Free Music

DRM-free promotional tracks from Amazon, all their offerings collected in one place.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/468646/102-1123277-4946500

The Sitayana, or, Sita Sings The Blues

I posted awhile back about a scanned-in comic book version of the Ramayana[1], and today I found - via http://www.boingboing.net/ - that American cartoonist Nina Paley is making an animated musical version, much shorter, giving Sita's side of the story. Free to download, though very slow if you watch them online. I'm downloading the torrents now, and what I've seen so far is absolutely completely and utterly wonderful.

Original site, complete with explanations for those of you not familiar with the Ramayana: http://www.ninapaley.com/Sitayana/

A Sepia Mutiny post giving links to the torrent files: http://www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/archives/001393.html

[1] http://www.livejournal.com/users/mirrorshard/13780.htm

Random wildlife

Odd sight not normally encountered in a middle-class housing estate - two hens, one glossy black and one speckledy, accompanied by a rather handsome white rooster, pecking away at the side of the road.

Odd sight not normally encountered in a churchyard in the middle of town - a duck, sleeping with his head under his wing, far from anything even vaguely resembling a pond.