Department of Natural Resources

After finding itself trapped in an under-construction home's basement, a Wisconsin bear cub decided to use a nearby human contraption to make an exit.

By "these guys" I mean the much hated, highly dreaded, invasive fish known as the "Asian Carp." Michigan's Department of Natural Resources has a million dollars bounty waiting for the person or persons who come up with a way to keep the Great Lakes free of them.

If you let it, the seemingly unending stream of Illinois' woes that you see every single day in the news can really get you down. All the talk about budget fights and impasses, high crime and violence rates, high taxes, and the fact that we lead the nation in people who want to leave their state can make you forget about some of the things we can be proud of.

It looks like Illinois, and the Rockford area in particular, had a very successful skunk mating season. How do I know that? My dog Lucy got herself hosed down by a striped skunk last night, and the skunk appeared to have some little skunks cheering it on.