Toads can get used to you. We had at one of the parks I worked at that used to come out and sit under the security light over the payphone and catch the moths and other insects that were attracted by the light. It got used to me, and would actually come see me when I was down there.
Frogs are absolutely amazing. When I was eight or nine, I got some tadpoles from the frog pond down the street. Every day, I would walk back to the pond with a bucket and get fresh water for them. Out of the five that I had in the fish bowl, one was lost down the drain when my mom helped change the water (she was banned from helping after that), the cat ate one, one died, one turned into the cutest little froglet (that I released back into the pond), and the fifth just got bigger and fatter. I found out later that it was probably a bull frog tadpole, which stay in tadpole form for two years before turning into a froglet.
Which Zelda game is that from?
Lee, that's really cool. My stuff is all frogs, horseshoe crabs and dragonflies. Guess what I like, lol.
I've discovered that I live in an amphibian lover's paradise here at the cottage.
That's too bad, Aaron. Frogs are some of my favorite animals, I'm bummed they freak you out 
Jed's already messaged me back. This site looks really great, looks like a blog plus numerous podcasts, and he also sent a link to his soundcloud page. I started a thread on the forum asking about local stuff in Phoenix, but for some reason the place just isn't as friendly now as it was when I joined ten years ago. Ten years ago, I would have gotten a ton of replies to my request for help when I started doing Folk Friday blogs, and someone would have replied in the first couple of hours to my request for music in the Phoenix area. I have no idea if I'll get any help at all, but it was worth a try.
My beliefs are nature-based, for the most part. Everything is inter-connected. All living things have an essence, some places have one, too. We all have power and abilities, if we choose to use them. I also believe in karma and reincarnation. I have an interest in Buddhism, as well, but I'm not enough of a believer to become a Buddhist, can't give up my omniverous ways, nor am I going to allow mozzies to bite me without slapping them flat, or ants to get into my sugar bowl without spraying them with soapy water. That's kind of a general overview, more or less.
The property was my dad's. My brother (the executor) and his lawyer are just now settling the estate and dad died five years ago. I have to buy out my brother's share, but since I let him dip into the estate to keep his business, I only have to come up with $10,000. That gets me the '60 T-bird, too, though. I, too, have no credit, but my brother's putting the deed in my name, so I can borrow against the property to get the loan and then pay him. I'll get the car running again and sell it (after I drive it a few times, just because I can't hold the title and not, now, can I?). The place was in the middle of major renovations and is currently without plumbing, insulation, and sheetrock, and now we can add wiring to the mix because some asshat broke in and stole all the wiring. Sigh. I care less about the house and more about the land, though.
I'll ask around about local stuff for you. In the meantime, there is a radio program on NPR on Saturday nights called The Thistle and Shamrock that goes from 8-9 PM. She mostly covers Irish, Scottish, and other Celtic music (like Brittany and Wales), or music influenced by Celtic music, but she usually has great stuff. The website, Thistle Radio, lets you stream the last ten shows and archives the playlists. One of the people on the folkie website does a radio program that you can stream - Laurel Paulson-Pierce, KROV FM, that's her June show, the others are archived here. My friend Jed has a friend who does a podcast, I'll message him and get that info for you.
I'm a pagan. And a non-denominational pagan, at that. Imagine the shit I have to put with, lol. My best friend from college went the "born-again" route and has gone completely off the deep end. I severed ties when she felt the need to chastise me over my lack of Christian faith. One of my other good friends is a Baptist who has never felt the need to push his belief onto me. We've had some great debates and discussions and have come to the agreement that although we don't agree on the path or the form of our final destination, the end result is the same: live a good life, be kind to others, and follow some sort of code of ethics.
