf those of any other society. Covering nearly the whole of New York State from the Hudson and Mohawk River Valleys westward across the Finger Lakes region to Niagara Falls and Salamanca, this mystical culture’s supernatural tradition is the psychic bedrock of the Northeast, yet their treasury of tales and beliefs is largely unknown and their most powerful sacred sites unrecognized. Assembling the lore and beliefs of this guarded spiritual legacy, Michael Bastine and Mason Winfield share the stories they have collected of both historic and contemporary encounters with beings and places of Iroquois legend: shapeshifting witches, strange forest creatures, ethereal lights, vampire zombies, cursed areas, dark magicians, talking animals, enchanted masks, and haunted hills, roads, and battlefields as well as accounts of miraculous healings by medicine people such as Mad Bear and Ted Williams. Grounding their tales with a history of the Haundenosaunee, the People of the Long House, the authors show how the supernatural beings, places, and customs of the Iroquois live on in contemporary paranormal experience, still surfacing as startling and sometimes inspiring reports of otherworldly creatures, haunted sites, after-death messages, and mystical visions. Providing a link with America’s oldest spiritual roots, these stories help us more deeply know the nature and super-nature around us as well as offer spiritual insights for those who can no longer hear the chants of their own ancestors.