... a cache on the forest floor created by red squirrels to store food for the winter is called a 'midden'?  It looks like a mound of dead leaves and debris at the base of a tree.  It features burrowing holes and sometimes visible stashes of pinecones or other food items.

Thanks to VELMA HUDSON for the photos. 

  For a wonderful article on red squirrels visit:  http://www.donmeredith.ca/article-forest-chickaree.php

...at least 50 of the 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke have been proven to cause cancer

...less than 20 per cent of Canadians (aged 15 and over) smoke

...smoking rates in Alberta are slightly higher than in the rest of Canada

...30 percent of smokers start before age 15

...smoking rates in Canada have been going down since 1965

...nicotine is an oily liquid

...in Canada, there are more ex-smokers than than there are smokers

...within 24 hours after quitting, your chance of having a heart attack decreases

...one year after your last cigarette, your risk of a heart attack is cut in half

Visit my blog for the intimate details of my personal battle to quit smoking.  I invite you to leave me a message of support.

http://eileenschuh.blogspot.com

...Dildo, Newfoundland is a town in Chapel Arm at the bottom of Trinity Bay.  It was named for the pin on a rowboat in which the oar is attached (also known as a 'thole pin'). 

Newfoundland isn't the only Canadian province with crazy names for towns.  How about 'Livelong' in north western Saskatchewan.  I'm not sure from where its name is derived.

The hero in my 'Back Tracker' series of novels was a Saskatchewan farm boy until life plunged him into the wicked world of biker gangs.  He often misses the peace and simplicity of his prairie childhood.

...'Kabloona' is a person who is not of Inuit ancestry, esp. a white person.  Those native to the Arctic, also often refer to white people as 'Southerners.'

The young heroine in my Back Tracker series was a Kabloona.  During her early childhood, her father was posted to an Arctic RCMP detachment.  Katrina lived there with her parents until the family returned to the South (Calgary) once Katrina reached school age.

...scientists are developing metamaterials that bend light in unique ways, giving rise to the possibility of creating 'cloaks of invisibility'--if the material doesn't reflect light back to your eyes, it will be invisible to you.

One of my characters in my sci-fi short story, "A Nepaterian Visitation" remarks that support posts in hockey arenas could be wrapped in such a material, allowing fans an uninterrupted view of the on-ice action.

Update on Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at 12:31PM by Eileen Schuh

I've posted "A Nepaterian Visition" to my website to raise money to help those afffected by the Pakistan flood.  Information on how to support the relief effort preceeds the story.  I'm inviting my fans, friends, and family to donate what they feel the story is worth.  Thank you for your support.

This is the link to my story: http://www.eileenschuh.com/books-free-reads/