I'm coming back as a Pika

So I've been reading the most comprehensive book on mammals I've ever come across- The National Audubon Society's "Field Guide to Mammals" (Chanticleer Press, 1996).
It has all the usual guff about habitats and size etc etc but this book is JAMMED with all sorts of amazing weird little facts that you dont get from the average field guide. For example, we all know that Bears (not Teddies, note) hibernate but did you know that (and I quote) "Excrement is never found in the wintering den. The bear stops eating a few days before retiring, but then consumes roughage, such as leaves, pine needles and bits of its own hair. These pass through the digestive system and form an anal plug, up to 1 foot long, which is voided...in the spring"
Yes indeed, you heard it here first..... So, great book but the bear is not what I wanted to talk about.....have a look at this guy in the picture (pic stolen from borealforest.org btw); cute, no? He's an American Pika, they're related to rabbits and are about the size of large mice. But what makes him particularly cool? Well, listen to what the Audubon field guide says: "The American Pika feeds on...green plants.. eating some on the spot and...scurrying away with cuttings to boulders near its home. It spreads them to dry in the sun, curing its 'hay' as a farmer does...Later the dried vegetation is stored in the pika's den..In winter, the pika does not hibernate...it remains active, feeding on stored hay.." Can you beleive it??? What a great life; work like mad all summer, in the sun and take the winter off, staying in bed for the most part. Can you imagine such brilliant evolution? All the pika needs to discover is draught beer and cable....ah Pika Nirvana...

The Beautiful Miss Bunny Bear

I have mentioned that I room with my two mates, Heffly (an elephant) and Alan (not an elephant). However, I have not mentioned our house guest, Bunny Bear; see pic opposite. Bunny Bear, or 'Bunnsers' to her friends, is from Andorra and is supposedly Heffly's first cousin, though I cant see any resemblance, I must say. They both have big ears though; thats maybe it.
Bunny Bear is very delicate; she has numerous ills and rarely goes out. She mostly sits quietly wrapped in a shawl and sips peppermint tea. She has a consumptive appearance that makes me feel sometimes that I am living with a ghost rather than a rabbit. A ghost that surreptitiously rustles sweet papers under its shawl (ooo, scary..), but a ghost nonetheless.
Anyway, she's very lovely and an asset to our household. I think, in fact, that Alan is secretly in love with her; he is always whispering sweet nothings to her and cosseting her generally.

A Brief Introduction

Very quickly then; here's picture of me. I realise I look a bit em..fey with the tinsel and all but it was the only shot I had to paw. It was taken for a photoshoot I did for Canada Post....
Well, I'm in the house all day, I was bored and in the course of surfing around the web, I saw that Canada Post create personalised stamps on demand. So I gave it a lash and here we are. As you can see, my intention was to create something useful, to be used at Christmas time; ahh such organisation. Anyway, I'll see if I can upload the end product themselves so you can have a look. I'll also look for some better photos...
In the meantime, here's the
Canad a Post Personalised Stamp Page

And, by way of ending my introduction, heres a link to my favourite song of all time, the 'Llama llama Duck song'; that should tell you plenty about me:
Llama Llama Duck